Those were the days… when we were younger and the world was innocent. When venturing off the front porch felt risky. When fish sticks were something you looked forward to and it didn’t matter that there were 650 calories and 52 grams of saturated fat in a bag of M&Ms. When high fructose corn syrup was one of the major food groups.
Those were the days… when people said what they meant and meant what they said. When folks kept their promise – even when it hurt. When it didn’t matter what it cost because it was the right thing to do. When it was easier to trust.
Those were the days… when it was fun to create simply for the joy of creating. When there wasn’t a price tag on simply expressing what God had put inside of you. Just being the person the God of the Universe breathed into your skin while you were still in your mother’s womb. He spoke time and space and light, galaxies and oceans into existence… and with the very same voice, beauty into you and me.
I’m not going to preach a sermon here but, we have been created in the image and likeness of God (read Genesis 1) and if that’s true, then the following is true: God is Creator so we are supposed to create, God is just so we are to act justly, God is love so we are supposed to love, God is truth so we are supposed to speak the truth (in love).
I guess what I’m getting at is that part of me wishes we could recapture the simple innocence of living as the beings God designed us to be [childlike 'faith', hence the metaphors earlier in this writing] unhindered by all the trappings of pursuing “success”. But the cynical (and dare I say, realistic) side of me realizes that that will never happen this side of eternity. I’ve seen far too many people sell their souls in pursuit of the American dream all while wearing the name of “Christian”, because apparently that’s what you’re supposed to do if you want to “make it”. Count me out.
The deep places of my heart are longing for those 'days' when the living, breathing Kingdom of God breaks in and is in operation here in this world. Where justice is the rule of the day, and speaking the truth isn’t something we have to pause and think about as we weigh the ramifications of what it might cost us to be honest. Where Christians act like Christ. Where we create simply for the sake of creating because that’s what the Creator designed us to do. Where trusting someone (especially a fellow “brother” or “sister” in Christ) isn’t a dangerous and scary prospect. Where "Christian" isn't a dirty word to those outside the community of believers. Where it’s okay to be me because that’s how the Creator wired me and it’s okay that His design doesn’t fit neatly into some Fortune 500 company’s personality profile of success.
As I’ve been reflecting once again on the resurrection of Christ my heart burns for His Kingdom and will to come and be done in my world. The Kingdom is here, and at the same time is yet to come; the now and the not yet. My soul is longing for that glorious day.
Even so, come quickly Lord Jesus!
