Rise up and walk

Acts 3:1-11 (NLT)

Peter Heals a Crippled Beggar

Peter and John went to the Temple one afternoon to take part in the three o’clock prayer service. 2 As they approached the Temple, a man lame from birth was being carried in. Each day he was put beside the Temple gate, the one called the Beautiful Gate, so he could beg from the people going into the Temple. 3 When he saw Peter and John about to enter, he asked them for some money.

4 Peter and John looked at him intently, and Peter said, “Look at us!” 5 The lame man looked at them eagerly, expecting some money. 6 But Peter said, “I don’t have any silver or gold for you. But I’ll give you what I have. In the name of Jesus Christ the Nazarene,^[a] get up and^[b] walk!”

7 Then Peter took the lame man by the right hand and helped him up. And as he did, the man’s feet and ankles were instantly healed and strengthened. 8 He jumped up, stood on his feet, and began to walk! Then, walking, leaping, and praising God, he went into the Temple with them.

9 All the people saw him walking and heard him praising God. 10 When they realized he was the lame beggar they had seen so often at the Beautiful Gate, they were absolutely astounded! 11 They all rushed out in amazement to Solomon’s Colonnade, where the man was holding tightly to Peter and John.

~~~

It's time. Rise up and walk. Be free. Walk, leap, and praise God. This is my prayer for myself first, but also for so many that I love tonight.

Headlines - Post Christmas Edition

I've been mostly living in a "cave" the last several days, away from the city, and not following the news. So I took some time this morning to catch up on headlines and articles from around the world. The following is a sampling of what caught my attention today and moved my heart to prayer:

Wolf Captured Near Tourist Portion of Great Wall

Child Maid Trafficking Spreads From Africa to US

Israel Bombs Gaza in "All Out War"

Pope Laments Global Instability

Children Killed in Afghan Attack (some Canadian soldiers were also killed)

Tear Gas Kills 5 in Peru Club

Peru Christmas Baby Named Jesus

Aceh's Victims of Nature and War

Israel Stikes Key Hamas Offices

A Year After Bhutto: Tears and Troop Movements

Ugandan LRA in "church massacre"

Israel Pounds Hamas Targets in Third Day of Offensive

And, just because any article with the line "When Canadians start acting crazy, America should fit itself for a giant straitjacket." makes me smile, The Year of Living Stupidly

It's good to have people like that...

Early last week I spent a particularly fantastic evening catching up with a friend who I hadn't seen in some months. Time with Faye is always great - filled with laughter and fantastic stories, and things that are completely and totally random and amusing.

We cooked dinner together with one of her roomates, sipped tea, and ate reclining on cushions around a coffee table, since they don't have a formal dining table yet. We talked for hours about all the happenings of our lives. About the weirdness that so often defines our experiences of life. About the way God seems to employ a somewhat twisted sense of humor as a means of direction and communication in our lives.

I was talking on the phone last night with another dear friend, and recounting bits and pieces of my conversation with Faye to her. I summed it up this way, "Faye is one of the few people left in Calgary with whom I can be totally honest about God and life and my experiences of both, and she doesn't think I'm strange, or wonder (at least too much!) about my sanity." My friend responded, "It's good to have people like that." (the friend I was speaking with on the phone, by the way is also one of those people - though living at a greater distance.)

I was re-reading Faye's latest blog post again this morning, and was struck again by how much I love her heart, and her openness to let God direct her steps and days. You can read about her adventures as a part-time nanny and with evangelism here. I only wish you could hear the love and passion in her voice when she tells these stories to you in person.

Henri on Reconciliation

Two thoughts from Henri that arrived in my inbox over the holidays:

The Task of Reconciliation

What is our task in this world as children of God and brothers and sisters of Jesus? Our task is reconciliation. Wherever we go we see divisions among people - in families, communities, cities, countries, and continents. All these divisions are tragic reflections of our separation from God. The truth that all people belong together as members of one family under God is seldom visible. Our sacred task is to reveal that truth in the reality of everyday life.

Why is that our task? Because God sent Christ to reconcile us with God and to give us the task of reconciling people with one another. As people reconcile with God through Christ we have been given the ministry of reconciliation" (see: 2 Corinthians 5:18). So whatever we do the main question is, Does it lead to reconciliation among people?

A Ministry that Never Ends

Reconciliation is much more than a one-time event by which a conflict is resolved and peace established. A ministry of reconciliation goes far beyond problem solving, mediation, and peace agreements. There is not a moment in our lives without the need for reconciliation. When we dare to look at the myriad hostile feelings and thoughts in our hearts and minds, we will immediately recognize the many little and big wars in which we take part. Our enemy can be a parent, a child, a "friendly" neighbor, people with different lifestyles, people who do not think as we think, speak as we speak, or act as we act. They all can become "them." Right there is where reconciliation is needed.

Reconciliation touches the most hidden parts of our souls. God gave reconciliation to us as a ministry that never ends.