So they picked up stones to throw at him, but Jesus hid himself and went out of the temple. - John 8:47-59
Moses said “I am who I am” long before Jesus. Jesus said the same words at the temple when surrounded and under duress. Shakespeare gave very similar words to us via Polonius: “This above all: to thine own self be true,” and Popeye said it plenty of times to Olive Oyl and Wimpy: “I Yam what I Yam.”
They are all very different characters from different times. But they all teach us the value in being our most authentic self. Being who you are is always the best way to live. For Jesus it was the only way to live. While he knew he would have to drink from a bitter cup and be surrounded by people he could not depend on when the chips were down, he had to be who he was, faithful to his Holy Father and true to himself.
The same applies to each of us in our daily lives. The shortcuts, the quick fixes, the cover stories don’t improve our situation. We are our best selves when we are who we are, warts, foibles, shortcomings and all. And like Jesus, we are desired, loved, and beloved by our Holy Father who art in Heaven. —Bob Simeone
Showing posts with label bob simeone. Show all posts
Showing posts with label bob simeone. Show all posts
Saturday, April 2, 2011
Thursday, March 31, 2011
Thursday, March 31: Bob Simeone
You will know the truth, and the truth will make you free. - John 8:21-32
Some people just don’t get it. But what if you were like Jesus? What if everyone around you did not understand you? What if your closest allies did not get it?
We all want to be heard. We all need to be understood. But what if you could not get those basic wants and needs satisfied? What if your closest friends betrayed you at your most difficult moment? What if no matter how plainly you spoke, no matter how effectively you calmed yourself and explained the facts and circumstances to
the police officer, or the judge, or the jury, or the prison guard, or the executioner, none of them could understand you? What could be worse than that? What could be more frustrating?
The only thing worse than that would be abandonment. Abandonment not from your friends, not from your neighbors, but from the very person who brought you to life. Abandonment from your birth-giving Father. Jesus knew his father’s love for him. He knew his father secured a place for him in the Kingdom, but he wanted to continue to live on earth.
We are just as human as Jesus. Jesus, His Father, and the Holy Spirit have given us Grace. A future beyond time and space. But like Jesus, we are reluctant or hesitant to take the gift. We don’t get it, the disciples did not get, the Jews did not get it ... even Jesus struggled with the love of our Creator. His love is too simple, too deep, too unconditional for all of us to grasp.
Some people just don’t get it. But what if you were like Jesus? What if everyone around you did not understand you? What if your closest allies did not get it?
We all want to be heard. We all need to be understood. But what if you could not get those basic wants and needs satisfied? What if your closest friends betrayed you at your most difficult moment? What if no matter how plainly you spoke, no matter how effectively you calmed yourself and explained the facts and circumstances to
the police officer, or the judge, or the jury, or the prison guard, or the executioner, none of them could understand you? What could be worse than that? What could be more frustrating?
The only thing worse than that would be abandonment. Abandonment not from your friends, not from your neighbors, but from the very person who brought you to life. Abandonment from your birth-giving Father. Jesus knew his father’s love for him. He knew his father secured a place for him in the Kingdom, but he wanted to continue to live on earth.
We are just as human as Jesus. Jesus, His Father, and the Holy Spirit have given us Grace. A future beyond time and space. But like Jesus, we are reluctant or hesitant to take the gift. We don’t get it, the disciples did not get, the Jews did not get it ... even Jesus struggled with the love of our Creator. His love is too simple, too deep, too unconditional for all of us to grasp.
—Bob Simeone
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)