Steps to Seeing

Reflections from The Hill – Steps to Seeing

Belief in life before this life is nothing new; it’s been around for centuries in one form or another. For those who believe it, I’m here to tell you that you’ve been sold a lemon: it ain’t true; not then, not now, not ever.

This fallacy gets trotted out in today’s long Gospel reading from John. Did this man’s pre-birth sin cause his blindness? Did his Ma and Pa sin before the baby was born? Did this cause the
blindness?

Was it something his parent’s ate, or drank, or was in the presence of? Did they run over someone from a different racial background to theirs on their way to the marketplace? Why do bad things happen to good people?

It’s not unusual to want to pinpoint the cause of our problems, whatever they are. In fact, it may be enlightening to know this. However, problems begin when we assert that this or that calamity is due to the sin of the individual concerned, or the sin of someone in his/her family.

Maybe you’ve heard it; maybe you’ve said it yourself, in jest or otherwise. The statement goes thus: “God must be punishing me for something.” It’s not just individuals who say it, either; communities say it about themselves, too.

Just recall some of the conversations you’ve heard following Cyclone Yasi or the Japanese tsunami and see if I’m not wrong. The belief is Out There.

So there’s the first step to sight: God doesn’t punish us because He thinks it’d be a Good Thing to do today. Sure, we reap what we sow but the sadness is that there are millions of people who are living under an unbearable weight of false guilt because of an idea that they did something wrong and God is punishing them for it.

Mercifully, life is not like a heavenly version of “Hot Seat” or “Weakest Link” and God ain’t remotely like Eddie McGuire or Cornelia Frances.

It is instructive to know that He has a plan for each of us that is far beyond all our explanations to solve life’s great puzzles. What do we do? We rest upon God’s infinite wisdom and love, that’s what – and that’s the first step to seeing.

Resting on Him has as much to do with assumptions as it has with knowledge, so a second step to seeing is to know that God doesn’t work according to laws of logic and decorum and it’s a mistake for us to assume that He can’t deviate from convention.

From Balaam’s talking ass and Naaman’s skinny-dipping seven times in the Jordan, to Jesus making mudpacks out of spit, it’s best to know that God’s ways aren’t ours. OK, maybe not skinny-dipping.

Want to raise a dead man? Stand at the grave and tell him to come out. What about getting a deaf person to hear? Stick your fingers in his ears. I could go on. “God can …” then is the next step to seeing.

It’s about now that I start losing friends, because the third step to seeing is to know that God works across denominational barriers. (‘This man is not from God …’). In fact, you don’t even
have to believe in God to get a blessing from The One Upstairs. How radical is that?

Add them all up, doctrines, articles, rituals, ceremonies, dogmas and menus for the Parish Dinner (these are among the things that divide us) and none of them even come close to being any reason to prevent Heavenly glories raining down on the just and unjust, as The Good Book says.

We, however, seem to have a different view. Unless people march to our drum, wear our uniform or chant our mantra, we say, then it’s too bad for them.

I read somewhere recently that Jesus died without the help or benefit of any church or denomination that is/was/shall be present today, or yesterday, or tomorrow. That’s a sobering
thought yet taking it on board is the fourth step to seeing.

The last step to seeing involve moving on, a difficult thing for any of us to do, even at the best of
times. Moving on has two parts: the first is to believe that our favourite church (‘We are Moses’ disciples …’) doesn’t have all the answers and that we can actually learn something from others.

“Sheep-stealing” or the “Once-an-Anglican-always-an-Anglican” chorus both carry with them the Moses Syndrome. Don’t say you weren’t warned. Rather, thank God for those many who have moved past Moses and have discovered the fullness of life in Jesus, in whatever denominational or religious tee-shirt they wear, if any at all. Maybe some of them were/are from your congregation.

The other part of moving on is being teachable (‘… are you trying to teach us?’). Clergy aren’t famous for this. We sky-pilots somehow get it into our heads that our brains and mouths are the repositories of all truth and lay people know zip about anything, that’s why they’re lay people.

It’s not a good idea to spiritualise this or any other miracle out of existence but, on the other hand, a fundamental step to seeing is to know that The One who can use a donkey to speak can actually do anything.

Humour
of the Week:

A Baptist went to heaven and was greeted at the Gate by St Peter, who began by showing him
around. They did the obligatory tour of the wing-fitting rooms and the band halls where trumpets are blown.

They walked on streets of gold and saw the lack of sea. It was a wonderful tour.

As they walked, our Baptist friend observed a high wall that stretched for kilometres in either direction, a bit like the Great Wall of China without hills.

From the other side of the wall, our friend heard the sound of partying: loud voices, clinking glasses, lots of “Yes, yes”. You know the sort of thing.

“What’s over there?” he asked.

“Oh that’s the Anglicans. They think they’re the only one’s here.”

One Liner of the Week:

War doesn't determine who’s right, war determines who’s left.

Quote of The Week:

… in spite of Samuel's grief and failings, the prophet remains open to God's word and to new possibilities. While this may not provide a comforting "central Bible truth," it does offer a realistic picture of the human condition and of the ways in which we might deal with disappointment. While we may often feel the grief, remorse, and guilt of past failings – real or imagined – God does not condemn us for them. Rather, God does provide God's servants with guidance and new
possibilities even when we may not see them. David G. Garber.

Reflections Update:

There’s been a couple of changes
to the signature at the bottom of the emails you’ll receive from me from now on,
including Reflections.

The first change is the addition of both the Diocesan Web address and my blog site address. You can follow me at ian.mcalister.blogspot.com 

The second change is to the quote from Jim Elliott. It has been replaced by one from John Haggai and was actually last week’s “One Liner”.

We Three Amigos (+Bill, Chris N and I) are flying to Mackay for the Regional Consultation and other activities there this weekend. There are still unpassable roads in that Region, so we’re going over the top of them. I’m visiting Sarina Parish on Sunday and staying on for their LSM meeting on Monday.

Go well. Do good. Love outrageously. Laugh heaps. Be strong in God. Check in here occasionally.

In His Grip and Making a Difference

Ian