Peripheral
This photo reminds me of the story of the hemorrhaging woman, who reached in from the
peripheral and simply touched Jesus' robe and was healed.
There have been phrases that have flown out of mouth over the years that have become keepers in our family. "It's not of eternal value," and "Life is a lot," are two favorites. Just recently, I received a godly instruction that has powerfully stuck with me. "Be aware of what I am doing on the peripheral."
This thought came upon me the day my father was dying. God was telling me not to focus on my grief and the home going of my father, but on what he was doing on the outskirts. It has become a life lesson.
Just the other day my husband and I were sitting in a restaurant and I immediately became aware that the table for two, across from ours appeared to have only one customer. The meal was a buffet and I had returned to our table before my husband. The gentleman at the other table had set one item down and returned to the buffet. When my husband approached our table, I asked if we could invite the gentleman to sit with us. The silent "eyeball" reply I received was "Are you kidding me? We haven't been alone in THREE weeks!" No words were necessary, I got his drift. But when this older gentleman began to sit down with his plate, this disobedient wife, went with the Spirit and the peripheral message and blurted out..."Would you like to join us?' My husband later laughed at how quickly this delightful eighty year old jumped at the opportunity. He had three courses, soup, main plate and dessert and moved them all over to our table in a jiffy! Lunch probably took an hour longer than we had planned, but we had a delightful time. This new friend taught ballroom dancing when he was in the Army, was a college basketball player, investment banker and gentleman farmer. A new friendship has been birthed, because I took time to look at what was happening on the peripheral. I think my Daddy is smiling! We are the church!
All this energy issues from Christ: God raised him from death and set him on a throne in deep heaven, in charge of running the universe, everything from galaxies to governments, not name and no power exempt from his rule. An not just for the time being, but forever. He is in charge of it all, has the final word on everything. At the center of all this, Christ rules the church. The church, you see, is not peripheral to the world; the world is peripheral to the church. The church is Christ's body, in which he speaks and acts, by which he fills everything with his presence. Ephesians 1:20-23
