When I started driving up the rise just west of Hannaford,
I knew I should ignore the phone. But I didn’t.
It was stupid to do grab the thing, but I grabbed, trying to cram in a
quick response. I had a good reason. I was going to a hospital visit in Fargo
and the day was getting late. Too much to do.
I suppose the reasons we are often glued to our
phones (or whatever you get glued to) are good reasons. We want to stay in touch with people. We want
others to think we’re on target with a job – that we’re involved in their
lives. However, my reason this
particular day wasn’t good enough to excuse me from almost smashing into
another driver. At the top of the rise is saw the car coming. I swerved, and
the gravel caused me to skid a bit. But
then he went by and we were both on our way.
We’re wired for relationships, and even the
proverbial hermit – the guy who we think
always keeps to himself – is really not independent. He needs the air he breathes, the food others
supply, and the clothing they manufacture. And though conversation is rare, he
still needs the protection and order that comes from a society of people around
him that values community. If he doesn’t
text on his cell phone, he at least stays connected in some ways.
We stay connected. We join the ball teams and go to parties. People
are important to us. There is a text though, that we may not grab for so
quickly. It’s the text of the Bible. Some of us grew up hearing the pastor say
every Sunday, “The text for today’s sermon is from the gospel of Matthew…”, and
then he’d read the passage he would preach on. One seminary prof suggested a
few years back that the word “text” was getting old fashioned and that we
should call it something else. That’s funny, since the word “text” has been
re-born with a whole new twist! It’s all
about being in touch – staying connected. Friends. Family. School. Work.
God has a text for you. He made you in his image, which means that
you’re like him, and talking is a key ingredient. In the beginning he was talking, and when he
spoke, the world came into being. Had this not been the case, if God hadn’t put
us here for a good cause, there would be no meaning to it all. Talk would all
be cheap. But we have meaning and a purpose for living. How do we know this? God’s
Son is the Text. He’s the “Word” that had no much meaning, love and power that
he entered the human race to lift us up from the rubble that life can become.
Jesus Christ is the Main Text - the message that puts the heap of problems
together and makes something new and shiny from it. Have you seen him do it in
your life? Some people text to say “I’m brushing my teeth”, or they put on
Facebook what they’re having for dinner.
If you want to waste your life, live on that level. If you want to really live, read the Real Text (the New
Testament). “I came to bring you life – abundant life.” Read it – with your heart - and live.
