Day Twenty-Four - April 24, 2020
Today I awoke, thankful it is Friday! Thankful for boots in the mud along the walk in the rain as the sun tried to shine through the gray clouds…
*****
When our kids were little, we took many road trips. Sometimes it was for business, sometimes it was for pleasure… but usually it was a mixture of both. We owned an international export company and so growing up the kiddos spent many hours riding in the car.
We became pretty proficient at installing car seats for three kids in record breaking time. We continually looked for ways to help make the ride back and forth from the auction to the port less taxing on everyone. We pulled games out of thin air to pass the miles.
One day I found a brand new game that I thought the kids would love. Within ten minutes of playing it in the backseat - they were frustrated and hated it! Ugh.. Silently I agreed with their logic, but I couldn’t stand to let a game get the better of us. It was a simple pack of playing cards with photos on one side. Each photo was highly magnified to the point that it was virtually impossible to determine what the object was from the photo alone.
There were groans of annoyance when the photo of the strawberry zoomed in on the spot that was unripe. Unfair. Not cool. Or the rust spot on the side of a car - that no one in their right mind would have guessed. The game felt tricky and deceitful and we lost interest quickly.
Needless to say, it was stashed in the game box that traveled around with us in the van and every once in a while - someone was so incredibly bored that they would pull this game out. Eventually, over time, the game morphed into somewhat of a memorization type trivia to see if you could recall what the object was solely by memory - not by deliberating over the photo as was the game’s original intent.
As the kids grew, the game disappeared as did our business… but that’s a different story for a different time.
This afternoon, it was time for our trek to the park - regardless of the rain and mud puddles. No one really wanted to brave the drizzle so I went alone. Upon arriving at the tree line, Nellie immediately treed a squirrel and that was the end of the walk. There she stood absolutely motionless for nearly 45 mins. Her hunting instincts are so strong that unless you physically pick her up, she usually will not budge.
So, there I stood in the falling rain, looking down at the mud oozing around my boots, on the edge of a spooky kind of forest and I caught a glimpse of something strangely orange. Lo and behold, nestled in the compost around the edge of the woods, I found the most beautiful orange fungi growing. As I bent low with my camera, I realized it was a much larger patch than I first thought.
And then I remembered the photo game from when the kids were little… I thought maybe they might enjoy a quarantine version of the game. So I began snapping one photo up close and then one further back but from the same angle.
As I snapped photos, I started thinking about the current state of our world - specifically pertaining to the sharing of information and news. It is so important to be well-informed, well-educated, well-connected.
But how do we assess what is right, truthful, and well-researched information? How do we know if we are connecting to the right resources and information platforms.
I took a photo up close, then further back… you couldn’t tell they were connected. There was no way! It was like that frustrating game we tried to enjoy when the kids were little!
How do we know if we’re standing too close to see what’s right, or hyper focused on one area and missing the whole picture?
I certainly don’t know…
So what do we know? There are woods. And in those woods are plants, trees, fungi, metal, styrofoam, rocks, thorns, moss, nuts, string, flowers, feathers, etc... and a little white pup! Up close they look one way, and farther back they look differently. Some details are completely lost if not examined carefully and if we’re standing too closely, the whole perspective is lost.
And from far back and within us our Creator sees. He guides. He whispers to come near that we may see His fingerprints. He points to the mountains that we may behold His majesty. He gives wisdom to those who seek. He sees both near and far. He is Wisdom.
Luke 12 has this sort of warning/encouragement passage…
“Meanwhile, when a crowd of many thousands had gathered so that they were trampling on one another, Jesus began to speak first to his disciples…”
Don’t miss it! Thousands were gathered, crushing one another and Jesus spoke first to those who followed Him. His disciples… The ones who walked day in and day out by His side. He spoke wisdom to them concerning the current state of the world. He taught because they listened. Not with perfection but with hearts that were postured to consider the HIDDEN and learn.
And so may we find courage to lean in to learn how He desires that we walk. May we see His perspective so that we are well-informed.
May we remember that His word serves to instruct and guide so that we are well-educated.
And may we never ever forget - even our darkest times moments - that a Silver Thread of grace runs through every one of us that calls Him, Lord - so that we are beautifully and securely well-connected.
