Touchpoints on John
God’s Love Burns
“Branches are connected to the vine and they abide together. Fecundity is the intimacy of abiding with the vine and each other. The vine is rooted in love below the earth, in what is called the rootstalk. It is the source of all growth and renewal. Branches cannot renew themselves separately from the vine and rootstalk. No wonder Jesus says, ‘Apart from God, we can do nothing.'”
All in the Game, or the Name?
“’In the name of Jesus’ to me means, In the name of the one who wears the wounds of our lives on his back. It is not magical, but it is mystical. In the name of the one whose reputation was of loving indiscriminately. In the name of the one who found a way out of no way, even through doubt and confusion. In the name of the one who has more power than any therapist suggesting I sit beside still waters. Rather, “In the name of” refers to the one who makes me lie down, in the revelation of Gods compassion, beside still waters. Even more, who is calm waters, and whose spirit restores my soul.”
Seeds of Glory
“Some of us of have had more doodoo in our lives than others. Please share the richness of your story with others. For our children, share your shade, your fruit, your new seeds to be planted. The many new seeds your story produces is what it takes for the main stalk to be glorified. To be multiplied.”
So Very Loved
“Jesus took his place as the Son of God and returned the compliment to us. To believe Jesus is the Son of God is to believe that we, too, are the children of God, a title greater than any title a human being can be given.”
Wild Goose, Free Spirit
“May we offer an alternative. May we open the doors and windows of our personal and institutional temples. May the cords of Jesus swing with love, agapao love. May it have the snap of compassion, the wind of spirit. May it bring the rain of grace to soothe the wounded. May it be embodied in the bread and juice in a new political and religious party. The new wine party poured into new wineskins and shared to all those hungry for authenticity and a full welcome! May it be for the posers, fakers and wannabes that Brennan Manning describes.”
You’re Soaking in It!
“What Jesus was bringing was peace, no more religious destruction, or death… a life that is forever. Jesus brought life. Jesus brought life into the temples. He brought life into the homes of the ailing. He brought life to the seas and to the valleys, to the mountain tops and the desert floors. Jesus brought life. Jesus did not choose life. Life was not chosen. He was soaking in it.”
Word Swaddling
“It is a Word that can only be birthed in humbleness. This might sound trite, but maybe that’s the problem. I’m afraid to appear simple minded to others if I say the ord. This Word is available to all of us but we see it as ineffective, inefficient, and powerless. That Word is love. In my opinion, our modern culture does not see God as Word with the same fervency as the Jews and the Greeks did.”
Who Are You?
“Rather than entering the season as cynical adults, perhaps we should enter as children. I think children know the difference between Santa Claus and God better than we do. We sometimes think we are both. Maybe we should begin as a child, wondering who this God is, as though for the first time, rather than wondering who is behind the beard.”
God Loves Me
“To let go is to gradually embrace love without caveat, without condition. It doesn’t mean tolerating. It doesn’t mean hanging out with someone with the agenda of changing them. It’s letting this love which holds the stars in the firmament and keeps the blood flowing in our body and our minds full of clarity and free.”
This Is the Way
“So a sunrise, a sunset, gardening, a nature hike, having a baby snuggle in that nook between your shoulder and neck. Why, even a little bread and wine with others… All these are the Christ because they bring us in contact with the Creator/Father, and whatever brings you in contact with the Creator is the Christ. As Jesus said, ‘No one comes to the Father but by me.'”
Named and Claimed
“But here is the good news: God has named us and claimed us. Not the other way around. In the waters of baptism, we are called by name and claimed by God. In the giving of the bread and wine in communion, we are named and claimed as the residing place of God’s presence.”
Life Resurrected
“Let’s face it. We don’t really want a God who rises from the dead. We want a God who never would have been crucified in the first place. But if a resurrected God is what we have, can we at least have him not bear the scars of this earthly life?”