(This is the fifth of a 7-part series exploring the spiritual discipline of contemplative-action.)
Human beings throughout history have offered sacrifices on altars, given tributes, said prayers, and engaged in other religious gymnastics to influence and manipulate the cosmic and divine forces. The message of Ephesians 2 is to reveal to us that human beings don’t have to engage in religious “works” in order to get God’s attention. That’s the grace. God participates with us as pure gift. We are simply called to trust God’s heart for justice in the midst of the current realities of brokenness and injustice.
In his 1965 speech on the steps of the Alabama State Capitol following the march from Selma to Montgomery, Martin Luther King, Jr. said, “The arc of the moral universe is long but it bends toward justice.” King was articulating the heart of our Creator to constantly, continually, and consistently draw all things into oneness. King was responding to the countless people yearning for justice who ask, “How long?” In his speech he enumerated many tangible examples of the changes that had taken place during the first 10 years of the Civil Rights Movement by providing a message of hope that we will not go backward but continue the pursuit of justice for all humanity. I believe that King’s hope wasn’t driven solely on the works that he witnessed personally but in his trust in the very heart of God to perpetuate life, whole life, complete life within the universe. By taking a long view of history King could see the hand of God moving humanity toward a higher plane of existence where all are included and afforded the opportunity to actualize the fullness of their gifts and abilities. God would not rest until all experience the blessing of liberation.
“While we are called to work tirelessly for the liberation of both humanity and the creation, we are called to surrender the outcomes of our work to God, for God is the driver of all justice.”
Martin Luther King, Jr. understood that the work of liberation isn’t only for the oppressed but for the oppressor as well. He made the case countless times that oppressors rarely end oppression unilaterally hence the oppressed must cry out and call for the end of oppression. King was clear to state that the removal of oppression liberates the oppressor from their misguided and destructive patterns which frees all to live more fully as part of God’s divine design for life. King believed, as do I, that God’s hand has and always will be guiding humanity toward this place of ultimate liberation.
While we are called to work tirelessly for the liberation of both humanity and the creation, we are called to surrender the outcomes of our work to God (the fourth step of contemplative-action), for God is the driver of all justice. Inspirited human beings living love are the tools and the means by which God accomplishes the work. Mother Teresa was quoted in a 1989 Time Magazine article saying, “I’m like a little pencil in (God’s) hand. That’s all. (God) does the thinking. (God) does the writing. The pencil has nothing to do with it. The pencil has only to be allowed to be used.”
To allow God to use us requires trust in God’s heart and vision along with trust in God’s activity generating and perpetuating justice and life for all. This trust then frees us to surrender the results to God in spite of what we may be experiencing in the moment. I know that I have felt depleted and discouraged in recent decades as we’ve experienced an escalation of wars and violence, a rise in authoritarianism, white supremacy, Christian nationalism, and political discord. I have found myself asking, “How long?” But I work intentionally within myself not to reside too long in despair but to move back into a posture of hope not based on my abilities but to trust God’s movement toward justice within the creation and human society.
What gives me hope is taking a long view of history to see just how far humanity has moved toward justice through the periods of colonialism and imperialism, slavery, Jim Crow, the oppression of women and the LGBTQIA+ community, the ostracizing and labeling of the mentally ill, religious persecution, and the other atrocities committed against humanity. We still have a long way to go before every single human is freed from oppression to maximize their gifts and abilities, but we are on the way. What ultimately gives me hope is trusting the heart and vision of God. God is with us. God is for us. God is a creator and perpetuator of life.
How do you help your congregation to live with a heightened awareness that they are part of the Spirit’s evolving movement of life across time and space? Ministry these days can be lonely work, who within your context invests in you and your leadership? What steps can you take to identify and equip healthy leaders who stand with you in building passion for what God is up to in our communities and across the globe? We encourage you to share your thoughts in the comments below, or in a forum on our website (https://illumin8collective.com/forums/).
God bless you!
