Saturday, September 08, 2007

Blindsided

So I was on my way back from grabbing lunch today when I bore witness to one of those things that you never expect to see in your life. PLEASE NOTE! IN NO WAY AM I MAKING LIGHT OF THIS EVENT! In fact, the event and the individual involved have been on my mind all day.

Near the intersection where I turn off of HW55 to go home, I happened to see a deer sprinting to get across the road about 120 yards in front of me, past the intersection. Traffic was heavy but slow, and the deer was going fast! Somehow it missed EVERYTHING in the first lane of traffic (I counted 3 SUV's and 2 Pickups that he could have hit in that lane depending on his timing). However, unfortunately, he was not so lucky getting across the second lane of traffic going the opposite way. The deer was not hit, rather, he did the hitting. Again out of all the possible reinforced cars, trucks and SUV's he could have collided with, he hit the worst possible target of choice: a man on a motorcycle!

Having just passed through the heavy traffic intersection the man wasn't going very fast, The deer however, was scared and running full speed! The poor gent never saw it coming. The deer hit him hard in the side, so hard that neither the man nor the deer got back up after the encounter. The man was flung from his bike and eventually found grass off the curb. He seemed ok (relative to the deer and the other possible outcomes), but I am sure will suffer some broken bones, bruises, and stitches. The poor guy was blindsided completely and never saw it coming!
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Now this may sound at first insensitive to use this as a correlation moment, but wait on it. (I really have been worried about the man that was hit!)

I've been working on a worship service about our spiritual journeys, and in particular remembering and encountering my own spiritual journey. Somehow I've fooled myself into thinking that along the many years of my life I have had some say in where my journey has led me. I mean, I know that there are times in each person's life that are out of their control (death of a loved one, tragic life-altering experience), but I never realized how we think we can take credit for the many other things that influence our journey. We may pick some things (what school to go to, what to major in, who to marry, where to live, when to have kids, etc...) But if we are honest with ourselves even those things are really outside of our control!

We can't determine when we are going to meet our future spouse. I don't personally think we can choose who we fall in love with. We can pick our school and major, but what happens once we get there is mostly up to chance (or divine providence if you prefer). Where we live is often determined by outside circumstances like our job, or for me, the fact that my wife has always lived in Apex and thus opportunities have kept us here up until this date.

So in looking at my journey, more specifically the forks in my road where the path branched off, I see that I've made choices, yes, but they all seem to be in reaction to whatever that fork was! This may not seem enlightening to anyone else, but I see 2 options that help explain where and who I am today!
1) we can chose to follow the path of uncertainty willingly, where God seems to break you further and further away from the "accepted" view of Christianity!
or
2) we can chose the path of false certainty where we decide not to change no matter what caused the fork, even if that means believing something in total contradiction to whatever experience caused the fork!

Whichever path one chooses, just like the experience that causes it, the only certainty is that, just like the man on the motorcycle who was out for a nice Sat. ride, sooner or later something in life is going to blindside you and once again you will be faced with the same choice! path 1 or path 2? The only problem with path 2 is that each time someone chooses it, it seems to separate them further and further from reality!

Now, if you'll excuse me, I want to go and see if the local news reports on the motorcyclist's condition, and praying that he's going to be ok!

5 comments:

  1. Haha
    I'm not sure I agree with your 2 paths theory there. But I WHOLLY agree with what came before that.

    We don't choose our paths, our paths seem to choose us.

    "So in looking at my journey, more specifically the forks in my road where the path branched off, I see that I've made choices, yes, but they all seem to be in reaction to whatever that fork was!"

    That's well said.

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  2. oh yeah, I def. didn't mean to limit myself to 2 and ONLY 2 paths. That is a very modernistic/binary viewpoint that I personally reject... I was trying to simplfy my theory... I don't know if that was the part you disagreed with or not???

    If not, please reprise it however you see it to help me understand this theory in progress!

    thanks for letting me know that I'm not the only one (as I figured...i'm just behind in my realization) that has realized our paths seem to choose us (that is very well said my friend!)

    peace and love
    j

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  3. I'll explain my view on such things...and you do with it what you will.

    I was birthed by a set of parents that were not my choice. I was raised in a town that was not my choice. My parents raised me in a way that was not my choice. I have certainly made "choices" in my life, but they were based on either:
    -My internal belief system that I was born with and was instilled thru my parents, school, etc
    -The consequences of previous choices, almost a pavlovian response.
    So am I really ever making an independent choice?

    Stated better:
    "So in looking at my journey, more specifically the forks in my road where the path branched off, I see that I've made choices, yes, but they all seem to be in reaction to whatever that fork was!"

    I don't know about you, but I take comfort in this fact.

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  4. well said! here here! *clink glasses!

    Your voice brings an interesting perspective! It actually has made me rethink my timeline as well. I think you're on to something there; hence why i open my incomplete thought processes to the public. I like the way you restated that one section.

    Thanks for using your personal experience to help explain your views and taking the time to help in my thought process! I now have much more to ponder!

    thanks jeff!
    take care bro!
    and if you don't mind i'd like to link your blog on mine! let me know! oh, and ali says hey and we miss you!
    -j

    (I'm also copying this on my comments section as well!)

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  5. Always happy to get a link!

    Check out my other blog also, I'd be interested to hear your thoughts on there too.
    http://lifeinmotion01.blogspot.com

    Here's what I keep thinking though...I don't know how realizing those things is supposed to affect our perspective on future events. I'd like to hear your thoughts on that at some point.

    One other thing...I'm curious to hear you expound more upon the initial 2 paths idea. I think there's some truth to what you're saying. Maybe what you were getting at is the idea that we can either choose authenticity or continuing to believe in the things that we know in our heart are false. (sounds like you have read "a new kind of christian"...lol)

    Tell Ali I say hello and I miss seeing you guys too!

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