I wrote this in January 2009, but for some reason, today seems like a good day to revisit it. I think I'll be pulling out some old stuff I've written to mix with the new. Be inspired. :)
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As I woke this morning, my radio kindly informed me that the temperature outside my gloriously warm home was -17ยบ. Can I just say that I experienced an overwhelming temptation to not leave the comfortable cocoon of my bed?
But, duty calls.
So up I arose, and after donning 2 pairs of socks, jeans, 4 long-sleeve shirts -including Under Armor - snow boots, snow pants, my winter coat, hat and mittens, (whew!) I was ready to go wait for the bus.
Joy.
I cannot express how wonderful it was when my Mom offered to drive me to the “L” station. I felt all warm and toasty inside. :) So, I got dropped off, boarded the train, and plopped down in my “usual” seat by the window without having to wait for the bus for who-knows-how-long.
All morning – throughout the drive to the station, and while on the “L” - I (ever the nature/weather-lover) was consistently struck by the sheer beauty of the day. The sky was a lovely shade of baby blue, and the sunrise tinged everything with a beautiful glow which was magnified by all the clouds billowing from people, vehicles, and other sources due to ridiculously cold air. All those vaporous clouds were like magic in the sunlight that touched them – turning them from reminders of how cold it is outside, into eye-catching shimmers full of light.
While I was riding the “L” - watching Chicago pass by in flashes of gray and white, and being occasionally blinded by the morning sun - I got to thinking... We don’t get cold weather like today too often in Chicago, but when it does happen, everyone recognizes the danger in it. Most people bundle up, and look like colorful Stay Puff Marshmallow Men waddling down the street, all nice and toasty in their winter gear. But some people freeze, or get frostbit; cars don’t start, trains get stuck. The thing is - that despite all that danger, or perhaps because of is, there is incredible beauty – beauty of a kind that we don’t get to see too often here in the Midwest. Sparkling ice, dazzlingly white snow, billows of light filled vapors, and blindingly bright sunlight. The bare lace of tree branches against the clear blue sky, and at night…stars. So many stars, twinkling out in space…
If it weren’t so incredibly cold outside today, I wouldn’t be witnessing this particular kind of beauty.
My reflections on the beauty and danger of this cold day got me thinking about other areas where beauty and danger are interlaced or even dependent upon each other.
Take, for example, the Poison Arrow Frog. Its colorful skin is beautiful to the eye, but acts as a warning to predators, because its skin secretes a poison that would kill the animal that would make the frog its dinner. Other examples of dangerous beauty in nature abound! Many brightly colored flora and fauna are so flamboyantly colored as warnings. Because they’re dangerous.
Beauty and Danger.
I’d like to take the musings on beauty and danger a step further. Or perhaps
farther. Back. Back to the garden of Eden. Back to Adam and Eve living in the most beautiful place that has ever existed on this earth. So beautiful, but so dangerous, because of a beautiful serpent, and beautiful Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil (Genesis 3:6). Dangerous, because of temptation, and because we’re human, and curiosity and pride so often get the better of us. But without the danger, there would have been no free will. So, despite the Fall, I’m thankful God loved us enough from the very beginning to put danger in the beauty.
Maybe we can go back to Moses - seeing the burning bush blazing in all its glory (Exodus 3:3). I think it must have been beautiful. But also dangerous. Because at the burning bush, Moses met God, spoke with God, and was asked by God to do things that were totally outside his comfort zone. Outside his experience, and outside his perception of himself. But without the danger of obeying god, the Israelites would have remained Egyptian slaves, and Moses wouldn’t have experienced God the way he did.
What about angels? Angels are supposed to be incredibly beautiful creatures – full of light, and authority. Many times, when an angel appears in the Bible, it is greeted with fear - even terror (Num. 22:31). Angels were sent to guide (pillar of cloud and fire for the Israelites, Ex. 14:19), Angels were sent to destroy (angel of death sent as a plague to “Passover” in Egypt and kill all the firstborn sons, Ex. 12:23). Angels were sent as messengers (Gabriel to Mary to foretell the birth of Jesus, Luke 1:26). Angels were sent to teach us how to rejoice (at Jesus’ birth, Luke 2:13-14). Some angels are fallen, and are therefore incredibly powerful and dangerous enemies, but totally within God’s power (Jude 1:6). Angels are dangerous.
I think we could even apply the concept of beauty and danger to living as Christ-followers. So much beauty is found in Jesus, and in the love and grace that he offers through redemption. And yet, being a Christian is dangerous. For many countries, it is dangerous because of persecution. An
average of 171,000 Christians are martyred worldwide each year (
http://christianity.about.com/od/denominations/p/christiantoday.htm). That's 475 people a
day! In John 15: 18-27, 16:1-4, Jesus tells us that the world will hate us, even to the point of death. In vs. 2, He says, “a time is coming when anyone who kills you will think he is offering a service to God”. Following God is dangerous.
It’s dangerous for other reasons as well. It’s dangerous because people like to be liked. But so often, when it’s known you’re a Christian, the reaction of those you would call friends or colleagues, is rejection. And that sucks. It’s a shot to the ego, and it’s hard to be okay with rejection. It’s also hard to not be ashamed of being a Christian sometimes – mostly because of other people who call themselves “Christians”, and then act in very un-Christ-like ways. Being a Christian is emotionally, and socially dangerous.
But so worth it…
I don’t know about you, but danger appeals to me. It’s not something that I deliberately seek out, but it’s exciting. And it is so enlivening to me, to know that the life that I have chosen to live – as a Christian – is not a boring one, or a calm one. It is dangerous, and filled with challenge, and trials – which makes the reward all the more sweet. There is beauty in the danger. There is reward in meeting the danger head-on, and there is beauty in the victory.
One more point I want make is in paradox to all the things I’ve spoken about. Can you guess what it is?
It’s
the
Cross.
In Roman times, when Jesus lived, the cross was
not beautiful. It was ugly and terrible – a thing of danger that ended in death. But Jesus changed all that. He took the cross – a symbol of fear, and death – and made it one of the most beautiful symbols in all of eternity. The cross is now a symbol of freedom. Freedom from death and destruction. Freedom from pain and fear. Freedom from all of our sins. The cross is hope and a future. The cross is grace and mercy.
The cross is Love.
The cross is Beauty…
…but also danger and intrigue.
So here’s the question: Will you answer the call to live dangerously? Will you take up your cross, and follow the beauty and the danger for Christ (Mark 8:34-38)? Or will you ignore all the daily reminders that life is worth living dangerously for (in cold days, and brightly colored frogs), and just play it safe?
Beauty and danger are gifts to us. They’re there for the taking… So, will you stay wrapped up in your warm bed at home, or will you bundle up and face the dangerously cold and icy day head on?
