Seeing is Believing

O.k., so I had this revelation this morning...well, maybe "revelation" is a little bit strong... But, anyway, I was listening to one of our pastors give a brief discourse from a story out of the Bible found in the historical account of the various Judges that lead the nation of Israel before the ancient monarchy was established.
The story he was referencing was about a guy named Sampson.  Maybe you've heard of him?  He was dedicated to God by his parents and they were told that if he followed a certain way of living, (fulfilling a vow called the Nazarite Vow), where he was given particular instructions about everything from what he could eat and drink to his appearance, that God would use him to save Israel from their oppressors.  
In this instance, as a result of Sampson keeping this vow, God gave Sampson supernatural strength.  Long story short, Sampson had a bit of difficulty fulfilling his vow.  And so, he lost the strength God had given him and he was taken captive by the enemies of Israel.  


The thing that caught my attention this morning was, that the Nazarite vow that Sampson took, stipulated that he was never to cut his hair, and from the Biblical account, it's really easy to make the correlation between his hair and his strength...that one was dependent upon the other.  
Now, in my opinion, his strength was not totally dependent upon his hair, it was just symbolic of his devotion to God and of the gift God had given him...
The reason Sampson lost his strength was because his heart wasn't in the right place.  He made a mockery of the gift God had given him and so the symbol of his strength was the means God chose to remove his strength from him.  ANYWAY, so much for trying to make a long story short...


So as a result of his arrogance, his head was shaved, he was taken captive and his eyes were put out.  The main point I'm getting to, eventually, is that once his eyes were put out, his hair began to grow...
You can reference this in the Bible in the section called Judges; chapters 13-16)
The lesson in this is: with humility, comes the strength to do what God has designed/called us to do.  
If we are not careful, we become blinded by our perceptions of reality and we  think we can see so much and in our arrogance we perceive little.  What we must do is allow God to give us the eyes to see what it is he is doing and allow Him to accomplish in and through us his desired outcome.
So in order to really see, we must in a sense, become blind...humbling ourselves in light of the fact that God is God and we are not...lest we lose the ability to perceive who He is and what He has for us to do.

running man

It's so funny and infuriating, how susceptible we are to the folly our pride produces.
Even when we know what we're doing or about to do will end with disastrous results, we forge ahead like a charging rhino, lumbering in to the fray with a "devil may care", bravado.
I can't tell you how many times, I've shaken my head in attempt to rid it of the rubble of my stupidity, brought down by pride's subversive whisper...
As i look back through the annals of time i see more public figures and even nations who have been brought low by the alluring notes of pride's serenade.
Oh, that it were so easy to look forward by looking back...but then again, perhaps it is.
Our problem, is this issue of pride. Though we can learn from history, we choose to ignore it, believing that through our superior intellect, technology and ingenuity we can overcome the specter of blunders past.
So, lest I ramble further, I pose a couple of questions.
Why is it so difficult for us to lay aside our pride and admit when we are wrong or in need of wise counsel?
Why do we refuse to see that we are headed down a path that is well trodden and littered with the bones of those whose pride blinded them to the hazards that became their undoing?
Perhaps it's like the age old story of the man who refuses to stop and ask for driving directions even though he knows good and well he is hopelessly lost...

We constantly run from the appearance of need...
If I ask for help I am weak,
If I admit I'm wrong I am a fool.
I don't need anyone to help me...i am self-sufficient, i am master of my destiny.

Funny, for those who relish the perception of power and control, we frequently flounder in the shallows of insecurity, flailing away, yet never really making any headway or achieving much of value because we just can't seem to get out of our own way.
And there we stay, wallowing in the repetitious folly that is handcuffed to us by our pride.
Perhaps the race is best run while following someone who knows where they're going.
In the end, we might even discover the key that unlocks the fetters of our pride.

Kingdom mindset

I love my children.
In fact, my family really is the joy of Jesus in my life. At times they stoke the fires of hell...but more often than not they are joy personified.
example: our youngest son Spencer has this thing that he's been doing for the last 18 months or so, where he's constructed a miniature church in our home.
He's got it set up on one of the end tables in our living room...worship team with instruments, the platform set, the whole nine yards, and he does two weekly services.
It is aptly named, Table Church.
Now when I say he does two weekly services, I mean he does two full blown services each week, with worship, teaching, announcements, the whole deal...for like, 45 minutes to an hour each time.
So, by now you've formed one of two opinions; a. the kid needs to get out more, or, b. "awww, isn't that cute, he wants to be like his dad..."
It would be cute and all, except he's deadly serious about it...which in my mind makes it pretty dang cool.
But, that's not all. The other day our oldest son Jacob says, "hey Spencer, can i start a table church of my own too?" And Spencer says, "yeah sure, I'll help you set it up." Wait, wait, it gets better. Spencer says, "I'll leave my church and come help you set it up." So, he leaves his church in the capable hands of his little sister and goes to help his older brother plant a church.
It was amazing to see this unfold...
Kathy and I were blown away, that, totally unaware of the implications of their actions, our sons had just shown a beautiful example of Kingdom mindset church planting in our own living room. There was no ego involved, no quibbling over finances or facilities, no lobbying for personnel or territory wars.
There was a desire expressed and they went and made it happen.
Humbly, sacrificially, beautifully.
I was and still am in awe of the whole scene...especially as they started to construct the thing together and then proceeded to lead the service, together, sharing every responsibility, no posturing, no power struggles, just cooperation and community. Together.
You might think I've taken this simple child's game and extrapolated the thought beyond a reasonable limit, but let me remind you of what Jesus told his disciples, "...unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven." (Matt. 18:3)
Now, I do not even pretend to stand in judgment, I only hope to remind you and me, that we shouldn't hold to tightly to our models of success or think that we are doing ministry in a vacuum and no one cares about us or can help us...
What we really need to do is open our eyes to the beauty and simplicity of helping one another fulfill our God given dreams and visions. Together.
Kingdom of God kind of stuff...not kingdom of me.
I've learned a lot from my kids...I think we all might stand to benefit from their example, if we can get over our "big person" mindset and think about it.
...just a thought.