Monday, April 16, 2007

Dan on making a difference

There was a time when I thought [...] that we could truly contribute and leave a mark on the world. But [...] I have only found that the world has marked me. Instead of bringing wholeness to others, I have found that the brokenness of others has become a part of me. Instead of bringing help, I have received helplessness. Instead of bringing comfort, I have received sorrow. Instead of being a light and a guide, I have found myself plunged into darkness. Instead of being an agent of salvation, I have found myself a member of the damned.

This is the hopelessness that I want my Christian brothers and sisters to be confronted with. Indeed, it is only after we have been confronted with the reality of this hopelessness that we can begin to understand the true nature of Christian hope. This hope speaks of a peasant who died abandoned and hopeless, marked by the world's whips, and thorns, and nails. And this hope continues to lead me into places where the world will, inevitably, mark me.
Dan (On Jounreying with those in Exile): always provocative, insightful, well-read and earnest. Check it out.

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

I actually have thought a lot about this. Lately, though, I have realized that while I can't fix the world, Christ can. Recently my pastor said, "We need to stop taking ourselves so seriously. This is GOD'S world." I think that this world WILL mark us with despair if we take it upon our broken, wayward, deceitful selves to fix the world instead of trusting the One who holds the universe in the palm of his hand.

Benjamin Ady said...

Dan nails it. Thankyou for sharing