If it rains on the rich and the poor,
if the sun shines on the hard worker and those who snore
if cancer catches the liar and corrupts the healer
then why do I look on my wealth as a sign of approval
each dollar a gold star on my good-life tick chart
justifying behaviour because I am blessed
when maybe I’m blessed to take care of those I call Less
When freedom isn’t freeing,
and belief shatters your faith.
When grace brings condemnation,
and judgement takes love’s place.
When numbers are not crucified,
and we covert a kingdom cup.
When new realities are preached,
while old ones are lived out.
When politics drive promise,
and people are busied with promotions.
When vision is as fickle as the wind,
and the most important meetings are whispered.
When the meal is dished out and no longer served,
and I can’t stomach the food that we’ve poisoned.
That is when I’ll walk away,
before I do.
behind a tranquil monastery is a boundary of forestry hiding a barbed-wire monstrosity
a church safe cursed by a razor-wire crown of thorns
we must protect our truth, sanctified and clean
like we set the standard for what clean is
hide your light under a bushel
unless it’s sanitized and superficial
Supermarket-church snap-frozen-reheated greetings, cookie-cutter-christians rehearsed prayers and scripted meetings
Yahweh’s speechless we’ve hijacked his voice and branded it like sneakers,spread the brand globally sweatshop-manufactured-ministry, unethical in our political standing on others to maintain our status quo
checkered shirts, buzz words, clap for yourself ignore the helpless, it’s you who commands and god who follows, enslaved by his own words pages of grace turned into spiritual laws and promises
a world void of colour and complexity, 40-days of formulaic-faith-paint-by-numbers-christianity
we’ve robbed the God of creation his creativity, denied his mystery, trapped him in a black and white box of simplicity
is it any wonder he doesn’t flow through me…
when kingdom looks so different from this brand of culturanity
“The Knee, The Chapel, The Suit, And The Ring” – David Bowden
May God bless you with a restless discomfort about easy answers, half-truths and superficial relationships, so that you may seek truth boldly and love deep within your heart.
May God bless you with holy anger at injustice, oppression, and exploitation of people, so that you may tirelessly work for justice, freedom, and peace among all people.
May God bless you with the gift of tears to shed with those who suffer from pain, rejection, starvation, or the loss of all that they cherish, so that you may reach out your hand to comfort them and transform their pain into joy.
May God bless you with enough foolishness to believe that you really can make a difference in this world, so that you are able, with God’s grace, to do what others claim cannot be done.
is there love without pain?
nothing more painful than heartbreak,
nothing more pleasant than the love that preceded it.
a life cut short,
a love that blossomed yet never bloomed.
would I love the Summer without Winters gloom,
is there love without pain
There was a red hat I liked to wear.
It wasn’t cool. It didn’t have the label.
Scissors to a Nike T later, soon fixed that,
stitched the label on…
the hat was the same but perceptions had changed.
Nike.
Legit.
There is a label called “christian”, we slap it on things…
something must have the Label to stand before the throne or to be welcomed into a christian home.
A movie depicting post-apocalyptic violence is not welcome… but if it has the Label or he’s saving the last bible, then “onward christian soldier, slay the infidel!”
They both wear the Label & everyone’s happy for them even though she’s spending less time in church and more on top of him, they’ve hit 2nd base quickly headed for home, runaway train of destruction far from the throne, everyone stands on the platform smiles & waves…
they both wear the Label, “praise god” they say.
And the Label gets put on 2nd rate shit, you didn’t make it mainstream?
Make it christian legit.
Swap in “jesus” for “baby” and we’ll sing your song Sunday. Call your business christian even if your ethics don’t follow him, etch a verse or cross on your trinkets and junk , sit back & watch sales jump.
How high? The label doesn’t make the books christian, but may lead to sales of 65 million, even if biblical theology gets Left Behind…
and then there is her…
she wants to save the world, the poor, the broken-hearted. She’s good for him, he reads more, prays more, laughs more, loves more, new zest for dreams God-given, more than good for him…
if he’s honest she’s saved him. More christian than most the girls he meets who wear the Label…
yet she doesn’t wear it herself.
So no one smiles for them, some condemning in their silence, others angrily confront him in “love”, in love they may be but love isn’t what you’ve shown me.
Putting the label love on anger & self-righteousness doesn’t change how christless it is.
Putting the label christian on something doesn’t change a thing.
When the right idea or action without the label is wrong & the wrong idea or action with the label is right, maybe its time we dismissed this superficial seal of approval & took the time to look at the heart.
Putting a Nike tag on a red hat doesn’t make it Nike. Covering my heart in labels can’t cover what it really is…
only Christ can.
Pills Coffee Heresy 