Although painful and tragic, I saw humor in the root of the Poisonwood Tree title (no pun intended.) How often do I think I’ve
communicated a point well and then find out after the fact due to “inflection”
or some other subtle verbal or non-verbal cue the message was
misinterpreted?” I am
literally laughing right now as I imagine the scene. –The preacher in his mind is
proclaiming Christ is glorious while not perceiving that his message is being
received as “Christ is the worst possible thing you could ever imagine.” Soooo funny and soooo descriptive of
the painful challenge poised each day for each of us who accept the call to be
in leadership. I love
Paul’s question about his leadership with the Corinthians, “who is competent
for these things?” (2
Corinthians 2) I
definitely land on that chapter in my bible from time to time.
Echoing in my head as I read chapters 5 and 6 were these words from the Super Ultra about Discipline. “Focusing on the fullness of your creator is a daily discipline. The more you focus on your creator’s fullness, the more you perceive your own emptiness. As the creator fills the secret, empty recesses of your soul your countenance reflects the creator’s fullness. Leaders and followers are desperately seeking those who carry on them the fragrance of Christ. So why do so few seem to wear the person of Christ like a garment or perfume? The challenge is that the fullness of your creator is not something that you acquire. It is freely and extravagantly given. What lacks is the discipline and resolve to commune intimately with the creator’s abundance.”
Interestingly, the metaphor of fragrance in the super ultra is also captured in 2 Corinthians 2. Even more interesting to me at least is the tie between fragrance of life and stench of death in 2 Corinthians 2. Thinking about the gospel, fragrance, & stench makes me wonder if proclaiming the stench of death wasn’t that far off in the Poisonwood story. Maybe the discipline of encountering life and repealing death involves the uncomfortable proclamation of Poisonwood. In other words, “Poison Wood and Glorious” are perhaps two sides of the same coin stolen from Christ’s Kingdom treasure by our greedy hands. Hmmmm.
Echoing in my head as I read chapters 5 and 6 were these words from the Super Ultra about Discipline. “Focusing on the fullness of your creator is a daily discipline. The more you focus on your creator’s fullness, the more you perceive your own emptiness. As the creator fills the secret, empty recesses of your soul your countenance reflects the creator’s fullness. Leaders and followers are desperately seeking those who carry on them the fragrance of Christ. So why do so few seem to wear the person of Christ like a garment or perfume? The challenge is that the fullness of your creator is not something that you acquire. It is freely and extravagantly given. What lacks is the discipline and resolve to commune intimately with the creator’s abundance.”
Interestingly, the metaphor of fragrance in the super ultra is also captured in 2 Corinthians 2. Even more interesting to me at least is the tie between fragrance of life and stench of death in 2 Corinthians 2. Thinking about the gospel, fragrance, & stench makes me wonder if proclaiming the stench of death wasn’t that far off in the Poisonwood story. Maybe the discipline of encountering life and repealing death involves the uncomfortable proclamation of Poisonwood. In other words, “Poison Wood and Glorious” are perhaps two sides of the same coin stolen from Christ’s Kingdom treasure by our greedy hands. Hmmmm.
Speaking of interesting ties, I’ve never heard the word
genogram in all my life and yet two weeks ago I completed a genogram when a gal
filled in for a couple weeks as the teacher of a leadership class I am
attending.
I might be alone on this point, but time and time and time
and time again I see how God orchestrates my life to reveal His working through
seemingly unrelated activities. So
in this instance, I see it like this - For 44 years I’ve lived with no
mention of genograms and in two weeks I got two completely separate folks
talking about genograms. In
the leadership class I’m in we had a workshop where we each completed the
genogram. So I completed this genogram thing and then a few days later I'm
reading about it in this book.
In Facebook they have this thing called a “poke” I
guess. I’ve never poked anyone before
but I’ve been poked a few times. I
looked it up on yahoo answers and I found this one “A poke is when you allow someone to see your facebook page for 3 days,
so they can know who you are and hopefully add you as a friend.”
Again, I
might be alone on this point but I would describe this genogram coincidence and
really (you can doubt my credibility here) countless others coincidences like
this as “cosmic pokes.” God, for whatever
reason, wakes me up from this dream that I am my own creation and invites me to
look into the tomb, into the belly of the beast, where he descended for me in
love into the very depths of hell and died for me so that I might live.
God sustains all things and fills all things and yet I’m
always surprised when I see Him holding all things together intimately around
me. When I see God
revealing His orchestration of time and space around me I feel encouraged,
cared for, loved, and secure. In
summary, seeing God work in and around me provides some incredibly powerful and
positive emotional vibrations.
He is an amazing God. And He’s good. And He sets us free again and again and again. THANK YOU JESUS!
He is an amazing God. And He’s good. And He sets us free again and again and again. THANK YOU JESUS!
All "poking" aside, (that was for you josh) Steve your post reminded me of those glimpses of students (and myself) seeing Kingdom Glimpses on houseboats. Cosmic pokes as you called them! I'm continually in awe of how He chooses to use houseboats, ski boats... training weekends to remind us of that freedom!
ReplyDelete"The challenge is that the fullness of your creator is not something that you acquire. It is freely and extravagantly given. What lacks is the discipline and resolve to commune intimately with the creator’s abundance.” UGH! Straight between the eyes and a pierce through the heart! I remember you you gave a sermon (years ago) called, "Practicing your Father's Presence." God gives us access to His fulness on a platter. He doesn't just put it in front of our faces, but He has implanted His spirit IN us. What easy access! Yet, I feel like a barely "tap into" that fullness and power. How do I do it? It is so simple! Practice His presence, call on His name. Abba, Father!
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