Jesus, I've started addressing my prayers to you over the past few days. This is a challenging change for me. 'God' is a very safe word; 'Jesus', a very dangerous one. With 'God' I can hide a lot of specifics in generalities. With 'Jesus', I can hide nothing, because I'm forced to come face to face with flesh and blood I can see, with grace and mercy I can touch, and with calls to love my enemy and forgive my debtors I cannot ignore. 'God' can often remain contained in icons in the sanctuary; 'Jesus' can only ever be found among the needy and the wanting, with his back bent over, sweat on his brow, and dirt on his hands. I've worked overtime through my life keeping you at arm's length, just as I have all the important people in my life. And I'm beginning to see that my efforts there to hide and evade are only a mirror of the distant relationship I've tried to maintain with you.
Just a closer walk with thee is my prayer for today. Just a closer walk with thee.
Amen.
