“They’ve kicked me around ever since I was young, but they never could keep me down.” Psalm 129.2
Last night was a milestone dinner for a friend. After years of having others kick him around, exploit, and abuse him, he was moving on to a new job. Three of us gathered for dinner to say good bye and in may way confirm to him that we knew they could never keep him down. Dinner was fun! It had all the markings of a good funeral; a fresh sarcastic review of the past, a sober reflection on the present, and laughing and exchange of excitement for the future. At the end of dinner, we knew things would be forever different, and yet there was hope for something better in the future.
Each day is a potential milestone in dinner with a friend. In great dinners the food is important; friends sharing life is even more important! If we choose, God offers to sit down and share life with us. He provides great food, though it often seems a little different from what we normally intake! He is willing to listen through all our rambling conversation, in fact seems eager to get into the details. He offers rest and quietness, excitement and dance, laughter and intimate moments, with a promise that we will never be the same.
We receive life’s kicks each day. They hurt. They push us in ways we do not like and cannot anticipate. They are often unfair. The kicks hit young and old, good and bad, rich and poor, those who anticipate and those who ignore the signs. Life is painful. Life often feels like we are the football in an English soccer game. Hit hard, fast, and often without a sense of direction and purpose.
Last night I saw a friend walk off into the night with a head held high, knowing who he is, facing the challenges of the day, carrying my blessing with him.
God offers us a daily meal for life. Taking part in it is the key to life.
