Wax On. Wax Off. (a Steve Orr Lectionary reflection)

Daniel has a problem. He is being bullied by schoolmates.

In the original “Karate Kid” movie (1984), Mr. Miyagi saves high school student Daniel from a savage beating. The older man dispatches the bullies through a form of Karate. Daniel begs to be instructed in Karate so that he can protect himself from the bullies.

Mr. Miyagi agrees to train Daniel and then directs Daniel to perform various menial tasks. One such task involves waxing Mr. Miyagi’s car. The older man insists Daniel apply the wax with his right hand, moving it in a clockwise circle. Similarly, he insists Daniel remove the wax with his left hand moving in a counter-clockwise circle. And, to make it even more difficult, it seems, the teen must apply and remove the wax at the same time! All of this while Mr. Miyagi chants, over and over, “Wax on. Wax off ... Wax on. Wax off.”

Daniel soon becomes frustrated with Mr. Miyagi, feeling the older man is taking advantage of him, using him to get some chores done. Daniel refuses to continue performing the tasks. At this juncture, Mr. Miyagi reveals that all the supposed menial tasks are actually practice for effective Karate moves. Upon understanding this, Daniel dedicates himself to perfecting all the moves.

And that brings us to Jesus and His confrontation with Satan in the wilderness.

In this week’s scripture passage from Luke, Satan tempted Jesus three times. Once with sustenance, once with power, and once with personal value. All three could be described as “whats” and/or “hows.” We know that Jesus resisted these temptations, rebuffing Satan’s attempts to entrap him. But, do we know the means of His victory?

If you think Jesus overcame Satan in the wilderness temptations because He is also God, you have completely misunderstood what happened there ... and why. Living life here on Planet Earth was all about experiencing life just as we do. Jesus needed to have our experiences, good and bad, empowering and tempting, etc. If, all through that experience, Jesus could just tap into being God as a way to have what was needed to resist temptation, then how could He be the “first born” of all of us?

He needed to experience everything just as we do; the “whats” and the “hows” of life here. In the wilderness, Satan always led with a “what” or a “how.” Jesus always responded with a “why.” That’s because the “why” always drives behavior. Jesus knew His “why.” That’s how He could resist Satan. The “whats” and the “hows” were not any easier, but knowing the “why” provided the drive to accomplish the mission. Jesus never forgot why He was here. And that drove Him all through His life and ministry.

Daniel’s frustration with Mr. Miyagi grew from performing the “whats” and the “hows” without knowing the “why.” Once he understood the “why,” Daniel was more than willing to perform as required.

Perhaps you have grown tired of the tasks God has assigned you? Maybe you think they are beneath your skill sets, or maybe they’re not aligned with your “calling?” Take heart. There is a plan. And if we will stick with Him, we will, eventually, understand that He has been developing us through our many experiences ... as menial as they may seem.

Wax on. Wax off.

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PHOTO (and a great little article about the true value on “menial” tasks: https://www.communicationlighthouse.com/embracing-menial-tasks-a-leaders-calling/
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READINGS FOR THE COMING WEEK
First Sunday in Lent (March 10, 2019)
https://lectionary.library.vanderbilt.edu/texts.php?id=118

Deuteronomy 26:1-11
Psalm 91:1-2, 9-16
Romans 10:8b-13
Luke 4:1-13
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Friday mornings are the best! We gather at the Waco “Egg and I” restaurant for DaySpring’s Lectionary Breakfast. We start at 8:00 and wrap things up around 9:00. Join us for food, fellowship, scripture, and prayer ... and laughter.

Blessings,
Steve

I Was A Teenage Pharisee!

“I Was a Teen-Age Pharisee!!” (a brief Lectionary reflection by Steve Orr for the Liturgy of the Palms)

In the fall of my 7th grade year in school, I ran for Student Council.  I lost.  I did that again in the 8th Grade.  And the 9th.  Annnnnd, the 10th.  But the 11th grade was a very special year for me.  Oh, I lost my run for the Student Council that fall, too.  And to the same guy I always lost to: Bobby King (not his real name).   But something new happened that year.  That spring, I became a viable candidate for Student Council President because Bobby King was not allowed to run.  The faculty and the Principal decided he was over-committed; and since he was unwilling to give up anything, they denied him his request to be a candidate for the Presidency.  Finally, I felt, I was going to get mine.  I had scoped the only other person allowed to run, and I knew I could beat him. I was finally going to get elected, and not only that, but elected to the highest office.  I felt excited, happy … assured.

The day finally came.  The polls would open immediately following the candidate’s speeches in the auditorium  And if I had had any concern, it vanished after we finished our speeches to the student body.  The other candidate spoke first.  I spoke second.  Based on the applause, I clearly had the upper hand. 

Then it happened.  The Principal asked if there were any nominations from the floor.  And for the first time that anyone could remember, someone was nominated from the floor.  A fellow popped out from the side stage and uttered the very words I feared: “I nominate Bobby King!”  For his part, Bobby was seated in the very last row, the very highest point on the floor of the auditorium.  He stood and slowly walked down the sloping aisle toward the front.  As he passed each row of students, they rose to their feet, cheering and applauding loudly.  By the time he mounted the stage it was obvious to everyone that he would be the winner.

I was crushed … and angry.  I felt everything I had worked for had been stolen from me; not just for that election, but for all the years I had been trying.  With each rising row of student, shouting their accolades and praise for their chosen leader, my envy and jealousy rose.  And rose.  And rose.  His triumphal procession to the front made me so angry.  More than anything else in the world, I wished him gone.  Instead, I was forced to just watch as it all fell apart before my eyes. 

That is what the Pharisees felt when they watched Jesus descend from the Mount of Olives in a triumphal procession toward Jerusalem (It's in this week's Lectionary passage of Matthew 21:1-11, but is more fully described at Luke 19:28-48).  They felt it all belonged to them; and they could not abide the thought someone else would take their place; that someone else would have all that power.  

Not pretty; not then, not when I was in high school, and not now.  Do we, like the Pharisees, want to keep hold of the power?  Are we trying even now to push Jesus from the lordship of our lives?  Or do we embrace “the stone that the builders rejected” (Psalm 118:1-2, 19-29) as the cornerstone of our lives.