Month: July 2020

When life settles down, I will be able to focus … to work hard … to achieve … to fulfil my potential. When all my ducks are in a row (metaphorically speaking), then I shall write, I shall weed, I shall create and I shall be the woman God wants me to be. 

That’s a lovely dream. A nice ideal. But not realistic.

A wild ride

In my imagination, inspired by a Bible verse and distracted from a webinar, I find myself flying high.

Wind whips my hair. My cheeks are red and chapped. The air is icy. My heart pounds in my throat. My fingernails just about pierce the skin beneath strong feathers and my legs flail wildly, trying desperately to stay on top of the giant wing and not behind it. I look down, down, down through squinted eyes. There, I see my safe and cosy home, a tiny speck in the landscape.

A seminar

In reality, I was sitting in my safe and cosy home. I was in front of the computer screen, participating in an online seminar, watching a presentation by a fellow student at MST (the Melbourne School of Theology). The topic was the ancient Israelites’ two confessions of faith. One dealt with who they themselves were (Deuteronomy 26:5-11) while the other, known as ‘the YHWH creed’, described their God and ours (Exodus 34:6-7). 

The content was fascinating. I sat, listening, doodling, making notes to keep myself focused. Then one aside that the presenter made caught my attention. Or, rather, God pointed me to it. I scribbled furiously. 

… the LORD … said…. ‘You yourselves have seen what I did to Egypt, and how I carried you on eagles’ wings and brought you to myself….’ 

Exodus 19 3b, 4 NIV

Eagles’ wings

As the presenter continued with his topic, I skipped around Biblehub.com following this delightful tangent. 

‘Eagles’ – plural. God’s people were carried on eagles’ wings. I picture myself on one wing of an eagle, hanging on tightly, and you, perhaps, on the other. He (whoever ‘he’ may be) is on a wing of a second eagle and she (whoever ‘she’ may be) is on that eagle’s other wing. 

I know, I know … I am being too literal. Those ancient Israelites had to take one frenzied step after another even as God miraculously liberated them from Pharaoh’s grip.  

In a parallel passage in Deuteronomy 32:11, God represents himself as an eagle which stirred up its nest so as to force the young out. The eaglets then had no choice but to make their own feeble flight attempts, afraid yet secure with the wings of the parent eagle underneath. That sounds outright scary. 

Out of Egypt

God carried his people on eagles’ wings from Egypt. 

Egypt, in the context of Exodus 19:4, represented slavery, suffering, oppression and hopelessness … yet it was familiar to that generation of Israelites. They knew what each day would hold.

Leaving Egypt meant that they became fugitives then nomads. Yes, there were incredible displays of God’s power along the way. Their divine direction was indisputable, in the form of a special cloud or pillar of fire to follow. Yet it was anything but comfortable. 

This was how God treated his people. He carried them from Egypt on eagles’ wings. Uncomfortable, inconvenient, the future unknown, but carried nonetheless. 

And he carried them to himself. 

A theophany

After God spoke these words through Moses, he proceeded to give the ancient Israelites a glimpse of his own nature – he, the one who had been their God for generations. 

It would do us good to stop sometimes and meditate on this expression of God. It is a rather different to some of the various pictures that our culture paints of the Divine One. Fire – lightning – thunder – billows of smoke – loud trumpet blasts – the whole mountain reverberating with the divine presence – an experience that made even the great leader Moses tremble with fear (Hebrews 12:21). If I had had the privilege of standing there with the Israelites, I would have probably joined them in begging Moses to make it all stop (Exodus 20:19-20).

This is where those eagles’ wings had taken them. To God himself. 

Carried

When I think of God carrying me on eagles’ wings, I think of an effortless flight. I sing with a sense of peace and harmony, “I will rise on eagles’ wings”.  I visualise myself soaring – high, confident, calm, safe and triumphant in God. 

I wonder how those ancient Israelites thought about their flight from Egypt? Were they confident? Calm? Did they feel safe?  

Many people are struggling these days. As well as the pandemic, there are the usual pressures of life transitions, the added concern about our national economic outlook, uncertain work prospects for those we love and more. In the middle of these current uncomfortable, unsettling, insecure and sometimes outright frightening days, I wonder how we see God. 

It is right to think of God as a place of refuge, safety and stability. However, I wonder if we ever think of him unsettling us, like a parent eagle unsettles her eaglets?

In no sense am I suggesting that this pandemic or other forms of suffering are all about us. Our current situation is quite different to The Exodus. But I am suggesting that being ‘carried on eagles’ wings’ isn’t necessarily a smooth ride. 

Symbols

The presentation finished. I stopped scribbling. But I kept pondering, intending to write this blog post. And then … it’s a long and irrelevant story as to how … I came across this carved eagle that very same day.

The carving came from a Siberian Baptist pastor whose life was anything but secure. He gave it to my father many years ago. It reminds me that even in the uncertainties, the difficulties and the chaos of life, God still carries his people. He is an unchanging God. He carried his people out of Egypt and to himself. He carried that Siberian pastor decades ago. And he carries us – his people – on eagles’ wings today. 

Forget my ducks being in a row. That’s not going to happen. 

Even in the chaos and clutter of life, we are living out our identity as people of God right here and now. The ride might look a bit different, though, to what we anticipate when we sing, “I will rise on eagles’ wings.” 

God carries us to himself.  As the writer to the Hebrews put it, we have not come to a burning mountain but “… to the heavenly Jerusalem, the city of the living God” (Hebrews 12:22). 

It’s quite a ride. 

A wealthy woman … that’s me. 

I have just received my ‘tax-ready notice’ from our government. The number is not big but that’s good because with the low-income offset, a few tax-deductible receipts and a number of work-related expenses, I should get quite a nice refund. 

But all that is irrelevant to my status as a wealthy woman. 

Stereotypes

An Asian friend once told me that Westerners are poor in terms of relationships, though materially rich. I could feel my hackles rising. (I’m don’t actually have hackles, but something fiery rose in my spirit.) I clenched my fists. My pride was bruised. 

“That is a stereotype,” I retorted. “We value individualism, yes, but we are NOT relationally poor.” 

After watching a news report this week about a tragedy of a woman not so different to myself, however, I wondered if perhaps my friend had a point. 

A tragedy

It was a tragedy. A disgrace. A crime. Guilty by neglect … though who or what institution is guilty is not yet clear. 

Ann was a single woman just a couple of years older than me. And a lot wealthier  … if you define ‘wealth’ by one’s possessions or the balance of one’s bank account. She had gold hair clips custom made for her. Shopping for gold jewellery constituted a pleasant afternoon’s outing. She lived in a fancy house in a posh suburb. 

She had a disability. 

And she was alone. 

The last year or more of her life was spent stuck in a cane chair in her living room. Literally.

Her paid carer came and went. Her gold jewellery and a couple of fridges also went who knows where. Her car was used and fines incurred. Her neighbours minded their own business. 

Eventually she died.

Poverty … absolutely destitute in terms of relationships was Ann, despite her financial security.  

A pandemic

This pandemic has highlighted the gap between those who have homes in which to isolate and those who don’t. The virus rips through communities in developing countries where personal space, running water and indoor bathrooms are a luxury.  

And yet in such places, you are unlikely to find vulnerable people living alone, sitting in solitude, their neighbours unaware of their plight. 

Now don’t think that I am romanticising material poverty.  I am profoundly grateful for my home. I am very fortunate not to stress about paying for the necessities of life. I appreciate the privilege of being able to isolate at home and reduce the risk of getting or passing on the virus.

I am one of the lucky ones.

But material wealth is not all there is to life. 

Kingdom culture

Two millennia ago, Jesus had a lot to say about wealth. Material possessions don’t feature prominently in his definition of ‘wealthy’. 

Parables about people selling everything they have to purchase one precious thing – a pearl or a piece of land – spring to mind. 

Jesus spoke of a rich fool who built silos and stored grain but died just like anybody else. 

Lazarus and the rich man ended up in quite different places despite their vastly different social and financial statuses on earth.

I think sadly of the rich young ruler who wanted to join the band of Jesus’ followers, but couldn’t bring himself to sell all he had and give it to the poor. He left, dejected. 

Jesus taught that his community of followers was not just ‘like’ family but actually was family. The early church lived accordingly. 

Wealth

According to Jesus’ teaching, I am a wealthy woman. I have treasure in heaven and I have community on earth. On top of all that, I have a roof over my head and food in my fridge. 

What’s more,  I can spatially (and, thank God, not socially) distance myself from others. I will likely come through this pandemic physically unscathed by the virus.

May I use well all that God has entrusted to me.

“They sow the wind and reap the whirlwind,” pronounced the prophet to a rebellious people long ago in a land far away (Hosea 8:7).

‘What does this mean to you?’ asked the writers of the online devotional I listened to this morning (https://pray-as-you-go.org/player/prayer/2020-07-07 )  

The lives of those to whom this proverb was initially applied are very different to ours. But human nature is not so different. It got me thinking…….

Then … the original context

Hosea used this image of sowing the wind and reaping a whirlwind to express how foolish Israel had been. They hadn’t intended to rebel against Almighty God. 

 It had started out with Israelites from the northern kingdom just looking.

Next it was a case of minor transgressions from God’s strict laws. What is wrong with wanting something pretty and sparkly … something like neighbours had, though the neighbours treated them as idols.  A golden calf perhaps. (Had they forgotten what happened in Moses’ day when their ancestors made a golden calf?! History repeats itself.)

Speaking of neighbours, perhaps the very helpful Assyrians could assist with national defence. It couldn’t hurt to ask.

Before Israel knew it, trouble was upon them. A whirlwind of trouble. 

“…. in 733 B.C., Israel was dismembered by Assyria…. Samaria was captured and its people exiled in 722-721, bringing the northern kingdom to an end.”

NIV Study Bible – Zondervan – 2002 – Hosea – Introduction

Now … the virus

It’s not too different to the spread of covid-19 here in Melbourne. 

We sowed the wind. Now we’re reaping a whirlwind.

It seems that not all returned travellers followed strict infection control protocols. An investigation is currently underway to determine just who or what was at fault. As if it matters now.  (We don’t even have quarantine here in Melbourne at the moment.) But we like scapegoats.

It is likely that the security firm hired to enforce hotel quarantines will be in trouble. In my humble opinion, though, the individuals who broke quarantine rules are in no small way responsible.

It didn’t seem a big deal at the time. A shared lighter as smokers slipped out for a cigarette … shutting a blind eye to an outing here and there … inadequate staffing for venues that didn’t need protection from the outside (ghosting) … they are just some of the accusations.

Admittedly, biosecurity breaches occurred in other parts of Australia and those places haven’t ‘reaped a whirlwind.’ I am thinking of a young man who slipped out of quarantine in Perth in order to visit his girlfriend. Or a woman who claimed to be a flight attendant so as to get out of quarantine in Sydney.  (I’m not referencing such stupid behaviour … you can search online for those stories if you’re interested.) These are just a couple of examples of those who have been caught.

Administrative errors have resulted in strict quarantine protocols not being followed on occasions too, with devastating results at times. The name ‘Ruby Princess’ will be synonymous with ‘major stuff up’ in Australia for years to come, I’m sure. 

Sowing the wind doesn’t always lead to reaping a whirlwind. But sometimes it does. It has in Melbourne in recent weeks. 

Applications

Assyrians wiping out the northern kingdom of Israel almost three millennia ago is huge. The virus ripping through the city of Melbourne today is distressing.

At an individual level, I am reminded that little choices can have significant repercussions too. It’s a bit like throwing a pebble into a pond and seeing the ripples spread. 

Big things in life often result from small choices. Often a series of little choices lead to big outcomes. Failing to wash hands … choosing not to observe adequate spatial distancing … general lifestyle choices repeated over and over …  how we use our resources of finances, time, energy and networks … nipping trouble in the bud or failing to do so…… 

As I sit here ‘safe at home’ (which equates to ‘stuck at home’), I am thinking about how I use my time each day, the new routines I am enjoying, the choices I make and more. The applications are endless. These are just little things. But I am mindful of the warning from Hosea, just the same.

If we are not careful, we sow the wind. 

And sometimes, just sometimes, we reap the whirlwind. 

A happy ending … eventually

“Return, O Israel, to the LORD your God. Your sins have been your downfall! Take words with you and return to the LORD. Say to him: “Forgive all our sins and receive us graciously….” 

“I will heal their waywardness and love them freely….”

Hosea 14:1-2a, 4a NIV

I like happy endings. 

It would be a long time though. The people who listened to Hosea’s impassioned words were the last of the northern kingdom of Israel. Those very neighbours, the Assyrians, to whom they turned for help, would soon decimate the nation.

Centuries later, Jesus offered living water to the Samaritan woman. She then brought her whole community to their Messiah. Jesus later commanded his disciples to be his witnesses in Jerusalem and Samaria and to all the ends of the earth.

This was the happy ending.

And yet……

How much distress and loss could have been avoided if Israel’s northern kingdom hadn’t ‘sown the wind’ in the first place? 

Here in Melbourne, how much distress, isolation and economic pain, let alone the loss of health and even life, could have been avoided had not those infection protocols been followed to the letter in the first place? 

What do I need to watch out for in my own life so as to avoid ‘sowing the wind’? 

Life is complicated. But I can take heart, for our ever-patient God still calls his people. “Take words with you and return to the LORD” (Hosea 14:2a). He promises healing and love when we turn to him. It won’t undo the damage past but it will give us hope for the future. 

Right now, though, it still feels like we’re in a whirlwind of sorts. 

Here, Lord are our words. Draw us back to you.