Dangerous Thought

I got an email from a friend in Liberia tonight and it made me think. It’s a scary thing to stop and think.
He’s on this thing called a Mercy Ship, which is part of a global charity that has operated hospital ships in developing nations since 1978. It’s a Christian organization so the motto is to follow the example of Jesus - bringing hope and healing to the forgotten poor, mobilizing people and resources worldwide and serving all people without regard to religion, race, or gender.
The roof of a remote orphanage in Liberia was blown off in a storm, creating thousands of dollars worth of damage. My friend said the children cried like someone died when the roof disappeared. He admitted it’s hard to justify the contrasts between the Whistler Bubble and Liberia.
“It’s like we don’t even live on the same planet,” he wrote.
It makes you stop and think, which is uncomfortable. This whole trend toward thought got worse when I read a quote from an obscure pastor in Michigan. His question was simple but lead to thinking and I started to sweat.
“Can you imagine what would happen if a group of people with untold resources, passion and energy started asking the question, “How do we hear the cry of the oppressed?” What if they were actually willing to wade into the cultural, economic, racial, global and personal issues involved without fear with the confidence that no matter how painful, messy and volatile it got, Jesus would guide them the whole way? You’d have some church on your hands.”
I know the word Christian often conjures up images of plastic people too judgmental to be authentic. It’s a dirty word but let’s get past the stereotypes. Regardless of your gender, sexual orientation, religion, or race – there is value in the idea of wading in and trying to see beyond ourselves. It’s messy, it’s human but every once in awhile something good happens.
It’s Easter this weekend. For Christians it’s sort of a big deal. When I was a kid, it was the only time my family would show up at church. I would sit uncomfortably in a dress – wondering when the Easter Bunny was going to show up.
Easter was originally a pagan celebration of renewal and rebirth. It was later merged with the Christian belief of Jesus’s resurrection from the dead. For some people it’s a time of reflection, celebration, and thinking.
Regardless of your views, again there is value in reflection. Tonight I thought about Liberia. I thought about the Whistler Bubble. I thought about my tendency to be plastic.
Does thinking inspire movement? Does thought somehow absolve any responsibility to wade in – to attempt authenticity?
What if thought inspired some holy mischief in Whistler? I am not into 12-step schemes toward personal or spiritual wholeness. But some writers at Geez Magazine came up with some practical ideas around social justice. Take it or leave it but don’t be scared to think.
1.Give your winter coat away to someone who is colder than you are. 2. Try sitting in silence for 15 minutes a day. 3. Kill your TV. 4. Get a World Vision child. 5. Go to a retirement home and ask to visit a few old folks who don’t get any visitors. 6. Eat locally 7. Buy only thrift clothes for a year. 8. Seek truth.
Tons of people in this corridor are creating mischief with Slow Food Cycles, serving in Africa, volunteering at Balding for Dollars, and taking care of animals. It all started with thinking. It’s a dangerous thing.