I had the privilege of growing up in a rural setting where, as Chinua Achebe describes the manner of precolonial African linguistics, “Proverbs are the palm oil with which words are eaten.” It was a pleasant if complex task, having to decode secret information from dark idioms of community gurus. Their white-haired acumen guided our people for millennia. Tragically, in our so called ‘information age’, that’s all but a lost art. Folks can’t fathom what’s being said unless words are laid out in exact formats dictated by Grammarly. ‘Age-gap’ has come to be an accepted social disorder that makes it impossible for multigenerational perspectives to hear each other.
Before we exit this antiquated bravura, let’s refer to one more African playwright—Uganda’s John Ruganda. His 1972 play, ‘The Burdens’ dissects ills of post-modernism forced upon heirs of African socialism. I remember the book well; a requirement for my O-level literature syllabus, I participated in stage performances for inter high school concerts. In richly dramatized exchanges, Ruganda expertly shows how a nation emerging from colonialism is plunged into unfamiliar social order, where people see others as burdens. Husband and wife become burdens to each other. Poverty stricken children are forced to share the most basic of necessities insomuch that an adolescent counts his bed-wetting sister an intolerable burden. The sad situation is mirrored in sour relations between government and its people.
Isn’t it amazing what survival instincts can make people do to each other! But does scramble for fame and luxury belong in the category of ‘survival instincts?’
Your View, Your Mood
Meaning of words is derived from individual or collective vernacular. That’s also true on how we interpret Scriptural terminology. Our mental word banks tell us how to react to familiar phrases. Inaccurate definitions often cause people react in specific ways when certain words are used! Try this experiment and see how it affects you. On a sheet of paper, write down words that have been spoken to you at significant moments. Now go to a quiet place and read those words out loud. It’s possible you’ll leave that place ecstatic or grieved. Words have such power over our thoughts and conduct. That’s because, unbeknownst to us, words spoken in the past set specific connotations that continue to affect our subconscious minds every time we hear them.
For instance, many a Christian has a personal interpretation of what God should do for those who confess faith in Christ. If something happens outside the parameters of their paradigm, they get offended and question His faithfulness. That’s the same as if someone should expect you to do for them things you have not promised. Would it matter how they got a wrong impression? Would you be compelled to fulfill misplaced expectations? Why should our erroneous ideas compel God?
Since satan misquoted Psalm 91:12 in an attempt to lure Jesus to display an arrogant abuse of power, he’s been using that trick to get Christians to show off futile statuses, popularity, etc. “God’s Word says this about you; now do this and show that you are a real child of God!” I have met folks who ask God to spoil them with luxuries toys! What kinds of stuff justifies someone’s claim to divine favor? In which section of town should God’s covenant people live? What types of terrestrial crises prove that a Christian’s faith is off track? How do mundane everyday experiences determine God’s perspective on a believer?
Come Unto Me
Many people, even those who know little or nothing about the Bible have heard that Jesus walked on water. Events leading to this miracle show a spiritual problem with His disciples. Their hearts were hardened to the point where miracles didn’t impact them! (Mark 6:52)
Too often, we take the Presence of Jesus in our lives for granted and think we deserve the benefits of God’s grace! Until something jolts us from the stupor of presumptuous amnesia. For the disciples, it was their inability to row a boat across a familiar lake. Experienced fishermen, these were men of the sea who had piloted their vessels through many turbulent waters. Not this time. Till the fourth watch of night, they’d hardly made any progress. Exhausted, frustrated, and in danger of drowning, they beheld something they couldn’t wrap their minds around—Jesus walking comfortably on the very waters that threatened their lives. Hardened hearts interpret the unfamiliar in carnal ways. The disciples cried out in terror. A ghost was out to get ’em!
“It is I,” said Jesus, “don’t be afraid!” Utterly perplexed, Peter exclaimed, “If it’s You, Lord, tell me to come to You on the water!” Come, was the one word reply from the Master. “Come!”
Have you ever been in a situation that dethroned you from Christ’s seat? Something told you in no uncertain terms, you are not the Lord, and neither are you equal to Him. Do you ever wonder how the Lord finds peace in situations that kill you? As we ‘do our best’ to ‘actualize our best selves’, what could be more helpful to our spiritual conversion than for the Lord to remind us, “Without Me, ye can do Nothing” (John 15:5)! Jesus is never subject to our human limitations!
Peter’s recognition of Christ’s superiority is commendable. “Lord, I’d rather be where You are. Where I am without You is problematic and dangerous! I am desperately trying to make things work by human effort. Yet, I cannot make myself come up to You. Unless You bring me up to Your higher qualities, I cannot attain them.” Only Peter asked to walk on water, and no other disciple made an attempt when Jesus gave the invitation.
This is not about the power of positive thinking or repeating religious jargon to no avail. It is a shove of destitution—the kind that drove a starving prodigal son back to his rightful place at the father’s house! The psalmist calls, “From the end of the earth will I cry unto thee, when my heart is overwhelmed: lead me to the rock that is higher than I.” He understood that, “A single day spent in your Temple is better than a thousand anywhere else! I would rather be a doorman of the Temple of my God than live in palaces of wickedness” (Psalm 84:10 ~LB). As a professing Christian, where would you rather be? Who would you rather be with? What would you rather be doing?
Jesus calls us to Himself, not to better versions of ourselves, nor to hollow façades of religiosity. Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. It was the call of Abraham, “Come out of your father’s house! From the familiar! From the things you hold dear! From the way you’ve always looked at life, or done things… Come to Me and I will make something of you.” It was the call of each of Jesus’ disciples. This call was echoed to John the revelator several times, “Come up here and I will show you…” (Rev 4:1, 11:12, 17:1, etc). It is your call and mine, and of any church that belongs to Jesus Christ. The Spirit and the Bride say, ‘Come!’ Let anyone who hears say, ‘Come!’ And let anyone who is thirsty come — let anyone who wishes, take the water of life free of charge.” (Rev 22:17)
Not My Will…
The call of God is for us to return to Paradise. To the home robbed of Adam and Eve by disobedience. To the place of intimate fellowship with the Father! We don’t negotiate what the terms of our coming should be. We come, trusting God’s wisdom and goodwill. We surrender to our good, wise, and loving Father. He knows what’s best for us.
To accept an offer is to surrender to someone else’s request.
Does surrender give the flesh a smug feeling? It doesn’t! But what’s the alternative? You can see a ghost in Jesus and go on shrieking and fighting against the currents of a troubled world, or you can recognize His divinity and jump overboard to be with Him. You can sing, Burdens are Lifted at Calvary, hoping that the life of faith is a bed of roses. Or you can come to the Lord for guidance, assured that He alone knows the way which you should take!