"Am I Done For?"
The boy's cry echoed down the halls of a hospital psychiatric ward: "Am I done for?"
The boy's haunted cry echoes in our hearts and souls. Many of us know such despair as we struggle with personal calamity---illness, job loss, family stress, crises of faith, fear for the future. We look with concern at the needs in our communities, the cauldron of conflict in our country, the unrest around the world.
But the good news is in our midst. The Rev. Edwin Dahlberg was in the hospital visiting that day. He reached out to the young man with these words of hope: "No, you are not done for. God loves you."
Simple words, perhaps, but profound truth. Edwin Dahlberg, senior pastor of several of America's pre-eminent Baptist congregations and a denominational and ecumenical leader, embraced peacemaking in an all-encompassing sense: The peace that Christ brings to our hearts can lead to peace among one another as well.
We are not done for. God loves us, all of us. Living out the peace of Christ each day is our hope and our challenge. How are you embracing that hope and that challenge in your life and witness? How is your church offering the "peace of Christ" to others?
Add your comments to the notes on our Facebook page or send me an email. We look forward to hearing from you.
Laura Alden
Publisher, Judson Press
|