Resistance Is Not Futile

      I awoke this morning to the song of a mockingbird just outside my bedroom window. Nothing too unusual, except it was two o’clock, a little early for a wake-up call. The song was never ending and the repertoire was that of imitating every bird-song it had ever heard, over and over again. It was so loud I had to find my earplugs to escape the irritant. I don’t fault the bird for singing its praises to the Lord, but I still think it’s a little early in the morning to be singing at the top of your lungs. Remember when you used to be a pest around the house at the wrong time? Mama or some other adult would suggest, “Why don’t you go fly a kite?” The great winds this spring almost tempted me enough to go buy a kite. I remember taking my kids out to a vacant field and flying kites. My son and I would dive and sore our kites seeing how close we could come to one another without crashing. The dynamics of kite flying are rather weird. As long as one keeps a taut string on the kite the resistance keeps the kite aloft. Slack up on the string and the kite doesn’t fly away uncontrolled, it falls like a rock. Pull back on the string, causing resistance again, and the kite begins to climb. I was reminded of all this by a story on the radio the other day. It was an object lesson about breaking away from authority and doing whatever you want to do. A father had not allowed his son to do something and the son replied, “I’ll be glad when I’m not tied to your rules anymore and I can do what I want to, when I want to.” While father and son were kite-flying, the boy wanted his kite to be up in the air higher than any of the others around him. When he had all the string let out and his kite was way up in the air, it still wasn’t as high as one other. The dad suggested cutting the string and letting it fly higher on its own. The boy realized he would lose the kite if they did that, but dad said, “That’s okay. We’ll get another one.” The string was cut, and without any resistance to hold the kite against the wind, it fell to the ground with a mighty crash. The father explained to his son that that is why there are rules in this world that must be followed. If one were to just cut lose from the rules, the inevitable “crash” will occur. We can’t simply separate ourselves from those things we feel are a resistance to our way of life. Rules are in place to help us stand strong and proud of who we are as we soar through life.
      [Psalm 2] I know everybody’s life is different and each of us has a will to go and do what our heart desires, hey, it’s the American way. The problem lies in the fact that many are no longer following the American way, which is God and country. This country soared high when it held firm to the teachings of the Bible, but, selfishness, individual personal unearned rights, total tolerance and immorality are cutting the strings of resistance held by God. Once we do that, we’re going to fall with a mighty crash. Read your world history. In-fighting of leaders, political corruption, failing economy, decline in morals, ethics and values, and natural disasters, have brought devastation to past empires. “Though one may be overpowered, two can defend themselves. A cord of three strands is not quickly broken” (Ecclesiastes 4:12). Folks, we need to physically embrace Faith, Hope and Love, and spiritually embrace Father, Son and Holy Spirit if we truly expect to soar to satisfying personal heights and to ever reach heavenly heights. These two, three-strand cords, are the resistance we need to avoid the meism that tears down righteous living. Resistance helps us fly under control.