“Seventy Weeks” or Ten Jubilees
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As Ted and I made our way back to the College later that evening he walked without a word, knowing I’d start the conversation when I had sorted through the insights just gained. Finally I spoke: “So what made the difference? Why was Trish so much more alive? What happened to Pam?” Ted grinned. This was the opener he had hoped for!
“What did you pick up about the two girls?” I knew he’d respond with a question. He always did!
“Pam is older, of course,” I posed, “but that can’t be the whole story.” He could ask questions, but I had long ago learned the use of silence. Someone will talk, and if I didn’t, he would! I had my ways, too!
Ted knew my ploy and teased, “No, you don’t get off that easily. What else did you notice?”
We talked about several things: Trish’s breadth of knowledge from wide reading, her exposure to many experiences and her natural leadership qualities. From watching her parents it was obvious they had trained her well, and they had always encouraged and supported her. It followed that she would be confident and gracious, but what didn’t make sense was Pam. Why wasn’t she equally pleasant, self-assured, and balanced? Their parents treated them the same. Pam had enjoyed the same opportunities and support. She had been included in every part of the visit, in so far as any of us could draw her in. What made such a dramatic difference?
In an almost-fifth-grader tease, Ted finally asked, “Give up?”
“I do,” I admitted. “What’s the key to this one?”
“Trish knows who she is . . . .” Ted left the sentence for me to finish. I stopped. What was he stating? Was it that simple?
Learning “Who We Are” Spiritually
Like Trish and Pam, every one of us must figure out who we are spiritually, as well as in practical life. What goes into “learning who we are” at any level? It is more than gathering information, more than being encouraged by those around us, more than having varied experiences. At its very foundation, self-knowledge is tested self-acceptance. Becoming aware of and understanding our own motives and behaviors follows a thoughtful assessment of what we enjoy, what we value, what we desire, and what we find interesting. Trish had sorted these things out for herself and could turn her attention to the interests of others; Pam was still sorting and the process totally absorbed her.
To find who we are spiritually we must not only “sort out” what we value, but we must “sort out” the Scriptural information we have been given. Before we can effectively reach out to help others, we must know for certainty who we are spiritually, that is, we must clearly know what we believe and value, and why. As every airline “routine” safety instructor tells the passengers: “In case of an emergency, air masks will drop down from the ceiling. . . . If you are traveling with a child, secure your own mask first, then assist your child.”
As Jeremiah so pointedly states, we have all “inherited lies, vanity, and things wherein there is no profit.” Through no fault of our own, “every man is brutish in his knowledge: every founder [pastor, teacher, parent, leader, writer] is confounded by the graven image [ingrained teachings of their childhood and society]: for his molten image [shaped concepts] is falsehood, and there is no breath in them. They are vanity, and the work of errors: in the time of their visitation they shall perish. The portion of Jacob [relationship with Yehuveh and the righteous instruction given Jacob through Eber and Abraham] is not like them: for He is the former of all things; and Israel is the rod of His inheritance: Yehuveh of hosts is His name.” Of all we have been taught, we must sort out what we can keep by measuring every conviction against His only standard: “to the law and to the testimony: if they speak not according to this word, it is because there is no light in them.” Jeremiah 16:19; 10:14-16; Isaiah 8:20.
Gael Bataman
Originally Written: 4 November 2005
Latest Update: 11 February 2010
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