i sat in a rocking chair on my porch tonight to enjoy the last moments of the days finale. the sound of nothingness drowned out the noise of the day and i was left with just God, myself and some birds to my left turning in for the night. i was very close to climbing on the roof of my house to get a little closer to the stars but decided the trouble wasn’t worth it. i sat there and talked with God for a bit and then tried to shut up so he could do a little talking. he did and i listened. he reminded me how much i need him and how hopeless i am at changing myself without him. it makes me wish more and more that i could just look like jesus. i wish i had his eyes, his heart, his love. i wish i would get over myself more often.

this morning at church bryan mentioned that the death and resurrection of christ could be summed up in one word – Love. when you think about it, everything the world knows about christians seems to revolve around love, be it the absence of it or the presence of it. love is God’s signature on the lives of his followers. the world is looking for that signature to prove our authenticity. for that to happen they must see that we are not indifferent, self-interested or comfort-oriented. as john says, “we must love not in theory or in speech but in deed and in truth.” we were challenged today to let God mess up our world. it’s time to be disturbed. the walls of the local church were never meant to provide a club for the strong but a refuge for the weak.