Progress

I recently read some material that caught my attention immediately.  Sometimes we come across an idea or an expression that seems to be right on target.  Here is what I read...


"When someone desires a thing too much, they at once become ill at ease.  A proud and avaricious person never rests, whereas those who are poor and humble of heart live in a peaceful world.  Individuals not yet dead to themselves are easily tempted and quite overcome by small and trifling evils.  Their spirit is weak and still in the thrall of the senses and physical passions.  They struggle to abstain from worldly desires, and so are upset when denied them, and so quickly angered if reproved by anyone.  Yet when they grasp their desires, they are overwhelmed with a heavy conscience; because though they followed their passions, they did not find peace.
True peace of heart is found in resisting passions, not in satisfying them.  There is no peace in the being of a worldly individual, given over to external attractions; but there is peace in the one who is fervent and spiritual."

The writer of those words has his finger on that which causes so much heartache in the lives of countless people today.  It is as if he has been eavesdropping in the office of counselors dealing with couples who have seen their relationship tainted by infidelity.  Perhaps he was overhearing the conversation of someone who has lost everything in the quest to make more money, buy a bigger house or a bigger car.  Maybe he was sitting in as a pastor gets a phone call about a church member who has decided to leave a congregation because the church "just doesn't seem to be meeting my needs."  Such passion for personal satisfaction and pleasure is the hallmark of our society today, isn't it?  In reality, the quotation above came from Thomas a Kempis.  He wrote them most likely in the early 15th century (the first manuscript of the work appeared in 1418), long before Columbus sailed from Spain or Martin Luther nailed his 95 Theses on the door of the Wittenburg church.  If you want to read it for yourself, the book is "The Imitation of Christ."  You can find the words in Book One, chapter 6.  It was originally written in Latin, but the words above came from a new edition from Simon Parke that was published in 2011.

We like to think that we invariably make progress in our lives.  We learn more things about the world around us.  We think that each successive generation is better, smarter, more accomplished than the one that went before.  Isn't it interesting to discover that the essential nature of human beings has not changed in 600 years?  "The Imitation of Christ" was written during a period of history we call "The Dark Ages."  This was supposed to be a time when Europe was in the doldrums politically, intellectually, artistically and spiritually.  What does it say about 21st century society when we have not progressed toward spiritual and emotional contentment beyond where we were in the Dark Ages?

The truth we find in the Scriptures, in the 15th century reflections of Thomas a Kempis or even in the writing of contemporary authors today has not changed.  The greatest contentment and spiritual fulfillment is found in devotion, first to God, then to others and lastly to ourselves.  For all our supposed progress, far too many of us have failed to grasp that point, even today.  Not impressed comparing today with 600 years ago?  Go back 2000 year and hear Jesus speak about true contentment... "What good will it be for someone to gain the whole world, yet forfeit their soul?" (Matthew 16:26).  Still not impressed?  Go back around 2500 years and hear Solomon say, "Better one handful with tranquility than two handfuls with vexation and chasing after the wind." (Ecclesiastes 4:6)

True progress, measured in peace and contentment, comes only when we understand that there is no possession that can bring us real happiness.  No matter how much we get, how powerful or prominent we become, no matter how nicely things "line up" in our lives, we will not be truly content until we are content within.  The words of Thomas a Kempis are as true today as they were 600 years ago, "There is no peace in the being of a worldly individual, given over to external attractions; but there is peace in the one who is fervent and spiritual."  When we understand that, maybe we will have finally, for all our accomplishments, truly made progress.

Devastation...Terrible But Not Total

Like many others, I have been watching with utter amazement the paths of destruction left by the storms that hit the midwest and midsouth over the past several days. The scenes of entire communities leveled is at the same time heartwrenching and awe-inducing. The hearts and spirits of many rose and fell with the story of a baby that was seemingly spared the destructive wrath of the tornado, only to learn of her death at the hospital in Louisville.

I have heard reporters describe the scenes they are covering as instances of "total devastation." The destruction wrought by these storms is indescribable and many towns and families are devastated...but total devastation? I think not. In order to be totally devastated, one must be robbed of all hope. There have been plenty of pictures and stories in recent days that tell the story of human character and strength even in the midst of unspeakable sadness.

One such scene occurred in Henryville, Indiana at 9:00 a.m. on Sunday morning. The Catholic church in the town was largely spared by the storm that hit the community and the faithful of that parish...and of other denominations as well, gathered to worship and to pray. From the time that the storm had passed, the volunteers in that church had fired up the grills and stoves and ovens and begun to prepare food for anyone who needed it. A community that was licking its considerable wounds was also counting its blessings and caring for one another. When people care for one another like that, even the worst devastation is not total, because there still is hope.

I saw an interview with a man in Elizabethtown, Kentucky. His home had been destroyed. He was talking to a reporter about what he had seen and heard as the storm approached. As he told of how everything he had was gone, his voice began to crack. Nearly in tears, the man said, "I've never asked anyone for nothing in my life." He walked away from the camera a few steps and with a look that seemed to be a mixture of hurt, anger and outright defiance he said through clenched teeth, "...and I'm not going to start now!" This man had suffered devastation that hurt him to the very depth of his being. Yet, as long as he had the strength of character to say that he would prevail over his circumstances...as long as his spirit was unbowed, the devastation was not total.

Major Robert Marchanti of the Army National Guard was murdered by a coward in Afghanistan who shot him and a fellow officer in inhuman and incomprehensible retaliation for the accidental burning of some copies of the Koran. During the years in which we lived in Baltimore, MD we had the brief pleasure of being acquainted with him as our youngest daughter's P.E. teacher in elementary school. Maj. Marchanti was in Afghanistan for the purpose of training Afghani security forces so that they could provide a secure future for the people of that nation. Last Christmas, he told his wife, Peggy, that he was encouraged by how well his charges were progressing. He wanted to do something for them to show his gratitude for their hard work. His wife had heard that there were a lot of almonds in the region, but that the men didn't have anything to open them with. They had to resort to cracking them open with their shoes. Mrs. Marchanti boxed up a bunch of nutcrackers and sent them to Afghanistan as gifts. Barely two months later, on February 25, her husband had been killed. To have someone you love murdered by those whom they were trying to help and those to whom you had shown such kindness would certainly be devastating. She harbors no rancor toward the people among whom her husband was serving. She and her family are heartbroken, to be sure; their loss is devastating. However, as long as they have, as Martin Luther King, Jr. said, the "courage to love," that devastation is not total.

Whether the challenges and heartaches we face are meted out by the forces of nature, illness or the cowardly acts of other human beings, God has given us the capacity through His Spirit to grow beyond the hurt and reach for that which heals. As long as He reigns in our hearts, no devastation is every total. Plenty of people have set very good examples for us in recent days. May we have the good grace to pray for them and the good sense to follow their example.