ECCLESIOLOGICAL ETCHING
March 18, 2022
I brought this apple to work yesterday. I knew it was going to be a long day with my 6:30pm class. I had bought two of these apples, and I ate the other one a few days ago. It was one of the better apples I’ve had in ages. I had been longing to eat the second apple, and so last night about 45 minutes before my class started, I got out the apple and took my first bite. The flavor was nonexistent, and it had two really bad places that were not really noticeable on the surface, but they were there. Yuck! It was one of those moments, though hungry, when it wasn’t worth wasting the energy to chew. So disappointing! When it comes to food, I can work myself up a little as I look forward to a good meal or specific dish. Yet when you set your expectations high, the disappointment is even greater. Is it better to set the bar at mediocre as the potential fall won’t be quite as far? I’ve known people who have lived their lives with their bar set at just above blah. Some people might argue it’s a sure-fire way of never being disillusioned. Maybe that’s true… but the lower we set our expectations the more comfortable we become with staying right where we are – never stretching, reaching or risking. If you follow Jesus, you’re following someone who took a risk at every turn. The world today doesn’t need the Church of Mediocrity, but a community growing ever closer to the image of life exhibited in Jesus.
May the faith I live never settle for something less than your kin(g)dom vision, O Lord of Heaven and Earth. Let the success of yesterday be nothing less than the jumping off place today. Amen.
