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Getting from Here to There - A Conversation with Wisdom

3/1/2021

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I don’t really know whether I was dreaming
              Or having a vision
            Or both
The woman standing before me was simply beautiful
            Simply – not like a glamor model on the glossy pages of a fashion magazine
She evoked in me an intense delight and a deep desire to be in her presence
            Not unlike the crush I had on my first grade teacher
            Or my recurrent dreams of saving my 3rd grade classmate from some calamity
            And becoming her hero
            Think Charlie Brown and the little red-haired girl
I wondered to myself
            Who are you
            Or maybe I said it out loud
            Because she answered as if I had asked her
I am known as Wisdom
            You may call me Sophia
            And you have been seeking me
            You have been calling me for much of your life
Please forgive my ignorance
            But when have I called for you
Every time you wondered how to get from where you are
            To where you want to be
            You have summoned me, Sophia
And you are only now responding
            Why now
            Why after so much seeking
            So much frustration
Oh, I’ve been here all the time
            You just did not see me
            Perhaps you expected a wise old man
            Perhaps you anticipated that I would be the reward for accumulated knowledge
            Perhaps you assumed you would acquire my presence as a function of aging
            I am not any of those
            But I think you are now ready to see my true nature
Which is what
            If I might be so bold to ask
It is really no mystery
            You have read about me many times in the scriptures
            What do you recall from your studies
Well my favorite story about you is from Proverbs
            That you were there when all was created
            That you rejoiced to see what came into being
            That you were especially delighted with the creation of humanity
That’s my favorite too
            But that bit about rejoicing
            It was more like laughing and playing
            And yes – pure delight
            Unbounded pleasure
            Total joy
You sound like what we call a free spirit
            That is so different than what we consider to be wisdom
            We think it’s all about knowledge and understanding
            Insight like the wisdom of Solomon
            Making good choices
            Walking in ways faithful to the goodness of God
            Serious business
Those ideas are not completely foreign to who I am
            But they are more about the far end or the result
            What I want to show you is the way of wisdom
            The way to get to those desirable results
I’m willing to listen
            What is this way that you talk about
It is a way which is all about
            Imagination
            Creativity
            Playfulness
            Experimentation
            Practice
            Laughter
            Delight
I don’t understand
            Those don’t sound like especially serious things
            Can such things lead to the wisdom we need to face the challenges of our world
You have long desired to get from where you are to where you want to be
            But you have been frustrated
            You don’t see a clear path to attain your goals
            You often feel guilty for not being the person you want to be
            You sometimes feel the burden of obligation to become someone you are not
            Guilt and obligation will never provide you with what you need
            Think for a moment about what it is you most desire
            Imagine what your life would be like if you reached your goal
The best description I’ve ever considered was a life immersed in God’s presence
            A life filled with gifts of the Spirit
            Love, joy, peace, patience, kindness,
            Goodness, authenticity, gentleness, integrity
            A life that looks like the life of Jesus
When you think about such a life
            Is there any place in that life for guilt
            Or obligation
            Yet such negativity has had a strong influence in your life
Well how do you propose that I get from where I am to where I want to be
            Isn’t it just about doing the hard work
            Putting in the effort
            Choosing to be what I want to be
            Acting on that choice
            And regretting and repenting when I fail
Do you remember the day you watched your infant son learning how to stand up
            Experimenting with the best ways to get back down
Oh yeah - That was so delightful to watch
            He repeatedly pulled himself up alongside the couch
            First he just plopped back down
            Then he found different ways to get back down more slowly
            It was fun to watch him trying different ways to do it
Notice the words you have used to describe that experience
            Delightful, fun
            This is what I experience as I watch people become who they want to be
            But you must become like that child you enjoyed watching so much.
Didn’t the apostle Paul say - When I was a child, I spoke like a child
            I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child
            When I became an adult, I put an end to childish ways
Yes, but do you also remember what Jesus said
I do – Unless you become like children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven
            I’m confused – what does it mean to become like children but not be childish
You know more than you think
            What do you think being childish is like
Well – self-centered, moody, tantrum-throwing, unserious, unfocused
Right – but what attributes of a child do you admire – what would you like to imitate
It has always bothered me that, as we age, we lose our imagination
            and our willingness to experiment – it seems like we get stuck in certain ways
            So I guess I like all the things you mentioned earlier
            Imagination, creativity, playfulness, experimentation, practice, laughter, delight
Do you remember the math teacher who taught you geometry
I do – and I remember that he taught us to treat it like a game we were playing
            I remember having a lot of fun learning geometry and playing that game
            For some reason I think he was a pastor before he was a teacher
            Now I think he must have known you
When you delight in the possibilities and play with the options, then I am there with you
            Working with you, supporting you, guiding you, inviting you, encouraging you
            Just like you were with your children as they learned to stand, to walk, to talk
            But it is not just me that is with you
            Think of all the others who are searching for the same thing as you
            Trying to get from where they are to where they want to be
            It’s always easier to do it together than to try to go it alone
I know that from experience
            And I am deeply grateful for those who are on the journey with me
            It seems to me now, more than ever before, maybe we can get from here to there
            I can’t wait to start playing with the options – imagine the possibilities
And I, Sophia, can’t wait to continue watching and helping you to get from here to there
            Imagine my delight

Michael Loser
Covenant Participant
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