Only nineteen sunrises and sunsets until Valentine's Day, which is always big to all of us still looking for The One. At different times, I've had my classes read the following entry. After reading and discussing the concept of THE ONE, they penned their opinions on whether THE ONE is a reality or a myth. Their opinions are always widely varied. This is from February 15, 2007.
The Valentine's Day hangover lingered in our school this morning. My desk was cluttered with chocolate in a variety of forms while a set of balloons had slumped to the floor, devoid of their life-giving helium. Valentine cookies, on sale from the National Honor Society, sat forlornly in a box in the office, their price slashed from one dollar to fifty cents to a quarter. The Love Board remains; it could probably survive until the end of the school year. Our dress code returned to school uniforms after one day of red/white outfits. And classes resumed their normal routines without the interruptions of deliveries to those with secret and not-so-secret admirers. My sophomores concluded a section today in preparation for tomorrow's test. The final topic covered was the sending of messengers to Jesus by John the Baptist from his prison cell. Perhaps experiencing doubt or maybe trying to force his relative to do something, John's men relayed this inquiry to Jesus in front of a crowd:
"Are you the one who was to come or should we expect someone else?"
Although Jesus did not directly answer John's question, he did list six groups that were benefiting from his ministry: the blind, the lame, the lepers, the deaf, the dead, and the poor. We made the point that although Jesus praised John, he did not rescue him from prison. I could not explain why he was left in jail to face beheading except that it fit into God's ultimate plan. It's just one of those "ours is not to reason why" topics, better left alone than pondering endlessly.
While discussing this , I asked my students about the wording of John's question, identical in both Matthew 11 and Luke 7. In conversations about romantic love, people often refer to their soul mate as THE ONE. I inquired whether my classes believed there was only one person just right for them. A large majority of the girls and a good percentage of the boys believe that to be the case. Mathematically, I asked them what were the odds in a country of 260 million-plus that they would find THE ONE who in return felt them to be THE ONE. Steadfastly, they believe it is the will of God, which I applaud. I offered a counter-position that maybe there was THE FIVE or THE TEN, a set of options that the Lord gives us the possibility to consider. They weren't sure and I didn't press it because I am not sure. John the Baptist was sure about Jesus when he introduced him to his followers in the first chapter of the Gospel of John. Within the space of several verses, the Baptist calls Jesus "the Lamb of God" and "the Son of God," strong testimony from a wilderness preacher. Maybe, like so many brides, he developed cold feet at crunch time but his earlier witness would stand: Jesus of Nazareth was THE ONE. That pronouncement is relatively easy for the believer to accept and base a spiritual life on. It is more difficult to find THE ONE, or THE FIVE, of the opposite gender. They don't come with their own prophet. We have to figure it out ourselves.
Applicable quote of the day:
"To me, there is no greater act of courage than being THE ONE who kisses first."
Janeane Garofalo
God bless,
Steve
Luke 18:1
http://www.hawleybooks.com/
E-mail me at steve@hawleybooks.com
The Valentine's Day hangover lingered in our school this morning. My desk was cluttered with chocolate in a variety of forms while a set of balloons had slumped to the floor, devoid of their life-giving helium. Valentine cookies, on sale from the National Honor Society, sat forlornly in a box in the office, their price slashed from one dollar to fifty cents to a quarter. The Love Board remains; it could probably survive until the end of the school year. Our dress code returned to school uniforms after one day of red/white outfits. And classes resumed their normal routines without the interruptions of deliveries to those with secret and not-so-secret admirers. My sophomores concluded a section today in preparation for tomorrow's test. The final topic covered was the sending of messengers to Jesus by John the Baptist from his prison cell. Perhaps experiencing doubt or maybe trying to force his relative to do something, John's men relayed this inquiry to Jesus in front of a crowd:
"Are you the one who was to come or should we expect someone else?"
Although Jesus did not directly answer John's question, he did list six groups that were benefiting from his ministry: the blind, the lame, the lepers, the deaf, the dead, and the poor. We made the point that although Jesus praised John, he did not rescue him from prison. I could not explain why he was left in jail to face beheading except that it fit into God's ultimate plan. It's just one of those "ours is not to reason why" topics, better left alone than pondering endlessly.
While discussing this , I asked my students about the wording of John's question, identical in both Matthew 11 and Luke 7. In conversations about romantic love, people often refer to their soul mate as THE ONE. I inquired whether my classes believed there was only one person just right for them. A large majority of the girls and a good percentage of the boys believe that to be the case. Mathematically, I asked them what were the odds in a country of 260 million-plus that they would find THE ONE who in return felt them to be THE ONE. Steadfastly, they believe it is the will of God, which I applaud. I offered a counter-position that maybe there was THE FIVE or THE TEN, a set of options that the Lord gives us the possibility to consider. They weren't sure and I didn't press it because I am not sure. John the Baptist was sure about Jesus when he introduced him to his followers in the first chapter of the Gospel of John. Within the space of several verses, the Baptist calls Jesus "the Lamb of God" and "the Son of God," strong testimony from a wilderness preacher. Maybe, like so many brides, he developed cold feet at crunch time but his earlier witness would stand: Jesus of Nazareth was THE ONE. That pronouncement is relatively easy for the believer to accept and base a spiritual life on. It is more difficult to find THE ONE, or THE FIVE, of the opposite gender. They don't come with their own prophet. We have to figure it out ourselves.
Applicable quote of the day:
"To me, there is no greater act of courage than being THE ONE who kisses first."
Janeane Garofalo
God bless,
Steve
Luke 18:1
http://www.hawleybooks.com/
E-mail me at steve@hawleybooks.com
2 comments:
Hey Coach Hawley! Thanks for the "shout out" the other day. I don't remember having that conversation with you, but I know I must have said it because you don't forget a thing! Mom told me before I looked at the blog I was on, but I was afraid you were going to tell about the sudden change in my "I love . . . " in my history notebook since it was so close to Valentine's! Do you still have the Draob Evol? I was just wondering . . . You're the best, Coach Hawley - my hero.
Thank you for all that you share,and ekskuse me for my bad english!!!...Have a blessed day!!!...With love from Sweden!!!
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