Saturday, June 06, 2015
80 Degrees and Shivering
It was a
cloudless blue day with dazzling, bright sunshine. Birds chirped, children splashed in wading
pools, dogs scrambled for shade. All of
this accented the strangeness of a troubled seven year old boy who is crouched
in his tree house, pressing his ear buds into his ears with the palms of his
hands. His eyes are tightly closed, a look of terror on his face, and he is
shivering. What would make a young boy shiver
so on such a beautiful day? He is completely
absorbed in Jack London's short story, "To Build a Fire." His
audible book has successfully transported him to the Yukon. Thanks to a great narrator and realistic
sound effects, this young boy is completely immersed in the story. He feels the freezing cold water. The driving
snow pelts his face. He can't enjoy the
sunshine for the thoughts of cold.
The mind and
imagination are powerful. People's mood
and emotions can be drastically affected simply by injecting ideas, sights and sounds into their thinking.
We have all known people in dire straits who are brimming with life
while others whose circumstances are wonderful are crying in their milk. Many live in blessed circumstances but can't
enjoy the blessings for thoughts of bad things that are happening in the
world. For example, one may struggle
to enjoy the benefits of living in a
free nation because they are aware of some of its shortcomings. Live is too short to miss all the goodness
that God and life have to offer by becoming obsessed with the evil that life
may include.
Consider
this advice from St. Paul, a man whose life was marked by much trouble, but who
managed to live with great joy: "Fix your thoughts on what is true,
and honorable, and right, and pure, and lovely, and admirable. Think about
things that are excellent and worthy of praise." (Philippians 4:8 NLT)
The fact is,
life is comprised of hot and cold, good and bad, joy and sorrow. At the writing of this article it is a cozy
80 degrees in New England. Meanwhile it
is flooding in Texas and 50 degrees in Melbourne, Australia. Should I moan about the flooding and the cold
in spite of the fair weather I have the
opportunity to live in here... today?
In all
honesty, most people tend to naturally focus on the negative. Newscasts focus on the bad news. Movies usually focus on greed, murder and
injustice. A great many popular songs focus on being hurt or abandoned. It is
no wonder we are sad. Grace, on the other hand, empowers us to embrace the good and entrust
God with the bad. Believers can be optimistic, not because their heads are in
the sand, but because they understand that although the world is full of hurt
and hate, it is also full of healing and love.
One must not be so preoccupied with the bad that they miss the
good.
Perhaps
the 23rd Psalm has become so beloved because it represents a very balanced
view. It acknowledges that life includes
thirst, sickness and enemies, but it celebrates the fact that there is a good
shepherd. Maybe one could say, "The
Lord is my Shepherd, I will not shiver."
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