Being the Beloved - A Monthly Blog from CFDM Northwest
By Gwen Shipley, Co-Director CFDM NW
It is for freedom that Christ has set us free… (Gal 5:1)
Disruptions in life are guaranteed. Currently mine include a pandemic, of course; a spouse’s imminent retirement; a litter of seven puppies—very busy Mini Australian Shepherds; and why not develop a serious gardening addiction to ensure there is no margin…?!
Yet amid this whirling dervish, I left a masked birthday party recently with a lighter step, and humming, “This is how it feels to be free,” a Phillips, Craig and Dean tune from long ago.
“Free from what?” the person beside me asked.
“Hatred, I guess,” I said, surprised at my own answer. I knew there was unresolved tension in the relationship with another guest, but I wouldn’t have named it hatred! Yet the expansive sense of loving freedom where there had been a decade-old barrier, begged for a term of equal intensity in contrast. It was a given moment when grace prevailed, and we simply stepped in.
How is it that we can live so fully in the wonder of grace, yet harbor pockets of sludge that cloud parts of the image of Christ being revealed in all of us? Thus is the state of our beauty and brokenness.
When I recall the phrase, “God doing for us what we cannot do for ourselves,” the flush of relief is the same I felt the first time I heard it at a CFDM retreat. A similar wave of gratitude washes over me when I recall hearing, “always and already at work” and “Spirit at work whether we know anything of it or not.” Many of you will recognize those meaningful phrases that mirror the invitation of Jesus:
“Are you tired? Worn out? Burned out on religion? Come to me. Get away with me and you’ll recover your life. I’ll show you how to take a real rest. Walk with me and work with me—watch how I do it. Learn the unforced rhythms of grace. I won’t lay anything heavy or ill-fitting on you. Keep company with me and you’ll learn to live freely and lightly.” Matt. 11:28-30 (MSG)
You, too, may have entered the freedom of knowing your identity as the Beloved. To experience that reality and find an increased capacity to express it, is the journey that follows--the life of transformation.
We have collectively endured a season of worldwide chaos which continues in varying degrees, resulting in global unsettledness. Data is now showing the impact this is having on both individuals and societies. One common outcome looks a bit like a lover’s rebound after a bad breakup. He grasps at whatever might offer security, control or connection. Another is quite the opposite. He withdraws or turtles, becoming constricted and territorial; losing any sense of personal worth, wholeness or trust. So…
I am inviting you this month to remember how it feels to be free, to remember that:
you are The Beloved,
you can rest in the First Love who is always and already at work
you are not what you do, have, or what others say about you
you can trust God in you--a self-revealing, self-communicating God, present in the moment
you can know more deeply God and yourself, experience and express more love and freedom
Remember? Remember how it feels to be free? Take a moment to remember what it is like to be curious, in awe, to trust that God is for you; ever unfolding, always moving toward us in love.
What does it look like to live as God’s Beloved children? Can we attune our awareness to the First Love, allow ourselves to be pursued--indeed, caught, by the Love who has set us free indeed? This, not only for ourselves, but for the sake of the world that God so loves.
The next formation cohort begins Sept 11, 2021. Apply here, apply NOW!
What books, media, activities are nurturing your heart, soul, mind, strength in this season as we are loving God and our neighbor as ourselves? Post in the comments below or hop on over to our Facebook page and share with one another.