Top of the Fourth

Redeeming the time . . .

Jim's son Jonathan started a Bible study/devotional time this school year. He invited some friends last fall and they started meeting every Wednesday morning at Jonathan's house. Now, some of the friends have invited other friends, and the group has grown to about 12. They have bagels and hot chocolate, share the Word, and then Jim drives them all to school.

This week, Jaclyn, our director of middle school youth at church, joined the group. That alone would have made it a special day (they all love Jaclyn), but something else happened to make it memorable. In the middle of breakfast, one of the kids threw up. Big time. As Jim and Jaclyn explained it yesterday, it went everywhere. It warmed my heart that it wasn't in Jaclyn's frame of reference to say something like "Linda Blair-style" (as I probably would have done), but rather to describe it with the more clinical "projectile".

Jim took care of the embarassed-to-tears child, calmed the others, and began to clean up. Jaclyn took the other kids into the den and continued with the study. What struck me, though, is that whatever they were studying that day, I'll bet the kids never forget it.

We learned in Property Law class that, before there was a written system for recording real estate transactions (and probably because there weren't that many people who could read then, anyway), the parties would go out on the property for the "Livery of Seisin" ceremony. They would invite as many friends as they could, in part to have a large pool of witnesses and in part to celebrate. The seller would pick up some dirt from the land and hand it to the buyer - and that is when "title" is deemed to have passed.

In order to mark the festivities, the buyer would throw a huge party, with food and drink and games for the children. Then, out of nowhere, they'd take the youngest child there and give them a whipping (current sensibilities forbid me from contemplating anything worse than a spanking, but who knows). The idea was that the day would be seared in the child's mind and, being the youngest person there, the child would theoretically be the person living the longest in case any questions about the transaction arose in later years.

Two thoughts. First: Does it make you think a little more kindly toward the realtors, lawyers, and closers in our present-day transactions - or do you wonder if we've really progressed?

More importantly, I think there is power in the unexpected to help us recall attending events. People in car wrecks often say that "everything seemed to be happening in slow motion." Everyone remembers where they were "when Kennedy was shot" or "when the Challenger blew up." Or, as Alan Jackson asks:

Where were you when the world stopped turning
that September day?
Out in the yard with your wife and children
Working on some stage in LA . . .

And we all know.

But I also think that Jim and Jaclyn were part of those kids' lives and development in a special way on Wednesday, because whatever they talked about is sure to stay with them for a long time to come. And it made me think of Ephesians 5:15 - 17:

Be careful then how you live, not as unwise people but as wise, making the most of the time, because the days are evil. So do not be foolish, but understand what the will of the Lord is.

It's a call for me to be more intentional in my living and my dealings with others.

Because you never know when somebody's going to throw up.