There is a difference between existence and living. As finite beings, we all exist and alive because we are breathing air, using our senses and able to comprehend these facts. To exist is merely to be part of the status quo, another number adding up to the population of this life. It is being categorized by your gender, height, weight, hair color, and other physical attributes/deformities. It is going through the motions to survive, to keep going, to keep the machine running. There is this lingering notion inside us to not want this to end so we exist. We keeping trying to find where we fit as a puzzle piece of authentic community.
But to live, is to know and experience. To grow in knowledge of the things in front of us and the things that have come before us, and the things that will come after us. It is going through the process of doubt,belief,hope and conviction. It is having the ability to empathize, to feel pain, sorrow and joy. To live is to not only breathe oxygen, but to sit there amazed at the fact that we are so precious, so finite, that one little hole in our lungs will cause us pain and prevent us from breathing. To truly live as God has created us to live is to look at everything in our lives and reflect on their purpose. As we reflect on the purpose of everything, we engage in conversations about what we are learning. We talk to others about our transitions, our present troubles, our current triumphs. We get together for dinner to laugh, to talk , to encourage, to bless.
Society knows that there is something wrong. That’s why there is all these occupy movements. But they are confused on how to deal with what’s wrong because they only see the symptoms. You can’t just attack symptoms and side effects. You must attack the source. We spend so much time fighting against “agents of evil” when we don’t realize that we are all part of that agency. We need to be fixed ourselves. We need to be changed. Restored. Given hope. Obama promised change. We demanded it. But how funny is it that for all the time we demanded change, we still haven’t been changed ourselves. We need to be changed to change. We need to be forgiven in order to forgive. We need to know love in order to love. We need to know justice before we can demand it.
How can we change if we don’t seek? How can we seek if we only search within our flawed brethren? We need someone bigger than us to restore us from our dirty residue of the human condition.
”but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” - Romans 5:8
Sinners- broken people, people that hated God, people that didn’t believe in Him or even mocked him, You and Me.
Be the Change.
