Further Up and Further In

She's frozen in place. She's curled up in a ball. She stands, alternately weeping and shaking her fist at the world. Or does she? A dispassionate observer would think her demeanor ordinary and would see no tears rolling down her cheeks. All is within. The unshed tears could create a lake and the anger builds up smoldering dangerously like a volcano with no eruption. The injustice of this broken world grieves her heart. The helplessness of her position causes deep anguish. She understands with a gut punch-like feeling what John 15:13 says, “Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one's life for one's friends.” She would do anything to relieve them from this pain. She would give her very self if that's what it took to protect them from what is happening. To them and to herself, she laments, “ My child. My children. No, I’m not your biological mother but I’ve cared for, nurtured, protected, and loved you for as long as I can remember. You are mine.