Dog biscuits do not contain magnets....

The title must bring about some sort of inquisition for you. So let me fill you in; it is three separate stories that all have come together for one...God is good! The other day I had gone out to my car and at some point realized my drivers side tire was flat. To which my response was a simple smile and joke between God and I about Hibdon tires. I candidly whispered to Him, “yeah, we are do for another visit to the office.”  Then I smiled inwardly to myself because, you see, every time I have gone to Hibdons over the past four years I have had an amazing interaction with one of His children and it never fails! So I didn’t panic as I knew it was coming and honestly with some excitement I got into my car and drove very slowly on my flat (I know bad idea, but I was sure God was gonna get me there safely....after all I had an appointment). I drove with sheer anticipation going 20mph the whole way :)

 So as I arrived at Hibdons with my books in tow preparing for a long visit. I bought four tires and sat down to read. I took an initial scan of the guests but no one particularly stood out so I simply prayed, asking God to have His way and went on to read Matthew in my message bible. As they had pulled my car in, I saw them start working on it and took the opportunity to pause and look around for any possible eye contact, but none. So back to reading I went; oddly enough as I see them finishing up my car, at precisely the Right moment, a man sits down next to me and says, “Are you reading the bible?” My eyes look up upon a tall man of middle eastern decent. There was a spark in his eyes and as I replied, “yes”, he said, “that is very good, very good.” Trying to contain a joyful smile he asked, “What part are you in?” To which I said, “The new testament; Matthew.” I went on saying, “You know I can read this book year after year and I am blown away by all the new things it reveals to me each and every time I pick it up.” He nodded his head as if in complete agreement and gently said, “I feel the same way about the Koran.”  He continued, “There is always more between the lines that God wants to show us.” We sat and spoke of God. We talked of how the endless search for worth and money has left our people heavy and burdened; but that a relationship with God could cure it all. We pondered why it is so hard to teach people this and how you cannot force ones eyes to be opened, ears to be cleared, or hearts to be receptive. But how once you’ve seen, heard or experienced Him, you just want to share all of the gifts He has poured out on your life with every man and woman. I explained that relationship with God seems so intangible to people and that this is why I thought it was so hard to offer that gift to others.  To which he replied with a quite humorous but very true metaphor. He said, “I would argue that God is tangible, He leaves a trail on our lives and on all creation that shows He has been there,” He said, “and it is a tangible trail.” He started the metaphor, “It is like a camel in the desert, they are hard to catch a glimpse of as the dirt blows and camouflages their coats as they blend so well with the sand, and so long after the camel has gone, whether you ever saw him there or not there is a trail, a trail of his poop is left behind and so you can be certain a camel was there.” He said, “I think God leaves a trail too, in our lives and if we look closely we will see that it is indeed there and is very tangible.” I pretty much loved him for comparing Camel poo to God’s trail in our life, but the point was true. I knew I could indeed find tangible places where God had moved through my life, and he in his.

 We concluded with a comparison of the gifts of the ruler of this world, we both knew him as satan, to the gifts from the ruler of the Kingdom, God. And he left me with this thought. He said, “When we acquire the gifts if this world (i.e. really anything monetary or material), we have the hardest time sharing them. There may be a select few people we choose to share with, but we certainly don’t naturally go offering them to a perfect stranger. However the gifts of God we cannot help but want to share with everyone.” I said, “Perhaps it is because subconsciously we recognize that there is an abundance of one where there is never enough of the other. The other will never fill you, no matter how much you gain you intrinsically know it will not be enough; it cannot be enough. And so you have none to spare for a brother or sister. But with Gods gifts, love, joy, peace, kindness....there is a never ending supply and you naturally want others to share in it with you. It feels right when you share them and really,  really good. There is enough to go around.” Within our final words he said, “ We can never completely understand Him; He is God and we are not, but we can have relationship with Him which is enough and probably all we could handle.” I simply walked away in awe of God and His ways which I can never fully understand; even when I think I have the perfect grasp I realize in humility I do not know at all. But I always have a relationship with Him and that warms my soul and fills me completely. 

So the day goes on and the following morning I arrive at Holy Yoga, where a dear friend of mine is stepping into teaching and this was her first class. The message she decided on was the Wisdom of God stemming from the story of Job; which if you have read it really shakes one’s understanding of God and of God’s relationship with satan and the choices made for our lives...lots there! But mostly it expresses how little we really understand about God and that we cannot truly question it because we don’t posses the capacity to process the answer. There were no right answers among the friends who came to speak to Job, and even Job had it all wrong. None of them had it figured out and none of them truly understood what was going on, even though some tried to convince themselves they did. God did not intend us to understand Him, just to be with Him. Just to love Him and trust His judgement and guidance for our steps. We struggle to understand, we try to explain...all of us do it! Because it makes us feel better or more safe or closer to God; like if we box Him in then we will never be shocked, surprised, or hurt. Now we all know logically this is absurd but we still do it. He has never asked that of us; trying to understand Him completely. He has simply said, “You my child can trust Me.” We try to make sense of His movement in our lives; and it is an ongoing process to relinquish our own understanding and rest in His. It boils back down to trusting in who He is, and what He has said, and believing in the availability of your relationship with Him. And the security that this is enough! That you do not need to understand to believe and live fully in Him!

Our cars and our houses are purposed to contain us, but they cannot and neither can we contain an understanding of God. He is free, He is everywhere, He is a mystery, He is beautiful, He is loving. But mostly He is available; all the time, in every moment, in all things! So the last story brings us back to the title. I was meeting with a dear friend hashing through some of the struggles I had and surrendering to the fact that I truly had no idea exactly what God was up to. That I have had moments of discernment along the way but far from a complete picture about why I am where I am with certain promises He has whispered to me. Things I don’t want or want to do but cannot shake the constant message that indeed this is what He is asking. And so I get up to go to the restroom and as I sat down I see a tiny, folded up piece of paper in the corner on the floor. And I focus in on it and it seems to have writing on the inside. So I reach for it and as I unfold it I read, in bold print as if from a manufacturer,  “DOG BISCUITS DO NOT CONTAIN MAGNETS.” I thought, huh!?!?!?! That doesn’t even make sense at all, but I knew God had wanted me to find that little piece of paper and so I stuck it in my purse and rested knowing, or rather hoping, He would eventually explian. So later that night, I typed into google “dog biscuits do not contain magnets”. The article that came up was funny to me and spoke about anthropomorphizing (ascribing human characteristics to a non-human). Hmmm.... isn’t this exactly what we do to God. When as far as we know, He does not think, live or breath like us. I have had a long hard walk of trying to figure out why things have happened in my life. Not understanding why He asks me to do one thing and not to do others. Why this and why that; oh and of course the moments when I thought I had it all figured out.... what I have come to discover is I am not God. We cannot attribute our qualities onto Him and then decide we have it all figured out and lay judgement on the world, or disappointed on Him when it does not play out as we had figured. The truth is that the very best of our thinking is much too simple and much too self serving to be compared to Wisdom of God. The perfect metaphor for trying to understand God is about as clear as DOG BISCUITS DO NOT CONTAIN MAGNETS...I can see it, I can read it, I can comprehend what it is literally saying, I can gather that it means something, but for the life of me I do not claim to understand or have it all figured out  about why this little note was ever printed or what exactly it is saying or how it found its way to my path, but I believe God does! Some of you may think you know, some of you may spend the rest of your life burdened to figure it out and then a few of you will rest and enjoy whatever has been given to you whether good or bad and find fulfillment in simply getting to know the Creator, Designer, Manufacturer, and Keeper of all that you will ever come to see, hear or know! 

p.s. I see God in all of this, linking it all together before me and for His Kingdom. You may not understand or see how I concluded this...but I'll leave the explaining up to HIm, He is always more more equipped to get the intended point across than I...... Rest In Him!

Stories untold....

Sitting here behind this page I realize how very long it has been since I’ve written. But sadly I also sit and recall all the stories I should have told when they were fresh to my soul, instead of buried  behind days of frivolous details that have fogged the glass just enough to have lost their simple clarity. How many stories do we leave untold? I often wonder what comes of story telling, but I have seen and don’t need to question long the answer to this. I mean it is, after all, stories that make our lives. Often stories told in truth and transparency do miraculous things for the lives of others. They give us insight and understanding, compassion and relevance, perspective and coherence, community and comfort, inspiration and connection. They give us reality like none other. Why do you think testimonies are so valuable? They offer a similar taste of a reality we are all trying to grasp onto; not the reality of this world but the reality of the divine that we catch sight of in brief but intoxicating encounters. We are all captivated by stories, no matter our age, gender, disabilities, fears, doubts, insecurities, religion or occupations. Think about it...stories level us out to the same field. Movies are stories; some true, some not, but stories none the less. Books, songs, poems, psalms, the news, scripture, pictures, magazines, and even science; all stories told from one man to another! I acknowledge not all stories are good or true, but all stories intrinsically command an audience and capture our attention. They play on our thoughts, emotions and experiences. They offer us escape, adventure and creativity. A good story will stop people from what they are doing and draw them into contemplative and euphoric states; ones where they have forgotten their troubles and surrendered their responsibilities to briefly partake in the telling of another’s experience with the human condition. Watching, hearing or reading a story from a distance is influential of itself but the straightforward act of asking someone their story will often produce a bond between mankind unlike another.  I live for stories, I have discovered the simple but powerful connection that sharing your story and offering an environment for others to share theirs creates. People want to tell their story, they are dying to be heard and known. This is one of the most beautiful gifts we can offer each other. Let me explain...it makes people feel loved, trusted, significant, human if you will... I do not always hand a homeless person five dollars but instead stop what I am doing to sit and exchange stories with them. Whether true stories or not, these stories need to be heard and should be told. It is no matter of the accuracy as much the simple act of saying I will listen...I am not here to fix or mend, judge or correct, analyze or argue; but instead to offer you a basic human need..an ear to be attentive to your story. Our stories can and frequently will be skewed, but not to fret, this does not alter the transaction...because ultimately when we listen to a story we will only glean that which survives our analytical and bruised perspective. I can learn from a lie and I can learn from truth, because ultimately it all will fall on the table of my understanding and view of things before it reaches my heart. This I would argue is why stories are told, because we all do not have eyes that see the same, ears that hear the same or hearts that receive the same.

  I stumbled upon this story about stories in my message bible and love its simplicity. Matthew writes that the disciples approached Jesus and asked “Why do you tell stories?” He answers, “You’ve been given insight into God’s Kingdom. You know how it works. Not everybody has this gift, this insight; it hasn’t been given to them. Whenever someone has a ready heart for this, the insights and understandings flow freely. But if there is no readiness, any trace of receptivity soon disappears. That’s why I tell stories; to create readiness, to nudge the people toward receptive insight...”

  My gathering from this is that the transaction of story telling alone does something profound in the hearts of others; whether or not we agree is irrelevant, whether or not we have an epiphany instantly is irrelevant, whether or not we understand completely is irrelevant...story telling in itself is creating a posture for insight and readiness. I know I have told stories and the eyes across from me have said, yeah right. But I also know those same eyes have flickered with a what if... It isn’t my job to dissect the story and explain with certainty and precision what each piece unequivocally means. I tell the story setting it free to offer whatever it will to the audience. I don’t have control and so I do not try to control it. I do not have perfect understanding so I do not try to make them understand it perfectly. I do not know what they are gleaning and so I do not try to tell them what to glean...no it is a loving and free exchange of a story I found along my journey; there is beauty and purity and lessons and morals and hidden meanings and powerful messages waiting to be unfurled before the eyes, ears and hearts of the listeners. But I cannot wait to tell my stories for certainty that this is true or in order to teach what I find important; no instead I must speak and find the freedom that awaits my soul in the willingness to offer my raw, unfinished, unedited, imperfect, invalidated, but true as I understand them stories. With the willingness to be wrong, to be corrected, to be offensive, to be embarrassed.....So How many stories do we leave untold? Perhaps because we think they do not matter, or because they reveal too much of our selves, or because we assume no one would want to hear them, or we do not want to take the time to tell them? Write your story, speak your story, share your story, record your story, whisper your story, sell your story, sing your story, dance your story, act your story, capture your story, live your story..because you matter and your story may just be the beginning of readiness and receptive insight for a fellow journeyman or even for yourself....