The Shape of Mystery

"...Love is at the heart of the Mystery..." - Michael Mayne

There's a mountain in the distance.

We may see some of her shape or perceive parts of her form, but more is shrouded in mystery.

We may think we see, but we cannot fully understand her condition, her well-being or her ecosystem.

Time and mystery have shape-shifted her.

Yet still she stands, shaped and re-shaped over time,

transformed through the elements of life,

ever-changing by ever yielding.

Form. Formation. Function.

Shape is multi-faced and multi-faceted.

But in eating disorder recovery, the concept of shape is mostly feared.

Shape (form, formation, function) can be a terrifying mountain to face:

"If I commit to recovery, what shape will I be in?

My external form?

My well-being?

My condition?"

Truly, there's only one answer that can suffice:

"Have hope. It's a mystery."

It's the landscape of both recovery and life.

And the response may be incredulous:

"A mystery? Seriously?!"

Suddenly the uncertainty trips and tumbles a body;

A mind feels dizzy with the altitude, the height of this unknowing;

And a spirit feels aimless, tossed and whipped in the wind.

How do trekkers in life and recovery keep from toppling in their tracks?

What keeps explorers in recovery and in life pressing on?

And what fuels any traveler for the duration?

Some on the journey forge ahead knowing that sudden switchbacks may lead to scenic overlooks.

Some may be called to explore, recalling that the unknown is also called the "great unknown."

Others may trust certain guides or explorers who have carved some paths in the terrain.

And still others are willing to allow challenges to reveal both weaknesses and strengths.

Yet something in us still begs: "Please! Just tell us! What shape will we be in from taking the risk?"

Of living? Of recovering?

The shape of mystery?

If shape could be seen, it wouldn't be a mystery.

If mystery had a shape, it wouldn't be named mystery.

Yet there are shapes that remind us of mystery.

Triune.

Ring.

Fibonacci sequence.

Cruciform.

Perhaps all types of shapes will be discovered along the journey,

in us and around us,

if we're willing.

"Have hope. It's a mystery."

"The Christian gospel is...about encountering mystery. Faith, like hope, is an attitude of the heart, a changed orientation of the spirit. It is to trust that love is at the heart of the Mystery for whom the English name is 'God.' And to do so in the face of the undeniable confusion, uncertainty and doubt which remain a natural part of all of our lives. " - Michael Mayne

Having hope begins with our own humility.

It involves an attitude for this altitude in recognizing that Mystery and God are One. It requires the compass of our dependence, as we acknowledge that part of our way is indeed losing our way in order to find His Way. Humility is trusting that His Way is the way of Love.

"Have hope. It's a mystery."

"All of our praise rises to the One who is strong enough to make you strong, exactly as preached in Jesus Christ, precisely as revealed in the mystery kept secret for so long but now an open book through the Scriptures. (We) now know the truth and can be brought into obedient belief..." - Romans 16:25, The Message

Having hope is our obedience in allowing God to shape us.

God shape-shifts us as we obediently praise, worship, sing and bow. God shape-shifts us as we genuflect, clasp hands, press our faces to the floor, stretch our arms to the sky, hold ourselves, and hold others. We obey by yielding to poses, postures and stances while Mystery does the rest.

"Have hope. It's a mystery."

"What you are seeking is also seeking you. We have been secretly fed from beyond space and time. That's why we look for something more than this.” ― Rumi, The Soul of Rumi: A New Collection of Ecstatic Poems

Having hope means prayer and practice, practice and prayer.

Prayer is simply being in the presence of God as a Beloved Child of God and basking in the Mystery of this Love. Practice involves pouring over Scripture and any sources where God/Mystery is revealed. Knowing and imprinting these words on our hearts, we attempt to put them into practice in our lives.

"Have hope. It's a mystery."

"When I despair, I remember that all through history the way of truth and love has always won." - Mahatma Gandhi. And because Love knows no limit to its endurance, no end to its trust, no fading of its hope; it can outlast anything. It is, in fact, the one thing that still stands when all else has fallen. 1 Cor. 13:7 NLT

Having hope requires endurance, and our endurance is motivated by Love.

When our endurance is fueled by the vast Love of God, our endurance is eternal. Endless. Everlasting.

When we are concerned about shape and the shape we're in, we need to have HOPE.

It's a multifaceted mystery:

Humility.

Obedience.

Prayer and Practice.

Endurance.

Just like the majestic mountain:

We can remember our form. We are the Body of Christ. Each face and facet is a part of this plan for Good.

We can choose to relish our formation. Willingly, we allow Mystery and Love to live and thrive within.

We can relinquish our old ideas of "shape" as we are transformed for function: to carry Love into the world.

We are vessels for His Glory...

we can only HOPE.