“6 If you put these things before the brothers, you will be a good servant of Christ Jesus, being trained in the words of the faith and of the good doctrine that you have followed. 7 Have nothing to do with irreverent, silly myths. Rather train yourself for godliness; 8 for while bodily training is of some value, godliness is of value in every way, as it holds promise for the present life and also for the life to come. 9 The saying is trustworthy and deserving of full acceptance. 10 For to this end we toil and strive, because we have our hope set on the living God, who is the Savior of all people, especially of those who believe. 11 Command and teach these things. 12 Let no one despise you for your youth, but set the believers an example in speech, in conduct, in love, in faith, in purity. 13 Until I come, devote yourself to the public reading of Scripture, to exhortation, to teaching. 14 Do not neglect the gift you have, which was given you by prophecy when the council of elders laid their hands on you. 15 Practice these things, immerse yourself in them, so that all may see your progress. 16 Keep a close watch on yourself and on the teaching. Persist in this, for by so doing you will save both yourself and your hearers.” (1 Tim 4:6-16 ESV)

Prescriptives, remedies, learning on the go: able self-investigation, able personal compunction, able unexpected Revelation do reward the Involvement, the personal Availability, the facts of making any and all towns those towns where Jesus was able to do miracles. We get accustomed to His miracle-working. We know ourselves rather Consigned to the Cause, because we are Resigned unto Alacrity, unto Boldness, unto simple Registering of the wide barometer, up and down, of whether our deeds are done In Christ.

Today is as good a day as Any to hear His voice! It is the voice that has made Agreeable, Beloved community-members, of the uncontrite, the helter-skelter, the young buck and young gal, because all of us do Compete, so let it be around matters of Holiness. Holiness of living. Holiness or praying for others. Holiness… we don the shoes tailor-made for us, assigned to us in our Baptismal Promises as infants.

Iron sharpens iron, and the prescriptive goes as follows: Engage, O Soldier of Christ! Do the heavy-lifting! Do some out-of-your-comfort-zone Act! We thrive, we vibe, we Encounter: that Christ’s Cross is ours to shoulder a bit. Just a bit. Because tiredness is real. Working men and working women, do really know Exasperation, but also the relativity: time with so-and-so is like time in Heaven! Yet see us ornery around a dialog in our earshot: just some peace and quiet around here! So we see it both ways.

There is a time and a place, distant and allegorical, makeshift, rumored, where Every deed done in Christ… where we are the Heroes of a community, a nation, a camaraderie, a military, heroes because we Dared to Step into the Shoes, to Love, to be a little more Positive, average-wise, on that barometer of Deeds done in Christ. 

Some folks, they literally are free of certain sins, and others are works in progress. Some loosen their grip willingly, not even aware they’re doing it. More, a community of policing and teaching and judging and enabling, counts on all comers being loose on that grip as well: nothing is perfect, but we’re in it together. We can’t fuss all day about oppression, rather, forgive the Oppressor. We’re all just trying to put in a good day’s work around here! And our caginess, newly discovered, is an outcome of Finding Cause to take seriously. More, it is Heaven—ditto the above—to be those folks who Thrive on blessing others, who Thrive on being the Positivity, deeds done in Christ including also just a remembrance of Mercy shown us ourselves. Mercy, and we the beloved community-members nonetheless saddled, weighed down, because mistakes… an Enemy says they are endemic, that mistakes made, that conversion doesn’t “stick”. But we say the opposite, that ours is a Deep Mission—and we’re recruiting—to teach a right and proper Gospel. 

The hero is the advent of Grace in our lives, like waves on a distant shore now suddenly Ours. We have seen heroes on the television news programs, and for this brief dance number suddenly we are at the center. Because it was endemic and prescriptive to Mankind generally, our act of duty, of service, of laying down our very being for the team. By such stuff as this is society Healed and made over.