Thoughts on Touching Lives

I emerged from bed this morning wracked with pain. My shoulders, my neck were all stiff and sore. "Ahhh, " I remembered. "Massage yesterday".

Throughout the day I was reminded in sometimes painful way about the massage. When I moved, I felt it. When I sat, I felt it. I felt it, I felt it, I felt it. And it made my consider something. In a business -- in a world -- where so much of the energy appears to be on "touching lives" there might be something to stop and think about.

As with my massage, the intentions were good. Even helpful. Once, when the presure was too deep, I called out, "ouch...can you lighten up a bit?"

His response is critical here.

He didn't say, "what? you're being ridiculous? Get tough."

Nor did he say, "Hey, this is my massage and I'll do it as I want." Instead, he just agreed to soften his approach and continue on.

Is there something here for me to learn? When working with people, there will be times when we massage the sore, raw muscles of old pain. The response might be as varied as the people. Some will cry. Some might call out. Some might be a bit more foreceful and to the point. Either way it is THEIR response, theirs to own, theirs to experience.

I can choose my response to that respone...I can lighten up and understand or I can barrel on. I think there is a real danger is deciding that a certain response is "inappropriate" or "unchristian".

I don't see Habakkuk in his fist raised to God in defiance worrying too much about offending God. Nor do I see Job wringing His hands concered about how God might take his questions. We serve a big enough God to handle whatever responses we have...painful, joyful, confusion, wrath.

It's we who try to establish boundaries of appropriateness. It's we who try to say, "Hey if I pinch here, you can only cry..." or "Hey, if I squeeze here, you can't be angry." God doesn't limit our expressions or try to negate them...He simply allows them.

Are there appropriate places, ways to express oneself? Surely. However, if we -- if I -- truly want to mirror God to others, I simply have to allow others to wriggle and strive under their own pain at times. After all, we may never know how those muscles have been damaged from past pain.