We come to

How does it happen that we have so much trouble doing the good we've set out to do?

This morning Husband and I listened to a discussion about spiritual warfare from the Wild at Heart Platinum Collection Audio. Eye opening, as usual. And you remember, remember how this was once fresh in your mind. Remember your promise never to let yourself grow stale or your heart become hardened. You remember the freedom.

"For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms." Ephesians 6:12

Last week was one of those weeks for me when I was questioning the meaning of this whole thing: why we're here, who we are, what we're doing or supposed to be doing. I know the truth: we're here to love, for Love, to know Love. Grappling with the how and when, where, and who is...hard. Yet I have these opportunities right now in this time with these people, so that must be the how, when, where and who.

We spent hours yesteray in 115-degree heat sweating it out to see the sights of the desert museum, and then, after lunch, the air museum. They were both amazing things to see, but I had to keep myself present in that. The heat has a way of sucking the niceties right out of us, if we let it. Our patience fades, our bodily needs become priority number one, and it is all too easy to forget what we set out to do. It's all too easy to be quick to anger or judgment or pride or any number of things we know we want not.

On the drive home we came to a corner where there was a man with a cardboard plea for help. Weeks ago Husband and I had tucked a few MREs (Meals Ready to Eat) into the back seat of the car for just this situation. Over time they had made their way to the "way back" behind the back seat, and somehow in the moment with the man on the corner our desire to help was almost immobilized simply because we became transfixed on the slight inconvenience of the miniscule distance (four feet?) between us and the MREs. I'm astonished how our desire to help was almost squashed by our laziness and fatigue. And maybe some pride or embarrassment or sabotage from somewhere.

Be on guard. Be alert. What are the fruits of this? Test them against the truth of Scripture. Check them with what you know of the character of God.

"So I say, live by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the sinful nature. For the sinful nature desires what is contrary to the Spirit, and the Spirit what is contrary to the siful nature. They are in conflict with each other, so that you do not do what you want." Galatians 5: 16-17



Husband was driving and couldn't do much about it. Thankfully, moments before the light turned green, I climbed over the console, to the back, snatched the meal and Matt handed it to the man. I'm sure he'd have preferred money, but seemed delighted with the 3,000 calorie gift nonetheless.

All this and then, today in church, the song Song of the Body of Christ by David Haas, and Jesus brought these words to me (Lyrics in black, my thoughts in green).

Refrain:
We come to share our story.
Our story, all together we share our story, the story of God's love, redemption, and rescue.
We come to break the bread.
"And is not the bread that we break a participation in the body of Christ? Because there is one loaf, we, who are many, are one body, for we all partake of the one loaf." 1 Corinthians 10: 16b-17 We must break the bread so that there will be enough for all.
We come to know our rising from the dead.
We come, come to the earth, come to life here for these things. We come to understand the hope, the joy, the beauty of rising from one who lives in the world to one who walks in heaven, from who one survives to one who lives fully with Christ.

Verses:
1. We come as your people.
We belong to the one true God. We are his, and he is our life, our love, our hope.
We come as your own.
We are your family.
United with each other, love finds a home.
We all are family in you. When we unite, love is there. Nurture the love, care for it, protect it, share it.

2. We are called to heal the broken, to be hope for the poor.
The bread came to be broken so we wouldn't have to be. Yet we are called to be like bread, giving of ourselves to make others more whole, all in the name of the One Loaf.
We are called to feed the hungry at our door.
There are hungry right here where you are, where I am. Wherever I go, they will be. What can I offer for nourishment right here where I am?

3. Bread of life and cup of promise, in this meal we all are one.
Cup of promise. Jesus promised us so much: hope, love, life.
In our dying and our rising, may your kingdom come.
In our dying to sin and rising to life, in all these things, may your kingdom come closer and closer, may our will become one with yours.

4. You will lead and we shall follow, you will be the breath of life;
living water, we are thirsting for your light.
You give breath to life. You are the very essence of life, of living.

5. We will live and sing your praises.
We WILL live. In alleluia, we praise you, Lord.
"Alleluia" is our song. May we live in love and peace our whole life long.
Love and our peace are in us, even in this world around us. Love and peace sustain us. We come so that we may live this way, Your Way.

We come to... We come-to. We wake up. It is put freshly in our minds. We will remember. We will live this way. We will live by the Spirit.