Gates and Houses

In my Bible Study, we’ve been in Genesis 28, talking about Jacob and the meaning of “Bethel”. What it means to Jacob, what it really is, etc, etc, etc. . . What does it mean that Jacob saw a stairway to Heaven? What does it mean that he named the place Bethel, or House of God. All quite lovely, possibly meaningful questions.

But some things intrigue me even more than these previous questions. My mind went down the rabbit hole and I started thinking about the phrase ‘el’ meaning God. And so I wondered, what in the world does Babel mean? Since it clearly had some meaning beyond the now common “nonsense”.

So then, this handy thing called an online dictionary ;) tells me that the word Babel means the “Gate of God”. We conclude from this what then?

I’m not actually a theologian, and I have absolutely no idea. Zilch. None. Nada. Zip. As in literally, I got nothing.

But I did have a few thoughts ;)

Beginning with this one. Isn’t it intriguing that God’s blessing was given at Bethel, the House of God, where God revealed himself to a human? While, at the same time, the biggest failure in history was when at Babel, the Gate of God, man attempted to open the gates of Heaven themselves? Yup, it’s intriguing.

And I actually just had that one thought, so have a nice night everybody.

The Weight of Glory

I despise my awards. 

     Don't get me wrong. I love winning, I've had a lot of great tournaments, and I really enjoy competing. I have 17 shiny plaques hanging on my wall, or sitting on my shelf, and I cannot bear to appreciate them.
     Most people would probably say that they represent how well I've done and that I should be happy to have them. And yet to me, they mean nothing. Their only value lies in the memories of partners and fun that I had in the past.

I do not deserve these awards that I have been given. I find no comfort in my achievements.

     It is despicable to me, the way that I have won them. There are so many fellow competitors who put forth the time and the effort to win their events. There have been so many hours put forth in practice and in preparation, so much growth, and so much work. And they are not recognized.

     I competed in three speech events, and total, I put in less that ten hours of work. I won first place in two of them, and was in finals for the last. And I deserved not a one.

     To those people who have worked for hours and years to get their awards, who have put in the work to receive this recognition of excellence, these plaques represent growth and perseverance.

     But to me, they are indicative only of my desire, my hunger for glory, my lust for recognition. To me, they are a golden crown, weighing me down as I tread water as I grab more treasure.

For there is a weight to glory that no man can bear, no mortal can endure

One song that has really made me think goes like this:

Turn you eyes upon Jesus

Look full in His wonderful face

And the things of earth will grow strangely dim

In the light of His glory and grace

I am no wise man, the words of this song often ring upon deaf ears. But if we pursue excellence over accolades, Christ over charisma, righteousness over recognition, then we no longer have to burdened.

Jerks

Recently, a coworker of mine asked me a question that I really wasn't sure how to answer. To be honest, I wasn't sure I wanted to answer it anyway. It was a pretty loaded question, even though I was aware of the context. 

             "Why are guys always jerks?" (Not that exact noun, but good enough for this purpose.)

I really wasn't sure what to say. I basically mumbled some non-answer to the rhetorical question and we left it at that. But as is the case with many things, it didn't get left like that in my mind. I've been thinking about it ever since, and I've come up with at least something of an answer. 

          Guys are naturally jerks(being humans and all :P ), and nowadays most don't grow out of it. Nobody's teaching them how to be gentlemen. Which of course made me think about what defines a gentlemen from a jerk. Because let's be honest, I can open every door every time for every girl and still be a jerk. But what I've concluded sets apart the gentlemen from the jerks is respect.

          A true gentlemen will be respectful not just to "their" girl, but to all women. Which is a lot higher of a standard than holding doors and getting coats, and  rightly so. To achieve their potential, we need to be held to high standards. And being respectful is crucial part of those standards. Think of the way that women are objectified by our culture. Showing even minimal respect will be a real difference from the majority. And not just as gentlemen, but also as Christians, we should be looking to stand in character and virtue above the general population. 

          And in the area of relationships, it's also pretty important. This quote pretty much sums it up.

          “This generation has lost the true meaning of romance. There are so many songs that disrespect women. You can’t treat the woman you love as a piece of meat. You should treat your love like a princess. Give her love songs, something with real meaning. Maybe I’m old fashioned but to respect the woman you love should be a priority.”         

 ~ Tom Hiddleston