Context

Merriam-Webster defines the word ‘context’ as “the parts of a discourse that surround a word or passage and can throw light on its meaning” and “the interrelated conditions in which something exists or occurs”. Context is very important in my job and in the field I work in. It can help determine whether or not abuse or neglect occurred, uncover the motivations of people, and ultimately to the prosecution of individuals. I remember learning about context in school and how it is such a basic critical thinking skill. In terms of the bible, context is huge, anyone can choose a little snippet of a passage and use it for whatever message they want to get across (be that accurate or not). Same goes for little pieces of information you hear from someone in passing, that may sound outrageous but when put in the context of the conversation, it makes much more sense.

A couple of months ago, there was an explosion of negative slander regarding a top NFL quarterback, based off of a ten second video someone shot. Based on those ten seconds, it looked like he snubbed a fan that was facing a life threatening illness. He looked like a real jerk, in those ten seconds. As time passed it came out that that was not the whole story. Come to find out, this fan had met him before, and the QB didn’t even see the fan in passing (along with many other fans), he wasn’t ignoring her. He just didn’t see her, not like he was listening to music on his mp3 player or have a big game on his mind as he was walking through the airport. Oh, wait, actually he was listening to music and was headed to a big game. He was preoccupied. You can read about that story at this link (sorry for long link) http://profootballtalk.nbcsports.com/2011/01/18/an-apology-to-aaron-rodgers-packers-fans-and-jan-cavanaugh/

Dan Kimball, Pastor of Vintage Faith Church in Santa Cruz, spoke at my church this last Sunday. He spoke on Psalm 27 and the importance of context, the importance of perspective in our faith journey. All too often we can get caught up in a thought or idea, lose perspective of reality and drive ourselves (and maybe some other’s) crazy and maybe do some not-so-rational things. He used many examples to illustrate this.

One example was about how he watched a horror movie when he was a kid (and his parents told him not too), something about spiders and this helped perpetuate a fear of spiders. Years later, as an adult, he was getting ready to go to Mexico to build houses as a youth Pastor. Before he left, he caught up with a group that was coming back from doing the same thing, and they shared some of their experiences. This included a sort of show and tell of giant dead tarantulas they brought back, along with some stories of jumping tarantulas. This interaction triggered a wave of irrational thinking on his part that drove him to act in a very silly way. Long (and funny) story short, he got two blow up mattresses to sleep on and positioned all of the youth to sleep in formation around him (his thinking, that the spiders will have to go through the kids to get to him) and a fan to blow on him to fend off those jumping spiders. Moral of that story, when we let our minds get control of us, we can act in some very silly and irrational ways. You can follow Dan on Twitter here, http://twitter.com/#!/DanKimball

I am of the thought that most people lie on a spectrum, where on one end there is depression and on the other there is anxiety (keep in mind, this is an over-simplification of something much more complex, and only my opinion). That when life (as it inevitably does) presents stressors, people generally react on one end of the spectrum or the other. I am on that anxiety end of the spectrum, when something happens I go into super-freak-out mode, where I will do whatever it takes to solve a problem in the quickest least painful way possible. I can over analyze anything in a heartbeat. This has proved to serve me in many ways, but can also be detrimental to my health and mental state. I have a few close friends that lie on the other end of the spectrum, where when they get stressed out they retreat, ignore or medicate the problem. I think there is an amount of normalcy in both reactions as all humans develop coping mechanisms, but there comes a point where it can be unhealthy or even dangerous. This can be evidenced in some people with severe mental health disorders.

As Dan shared on Sunday, he pointed out that in Psalm 27 David started out the chapter talking about the truth of who God is in verse 1, “The Lord is my light and my salvation- whom shall I fear? The Lord is the stronghold of my life- whom shall I be afraid?” David was probably going through some rough times, as he often did, what with Saul out to kill him and whatnot.

Following this, David then sort of pours his heart out, telling God his concerns all while reminding himself who God is like in verse 9, “Do not hide your face from me, do not turn your servant away in anger; you have been my helper. Do not reject me or forsake me, God my Savior.”

Then, finally, David ends the chapter by being determined to wait on the Lord in verse 14, “Wait for the Lord; be strong and take heart and wait for the Lord”

This is a type of model for us when things get crazy. Rather than go into super-freak-out mode, which I think I’m programmed to do, to turn to the truth of who God is. This serves to give us some perspective, that God is in control and here is all the evidence that points to that, be that examples in our own lives or the lives of others and of course examples from the bible.

In the storms of life it can be really easy to get caught up in the ‘here and now’ and only focus on what is right in front of you and lose sight of the bigger picture. Someone from my Home Community likened it to when you are all zoomed in on Google Maps and you can see everything really close in great detail, but you are completely lost. You need to pull back, see the bigger picture in order to find your way.

While listening to Dan talk, I thought, that it was such a simple idea. However simple, it was still a really good thing to hear and to practice in those every day situations. And in those not so everyday situations, those big life issues, to remember the truth of who He is, share my concerns and wait on Him.

“You go before me and follow me. You place your hand of blessing on my head.” Psalm 139:5