Who? Yesterday was Bob Dylan’s 80th birthday. His song ‘Knock, knocking on heaven’s door’ reminds us of our mortality, questioning who will be allowed into heaven…
At church yesterday Stephen reminded us of the old joke… St Peter is giving a new arrival a conducted tour. Walking down a long corridor they pass a blue door. Peter explains: ‘Behind the blue door is the eternal resting place of all Anglicans.’
They passed a yellow door. ‘That’s for all the Pentecostal Christians’. They come to a green door. ‘We have to walk past this door quietly. It’s for Baptists. They think they’re the only ones here!’ That’s their answer to Dylan’s ‘who’ question!
Why? Yesterday was Pentecost Sunday. At church we reflected on the wind, fire, different languages, the Holy Spirit’s coming… But why… to this random bunch of people, at this particular time, in this weird way?
I’ve been taught about the historical significance of the feast of Pentecost, the symbolism of wind and fire, the promises of Jesus, the strategic place of Jerusalem, the significance of the Roman Empire, the doctrine of St Paul… But why?
Yesterday after church we packed our cases and drove sixty miles to the North Norfolk coast where we’re staying for a few days. But why is it that we’re well enough, we can afford it, when many others can’t?
Where? I’m still reading the story of Job. Suffering, misunderstood and alone he asks, ‘Do people know where to find wisdom? Where can they find understanding?’
Yesterday I chatted… to a grandmother about her grandson and his addictions… to a dad about his daughter’s dark times during a messy divorce… to a soon-to-be dad about his nearly-born daughter.
Where do we find wise answers to life’s difficult ‘Who’ and ‘Why’ questions? Job concludes: ‘God alone understands the way to wisdom; he knows where it can be found… The fear of the Lord is true wisdom; to forsake evil is real understanding.’
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