A few days ago I finished my last paper I will ever write for a M.Div. class at Fuller. I became aware of the fact that I struggle with keeping myself disciplined. I love to procrastinate, and do things at the last-minute, and certainly the quality suffers because I haven’t given these things the time they require. I also realize that I do in fact like writing, (this is why I find it somewhat befuddling that I wait until the last month in any class to actually get to the writing of a paper I should have started at least a month ago.) Thus I find myself here, starting yet another blog, however, I desire to keep myself disciplined and write at least two blog entries a week. (Another side note: I think I have only got past two blog entries total on one previous blog attempt.) However, I don’t think it is terribly interesting just to read about what I intend to do with my blog, I just want to put this out there so if anybody is actually reading this, they can hold me accountable.
So the next step was figuring out a name, and it came to me as I raised my hands to my head. Hope and Peace! These are the two tattoos I have on my wrist.
Hope (in GREEK), is the eager anticipation of the action of the Almighty God. This is on my left wrist, because I seek to allow my heart to be moved by this hope. I need to remember to allow my heart to be moved to be an instrument bringing the hope found in the gospel to the world. God has called me as a servant, and in all I do I must be an instrument of hope, which means that I must be aware of how my words and actions affect those in the world, but I can not be still, I cannot allow fear to prevent me from doing anything because hope is not passive, but active.
Similarly, Peace (or Shalom) is not passive. This is not only simply the absence of war but rather it is the making whole of humanity. Therefore, I placed this tattoo on my right hand, because I am right handed, and I am reminded that when I lift my hand I must not raise it in violence, but rather to build people up and to work for justice and peace in all endeavors. I must work to break down the walls of injustice that continue violence in this world.
Both tattoos are placed on my wrists so that I can read them, thus they are for me, to remind me to act according to these principles the Almighty guides me through. They are not instructions for others to act, but rather I hope that through my actions I can reflect these principles and through the witness of the Holy Spirit working and acting in my life, I pray that others might be inspired and driven to live in the light of the Almighty’s goodness.
There we have it, 500 to 1000 words, every Tuesday and Friday, I hope and pray that the discipline of writing this blog may help me grow, and strive after God more fervently, as well as open myself up to being a person who strives after correction and accountability. As I seek to live out the words of MLK, Jr. when he said:
If a man is called to be a street sweeper, he should sweep streets even as Michelangelo painted, or Beethoven composed music, or Shakespeare wrote poetry. He should sweep streets so well that the host of heaven and earth will pause to say; here lived a great street sweeper who did his job well.
I want to do this well, hold me to it!
Elpis and Shalom 