Wednesday, August 15, 2012

Act 10


I know that the “healing” offered by many churches is only metaphorical, and is about as good as a band-aid on an amputated limb.  And in fact, might even be worse than no healing at all, as it as empty as an abandoned robin’s egg—a nice pretty blue on the outside—dried-up and rotten on the inside. 

Now, lest I be painted as a cessationist…or as one who is against the healing which can occur, I know this to be true:  Jesus can heal anything. 

Anything.  Did you hear that?  Anything.  You got it…He can heal it. 

 He can heal blinded eyes and ears which can’t hear. 

He can heal skin lesions and pimples. 

He can heal broken bones and broken hearts.

He can heal your addictions.  He can heal your pain.

He can heal your scarred past and your marred marriage.

He can heal your hopelessness.

He can heal this country.

He can heal this planet.

And yet, I know we’ve come to expect not so very much from the Very Much God of the universe.

I know God  loves to love on His kids, but His kids just don’t expect any love, and thus, don’t ask for everything, let alone expect anything. 

I know the “miracles” which we experience aren’t miracles at all—just the hype of over-emotional places of worship.

I know Jesus healed lepers, the blind, the lame, the bleeding, and the broken-hearted. 

I know Jesus said His disciples would do even greater things than He did.

I know they did.

I know we aren’t.

What the hell?

What would I give for the church to once again claim its birthright and be the church?  What would I give for a group of believers to abandon their committees, slogans, mission statements, logos, coffee bars, monogrammed Bible covers, and lighting schemes and instead, passionately love one another, and the world around them…passionately love God…and show up expecting God to move…expecting healing in their midst…expecting with joy for Love to abound?

What would I give for that?

My life.  All of it.  Every dream, every wish, every desire…I’d give all of these.