send

And then I heard the voice of the Master: “Whom shall I send? Who will go for us?” I spoke up,“I’ll go. Send me!”

Isaiah 6:8 (The message)

The sheer injustice of mercy

Felt intolerable;

Unequivocal, unrelenting forgiveness

Too much.

He refused to go to Nineveh,

Determined to play no part

In such an undeserved stay of judgement.

In desperation he sailed,

Hoping the vastness of the oceans

Would hide him,

That anonymity would dull the call.

Yet even the deep resonated

With the presence

Of the one who would not let go.

He surrendered

The free flow of grace

Always comes with a cost;

The message and the messenger;

The sender and the sent.

Beyond the boundaries of reason

Love responds,

'Send me.'

Chris Matthews