Share to the Choir

March 18th, 2006

What a nasty looking day! But guess what, I love rainy days. I like to sit out on the patio and smell the fresh watery air and watch the raindrops hit the ground. It just is a great and wonderful thing. Today is a friend of mine’s birthday. And on Monday of next week, spring! Normally, the Vernal Equinox occurs on the 21st of March, but for whatever reason, it is set for the 20th this year. The ancient goddess, Eostre, a Saxon deity who marked not only the passage of time but also symbolized new life and fertility, was the key symbol of this celebration which was also known as Ostara. Legend has it that the goddess was saved by a bird whose wings had become frozen by the cold of winter. This process turned the bird into a hare. Yet this was no ordinary cottontail; this long-eared rabbit could also lay eggs! The main symbols for Easter are the egg, for new life or beginnings, and the rabbit/hare, for fertility. (I got that, although edited, from equinox-and-solstice.com)

Galatians 6:1-10
1 Brothers, if someone is caught in a sin, you who are spiritual should restore him gently. But watch yourself, or you also may be tempted. 2 Carry each other's burdens, and in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ. 3 If anyone thinks he is something when he is nothing, he deceives himself. 4 Each one should test his own actions. Then he can take pride in himself, without comparing himself to somebody else, 5 for each one should carry his own load.

6 Anyone who receives instruction in the word must share all good things with his instructor.

7 Do not be deceived: God cannot be mocked. A man reaps what he sows. 8 The one who sows to please his sinful nature, from that nature will reap destruction; the one who sows to please the Spirit, from the Spirit will reap eternal life. 9 Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up. 10 Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all people, especially to those who belong to the family of believers.

You know… sometimes I deceive myself. I sometimes think I am something on a stick. But really, what am I? The bible says that I am “a morning mist” and also dust of the dirt. And, in most cases, a stick is fiber, good old wood. If I mix the stuff in the bible up, I got mud (not the jeans – that’s Mudd). “Anyone who receives instruction in the word must share all good things with his instructor.” I’m not at all sure I understand this… do I go to my preacher and share what I have learned? Do I go to my small group leader and share? Do I share to God what I have learned, IE: prayer? I am a little confused… now, I do know that I should not compare myself to anyone else. It wouldn’t be fair to either Joe Bob or me to be compared to each other… that is, unless it is sports… but even then, it really isn’t comparing apples to apples. Age gaps, at-bats per pitcher seen, types of pitches seen, games played and with what injuries are they playing, do they have the juice in them or are they playing legally… I mean, when it all comes down to it, is it really apples to apples? I don’t think so. So comparing me to Joe Bob, whereas he has different life experiences than mine, isn’t fair. He could be a Christian twice as long as me, been raised in a completely different environment and have a completely different point of view of things… but I guess it would be good to learn from him and he from me. So if he shares with me the word and I get something good out of it, then I should let him know that he didn’t drop empty words… OK-OK-OK, I finally get verse 6. It actually took some time in the Greek and KJV to figure it all out. “Let us do good to all people.” I did see some people stuck on the side of the road not too long ago. I felt the urge to stop and help… but I wallowed in self-pity. I just didn’t want to stop. I ended up passing two people… and later I regretted it. I came upon a third person (all three of these people were in the same day), but the car was empty. It was an odd place to have been broken down, and I thought that they must have run out of gas… and sure enough, I saw they guy bring out a gas can as the nearby gas station. I stopped and gave him a ride to his car. Let Johnny do good to everyone (he chooses?); No, just everyone and then a period. So, I sinned when I passed up the two people, knowing good and well I should check on them to see if they need assistance… I didn’t do good to everyone. My pride held me out to dry. Anyway, this is all I have for today. My wife and I were desperate to have a child, so we went to our preacher and asked him to pray for us. “I'm going on a trip to Rome,” he replied, “and while I'm there, I'll light a candle for you.” When he returned from Rome three years later, he came by our house and found Jenny pregnant, busily attending to two sets of twins. Overjoyed, the preacher asked her where I was so that he could congratulate me. “He's gone to Rome to blow that candle out,” came the reply. Johnny Out.