The park was filled with over a hundred folks, young, old, kids, babies and dogs on a great summer evening. We all had our folding chairs out in the middle of nature. We were all united in a single bond of the love of music and the love of a good summer night out. We all set aside the hurry of life and the things that seperated us, to all gather in peace and harmony. It was a great night.
Here it is 3:30 A.M. I woke up at 2:30 feeling like it had to be at least 5 but it was not. I laid there for an hour but my mind kept going back to how the earlier part of yesterday went. It started about 12 hours before the band played. I spent yesterday morning with a dear friend who had a back problem reoccur. It started early with a drive way across town to a wonderful doctor. That drive to and from the doctor gave us lots of time to talk and share life. It was a time to dig deeper into life and it's difficulties, joys, challenges and priorities. That time seems to have set the stage for the racing thoughts I was having at 3:00AM which eventually drove me to this brightly lighted screen in the midst of the darkness of early morning.
What struck me is that I wonder if we can think of ourselves as little carpenters. We are born and we start learning how to build by the people around us that influence us. We begin by recognizing the tools needed to build and then learn how to use them. When we are very young we watch how events cause a particular reaction in those around us. We quickly learn that the way to respond when we don't get our way is by having a variety of temper tantrums. Mom and dad may respond in anger when they can't afford that big car they dreamed of. Teenage sister Suzy might talk of the soon to be end of the world when Bobby didn't notice her. Brother Tom might run to his room and slam the door because mom and dad just don't understand him. We might also learn that an out of breath, belly laugh is the proper response to covering good old Uncle Bob in Silly String.
When we are young, we watch all those that have been in the building business much longer and have already come a long way in building their home. They are well on the way to building that safe place for themselves that they can spend as much time isolated in as they want. They can be outside involved in the world and lives of those around them or isolate themselves in that perfect place that separates them from all the troubles and issues of life. At a young age, we all have begun building our invisible homes. As we know building any kind of home starts with laying the foundation. The foundation is where we learn the tools those around us use to build with and how to use them. Once that is learned, the walls start going up.
Life happens and we build wall after wall. People hurt or disappoint us and the drywall goes up. We get ill or lose a loved one and the roof is added on. Before we know it we have built this invisible house that isolates us from life and people. We started building the house with the best of intentions. We built it to protect ourselves from the bad weather of life but if we aren't careful we find ourselves living inside way too much.
I remember a writing I happened on once. The person reminisced about the days when we were kids and every house had a front porch. You could go inside to be safe but people back then all sat on their porches and were open to being a part of their neighbors lives as well. Instead of one set of parents watching out for your kids, there was a neighborhood of parents watching over everyone's kids. You might be on your porch and a family, out for a walk, would pass by and get invited to sit on the porch and have a lemonade or iced tea with you. We all knew our neighbors and their families. The writer said we have, sadly, moved from front porch communities to courtyard communities.
Now we build our "private oasis" out of sight of the world around us. We have become communities of isolated lives. I'll bet some of you don't even know the names of your neighbors let alone what life has dealt them or if they are struggling and could use a glass of lemonade or iced tea. We are all running around in this crazy world, chasing after who knows what - alone. Sure we have a couple people we consider friends. I think that the majority of people we label as "friends" are really "acquaintances."
Squinting through my sleepy eyes at this time of morning, I realize my mind has been working off of yesterday morning's trip back and forth to the doctor with my friend. We were involved in each other's life. We happened to be sharing a difficult time but you know what? I think for at least a time, the burden was lighter. The Bible talks about how a cord of three strands is not easily broken. The first in that cord of three strands is formed by let's say my friend who has been having a rough time. The second strand is me who was available to weave myself into that person's life for a time as needed. And the last strand is God. The image we see is that as we pull ourselves through life we do so with a cord. We can pull harder and longer with a friend who cares and a God who cares and loves us more than our human minds can imagine. Together it is difficult to be broken by the things of life.
Of course there are exceptions to it because many of us are invested in the lives of people we care about. However, I offer the thought that the majority of humanity is either not open to being a strand in other people's lives or are only open to being a strand in a limited number of people's lives. The strand concept does not challenge us to carry the entire load for another but just be there to help out, to be there to share life.
Being a strand, we get to be there to share in the joys of friendship and to weep together when life gets tough. Jumping up and down with excitement in those times of great joy is awesome. Weeping with a friend in those times of suffering and pain is difficult but its those times that grow your heart. These two thoughts are at extreme ends of the spectrum of life. While one is an up, the other is a down. If you were traveling up hill all the time you would keep traveling higher and higher until oxygen became sparse and breathing might become difficult. If you were racing downhill all the time, you would eventually loose control and crash. We need the ups to slow the out of control downs and we need the downs to keep us from running out of breath. But with the ups and downs, life levels out and the ride becomes more balanced and enjoyable. Another thing that happens is that we learn to appreciate both the ups and downs. If we are always on the up or down of life, life might just become stale.
Another way I see it is like this, which relates to the trip to the doctor. My wife and I have taken many trips to South Carolina. The typical drive was 12.5 hours. We traveled through Ohio, West Virginia, Virginia, North Carolina and South Carolina to get to our beachy destination. Can you picture all those thousands of lives we passed through on the way? Can you imagine all those thousands of different lifestyles we brushed against? Can you envision us passing by thousands of people traveling uphill experiencing the joys of life? Can you also envision us passing by thousands of people traveling downhill experiencing the hardships of life?
We are all in our cars, kind of like little mobile homes. Instead of sitting on a lot with four walls around us, we are now mobile still with walls around us. We travel to our life's destination with no interaction with those around us. We make this trip oblivious to what they may be dealing with or simply disinterested, not caring. Yesterday, my friend and I traveled one of life's roads together. We were engaged in each others ups and downs, thoughts, hopes, and dreams. This time, a downhill caused by the horrible back pain, passed much quicker during that drive and we even got to know and appreciate each other a little better.
God created the garden to share with His greatest creation - mankind. Man was lonely, so God made woman for him and the three of them walked the garden in peace, love and unity. Then, as we all know, came the fall. What was the fall really? Yes, it was the introduction of sin, death and hardship but think deeper. Yes, the fall was when humanity got kicked out of the garden but go deeper. The fall was separation. Mankind was separated from God and we can see that mankind eventually became separated from one another. The point is that God created us to have relationships with Himself and one another. He didn't create us to live isolated lives not invested in one another. He created us for fellowship, for friendship. He did not create us to be strangers or acquaintances. Can we somehow believe that living such separated lives goes against our very created nature?
Love somebody by jumping in the car and taking a ride with someone. Invest in their life and allow them to invest in yours. Be that third strand that makes up a cord with a friend and God. Help them pull through the tough times of life and celebrate the great times. I truly believe that life was not meant to be all good or all bad. I think there is a perfect balance in having both the ups and downs. I also believe life was not meant to be lived alone. I truly believe we were meant to share both ends of life together, making the ride easier and more exciting.
Back in the day, people got outraged when a horrible thing happened to a neighbor. Back then, people mourned when a neighbor lost their home or a loved one. Today it almost seems as if humans, in general, don't care all that much as long as it doesn't happen to them. If a neighbor got robbed, would we be crushed along with them or would we be more glad that it didn't happen to us? When a neighbor loses a job, would we help carry their burden or be happy it didn't happen to us?
Today, will you be that third strand? Today, will you help carry another's burden? Today, will you share in the joy and sadnesses of life with someone? Today, will you love your neighbor as yourself?
By the way, the concert in the park was just a little bit more fun when a couple of our old neighbors joined us. It was a lot more fun when we enjoyed it with hundreds of our fellow town people. I find it hard to imagine it being as much fun if the two of us sat in the middle of the park all alone listening to the band.
Okay, it's now 5:15 AM. I think I'll go make a pot of coffee and feed the cats. Have a blessed day!