Recently, we were at mom and dads for Sunday lunch which happens on a fairly regular basis. As we prepared to eat a call went out for someone to bless the food, say grace, pray, or whatever you want to call it. We don’t do this every single Sunday but being “good” Christians we try to. My father and I both looked at my 17 yr old son and he immediately knew that he would be the one bringing the goods. I was so shocked when he didn’t object, but I should have known something was up.
We all assumed the posture of prayer and waited to be blessed. But as he began to speak I didn’t hear my son’s voice so much. I was basically hearing a rendition of James Brown in the Blues Brothers. This goober was praying in character. He was doing an old African American preacher, bringing it hot and heavy. Of course I quickly pulled the plug. Not because I didn’t enjoy what he was doing but because I was afraid of what my parents might think. And that’s when my dad said the words that set me back a little. “Let him do it like he wants to do it” is what came out of my father’s mouth. Travis then looked at me and said “ if I’m gonna do this, I’ll do it like I want to.” How could I possibly argue with that. I blessed my 17 yr old’s rebellion and off he went.
As he went on and on thanking Brother-Father-God for lots of cool things, joy and laughter filled the room. He gave thanks for his family, the food, and all kinds of things. I’d never been so uncomfortable and enjoyed a prayer so much at the same time. I began to relax as I realized he was winding down but he wasn’t done. Just when I thought we were out of the woods he brought the real heat, knocked it out of the park, scored the winning goal and delivered the knock out punch. He wrapped up his blessing with, “and God thank you for my Grand dad who took me to 6 different places all over Waco to find a single car part and gave my one of the most fun days of my life.” Oh wow! The laughter kind of faded out and it got thick in there real quick-like. The air was sucked out of the room and then rushed back in too quickly to comprehend and all that was left was an old man with tears in his eyes. My dad was “wrecked.”
I thought about that moment throughout the rest of the day. I had witnessed “kingdom” being delivered in a very unique way. It wasn’t packaged in a traditional manner; one that would be accepted by too many believing groups. But trust me, God came in on it and we were all incredibly blessed. In fact, my father has mentioned that moment no less than 4 times since Sunday and I’m sure that’s not the last I’ll hear about it.
In a given situation, are we prepared to bring kingdom life even if it pushes the boundaries of what we view as being reverent and proper? What is it in a given moment that will soften a person’s heart enough to deliver a solid dose of love, truth, hope, encouragement, or even correction? Is it laughter? Sometimes. Is it questionable language? The bible warns us about living with a “potty mouth” but on occasion, a surgically placed off-color word wakes people up and even lets them see we are human. Is it pain? What? Andrew Shearman (pastor) once told us that he slapped a very large, tough looking man in a prayer line to get his attention so that he could speak life and love into him. The man received with much appreciation. Heck, even Gary Black (pastor) slapped the very 17 yr old I’m talking about in this blog and told him he needs to learn how to hug. And to this day Travis talks about it with a smile. I would not recommend you try this unless your darn sure you can pull it off! The point is for us to ask the question “what do people need and how do they need it at a given point in time?” And, are we willing and able to set aside “how it looks” to meet them in their place of need?
Please don’t misunderstand me here. I’m not presenting my 17 yr old as a spiritual giant or anything. After all, while the rest of the family was at church, he was slobbering face down in his pillow at home. I’m just saying that maybe he gets something that I talk about sometimes but don’t completely understand. That God’s love and presence is so much deeper and more powerful that I can ever really comprehend. That He is at work in places and ways that don’t seem so “Christian.”
That religious words or actions do not guarantee that the presence and power of God will surely come. Maybe on occasion we should go with our gut and not our head when trying to reach others with love. Maybe we should start looking for God in the places that don’t seem so holy, in the last place we think He should be. Because He is there, somewhere. And if we can feel and sense what He is doing, we can touch so many more of His children than we ever imagined.
Paul
p.s. This is not a free pass to go on a drinking, cussing, sarcasm and violence spree in the name of Jesus. But, if you happen to find yourself doing this, just tell people you attend a church other than ECF!!!!!!!!!
Recently, we were at mom and dads for Sunday lunch which happens on a fairly regular basis. As we prepared to eat a call went out for someone to bless the food, say grace, pray, or whatever you want to call it. We don’t do this every single Sunday but being “good” Christians we try to. My father and I both looked at my 17 yr old son and he immediately knew that he would be the one bringing the goods.
I was so shocked when he didn’t object, but I should have known something was up.
We all assumed the posture of prayer and waited to be blessed. But as he began to speak I didn’t hear my son’s voice so much. I was basically hearing a rendition of James Brown in the Blues Brothers. This goober was praying in character. He was doing an old African American preacher, bringing it hot and heavy. Of course I quickly pulled the plug. Not because I didn’t enjoy what he was doing but because I was afraid of what my parents might think. And that’s when my dad said the words that set me back a little. “Let him do it like he wants to do it” is what came out of my father’s mouth. Travis then looked at me and said “ if I’m gonna do this, I’ll do it like I want to.” How could I possibly argue with that. I blessed my 17 yr olds’ rebellion and off he went.
As he went on and on thanking Brother-Father-God for lots of cool things, joy and laughter filled the room. He gave thanks for his family, the food, and all kinds of things. I’d never been so uncomfortable and enjoyed a prayer so much at the same time. I began to relax as I realized he was winding down but he wasn’t done. Just when I thought we were out of the woods he brought the real heat, knocked it out of the park, scored the winning goal and delivered the knock out punch. He wrapped up his blessing with, “and God thank you for my Grand dad who took me to 6 different places all over Waco to find a single car part and gave my one of the most fun days of my life.” Oh wow! The laughter kind of faded out and it got thick in there real quick-like. The air was sucked out of the room and then rushed back in too quickly to comprehend and all that was left was an old man with tears in his eyes. My dad was “wrecked.”
I thought about that moment throughout the rest of the day. I had witnessed “kingdom” being delivered in a very unique way. It wasn’t packaged in a traditional manner; one that would be accepted by too many believing groups. But trust me, God came in on it and we were all incredibly blessed. In fact, my father has mentioned that moment no less than 4 times since Sunday and I’m sure that’s not the last I’ll hear about it.
In a given situation, are we prepared to bring kingdom life even if it pushes the boundaries of what we view as being reverent and proper? What is it in a given moment that will soften a person’s heart enough to deliver a solid dose of love, truth, hope, encouragement, or even correction? Is it laughter? Sometimes. Is it questionable language? The bible warns us about living with a “potty mouth” but on occasion, a surgically placed off-color word wakes people up and even lets them see we are human. Is it pain? What? Andrew Shearman (pastor) once told us that he slapped a very large, tough looking man in a prayer line to get his attention so that he could speak life and love into him. The man received with much appreciation. Heck, even Gary Black (pastor) slapped the very 17 yr old I’m talking about in this blog and told him he needs to learn how to hug. And to this day Travis talks about it with a smile. I would not recommend you try this unless your darn sure you can pull it off! The point is for us to ask the question “what do people need and how do they need it at a given point in time?” And, are we willing and able to set aside “how it looks” to meet them in their place of need?
Please don’t misunderstand me here. I’m not presenting my 17 yr old as a spiritual giant or anything. After all, while the rest of the family was at church, he was slobbering face down in his pillow at home. I’m just saying that maybe he gets something that I talk about sometimes but don’t completely understand. That God’s love and presence is so much deeper and more powerful that I can ever really comprehend. That He is at work in places and ways that don’t seem so “Christian.”
That religious words or actions do not guarantee that the presence and power of God will surely come. Maybe on occasion we should go with our gut and not our head when trying to reach others with love. Maybe we should start looking for God in the places that don’t seem so holy, in the last place we think He should be. Because He is there, somewhere. And if we can feel and sense what He is doing, we can touch so many more of His children than we ever imagined.
Paul
p.s. This is not a free pass to go on a drinking, cussing, sarcasm and violence spree in the name of Jesus. But, if you happen to find yourself doing this, just tell people you attend a church other than ECF!!!!!!!!!
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