Signs and wonders from Iowa

I know many Christians are writing blog entries today that are the exact opposite of mine, but I'm celebrating the Iowa Supreme Court's decision that the gay marriage ban is unconstitutional.

It's in actions like this that we experience the "already and the not yet" that we throw around so much in seminary. We don't yet live in a society or world where all of God's beloved children are treated as such--as fully human in all the beautiful diversity that entails. The kingdom is not yet. But every once in a while, like today, a sign of that future breaks through. And that is a cause for praise and celebration now. That is already.

But if only it was the church pointing to the kingdom instead of the state. If only the Body of Christ were in the forefront of this movement toward justice, which I truly believe is God's movement--though many will disagree--instead of so often fighting it. I'm thankful that God works despite us as well as through us. And I pray that as we move more and more from what's already to what's not yet, the church can be more and more a part of this work.