Written by Margot Wallace, from the Village Church
During Lent I try harder to make myself more godlike in my habits, thoughts, and, aspirations. Yet I often wonder at the disparity between knowing what it takes to be a Christian and actualizing that in fact. I know the perfection which Jesus represents in thought, word, and deed. How is it then, even as a Christian, that I fall short so often? It seems that agape love, the only love free of motives, does not come naturally at all. There is a very old Latin phrase recently discussed in Jack’s Kingdom Academy on Sunday: “homo incurvatus in se” translated from Latin: “Man/woman curved in on her/himself.” Essentially this means that we are born curved in on ourselves. While I was made from love, by love, for love, I was not spiritually aware of these origins at birth. Time, experience, education, and discipline are required to become open to God’s love which un-curves my spirit. Most importantly, I am God’s person, representative, messenger on Earth. In reflecting upon this concept, I turned to nature and the image of the budding California Poppy came to mind. Here we can witness what we know, with the right conditions, will become a magnificent blossom. While curved in on itself the bud rises from the ground with great potential to create a plethora of cascading color to decorate the hillside. This analogy from nature is all around us in different forms on our beautiful Earth!
I do not understand my own actions. For I do not do what I want, but I do the very thing I hate…I can will what is right, but I cannot do it. For I do not do the good I want, but the evil I do not want is what I do. [Romans 7:15]
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