Friday, January 21, 2005

The impossible call and 4wd theology

We got into an old fashioned Chicago blizzard tonight. One of the worst I’ve ever seen!

I couldn’t resist – I clicked my truck into 4wd and went out exploring in it, looking for an adventure. But alas! I didn’t find any damsel in distress, or persons otherwise needing a knight in shining armor, lol. :-)

The roads are horrid tonight, though! Human crews just can’t keep up. Physically impossible. But…ever notice how much fun it is to drive in heavy snow when you don’t have to? I mean, if you have to, it’s a drag. But it’s like a holiday when you can just snort around in it for the sheer joy!

I don’t know when I’ve had so much fun driving in snow. I drove for over an hour…some forest preserve roads looked like PA hills in a country blizzard. I love the way my truck handles in 4wd! It’s definitely made for it…all this 2wd city driving was making it soft, lol.

Ah, the childlike wonder of a blizzard…with a good 4wd! :-)

I think my Dad is coming out in me…he used to love exploring on terrible roads during PA snow and hunting season…almost killed us one time [well, maybe two times…or so, lol], but we had a blast!

Life is full of wonder when it snows like this. It reminds me of that passage in Job that talks about the ‘treasures of the snow.’ Something to ponder…

Speaking of Job…a man of highest faith…in class today someone handed me a sheet, out of the blue. But it struck me to the heart…random sharing, but not random!

One line in the middle of the sheet immediately captured my eye. It said: A call is impossible.

A call is impossible! My heart leapt…what was this?

And following that line, the paragraph continued:

God doesn’t call us to something we can do on our own. The impossibility of the call necessitates that we rely on God’s power and know that it is God at work, not us. Resistance often comes in light of the impossibility: I can’t do this. This is impossible. Yes it is – by yourself.


I read these words and I couldn’t help it…tears formed behind my eyes. Such truth, in such a random way…affirmation of radical thoughts of divine leadership that I had spoken but never received agreement on…here, coming to me unbidden…as if my own words were echoed by Grace.

I knew that God was speaking to me, and bowed to that knowledge.

I thought of Abraham, then. My heart flowed to his call…so counter-cultural, so impossible. Go out, Abraham…leave all, follow me, and I’ll make your faith children like the stars of the sky!

“But Abraham! God leads through ‘open doors!’” “God expects us to be rational!’ “Family, you know!” And all that…

I can just see Abraham facing the trackless sand: Go, out there, Lord? Leave the cradle of civilization…for what, exactly? A land I know nothing of? Ok, ok...no problem! :-)

If he’d have had a truck, he’d have kicked it in 4wd and headed out on the dunes.

“You’ve got shotgun, Sarah…honey!” “After all, you are my wife!”

“Oh, and Hagar, I’m booting you to the back.” “You fine and all that, baby, I’m not saying that!” “But you just ain’t family…not yet, anyway!” :-)

It's Abraham and 4wd theology: after all, the call is impossible!

Thank you, Lord, for 4wd after all. :-)

I’ve got it kicked in…and I’m following the stars! ‘Cause, “one star he saw was lit for me…”

Life…is wild and free like this: grace isn’t tame, but it’s true -- an adventure that consumes all of life...in a blizzard of grace…!

The ‘treasures of the snow,’ I believe!

Alleluia!

Amen!



5 comments:

joyinthelord said...

HEY HEY! SNOW!

Driving around in a blizzard is a totally foreign concept to me - nope, the closest experience I can think of is driving around in the monsoon rains! whoohoo, enjoy!

Loy Mershimer said...

lol...thanks, Ming! :-)

I must say you are missing one of the joys of life. It is much different from driving in monsoon rains, even though that would be radical and fun in its own way, I'm sure.

Driving in snow is great fun...the vehicle slides around, snow drifting and falling down...there's the thrill of matching your driving skills against the elements...if you make a mistake, you'll get stuck or crash, lol. Great fun!

[that is, if you don't HAVE to drive through much people and traffic -- then you have to worry about the way they drive, and protecting their lives, etc...]

Another thing, in snow...it's like the world changes: it's a moonscape or wilderness, with everything white and slippery and cold -- falling reflections in headlights and moonlight: the world is full of mystery and wonder on a blizzard night! :-)

Loy

joyinthelord said...

sigh, sounds perfectly lovely.. and freezing. *wink*

speaking of moonlight, I woke up yesterday morning at 4am to the clear light of a full moon. It was amazingly bright and beautiful, and that was only the sky. I can't imagine how it would be like to see moonlight on the snow. Wow.

Loy Mershimer said...

It truly is wonderful!

Although...it is cold, too. And, too much cold [as you get in Chicago] and you are ready to move to a warmer place, with sand and sea and ocean breezes, lol.

But, as long as one is in a place where it snows, s/he might as well bask in the beauty and wonder!

I just thought of the Chronicles of Narnia, where in 'The Lion the Witch and the Wardrobe,' the land of Narnia is under the curse of the White Witch, and she has made it 'always winter and never Christmas!' In other words...cold, ice and snow without the magical wonder of Creator in it all. Brrr. Pretty horrid. COLD! lol. But Aslan wins out! :-)

Stream of consciousness, starting with moonlight on snow, lol.

Loy

joyinthelord said...

I remember the Chronicles of Narnia too! I LOVED them when I was a kid. Yes, the town of War Drobe in the far away land of Spare Oom or something like that.. Hee.