Assumptions

There are
So many
Assumptions
Unchecked
 
And one piece of information
That I don’t go to church
Used to assume
Everything else
About me

The assumption that
Because our beliefs differ
Yours must be right
And mine must be wrong

That my refusal
To speak for Jesus anymore
Using outdated interpretations
Must mean you are holy
And I am lost
 
The assumption that
Because I think of God differently
I am far from God
And you are close
      Yet here I am
      Tucked in close
      Beside God
 
That because I dump love
On the world
With no hidden agenda
Other than presence

I am doing
A disservice
To humanity

When your assumptions
Your requirements
Your stringent set of rules
That keep everyone out
Except you

Just might be the biggest
Disservice
Of all

Come Around

No discussion
No intent
To understand
 
Just do you
Believe yet
Exactly as
I do

And if not
I don’t need
To know more

But I will
Check in
Again later
 
To see
If you’ve
Come around 

Over It

My Sunday mornings
Look different
Than yours
 
I pray
In ways
You don’t recognize

I don’t
Use the words
That assure you
I’m “in”

My life
No longer meets
Your approval

And I’m over it

Because my soul is full
My heart is at peace and
I live true
 
And as we each walk
In the direction
Our hearts lead
 
Perhaps someday
 
If there is interest

We can share the stories
Of our journeys

Things learned
On unique roads

That otherwise

Would never
Be known

First Hand Experience

I used to
Seek God
Second hand

Through

Structured studies
And weekly lectures
And widely accepted
Interpretations

And then

I would try
To make
What I had learned
Fit the circumstances
Of my life

And to be honest

It was
A forced fit
That never
Quite worked

Today

I don’t try
So hard

Today
I live
Immersed in
The circumstances
Of my life
And the lives
Of those
I love

And here

God is revealed
 
Clear as day
 
Everywhere

In everyone
And everything
I encounter
 
I find God now
First hand

In the lives

Of fellow travelers

In souls
Dancing free

In the sound

Of spring evenings
 
In the faces
Of my sisters

In every breathe

In the deep
Sweet peace
That is mine
 
Second hand theories
Beautifully replaced
With first hand
Experience
 
A gift
I wish
For us all

True

I cringe sometimes
When people tell me
What is true

In a way

That’s true only
For them

Because

If what

You believe

About God

Isn’t true

For everyone
Every day
Of the year 

Then
It is not
True

If what is true
The day
Your house
Was built
Isn't true
The day your house
Burns down

It isn’t

True

 

If what is true

The day

Your baby

Is born

Isn't true

The day your baby

Is lost

It isn’t

True

Still it’s hard

For people
Who are sure

That their true

Is truer
Than mine

To admit that

Lives are different

Making thoughts

On truth
Different too

If I Prayed

If I prayed
I wouldn't pray
For God to fix
A situation

But I would pray
For God
To fix
Me

If I prayed

I wouldn’t pray
For God to stop
Life’s ebb and flow

But I would pray

God help me handle
What goes on here

I’d pray

Don’t fix the world
Fix me

I’d pray

Don’t change the world
Change me
Make me strong
In this world

And I will go out

And change it
Myself

I Need More

I know
The feeling

That comes

When someone says

I don’t

Go to church
Right now

Or

I am
Finding God
My own way

I know

The feeling
Well

I used

To be
That scared

When anyone

Believed differently
Than me

When anyone

Lived out
Their beliefs
In ways
That didn’t fit
My mold

I used to

Look at people
With that same
Sad
Look
That people
Now give
To me

And I want to say

There is
No need
To be sad

I

Really am
OK

We have

A shared faith
That I need more from
And you need less from

I need more

And I
Will continue
On this journey
Until I find it

Protecting

God of the details
Who knows each hair
On my head

Who answers
Specific and urgent requests

Who meets secret needs

That’s

Not always true
Is it

Lots of times

Urgent prayers
Go unanswered

Lots of times

No needs are met
Be they secret or glaring

Lots of times

Specific or vague requests
Are not acknowledged

And that reality

Is Okay

What’s not Okay

Is the insistence
On ignoring
The reality
Of a sometimes
Silent
God

On protecting God’s reputation

As if that is needed

What’s not Okay

Is when we look reality
In the face
And deny it

When we do that

We are not protecting God

We are protecting

What we want
To be true
About God

Writing God’s story

 
Instead of learning
From the story
God is telling