naming | betsybeadhead

Proverbs 28:13 – “The one who conceals his sins will not prosper, but whoever confesses and renounces them will find mercy.” (HCSB)

The word “sin” turns many people off and they just stop listening. It is simply any failing or fault. It is any time we fail to live up to our potential. It is any stumbling block. The word has such deeper meaning than we are able to give it.

It is gossiping.
It is overeating.
It is fear of failure that is
so crippling
we never even start.
It is any time we trust
in our own ways
rather than trusting God.

Sure it is also the usual that we think of when we think of sin. It is lying, stealing, murder. But mostly it is anything we let rule our lives, anything that prevents us from living a whole and holy life. Anything.

Confessing our sins is the greatest form of strength. It is the greatest weapon we have against them. Let us think of “confession” as “naming”.

It takes courage to say
“I’m angry and I’ve let anger rule my actions.”
It takes courage to say
“I have a hard time with impulse control.
I eat (or) say whatever I want
without thinking about the consequences.”

It takes courage to admit we need help. When we name our failings and faults we are bringing our wounds and our brokenness before the greatest healer of all, God. We say “I can’t do this on my own, and I need your help.” God heals us if we name our faults, and then turn away from what we are doing.

It can be very hard to turn away. Bad habits are hard to break. They are the “devil you know”. You’d rather stick with them than do something new and healthy. But by naming our faults, we are like so many people who went up to Jesus for healing.

Let us quickly look at the story of Jesus healing the blind man. The entire story is to be found in MT 20:29-34, MK 10:46-52, and LK 18:35-43.

…. Jesus asked him “What do you want me to do for you?” Bartimaeus said, “Teacher I want to see!”

Jesus knew very well what Bartimaeus needed. But the issue is – did Bartimaeus? Only after naming his weakness was Jesus able to heal him.

Let us continue with a little more of the story.
…. Moved with compassion, Jesus said “Open your eyes. Your faith has healed you.”

Often Jesus said to people “Do you believe I can heal you?” And they said “Yes!” Then he simply said “Your faith has healed you.”

Believing that Jesus can heal you is the healing.

But first you have to confess to name your weakness. Give it to God, and God will turn your weakness into his glory. The thing is, can you name your own problem?

Naming it takes away its power.
It means it isn’t you.
You are a child of God.
You aren’t alcoholism
or compulsive gambling
or lying.

Naming the problem helps you separate it from your idea of yourself and helps God heal you.

If you can’t yet name your problem, then give that to God. Say “God, please help me to recognize where I need healing.” God will enter into your heart right where you are, right as you are, right then.

Praying in color isn’t about drawing, so much as opening yourself up to Spirit. It is giving your hands something to do to open up your heart to God. Sometimes you end up with a pretty picture in the meantime, but the point is to gain an insight or an understanding.

Today I picked up a brown pencil. I’d recently reorganized my pencils and sorted this box into yellows, red/pink/orange, and neutrals. This one was in the neutrals and I wondered why.

Then I started to think about how arbitrary sorting and defining is. When we name things we limit them. We start to apply other limits to them.

When I had some mauve beads, I found out that if I put them next to blue beads they looked more purple. If I put them near red beads they looked more pink.

Either way, I wasn’t letting the beads just be what they were. I was subtly altering them

I feel that I do this all the time with people. I put them in boxes. She’s in the married person box. He’s in the addict box. They are in the stoner box. I stop being able to see how people can be both and more. I stop being able to see a person’s full potential. What you are now isn’t what you are going to become. Who could ever imagine a huge mustard tree coming from a tiny mustard seed?

When I define, I limit. I draw a line around it and say this is where it stops. But not everything can be defined. Some things are multiple. The funny thing is that is the very quality I admire. I have tattoos that look Celtic but are Buddhist. I like seeing things blend. I like mixing things up so you have to open your eyes. I like questioning “Why?” So I’m amused that I still feel a need to define, to limit.

The moment we define we stop looking. We know what is coming next. We don’t need to look anymore, learn any more. But nothing is ever that easy. Nothing ever fits firmly in a box.

I like eating pot roast with Indian lime pickle sauce. I’m pretty sure that is a violation of some rule – eating cow with an Indian condiment. I don’t tell my Hindu friends. But it tastes awesome. I like eating empanadas with hummus. Latin America meets Middle East. Why not?

When we expand our definitions, we start seeing things for what they really are. When we stop putting things and people in boxes we can start to really see.

Is brown a neutral, or does it go with the yellows, or oranges? It is us who divide and limit, and thus not see what is.