224 the rice diet renewal
The Lord ’ s Prayer invites “ God ’ s Kingdom to come, on the
earth as it is in heaven. ” Christians believe this is possible
when the life of Christ becomes manifest in and through
God ’ s creation. We, as humans, are invited to live into God ’ s
redemption by living out the ways of God and the ways of
God ’ s kingdom. If God is whole, then the way of God ’ s king-
dom is wholeness. The way of God ’ s kingdom is justice for
all creation, mercy for all creation, freedom from violent
oppression for all creation, healing for all creation. The par-
ticularities of how, when, where, and within whom God ’ s
kingdom manifests itself belongs to Mystery. However, to
receive an invitation suggests that one will be given at least
some idea of where to show up, when to show up, and for
what reason to show up.
God is Whole. While there is no brokenness with God,
God knows brokenness.
Intimately. Through the Person of Jesus, God is in full
solidarity with the brokenness of creation. When once all of
creation was whole in God, God ’ s creation became frag-
mented, broken, making its myriad departures from Truth
and True Self as time and history testify. When once there
was no sickness, disease, violence, and death, there is all of
it now, for creation has not yet entered into the fullness of its
redemption in and through the risen Christ. Therefore, cre-
ation continues to exist in the tension of the “ Now ” and the
“ Not Yet. ” Basic eschatology tells us this. Though creation
lives somewhere “ Between the Times, ” the fullness of God
has been expressed to and through creation in the Person
of Jesus Christ. The possibility for redeeming creation to
wholeness is Jesus the Christ — Son of God, Son of Man; the
point at which [or rather, the Person in which] divinity and
creation become One. This supernatural union — this “ return
to wholeness, ” if you will — is the journey into which God ’ s
creation is invited. What is more, creation is empowered to
live into this invitation through the indwelling of the Spirit of
God, or the Holy Spirit.