A new day rises on a dark sky and a layer of gold covers everything in sight. As I look at the bare, leafless trees, glowing and radiating light, I see myself - stripped of all my masks and defenses; disarmed by a Love that is so much more powerful than the sun. There's something so honest about those branches that hang bare in the balance.
To know You and be known by You; to love You and be loved by You is the greatest treasure of all.
Sometimes it all feels like a dream within a dream. Time passes quickly by, and suddenly, it's like you wake up from a lifelong sleep to discover that things are not as they seem. Reality starts to spin and the tension increases. Every wall is brought to the ground and every paradigm shattered to pieces. The most real things in this life are in the unseen, and all of our souls are crying out to be caught up in this redemptive whirlwind.
Every moment is an invitation from the Father to enter into life in all its fullness. And it's here that I realise that it's only after disaster, after death, that can we be resurrected; there is always grace in the wilderness and life in places we never expected.
The beauty of the gospel is the power of exchange- God made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him. Slaves become sons and beggars become daughters. Beauty instead of ashes. The oil of gladness instead of mourning. A garment of praise instead of a spirit of despair. This is the Father's heart for us. This is what He does.
Everything is upside down in the Kingdom of the King of kings. Indeed, we have a beautiful inheritance! The Son of God became Son of Man, that we may have life in it's all fullness; to be a part of a Kingdom that cannot be shaken. A Kingdom where the face of Jesus is in the poor, the leper, and the tax collector. A Kingdom that is already here, whether you are in the slums of Ethiopia or the suburbs of America. A Kingdom where you lose your life to find it again. A Kingdom where the weak are made strong, the tears are joy, the last are first, and the humble are exalted.
We live in an age of grace- Love in place of the law, and life in place of the grave. And Love cannot be defeated; Love always wins. Love forgives. Love liberates.
And I'm reminded that through every ray of light, every lifeless tree, every flake of snow - that nothing returns void. With each passing of time, God keeps working and redemption is always ours.
