Metaphorically Speaking...

It is easy to talk about something in terms of a metaphor. It is sometimes difficult to give that metaphor real feet.

We often hear of the relationship with Christ and the church spoken of as a marriage. The Bible uses that very term to describe "supper-time in heaven." We are the bride of Christ, His reward when the Father says go get your bride.

Back to the metaphor part of this. If we are a "bride" how, pray tell, are we supposed to conduct our business? And, if this is the case, does this really apply to husband/wife relationships, too?

Paul, I agree, this is a profound mystery. When I look around to see people putting "feet to the Word," I see people who feel led to go to the (growing/trendy/spirit-filled/fill-in-the-blank) church across town. I see people who vote their pastor out on a whim. I see people who, when the preacher says something that offends them, they stop paying their tithes.

I see people who are treat their marriages the same way.

Is it any wonder that people attend the same church for about the same amount of time their marriage lasts? Some would say that the latter has a good deal to do with the former. I say that we (myself included) have a great deal of distance to go before we get to the point where we realize the full import of what Paul wrote in his letter to the Ephesians.

God is not going anywhere. We have to learn to deal with that. We have to learn to feel the weight of that statement. God doesn't divorce his bride. He doesn't contort and mangle Himself to draw his rebellious bride back to Him. He stands. We learn from him. We humble ourselves to admit our fault. We seek reconciliation and accept His terms.

Men are fallible. Your preacher is not perfect. Your husband is not perfect. But this no one can change: the responsibility for the congregation, and by extension, his family lies solely upon his shoulders. If he is in error, it is his fault and not yours. The church has methods in place to correct preachers who are in error and those methods apply to husbands as well. In other words, if what he is doing is not in line with The Book, there is an action plan to take.

"[A]nd his sheep follow [their shepherd] because they know his voice." (John 10:4)

The sheep don't select their shepherd. They don't rove about looking for a better shepherd, trying this one and that. They listen for his voice. They follow him to water, to food, to rest.

In doing so the shepherd is made happy. And he is even more delighted when one who was lost is found.

Like God, a man is a force to reckon with. He needs to stand. His weight needs to be felt by those around him. He doesn't need to be a bully. He needs to know what direction he is leading his family. He needs to make sure his family is safe and protected along the way so those who would hurt them will feel his weight in the most appropriate manner.

We have to learn to deal with this.

Too bad it wasn't God's idea.

My pastor tells the story of a famous minister

who had a great idea. The idea was revolutionary, highly effective, and not God's idea. Talk about taking the wind from your sails. God told him, "That is a great idea, too bad I didn't give it to you." Permission to proceed denied. Start over. Go back to the drawing board. Or, he might avoid the drawing board altogether and check with God as to what he should be doing. Now there's a novel idea.

Jesus said, "Seek me first." Gulp. What we humans typically do, as my pastor's wife pointed out, is dot all the "i's" and cross all of the "t's". Our inner narrative goes something like this:

"Ok, I want to make 6 figures so I need an MBA- preferably from a good school. Once I work my way into a good company, I'll need a trophy wife, to live in the right neighborhood, join the right church/country club/civic organization...."

And we will not once ask God where he wants us. We implore His intervention when the house of cards we have built comes crashing down. We are in the emergency room needing marriage counseling, financial help, and a real relationship with God. No doubt He will be there to help you, but His best is not the "miracle". His best for us is to listen to what he has been saying all along.

Yes, we should seek God when we have a choice to make. Think of all the marriages you know of that have failed. Might it be said that those couples entered into that contract ill-advised?

To quote Dr. Phil, "How's that working for you?"

God began to speak with me concerning a decision I had made (to be clear, He was speaking the whole time). I had taken action on what I thought I should be doing. As it turns out those actions were going over like the proverbial lead balloon. "Too bad it wasn't my idea," God said to me.

It never feels good to admit that you were wrong and this was no different. I had to admit to myself that I had not sought first the Kingdom, I had to admit that I had lost valuable ground and time in not going the direction God wanted me to go. Like a lost hiker, I had to retrace my steps and unearth the trail. I'm seeking what God wants as opposed to what I want.

To put the verse that I'm alluding to in context I quote Matt 6:25-34

^"25 “Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothes? ²⁶ Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? ²⁷ Can any one of you by worrying add a single hour to your life^{a]" style="font-size: 0.75em; line-height: 0.5em; ">[a]}?

²⁸ “And why do you worry about clothes? See how the flowers of the field grow. They do not labor or spin. ²⁹ Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. ³⁰ If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you—you of little faith? ³¹ So do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ ³² For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. ³³ But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. ³⁴ Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own."

Jesus tells us that so long as our intent is to seek and do His will, our needs will be taken care of. I'll have what I need (more than enough, I'm sure) and I'll have nothing to worry about. If I have the faith that He's given me salvation, is it too much of a stretch to believe that He wants to guide me and in that guiding He will take care of me?

Not Safe

This video has been floating around on the internet for a while. If you've not seen it, well, now's your chance.

What was your first thought when you watched it? Mine was, "Damn, I wish that I was one of those guys!" I know. Stupid, huh. But then again, maybe not.

There is a lot to say about good shot placement when dealing with dangerous game. They are, afterall, dangerous. And that they are dangerous is reason enough for man to persue them. What is a deer going to do to you? I know that people have been killed by the docile Whitetail before, but I don't think that risk of being gored comes to the top of most deer hunter's list of reasons why they hunt.

Dangerous game must be hunted by a sufficiently powerful rifle and cartridge. It is usually hunted in fairly close quarters by hunters on foot. The margin of error for hunting dangerous game is fairly slim. You want to hit your mark. You want a guide or professional hunter with you to back you up if you miss. You don't want to be too close.

So, this crazy blogger says, "I wish that was me." Not shooting a lethal 1st shot? Not even a lethal 2nd shot? Yep. I have some crazy idea that having a wounded (i.e. extremely pissed off) lion charging me from less than 50 yards is fun. You might think suicidal. I think primal.

The truth of the matter is that I may never get to hunt dangerous African game. But also true is the fact that so many men are walking around as mere shadows of what they are meant to be. We are so much more than what we've become. This lion hunt is a metaphor for life. There are a few men out there taking on challenges, risking it all for the hope of a return, but the vast majority of men are shirking away from this. We wake by the alarm clock, report to the job and have someone tell us what to do for that day and return home. Day after day. Year after year.

What is my desire for this year? It is to come alive, to have some sort of lion come charging after me. As President Roosevelt said,

It is not the critic who counts; not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood; who strives valiantly; who errs, who comes short again and again, because there is no effort without error and shortcoming; but who does actually strive to do the deeds; who knows great enthusiasms, the great devotions; who spends himself in a worthy cause; who at the best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement, and who at the worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who neither know victory nor defeat.