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Take things serious ...

Tuesday, March 10, 2015. Do we take things serious enough? And what do we take serious enough? Perhaps we should not take some things as serious as we do? It is an important question, in particular when it comes to dealing with people, with processes, with relationships.

Serious …

How serious should we take things? An example from process management: I have just been taken away several man years of development capacity in my unit by ineffective administrative processes, which I am not able to change. It is a waste of time and money - should it not be taken more serious? On the other hand it does not make sense to be very upset. The people in our human ressources department are overworked and several people have been hit by influenza. The new government was flooding another part of the admin with changes, and everything else stood still. It is a daily fight for being allowed to do good work and getting things, material and ressources for it. I want to take this serious.

But just some admin is not what we should talk about when it comes to taking things serious. We should rather ask: What is of value in our life? Do we take words serious enough? How do we treat each other? I have been reading on in the biblical book “Revelation of John”, the last book of the bible. It takes us into the future, into the end, into the time when eternity and time come very close to each other. This time is already now, but it is also still to come - on our time line. In a serious of fantastic images and pictures the revelation talks about the time when the book of life is opened.

Revelation 6 talks about the opening of the seven seals of the book of life. And when you start to read, you might think: when are they open. Why do they not just open this book, this important book? But we are taken into a longer story. It is too serious to just be opened. There are seven seals. And opening each seal is linked to very serious events on the earth, to war, to hunger, to pain and to death.

God tries to reach us! …

You might see the revelation as a fantastic book, which does not have much to do with reality. Too many phantasy films have been made taking images from this book - but mostly without understanding anything! It is God trying to reach us. It is God taking us very serious. It is his truth, paired with his mercy still even in this time of judgement and decision. He is taking us very serious! And the pain and suffering in this world is to be taken serious.

Let us search his peace and his forgiveness. Let us search for his mercy, today. Let us live in his spirit! We can - by giving our life into his hands. By following him, his commandments. We can - by searching his word, by listening and by letting him transform our life. He wants us, as a whole person, with our will, with our decisions and our heart.

Forgiveness has a special relationship to seriousness. Forgiveness is able to overcome things, which are very serious. But it does not mean to not take things serious. Jesus took our guilt so serious that he died at the cross to pay for it. He took us so serious that he even allowed death to beat him. But in his death, judgement has already come. In the cross, there is a new beginning. And there is a new morning, a morning of widsom and power and peace. The resurrection tells us about a new day, which has already started. God is taking us very serious in Christ Jesus, yesterday, and today, and tomorrow! (RWEP) ... more texts