Hi
Have you ever played “1-2-3 RedLight” or “Giant jump”? In Red Light; I am guessing that we were being taught to respect traffic signals, as the players all headed towards a target whose back was turned, and they only moved if there was no ‘Red Light’. If caught moving on the Red light, the competitor was obliged to take about 3 steps backwards. Conversely the target could not turn to see how close anyone was until the Red Light was on. I lost more often than I won; but it was interesting to see how creativity flourished as we snuck a step on the Red. Giant Jumps was slightly different. The target Faced the competitors and gave instructions that determined the ‘how’ of their movements. I vaguely recall ‘giant jumps’, ‘scissors cut’ and ‘baby strides’. And after receiving the instructions, we were obliged to say thank you, or we lost our turn. Again, it required creativity to get to the target as we jumped, cut and slid our way to our target.
Both games were extremely interactive; and required some kind of mobility. In some cases, the movement was grand, and it others, not so much. But, as today’s Holy Nougat shows, they also give an example of our lives in Christ.
“for in him we live, and move, and have our being; as certain even of your own poets have said, For we are also his offspring.” Acts 17:28 ASV
Every living thing moves. At their own pace and not always visibly. Thus, us humans also move, even if we are comatose. If we use the analogy of the two games, we realize that
- God is our ‘target’ : each of us on life’s journey is headed towards God; whether consciously or unconsciously. For, in God we live and move and have our very existence
- We move AT different Speeds toward God : even when we Know we are moving towards God, we are going at different paces. Some quickly, others a bit more moderately
- We move IN different Ways towards God : some take the scenic route, some are conservative, others evangelical, some with visible signs and gifts of God’s Spirit, others not as visible. Ours is not to judge, rather encourage
- When we move out of turn we lose momentum : just as being caught moving on Red resulted in reverse steps, so it is with our spiritual lives. When we move out of sync with God, we are still moving, but it’s Away From, NOT Towards God. And when God gives instructions, we ought to be thankful no matter how difficult, great or ‘impressive’
- When we move with God, life gets very interesting : we don’t all get the same tasks to get to God. And every one of us has some kind of challenge effecting God’s direction from time to time. Giant jumps maybe easy for some and not for others. Moreover, we may need more directions to effectively scissor cut or banana slide. Instead of comparing ourselves with others, let us remember that each person’s journey is customized to our gifts, skills, abilities, creativity and passion for/in Christ.
As living sacrifices, our entire existence is rooted in God, through the power of God’s Spirit by the mercy of Jesus. Praying and praising through the rough patches moves us forward (just like the thank you in Giant Jump). It is up to us whether we move forward or not, for God, Our Target, desires to be caught.
Good morning
In Christ’s love and grace . . .
