Newsletter - November, 2011

Dear Fellow Travelers,

God is good.  I decided to go to church last night rather than attend a fundraiser.  My pastor challenged the congregation to surrender our burdens to God and to do the restorative work that the world demands of us.  I say that she challenged us because her words were much more than a simple reminder.   Have you noticed that a simple reminder never really seems to suffice?  Many of us leave church and resume our usual habits and live out our well established patterns without ever really developing a true understanding of our work in the world.

Her words grabbed me last night, as they often do. She said that instead of choosing to do God's work, we follow one of two paths. The first path being that of cynicism where we continually ask the question, what is the point. The other path is that of naivete and if we follow that one, we simply block out the hard truths that shape our lives and the lives of so many of our fellow human beings. Both paths, cynicism and naivete lead nowhere and when we choose them, we cannot do God's work in the world.

A dark cloud of cynicism slowly settled over my life these past few months and I have often found myself asking God or anyone else who will listen that very question. What is the point? People are sinful and we live in a broken world. Racism and sexism are here to stay. People lack courage. Those with privilege will continue to consume the lives of others and feel wholly entitled in doing so. The mighty will continue to crush the weak and the weak will stay weak because that is what they know. We will never have justice..blah...blah...blah. Perhaps you have been in that scary and hopeless place where you have questioned whether or not fighting the good fight is worth it because much of it can seem so pointless.

The growing disparities between the haves and have nots, for example, is enough to make one mad! Perhaps you have taken up residence in cynicism and it is now a familiar and comfortable place to call home. I cannnot live there and I understand that I am lost without God, even if my faith wavers. To understand and to act on one's understanding, however, are two different things. Like many who have been called to restorative work and who battle the dark cloud of cynicism from time to time, I have entertained thoughts of running back to the comforts of my predictable life where reality is neatly packaged and people are "nice". I have come up with every excuse in the book to take the easy way out and to not have to deal with the challenges God has placed before me or deal with the people who embody those challenges. I know full well, however, that a life of predictability and comfort behind a wall of indifference nurtures naivete as well as spiritual, physical, and mental stagnation.

Again, like cynicism, naivete leads nowhere but a grave. It does not lead to that invisible place where one can have a authentic encounter with God or honest fellowship with man. My pastor challenged me and the rest of the congregation to choose the third path, that of surrender to God. This was also surprising to me because that is what I thought I had been doing all along. Caution: One should not believe everything one thinks is true! On a deeper level, I know that surrender is not a one time thing or even a daily thing, it is an ongoing process. It is a moment to moment choice. It is really the only choice if one is to do restorative work without fleeing to the cold embrace of cynicism or a warmer embrace of naivete. It is the only choice that allows for peace of mind, which is not to be confused with resignation.

The timing of my pastor's sermon was impeccable. Earlier in the week I had personal encounters with both cyncism and naivete when helping to restore a relationship between two students. Both students were in pain and both had chosen one of the two aforementioned paths to cope with their suffering. With the help of a committed teacher, adminstrator, community member, and school counselor the two students were able to restore their relationship and maybe even see each other differently. It was an honor to be among this committed group of hopeful professionals working together to help restore a relationship. My thoughts/ feelings these past few months have been a ping pong tournament between cynicism and naivete. I am ready to put down my paddle and surrender this match to God. No matter the outcome, I will continue to do restorative work because that is why I am here. God is good.

Blessings,

Regina