I’m noticing a theme in my life these days, and it is the title of this blog post. It’s the word that keeps coming to me when I get out of my house, away from my screens, and listen intentionally for God’s voice. Sit down. Connect with the earth. Use all your senses. Feel the ground beneath you and the wind around you. Smell the salt from the ocean and the sage from the dunes. Hear the waves crashing and the birds singing. See the brilliant colors and textures on land and sea. Taste and see that God is good. Rehumanize yourself.
Some believe that we can never be truly good and loving because we are “only human.” I believe that God created humans in God’s own image and called us good. God entered creation in human flesh to show us how good we really are, how loved we are. I am a Christian because I believe that Jesus shows us the way to a fully human life - the way to be at one with ourselves, others, and God.
Jesus sat on the shore, just like I do, to refresh himself, to listen and talk with God. Jesus was among friends, just like I am, talking with them, sharing ideas and dreams and meals and tears. Jesus was in cities and towns, just like I am, drinking from wells, seeking food, praying in the synagogue, going about his work (he was not always an itinerant teacher!). Jesus was human.
How might we rehumanize ourselves by following Jesus’ example of how to be fully human? It begins with intention, with a belief that it is possible for us to live fuller lives than we currently imagine. Rehumanizing ourselves means connecting with the one who humanized us in the first place.