Secrets of the Universe

When I started this blogging adventure a couple of months ago, one of the first persons to leave a comment was my college roommate, Lynne. In her comment she reminded me of something I had almost forgotten. It seems she remembers me as the Athena of the dorm. You know, the great goddess of wisdom. Well, OK, maybe not exactly like that, but it gave you a lovely visual, didn’t it?

A university campus is a thinking environment and you can get very philosophical living there. You think you know it all. I must have indeed thought that and was not afraid to share my “secrets of the universe.” That’s what Lynne remembered. There is no telling what kind of golden nuggets came out of my mouth back then. At least Lynne remembers it favorably. She truly is a good friend!

I think what was going on back then, although I probably didn't realize it at the time, was discernment. Discernment was in the top 4 on my Network spiritual gifts inventory (and maybe a post for another day). Maybe I did exhibit a little sagacity about our college lives. But, oh, dare I say it…if I’d only known then what I know now.

What I know now is that I don’t know anything. My keen insight and delicate discrimination show me that there is so much more to learn. With me, a lot of it starts with things I read. Below is a quote from a book I just finished. These words struck me as simple, yet profound. The concepts are pretty much straight from scripture, but putting them all together on the same page struck me.

"The Christian believes that in Christ he has died, yet he is more alive than before and he fully expects to live forever. He walks on earth while seated in heaven and though born on earth, he finds that after his conversion he is not at home here...That he may be safe he puts himself in jeopardy; he loses his life to save it and is in danger of losing it if he attempts to preserve it. He goes down to get up. If he refuses to go down he is already down, but when he starts down he is on his way up...He is strongest when he is weakest and weakest when he is strong. Though poor he has the power to make others rich, but when he becomes rich his ability to enrich others vanishes. He has most after he has given most away and has least when he possesses most...He may be and often is highest when he feels lowest and most sinless when he is most conscious of sin. He is wisest when he knows that he knows not and knows least when he has acquired the greatest amount of knowledge. He sometimes does most by doing nothing and goes further when standing still. In heaviness he manages to rejoice and keeps his heart glad even in sorrow...He fears God but is not afraid of Him. In God's presence he feels overwhelmed and undone, yet there is nowhere he would rather be than in that presence. He knows that he has been cleansed from his sin, yet he is painfully conscious that in his flesh dwells no good thing...He feels that he is in his own right altogether less than nothing, yet he believes without question that he is the apple of God's eye..."

Those are the words of A. W. Tozer in the book The Radical Cross, Living the Passion of Christ.

He told them, "The secret of the kingdom of God has been given to you."
Mark 4:11