SCRIPTURE: Matthew 10:23 (TM) – larger reading Matthew 10:16-23
It is not success you are
after in such times but survival. Be survivors! Before you've run out of
options, the Son of Man will have arrived.
STORY:
David
L. McKenna tells this story: "One of the aboriginal tribes of the South
Seas has a rite of passage from boyhood to manhood called a
"walkabout." A boy coming to puberty is sent into the jungle for six
weeks without food, shelter or weapons. During this time, he must test all of
the survival skills he has learned during childhood. He must also be creative
when he meets the unexpected. Talk about final examination! One mistake and he
is dead. If, however, he survives to walk out of the jungle, he returns to a
celebration that honors him as a man, a hunter and a warrior".
OBSERVATION:
Boy, I’m glad that I grew up
in Miami and not as a member of the aboriginal tribe of the South Seas. Aren’t
you? Based on what I know about myself I wouldn’t have survived one day let
alone six weeks. I’m wondering if that is what Jesus had in mind when he told
his followers to be survivors?
It can be brutal to live in
this world. It can even be worse to try to survive in the church. Philip Yancey
in his marvelous book, What’s So Amazing
About Grace?, speaks at one point of ungrace – that which can be
experienced among fellow Christians. Ouch! But in reality we have all been
there. There is nothing meaner than a self-righteous individual whose soul
purpose is to make sure everyone else tows the line. Am I right or am I right?
I much prefer the stories
from some of the Native American tribes concerning the right of passage. These
are stories of young braves being sent out into the woods to survival through
the night. Dark shadows would fall. The coyotes would howl. The bears would
roam. Unknown to the young brave, standing in the shadows was his father ever
watching to make sure he stays safe.
That kind of survival I can understand. The other… forget about it!
Jesus talks about survival
and I imagine the Holy Spirit stands watching to make sure that we do. Is it
tough? You bet. Is it scary? Beyond anything that we can imagine. Is it worth
it? Oh, my yes… but we won’t know until we go down that trail.
PRAYER:
Help us to become survivors.
Help us to become more than mere survivors, help us become triumphant warriors
of the Kingdom!
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