Yesterday Belinda and I went to a talk by Mako Fujimura, the leader of the International Arts Movement. He is a facinating speaker. I could listen to him for hours. His faith is robust and his character is Christlike. He lives in New York City and works with artists of every ethnicity. He spoke about walking the line where Christians condemn you for being too secular and nonbelievers in Christ think you are too Christian. It is the space where the message of creation, fall, redemption and glory can get a hearing.

He used a phrase that really caught my attention, he said it is only when we are in Christ that we can be fully human. Every person experiences joy, sorrow, fun, disappoint and meaning.  And all of us have moments of transcendance, like when a dancer leaps and seems to defy gravity or a singer sings in such a way that he/she is raptured beyond the moment. So we all taste transcendance but only in Christ can we experience the presence of the Holy Spirit who makes what seems abnormal and unusual possible on a regular basis. This is when we become "fully human." Anythings less is settling for a life that is short of that which is all that we were meant to be.

I want to be fully human, how about you?

Gary Kendall