It's good to be reminded...

The last few months I've been reading (slowly) through Henry Nouwen's book: Life of the Beloved. I have purposely taking the time to let the book marinate me with words we rarely hear or acknowledge in our lives. It seems there are always more pressing things going on in the world that take the forefront of our attentions then that of hearing and accepting our 'belovedness'. Yet, I recognize that we are hungry to hear it-- to know it-- to somehow see it in our very own lives. Although, we may believe in some theological manner that we are created in God's image-- a mirror of the divine and made in a uniqueness that is all our own-- the beloved concept rarely penetrates our souls in any real or believable way. In fact, it's more common for the opposite to occur and that is when we fight off the truth by internalizing falsehoods that are outside of us and do not speak to our beauty and this grace despite our depravity. Beauty and God's grace should be the foundation in which we build our lives.

Even in the church we speak from our pulpits about grace and this idea of unconditional love but we struggle to live it out in any practical way. We still create categories that relegate people to boxes that reflect the external. Then in some viciousness we individually and corporately receive those categories as truth rather then the former. This cycle sabotages the fundamental truth of our existence. Why is it easier for us to get caught up in this broke-down system of what we believe is our worth? We are the victims and victimizers in this structure because this system is fueled by unbelief of this gracious truth for our personal stories. Although we may communicate that everyone are recipients of grace and chosen as the beloved if we don't believe it fundamentally in ourselves we can't really believe it for anyone else, hence the need for boxes and categorizations. We need something that puts some rationality around this insane message of grace.

Nouwen says, "In the midst of this extremely painful reality, we have to reclaim the truth that we are God's chosen ones, even when our world does not choose us. As long as we allow our parents, siblings, teachers, friends and lovers to determine whether we are chosen or not, we are caught in the net of a suffocating world that accepts or rejects us according to its own agenda of effectiveness or control... The great spiritual battle begins-- and never ends-- with the reclaiming of our chosenness. Long before any human being saw us, we are seen by God's loving eyes. Long before anyone heard us cry or laugh, we are heard by our God who is all ears for us. Long before any person spoke to us in this world, we are spoken to by the voice of eternal love".

This is not a simple call, because the moment we begin to reclaim truth we will be overcome with lies. We will be confronted with worry and doubt-- wondering what our motivations must mean. Is it possible that we could be chosen? No, because we are meant to reject that message for fear we might come across as narcissistic or other's might perceive us as arrogant. Nouwen reminds us that there is no competition in being chosen. We are all chosen in our uniqueness and individuality. There is no one else that can claim my chosenness and I can't claim anyone elses. Then the astounding beauty of this acceptance and reclamation creates a new system where I am built in the foundation of belovedness which will only propel me forward to love and extend a grace that is profound and authentic-- one that is an extension of our redemptive stories. Now, there is nothing narcissistic about that.