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I Have Not Always

It has been some time since I read the poem The Invitationby Oriah Mountian Dreamer. 
So I read it again this morning as I thought about a conversation I had last night. As I read it and reread it, the last few stanzas caught my attention.
It doesn't interest me
who you know
or how you came to be here.
I want to know if you will stand
in the centre of the fire
with me
and not shrink back.
It doesn't interest me
where or what or with whom
you have studied.
I want to know
what sustains you
from the inside
when all else falls away.
I want to know
if you can be alone
with yourself
and if you truly like
the company you keep
in the empty moments.

I have not always been able to stand in the fire and not shrink back. I have not always been able to put a name to what sustains me when everything else in my life fails. I have not always been comfortable enough in my own skin to be alone and enjoy my own company.

However over time I have learned that I can stand in the fire for myself and for others, I know without a doubt that God is the one who sustains me when everything else fails, and I can be alone with myself and enjoy every minute.


The first time I read this poem it reminded me of Christ’s invitation to the table. It still does. But this morning when I read it, it reminded me how far I have come in life, love, and ministry.
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