As I write this my wife is asleep in bed, Coop is in his crib and Micah is in his swing next to Frodo Baggins. Frodo is listening to his uncle give a speech at his one-hundred and eleventh birthday and the shire looks phenomenal. Theres fireworks and wizards and green everywhere, its like the 4th of July, St. Patricks day, and Disney's Anastasia are all hanging out in a field.
There is security and safety and innocence. Yet in the midst of all of it all there is more darkness than anyone could have imagined. One thing I noticed watching this movie (The Fellowship of the Ring) again was how careful Gandalf was not to touch the ring once he knew the power it could hold over him.
This is probably the Youth Pastor coming out in me but rather than let the ring control his actions, rather than risk the temptation he simply fled from it. I said in a talk a long time ago that I have zero desire to prove that I can beat temptation. I am not going to go into a strip club and turn my back to the stage to prove I am strong enough, I am simply not going to go into a strip club.
Gandalf knew this, he didn't need to prove he could carry the ring he didn't trust himself to even touch it much less bear the burden of wearing it. There were other people, stronger people to carry that burden.
Too often we fool ourselves into thinking we can handle the sin that plagues us constantly by making a goal or resolution and wish really hard and assume it's under control. But the sad truth is that it isn't. Not until you draw a hard line in the sand and invite your elf, dwarf, 3 hobbit, 2 men, and wizard friends to stand with you. It will also be a lot of fun because the elf and dwarf will have this competition going on about who can kill more orcs.
You can't beat sin alone, you have to be part of a fellowship you have to stand with brothers and sisters in Christ who have your back when The Nazgûl are trying to kill you and take the ring at Amon Sûl.
Do you have a fellowship? How do you fight the garbage in your life?
- Peter
2 comments:
I love the analogy of fighting sin with your 'Fellowship'!
Gandalf certainly gets high marks for taking care not too even touch the ring (like you said), but I certainly am not as wise as Gandalf. At times I definitely can be, but then other times (which is most of the time I feel) I am more like Frodo who would have forsaken everything if it were not for Samwise's "fellowship."
I am super compelled right now, after reading your post, to pray so hard for Gandalf's ability to see "the ring" (sin, hate, bitterness, anger, resentment, rebellion - whatever you want to call it) for being more then just a ring. I do have the problem of wanting to test my strength to handle the "ring" but I think even more so, the problem lies in the fact that we don't see the ring as the strip club, revenge, bitterness, ugliness that it is. Our eyes do not discern life as clearly as Gandalf. Thank GOD that He (not Gandalf but God of course) has not left us alone without a savior to justify and pull us into himself with the echoes of his final act of unconditional love on the cross, which will eventually bring us all into perfect community and fellowship with Him as well as each other.
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