Why I Facebook

Why I Facebook

Scrolling through my newsfeed, I see such a mix: beauty, frustration, pain, humor, annoyance, nostalgia, hope, crassness, anger, faith, depression, worry, and love. It is a core sample of America: what we talk about when we are given a voice. My friends range in age from teenagers to great-grandparents. Each one has a life that is his or hers alone. Each person has an inner world, and we only see the surface of it, especially on Facebook. Yet all of these people are intentionally coming together to share pieces of their world with others: photos, quotes, interesting articles, videos, prayer requests, angry tirades... Each status update is a window into what that person is like on the inside. 

I like to check Facebook often and keep updated on what my friends are saying and doing. It inspires me and helps me to interact with people I might not see every day. I also like getting to know people better and having the opportunity to comment on the things they say and do, even if I never see them face-to-face. It makes the world seem smaller and humanity more connected if I am receiving daily updates on strangers who live in New York City. I scroll through the comments on posts that interest me. Do other people think like I do? Are they saying the things I would say, or is their response completely different?  What are other people doing in response to this article, this story, these words?  Are they grieving?  Are they praying?  Are they angry?  Are they looking for humor in it?  Are they offering hope?

As I read the stories in words and pictures, my own mind, my own story grows. As I connect to each of these people, places, and things,  I crawl out of my own life's bubble and experience the world. It moves my hands to action, my heart to empathy, my mind to expansion. What a way to start the day!

The Intruder

The Intruder

By: Joy Ortiz

She crept into my lap

Silently,

Curling herself neatly,

A warm and furry

Intrusion. 

Busy,

As always,

I reached around her,

Trying to continue

Everything more important. 

Impossible. 

Frustrated,

I glared down

Into wide, green eyes

And innocence. 

She rebuked me. 

Slowly

I laid down

My priorities,

Instead burying

My fingers

Deep in her fur,

Fueling

Luxurious purrs. 

How long did I pause

My frantic mind

To bask 

In the wonder

Of her?

She fell asleep,

Remaining

To warm my belly,

And something colder

Within me

Thawed. 

How different

Would the world become

If everyone

Stopped

To pet the cat?

Dig Me Up

Dig Me Up
By: Joy Ortiz

Dig me up and shake me free
Of clinging clods and earth.
Carry me to soil and sun
Where winds blow fresh and fierce.

Fill my days with singing.
Burst me into bloom.
Plant me deep in patience.
Give my roots more room.

Take me to the sunshine.
I'm tiny in this shade.
Break the sky wide open.
Feed my soul with rain.

I'm little, new, and thirsty.
My stem is young, but strong.
My leaves reach up with longing;
My sap runs sweet with song.

Dig me up and plant me!
I'm hungry for a home.
Release my roots and free me
From everything I've known.

Winds of change are stirring.
Deep calls out to deep.
Seeds grow quick with longing
To waken from their sleep.

My soul is parched and fainting.
I'm wilting, waiting; small.
Revive me with your promise.
Remind me of your call.

Take me somewhere rich with life
Where I can grow and thrive.
Train and cultivate me.
Teach me how to be alive.

Maker, great Creator,
You lift me from the dirt.
The digging up is painful, but
Your presence soothes the hurt.

I don't know where I'm going,
Nestled firmly in your hand.
I'm blind and deaf, but knowing
Where you are is where I'll land.

I trust you with the journey
As my destiny unfolds.
Dig me up and plant me!
My life is yours to hold.

I

I
By: Joy Ortiz

I want

My life to
Sing,

My hands to
Pour out
Flowers,

My eyes to
Weep
Seeds

that

Spill,

Fall,

and

Grow.

Yesterday, Today, and Forever

Yesterday, Today, and Forever

God, your Word says that you are the same "yesterday, today, and forever."  It describes you many times as "unchanging."  I believe that the Bible is trustworthy, but sometimes I have a hard time reconciling the loving Father, the faithful Friend, the tender Lover, the gentle Jesus, with the God who destroyed cities full of people and sent the Israelites to commit genocide against the Canaanites. 

Are you still that God?  Are you still the God who would command his people to slaughter innocent animals in sacrifice?  Are you still the God who wiped Sodom off of the map?  Are you still the God who sent poisonous snakes to punish your people when they sinned?  Are you still the God who got so disgusted with humanity that he flooded the earth to kill most of them and start over with just a handful?  

Are you still that God?

The God that we preach today is a God of love, mercy, and grace. This God doesn't want to hurt anyone. He loves everyone. He sent his son to pay for everyone's sins and clear the debt. He loves the world. He even loves sinners. His love is unconditional. He doesn't walk around with a big stick, ready to clobber anyone who sins. He doesn't send armies to commit genocide. He sends missionaries and Compassion International workers to serve people living in countries that are unchurched. He sends people to minister to the homeless, the sick, and those in prison. 

Are you that God?

Are you both?

Can you be the God who orders genocide and the God who weeps over genocide?  Can you be the God who demands animal sacrifice and the God who watches over the sparrow?  Can you be the God who destroyed a world full of sinners and the God who sent his son to save a world full of sinners?  Those seem like such contradictions. 

It seems like you are learning, growing, and adjusting your tactics as you go along. Yet how can that be true if you know all things already?  It seems like you have changed from the God you were in the Old Testament, yet your Word says that you never change. 

It may seem foolish to believe in a God and a Bible that present so many contradictions.  There are so many things that I don't understand, and a lot of the things I do understand don't make much sense.  Still I trust in you. I trust that you will reveal the truth and bring wisdom. I hope in you. I seek you. I want to know you.

Show me the way, Lord.  Help me to know you more. 

Friend of God

Friend of God

God, you have called me "friend" along with the many other names you gave me. What does it mean for me to be your friend?  When I think of friendship, I think of two people who spend time together because they want to. No other obligation requires them to have a relationship. They aren't bound by the ties of family; they aren't thrown together at work or on a committee.  They aren't stuck awkwardly sitting next to each other at their kids' swimming lessons. Maybe one of those situations is how they met, but something ignited within both people to make them desire to spend more time together, even when the obligation was done. Now they call or text each other, comment on each other's Facebook posts, go out to dinner, go shopping together, have craft parties, exchange gifts at Christmas, and meet at Starved Rock to go hiking. They could stop talking. They could stop meeting, but they don't want to. Both people enjoy life more when it includes friendship with each other. 

Is that how you feel about me, Lord?  You have called me "friend."  Nothing requires you to have a relationship with me. You could let me live my own life apart from you, yet you call me and say, "I miss you. Let's spend some time together."  I could live my life without you. Many people do. Yet there is something about you that makes my life better. When I go too long without talking to you or spending time with you, I miss you. Sometimes I just need to talk to you and get things off of my chest when I'm having a bad day. I inevitably walk away from that conversation feeling better. You inspire me and encourage me. You love me as I am while still wishing the best for me. Isn't that what friends do?  How am I a friend to you?  Because friendship has to go both ways; it is a reciprocal relationship. Do you miss me when we haven't talked in awhile?  Do you like listening to what I think?  Do you like seeing what I will create?  Do I inspire you? Do I encourage you?  Do I make you laugh?  Is your life better just because I'm in it?  

I'm glad we are friends. I'm glad you are not just my judge, my father, my provider, or my savior. All of those roles are important to me, too, but having you as a friend makes it easier to accept them. Being criticized by a friend (you really shouldn't buy that dress; it looks weird on you) is easier than accepting judgement from a stranger.  Listening to my father when he is also a friend is richer than having to obey a cold and distant father just because he is my parent.  When I am in need, accepting provisions from a friend is sweeter and more pleasant than being beholden to a stranger or a system.  I know that the gift was given with loving generosity, and I would gladly return the favor for my dear friend.

Thank you for being my friend. Thank you for choosing to do life with me. My life is better with you in it. 

Becoming, I Come

 Becoming, I Come
By: Joy Ortiz

Here am I
Dressed in white,
Walking down the longest aisle
To you.
I have veiled my eyes,
Covered my head
With prayers
Spun thin and numerous,
Woven together
To billow in the slightest breeze,
An effervescent reminder
That each one
Indeed
Had substance.
I have piled my hair,
A shining mass,
Curled and coiffed
Atop my head.
Its length,
Formerly
Lank and unattended,
Hiding my face
From you,
I have washed.
I brushed out
Every knot,
Cut away
Split ends.
With the greatest care
I put
Every hair in place

For you,
Pulled back
High and shining
To reveal my face.
I have washed
My hands,
Scrubbing away
Every trace
Of dirty deeds done
Before I met you.
Soaked and softened,
Every hard spot,
Each callous,
Every roughness
Melts away,
Transforming hands
Which used to labor
For my own reward
Into hands of
Tenderness.
I proudly wear
The shining white dress
You bought for me.
With time and care,
I wrought embroidery upon it
To surprise and delight you.
Every righteous deed
I have done

Sparkles like a star
Stitched in place
With all my love and effort.
See how I have added
Beauty upon beauty?
I did it all for you
That I might be
Even more beautiful
In your sight.
Look at my feet.
I have clad them
In shoes fit for dancing.
No high heels for me.
I am elevated enough
Standing on my own two feet
Next to you.
When you take my hand
And lead me
Onto the dance floor
At our wedding feast,
My feet will be ready
To keep time with yours.

Look at the flowers
I carry.
Each one was precious,
Lovely, and fragrant,
So I gathered them
To delight you
With their heady scent
And bright colors.
Have you ever seen
Such lovely blossoms?
They grew in my garden
Tended by my hands.
I grew them
From the seeds you gave me,
Watered and weeded,
Protected and plucked
To present to you
On our wedding day.

Oh my love,
I am wholly yours.
All I have done,
I have done
For you.
Today I bring you
The fruit of my days,
The culmination
Of my efforts
To make myself
Becoming
To you.
Here I come
To take your hand,
To be forever yours.