Journeying On

Welcome to all who have found your way to this blog. Deering and I are glad you are here. For those of you who don’t know us, we are apprentices of Jesus, trying to live well the life to which we have been called. Deering ministers as a small groups pastor at a church in the central part of Ohio and I (Trenton), am currently unemployed and live in the upstate of South Carolina. 

Our paths crossed by means of good providence, something for which we give thanks regularly.  Since meeting each other almost 2 years ago, we have become close friends, confidants, sounding boards… buds. And now, risking life and limb, mental health and soberness, perhaps even friendship; we wade into the waters of blogdom together, journeying on into a new part of our friendship, journeying on in our lives together with God, sharing with whomever peruses these pages (or if no one peruses… our thoughts are still for an audience of One) some of our thoughts on the significance of what it means to live life before the God who ultimately controls both the means and the ends of – and to – our lives.

Having said all that let me make a confession: my life is far from perfect; indeed, I have more failures and weaknesses than I care to admit. For me to divide up the shards of my mind and pretend to have anything of value to share with anyone would be arrogant on my part. Yet, there is still something to the creative process of the mind co-mingling its moan with the promptings of God’s Spirit to share what weighs on one’s heart that is a bit cathartic – and perhaps a bit chilling. Perhaps the risk is too much? In light of my foibles and failures, I often wonder why God would choose to do anything with my life; much less call me His child. It is certainly nothing that resides in me. In the words of that great theologian Clint Eastwood, “Deserves got nothin’ to do with it.”

I know what I deserve. I’m glad God decided to give me what I needed instead. And what was that? Favor beyond my wildest imagination. A gift that was weightier than the gravity of this world but that will one day, finally and with finality, free me from that which so easily tears me apart. I’m talking about Grace. I’m sure you’ll read much about grace in this blog (amongst other things).

So, on behalf of Deering and myself, I offer up a prayer that I find both profound and entirely humbling. It is entitled, “The Valley of Vision.” It was written by a Puritan years ago. I don’t know who or when. But it is substantial and weighty in its own right – a work of grace if you will.

May the God of all grace keep you and reveal Himself to you.

“You have brought me to the valley of vision, where I live in the depths but see You in the heights; hemmed in by mountains of sin I behold Your glory. Let me learn by paradox that the way down is the way up,that to be low is to be high,that the broken heart is the healed heart,that the contrite spirit is the rejoicing spirit,that the repenting soul is the victorious soul,that to have nothing is to possess all,that to bear the cross is to wear the crown,that to give is to receive,that the valley is the place of vision. Lord, in the daytime stars can be seen from deepest wells,deepest wells,and the deeper the wells the brighter Your stars shine; Let me find Your light in my darkness,Your life in my death,Your joy in my sorrow,Your grace in my sin, Your riches in my povertyYour glory in my valley.”

Amen