Misericordia y Tatuajes

Entré un salón de tatuar hace pocos días. Yo he tenido esta visión y quisia ponerlo en mi cuerpo. En el proceso aunque, aprendí varias cosas. Primero, el lugar donde yo quise mis tatuajes, por fuera de mis antebrazos, es popular con las personas en prisión y quizas no es lo mejor parami. Segundo, obteniendo un tatuaje hebreo en su cuerpo se considera un pecado y la ofensiva dobles a la comunidad judía. Primero, un tatoo ensucia su cuerpo (que estuve bien). Segundo, obteniendo la Palabra de Dios en la carne ensucia la Palabra sagrada y por lo tanto es una ofensiva ofensiva.

Vivo libre bajo un pacto nuevo, pero no es mi intención de ser ofensiva, enotnces yo vuelvo a considerar todo. En el proceso aunque, aprendí también un poco más acerca de la misericordia de Dios. Yo había escogido dos palabras hebreas para mi tatuajes y los dos palabras significan misericordia. La primera palabra es lo qué David utilizó más a menudo en los Salmos para describir a Dios. Es una misericordia que lleva gentilidad, adorando la bondad, el perdón. La palabra es checed. La segunda palabra para la misericordia que utilizaría es racham. Es la palabra para la misericordia utilizada más a menudo en Isaias cuando Dios habla con la gente de Isreal y es relacionado a la palabra “matriz.” Es decir, es como Dios anhele para decirnos que vinimos de su matriz, que él nos adora con toda ternura y paciencia de una madre.

Así, aprendí mucho, y eso es siempre bueno. Adoro la misericordia de Dios también, bastante para obtener un tatuaje del amor. ¿Pienso que eso es bíblico no? Todavia estoy considerando mis ideas.

6 Fijo mí como un sello sobre el corazón, Como un sello sobre el brazo; Para el amor es tan fuerte como la
muerte, los Celos tan cruel como la tumba; [un] Sus llamas son las llamas del fuego, UNA llama muy vehemente.
[B] 7 Muchas aguas no pueden satisfacer el amor, Ni poder las inundaciones se ahogan lo. Si un hombre daría
para el amor Toda la riqueza de su casa, se despreciaría totalmente.

Canción de Canciones 8:6-7

Published in:  on January 29, 2006 at 12:12 am Leave a Comment

Mercy and Tattoos

I actually went into the tattoo parlor a few days ago. I have sat with this vision long enough to get it inked on my body. In the process though, I learned several things. First, the place I wanted my tattoos, on the outside of my forearms, is popular with prison kids and perhaps not the best cultural location for my first tattoos. Second, getting Hebrew tattoed on your body is considered a double sin and offensive to the Jewish community. First, a tatoo defiles your body (which I was OK with). Second, getting the Word of God tattoed on your flesh defiles the sacred Word and therefore is offensive offensive.

I live free under a new covenant, but it is not my intention to be offensive and so I am reconsidering everything. In the process though, I also learned a bit more about God’s mercy. You see, I had chosen two Hebrew words for my tattoo, both meaning Mercy. The first word is what David most often used in the Psalms to describe God. It is a mercy that carries gentless, loving kindness, forgiveness. The word is checed. The second word for mercy I was going to use is racham. It is the word for mercy used most often in Isaiah when God is speaking to the people of Isreal and is closely related to the word “womb.” In other words, it is as if God is yearning to tell us that we came from his womb, that he loves us with all hte tenderness and patience of a mother.

So, I learned a lot, and that’s always good. I love God’s mercy too, enough to get a tattoo of love. I think that’s biblical isn’t it? Anyway, I’m reworking my ideas…the core remains.

6 Set me as a seal upon your heart,
As a seal upon your arm;
For love is as strong as death,
Jealousy as cruel as the grave;[a]
Its flames are flames of fire,
A most vehement flame.[b]
7 Many waters cannot quench love,
Nor can the floods drown it.
If a man would give for love
All the wealth of his house,
It would be utterly despised.

song of songs 8:6 and 7

Published in:  on January 28, 2006 at 10:48 pm Leave a Comment

Learning from Others

This past Sunday, we had a guest from The Bridge in Portland, OR. Ken Loyd spoke a bit about his journey learning to love and connect to young people in his 50’s and 60’s. He shared pictures of people from his community that he loved dearly and explained a bit of how he fell in love with these people and posed a question to us, “Who do you love?”

It is very challenging to move from a, “let’s attract them to us,” to a , “let’s pursue them because we love them,” mentality, but I am excited to talk about how we might do this as a community. My foundation for outreach the past couple of years has been Hosea. Hosea’s wife was a prostitute and night after night she would go out from him. Night after night he would go and search for her and bring her back home. Such great patience, love and grace…and pursuit are so important in really sharing the love of Christ.

I am so curious as to what everyone else took from Ken’s visit.

Published in:  on January 16, 2006 at 6:43 pm Leave a Comment