Dying Well/Living Well
One of the most recent acquisitions
for the church library is a book called Dying Well:The Prospect for Growth at the End of Life, by Ira Byock. Although the book is written by a hospice doctor and focuses on completing emotional tasks at the end of life, it might just as well be called Living Well because many of the ideas that it contains would enrich any stage of life. In particular,
Byock lists "what hospice calls the 'five things of relationship completion...: 'I forgive you'; 'Forgive me'; 'Thank you'; 'I love you'; and 'Goodbye'..."(p. 140). Not only do these simple words complete relationships, they also sustain us in relationships as we continue our pilgrimage. They are reconciling
words.
These days I find myself more and more taken
with the idea of reconciliation as a model to explain God's saving work. "Reconciling" brings with it connotations of reaching out, gathering in, embracing, restoring. It conjures up images of the seeking shepherd, woman, and father in Luke's stories of the lost sheep, coin, and son (Luke 15.) More than that, it offers us a model for living as well as a holy calling:
"All this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ, and has given us the ministry of reconciliation...." II Cor. 5:18
Reconciliation. Five short sentences to put to work in your life and mine. Hard work? Absolutely! Risky? Without a doubt. Painful? Most likely. Guarantees? Absolutely none. Possible? Only by God's grace and power. But consider the possibilities!
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