Taste and see that the LORD is good! How blessed is the one who takes shelter in him! (Psalm 34:8 NET)
Today was my annual checkup at the VA hospital. They use a multi-function machine for all the vital signs. The one they used on me today was malfunctioning, because it kept reporting a high blood pressure (more than 150/90) that I never see on any machine or device anywhere else in this world. That it was also rather wildly variable in the numbers it gave, and kept making unusual noises made me doubt it’s report. But the nurse never thought to use the manual sphygmomanometer hanging on the wall. When I got home I checked with one of the much simpler devices my wife uses and it was what I normally see, which is quite low — 111/64. I reiterate that such low numbers are what I see when I test it with different machines, at health fairs, etc. where folks use much simpler devices.
It’s like the Unix philosophy of software: Do one thing and do it right.
In my ministerial education I was given tons of material on all the things we can and should do to get and keep people involved in our programs. Never mind what kind of wording they used, that was about all it meant. Don’t get me wrong: I tried it and I made it happen as advertised. I got the numbers to come in the door, but the majority of them never had a clue beyond the mere emotional and cerebral engagement. We had to convince them our stuff was sacred and they had a duty to keep devoting a minimum number of hours to the program. Without the constant prodding and cajoling, they would wander off. It wasn’t just the numbers, budgets, available resources and delivering the content. It was hard work keeping that kind of charisma burning brightly before their empty eyes.
I no longer work with that kind of organized religion and I don’t have a program. Nothing on this earth is sacred except the reputation of Our Lord. When you share in His glory, nothing else matters. I don’t have an all-encompassing program to rope in every demographic to keep them focused and occupied with my brand of religion. What I have is a rich treasure I so very much want other believers to have. If I could just show them my faith against the daily context of this life, I know that some of them are going to ask. When they ask is when I tell them. Only if they keep asking do I keep talking. There’s no organization to feed and no liabilities to guard against, just a sweet truth of how to walk holy before Our Creator.
So on my afternoon stroll in the woods, as my heart was reaching out to touch everything living that I passed, I was struck by the contrast between that and my sharp memories of sharing faith in the military setting. It made me weep. There are a lot of religious folks in the military and I really enjoy being with them. I don’t bother to question whether they are genuine believers; most of the time it is obvious from the context how God wants me to treat them. What matters is how little they knew of what I tasted in the world today.
Holiness is not a duty. A sacred life is a sweet treasure offered freely to all. If you don’t want a share of what I have, if it doesn’t draw you by its own sweetness, there is not a blessed thing I can do to keep you involved. If your own heart does not demand you stick around and keep tasting the living waters gushing from my soul, then by all means, move along and ignore me.
This is so simple, brothers and sisters. Do this one thing and do it right. Be a living fountain of sweet holiness and see who wants in on the action. It matters not a whit if they are lost or saved or something entirely outside the spectrum of your experience. If they want to hang around, give what God has given you.
Want a taste?
