Wednesday, February 13, 2013

take it on the lam Lefty before the chicken potters out







The quickest way to be misquoted is to open your mouth and say anything. Add to that an audience, a few who love to gossip, and those who love to hear it, and you have a recipe for disaster. Then all it takes to push me over the edge is some well meaning person to say “I understand,” and even some rock lyrics make more sense. It is like Neil Young and Joni Mitchell, the king and queen of weird had kids, and taught them to speak. Add a dose of Tom Waits, words from his signature song, “The Piano has been drinking,” and you can feel like he did, “I rather have a bottle in front of me, than a frontal lobotomy.” Get it? If you do, please don’t try to explain...we sure don’t. And maybe we don’t want to know...or are better off not knowing! But for years opinions have been loosely formed on things people said, will say, or never said. It is like all the so-called political pundits explaining what the politicians say-they lie. To each other. Let’s just try and define our economic condition. If my neighbor loses his job, that’s a recession. When you lose yours that’s a depression. When you can pay all your bills, things are doing fine. I just may have to rethink my Neil Young opinion, suddenly he makes more sense than the president!
For years we have been enamored by rock stars, music, and their lyrics. My friend Bruce thought Paperback Writer was Take a Fast Right Turn, I can still hear him singing. Herb Alpert had a hit with “This Guy’s in Love with You,” yet many heard the sky’s in love with you. Heard it through the grapevine? Marvin Gaye or Creedence Clearwater? Even Steve Urkel was known to say “did I do that?” And as Agent Mulder seeks the truth, “the truth is out there,” Scully rolls her eyes, and we have hit show. Or like the prologue to the hit series SOAP, “confused? You won’t be after watching this episode...” Do inquiring minds really want to know? OK, repeat it back to me. OOPS.
So being misquoted is not a new phenomena. It has been going on for years. Centuries actually, and we find it occurring in the oldest book of the Bible, Job. A story that so many theologians, pastors, teachers, and comedians have misunderstood for years. To start with, God has everything under His control. He saw Satan and asked Him if he would consider His servant Job? Satan tried to twist things, and of course the rest is history. But perhaps the most oft quoted person in the story is Mrs. Job, whose single line has brought much wrath upon her for years. Great teachers lambaste her, but very few have tried to see it from her viewpoint. And then they forget her husband’s response. Misquoting him of course. Here’s the scene, Job has been afflicted with boils, sickness, and has lost all his wealth. He was rumored to be among the richest men at the time. His children have died, and he finds himself hurting, and alone. Then his wife enters the room. Seeing him in distress, she utters her famous quote, “give up your integrity, curse God, and die.” Ever feel like that-don’t. But his answer is often forgotten, or again misquoted. He simply told her you sound “like” a foolish woman,” he never accused her of being foolish. He saw her within her situation, for she had lost everything he did, including her children. Would you talk to a widow that way? But he saw through her condition, and how she was acting out of character in her distress. And loved her through it, despite his own misery. A precursor to the words of Jesus who said “greater love has no man than to lay down his life for another.” He simply put her first, and cared for her despite his condition!
Last year when I was life flighted and had open heart surgery, my wife Theresa had to deal with many things. Among them her own emotions, and the fact her husband was dying, and could be dead. But I find that her greater love for me kept me going. I never knew how much she really loved me until the worse part of our vows revealed itself. We all want the better and healthy part of the vows, she was faced with the worst, and death, with unhealthy included. And in my situation, I love her even more. She was truly the brave one through this, I had a staff of doctors and nurses to attend me. She had to run a household, find transportation, resources, a place to live, and deal with Andrew having shoulder surgery-all from 1000 miles from home. Now what was your problem? Do you think she might have some insight to your situation? But she trusted God, and the end result was miracle after miracle. And just like God restored Job everything twice as much, He has rewarded us as such. I don’t get it, but love doesn’t demand of itself, so either should you. Let god be God, it is hard enough to be me sometimes, even in good situations.
Ragland T. Tiger once gave advice to his friends, “take it on the lam Lefty before the chicken potters out.” Leave before it gets worse, or worse yet, someone tries to help and console you, understanding of course. So take my friend Bruce’s advice, and take a fast right turn, turn to God. This guy Jesus is in love with you. So let Him. And reconsider Mrs. Job next time someone tries to help, or you are misquoted. God knows, and will restore you-or even better. Don’t act foolishly, or even be accused of being a fool. My wife had to make many decisions without me by herself, and did a great job. Love will do that to you. Let all your decisions be based on love, no one misunderstands that. Put others ahead of you, seek Jesus first, and watch as He adds everything else. And to all the Mrs. Jobs out there, you had a great husband, who loved you dearly. Make no mistake about that! Wives, and husbands, we should all be so fortunate. I know I am.
Having a bad day? Like God said, “consider my servant Job.” Now put your name in there. Maybe God is bragging on you, maybe for others to see Him in the situation. What you see depends on who you are looking at. Look to Jesus. For where sin abounds, grace abounds even more. Can I hear an AMEN to that?
And with apologies to the Beach Boys, “she’ll have fun, fun, fun till her daddy takes her t-shirt away, or was it tuba?
love with compassion,
Mike
matthew25biker.blogspot.com