Now is the time
for the lines to grow clear.
Flames are licking
at the feet of all people,
and we walk on razors,
but the gospel of peace
dulls their edges,
damps their heat,
and the lovers of Christ
walk unscorched,
unbled.
Saturday, June 13, 2009
Thursday, June 11, 2009
The Last Days have turned into the First Days
Indeed, it is as they say: the end is merely a disguised beginning.
Undergraduate study has slithered and plummeted into my past. Exams: over; papers: complete; pop quizzes: nevermore. The end hid itself in frenetic typing, which edged my black robe with gold. My name, accompanied by more honors than I hoped for, rung strongly out to my listening family and friends. The tassel switched sides. Polite applause reddened my hands. Flowers delivered themselves into my hands, along with hugs and smiles and pictures. A wonderful end, but an end nonetheless.
Then, for 10 days, I lived for fellowship and prayer. Northfield, Massachusetts, soothed my tired eyes, pulling them to green ridges and hazed horizons. Clattering knives and pots accompanied laughing voices in a large, joyful kitchen. Silence and dancing bounded days full of changes and peace. Those 10 days of prayer were a perfect boundary - or transition? - between then and now. I can think of no better way to spend 10 days.
Now, I live in Beverly. My most recent past, Gordon College, sits a stone's throw away. I live in a house of young people. That we are all affiliated with Gordon is coincidental. For the summer, I dwell in my own room. I get to paint the walls a colour of my choosing for the first time in my life. Since I do not yet have work, I get the fun of being around the house all day. I love these people. I'm glad I do not know exactly what will happen this coming year, since that gives me the option of eager expectation. There will be laughter, that I know. And adventures, conversations, exercise, and growth. May God guide us and bless us!
To put the last few months quite simply, I shall say this: These are the days the LORD has made. In them are His teachings and blessings. How can we help but rejoice in them?
Living is good.
Undergraduate study has slithered and plummeted into my past. Exams: over; papers: complete; pop quizzes: nevermore. The end hid itself in frenetic typing, which edged my black robe with gold. My name, accompanied by more honors than I hoped for, rung strongly out to my listening family and friends. The tassel switched sides. Polite applause reddened my hands. Flowers delivered themselves into my hands, along with hugs and smiles and pictures. A wonderful end, but an end nonetheless.
Then, for 10 days, I lived for fellowship and prayer. Northfield, Massachusetts, soothed my tired eyes, pulling them to green ridges and hazed horizons. Clattering knives and pots accompanied laughing voices in a large, joyful kitchen. Silence and dancing bounded days full of changes and peace. Those 10 days of prayer were a perfect boundary - or transition? - between then and now. I can think of no better way to spend 10 days.
Now, I live in Beverly. My most recent past, Gordon College, sits a stone's throw away. I live in a house of young people. That we are all affiliated with Gordon is coincidental. For the summer, I dwell in my own room. I get to paint the walls a colour of my choosing for the first time in my life. Since I do not yet have work, I get the fun of being around the house all day. I love these people. I'm glad I do not know exactly what will happen this coming year, since that gives me the option of eager expectation. There will be laughter, that I know. And adventures, conversations, exercise, and growth. May God guide us and bless us!
To put the last few months quite simply, I shall say this: These are the days the LORD has made. In them are His teachings and blessings. How can we help but rejoice in them?
Living is good.
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