My daughter and son-in-law own an adventure travel business in Alaska called Denali Adventure Tours. I've ordered one of their t-shirts which has their advertising slogan on the back, "Adventure Is Our Middle Name". It reminds me of a similar motto I have adopted for my life that comes from John 3:8 where Jesus said, "The wind blows wherever it pleases... you cannot tell where it comes from or where it is going. So it is with everyone born of the Spirit."
Riding on the wind is an amazingly adventurous thing, but it has its down side: You can't steer. And that is what increases the sense of adventure even more. When I was a teenager I had a friend who worked at a shopping center, which can be a pretty boring job, I guess, because when he wanted to add some excitement on a windy day, when he was sent to the parking lot to gather the shopping carts, he would take along a big piece of cardboard-- to use as a sail. He would climb into a shopping cart at the upwind edge of the parking lot, hold up the cardboard and catch the wind, then go zipping along in utter delight! That is, until he realized he had no control over where he was going or where he would end up-- and no way to stop! The wind carried him where it pleased. Mercy!
And so it is with those who are born of the Spirit. In my experience, being carried along by the Wind of the Spirit is both a wonderful and an awful thing. It's wonderful when you can see where you are heading and you're okay with it. A few years ago the Wind took me to the other side of the world on a prayer trek to an all Muslim country where I saw some amazing things happen through intercessory prayer. Great adventure.
But it's awful when you can see where you are heading and you're not okay with it. Two years ago, as a church elder and while being carried by the Wind of the Spirit, I was involved in a decision that resulted in a church split despite my best efforts. The Spirit had clearly told me what I should stand for, and my church leaders told me exactly the opposite. The Wind not allowing me to steer any other direction, I chose to obey God rather than men. And I didn't like where I ended up. At least not at the time. Now I'm fine with it, because the Wind took me to a place of unexpected and delightful freedom. Go figure.
Which reminds me of an interesting facet of this Wind of the Spirit thing, and that is that it can be resisted. If you never get into the shopping cart you can play it safe and live your life without adventure. That's what a lot of folks do, you know, they avoid it. Some even disdain it. Some mock it as "flakey" or irresponsible. I mean, can you imagine what would happen if a pastor approached his weekly schedule in this way, only flowing from one task to the next as the Spirit directed him, constantly being diverted or re-directed like a feather on the wind? I mean, a guy could lose his job acting like that. It doesn't look very professional, you know. Spirit-led maybe, but not professional.
All right, I'm being a little sarcastic here. Actually people have lost their jobs, their reputations, and a whole lot more, by following this life-style. It isn't really very popular and doesn't appear to be the least bit sensible.
But it sure can be fun, because with those who are borne of the Spirit... well, Denali Adventure Tours speaks for us when they say, adventure is our middle name!
Postscript: The Spirit of Adventure has recently led Kaye and me to sell our house and property of 39 years and venture forth to who-knows-where. I think there will be many a wonderful aspect about this at some point, but right now it mostly looks... well, not awful, but quite difficult. This being carried on the Wind can be a lot of hard work! It's okay though, we are heading straight into more adventure!
3 comments:
wow; you articulated this all so very well!!! My adventure is so much more fun because of having you as my partner.
BTW, I suggest that there's one other scenario - that can be both exciting & terrifying - when you cannot see where you're going & haven't a clue where you'll land.
Love this post, Bob~ so well written and perfect timing for me! Tracey and I are at a similar turning point with our church, and we're about to make some big moves along with some of the church leadership. Some aren't 'blowing' the same way... and while that's sad, it's also quite liberating for us as we allow God to take us where he wants us to go. Trying hard to be spirit-led in a world that measures 'success' by other things. We would love it if the Wind blew you and your lovely wife down here to East Peoria, Illinois! =) So excited to hear where God takes you! ~ Mandy Pfeiffer
This is from Wendi on Facebook. It's a quote from Victor Hugo: "God makes his will visible to men in events, an obscure text written in a mysterious language. Men make their translations of it instantly; hasty translations, incorrect, full of mistakes, omissions and misreadings. Very few minds understand the divine language. The wisest and calmest, the most profound, decipher slowly and when they arrive with their text, the need has long since gone by; there are already twenty translations in the public square. From each translation a party is born, and from each misreading a faction; and each party believes it has the only true text, and each faction believes it possess the light."
I have always loved this quote, and even from a non-theistic mindset, I think "God's will" and "Truth" are interchangeable and it still rings true. I also think you, and I hope I, are some of those "wisest and calmest" he mentions; being so slow and careful to form our beliefs that we lose the mass audience of people who quickly jump to conclusions, but we are closer to the truth for it
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