Bridge to somewhere

Bridge to somewhere, a photo by bobmendo on Flickr.

Bridges are supposed to be functional, first and foremost. They might look like this double bridge in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic, or the more famous George Washington Bridge in New York City/ New Jersey, the Golden Gate Bridge in San Francisco, or the Sydney Harbour Bridge in Australia. But whatever their looks, they are ever designed for one purpose: to get people from one side of something to the other side.

See my Bridge photos on Flickr

I pondered this yesterday as we left Santo Domingo and made our way to Las Terrenas, about 2 hours away on the Samaná Peninsula. Without the bridge the trip would have taken much longer and perhaps I'd still be on the road.

So bridges can be helpful in crossing ravines or over swamps, over harbors and rivers, and railroad depots. And they can help us save time. Many are attractive and bring beauty to an otherwise functional-only situation.

It's 2014, and you had some things which blessed you last year and you had some things which you wish didn't ever show up on your radar, or on the doctor's x-ray readout. Some relationships were good, but there were others which deteriorated. You find yourself on one side of life and this year there are more things to do, places to go, people to see, life to live... and it's across the darkness of a harbor or a swamp of situations. How do you imagine yourself to get to the good side, to the other side, to the right side?

I like hearing about those Christians who want to get along with our Jewish people. There are organizations which spend much donated money to help Jewish orphans or refugees. I know of one titled, "Bridges for Peace" which has many purposes all listed here I hope they stay faithful to both Yeshua and to the Jewish people. Proclaiming the truth of Messiah and proclaiming an unshakeable love for Jewish people don't have to be mutually exclusive. I"ve been doing it for over 40 years.

They even have a program of "• Bridge-Building Projects: Promote better Christian-Jewish understanding and support for Israel on the local and regional level around the world. Projects such as Hebrew classes, film series, Israel Awareness Programs, speakers bureau, study seminars, etc. are offered."

I'm not sure about their evangelism, and I'm not sure about what others think, but if people build a bridge between two historic faith communities, that's not bad. Oh, building a bridge is useful, as long as you go somewhere after you build it.

Let's see where everyone goes in 2014. I wish you a safe and prosperous journey.