As I walked between buildings at school the other day, I caught myself in a state of mind that ended up troubling me a bit. “What a beautiful day! Everything is finally back to normal.” It was almost as if I had never been diagnosed with cancer. A year of difficulty seemed a distant dream.
In a way, such a feeling is an answer to many prayers. Last year, I often longed to just be a normal husband and father again. I’m also not complaining about peace of mind. Such a blessing is from our God and I’ve learned this peace can come in moments of ease and in moments of great distress. So why was I bothered by such a happy thought?
When the storm comes, there is an urgency awakened within that can be a great blessing. This is not the type of urgency that leads to worry or panic, but rather it is something that can lead to ‘proper thinking’. When life and death become real, the trivial things that consume our minds become clearly ridiculous. When you are about to die, who cares who wins the Monday Night Football game? Such things don’t matter! What does matter are those things that are truly important.
As Christians, we know life is but “a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes”, but do we live that way? Do we realize that our moments on this earth are ordained by the Creator of the universe? Is there hope to become properly focused while in these physical bodies?
Jesus knew that He and His Father were One. It was this Oneness that allowed our Savior to walk with ‘proper thinking’. His focus was being “about My Father’s business”. So, Jesus healed the sick; He fed the hungry; He touched lepers; and He hung out with tax collectors and sinners. Jesus lived with His Father’s perfect urgency. He lived in the common village, but His life was very uncommon. Jesus celebrated at weddings and enjoyed the company of children. His words were full of grace and truth and He served His fellow man. To keep Oneness with the Father, He did everything He was told, so His life ended on the Cross in a fulfillment of perfect love. God raised Him from the dead and Jesus now calls us to walk in His steps.
My hope for ‘proper thinking’ does not lie in the crisis of sickness or war. Such things may jolt me to an awakened state, but if I don’t know the Source of Life, I’ll eventually drift right back to the trivial. My hope for ‘proper thinking’ is Oneness with Christ. As Jesus dwelt in His Father, so I must dwell in Him. As I dwell in Christ, He promises to dwell in me. What a happy thought!
“Remain in me, and I will remain in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in me. I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing.” John 15:4-5 (read Jn 14-17)