"Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus, who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. Therefore God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the name that is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father." Paul to the persecuted at Philippi (2:5-11)

17 April 2013

Boston

So my second-longest-time friend on earth ran the Boston Marathon this week.
And you all know the rest of the story.

She's okay, back home safely. 

But it makes the whole thing a little more real to me.  Degrees of separation and all.

Random acts of terror are just that, random.   Safety is an illusion we create for ourselves.  Random acts of terror are dramatic but they're part of the random acts of fallen human life.  They're ugly and broken and evil, more of course than random auto accidents or natural disasters; but you have to honor the people who go on about life, perhaps a little wiser and more cautious, but intentionally not selling out their freedoms, passions, and loves, intentionally not letting terrorists win.

I guess there's really nothing constructive to be said, except that we're all in this cesspit of humanity together, we're all vulnerable, we all die, and before we fall prey to whatever finally takes us, it would be a good idea to love one another.

Its all vanity, says the 'preacher' and without Jesus it is all vanity.  That's why Jesus gives us meaning that turns the world upside down.  That's why, in the end, people who don't have the Gospel will fall prey to hopelessness, and some of them will even think it okay to make a political point, gain attention, or act out their own psychopathology by taking the lives others.  And that's why, moments like these, allow mere mortals, whether they know Jesus or not, to reflect his glory as we defy the vanity with acts of sacrifice and agape.