(Please note: This was a devotional column originally written for and published in The Manor Messenger pastor's column in early June 2010.)
“Digging Up Bones”
By Gerald Aalbers
Last year I got this brainy idea that I wanted an automatic sprinkler system in my yard. In my head, I justified the project by saying it would “save labor” and I could water the yard at the most beneficial time of the day – while I slept. Nice theory. The project, much like the dirt that I have dug up, has exploded exponentially in size. Along the way, I have had a few surprises.
I won’t bore you with a lot of details regarding typical snags in any home improvement project. This project has had more than its fair share. So let me cut to the chase: The biggest surprise was what I have found throughout the yard of our less than three year old home. Name it and I think it is buried in my yard. Just below the turf I have found a stack of shingles, countless nails, saw blades, aluminum cans, plastic bottles, concrete from the curb cut at our driveway approach, bricks, several pallet straps, and the remains of a tool belt and pouch just to mention the things that readily come to mind. It’s not exactly the bones the title alludes to, but it certainly was a lot of junk. Keep in mind that was only in the roughly 1/10th of the yard in which I actually dug. It’s an absolute miracle that the sod even grew. Things that should have been buried, like AT&T and Time Warner secondary lines – well, let’s just say those two firms consider their secondary lines “buried” as long as they are out of sight to the naked eye when you walk over them. They are very shallow in the ground.
When we purchased our new home, it was very neat in appearance. Everything was new and had fresh paint; the landscape – at least on the surface – was pleasing to the eye. People in marketing tell me that the best and cheapest improvement on a home to sell it is a fresh coat of paint – it covers a laundry list of flaws. Was I deceived? Not any more than is customary in home sales. In that industry, it has always been “let the buyer beware.”
Well, folks, while you’re getting sunburned and sweating like there is no tomorrow, you begin to meditate (or should I say “hallucinate”) on what is around you. It can be hilarious. So let’s shift gears and get to the spiritual emphasis here. I can’t help but think that the surface appearance my yard had when I bought the house is much like the facade that many folk wear while at church. You know who I’m talking about -- the ones you haven’t seen for three months and then when you do see them at church, they sound oh so spiritual. Or I could be talking about the Christian who discredits the name of Jesus, his church family, and himself by his behavior and conduct most of the time, but when present with other Christians suddenly is the authority on things spiritual. Of course, to some extent, every one puts on his “Sunday-go-to-meeting” façade and he may or may not be on Monday morning what he tried to represent himself as on Sunday morning.
The Bible has much to say about deception. Speaking on that subject, the Apostle Paul wrote in 2 Corinthians 11:14, that even “Satan himself masquerades as an angel of light.” The overall Biblical emphasis is for a person to live honestly and genuinely before God and his fellow man.
There might be someone reading this who has always been on the outside of the church. You might even wonder why I haven’t said the word “hypocrite” yet. Probably because I’ve grown sick of hearing people talk about hypocrites in the church. However, it is a good word. It originated in the Greek theatre as the word for an actor – they wore masks to represent somebody they weren’t. I might add that if you are using the excuse that you do not attend church because of the hypocrites – you need to get over it. Such an excuse totally compromises your shallow spiritual experience. If you really love something, you don’t let anything come between you and what you love. No one has ever been able to come up with an excuse to stay away from something that is priority in his life.
Freedom Church will be four years old on July 4. In our family of believers, we desire to be a genuinely authentic and transparent faith community. To be sure, none of us who attend Freedom Church have arrived at a state of perfection. Hey! No church is perfect. But for those of us who desire to be genuine, those who really aren’t don’t stop us from enjoying an open and genuine relationship with each other and with our Lord.
Gerald Aalbers
Pastor's Office
Freedom Church
June 1, 2010