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Today, while sitting in the driveway staring up into a clear blue sky, I couldn’t help but wonder; “Is this the calm before a storm?”
I hope there is no storm, but deep down I sense that there’s a war coming. One so great that no one will be able to avoid it or hide from it.
But what do I know?
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Sunday mornings in the early 1980’s.
A small, white church where parents would hurry 15 or 20 kids into a musty, little room with lime green shag carpet and walls painted to match.
Each kid taking his or her place on the chairs that were lined up in rows and waiting for the Sunday school teacher to begin playing the old, upright piano that looked and sounded like it came right out of a wild-west saloon.
That piano was so out of tune.
Nonetheless, it provided the melody for the many songs we kids would belt out every Sunday morning.
One such song was titled, “Trust and Obey” which happens to be the reason for the title of this post. If you’re curious, we little kids only sang the refrain which goes something like this: “Trust and obey, for there’s no other way! To be happy in Jesus….you should trust and obey!”
I’d sing it for you, but well. . . it’s a written blog, and I don’t do audio, so I attached a video of Chelsea Moon and the Franz Brothers for your enjoyment.
The lyrics of the refrain are pretty simple, but they have to be. After all…little kids don’t need complex lyrics. They need simple…easy to understand lyrics. Something they can wrap their little minds around. So, the simple poetic words of trust and obey, for there’s no other way just works.
Trust and Obey — that’s all — and you’ll find happiness in Jesus. Easy peasy.
Sadly, adults are not like children. Adults like to make things difficult and instead of just trusting and obeying Jesus, they tend to stray into the complex and try to devise plans that will only bring unhappiness, misery and pain.
It’s not easy for adults to have a mind and faith like a child.
We adults have so many things to fret and worry over that we must put away the child-like mentality and be more “adult”. So, we hide our child-like thoughts just like the apostle Paul writes:
“When I was a child, I used to speak like a child, think like a child, reason like a child; when I became a man, I did away with childish things.” (First Corinthians 13:11)
But maybe, quite possibly, we adults should adopt the child-like behavior again. I’m not saying we should reason like a child or speak like a child. But I am saying we should stop trying to make everything so confusing and complicated.
It would simplify things in our lives. You know, make things a little easier and a lot less painful?
The other day I was strolling through a park and witnessed a mom with her toddler. As they were walking along, the toddler suddenly stopped, leaned down and pointed at something on the ground.
As I passed by, I overheard the toddler exclaim with delight, “Look mom! Bugs!”
Just a few ants – the smallest of creatures – amazed this little child, and it was in that moment I realized how precious we humans are to God because Almighty God sees each person on this earth like a little toddler.
Naïve, dependent creatures that are full of curiosity at the smallest of things.
Like little children we should trust Him and obey Him.
Even Jesus reminds us that: “…unless you are converted and become like children, you will not enter the kingdom of heaven.” (Matthew 18:3)
And again, He says: “Permit the children to come to Me; do not hinder them; for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these.” (Mark 10:14)
There’s a lot that I could expound on from those verses, but I’ll leave that for another time.
For now, I have to ask . . . have you noticed that adults do a really bang up job of making life difficult?
They conspire together. Rail against one another. Devise plans to abolish God’s law. Try to justify their bad behavior, and in doing so they create laws that “allow” them to continue doing what they know in their heart and mind is wrong, and then they give hearty approval to teach the generations that follow to do the very same thing.
I find it strange how adults do these things without ever consulting God. Rather, they consult their feelings and indulge in their deceitful, selfish, fleshly lusts that lead to immature thoughts and behaviors.
So disappointing. Yet, it’s all in accordance with making life difficult for not only our current state, but for the many generations that follow.
We adults would be wise to cease striving and wait on God. To consult the Almighty and request His opinion before mandating anything or making any foolish plans. But as I said…humans WOULD be wise to do that, but they won’t.
Therefore, the resulting disciplines come. Nation against nation. People against people. Natural disasters. Financial distress and ruin. Political strife. Wars. Infections and disease. — It’s all quite avoidable, if humans would just go back to the basics.
Trust and obey.
So simple.
So basic.
Yet, so pathetically difficult for us adults to learn. (and yes, I include myself.)
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Just a quick post here about something I thought I should comment on….
So, J.W. Rinzler interviewed Marcia Lucas for the book he wrote titled: “Howard Kazanjian: A Producer’s Life,” which examines Howard’s prolific life as a producer and includes some information about his time on the “Star Wars” franchise.
And just for reference, Marcia Lucas is the ex-wife of George Lucas and she edited the original Star Wars movie back in 1976.
Okay… so anywhooo…
I read an article about the book and what I found interesting were Marcia’s comments on the new Star Wars trilogy that was released by Disney…
Okay….specifically I found this comment interesting:
“They have Luke Skywalker disintegrate. They killed Han Solo. They killed Luke Skywalker. And they don’t have Princess Leia anymore. And they’re spitting out movies every year.
And they think it’s important to appeal to a woman’s audience, so now their main character is this female, who’s supposed to have Jedi powers, but we don’t know how she got Jedi powers, or who she is. ((<THANK YOU!))
It sucks. The storylines are terrible. Just terrible. Awful. You can quote me.”
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And Quote you I will, Marcia!
That being said, I have to say…
Thank you for saying what so many of us die-hard Star Wars fans have been wanting to say!
I’m so very glad that I’m not the only Star Wars fan on the planet who thought the final three movies of the franchise were awful and didn’t follow the Star Wars Jedi storyline what-so-ever!
If she’s going to start a petition to have them removed from the franchise, I’d like to know how I can sign it.
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I know not everyone is a Star Wars fan, but trust me when I say that the final three Star Wars movies directed and written by J.J. Abrams were pathetically awful.
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