THE QUIVER:
IDENTITY
COMMUNITY
BROKENNESS
A SMOOTHER TRANSITION
SEEING IS BELIEVING
RELATIONSHIP,
FREEDOM, AND SELF-CONTROL
WILLING TO LOVE
I've had a lot of spiritual growth since the last time we communicated.
Jack Sequeira came and did a week of prayer on Christ Our Righteousness
and a lot of things he said solidified the lessons that God has been teaching
me throughout my life. That will be reflected in what comes through
this My Point of View.
Who are you? Do you know who you are? How do you define
yourself? Most people define themselves by their occupations:
I'm a student. I'm a bus
driver. I'm a musician. I'm a teacher. Some define
themselves by their roles: I'm a mother. I'm a father. I'm
a helper. Some define themselves by their titles: Dr. Wilmot
Charles, Pastor Emily Scott, Prime Minister Winston Churchill.
There is a danger when we identify ourselves with something outside of ourselves. Because it is very difficult to remain in the same role all of the time. Sometimes, I'm a teacher. Sometimes, I'm a student. Sometimes I'm a musician. Sometimes, I'm a volleyball player. Sometimes I'm a worship leader. I'm a son, I'm a brother, I'm a friend, I'm a mentor. And if I have preconceived notions about how each of these people behave, then I'll have a pretty fragmented idea of who I am.
When we find something that links all of our roles, all of our occupations together, and we make that the centre of our being, then our identity springs from a unified core. Everything we do is influenced by that core identity. Everything we do is consistent with the principles of that core identity. And we know who we are.
That is why I am so happy to be a Christian. For Christ is the core of my identity. I find myself in Him. And all of my values, all of my philosophies, all of my methods, all of my actions seek to identify with His. "For in Him we live, and move, and have our being."
I think I'd like to share with you some of my core values. I think we've known each other long enough. These are found in the values and goals section of my Franklin Planner. I share them with you not that you might judge me by them or expect me to live up to the all of the time. I just want you to know that I have written down what I want to be. There is power in the word. And when the word becomes flesh, there is power.
TRUTH
Honesty - to be truthful
Justice - to do what is right, and stand for the right
Spirituality - to grow closer to God every day
Authenticity - to be real and genuine all the time
LOVE
Compassion - to assist those in need
Sacrifice - to consider others' interests above mine
Humility - to elevate others rather than myself
Friendliness - to open up to others and allow them to get to
know me on a personal level
Sensitivity - to be in tune with my feelings and open to the
feelings of others
Reverence - to show God I love Him by how I behave in His house
and at all times
COURAGE
Valour - to stand up for what I believe; to be a leader, not
a follower
Honour - to back up my words with action
Loyalty - to stand with and for my friends
Consistency - to maintain my values in all situations
I have seen God working in my life, consistently crafting me into the
person that He wants me to be. I believe that the power of the Word,
as well as the word, has been manifested. So I encourage you to write
down your goals and see them frequently, for by beholding we become changed,
and as we behold Christ, His ways become our ways. His identity becomes
our identity.
When an identity is shared by more than one person, you experience a
particular kind of unity that cannot be found simply by sharing the same
values. A shared identity means that the desires of your heart are
in common. If God wants to redeem the world through love, then that
is my aim, as I grown closer to Him. If God believes in sacrificial
service, then I begin to practise it. If God's method involves a
humble approach, then I will incorporate that into my approach. We
have an identity in common, and we, as a result have unity. We are
one. Common unity is community. Now, I didn't call this "a
community" because you may associate a community as being a group of people
who live in proximity to one another and share values, called "community
values". Community is a concept, and it's based
upon the one heart shared by many. The closer together the hearts
are, the closer the core identities are to one another, the greater the
degree of community. Jesus desires community among his followers
- the same kind of community he demonstrated. "That they may be one
father, as you and I are one." And community must be found in identity.
We are broken as it is. Before Christ, we are fragmented, but we do a pretty nifty job of patching our hearts together and making them look better. But every time our hearts are broken, and they mend, the have calluses. And those calluses get so hard that after a time, they become like stone. But God has good news for us - when He offers to take our stony hearts and exchange them for a new Heart, His heart, we have the freedom to accept that offer, and begin anew, walking in the footsteps of our Saviour Jesus toward oneness with God. "Follow me," He says. Follow me in your philosophy, your values, your attitudes, your methods, and your practices, for you already have my heart, my identity. You are my child. Follow me, and you will begin to live like me. I will change you from the inside out. All you have to do is submit to me. Not once, but forever. Continuously. Abide in me, and I will abide in you. And what ever you ask for in my name, it shall be done.
"To love you, take my world apart
To need you, I am on my knees
To love you, take my world apart
To need you, broken on my knees."
(Jars of Clay)
I was thinking the other day about the way we live in this world.
Particularly inspired by the verse, "Be not conformed to the pattern of
this
world," I examined one of the patterns of this world.
It seems that we have a generation gap. The parents and the children don't share values, goals, methods, spending habits, patterns of behaviour. There's nothing close to identity. And the communities are fragmented. As soon as people are able, they usually move out of the parents' house and on their own. After a while, they find someone to settle down with and they get married (or have an alternate living arrangement). So they leave a community, live on their own, and then form a community again.
I don't think that it was intended to be that way. The Bible, in speaking of marriage says, "For this reason shall a man leave his mother and father, and cleave unto his wife, and the two shall be one." (That's speaking of community, I think)
Leave and cleave. That's not leave-meander-cleave. I wonder what purpose God had for phrasing it that way. I believe that God has a reason for everything he does, as well as a reason for the method he uses to do it. I think that there's a benefit to be found in living in your parent's house. I believe that in an ideal situation, the parent's house provides the training ground for a successful marriage relationship.
When I was younger, my mother would often call me to the kitchen to learn to cook. [I observed from time to time, but I wouldn't call myself a cook (artist); I prepare meals (technician)] I believe that the best way to learn is by seeing it done, understanding the fundamental principles behind it, and following the pattern laid by one's teacher. As one understands and masters the art, one can then begin to express one's own creativity, based upon the principles involved. That's the method Jesus modelled. And then, when the teacher leaves, one is ready to take up the mantle.
That would be a beneficial experience, if young men and women could learn how to manage a household in the same way. Starting young, responsibility is increased with age and experience. "He that is faithful in that which is least is faithful also in much." The parents allow their children to manage the finances, observing first the method used by the parents, and understanding the underlying philosophy. They would take care of the gardens, and perhaps even become supporting wage earners for the household before marrying and moving into the successful role as husband or wife. In this way, they do not need to leave the home to become independent, but pass through independence to become an interdependent and fully functional member of the family before leaving home.
If we don't learn how to be successful at experiencing community while in our families, when will we learn it? On the honeymoon?
While the method I suggest may be an ideal, and while we may not see
how we can achieve it, it is within our power, and our privilege to choose
to work towards it. From one community to another. From one
love to another.
I wrote this for the Channel student newspaper here at CUC:
Can you see me? Chances are, you can't. Right now you're focused on reading this article. How, then, do you know that I exist? You can't. You might believe that I exist. You may see the name and believe that there is someone behind these words, a personality whose characteristics flow between the words and spaces. You could be wrong. If you know me - if you've experienced me, then you may have a picture in your mind's eye that makes my existence more concrete to you. But for all you know, at the point at which you're reading this, I could have ceased to exist. I could be a pen name for some other aspiring writer. Maybe the Channel put the wrong author's name. You can't always trust your eyes.
Virtual Reality
We live in a world of illusion. It's hard to tell what is real. We have fake fingernails, airbrushed photos, special effects in movies. We have mail-order degrees, counterfeit running shoes, and pre-owned new cars. We can log on to an internet chat room and create personas. Today, I'm a 50 year old Scottish farmer with 2 grown children and a country estate. Tomorrow I'll be a 19 year old female college freshman. David Copperfield makes the Statue of Liberty disappear, walks through the Great Wall of China, and appears to fly through the air. We enjoy pretending that what isn't, is. We enjoy fooling ourselves into believing in a reality that suits us. We deny our addictions, flatter ourselves, and avoid facing up to our faults. And we like to create our own reality. It's more comfortable for us.
Out of Sight, Out of Mind
Recognising, of course, that reality is objective, but our perception
of it is quite subjective, we can understand why people sometimes don't
want to believe what you tell them. "The sky is falling," said Chicken
Little. He experienced something that he perceived to be the sky
falling. But everyone he met and told didn't believe it. They
hadn't seen the sky fall before, didn't share C.L.'s experience, and a
sky falling wasn't consistent with their picture of reality. Fortunately,
they were right. "It's gonna rain," said Noah. He'd experienced
Someone whom He trusted, who had told him it would rain. But everyone
he met and told didn't believe it. They hadn't
seen rain before, didn't share Noah's experience, and rain wasn't consistent
with their picture of reality. Unfortunately, the were wrong.
Despite their denial of reality, the rain came, and they didn't believe
it.
Seeing is Believing
Since human beings find it difficult to believe in the unseen, it's sometimes necessary to help them. This is why in many areas of enterprise, the pilot project or pilot study is used. Let me give an example. Hi-Lo has heard about the benefits of check-out scanners: the speed of service, the more detailed information, the increase in customer service. But they're wary. It's a lot of money, and the money is paid up front, while any benefits are accrued over time. "A risky venture," says the Chief Executive Officer. "We don't believe it's worth it." "Let's give it a try," suggests the Chief Information Officer. "I can prove it to you." So they choose the St. Augustine store to try it out. It works so well that it makes believers out of everyone. And they implement it through the entire network of Hi-Lo's in the nation. They had to see in order to believe.
Make It Real
So, let's bring the point home. To help someone believe that something is possible, you sometimes have to show them, so that it becomes a part of their reality. This is why your math teachers will show you math problems and have you copy them down in your notes. By seeing it, by doing it, you realise that it can be done. From there, it's just a small leap of faith to believe then that you can actually do it, using the approach and method that was shown to you. And once you understand the principles behind the example, you are then free to apply the principles in a variety of related problems. That's why most teachers teach using examples. That's why your mannerisms increasingly mirror those of your parents, even though you may not always do what they say. That's why children pick up weapons and kill to solve their problems; after all, that's the example shown them on the world stage. By beholding, we become changed. What we experience becomes a part of our reality.
Experience It
If you want to change the world, and hopefully some of you share my idealism, you have to start with yourself. You need to be the pilot project. The way you want others to respond, that's the way you need to behave. Always. Because some people just don't believe it can be done any way other than the way they have traditionally done things. First decide what you want to see in others, then personally experience what you want to see, then share the vision, philosophy, method, and technique. Help them to understand the principle behind the practice they have experienced. Otherwise, they're just copying the example without the freedom to make it their own experience. If you, as a student, want the school to behave a certain way, demonstrate that way in one of your student clubs or organisations.
Be an example, a pilot project, of customer service excellence regardless of circumstance. Let them learn from you. A demonstration of success gives legitimacy to the methods used to bring it about. It doesn't make sense to ask someone else to do what you yourself are unwilling to do. Demonstration plus proclamation equals transformation.
The True Pilot
By the way, seeing is believing. You don't have to be the actual pilot. You don't have to reinvent the wheel. One came already, to show to all that it can be done, and how it should be done. Business excellence? Check out the carpenter shop. Customer responsiveness? Check out how many were healed. Market sensitivity? Examine the relevance of the parables. Lasting impact? Experience a true believer, 2000 years later. Is it possible to change the world? You'd better believe it. Is it possible to change your workplace? It starts with one. Can CUC change? Show us how it can be done. Just follow the Pattern. You can't go wrong.
"Faith means being sure of the things we hope for and knowing that something
is real even if we do not see it." (Hebrews 11:1, New Century Version)
RELATIONSHIP, FREEDOM, AND SELF-CONTROL
"The only true control is self-control." That statement, while
I don't know the author, is so true. Today I had occasion to chat
with some students about card playing. Here at CUC, there is a policy
forbidding the playing of cards. The rationale behind it was not
reinforced. So, I stopped to chat with some of the students playing.
I realise that one cannot address disciplinary issues satisfactorily without
establishing a positive relationship with those you need to discipline.
Love must always be the underlying principle in any disciplinary action.
So I asked them why they thought the rule was there. First, though,
I let them know that I couldn't
just pass by the table. One felt that the rule wasn't really
about cards, but about gambling, and that the school was trying to protect
them from being killed in a later gambling related fight. I suggested
that it was possible that a rule against cards was attempting to encourage
the students to creatively choose a constructive way to spend their time,
that would be mutually beneficial to the student and society. I told
them that once there was a rule, they were limited to two options: obey,
or disobey, but once they understood the positive principle underlying
the rule, they were free to choose a greater number of ways to achieve
that goal. They felt that the school was trying to force them to
behave in a particular way. I encouraged them to rise above that,
and to refrain from using their energies to fight. They wanted to
play competitive games. I encouraged them to find cooperative activities
that would be mutually beneficial to them and their school or society.
I didn't tell them not to play cards, but I encouraged them to find the
best option possible that would give them what the cards gave them: a sense
of camaraderie, practice in strategy, and improved mathematical skills.
If any of you have any good ideas, please share. =)
An external control is never the best control. For the best control
is that which comes from with in. The love of Christ constrains us.
It compels us. It drives us onward. It doesn't restrict us.
Let's help our young people to see things in the positive sense, so that
they can be free to make good decisions.
I was sitting at a table watching a young lady at our church camp wiping off tables. It was the same girl who had been wiping tables before, when everyone should have been taking turns. I told her that she was depriving others of the opportunity to love. (At our camp, every menial task was defined as an opportunity to love. This of course is modelled after our great Saviour, who washed and dried his disciples feet, elevating the most humble, menial task to being a great opportunity to express ourselves as Christians.) She said to me that she enjoyed serving. I replied, encouraging her to apprentice someone else, to teach them how to "love". She said, "They have to be willing to love."
That is so true. It's all a matter of the will. If we will
love, Jesus will use us to change hearts. Let's be willing.