Not the Answer Calvin Wanted to Hear

 

Our text today, flock, was first published October 18, 1990, and begins with Deacon Calvin asking a significant question and Pastor Hobbes having a profound answer.

That alone would make this episode of Calvin & Hobbes worthy of consideration, but when Calvin pauses and reflects on what Hobbes said and what it implies about himself, his reaction is priceless.

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Truth is...We like to think when we have an outburst of anger or inappropriate behavior that we can say, "I wasn't being myself," but it's at those times when we are probably being very much ourselves...proving once again that we need to be changed from the inside out.

Satan Thinks You're a Dumb Animal

 

As short-sighted and horrific as the mid-1800s' slaughter of American Bison on the Great Plains was, it brings to mind a timeless truth.

From the book, Dodge City by Tom Clavin:

The buffalo were just stupid and appeared to be begging to be killed. With most animals on the prairie and plains, getting shot at, and especially having one of your own killed, resulted in flight as fast as their paws or hooves could carry them. Not so the buffalo. A hunter could walk to within a hundred yards of a feeding herd, stretch out on the ground, aim, and fire. A good kill shot was through the lungs. After the animal collapsed and died, the others kept eating as though nothing had happened. If the herd began to move -- and at full tilt, buffalo can run more than thirty miles an hour -- the hunter killed the lead buffalo, which stopped the followers in their tracks.

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Is it any wonder that church leaders are so often the target of Lucifer's attacks? And indeed, how many congregations have come to a screeching halt because of a sinful scandal involving its leader?

For that matter, I believe it is no accident that God has designed us to be part of a group that loves and cares for each other...unlike the stupid bison who can watch a member of the herd fall over and die with no reaction whatsoever.

Truth is...Be alert and of sober mind. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. (I Peter 5:8 NIV)

The Conversion of Han Solo

 

The first part of Han Solo's life helped him become a self-serving smuggler and an egotistical raconteur. He had no need for moral standards or mystical relationships. His world revolved around himself and his needs. As long as he had a good blaster at his side, he considered himself good to go.

And then reality reared its head and headed straight toward him. He experienced life through the eyes of a group of believers dedicated to something greater than any single one of them. He saw things happen that could only be explained by what he considered to be a hokey religion. And little by little...he knew it was all true.

Truth is...The Church can be seen as a plucky group of rebels who put the whole above each of themselves, empowered by the same Spirit that raised Jesus from the dead. Bring on all the Solos of the world and may the Force be with you!