Josiah Road

Another Game…Another Heart-Attack

posted by Daniel Blackaby 29Sep

Sniffing the air, the sweet aroma gently caressed my nostrils, Aw, if ‘Perfect’ had a scent, surely it would be thee! Few smells can stir such emotion, or command such passion as the glorious fragrance of–a hockey bag. Each piece of equipment uniquely perfuming the air: the odor of sweaty shoulder-pads bringing back my first childhood game, the scent of moldy shin pads rekindling thoughts of glorious goals. The time has come after four-year hibernation from hockey, I would return to the ice–and recapture my former glory.

Having recently migrated from hockey-crazed western Canada to if-its-not-football-its-not-a-sport South Carolina, I vowed to educate these ‘Southerners’ on a thing-or-two about our “Canadian game.” Enrolling myself in a local adult hockey league (aka ‘washed-up-has-been-league’), I arrived at the rink for game one and marched into the dressing room. Today the prodigal son comes home, I thought to myself.

All eyes turned to me; the aura of my veteran presence reeked with authority. “Boys,” I barked, my teammates snapping to attention. “We’ll play a tight left-wing lock, quick D-to-D up-ice transition, aggressive fore-check…then light-the-lamp!”

Stepping onto the ice I immediately burst off, darting around like “The Flash.” My leg muscles began to tingle as they woke from their prolonged slumber, but understanding that my team relied on me to set the standard, this warrior battled through the pain! “AHHH!”

A burning sensation manifested in my upper thigh, as sweat rained down my brow, flooding the ice. Legs shaking uncontrollably, yet still I torturously pushed my wobbly body across the ice. Puke climbing up my throat and vision going black, I released one final agonizing scream before collapsing in a mangled heap to the ice.

Gasping desperately for breath, I stared up to the ceiling. I could faintly make out Saint Peter waving me towards the pearly gates. Each muscle too devastated by the pain to rise, I smiled as I heard a teammate skating towards me, undoubtedly rushing to aid his motivational leader. In a perfect moment of brotherhood he called my name, inspirational music playing through the loudspeakers, “Daniel…get up…The five minute pre-game warm-up is over; we gotta start the game now!” Lord take me home…

Many times Christians make the same mistake that I foolishly made, relying on previous experience or training to satisfy their current situation–perhaps a mission trip, or a Christian camp where God deeply moved them, or maybe just a period of time where they experienced a solid, and continual devotion or quiet time. It’s easy to simply coast with the knowledge or experiences we’ve had.

This however, is not what God intended. He calls us into an ever-growing relationship with Him; we must be daily obedient and open to His guidance. The experiences we may have had last summer may not be adequate for the trial or task God knows is just around the corner.

Just like our human bodies, our spiritual bodies need to be continually trained and exercised if we wish to maintain a healthy and abundant relationship with God. Have you been training lately? Or have you been merely relying on previous training to sustain you?

Then he said to them all: “If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me.” Luke 9:23

Rock and Roll…

posted by Mike Blackaby 26Sep

I was having one of those days where I couldn’t seem to stay awake. After class I went out to my car and started driving home. I knew I needed either a strong caffeinated beverage or a nap to survive the rest of the day. I checked my car’s ash tray for money, but was greeted only by cobwebs and tumbleweeds, so decided on option B. The drive home only takes five minutes, but today it seemed like an eternity. All I could think about was sleep…blissful sleep. When I finally pulled up to the apartment complex, beautiful thoughts were beginning to fill my head: Thoughts of my soft pillow; thoughts of my quiet room; thoughts of the giant rock right in front of me. GIANT ROCK?! I snapped out of my day-dream, but not fast enough. My car snuck off the road and smashed into the decorative rock at the entrance of the parking lot. Sheepishly, I gathered my wits (now more awake than I’ve ever been!) and glanced around, hoping no one had watched me. Several LARGE scratches now adorned my front bumper, just begging people to ask about their origins.

As I explained to the car mechanic about the giant lion that attacked my car (he didn’t buy it), I thought more about the incident. It was fascinating to me how one rock could do so much damage. It was much smaller than the car that hit it, and weighed less as well. However, when I hit that boulder, it didn’t move an inch! It was so solidly rooted in the ground where it lay that my car was not going to make it budge. Despite the $300 in damage to my car, I was impressed by that rock!

That incident made me think of my Christian life. So often I seem to seek unstable things as my foundations. I worry about having lots of friends, or being materially comfortable, or having influence or success. I try to build my life up with these at its base, but disaster always follows. Life can change in the blink of an eye. Watching Hurricane Ike on the news showed me that everything can be washed away like a sand castle on the beach. Worldly pursuits are unstable to build a life on because they are weak and temporary. It made me think of something Jesus said: “Whoever comes to Me, and hears My sayings and does them, I will show you whom he is like: He is like a man building a house, who dug deep and laid the foundation on the rock. And when the flood arose, the stream beat vehemently against that house, and could not shake it, for it was founded on the rock.” (Luke 6:27-48). In the aftermath of natural disasters like Hurricane Ike, it is a vital reminder that Jesus alone offers a firm foundation for life. I may try other things, but it’s only a matter of time until they are washed away.