This is my body

Tonight, I tried something strange. It was something that I had been taught not to do throughout the entirety of my evangelical upbringing. I took Jesus at his word. And doing so caused me to think about an event that has centered Christian community for 2000 years in a way that I had been carefully trained not to think about it, for fear of being Catholic. And it was profound.

I decided to take seriously the claim of Jesus, “This is my body.” This is not to say that those that think these words are purely symbolic are not taking the claim seriously. They are.

This has been a part of a journey for me. I realized about a year ago that my thinking about the Eucharist is inadequate. I realized this because this sacrament—which used to be the absolute center of Christian worship and the main reason Christians came together—had been relegated to an individualistic funeral service for God with little to no meaning.

So tonight, I tried to think about the Eucharist differently. I found my friend and pastor, Matt, and asked him to serve me communion. I did this as a picture of my need for the community of Christ to mediate his blessings to me. And when I ate the bread that had been dipped in wine (okay, it was juice), I thought of myself in receiving the actual body of Christ. I decided that, somehow, I was receiving a measure of grace through this very experience.

I am not sure how this all works. People that know me know that I am thoroughly Protestant. However, I am convinced that somehow we Protestants must find a way to talk about the Lord’s Table that does not strip its profound significance that generations of Christians have enjoyed.

Lament for Life

They sit in agony. They wait.
They wait for an indication that it will all be okay.
They stand still for a sign that God will move
They are your loyal followers,
Displaying covenant faithfulness to you
How long will you keep them waiting?

They wait until there is indication that Life will be okay.
Life was made for living.
Life was created for enjoying.
Life was built to display life and Life.
How long will you keep them waiting?

They long to do what other parents do.
They desire to hold their young child.
They yearn to nurse their infant.
They ache to spend sleepless nights with Life.
How long will you keep them waiting?

God is compassionate and gracious
He is abounding in love and covenant faithfulness
He is loyal to those who are loyal to Him
He will judge rightly; He will do what is right

I wait on God to move mightily
I call on God to give life Life
Yahweh gives life and Life
Yahweh will move on our behalf
I trust God.