The Courage of Integrity

I read this line from a prayer written by Ted Loder:  

“that I may have courage

to dare to love the enemies

    I have the integrity to make.”

I invite you to give that prayer some serious consideration.

I am thinking that it touched my nerve, so closely this morning is, because of all the hoops pastors — and other as well — jump through to please and keep the peace.

I will make true confession here.  It took me living through years of hard lessons, and  other people’s expectations to come to the point of this kind of courage   It was in  late 2009 when the Spirit filled me with a courage I had never dared to have before.

I am not talking about any other kind of courage.  I am talking about having the conviction to move up against a wrong that I witnessed occurring.  

God gave me the courage to confront as I had never confronted before.  My heart was pounding, my knees were wobbling, and my voice was tight and resisting.  all I wanted to do was go another way.

But I went! 

I did what needed to be done!

And two people that I had grown to love became my enemies — whether i liked it or not.

After that arduous afternoon I found myself struggling with the theological concept of love.  During the days, month and years that have followed, I did a lot of wondering about how love really works. I had many, many, circular conversations with myself, and sometimes others, about whether love worked.  I mean, that is, how I had always thought love worked.

What I have come to is that love isn’t always two ways. 

Oh, I experience this struggle before.  A painful divorce, after 24 years of marriage, took its toll on my tendency to idealism.  

But living with divorce was a different kind of courage.  That was a courage that was demanded of me in a different way.  Kind of the aftermath-kind-of-thing.

Acting on your conviction, somehow knowing enough, to confront a wrong you feel strongly about.  Is the kind of courage that places all self-involving feelings as unimportant -- not even an issue.  

In my case, only God’s enabling Spirit can give us that kind of courage.

A courage that must never be misused or abused. 

And yet, a courage often needed in the name of love.  This kind of courage is adhering to Jesus hard words:

43 ‘You have heard that it was said, “You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.” ⁴⁴But I say to you, Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, ⁴⁵so that you may be children of your Father in heaven; for he makes his sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the righteous and on the unrighteous. ⁴⁶For if you love those who love you, what reward do you have? Do not even the tax-collectors do the same? ⁴⁷And if you greet only your brothers and sisters, what more are you doing than others? Do not even the Gentiles do the same? ⁴⁸Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect.(Mt. 5)  

As a pastor you get a bit of kick back on this passage; this one and the time Jesus says to turn the other cheek.  Especially with confirmation kids.

Buy the truth is that these difficult requests are possible.

I can witness to that.

As far as to: ⁴⁸Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect.  

I’ll will gladly leave that to Jesus.