an arc of Eternal Goodness ....{Jeremiah cont'd}

There is a arc of goodness that stretches and covers our days.

Every day then is about seeing and linking back to this arc so that the flood waters of daily life don't become a deluge and we get drowned in our moments and movements.


Today, I arrive at chapter 29 with the prophet Jeremiah. It is familiar; and so I must step back and read it all the more carefully if I want to truly listen.....

Twenty-eight chapters of anger, grief, judgment and appeals later, the clouds seem to part a little and we trace more clearly the arc.

So what You are saying is that -

my feeling removed, far away, cut off, abandoned and forgotten... that was good for me - because - I will cry out and I shall discover You again -

"For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, says the LORD, thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope. Then you will call upon Me and go and pray to me, and i will listen to you. And you will seek me and find me, when you search for me with all your heart. I will be found by you...and I will bring you back from your captivity.." ~ Jeremiah 29v11-14

These famous words we love to quote are preceded by a clear statement of God's plan and timetable:

"after seventy years are completed..I will visit you and perform my good word toward you and cause you to return to this place".

Nothing random about it.

For the people of Judah, the exile was a necessary disciplinary act of God towards their persistent rebellious ways. Can I say this? We forget too quickly when we quote Jer 29v11 that it is spoken in the context of this discipline. The way we tell our kids,

"I want you to stay here in the naughty corner until you are ready to play properly."

Yes, we forget God sometimes will, must, and does, discipline us.

What is harder as I read is this: God expects us to accept the discipline; to trust Him through it. Jeremiah was constantly pitted against a bunch of other prophets who were telling the people good stuff they wanted to hear. God repeatedly says, "I did not send these prophets. They are prophesying lies." Ouch!

Perhaps we need to accept that a brother or sister has to bring us some tough news at times.

And then we come to verse 11-14. The discipline - an exile - being cut off from all that is familiar, feeling lost, being second-class citizens... going through what one simple cannot reconcile could happen to a child of God ---  stand firmly under the arc of God's goodness.

Jeremiah is churning my spirit up!

Being God's child is not a badge. Some Christians alas seem to flaunt it! I have seen smug Christians who talk like they've got everything figured out; and it borders on offence. {wait, I think I was the smug Christian before}.

No folks, God's Mercy and Grace are specific instances of His Goodness at work in our lives to draw us to a holy union with Him. But we are often unfaithful as Judah was. We have so many other gods we depend on and cling to.

So God uses an experience of immense dislocation - an exile - to break us free from our bondage.

The old spiritual fathers and mothers have this word 'detachment' to describe the process over our lives where we recognise our smaller gods and are set free from our dependence on them. May very few of us need a disciplinary encounter of being so shaken because only that will free us... Rather, may our maturity be more like a shedding of leaves {see my book Shed Those Leaves}; where a fake, insecure outfit that never anchors us is sloughed off to reveal a strong, solid soul being formed by God's hand.

Either way, we live under the arc - of Eternal Goodness.

Time to live from the Inside-Out...and 3 keys towards that...

We live most of our lives for the outside. 
Appearances.
Actions.
Apparel.

People judge our clothes, our words, our decisions.
And so we think that's what matters. Yes, of course, their words, opinions, the way they narrow their eyes or look away just.bothers.us.

We lose sleep over that remark.
We scratch our scalps over that facebook comment.
We get all angst and angry over that email.

"Get over it!" - we try; but it isn't so easy. And it's not because we are weak; not in the sense of being a weakling.

Great leaders have moments of severe doubts and darkness. 

From preacher Charles Spurgeon to War-Time Prime Minister Winston Churchill to that great nun Mother Theresa; their stories shed vital light: there are no super-humans, not really. All of us humans are weak and insecure, yet when captivated by a Vision so beyond us, we can become capable of great good-will.


When that Vision confronts us though, most of us back away. 

Why rock the boat?
Why risk the loss?
Why take the path less traveled?
Why act so sure?

This is why probably the most important Q we need to ask as we mature is this:

 "what is it that I really want?"

We come to a time when we must realise that we are Inside Beings and will never be satisfied living for the Outside. We are made of deeper, stronger stuff. We want to believe in something, We want to stand for something, We want to make a difference. These are all Inside things. And we find them only when we dare to journey inwards to our hearts.

What does this take?

1. Devote time to understand yourself: what truly motivates you, what brings you joy. {this means less time on lesser stuff like TV or social media perhaps}

2. Have a way to dailogue with yourself and with God: a journal is really helpful here. Most of us will find ourselves rambling and haphazard until we start to make notes...and then things begin to take a form, a structure, a direction, Got to try it {or ask me when my next Journaling workshop/seminar is happening}

3. Get in touch with what is meaningful to you. Read, learn, make friends with the right tribe.

Go on, discover your Insides. It's never too early or late to begin. I'll see you around!

{feel free to raise Qs, share your experiences & thoughts in the comments!}

And remember, the Vision-Giver will give you a lift.

Can "what is it that you really want?" be the most important Q of all?

Maybe it's all because of my growing years. We were poor. No one asked me, "what would you like?". We took, sometimes, grabbed what was available. We didn't complain for my mother had an incredible gift of making life feel full even when our stomachs were not always.

But I have been wondering of late.

Even though I am prone to introspection and sometimes melancholy; I have learnt to trust the Spirit's leading. He has taught me to look back in order to look ahead.

Our future is more sabotaged by our past than we realise.

It is true. I rarely ever fought for anything I wanted. Indeed, I seldom want anything much. Some of it is the contentment I have learnt. But there is definitely a lack somewhere. I fight for justice. I fight for others too. But for myself I find I often let others decide.

This first came to light years ago in the university when my score for assertiveness was actually lower than most in the group. Nobody believed it. I was either honest or have misread all the questions.

But I realise it isn't just me.

I see it in many souls. This uncertainty. What am I about? What do I want? Where am I headed? Can I make it there?

So instead of praying and marking a trail and hacking away to stay on it; we meander.

So, what is it that you really want?

It's far easier to answer that when it is:
O, I want the red one over the green.
I want Starhub and not Mio
I want rice, not noodles
I want ....

But, what is it you really want in your life?
Joy?
Faith?
Loyalty?
Peace?

What is it that you really want your life to be about?
Truth?
Justice?
Love?

These kinds of questions seem boring, general, too idealistic.
But these are very things that we made Imago Dei is distinct from the rest of creation! We are creatures of ideals and ideas; and to let them go is to become less than who we were made to be.

So pause and ask yourelf:

What is it that you really want in your life?

Ok. Do you have it? Why not? What needs to change? Who can help you?

What is it that you really want your life to be about?

Are you on track? What distracts or discourages you? What can you do to stay on-track?

I grew up asking other kinds of Qs -
What did others want?
What does the God/Bible/church leaders want?
What do boys/men/gals/others want?

These were introductory lessons to asking the real Qs in life.

People often change their minds about what they want.
You cannot deliver what they want.
You realise that what you think God wanted isn't quite correct because you have confused God with some fear/experience/expectation.


I am not out to invent/re-invent myself.

No, I ask myself these Questions because I know I have a Teacher of Truth who will guide me and tutor me and safeguard me. When I find myself sinking under the daily needs and feeling the frustration level rise; I return to my answers and re-anchor myself in The Source.

Often I have had to apologise for messing up - to God, to my kids, to myself {ok, I am weak in the spouse department for this, my pride!}... But asking these questions has helped me clarify what is truly important, what I will sacrifice for, what I want my life to shine forth.

Why don't you try these questions? In fact, I would suggest you write them down someplace and look at them once in a while. You will be surprised what Truth will emerge and grab you.

Jenni really wants:

 a deep sense of Love in her life that flows out from her; 

her epitaph is going to read: 

Lover of God and others.