My uncle recently came to visit me, and while we were visiting we talked a lot about church, and how wounded I felt, and how I felt trapped under tradition, and ritual. So he told me this story and I think he hit it on the nail.
It was Johnny's first day of school, the teacher walked around and handed out a sheet of paper to everyone, and said "we are going to draw a picture today". So Johnny took out his new crayons, and began to draw a dragon and a knight. The teacher then said, "we are going to draw flowers"
Johnny quickly turned over his paper, and began to draw flowers, purple ones, and red ones and blackones. All different. Then the teacher said, I want you to draw one flower, color the pedals yellow the center red, and the stem green and there needs to be one leaf, you need to color that green as well. Now Johnny was very embarassed, he had to raise his hand and get a new sheet of paper. Johnny drew one flower with yellow pedals, a red center, and a green stem with one leaf.
A few years later Johnny had to move, and on his first day of class he had art class, the teacher handed out a sheet of paper and said you may draw anything you want, just draw. Johnny took out a yellow, green, and red crayons. He drew one flower, with yellow pedals, a red center, a green leaf and stem. When the teacher had collected them, she later asked Johnny why he drew a flower, when he could have drawn anything he wanted. Johnny replied " I don't know how to draw anything else".
If we get so caught up in traditions and rituals that have been set for us, we never learn how to do things on our own. If there are always people ie: friends, church elders, family telling us how to do things and the way that we should do them, the gifts that God gave us may end up not being used the way that they could. Some rules are good, entirely. I strongly believe that each child of God has something to offer to the King of Kings, but they often need to figure out what that gift is on thier own through the spirit teaching them, moving them. We all have the image of God in us, don't snuff it out for someone else because they are different or have a different way of finding thier identity in Christ.
I thank my Uncle Eric for his advice, concern, and love!!
3 comments:
Alida, I agree that too often we are trapped in tradition. I agree that too often our own comfort takes priority over the work of the Spirit in our communities. However, one thing I do not really agree with is that we can, or even should, figure out how and where God will use us by ourselves. You say that it is our responsibility, on our own through the Spirit teaching and moving us, to figure out our own gifts. This is not quite true. We need community to help us understand what God has done for, in, and through us.
John Stott says, "It takes the whole people of God to understand the whole love of God." It takes the community to teach us how to live with God.
Our faith whithers and dies when we separate ourselves from the community, because the community is the body of Christ on this earth. While it is still broken and does cause pain, it is also the place that provides growth.
I pray that both of you would be able to find a place that will teach you, challenge you, grow you. A place where God's love will be exposed for you, and in you.
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