Habitus practicus

I picked up a book on James-
(writer of the book of James and brother to Jesus)
at Goodwill.
The title is "Growing Slowly Wise-
Building a Faith that Works."

David Roper is the author.

It's a scary thing to blog.
I second guess myself all of the time.
Should I have written that?
Should I have printed that?
Should I have thought that in the first place?

(I have written some things just because
I needed to vent,
but you won't read those things anytime soon
because I didn't print them. )

When I read the following in Dave Roper's book,
it resonated with my spirit
because sometimes what I write
is from God
and sometimes it's from my flesh.

But I have to accept the consequences of my words,
whether they be from God or from my self.
What I have written I have written
and I am ultimately responsible for those words.
I can't blame God for anything I write.

Sometimes, I'll get it right
and sometimes I won't.
But the only true failure
is to stop trying to get it right.

Mr. Roper helped me this week.
He wrote and I read,
"...James...was willing to suffer for what he believed.

He understood there is no ministry without misery,
no proclamation without pain,
no renewal without the possibility of retaliation.

He had what ancient Christians called
habitus practicus.

Habitus practicus,
as you might guess,
is an old Latin phrase that suggests
the habit of proclaiming the truth
without fear or favoritism
and a willingness to suffer
the consequences of that proclamation.

It's something of a lost art these days,
yet it lies at the heart
of every call to ministry.

If anyone would come after Jesus,
he must deny himself
and take up his cross
and follow Him."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
We are so afraid of the consequences of our words.
We are afraid they will be twisted to make a trap for fools.
We are afraid of hurting people's feelings.
We are afraid of being publicly or privately rebuked.

But what if we spoke the truth with love and courage?
What if it is love that gives us the courage to speak the truth?

What if we are that voice crying in the wilderness,
preparing the way of the Lord,
and if we saved ourselves,
there would be one less voice?

What if we are that watchman on the wall
and when we weary of being perceived
as an enemy
we resign from our post,
and give the real enemy an opportunity
to scale the wall and wreck havoc
within the fortress?

What if we are that Esther,
raised up for such a time as this,
willing to risk our lives
for the sake of God's people?

So,
Dear Raspy Voice,
crying in the wilderness,
cry on.

Weary Watchman on the Wall,
watch on.
Blow that trumpet.
You can see from the wall
that which cannot be seen from the ground.
Courage, my friend.

Esther,
watch, fast, and pray,
and be prepared to lose your life
for the sake of your people.

Because,
it is God whom we serve
and it is His people we love,
and some day,
it's going to be worth it all.