Five Star Quality

I just wanted to continue our conversation from last night. I'm writing because then you can read it at your own pace. Or just ignore it. Whatever.

We were talking about this not being a 5 star restaurant. One of the books I have - Thou Shall Prosper - was written by a Jewish rabbi. He presents his points as "10 commandments for making money". It makes for a great structure - 10 commandments = 10 chapters. One of the chapters he focuses on the commerce, business, trade being Biblical. He makes the case that human beings have both a physical and spiritual aspect.

This is born out in both the Old and New testaments. We're created beings, but created in God's image. God is spiritual. Our spiritual aspect displays itself in rituals. We eat cooked food, at a table, with utensils. Animals kill it and eat it right there. "Leftovers" means it's been sitting for days and they probably get some flies with the meat.

Animals are physical beings only. Our spirituality comes out in ways we are different from animals - rituals. We say please and thank you. Animals will simply take. We sleep in beds. Animals sleep on the ground. We decorate out caves, I mean houses. Even going to the bathroom has a ritual. You use a toilet. We do something with the waste. Animals just go wherever and whenever. The author's point is that animals have no concept of money or trade. The idea that little pieces of paper can have value to trade for something else is just weird.

These extra things we do come from our spirit exerting control over the world around us. We impose order on a chaotic world. God could have created a perfect universe. One that did everything the right way. And it would have made a pretty picture. But that's all it would have been  - a picture.

Instead, He created a universe that required constant adjustment. That requires someone impose their will in order to make it function correctly. He created us as the conduit for the imposition. Instead of a picture, He created a universe where He interacts. We are His interaction. We are the variation, the creativity. And when our will aligns with His will, the universe responds to it. God brings life. We introduce His life, His creativity, into the world around us.

You're quite right, this dinky little apartment isn't a five star restaurant. I choose to do things nicely anyway. I choose to be creative, to make things more than they are. I like nice things. Not because of the things, not because of what I get, but because it makes something new. Something new to share with someone. I do it not for me, but for the people around me.

This is why you do what you do in the baby section. I'm just trying to draw the parallel between work and home. The difference between them is only in our minds. You are the same person at home as you are at work. We exert the same control for the same reason.

This is about discipline. It's hard. It's tiring. Trust me, I understand. I work too. And I'm tired when I come home. I can't tell you how many nights I have to make a conscious effort to cook dinner. I want to give up too. I want to hide away from responsibility too. Imposing your will on the world takes exertion. And I have such a limited amount of strength. This is the struggle that the Bible describes. Some days, rest is the right answer. Other days, work is the right answer. Telling the difference can be the hardest thing in the world. That's why it's so important that we rely on God.

This isn't at all what I imagined I'd write. But it is where He led me. I hope you enjoyed the journey.

Escape

You spend your whole life stuck in the labyrinth, thinking about how you'll escape one day, and how awesome it will be, and imagining that future keeps you going, but you never do it. You just use the future to escape the present.
-- John Green

And what happens when that future never comes? There exists a fine line between escape and endurance.

God never promised me escape. He never promised anyone escape. He promised endurance. The strength to walk through the trials of life. The security of knowing He's there, unhindered.

Escape seems so alluring at the time. I don't believe that bad things happen so we can know good. There was another great quote - The existence of broccoli doesn't change the taste of chocolate. I believe bad things happen, God can make some good anyway. Escape is all about my control.

Endurance, going through the bad, coming out the other side unwavering, is all about God's control. Faith isn't escaping the present. Faith is accepting the present knowing the future is on its way. Think of it like mopping a floor. You don't start at the door and work in. You'll be stuck in the corner until the floor dries.

Likewise, endurance is all about not painting yourself into that corner. Escape never picks up the mop. Endurance mops the floor. Wisdom starts in the corner and works toward the door. We can't escape our present, a broken miserable world. We can endure it.

Examples

I imagined a conversation with my middle daughter (Hi, Lucy. I love you.)  Lucy told me that I withdrew, spending time in my room. Oddly, much like she does now. When I point that out, she says that she learned it from me. I paused at this.

Lucy is my child. As her father, I have a position of authority over her. One in authority can work with, encourage, and even share with those in obedience to them. But they cannot submit. It occurred to me that God, in a position of authority over us, always provided examples of our relationship with Him. How could He exemplify submission without actually submitting?

That's what Jesus did. Several times, He told people that He didn't come to judge. He wasn't here to rule. Jesus never denied that He would rule. It just wasn't time yet. He modeled submission, our relationship with God in this broken world. God provided an example of what we needed now.

Along the same lines, Jesus will be given authority when the time does come. Again, modeling what we need when we need it. Interesting?