"From Here"

There is no easy path, from here.

There is adventure, blessings rich;

Heartache, labor, uncertainty,

Detours maybe, but no going back.

If we were still children, we’d be home by now.

But for us home is a tabernacle,

now gently tied,

now violently clinging, now folded and creased

For the road to the next level place.

We follow the cloud, the fire that makes

each landscape real.

Sometimes as it pauses, we forget it is there;

Sometimes we run to keep in step.

We only know: we won’t be lost.

There are no perfect solutions, yet;

But we walk along a path of perfecting.

So we pray:

Give us what we want,

Give us to know what we want,

Give us our wants, until we are only

Enveloped in the center stream

Of your will.

Teach us to trust you are already there

In the campsites and in the City

That are ours, already, but that we can’t quite see

From here.

Shared by consent of the author: Rebecca Faith Carhart

Relationships

• A person may expect you to model Jesus Christ in your actions and speech toward him/her. Those who love us should do so. But if this person is not modeling Jesus in word and deed toward you as well, That Is Wrong. If this person requires your display of Christ-likeness to be perfect—not permitting you to express the frailty of your broken human nature, That Is Wrong.

• A person may state concerns that perhaps you have a certain habit or tendency. Those who love us should do so. But if this person does not invite you to share the deep fears and wounds of your heart which may be contributing to the appearance (real or imagined) of this tendency, That Is Wrong. Also, if this person persistently makes jokes or finds “evidence” of this habit far more than he/she emphasizes positive behaviors and attributes, That Is Wrong.

• A person may encourage you to engage socially. Those who love us should do so. But if this person repeatedly emphasizes the inconstancy of friendships and/or discourages the sharing of real thoughts and feelings, That Is Wrong.

• A person may tell you that he/she loves you, display evidence of this affection in time or gifts, and may expect you to respond in kind. Those who love us should do so. But if this person begins to demand these evidences occur frequently and/or in a certain manner—including levels of intimacy beyond what is appropriate for the time and place, That Is Wrong. If you find yourself fearful that any deviation, extenuating circumstances or personal needs on your part to be “evidence” that your love is not true, That Is Wrong.

• A person may demand your honesty. Those who love us should do so. If this person repeatedly responds to your thoughts, fears, questions, or needs with silence or a lack of concern, That Is Wrong. If this person repeatedly interprets your honesty as a personal attack, criticizes, or offers only angry words in response, That Is Wrong.

• A person may expect integrity, consistency, and cooperation from you. Those who love us should do so. If this person refuses to make any exceptions for you, but frequently has an exception for his/her own actions and habits, That Is Wrong.

Do you recognize any of these as recurring themes in you own relationships? If you have been on the receiving end of one or more of these patterns, I am deeply sorry.

Do you have any questions about right and wrong relationships? Let’s be very honest here.