Twitter Rant: 06-06-10

06-06-10 11:51 pm

I am starting to realize some things.

We tend to look at life through the prism of our own understanding, this is problematic.

Our individual perspectives are mere dots on the surface of single grains of sand on the vast shores of wisdom.

we assume that we know all and in this assumption we become blind to the truth.

it is only when we realize that we know nothing that our vision clears enough to reveal the truth.

and that truth is so impossibly grand that we can't help but to be humble before it.

An Open Letter: So That We Might See

As he went along, he saw a man blind from birth. His disciples asked him, "Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?"

"Neither this man nor his parents sinned," said Jesus, "but this happened so that the work of God might be displayed in his life. – John 9: 1-3

Today’s Reading: 1 Chronicles 25-27: John 9:1-23

Dear Jesus,

First of all I want to say thank you for giving me my vison. The mud thing was pretty dramatic… but yeah man… thanks a lot.

Now… I don’t mean to sound ungrateful… but you said that I was blind so that the work of God might be displayed in my life. That doesn’t make sense to me. Ok yes what you did was super impressive but man, I went through my whole childhood blind as a bat! I’ve had to beg for money my entire adult life because I had no means or wherewithal to provide a living for myself.

The “why” that you gave your disciples I’m sure works for them. But to keep it real with you, it doesn’t work for me. This is MY life that you are talking about here! Where were you all these years when I was starving, ridiculed, ashamed, vulnerable, and taken advantage of? Where were you huh?

Sigh…

Ok… I just had to get that off my chest. But you gotta understand me here. It just doesn’t make any sense. Why would I have to suffer all of the hardship that I suffered so that your followers could learn a lesson? It just doesn’t seem fair.

Please help me understand.

Sincerely,

Your thankful servant.

My son,

I am sorry that you feel the way that you do and I will do my best to help you understand; but first I must ask you a few questions.

What is fair? How do you judge what is and what is not fair? Are your struggles yours alone? How did you make it all of these years? Were you loved?

I am love and I work through love. I never left you and I will always be with you. How did you feel when you received the caring touch from your mother or could hear the warm smile in the heart of your father when he spoke of you? Who was it that provided alms for you when you were hungry? Who looked out for you when you could not look out for yourself? Who guided your steps when you could not see the stumbling blocks in your path? Who reached down to help you when you fell?

It was I this whole time for I am love. When people act in love they are connected with the divine. It is hard for many people to learn to love because they only see what they want to see. So I sent them one who could not see to show them what they have been unable to see.

Through your blindness you taught the world to love; not only those who raised you, who knew you, and who saw you, but also all of those who will come after you for millennia. The fact that you grew up and lived to the age that you were when I encountered you is a testimony of the love that humanity is capable of.

It is only through love that a blind child can grow to be a man.

So I am sorry son for the sacrifice that you feel you have made but know that you are one of the great teachers of the ages. The greatest teachers are those who teach others how to love.

And you my friend succeeded at that; greatly.

Sincerely,

J.

Clear Vision

"Listen to my words:
"When a prophet of the LORD is among you,
I reveal myself to him in visions,
I speak to him in dreams.

But this is not true of my servant Moses;
he is faithful in all my house.

With him I speak face to face,
clearly and not in riddles;
he sees the form of the LORD.
Why then were you not afraid
to speak against my servant Moses?" – Numbers 12: 6-8

This story starts off with Moses’ brother and sister, Aaron and Miriam, talking smack about Moses because he married a Cushite (Ethiopian) woman. God hears it and then calls the three of them to him and says what is quoted above.

Then ZAP! He put that leprosy on Miriam.

Rough game.

Then Aaron begs Moses to pray to God so that God would forgive her. He does, and after seven days outside the camp she is healed. During that time Israel could not move forward. That is some serious public shame.

There are several interesting things about this story to me.

First of all… score one for interracial marriage! God wasn’t having any smack talking about Moses and his choice of wife. I think this says a lot about how important marriage is to God. It’s a permanent spiritual bond. When it is attacked, God is not pleased.

The next thing is the mention of how special Moses was. He wasn’t merely a prophet. He was the most humble man on earth! And as a result of his humility and faithfulness God spoke directly to Moses and revealed his form to him.

When we look back at all of the preparations that the high priest must perform before going into the holy of holies on the Day of Atonement, this says a lot.

The priest had to be ritually cleansed so that he could be in the presence of God and live to tell about it.

That’s just a Tuesday afternoon for Moses.

Here again are the recurring themes of faith and humility. The more faithful and humbly we live our lives, the more God reveals himself to us.

But also there is a flip side to this. God is always with us. But when we are blinded by selfishness and arrogance we cannot see outside the prism of our own interests.

Faith and humility allow us to see life much more clearly. The longer one walks that path, the clearer the image of God becomes.

Today’s Reading: Numbers 12-14; Mark 5: 21-43