Colossians 1:15-20 is one of the earliest pieces of Christian writings known to date (written around 55 A.D), but it's also considered by scholars to be an even earlier hymn. This earliest of Christian writings places Jesus at the very centre of all things and above all things in authority.  It follows that knowing Jesus intimately is the the ultimate point of life, and gives meaning to all of life!

Good metaphors can help us express and unpack deep meaning, and the deep parts of our being, which usually defy language.

Take the phrase weight of the world on her shoulders. Does she really have the weight of the world on her shoulders? How much does the world weigh? How would you know if you had that much weight on your shoulders? And if you did have it on your shoulders, then where would you stand, because the thing that you normally stand on wouldn’t be there because it would be on your shoulders? I draw this out because this phrase about the weight of the world is true even though it isn’t literally true.

It’s more than literally true.
Sometimes you do feel like that, don’t you? And using that phrase is an accurate and absolutely true way to talk about that state of being.

"Our elders are the history we still have with us, adults are the pillars that carry society, and youth are the fresh voice of the next generation" - An MCS Student

"God specializes in doing amazing things through people the rest of the world has forgotten. No matter how lonely, broken or far-gone you think you are, God's business is in repairing broken hearts and making all things right" - Shauna Niequest

Everyone deserves to have their  voice really, truly, honestly heard. But this also means  that everyone needs to allow themselves to be corrected from time to time. 

"We know what real love is because Jesus gave up his life for us." 1 John 3:16

"How you believe and what you believe are two different things. Two people can believe the same thing (or the same information) about God, yet they may hold their belief in very different ways - one destructively and one constructively." To know the difference is to ask: Does the way I hold my beliefs lead me to increasingly give the love, grace and peace I have been given in Jesus to others? Luke 10:27-37

When things go wrong; when we're down on our luck; when it seems like nobody is listening; when it feels like there is no way out, remember:

Why Does Love never fail? Because love is not just another attribute of God among many, Love is the very essence of God (1 John 4:8).

"All the rusted signs we ignore throughout our lives 

Choosing the shiny ones instead,

I've turned my back, now is there no turning back?

 

No matter how cold the winter, there's a springtime ahead 

I'm thumbing my way back to heaven"

Humbly Search for Meaning

What we say is important and what we mean by what we say is just as important. Still, it's impossible for two people to properly communicate if the meaning of what one says is lost on the other. So, in our increasingly divided, polarized culture, our willingness to hear out  and actually work through the perspectives of others (especially those with whom we disagree) is actually one of the most Christ-like things we can do.

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How to Interpret Metaphors

The image that a metaphor brings to mind is not the meaning of the metaphor. The meaning of a metaphor (or any figurative speech) is found in how it relates to the rest of the story, poem, or context it is found within.

- Mr. Mc

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Imagine yourself as a living house. God comes in to rebuild that house. At first, perhaps, you can understand what He is doing. He is getting the drains right and stopping the leaks in the roof and so on; you knew that those jobs needed doing and so you are not surprised. But presently He starts knocking the house about in a way that hurts abominably and does not seem to make any sense. What on earth is He up to? The explanation is that He is building quite a different house from the one you thought of - throwing out a new wing here, putting on an extra floor there, running up towers, making courtyards. You thought you were being made into a decent little cottage: but He is building a palace. He intends to come and live in it Himself. 

C. S. Lewis

Mere Christianity

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