The Sacred Romance

Took this from T's tumblr; stuff that I've been thinking about but really couldn't express it any better:

“But the sword cuts both ways. While our heart grows in its capacity for pleasure, it grows in it capacity to know pain. The two go hand in hand. What, then, shall we do with disappointment? We can be our own enemy, depending on how we handle the heartache that comes with desire. To want is to suffer, the word passion means to suffer. This is why many Christians are reluctant to listen to their hearts: they know that their dullness is keeping them from feeling the pain of life. Many of us have chosen simply not to want so much; its safer that way. Its also godless. That stoicism, not Christianity. Sanctification is an awakening, the rousing of our souls from the deep sleep of sin into the fullness of their capacity for life.

Desire often feels like an enemy, because it wakes longings that cannot be fulfilled in the moment. Spring awakens a desire for summer that is not yet. Awakened souls are often disappointed, but our disappointment can lead us onward, actually increasing our desire and lifting it towards its true passion.

I am a lucky man. I have a family and friends who love me well. But they also let me down. When I feel the pain of their failure, I have several options. I can retreat into cynicism (“Isn’t that the way life really is?”) and deaden the pain by killing my desire. Or I can become more demanding (“You will never do that again.”), manipulating them and in a way increasing my addiction to relationship. Or I can let it be a reminder that a day is coming when we will live in perfect love. I can let the ache lead me deeper into my heart and higher toward heaven. And this is where memory comes in. Desire keeps us moving forward; memory keeps us moving in the right direction.”

- The Sacred Romance - Curtis & Eldredge