tuesday morning musings...

I was attending service at CITAM Woodley; that must have been the last week of October last year, before I left town the first time around. I think somehow for a while before that I had not been in church, and it was for me some bittersweet reunion of sorts, that entire service. Anywho, not my point at this time. There had just ended a baptismal class, and I think, as I was new to the place, they have lunch after the fact. So this guy stands up there and says, “Many animals have laid down their lives to facilitate this meal, blah...blah…” He didn’t say blah, I just don’t remember what he said after that, but it was something to the effect of please don’t blow off the lunch.

Which begins my point. I went to two different high schools. Sort of, I went to one for three weeks before the folks came and took me to the other one (against my express instructions). Anyway, I had missed my first choice my a whisker, which is how I landed at my second, and I told the folks I didn’t want them to keep looking for a place there, if my marks got me here, that’s where I was going to (fie upon you Ciaos!) stay. In fact, they later told me they weren’t sure I’d agree to come along when they were coming for me, but blah… blah… I did and here we are. 

The girl who beat me to my school couldn’t go, something about a full bursary she got that would only work in the school the sponsor chose, and so she couldn’t go. I thought about how she felt, because the school that was chosen for her was a lesser school. So, I went in her place, took her admission number, landed in the wrong class - and how I loved it, and picked my own hostel. The school wasn’t even expecting me, it was quite the mess. Happy mess.

Anyhow, this morning I’ve been thinking about the reasons we are where we are. Sometimes we are lucky, and God just opens a new door for us, but sometimes someone has to literally and figuratively “lay down their life” for us to land where we should. The Bible is so full of substitution doctrine, you know, this happens because that other thing paid the price. Ultimately, the very foundation of my faith is substitution. He laid down His life, so that I would live, He was bruised for my transgressions, by His stripes I am healed… 

And sometimes I ask myself, those things that are mine, now and in the future, whose are they now? What and who will lay down their life for me… Until now, it’s usually been my folks, putting their life on hold for mine; I guess that never ends… There is this verse:

³For I am the Lord your God,
The Holy One of Israel, your Saviour;
I gave Egypt for your ransom,
Ethiopia and Seba in your place.
⁴ Since you were precious in My sight,
You have been honoured,
And I have loved you;
Therefore I will give men for you,
And people for your life.

The truth is that there will always be Egypts, Ethiopias and Sebas being given for our ransom. Just like the carnivore’s good news is the herbivore’s bad. And now does the grass normally feel, being eaten like that?

Inevitably sometimes, our good news will also be someone else’s bad news. Sometimes we will know them. And they will be in worse stead than us. But still, they will have to be the ones leaving to make room for our entry. And that kinda makes me sad, even though such is the way of life.