Nouwen, Edison, and John the Baptist (JTB)

Henri J.M. Nouwen in this book, The Wounded Healer, offers insights on a life well spent even in light of brokenness. I took liberty to adapt some of his thoughts into this blog. I have to keep asking the larger faith community to image what we could do together as we not only bear one another's burdens but also the brokenness of our community.



But before I offer Nouwen's thoughts, let me also write about what Thomas Edison said. One of my favorite Edison quotes is,

"If we all did the things we are capable of doing we would literally astound ourselves."



As Christ followers, I wonder why we feel so incapable of addressing the brokenness around us? You see, in Christ, we are extremely capable and we should be astounded! I love how JTB introduced Jesus - "the one more powerful than I." Jesus is the one more powerful that I and yet Jesus, the Living Christ by his Spirit, is in me making me more powerful than I could ever imagine! But power for what purpose?

Now Nouwen. What if our life purpose was to recognize the brokenness and oppression of our time, in our own heart, and make that heart-felt recognition the starting point of our work and ministry? Realistically, our work will not be perceived as authentic unless it comes from a heart wounded by the brokenness and oppression about which we speak. Therefore, we will have to make our own wounds available as a source of healing. For one person needs another to live. Therefore the deeper we are willing to enter into the painful condition which we and others know, the more likely it is that we can be leaders, leading people out of the desert into the promised land.

Let us say to others, “I will not let you go. I am going to be here tomorrow waiting for you. I expect you not to disappoint me for we will travel together. We are not alone. We are not unloved.”

Thankfully, we are redeemed to be redemptive.

Redemptive Ricochet

In a Perspectives class, Brian Hogan, former missionary to Mongolia, finished his heartbreaking story of losing his precious baby boy on the mission field. Amazingly, he spoke of the redemptive value of such a loss. The redemptive value of his son's death was that a breakthrough in his ministry came about. Brian and his wife, by being living parables, showed the people of the small village how to grieve with hope of which the village people had no concept. Grieving with hope was good news to a people who had no hope in the face of death.

I spoke to Brian after the class and purchased his book, There's a Sheep in My Bathtub. (Yes, many sheep in Mongolia.) I introduced myself and told him that I was also a bereaved father. He took the book and wrote in it: "Compensation is coming. Nothing will be forgotten." He then signed his name.

He did not explain what he wrote he merely handed the book back to me. As I pondered his two thoughts I could not help but link the statements to Scripture.

"Compensation is coming": Matthew 19:29, "And everyone who has left houses or brothers or sisters or father or mother or children or fields for my sake will receive a hundred times as much and will inherit eternal life."

"Nothing will be forgotten": Hebrews 6:10, "God is not unjust; he will not forget your work and the love you have shown him as you have helped his people and continue to help them."

Ah yes, "Praise be to the God and Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our troubles so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves have received from God."

Seeing the redemptive value in loss is a huge blessing that keeps pouring out into the lives of other broken people. It truly is a redemptive ricochet reverberating into infinity as we encourage others who encourage others . . . who encourage others! Spread the words of comfort. Let them ricochet into and off the hearts of others.