Transcendence

: going beyond the limits of ordinary experience.

: climbing so high that you cross some boundary.

Merriam Webster describes a transcendent experience as one that takes you out of yourself and convinces you of a larger existence.

This word, transcendence, halted my mind when I heard it for the first time.  I said it over and over in my thoughts. I think it might’ve become a favorite, immediately.

For me, it is a word that holds power. It describes something that happens to me almost daily.  Strong emotions that cause the hairs on my arms to shoot up, or tears to escape from my heart and leak onto my face.  Out of nowhere!

My step-brother had a dream about a golden heart being offered to him.  He is convinced it was Jesus’ heart.  His life was transformed in that moment.

Eric Metaxas had a dream about touching a golden fish who was looking up at him through a hole in the ice.  He is also convinced it was a moment with Jesus, where Jesus spoke to him in the “secret vocabulary of his heart.”  His life was also transformed in that moment.

I had a dream that I was falling to my death from the highest floor of the tallest building.  I believe that Jesus was there with me, showing me the condition of my heart. It was a moment that went beyond the limits of ordinary experience.  A transcendent experience.

I also “crossed a boundary” the day I forgave my ex-husband. Releasing the bitterness, hatred, and disgust set me free… to love others in a way that I couldn’t do until that place was available,  nor could I have done it on my own.

Loving our enemies, seeing purpose in the pain, knowing that the evil that is here on earth will not piggyback into heaven… there is hope.

Experiencing a love that feels like the biggest arms wrapped around me, every time I feel sad. Wiping my tears. Comforting me.  Hearing the tender whisper, “I love you, my sweet child.”

God continues to go beyond our limits, allowing us to cross boundaries so that everyone might know His love.