Gotta Be Ready

On Gentry in Tyler, heavy traffic, two flat "things" blow out of the back of a pickup.  Driver turns around, returns, parks in the left turn lane, and scoots back to retrieve the items.  It takes two hands, and he needs to run to clear traffic.

However, he is very "stylish" with the trademark way-too-low pants.  Lookin' GOOD.  Dragging the ground.  Let's see now:  one hand for one flat thing, one hand for the other flat thing that blew away................ that leaves two elbows trying to hold up the pants.  If you bend a bit.  If the wind isn't blowing AT ALL.  If you bend your knees and try to walk on tip-toe.  One thing for sure, the man is NOT ready to run!

Apparently it was a "stylin'" day, for a few blocks later, a young woman was trying to cross a very busy street.  Not thin, but not overweight either, big hair, too-tight but stylish pants, and HEELS.  At least 3" high, maybe a little tight, and there she is in the middle "turn" lane as traffic whizzes by in both directions.  There's a break, and she begins to run across the open space.  She didn't fall, but traffic did stop for her.  She wasn't READY.  Lookin' GOOD, but like a fish out of water in that traffic.

Looking good - - - but not ready to play in the adult world of the street.  Looking good, a hallmark of our society, but not ready to really compete.  A big issue for some folks is finding a way to be competitive at a $25.00 per hour wage, in a world where the global industry standard is $10.00.  Somehow, not ready,  at least not in the real world.

Jesus told lots of parables about being ready.  The whole Book of Revelation is about being ready for life in a hostile world (usually the most ignored interpretation, since we would rather be "stylin'" than be ready).  It's about being faithful within the Holy Spirit guided fellowship, when that fellowship is under persecution.  It's not about jobs, it's about life itself.  It's not even about eternity, it's about the day-to-day realistic grind that absolutely demands integrity and authenticity.

Abundant life means being ready to live with reality, and God's guidance.  Look good or be good?  Big question for Christians today.

Learning to Cast

Learning to cast a fishing lure was a fundamental when I was a kid. Grandpa brought home fish, it was important to him, so it had to be important to me! He used the old bait-casting reel, open spool, nothing automatic or push-button involved.

When he offered to teach me, I thought maybe learning to compare one kind of tackle against another, one rod and reel against another. but no. He brought out a pretty trashy piece of equipment. No ferrule on the end of the rod, looked broken off. No reel. Just the rod, and a bucket. And in the bucket, some mud.

Placing a blob of mud on the end of the rod, squeezing it so it would stick, he then flipped it to land on a wall, about 25 feet away, where the blob stuck. "There," he said, "now you flip one as close to that as you can."

I thought, "This is fishing????" but went ahead. Not good; missed by a mile! Again, not good, but medium, maybe. Again, and again, and again, until I got close. Practiced more. Kept on. Graduated to a rod and reel (learning how to avoid backlash) and a practice plug (no hooks at all).

To make a long story short, contest followed, casting accuracy contests, and it felt good to win. Then the fishing moments when that bait could be placed under a limb, close to the bank, with some real precision.

Lesson: Fishing skills aren't bought at the store, and they don't consist in fine tackle. Fishing skills are learned in the mind, and in the eye-hand-coordination.

Spiritual-life skills are the same; labels don't get it done. Something happens at the moment when you realize that ancient, old Abraham is your spiritual "senior", living far beyond the level where you yourself live in your journey with the Lord.

It's not "having the latest tackle"; it's all about authenticity between your heart and the Lord. Everything else is just for show!