A Wake-up Call

Staring through the dark, the motivation to move seemed overwhelming. The slightest move or shift might procure for me several hours of sleeplessness before sunrise. As consciousness grew, so did the realization that I might need a pit stop before finishing my journey. But, depending on the time, perhaps I could wait until morning. With these concessions, I finally made the effort to reach across to the cell phone lying on the end table. 3:45am.

Wait? What time is it? I opened my eyes to darkness wondering what time it really was. Grogginess consumed my mind, but the throb of a full bladder grew as I awoke more fully. But could I make it? What time is it? With these concessions, I finally made the effort to reach across to the cell phone lying on the end table. 1:30am.

But, no that can't be. Breathing deeply, I allowed my eyes to open and begin to adjust to the deep dark surrounding me. Is this real? I reached to my cell phone. 5:45am. And I waited. Could I still be dreaming? As my body acclimated to the waking world, I continued to ponder which reality was right. Perhaps I will wake one more time.

Infinite and finite. Fantasy and reality. Two parallel lines can go on for eternity without touching, yet be separated by a hair's width. While the two pieces of any paradox can seem infinitely separate, there is often an intrinsic connection which prevents each from being the true antithesis of the other. For instance the dream world and the real world seem to be mutually exclusive in their sensations and the laws that govern them. Yet, a line of connection, however thin it may be, runs through the two and intertwines them as a stitch on a quilt. The subconscious, dwelling in the infinite realm of fantasy, works together with the conscious, which dwells in the finite world of reality, to influence the whole self. These two influences profoundly affect one another both in the dreaming world and in the waking world.

As a high school football player, two weeks of football camp was exhausting. It was exhausting not only in reality, but my dream world also suffered under the extreme stress. My reality was three 2 1/2 hour practices every day in 100-degree heat. My subconscious endured a similar fate as I tossed and turned each night. Sweep left: pull, block the outside linebacker to the sideline or log up and block the inside linebacker to the post. Dive right: block the defensive back inside or, secondary objective, block the defensive back straight ahead. Waggle left: cup block to defend the quarterback. All night, every night. Hit after hit after hit. The sun beating down, sticky, wet pads rubbing against my skin, and tired, achy legs.

Recently, I had one of those experiences that left the lines blurred. A dream, but not. Fantasy became reality, or something close to it. The rules were suspended as the dream world so closely resembled the real world. Reality seemed to invade my subconscious. Each sensation, the gentle breeze rustling through my hair, warmth from the sun resting on my skin, and her touch, these seemed no substitute for the waking world. Not so much did these resemble, but seemed to take on reality. The one giveaway was she had no name, but she was there, she was close. She was more sure than anything. We walked together, laughing and talking about all the important and trivial things in the world. And as her hand reached for mine, I fell asleep, back into the waking world.

Am I still sleeping? Will I soon wake up to the normal 9-5 at the office? A wife? Kids? After all, dreams are more often than not of the fantastic sort. And the world in which I presently reside seems far more fantastic than the dream world I remember. As I sit waking, or dreaming, wherever I may be, I am a 20-something-year-old bachelor living in Africa spending most of my days speaking Arabic. I spend each week preparing to begin exploration of large sections of mountainous terrain to the south. Can this world be any more fantastic?

Kierkegaard suggests that the most important thing in life is to know oneself and to want to be oneself. In his book, The Sickness Unto Death, he writes that not knowing oneself is despair and the beginning of realizing one is in despair is to begin to know oneself. Unfortunately, most of us don't know that we are in despair, yet this itself is a form of despair.

"Such things cause little stir in the world; for in the world a self is what one least asks after... The biggest danger, that of losing oneself, can pass off in the world as quietly as if it were nothing; every other loss, an arm, a leg, five dollars, a wife, etc, is bound to be noticed."

So what does it mean to know oneself, to not live in despair?

"This then is the formula which describes the state of the self when despair is completely eradicated: in relating to oneself and in wanting to be itself, the self is grounded transparently in the power that established it."

Discovering one's true identity and joyfully taking hold of that identity is preceded by returning to proper relationship with the Creator. Consequently, with the acquisition and acceptance of this knowledge comes the joy to pursue one's identity to its fullness, and one has all eternity for this endeavor. Everything else in life must be balanced in relation to that relationship.

Furthermore, this "revelation" and "fulfillment" comes in light of a balance of various paradoxical concepts. Kierkegaard writes that man is a synthesis of the finite and the infinite, though most men do not acknowledge and live in regard to both of these. To dwell in one without the other is the essential definition of this despair that every man endures until he is awoken from "spiritlessness" by the Holy Spirit of the Creator.

The despair of the finite is to lack infinity, to "dare not to believe in himself, find being himself too risky, find it much easier and safer to be like the others, to become a copy, a number, along with the crowd." This is to lack possibility and hope, to live wholly in the material world. On the other hand, the despair of the infinite is to lack the finite, to be carried away "into the infinite in such a way that it only leads him away from himself and thus prevents him from coming back to himself." This is to live boundlessly in the fantastic, forgetting, or "losing", oneself.

So then, are those things of my subconscious dream world bad? Seminary. Marriage. Family. Of course not, but it isn't reality for me. It may be possibility. It may be my desire for the future. But to live in the fantastic at the cost of reality, to allow the infinite to run unconstrained by the finite, this only leads to despair. To "live life abundantly" will be to truly take hold of both necessity and possibility, finite and infinite, reality and hope.

According to the Westminster Shorter Catechism, "Man's chief end is to glorify God and enjoy Him forever." This is only done when one is founded on the Creator, first and foremost. In Matthew 6:33, Jesus says, "But seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be added to you." This is the challenge of every man.

So what are the options? The life of despair. This results when one knows not himself (ignorance or not) nor his Creator. Despair in this life continues increasingly and unbearably throughout eternity. Or, the abundant life. To know oneself in light of the great and glorious Creator. Knowing Him leads to truly knowing oneself.

So you have to ask the question: "Who am I?" Do you know? Let's face it, we deceive ourselves all the time. This week, I was exposed. Indicted by the pure honesty of the subconscious, the imbalanced reality I had been living in was called to the carpet. Fantasy, future, and hope without limit, without constraint and grounding in the present circumstances and their Creator, leads only to despair. It's time to recenter, and that means going back to the Word of God.

I guess I can consider this a wake-up call.

The Lamb of God (or, Stories For the Village)

In recent weeks, I had the opportunity to accompany several friends to a remote village for the Islamic holiday, Eid l'Kubir (The Big Celebration). Here, I spent another week with my good friend Sa'id, a brother for about five years now. He is the lone Christian in his family, but more and more his wife and mother are beginning to develop strong interest in the stories we tell. This particular week two stories seemed particularly appropriate: Abraham's sacrifice and Jesus, the lamb of God.

For a moment, contemplate with me the typical holiday season in America. There are several major events that lead up to Christmas. Thanksgiving begins everything with copious amounts of turkey, mashed potatoes, and a healthy portion of pie. A more modern Thanksgiving tradition has been added in the form of several primetime football games. Immediately following Thanksgiving, the official Christmas music season begins. Perhaps that next week the tree goes up, the greens are hung, and lights are placed outside most homes. Finally, Christmas Eve often involves a trip to the local church, the opening of a few gifts, and setting out cookies and milk for the phantom gift giver. And then, what every child counts the days for, Christmas.

As a kid, I remember waking up early every Christmas, often long before my parents. For several hours I would anxiously meander around the house watching cartoons or counting pine needles. I would always attempt a facade of nonchalance when my parents slippered feet finally appeared atop the staircase. And with a sudden burst of excitement, the family was ushered in and presents were torn into. Lunch would ensue followed by hours of fiddling with various gizmos and gadgets and their endless manuals.

For the Muslim, the atmosphere is very similar. Forty days of Ramadan end with a night of power. All the mosques fill as this is the one night of the year the prayers go straight to God. Next is the three day celebration where we eat, eat, and then eat some more. The final celebration occurs a month and a half later. This is called the Big celebration and often lasts several days. The average family will have saved for several months for that $500-$1,000 sheep. The wealthier families will purchase several. In the days before the celebration, every city, town, and village fills with the cries of millions of sheep.

On the actual celebration day, everyone wakes up early in anticipation. For hours the family mulls around anxiously watching television or counting spots. Out of a facade of indifference erupts all the bottled up excitement as the father finally goes to get his knife. At 10am the throat is slit. The streets, sewers, and rivers fill with blood as the sheep are hung to drain. Throughout the rest of the day the celebration continues as the sheep are prepared for feasting. For the next three days, families eats together and make the various trips to the mosque for special prayers times.

As I have asked many Muslims about this specific festival, the universal understanding is that the meaning comes from God's provision for Abraham of a sacrifice on the mount. But this is as deep as the understanding often goes. Why we continue to slaughter sheep every year is simply a matter of tradition. Therefore, the first story we told in the village was the story about Abraham and his only son. This is a point of agreement between Christians and Muslims.

The second story, was given to me to tell. This is what I shared, and the interest was sincere on the part of our Muslim friends as the story was explained.

"About 900 years after David, came John. He came proclaiming and said, 'Repent from your sins, the kingdom of God is close!' People came to him confessing their sins and being baptized at his hands and he told them, 'Do works in keeping with repentance. Do not say to yourselves, 'We have Abraham as our father!' I tell you, God can make these rocks the children of Abraham. The axe is laid at the root of the tree. And every tree that does not bear good fruit will be cut down and thrown into the fire.'"

"One day John saw Jesus coming and said, 'Behold, the lamb of God come to bear the sin of the world!' Just as the son of Abraham needed someone to be sacrificed in his place in order to deliver him from death, so all men need a sacrifice to deliver them from death. When Adam ate from the forbidden tree, he died spiritually. The relationship between him and God was broken. All men sin."

"About 600 years before Jesus, the prophet Isaiah said, 'All of us like sheep have gone astray. We have wandered from the path. But God has put on him all our sins. Yet he did not open his mouth. Like a sheep led to the slaughter. Like a sheep silent before his shearers, he did not open his mouth.' Jesus fulfilled the prophecy that says, 'I am the lamb of God that bears the sin of the world!'"