“17 But since we were torn away from you, brothers, for a short time, in person not in heart, we endeavored the more eagerly and with great desire to see you face to face, 18 because we wanted to come to you—I, Paul, again and again—but Satan hindered us. 19 For what is our hope or joy or crown of boasting before our Lord Jesus at his coming? Is it not you? 20 For you are our glory and joy. 3 Therefore when we could bear it no longer, we were willing to be left behind at Athens alone, 2 and we sent Timothy, our brother and God’s coworker in the gospel of Christ, to establish and exhort you in your faith, 3 that no one be moved by these afflictions. For you yourselves know that we are destined for this. 4 For when we were with you, we kept telling you beforehand that we were to suffer affliction, just as it has come to pass, and just as you know. 5 For this reason, when I could bear it no longer, I sent to learn about your faith, for fear that somehow the tempter had tempted you and our labor would be in vain. Timothy’s Encouraging Report 6 But now that Timothy has come to us from you, and has brought us the good news of your faith and love and reported that you always remember us kindly and long to see us, as we long to see you— 7 for this reason, brothers, in all our distress and affliction we have been comforted about you through your faith. 8 For now we live, if you are standing fast in the Lord. 9 For what thanksgiving can we return to God for you, for all the joy that we feel for your sake before our God, 10 as we pray most earnestly night and day that we may see you face to face and supply what is lacking in your faith? 11 Now may our God and Father himself, and our Lord Jesus, direct our way to you, 12 and may the Lord make you increase and abound in love for one another and for all, as we do for you, 13 so that he may establish your hearts blameless in holiness before our God and Father, at the coming of our Lord Jesus with all his saints.” (1 Th 2:17–3:13 ESV)

Ever the escape artist, the Christian surrounds him or herself with the knowledge of an ever higher plateau, never abandoning Present Circumstances for the sake of the unknown, but also Lancing forth, Houdini-moves and all, to Cope and to Progress and to know a rolling stone gathers no moss. A rolling stone… for the friends and lovers seemingly Abandoned, no, there is a flipside and a secondary Retreat, a second Appraisal, and a Promise: it was all done for you. Dear lover of the soul, it was all done because Jesus Himself our wayfarer Proved a legitimacy unto the Haphazard and Helter-Skelter Lifestyle of Solo Quest. Of Solo cruciform bearing of burden. Of Never Conceding the urgency of This Hour, of course, to present ourselves blameless before the Throne; to Advocate and Counsel unto our own Righteous Cause never self-seeking but Proving our Mettle because everyone present stands to be Blessed by our Courage and our Presenting Burdens Borne.

Because life is so Enraptured and Overwhelmed by the litany of differing Causes, mom and dad seeming to fight or brother and in-law seeming to dispute, or sister and in-law, and so on. We scarcely can lift High the right banner, until Pressed and sadly Ruined: here, we find a New Mantel, and Plateau and Cause: we find the words despite earlier social awkwardness or wide-eyed, wandering-eyed, panicky or sad Silence gone Rogue.

The soldier is Encumbered in Positive Light to be simply Inspired, no upper crust pedigree but simply unfancy and non-perplexing Duty to the people. Such was the Hope Invested in the soldier, in us, in the cohort and the platoon: the spirit Descended and Condescended to meet the would-be saint, prior to Any Progress along the promissory route still then too wide-eyed and wonderful to Claim. But now, we Claim this, that we were spared for this Hour, perhaps, for this Season, perhaps: finally head-bowed-down and Ready, we cannot always fix this spirit or that spirit, but! Toss your nets on the other side! The fields are white for the harvest!

So we also stand Reassured of the Omnipotent being self-composed and self-satisfied: we bear no burden of Fixing Things: God is God and all-things-contained therein, there in that Name. The litany of errors, it accumulates until we scream: Never Again! And then we can witness to one another with a simple declaration: you are Forgiven! And in this interview mode, in this strangely Personal pronouncement, we Thrive and fall head-over-heels into professional Camaraderie, not so much love as Camaraderie. And to those Friends from times past: they are too the first to proclaim Forgiveness! We can culture and preserve our Affections in a glass jar, stored on some shelf somewhere, and Know the lonesome route is no Social Tyrant’s final resting place, but is the Providence of the Faith-Filled purveyor and soldier of Truth. We are not socially tigress or lioness, tiger or lion, per se, except that we in Heads-Bowed Mode do urgently Proclaim our love, that stands still, a love for All who ventured across our vision and viewport. Our portal, it is socially aberrant no longer: our ambition is now for Focusing on the right things, not on empty career accolades but an Eternal Flame found in whatsoever we set our minds to: Creation theology, indeed; Redemption theology, indeed; Fall and Restoration theology Indeed.

All of us need an Advocate who sees us, misshapen and broken by fall, in a Redemptive Light. All of us do battle with myriad spirits who wish harm upon the saints in the land. All of us deal with strange sleep-walking of would-be friends, no longer friends just yet, but we Hope! That spirit would Awaken from slumber and Hear: something New is here! And the earth-bound strictures and sobriety, does not hinder our Flight, our Soaring Aspirations, our Hope that the heaven-bound soul has Something to Say. That pinions imaginary yet spiritually-real Hope into something Concrete and Inspirational. The soldier already Able to envision a War that inspires and that breaks but never beyond Christ’s repair.