It is sorrow sister Joy!

The dance of joy on a day that seems heavy, hard work for body and soul. I guess there is no better day to dwell in the soil of joy waiting for the sowing. 

In a moment of receiving news that was not welcomed, my body, hands, my heart were clenched. Disappointment, confusion leading to what one might call a moment of anger pulsated through my body and I refuse to open. I should know better, but in that moment I reflected the consequences of knowing that things can’t be fixed quickly when relationships are broken. Grace and mercy aren’t offered to me by the one I think is meant to offer it to me, and yet here I still reach out, pleading for embracement.

Its like we have been done this path a million times and it takes all those times for me to go beyond my frustration, to remind myself that every tear dropped is collected and counted as what is fair is not fair for another. For a heaven-sent second, everything slows down… the screaming quiets in my head and I finally perceive what is good and profound through the loud fog. The generosity of reaching out, the relentless desire to reconnect - its the gospel, the hospitality of reconciliation. This in itself has a sense of joy, sowing a small seed that is been nurtured with reconciliation. 

This time is different, this time I offer an invitation out of love only to receive anger back. This time I see it differently, I couldn’t see it before, but now its all I can see. When resistant occurs, I learn that reconciliation means going further than middle ground. It means not expecting the other person to meet you where you’re at but taking the extra steps to meet them where they are. It means fighting against the internal struggle to choose comfortable and fair and putting aside your pride. It means being gracious and gentle and looking past differences and hurt. It means forgiving, correcting in love and recognising the humanity in each other. 

At times I sense children are a lot better at this than adults. Quicker to say sorry, to let things go and embrace those around them. Teaching reconciliation in a generous and hospitality way.

Bridges are built and relationships are mended and matured when a safe space is created, when we open our hearts and invite another person in. Hospitality is the perfect picture for how we can become reconcilers. 

Everyone comes to the table as equals, as human beings who are in need of connection and nourishment. We give and receive food and our stories become channels through which our sounds touch one another.  

But… someone has to be the first to do it!! To take the initiative, and be persistent in the pursuit. Maybe it’s a good thing to be stubborn at times! No matter how many times get pushed back, get silence, keep on trying. Restoring relationships to be made whole. 

Sometimes I wish it was easier. I wish I didn’t have to battle it out, to keep learning the depth of what seven times seven means. Those moments remind me of Jesus, and how far He reached to get to me. Crossing all the boundaries and barriers, from heaven to earth, the holy into the unholy and beyond what was fair to reconcile me to Himself. He endured rejection and misunderstanding and dearth on my behalf. He did the hard and ultimate work of reconciliation so I never have to be separated from Him again. 

So while the dance of joy seems heavy on this day, it is none the less a dance of joy. The gift of reconciliation is one that spouts in ways beyond human hands, in ones heart it breaks through the soil slowly, giving witness to a bloom so unique and so precious. It is sorrow’s sister, Joy. May the Lord help guide me to learn from around me - learn from the night who can’t keep her stars a secret, or the sun hide behind her rays. I pray to learn the art of singing through my sorrow, through the weight of the cross that gifts so much more when partnered with sisters, may joy dance on this day and always.