First thing- I got a job for next year and will be a college counselor at a school that's a huge departure from the piece of suburbia I'm camping out in now. I'm relieved and happy!
Thoughts today--This year I've had 2 opportunities to study the Old Testament. I'm doing a BSF study on the Life of Moses with conservative ladies, and I'm reading I Samuel with a church small group. The BSF project makes you a true student of the OT. We've followed the Israelites from captivity to freedom to thirst to fire watching to being sent into battles they couldn't have felt in any way prepared to fight. We've studied intricate law and rules on sacrifice. And when there are questions we don't understand, the ladies smile and nod and say, "you just have to trust God has something good up his sleeve."
Then the small group. It's been God on trial every week. Who is this crazy, uncivilized God? He could not possibly appear through mediums, or raze cities with innocent children, or make people fall dead for one-time sins. There is tremendous disapproval over God acting savagely and out-of-control.
This puts me in touch with 3 things that have been on my mind:
1. I'm not comfortable with the wildness of God. I want rewards when I'm good. I expect to be punished swiftly when I'm bad. I want answered prayers, healing, and defeat of death for the good side.
2. I'm longing for the wildness of God. To meet men who are fierce, masculine like him. Who are who they are regardless of my fickle, changing ways. In charge. A world full of unpredictable possibilities and adventure.
3. We're bad at studying the Bible. I would like to just read the fun parts, but it messes up the whole story when you take pieces out of context. Tea and I discuss this lately. We just want to read the stories that resolve without reading the difficult parts building up to the climax. I need to be a better student.
Thoughts today--This year I've had 2 opportunities to study the Old Testament. I'm doing a BSF study on the Life of Moses with conservative ladies, and I'm reading I Samuel with a church small group. The BSF project makes you a true student of the OT. We've followed the Israelites from captivity to freedom to thirst to fire watching to being sent into battles they couldn't have felt in any way prepared to fight. We've studied intricate law and rules on sacrifice. And when there are questions we don't understand, the ladies smile and nod and say, "you just have to trust God has something good up his sleeve."
Then the small group. It's been God on trial every week. Who is this crazy, uncivilized God? He could not possibly appear through mediums, or raze cities with innocent children, or make people fall dead for one-time sins. There is tremendous disapproval over God acting savagely and out-of-control.
This puts me in touch with 3 things that have been on my mind:
1. I'm not comfortable with the wildness of God. I want rewards when I'm good. I expect to be punished swiftly when I'm bad. I want answered prayers, healing, and defeat of death for the good side.
2. I'm longing for the wildness of God. To meet men who are fierce, masculine like him. Who are who they are regardless of my fickle, changing ways. In charge. A world full of unpredictable possibilities and adventure.
3. We're bad at studying the Bible. I would like to just read the fun parts, but it messes up the whole story when you take pieces out of context. Tea and I discuss this lately. We just want to read the stories that resolve without reading the difficult parts building up to the climax. I need to be a better student.
2 comments:
So true! I like your thoughts about how we need the wildness of God and we miss that if we don't read the whole Bible!
The whole thing is a risky crap shoot (Vegas reference). Sometimes I see my faith like going to a TEK party. So much risk, strange people, people who live there and some who were not invited... then there is that one guy (God) waiting to have a civilized conversation at the entryway into the kitchen.
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