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CANNONBALL!!!
Joe Killian • Sep 29, 2017
Two weeks after hernia repair surgery I got the approval from my surgeon that it was okay to enjoy our pool again. To impress our four-year old Godson I decided to do a cannonball to make a "big wave." I'd like your opinion on something important. When is it too late to change your mind? Well, in my case, once my feet left the pool deck there was no turning back. In this week's Gospel Jesus talks about people changing their minds.
Jesus said to the chief priests and elders of the people: "What is your opinion? A man had two sons. He came to the first and said, 'Son, go out and work in the vineyard today.' He said in reply, 'I will not,' but afterwards changed his mind and went. The man came to the other son and gave the same order. He said in reply, 'Yes, sir, 'but did not go. Which of the two did his father's will?" They answered, "The first." Jesus said to them, "Amen, I say to you, tax collectors and prostitutes are entering the kingdom of God before you. When John came to you in the way of righteousness, you did not believe him; but tax collectors and prostitutes did. Yet even when you saw that, you did not later change your minds and believe him." Matthew 21:28-32
The chief priests and elders quickly jumped in with the correct answer. The son who changed his mind after initially rejecting his father had done the right thing. He did what his father had asked him to do. Jesus then rebuked the chief priests and elders by reminding them of their unbelief. They had passed the simple quiz but failed the bigger, more important test.
We can say we believe but we need to remember the original example Jesus uses here. God the Father expects us to obediently go out into the vineyard for Him. If we haven't made up our minds to do so, are we any different from the chief priests and elders? Saying we believe and doing something about our belief are two different things. Our faith in Jesus requires a change of mind that prompts us to actively demonstrate our obedience to God.
It's kind of like doing a cannonball. Once we leap for Him there is no turning back. That is the way it should be in our relationship with God.
The story continues...I'm still working on the pondless waterfall in our front yard. I shared this project with you two weeks ago in Playin' In the Dirt. Since then I've had to rework sections of the stream three different times because we were losing too much water. I am now an expert on evaporation rates and excessive splash, two causes of water loss. This morning I tore the whole thing apart and I'm starting over.
Have you ever watched DreamWorks Animation's Kung Fu Panda? I stumbled across it recently and thoroughly enjoyed Jack Black's performance as a bumbling, noodle selling, kung fu enthusiast, giant panda named P o. Set in ancient China, it is more than a humorous slapstick comedy. The core message of the story jumped out at me as I have been focusing recently on the concept of being. Po is shockingly identified as the Dragon Warrior and he reluctantly enters training. The goal of the training is to receive the Dragon Scroll, which is believed to hold the secret to limitless power. Now I don't want to spoil the big reveal but I will say that what Po realizes is the same as what I speak to in the concept of being and authentic identity. So, where do we find the secret to our "power?" I praise You, because I am wonderfully made; wonderful are Your works! My very self You know. Psalm 139:14 God knows it; and we must seek Him with all of our hearts in order to find it. As it was in the movie, the answer is stunningly simple. Our authentic identity is already within us. The challenge for Po in the movie was in seeing himself accurately and not the way others saw him. Even his teacher scoffed at the idea that Po was anything more than an underachieving dreamer who overate when he was anxious. Po's problems are rooted in the fact that he believes the lie of his false identity much more than he does his authentic one. Is it possible that you do the same? Who could have imagined that beneath all of Po's girth lived the Dragon Warrior? What's hidden from view in you? Seek God for understanding as to who He created you to be. Spoiler Alert: the secret of your limitless power is already in you. God placed it there and He wants you to be who He authentically created you to be.
Maria and I have been playing in the dirt a lot recently. First we replaced our French drain and then we embarked on a creative project intended to change the entire look of our front yard. My brother Jeffrey and I installed a new front step.
