We must be willing to admit to the contradictions inside of us, and still let God love us in that partial state. Once we agree to see our own shadow side, our own foolishness, and our own sin and still know that God has not abandoned us, we become a living paradox that reveals the goodness of God. This is what the tax collectors and prostitutes had to do, and this is what changed them.
Once we know that God lives inside our contradictions, and God’s love is not dependent on our perfection, then other peoples’ contradictions don’t scandalize us or surprise us anymore.
I am a mass of contradictions and yet I am also a saint. I am a very good person, and I am also a sinful person. I get it and yet I oppose it too. Are both of these true? Yes, both are always true and forever true; for some wonderful reason that is what God loves.
Adapted from Preparing For Christmas, pp. 41-42
Current Mantra: Be Awake.
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