From aspiration to acceptance

Redwood chair; Aptos, CA

We live in an aspirational culture. A lot of this has spilled over into the church. But I’m a big believer that Jesus calls us to a life not of aspiration but of radical acceptance. To accept that we are loved and accepted by God just as we are right now…

and right now…
and (wait for it)…
Right now.

The hard part isn’t getting GOD to accept us as we are.
The hard part is letting OURSELVES accept us as we are as much as God does. 

Acceptance does not mean that you’re thrilled about everything that happens in your life. It just means you accept where you are with it. 

It’s not necessarily acceptance of the way things are out there, but acceptance of who and where you are in the present.

So, if you’re angry,
the goal isn’t to aspire to a place of peace
but to accept your anger.

If you’re blue,
the goal isn’t to aspire to a place of happiness
but to accept (and even love) your blueness. 

No, this doesn’t mean that you’ll always stay there. The point isn’t to always be angry or blue. But if you are now, accept it. Give yourself the holy nod. Not to validate or justify it. But just to be like, yeah… This is where I am. 

So much of our mental anguish comes from fighting and resisting life. From bypassing and escaping. Idealizing and idolizing. 

But when you sink into that divine radical acceptance, you cut out so much of that mental cruft. 

If you can’t accept that, well,
accept that you can’t accept it.
(I know, now we’re getting into Jedi-level acceptance.)

And if that doesn’t work, let me just tell you this:
You are accepted by a divine love that dwarfs your own.
So there… At least you can’t say you didn’t know. 

Now it’s your turn.
Onward.