Freedom of the Way

I've been looking at a lot of online photos of baseball stadiums, especially the old ones like Crosley Field, Forbes Field, Ebbets Field, The Polo Grounds, and others (I'll try to find out how to put some pictures on here--help needed!).  In those old stadiums, the upper decks were supported by steel beams, with steel trusses working as both floor supports for the upper decks and as the ceiling for the lower decks.  From the field level, you can see in between the two decks to the "outside world" beyond the stadiums.  In many of those old parks, the outfield was wide open, with big scoreboards patching the open space that made the background the batters looked at.  Those old fields were wide open, yet the openness was accented and framed by the structures of the stadiums.  There was more air than structure, and the structure that was there spoke more of openness than it did confinement or constriction.  The focus was clearly the game on the field, where baseball players went "all out" in the practice of their vocation.  

So, trying to consider the delicate balance of freedom and commitment, visual images can be helpful (musical, fashion, rhetorical, or food metaphors might also work, but since this is my blog, I'm talking about baseball stadiums).  

Faith in Christ is a commitment, a commitment to the Way of Jesus and a commitment to the life of the community Christ calls together.  Yet, in that commitment comes the beautiful freedom to embody the truth of who we are.  Just as those old ball fields promoted the full freedom for ball players to go "all out" putting their gifts and joys to work (can we say, vocation?), so the commitment to Christ and the the Christ-community promotes the full freedom to live out our call.  This is not with a naive, blind eye to the world.  We also keep ourselves open so that the world can see our behavior, so that the world can sneak a peak as we embody who we are called to be (see also the lawn chairs on top of the office building across Waveland Avenue behind the left field fence at Wrigley Field).  Our freedom in Christ is not a freedom focused on what we are free from, but focused on our freedom to live fully into the grace God gives us through Christ--freedom to engage the Holy Spirit in discerning where our deepest joys and most profound callings might be, freedom to go "all out" in living a life fully and abundantly.  This is a freedom framed by our commitment to the Way of Jesus and embodied in the life of a community of folks committed to the Way of Jesus.  There is no constriction or confinement in this Way, but freedom and focus on living the virtues of the Way, encouraged by the community to give whatever individual expressions are most authentic.

First Blog--Connecting

Hey Folks, this is a first attempt a blog. Hopefully this will give people a chance to reflect a bit, think a bit, feel a bit, and certainly pray a bit. I also hope this will give folks a way to dream a bit, dream that kind of dream that is out of our control and totally in God's control.



That's probably a good place to start...out of our control.....



Lately I've noticed how hard it is for us to surrender. I think that maybe the reason I haven't picked "I Surrender All" for a Sunday hymn in so long is because I almost feel hypocritical singing it. The fact is that we fight for our own autonomy with far more energy than we exert in prayer, devotion, or solitude--tools of surrender to God. It also shows up in our inability to trust the community, you know, the other folks who are striving like mad to follow Jesus. We have a hard time letting go of the illusions that comfort us (doctrine, busy-ness, work, success, security, attractiveness, _____________, or, my recent pet illusion, youth), so that keeps us from fully knowing God, or from allowing God to have much of a voice in our lives. I'm not sure most of us really want to surrender the idea that we have some control over our own destiny. That's why we have such a hard time forming deep relationships with each other.  The surrender of ourselves to God or to one another in any kind of deep commitment runs the risk of hanging in even when it isn't immediately obvious what's in it for us.  I ultimately have a hard time surrendering to my brothers and sisters because I'm not sure I can trust you as much as I trust myself--the same problem I have in trusting that God deserves my surrender.



I'd love to know what you all think.



Peace and wholeness,

Jonathan