Revolutionary Love

We have officially entered into the season of Lent—an oft considered wilderness-like journey from the ashes of repentance to the dawning of new life in resurrection. 

If nothing else, the life of faith should be one of transformation in which we are spiritually, socially, even physically, at times, moved from one place to another—one way of being to another. Moved from brokenness to wholeness, fear to assurance, despair to hope, grief to joy; from isolation to restoration, oppression to liberation, judgment to forgiveness, all as we follow on the path Jesus leads.

I don’t know about you, but I haven’t felt much hope for the transformation of our world lately. It seems that we all are dissatisfied with the violence and hate; with the suffering and conflict and absence of love. And yet, we all seem more or less committed to staying exactly as we are, hoping for (or even impressing upon) others to change so we might experience the world as we think it should be. Yet, doubling down on our positions and becoming even more intrenched seems only to breed greater polarization, frustration, and discontent.

How is this leading us to new life?

The Lenten journey compels us to return to God with all our heart. And God compels us to give our hearts and ourselves in love to one another. So over these next forty+ days, with the assistance of the Revolutionary Love Project, authored by activist and author Valarie Kaur, we will be exploring ten practices we might engage to redirect our path—like steps we might take on a journey toward a new destination, that hopefully leads to a place of transformation and new life. 

This week, we will begin to practice our love for others through wonder and grief, beginning to shape our perspective of each other so that we may “see no stranger.” 

I hope to see you in worship this Sunday, and to grow with you in this season in our practice of God’s unending love.