Reflections from Louisiana

Well, it's Christmas break and there ain't been much of anything to do around here. Last Wednesday afternoon, Dad woke me up (about 12:30p.m.) and said something along the lines of "If you want to go to Louisiana, get ready." Seeing as how there was nothing that sounded the least bit interesting at home, I said alright. My sister decided to come too. I guess she used the same logic... We took Dad's red Peterbuilt with the sleeper on it and were on our way to pick up a new trailer from my great aunt and uncle's house in Goodwill, Louisiana. We arrived at Uncle Butch's and Aunt Kathleen's house pretty late. I called couch over sharing a bed with Heather. I read the last few chapters from Hebrews as well as Psalm 118 before going to sleep. After a restful night, I woke up to discover that my hopes of wandering around on my aunt's and uncle's abundance of land had to be put aside when I discovered that it was raining out and I only had one pair of shoes. We eventually left as the beautiful sun began to shine. Either way, that didn't make all the pools of water as far as the eye could see dry up. That part of Louisiana is a lot flatter than I ever realized. I'm going to continue with a different format and mention a few of the things I thought about while on my trip.

While exploring in their back yard, I found a sign nailed to the fence. It said "Trust your neighbors but brand your calves." I had to think about it for a few minutes to get the meaning of it. They have always been farmers, and I have had no experience in that area. There is no question that we aught to love our neighbors as Christ loves us. I tend to love people and then put too much confidence in them. I'm still learning the concept of being prudent. By watching the actions of one of my neighbors, I was able to understand why they had that message on the sign. I trusted my neighbor, I had no reason not to... A few years ago, a friend of mine sent a Christmas card with a ten dollar gift card in it. While my neighbor was inside my house visiting, they tore into my Christmas card, took the gift card, and threw the card and tattered envelope onto my brother's bed who had been out of town with me before it happened. There wasn't really a way that we could have "branded" my mail. You'd think federal laws would be enough. I guess I learned that I should trust my neighbor only so far and keep any type of temptation out of their sight even if that translated to my parents no longer allowing that person into my house. Although the person was a thief, I still have no excuse not to love them. It also reminds me of all my crimes against God (sins) that I've committed. It sure makes me glad that He still lets me come into His house. That sign also makes me think of the fact that we shouldn't clutch anything too tightly and that when it comes down to it, it is the Lord allowing things to happen. He's working all of it together for good. I'd like to take this opportunity to quote Job 1:21. It says, "Naked I came from my mother's womb, and naked I will depart. The Lord gave and the Lord has taken away; may the name of the Lord be praised." Anyways, what all of this has to do with branding your calves, I'm not quite sure. I'm just narrating the long journey that my mind went on after reading that sign. Here's the disclaimer: In no way am I trying to make an allegory of everything that ever existed on this earth. I'm not saying that these comparisons are all correct and that they line up perfectly with each other. I'm just mentioning some of the things I thought about after seeing these different things. Please, take my words with at least a tea spoon of salt instead of just a grain. All I'm saying is that this is what I thought of. Not necessarily the only interpretation of these things.

While at their house, my Aunt showed my sister and I their pond full of catfish. She threw some food on the surface of the water by the shore for the fish to eat. They swam up and I was reminded of why they are called catfish. They had such funny looking whiskers... The wind began to push the food to the other side of the shore into the weeds. We walked over and looked into the shallow water where the feeding frenzy was taking place. While all of this was going on, my aunt boasted of the freezer full of fish they had. While gazing through the shallow water and looking at all the fish, I couldn't help but wonder why they didn't just grab a net and catch them there instead of fishing for them. It would have been so simple. They got hooked on the free food while it was in the middle of the pond appearing to be far from the danger area. Then the food drifted closer and closer to the shallows where they could easily be ensnared and have their life taken from them. Once again, I was reminded of pecado (sin). In a way, it's kind of like the free food that those fish so often receive. It begins in the middle of the pond where it feels like you're in safe waters. The more you continue to give into that temptation, the more dependent you become to it and the deeper and deeper you continue to fall in to it. The line with the bait on it keeps moving and then the hook finally snags you for good, well until God pulls you out of it. Those fish were going after the lust and desire of their flesh. They didn't realize that they could be caught at any second my aunt and uncle desired while enjoying that food. It reminds me of the importance of not getting hooked on sinning to begin with. As you do, it pulls you closer and closer to death. The only thing that can change the inherent feeling of needing to sin is Christ giving you a new desire and making you a new person with a new way of life. A life that leads to eternal life with Him. A life far away from that net of sin that can so easily entangle. Each time we enjoy that food that seems to be free, we need to think about where that leads in the end. We need to be like Moses in choosing not to enjoy the pleasures of sin for a short time. Once again, all that leads to is death. Not just death, but an eternal death.

The drive back was very eventful... yea right. I gazed out at the endless rows of crops for miles. The time spent doing so allowed me to notice something that could very easily have been missed had I just glanced out the window and stared at the nice yellow stripe the whole way home. As we were speeding by, the rows of plants seemed to take on a life of their own. It was still ultimately the same view the entire way. \\\ I /// The entire trip, there was only one straight row at a time. I guess to begin with, the purpose of each of those rows was to grow tall so the "fruit" or vegetables or whatever it was would be useful in the end by being used for whatever purposes it was grown for as well as producing seeds to make more plants. Each one of the rows of plants that I saw had quite a few things in common as well as some differences. They all depended on God for rain and water to drink and grow. Some of the crops had fertilizer spread before they were planted. Some didn't. They all had the capacity to grow, although some started out in easier circumstances than others. I kind of relate the various farmers to the diverse types of parents that we have. Some parents are Christians, others are not. Some know how to till the ground and help the plant to grow by putting all the minerals and stuff into the soil that can go. Some don't. I also noticed that the rows all ended at the roadside although I couldn't see where all of them began. Some rows were different lengths. I'm going to relate that to how long different people have been Christians. Some, a lot longer than others. The point with that was, each ended in the same place although the beginning may not have been visible from my point of view. I'm thinking of the parable of the talents by saying that. Different amounts of time spent harvesting in the fields (emphasis on bringing in the harvest and spreading the gospel), yet the same wage- eternal life. I also thought of how I saw different types of crops planted in the vast collection of rows. I couldn't help but think of the different fruits/gifts of the spirit that we have each been given. Once again, back to the view always being the same as we went along. \\\ I /// I thought of how my views have changed over this last year. If anything, especially denominational views. Not in any way that I'm not Baptist anymore, but now I've learned to try to move over a couple steps so I can look down the row to see it straight on. I know that I believe what I believe for a reason and have realized that other people do as well- for the most part. Sometimes it's important to realize that just because at the time you are looking at it it's slanted \ and a little different from yours doesn't mean that you will always have that view. You're moving forward in life and the way you look at things changes. Either way, you'll always have your current view that seems to be absolutely correct and infallible, yet in a week, after some experience, it could be different. Then you look back at that view as being a bit slanted. The point is that you continue to move forward. I've heard it said that if you still have the same views at the age of fifty as you did at twenty, you've accomplished nothing... This year, I finally had the breakthrough that the purpose of every Christian is to glorify God and to go out and make disciples, no matter what denomination.