THE 'LION, THE SNATCH & THE YARD-ROBE

 Apologies to C.S. Lewis (author of The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe) but I think of this parody title (my invention!) of his famous allegory fiction  when spring comes. The warmer weather brings the emergence of lawn dande-LIONS that I try to SNATCH before they seed out to turn my YARD into a fluffy white ROBE of reproducing, winged seeds. Yes, I know they're pretty little flowers for little children to pick for a bouquet for mommy or grandma. (I've been blessed this way by earnest little hands.) They're fun to blow to the winds. Can't you just hear that fluffy little head saying, “Whee, free ride to another home”? But, not “pretty” for my culture's gardening ideal that considers the dandelion a weed.

So, I am thinking....do I cultivate spiritual dandelions in my life? When my heavenly Lawn-Keeper is at work in the garden of my soul, am I letting weeds like anger, resentment, discontent, slander, unfounded suspicion and such negatives sprout and spread? One sage remarked, “If you ignore little things, they'll become big problems.”

I think that fits right in with the Lord's pattern for prayer that includes “forgive us our sins, as we forgive those who sin against us.” It calls for sweeping the "attitude dust" out of the heart-house, determined to minimize more re-entering. It means plucking out deceptively pretty blooms of “it's all about me” to clear the landscape for the beauty and purity of Christ to show forth.

The Prayer also includes this petition: “Lead us not into temptation,” avoiding sinful choices and attitudes which could flourish and spread. Tending the spiritual life calls for tenderheartedness regarding words and behaviors that shouldn't be. Then, an earnest desire to have God lead us away from tolerating the rogue attitudes and actions that don't belong in the garden (or lawn) of our souls.

So, apologies to C.S. Lewis for tampering with the title of his famed “Narnia” fantasy fiction. It was part of parent/childhood reading for my son and daughter. Not only had I previously read the series myself, but back about 1980 I saw the actual Lewis family wardrobe (stand-alone closet) made famous as an imagined entrance to “Narnia.” Purchased in England, brought to the U.S., it was then located in a dedicated archive room of the Wheaton College library. A photo of it here:

cs lewis wardrobe at wheaton college - Search Images

CREAM OR SKIM?

 The old phrase, “Do as I say, not as I do,” sadly applies to how many live in ways that don't line up with the Bible. From the perspective of old-old age, the apostle John (believed to have lived to age 94), tackled this issue in his letter we know as “First John.” It is full of adoration for the God who is Light, Love, Righteous, and Life. But it also emphasizes that our “talk” and our “walk” should match. The 19^th Century evangelist D.L. Moody put it this way: “We talk cream and live skim milk.”

So, what does that look like? Dr. Henrietta C. Mears, under whose leadership the Sunday school program at Hollywood's First Presbyterian Church grew from 400 to 6,000, distilled from First John these seven tests for a fruitful life with Christ. (1)

1.      Walk in the Light. “If we say that we have fellowship with Him [the God of Light} and walk in darkness, we lie and do not the truth”  (1:6). Bugs under a rock scatter when that rock is lifted and sunlight reveals their hiding place. So it is when Christ reveals the worth of every thought, action, and word.

2.      Admit that you sin.  Those who ignore or gloss over their sins are short-sighted. Like rocks that keep appearing in a plowed field, sinful acts or inclinations are there below the surface, soon to be revealed. Ignoring our sin is self-deception (1:8). Confessing it—calling it what it is, sin-- brings it to the surface (1:9). God is faithful and just, willing to forgive (v. 9)

3.      Obey God's will. John said the person who claims to know God but doesn't keep His commandments is a liar (2:4). That's pretty strong language! A major litmus test is the first commandment, to love God with all our heart, soul and mind. Compare, for example, the time and attention given to Bible study and prayer with that accorded entertainment and social contacts. (Today, that would include how we use the internet.)  Dr. Mears added this observation: “Many times we do not want God to talk to us. We will not listen to Him because we are afraid of His will for us.”

4.      Imitate Christ. John wrote (2:6) that “abiding in Christ” means doing what He would do. Some tourists use mirrors to study Michelangelo's ceiling art in Rome's Sistine Chapel. This saves them a “crick in the neck” from looking up all the time. In a similar way, we are to “reflect” the life of Jesus.

5.      Love others. Someone who says to another, “I hate you” doesn't have Christ's character (2:9).

6.      Guard against the world's temptations. These include (2:15): the “lust of the flesh” (physical gratification), “lust of the eyes” (riches and honor), and “pride of life” (focusing on being popular or important).

John's first letter has lots of "chew" power in it--things to mull over and reconsider. Or maybe I should say it's cream, thick and tasty, in leading us in living ways pleasing to God.

 (1) What the Bible is All About (Gospel Light/Regal,1953), pp. 635-640.

Bugged

Talk about an end-of-season party! This was the gathering atop my stove in September. I had supplied the “refreshments” (a disk with ant-yummy poison), so had essentially invited this large number of “guests.” A few weeks later, the early winter frosts came, reducing the number of critters who paid social calls in my kitchen. One day, I told my husband, “I didn’t see a single ant today. Did you?” I’m glad for the winter reprieve, but I know when the weather warms, our uninvited guests (most likely their offspring) will return.

Isn’t that like life? We wonder if things can get any worse, and mercifully, a reprieve comes. Or, we’ll find the strength and grace to get through a difficult situation. That’s the point of one verse in Paul’s first letter to the church at Corinth. In my Bible it’s underlined and highlighted in yellow such that it almost glows in the dark. Are you getting the idea that I’ve needed its message more than once? Here it is:

No temptation has seized you except what is common to man. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can stand up under it. (1 Corinthians 10:13 NIV)

For a long time I thought “temptation” implied being lured into the seven cardinal sins, like greed and lust. Then I looked up the Greek word that most Bibles translate “temptation.” It’s peirasmos and its primary meaning is “trials with a beneficial purpose and effect,” divinely permitted or sent. Or as Bible teacher Kay Arthur often says, nothing can come into our lives that is not filtered through the fingers of God’s love. It’s bigger than being faced with obvious sin choices. It’s choosing God’s way when our lives are touched by temptations, difficult circumstances or relationships.

I needed that reminder the other day when faced with a peirasmos in relationships calling for an extra dose of patience and grace. It crawled all over my emotions, like partying ants on a disk of poison. Then God, though my scripture reading and the counsel of friends, helped me through it. Will that difficulty revisit? In this case, probably--but only because God permits it. He knows that each time I get through a periasmos, my character is honed, preparing me for my eventual Home with Him.

“Go to the ant,” says Proverbs 6:6, as part of its warnings against idleness. But in this case, I “go to the ant” for a reminder that no matter the irritation or struggle, God is greater. Pardon the pun, but I don’t need to get “antsy,” knowing He’s in control.