When I was a little girl, one of my favorite things was to climb up on my daddy's lap and be told a story. I always fit very nicely into his lap, taking in deep breaths of his aftershave, listening intently. I loved how he changed the tone in his voice at just the right times. He had a different dialect for every character.
These story times, whether read from a book or told from memory, are precious memories that have led me to a love of reading, writing, and storytelling. One of the many things for which I thank my earthly father.
In the past years I have found myself drawn more to Christian reading. I have read books on how to love well, parent better, and find my identity in Christ. I have laughed along with Jen Hatmaker, Shauna Niequest, and Beth Moore. My eyes have been opened a bit more on a worldview of Christianity and our true mission of Kingdom Living.
For the first time in such a long while, I find myself in a book of fiction at the current moment. I am a sucker for "book turned to movie" hype. I don't run to the theater...I grab the book. And it just so happens that this go around the book is centered on one's relationship to God.
I first heard about The Shack from an elder's wife in the church family to which I belong. She mentioned it in a fleeting moment in a ladies' class, saying it had helped her understand the trinity a bit better and God's intervention in our lives. She was sure to mention it wasn't strictly "bible-based", but had opened her eyes just the same.
When I heard the movie was about to hit theaters and created quite a bit of a buzz, my memory went back to the comment in class. So I borrowed the book from my sweet friend, Jill. I decided with multiple plane flights in the weeks to come, I could knock it out pretty quick.
I was wrong.
The first chapters of the book depict a horrific story...the events that lead to the main character's "Great Sadness". Mack, a believing-but-not-completely-sold, father of three experiences the unimaginable for any parent. While camping, his seven year old daughter is kidnapped and murdered. Her body isn't found.
Did I mention she was seven years old?
Seven. The same age as Sadie.
My vivid imagination and ability to step into a book and visualize the author's description has always been something I am proud of...I see it as a gift. But in this case my heart broke, my stomach churned, and the only face of a child I could see was Sadie's. It was awful...more than awful.
Michael watched as I picked up the book and slammed it back down on the bedside table. My friend Jill got many texts and calls asking if this book was worth the terror and agony of the first few chapters. It has been the first book that I have read only paragraphs at a time, not by chapters.
I finally got through the backstory and the writer took me, the reader, to present time...post crime...when Mack is in the middle of what he calls "The Great Sadness". He is led mysteriously back to the scene of his daughter's murder, a shack in the middle of woods in the Oregon wilderness. When he arrives he finds the shack miraculously changed and then meets three folks. And you guessed it...each one represents a third of the trinity...God the Father, Jesus the Son, and the Holy Spirit.
Now this is where alot of my friends say it gets weird for them, and I will admit its a bit different.
God appears as a large, African American woman who is called "Papa".
Jesus is portrayed by a friendly and relatable Middle-Eastern man who the author describes as a laborer. He even wears a tool belt and has a workshop.
The Holy Spirit is a small Asian woman named Sarayu who does the supernatural and collects tears.
I would be lying to say that this isn't hard for me as well. My imagination and visualization kicks in again and I find myself standing in the shack with my mouth hanging wide open right along with Mack.
Mack questions the appearance of God and he is told that God chooses to appear different ways to different people. "Papa" mentions that the way in which the three are appearing is to keep Mack from falling back into his religious conditioning and steer him away from religious stereotypes.
My mind immediately goes to the depiction most of us see in our heads when we visualize Christ. Just past the shoulder brown locks, neatly groomed facial hair, blue eyes, and a stoic face. I bet he didn't have blue eyes. And I just know he smiled much more than he was stoic.
Just after meeting everyone, Mack watches as "Papa" walks into the shack. Jesus walks over and puts an arm around his shoulder. Mack asks in bewilderment if he is going crazy and if he should really believe that this woman is God. Jesus in return laughs...
"She's a riot! You can always count on her to throw you a curve or two. She loves surprises, and even though you might not think it, her timing is always perfect."
"Really?" said Mack, still shaking his head and not sure if he really believes that. "So now what am I supposed to do?"
"You're not suppose to do anything. You're free to do whatever you like." Jesus paused and then continued, trying to help by giving Mack a few suggestions. "I am working on a wood project in the shed. Sarayu is in the garden. Or you could go fishing, canoeing, or go in and talk to Papa."
"Well I sort of feel obligated to go in and talk to him, uh, her."
"Oh" - now Jesus was serious- "don't go because you feel obligated. That won't get you any points around here. Go because it's what you want to do."
Now, you may be thinking this book is out there. Some may be thinking I am not making the best choice in reading it. That's ok...just stay with me for a bit longer.
I have read many books that I do not agree with 100%. There are speakers of different backgrounds and faiths that I differ with, but I listen to their messages. I have sat across a table from a friend and not aligned perfectly in belief and thought. Sometimes I even strongly disagree with some people. But somewhere along the way, someone tried to impress this upon how I live my life...
You can learn something from everyone and everything.
And from the above excerpt from this book I learn this...or maybe I should say that I was reminded and my eyes were opened to something that I really knew all along...
God has done enough for me. And God has given me choice...some folks call that a free will. The choice that I make should never be out of complete obligation. Doing all the things that I have been taught to do, if done just for the purpose of "because you should", is worth nothing. If my good deeds and relationship with God is based solely on what I HAVE to do and not what I WANT to do, we have a problem.
In true Christianity, we obey God because we have been and are loved by God. The only reason there is love in the world today is because of God. Scripture simply tells us "God IS love." (I John 4:8) The only reason we can love others is because He loves us. You can't give something that you haven't been given. Because there is love, we shouldn't obey out of fear, obligation, or shame.
"As the Father has loved me, so I have loved you. Now remain in my love. If you keep my commands, you will remain in my love, just as I have kept my Father's commands and remain in His love. I have told you this so that my joy may be in you and that your joy may be complete."
John 15:9-11
At times, I fear that I may have led folks to believe that I think love is the only key to Christian living. Sometimes you need to be sure you are speaking in clarity the things you hold dear. So to be clear...I hold love very dear to my heart, but I also hold obedience just as dear.
Love is filled with obedience. Obedience is filled with love. They go hand in hand. You must not ever separate the two. The two things must exist together.
And as God tells us, the greatest commands are to love God and to love others. (Matthew 22:36-40) He also tells us to count others better than ourselves. (Philippians 2:3) He didn't put any exceptions in the lines following that. No "except those that get on your nerves" or "except those that aren't as mannerly as you" or "except those that make poor decisions" or "except those that use bad language and are inappropriate". I am pretty sure He didn't give us those exceptions because those are the people that need to see His love the most...and they will only see it in us. Shame on us, if we can't show them what true love is, with the hope of leading others to obedience.
These must be the greatest commandments, because without love true obedience can't really exist. And without obedience, a relationship with the Father can't exist. And we must love Him first above all others because we don't know how to love without Him because He is love...always has been.
In the above verse from John, Jesus says he loves, because God loves him. Then he asks his disciples, and us, to love through obedience. And obeying allows us to stay in His love. And finally, those two things will allow us to know complete joy.
Obedience and love...no room for obligation...only space for grace-filled joy.
