Jesus' story is our story! That is one of the most important lessons I have learned in my almost thirty years of professional ministry. In the process of studying and experiencing the journey of spiritual growth and discipleship, I am convinced of this reality: that Jesus' story is my story. I'm not equating myself with Jesus, but I am claiming that the dual nature we attribute to him -- both human and divine -- also expresses who I am and who you are.

The recent Christmas season was filled with the message of Jesus' birth. We talked about God being incarnate in Jesus: the divine born into a human life. Christ also needs to be born in us! This is symbolic language that seeks to express the reality that the divine and human natures do live in each of us.

Another theme of Christmas is reconciliation. The Christian faith promises that, in Christ, God and humanity are reconciled - made one. There is wholeness in our existence. We are one with God and one with each other, even though the state of the world and our own actions so often belies that truth. Wholeness does not come as a result of our pursuit and acquisition of perfection, however. It is not a matter of being flawless and without fault. We are loved by God just as we are. We are challenged by God to love and accept each other and ourselves as we are.

Wholeness means loving each other and loving ourselves in our very brokenness. This is grace: unmerited and unexpected acceptance of us -- who we are and as we are. The motivation we have for growth and putting together the broken pieces of our lives, our relationships, and our world comes, not from the need to please or earn acceptance. This motivation does not come as the result of seeing ourselves as essentially unworthy. We are motivated to grow and to achieve as the result of being loved and accepted. Theologian Paul Tillich wrote concerning grace that it was "as though a voice were saying, 'You are accepted by that which is greater than you, and the name of which you do not know. Simply accept the fact that you are accepted!'" (Tillich, The Shaking of the Foundations, Penguin, 1962)

The musical theater company that is part of our congregational ministry at Crossroads Church is getting ready to perform The Cotton Patch Gospel. Based on the writing of Clarence Jordan (who set the Gospels of Matthew and John in rural Georgia in the mid-20th century) and the music of Harry Chapin (Cats in the Cradle and other popular songs), this musical tells the Jesus' story in a contemporary setting. It reminds me that Jesus' story is really our story. So, live your own life fully. Accept the reality that you are accepted. It really does make a difference!

Thanks for continuing to bless me as we journey together.

--Jack Price

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