Words--Part Two

Jeremiah 1:4-10
Now the word of the LORD came to me saying,

"Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, and before you were born I consecrated you; I appointed you a prophet to the nations."
Then I said, "Ah, Lord GOD! Truly I do not know how to speak, for I am only a boy."
But the LORD said to me, "Do not say, 'I am only a boy'; for you shall go to all to whom I send you, and you shall speak whatever I command you,

Do not be afraid of them, for I am with you to deliver you, says the LORD."

Then the LORD put out his hand and touched my mouth; and the LORD said to me, "Now I have put my words in your mouth. See, today I appoint you over nations and over kingdoms, to pluck up and to pull down, to destroy and to overthrow, to build and to plant."

Well, I can't see myself as prophet...and I am grateful for that,because in general prophets are constantly beating their heads against walls of resistance. They say compelling things that claim the attention of their audience. They have a glimpse of what is truely going on, and they have some sense about where things may be going... and as long as the prophetic words meet the desires and expectations of those present, the folks may linger with their ears pricked up. But proclamation that points to God's hopes stretches beyond what "is". It seems to be a pattern that people reach a point where they no longer want to listen to the prophet. The boundary of comfort has been crossed, and the resistance kicks in, even to the point of casting the prophet out of the hall...or out of town...or over some cliff.

Prophesy draws us far beyond what is familiar and comfortable. In fact it propels us out of the nest of our current situation in the same way that a mother eagle thrusts her young into the void. (Young eagles HAVE to be forced to leave their comfort zones and learn to trust the invisible world (air and wind) in order to learn do what they were created to do.)

Most of us aren't prophetic all of the time.

But many of us (yes, you too) are prophetic some of the time. We are given glimpses of what is true. There are moments when God bestows an eyedropperful of wisdom to us. The Word of God reaches to us and stimulates us to proclaim to others how God is taking action. Those are the times when following God's Word transforms us, for a while, into prophets. And, truth be told, there may be significant agitation as our words and deeds manifest God's intention for peace and justice for all.

God's Word moves within friendships...or families...churches...and nations. When we articulate God's Word we proclaim God's invitation to step out from our comfortable places and free fall into a space where we will be lifted up by God's Spirit of Love. Yet, so often we prefer the familiar places, even when they are places of confusion or discord. Then we push back. Or we find that we have suddenly moved from being affirmed, even adulated, to being reviled.

How are you being met by God's Word? When you hear it, do you resist it and try to cast it from your "neighborhood"? When it meets you and calls you to speak or act as its reflection to others, are you tempted to dodge it saying "I don't know how to do that...I am only _____________"

Do not fear rejection or resistance when God calls you to be an instrument of God's Love... remember Jeremiah and all the other prophets ... who heard God say "Go, for I am with you!"