Some men arrived carrying a paraplegic on a stretcher. They were looking for a way to get into the house and set him before Jesus. When they couldn't find a way in because of the crowd, they went up on the roof, removed some tiles, and let him down in the middle of everyone, right in front of Jesus. Impressed by their bold belief, he said, "Friend, I forgive your sins." Luke 5:18-20For this rule-keeper, it's pretty bold action tearing into someone else's roof. At first read, it is very hard to put myself into the position of the friends or the man on the mat for that matter. I get a little nervous and uncomfortable with this brazen behavior of taking matters into their own hands.
However, as I dive into the story a little deeper, I begin to consider the paraplegic and what it must be like to have no freedom of movement. Or to be a friend of someone who has been bed-ridden with no hope of ever walking. And I consider the moments I have thought or said if I could do anything for a suffering friend I would do it.
When they couldn't find a way - they made a way.
There's a fine balance to be found between acceptance and resignation. To find it, I think the question we must ask is, "Am I making a way?"
With resignation there is no way to find and you give up. You've hit the dead end and declared it to be. You disengage from the rejuvenating gift of life and the process of dying sets in.
With acceptance, you embrace the opportunity to make a way. You see the dead end and begin to look for roofs to cut through. You breathe deeply the air you are blessed to breathe and engage more fully in life than you ever have, knowing full well your life or someone else's may depend on it.
Living in sync is not always the path of least resistance, but it is always the path of life. Go ahead. Be a little reckless and bold. Take every set back and obstacle as the opportunity to make a new way forward. And while you are at it, don't forget to do it for your friends, too.
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