Book Excerpt #2

Last week I gave you a quick look inside of the book I'm working on. Here's another excerpt. Please feel free to give feedback. Hope you enjoy!

-Ross


..EVERY DAY..

VERSE
You know I’ve never heard it’s easy
Can’t get ahead of the game
But who am I kiddin’
Who believes

We seek a reason for believing
Need to see the change
It’s the feel and touch, to feel loved that much
That makes me believe

CHORUS
There’s a chance to leave or stay
A chance to run away
I’d rather fall in your grace
Every day, every day
Doesn’t quite make sense
Never falls into place
But that’s the love I guess
Every day, every day

VERSE
Seem’s so righteous with the reasons
Like life ain’t coming my way
Cause I sense the torment
And I feel the pain

CHORUS
There’s a chance to leave or stay
A chance to run away
I’d rather fall in your grace
Every day, every day
Doesn’t quite make sense
Never falls into place
But that’s the love I guess
Every day, every day



“Faith makes no sense.”

I’ve had so many conversations with skeptics that see faith as a crutch for the weak, the hurting, the oppressed.

I can’t totally argue against that. I know I’ve drifted away from an unwavering, solid faith, only to return in desperation (see Conveniently Useful).

But maybe the most common dispute I hear regarding faith, and the lack thereof, is its intangibility.

How can you believe in something you’ve never seen?

How can you trust in something or someone that isn’t audible?

Good questions.

Belief in something so intangible and requiring of faith might seem nutty, but I believe God is more tangible than you’d ever imagine. Its something you never knew was surrounding you and one day discover its been there all along. And I’m not just trying to sound churchy.

I often offer as a rebuttal to the faithless, the idea that when we live as we were created to live, God is nearer than you’d like most of the time. When we act as the hands and feet of Christ, God is present all of the time.

There’s no hiding.

There’s no escaping.

There’s no running away.

God just simply, is.

And all the while, I can deny God, curse God, run from God, learn to hate God because of his perceived and forgotten distance. But as I try, I’m reminded over and over of his love, provision, blessing, closeness, and grace.

Every day.

Perhaps its because of the circle of people I run around with, but I’m constantly reminded of who God is in a very tangible way as I see people stepping up to the plate in times and ways that are unexpected and unwarranted. I see God in the work of Martin, the director of the state’s largest homeless shelter. I see God in the raspy voice of Carol, the visionary and director of an orphanage in Haiti. I see God in the numerous volunteers that travel several days each week from the comforts of their suburban neighborhoods to do work, deliver bread, and care for the less fortunate in the inner city. I see God in the raw passion of a talented musician stepping to the microphone. I see God in the goodness of those sacrificing weekend after weekend to build a home for Habitat. I see God in the elderly couple that will never come to appreciate the things I appreciate, but make it their point to affirm me, and my work.

I see God.

Every day.

I’m reminded of God’s mercy and grace daily when I myself fail because I seek myself first, and idolize me, my wants, my pursuits, my desires. I’m reminded of God’s perfect love when Kate wakes up with Cora at 5AM and lets me sleep in a few extra hours. Now that’s love folks!

And I hope you don’t find these examples trivial, but when you consider the enormity of God potentially being every hand and foot, those little unnamed niceties truly embody God.

Sure, its easy to see God in Mother Teresa, Billy Graham, Rick Warren, but what about the non-celebrity Christ followers?

What about the regular dude?

And even if you can acknowledge God and his work in and around you, isn’t it still your prerogative to walk away and turn your back on Him? I suppose.

But that’s the love I guess.

Sure, I can walk away. I can turn my back on God. But even if I did, God’s love wouldn’t budge. And that’s the truly amazing thing about God.

Every day.

He loves me.

No.

Matter.

What.