Bubble-ology

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Wow...Emerald continues to be fascinated with bubbles, her longest running passion by far. From the time she could follow an image with her baby-eyes, she’s loved bubbles. At her request we blow bubbles together every time she visits my house and haven’t missed a single day.

In little Emerald’s mind, bubbles are ever-captivating, always new. Today she was mesmerized by the barely audible “tih” they made when hitting the ground, bending low to listen.

Wanting to learn more, she stopped her normal never-ending chatter so she could hear the bubbles land, batch after batch. Then she tried to mimic that tiny sound with her lips. I don’t believe she’ll ever tire of bubble-ology.

Last week, though, I was as much in awe as she was over yet another discovery. We were blowing bubbles out on the deck when a gentle breeze ushered them toward a nearby evergreen. But instead of popping as they usually did when hitting the sharp branches, they actually landed, sitting on the needles indefinitely! It was remarkable.

Evergreen bubbles..

I studied Emerald as she studied the bubbles, having wonder written all over her face. Yet I couldn’t help but think of how many more astounding things there are in this world for her still to discover. Though she has absorbed a great deal in her two short years, there’s far more ahead.

And then I suddenly realized the same is true of me. As God was looking down at the two of us that day, ages 2 and 69, our level of knowledge was nearly identical by his standards. Actually, both of us are still like newborns in our learning, which isn’t a criticism of us as much as a compliment to him. Though I’ve learned more than Emerald so far, none of it amounts to more than the quiet “tih” of a popping bubble compared to what both of us are going to know in life after death.

Scripture gives us a word picture for all this. When we adults were Emerald’s age, we absorbed life differently than we do now in later years. (1 Corinthians 13:11) Paul says this vast difference between a child’s learning and a grownup’s is a good picture of the enormous difference between what we know in this world and what we’ll know in the next.

In our human existence we can’t possibly take in all God has for us to discover. But in our “glorified state” after death, we will immediately know completely. That’s Scripture’s promise, and it’s a marvel to eagerly anticipate.

AmazingAs for our pine tree bubble-phenom, I’m sure scientists could offer an explanation: barometric pressure, humidity, dew point, or something else. But Emerald and I don’t have to go after the “why,” because God will give it to us eventually. In the mean time, all we have to do is enjoy our amazing bubbles.

“Now I know in part, but then I shall know fully.” (1 Corinthians 13:12)

Waaa! Waaa! Waaa!

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Last week I went shopping in search of a new pair of black slacks. I mentally prepared myself for the long process and the possibility of failure, being the halfhearted shopper I am. Starting at the sale racks, I took 6 pairs into the dressing room, and against all odds, the very first one fit perfectly. I never tried on the rest.

The following day, heading for groceries at a Meijer super-store, I felt like a million in my new slacks. But as I entered the multi-panel, slide-away glass doors, shrill alarms went off all over the place. Waaa! Waaa! Waaa!

Meijer'sThe store greeter waved me in with a smile. “Happens all the time,” she said, as I chose a cart. “It’s our malfunctioning sensors.” But I wasn’t so sure.

As I pushed my grocery cart up and down the aisles I began to think about getting out of the store. If the alarm sounded again, Meijer personnel wouldn’t be as inclined to wave me out with a cart full of merchandise.

That episode was a valuable picture of sin: easy to get into and difficult to get out of. As many pastors say, “Sin will take you farther than you want to go, keep you longer than you want to stay, and cost you more than you want to pay.”

Why is it so hard to be conscious of this when we’re on the way in? The only answer is that temptation is tantalizing. The positive here-and-now blinds us to the negative here-after. We say: “just this once,” or “everybody’s doing it,” or “I’ll leave it behind when I’m older” or “I won’t get hooked.”

God is well aware of our talent for rationalizing our way right into trouble. That’s why he established his own version of sensomatic barcode labels within each person. It’s called a conscience, and as we’re heading into sin, the alarm bells sound. Depending on age, experience, and desire, those “waaa’s” might be dim, deafening, or somewhere in between.

I hope my conscience-warnings stay on the loud side, so there’s a better chance I’ll heed them. As for the very loud alarms at Meijer, on my way out, the “waaa’s” sounded again, which is when I knew there had to be something wrong with my new pants. I figured this time I was headed for the back room and wondered if they’d let me refrigerate my milk while I was in custody.

Security tagStanding in front of a female employee, I reached down my pant leg to feel for a magnetic strip while telling her I’d just bought those slacks. When I invited her to reach in, too, she stepped back and said, “That’s ok. You’re free to go.”

 

And that’s what God says, too. If we stray into sin and long to get out, he’s always willing to help set us free.

“The Lord is merciful and gracious, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love.” (Psalm 103:8)

It’s in my head.

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Every Tuesday morning a small group of women gathers in our church library to pray. We try to take God at his word: that he hears us, acts on our requests, and has the power to change the lives and circumstances we pray about.

As we sit around an oval table each week, I sometimes think about God’s perspective. Though we believe he’s near, we also know he’s watching from his high position in the heavenlies. He sees us spreading out our prayer lists and knows we’re hoping he’ll do spectacular things in the lives of those we’re about to pray for.

GiftsBut he sees something else, too: the blessings he has prepared for those of us who assemble to pray.

We don’t ask for them, but our generous God has them wrapped and ready for our little group every single week. It might be an unusual prayer spoken over someone who is particularly precious to one of us. Or one of our Scripture cards might do something powerful as it’s read aloud.* Or it might be a direct word from him plunked into the heart of one of us during moments of silence between requests. Or, like today, it might be an insight shared from one woman to the rest of us.

Prayer mugs

The requests that come to us include people who desire reconciliation with someone else. This morning as we talked about forgiveness, we chose verses to pray over those people. And then we spent a few minutes talking about sins of the mind and how insidious they are, how difficult to route out.

That’s when God’s gift of new understanding came in a statement made by one of the ladies: “Why do you think Jesus died on a hill that looked like a skull?”

Place of the Skull.I’d never given much thought to the name of the place where Jesus died and what it meant: Golgotha (“place of the skull,” John 19:17). Though it’s named for its resemblance to a skull, might it include a warning to be especially vigilant to guard our minds against sin? After all, the grey matter inside our skulls is where sin-battles rage. Whether we’re making a yes-or-no decision to do something we know is wrong, or are wrestling with sins already committed that need forgiving, it’s all mental torment.

If we learn to attack evil at its starting point, in our heads, we have a much better chance of living victorious Christian lives. And today, as I understood the dramatic picture-link between “Golgotha” and the sins inside my skull (for which Christ died), I knew our generous God had given us yet another gift during our prayer time, this one an intensely practical one.

“Be transformed by the renewal of your mind…” (Romans 12:2)

*(God’s Wish List)