How did this all start? Where does a tapestry begin?
I can find threads that stretch back more than twenty years, but a good thread is a love for beauty and simplicity - not the simplicity of a blank canvas, but rather the inevitablity of purpose & thought giving rise to action
A sewing machine is not simple, but it has a simple, single purpose. It is beautiful.
Many more times in my life than I wish were true, I have thought good and conveniently omitted doing the good I thought. I have thought and not acted, I have assented to action, in principle. It can be convenient to think too much, to weave our life with too many complexities, and so avoid the simplicity of action.
Two quotes:
The first from Søren Kierkegaard
“We artful dodgers act as if we do not understand the New Testament, because we realize full well that we should have to change our way of life drastically. That is why we invented “religious education” and “christian doctrine.” Another concordance, another lexicon, a few more commentaries, three other translations, because it is all so difficult to understand. Yes, of course, dear God, all of us… we would be lost if it were not for “scholarly doctrine”
The second from Paul to Timothy:
1 Timothy 6:17-21 (from The Message)
Tell those rich in this world’s wealth to quit being so full of themselves and so obsessed with money, which is here today and gone tomorrow. Tell them to go after God, who piles on all the riches we could ever manage – to do good, to be rich in helping others, to be extravagantly generous. If they do that, they’ll build a treasury that will last, gaining life that is truly life.
And Oh, my dear Timothy, guard the treasure you were given! Guard it with your life. Avoid the talk-show religion and the practiced confusion of the so-called experts. People caught up in a whole lot of talk can miss the whole point of faith.
Overwhelming Grace keep you!
