A Letter to the Church

Five Minute Friday: Church

Dear Church,

You are jars of

clay,

all of you, and you should

stop pretending

otherwise.

In your plain

selves you carry richest

treasure, the mightiest

power, and that

is the miracle.

Why

are you surprised?

You are indeed afflicted

in every way,

perplexed

persecuted

struck down.

But can you see that

you are not

crushed, not

driven to despair, not

forsaken, not

destroyed.

This is the richest

treasure,

this death.

You can die and die.

You can be

killed.

And like roots made

stronger by fire

the life within

you unfurls, always

this Jesus springing

up in resurrection.

Don’t you see?

You live that you

may die.

You give

yourself over

for His sake.

It is the only

way, o pot.

You must burn.

For His sake, then,

the life will burn like light

within you

and those who know

you, those who

see your death

will see Jesus

manifest.

Do not

lose heart.

You are wasting

away

to be renewed

day by day.

Stop looking at

the seen.

March

(crawl if you must)

into the pain,

that thin veil

over eternity,

and see the glory

that awaits.

All for His people

this extending of grace

that breaks through only

in death.

Can’t you hear it?

The song is waiting,

the life that raises you

in voices lifted

to Jesus.