Non-Controversial God

Non-Controversial God - 09.19.09

Stop right there! No wait. I said that wrong. BEGIN right HERE! This is totally about four kinds of “not what you are thinking”. It’s ok to read this. This is not some idealistic non-believer babble. It’s not something you should, would or even could be ashamed to say you have read. It doesn’t take an open mind. And quite frankly it doesn’t even require much effort to understand. It’s effortless and simple. And as Brookie would say, “Simplicity ROCKS!”

So sit back in your easy chair and keep one finger on the mouse wheel. I’m fairly that confident you will be just as engrossed when you read this as I was when I heard it.

I am going to repeat a story here in a moment. But before I get started I need to explain why. It’s a very cool concept on a subject most, or at least too many, people probably never talk about. There was a time that I would not have wanted to talk about it, not because I didn’t believe, but more or less because I didn’t understand. What did I not understand you might ask? Well, I didn’t understand me! I thought that things needed places. I thought that questions needed answers. I thought that I was smart enough that if I didn’t have all the answers it was because I had not done enough research. Knowledge is power, or so they say. But it all came down to one simple fact. I just didn’t understand. Now it’s different. I do understand. And what I understand is this: The fact that I just don’t know. But more importantly: The fact that I don’t need to know.

So here goes.

I have a best friend. I’m not talking about my wife or my Dad or my daughter. No disrespect to either one in that list. But that’s not the best friend I’m talking about.

My wife is the kind of person that I just don’t get tired of being around. We really do have an old fashioned liking for each other. We hold hands in public. We watch the same TV shows. We listen to mostly the same kinds of music. And we can sleep in the same bed together. Jenn is my best friend in that way.

Bippy is the best dad a kid, or man, could ask for. He was there for me. He is there for me. He was my Best Man both times. That alone should prove my point. Bippy is my best friend in that way.

And finally, Hannah. She looks up to me in ways that most dads could only wish for. We talk. Well, she talks. And I listen. I try to be as good an example as I know how. And likewise, she tries to emulate me. It’s nice. Hannah is my best friend in that way.

But my best friend, of my friends, not of the people that I am related to, is a man that I’ve known for nearly 10 years now. He is honest. He is giving. He is comforting. He is respectively critical, when necessary. He is, in many ways, a role model. And in the other ways, a “don’t do what I did because you may get what I got” type of model. He is sensible yet complex. He is many things. But the thing that makes him such a great example to me is this incredible knack he has for being ok in his own skin. You don’t see that a lot. At least I don’t. This guy is somebody that really is “ok” with the fact that he is what he is. He’s ok with who he is. And, to him, if you are not ok with that, then that’s ok too. A guy like me can really respect that. Add in the fact that he enjoys my company and we have remarkably similar backgrounds and you will understand why this man is my best friend.

Well, my best friend explained something to me, a good while back now, that has stuck with me through and through. In fact, I know of many people that he has shared this same story with. Some before and some since. And from my understanding, it has stuck with them too. In a good way, too, I might add. Maybe some more than others. Maybe none to the extent that it did with me. But when it’s brought up and talked about, this is usually something we all agree on. And like I said earlier, it’s a subject most people don’t feel very comfortable talking about. Probably because they don’t understand enough about it. And we all know it’s much easier to ignore the things that we simply just don’t understand.

I don’t remember exactly how it came up that day, but there was a discussion about God. Now, most of the time, it’s easier to talk about politics or abortion than God. Although, both of those usually end back up on or around the God angle. But at least with something as controversial as politics or abortion, no matter what your side is, you still have a side, usually. You can look up facts. You can read. You can listen. You can base your decisions on any number of things. And you can follow your heart and fill in the blanks with that or with the opinions of others. Then if/when you’re wrong, you can change your views and it’s ok. But with God it’s not that easy. There could be some serious implications if you are incorrect in your way of thinking. God, for most people, either is or is not. There’s not a whole lot of in between.

Honestly, the day we had our discussion, I didn’t think I needed it. I believed. I knew I believed. In what? In God. That’s enough right? Why did I believe? Because I was supposed to. That’s always been enough right? I really didn’t think I needed or wanted to go down this path of conversation. What's the point? Which is sort of what proved that I needed it the most, I guess. Again, I’m not sure how it came up, but my question was: So, what is your conception of God?

We were sitting in his living room. I had come over for some guidance on some important topic. Life had thrown me a hoop to jump through and I needed to know if it would be better to jump as high as I could and hope for the best or just opt for the trampoline approach and hope I didn't overshoot the target. He said neither. He asked if I’d prayed about it? Of course I said that I had not. I’m not going to lie to the guy. If I did, he'd know it. He could smell a fart in the wind, so I knew he could smell a lie. That wouldn’t work. Besides, I wasn’t here just so I could leave. I really needed help. (Or maybe just a distraction.) This was Earth shattering stuff that day! Whatever it was, in my mind, was life or death! It was something that only the one single correct action could help me overcome! Or something like that. I have no idea now what it was about, which just goes to show how screwed up my hierarchy of problems really can get.

So he asked me if I had prayed about it. I had not. I knew I probably was about to though. I wasn’t interested in the trampoline method. What if I jump to high? Or not high enough? That wouldn’t work. Then he stopped me and said he needed to ask me something. After I gave him the ok to continue, he asked me to consider that if I were gonna pray, did I have a conception of what I was going to pray to?

Ya know? I had never really thought about that. There’s that picture that we’ve all seen at church with the Image we all recognize. Long flowing brown hair. Sometimes a beard. The halo. The white robe. That was my Image. But I knew I didn’t want to pray to just an Image I’d seen on the wall. So I answered with an honest “No, not really.” I knew I believed in something. But I also knew I wanted to believe in More. So I listened as he patiently and descriptively told me the following. First of all, you should also know, this is not something that he just came up with. I’ve come to realize that sometimes copying is another way of learning. If I want to be calm, secure and confident in my own skin, then I should find someone that is calm, secure and confident in their own skin and do what they do. I should hang around them a good little bit. I should learn from them. I don’t know who “they” are, but “they” say, and I quote, “a wise man learns from his mistakes, but a genius learns from the mistakes of others”. So I was ready to listen and to be a copycat. I could do that.

He told me that not too long ago, a couple of years maybe, he had asked virtually the same question of someone whom he respected. And this is what they said. (I'm paraphrasing, of course.)

He said to imagine that there’s this dad.

“This dad is a loving dad. He’s a caring dad. And he loves his child just as much as any dad possibly could. There is nothing that this dad would not do for his child. The child is absolutely the most important thing to this dad. And this child comes to this dad and says, 'Hey Dad. I’d really like to have a bike. One of those really fancy bikes. The nicest one in the neighborhood.'

And the dad, being the kind of dad that wants to do anything for his child that the child wants, says 'ok'. The dad goes right out and gets the nicest fanciest bike that money can buy. He brings it home and gives it to the child.

The child loves it. He’s got just what he asked his dad for. He’s now got the nicest bike in the neighborhood.

Then the dad says this one little thing. He says to the child to 'Take this bike and go and ride as much as you want. You can ride fast or slow. You can jump hills and you can ramp ramps. But the only thing I ask of you is that whenever you are done with it for the day, please bring the bike inside the garage before you go to bed.'

And the child says 'ok'. And he takes off. He rides the bike fast. He rides the bike slow. He jumps hills. He ramps ramps. He has a great time. And when he’s done for the day, he comes home and he drops the bike in the front yard and goes inside.

The next day, the dad gets up and notices that the bike is out in the yard instead of inside the garage. The bike is dirty. The dad takes the bike and washes it off. He cleans it all up until it sparkles again. The dad goes to the child and says 'I’ve cleaned up your bike. Now you go riding. Ride fast. Ride slow. Jump hills and ramp ramps. But when you are done, I want you to bring the bike inside the garage.'

And the child says 'Ok, Dad. I will.' And he goes out an he rides fast and he rides slow. He jumps hills and he ramps ramps. And when he’s done he comes home and lays the bike down in the front yard and goes inside.

It rains that night.

The next morning, the dad gets up and sees the bike outside in the front yard. He goes up to the bike and it’s got a little rust on it. The dad takes the bike and cleans off the little bit of rust it’s got. He cleans it all up good as new. He polishes it all nice and shiny. And he goes up to the child. He tells the child, 'Go out and ride. Ride fast. Ride slow. Jump hills and ramp ramps. Have fun! But remember, when you get done, please just bring the bike into the garage.'

The child says, "Ok, Dad. I will." And the child goes out and he rides again. He rides fast and slow. Jumps hills. Ramps ramps. And when he gets home, lays the bike down in the front yard again.

That night it rains again. And it rains a lot. It rains the following day. Finally, the day after all of that, the dad goes outside and notices the bike. It’s all rusted up this time. The chain’s all messed up. The peddles won’t turn. It’s just a mess. So the dad gets the bike and spends hours and hours getting all that rust off. He then figures out how to fix the chain. He takes the peddles apart and fixes them, too. Now the bike is rust free again. The chain is working again. The peddles are both working just like new. The bike is fine, but it’s dirty. So the dad cleans it up. He polishes it all like it was when it was brand new. The bike is perfect, again.

The dad goes to the child and says, 'Here is your bike. All I ask is that you return it to the garage when you’re done.'

And that was the story.

It didn’t immediately makes sense to me because I was steadily trying to figure out all the hidden meaning. To my surprise, there was none. With this concise explaination, it all became clear.

You see, he said, "That 'dad' in the story, is God. And that 'kid' in the story, is you (me). Your 'Dad' (God) is gonna do anything and everything that he can to give you what you want and to make your life as good as possible because you are his 'kid'. God loves his kids. But it is up to you to take care of what he gives you. Now, Jayson, God has given you the bike. Just don’t take it for granted. Take it out and ride it. Ride it fast and jump and ramp, but when you’re done, put the bike back in the garage. He will do for you what you cannot do for yourself. But it’s up to you to eventually take care of your own bike."

And he said again, "God is like your Dad. And you are like God’s kid. You do the asking. He’ll do the providing. Then, when you are able to only do the asking and let him do the providing, you need to realize that you aren’t an only child. God has lots of kids. And you need to get along better with your siblings."

Wait... huh?

He then explained in more detail, that I am a user of people and a lover of things.

Say that again?

"You are a user of people and a lover of things. You should try using things and loving people. And all that trouble you're having might go away."

Wow! Reality check! Was I? Had I? I think one of the reasons I was shy to pray to an Image that wasn’t personal to me was because it was not personal to me. But now, it’s actually pretty simple (when you put it that way). Now it was personal to me. Now I could pray to my God.

And I did.

Whatever kind of bike I needed, He gave me.

And I was sure to bring it in the garage as best as I knew how.

Also, I learned to be considerate of all my siblings’ bikes in that garage.

That was a few years ago. And that concept is one that I have kept close to my heart. I’ve shared it with others to a great deal of success.

This little story may not swing open the door of knowledge and answer all of life's questions. But it sure can crack it open just enough for you to let some light shine in.