Of bare feet and blackberries

A powerful quote by Elizabeth Barrett Browning was first introduced to me through the editor of Good News, Steve Beard. It has helped me articulate my journey from activity to adoration. In her work, "Aurora Leigh," Browning says:

"Earth's crammed with heaven,
And every common bush afire with God.
But only he who sees, takes off his shoes.
The rest sit round it and pluck blackberries."

Last summer I went blackberry picking with our grandchildren at Butler's Orchard. The fruit we gathered was sweet to the taste, beautiful to the eye, readily available, and self-satisfying in the effort expended, not to mention a whole lot of fun. The berries were so large that they made a big noise as they went into the bucket. They stained our fingers and the evidence of forbidden tastes was all over our mouths.

I cannot say what your spiritual blackberries look like. They are different for all of us. But I am beginning to understand what mine look like. They are sweet and big, readily available, and so appealing to my fleshly side. They make a big prideful noise in the gathering and they are often lots of fun to handle. The evidence of them is on my stained hands and mouth. And they are deadly, because they keep me from seeing the fire in the bush and responding to the holiness by taking off my shoes.

My spiritual blackberries are things like being concerned with reputation over repentance. Dignity and honor over deliverance. Human programs over God's presence. Doing instead of being. They are formulas over fresh revelation. Information over transformation. Answers and activity instead of adoration. They are inhibition instead of being inhabited by the Holy Spirit. Spiritual bulliness instead of brokenness. Intellect without intimacy. They are "God-all-figured-out" instead of a heart bowing to the mystery. "Knick-knack wisdom" (a term borrowed from Eugene Peterson) instead of substantive truth that sets people free. Endless committee meetings instead of watching after peoples' souls. They are homiletics instead of humility. And, they are "spin" instead of surrender.

There's nothing wrong with a concern for reputation, dignity, information, intellect, programs, doing stuff, and homiletics. Nothing, unless those things keep us from the longings of God's heart. He longs for worshippers who are freely connected to him and convinced of his love; those who have holy ministries conceived of his Spirit.

Exodus 3:1-5 tells of the original common bush afire. "Now Moses was tending the flock of Jethro, his father-in-law, the priest of Midian, and he led the flock to the far side of the desert and came to Horeb, the mountain of God. There the angel of the Lord appeared to him in flames of fire from within a bush. Moses saw that though the bush was on fire it did not burn up. So Moses thought, 'I will go over and see this strange sight-why the bush does not burn up.' When the Lord saw that he had gone over to look, God called to him from within the bush,'Moses! Moses!' And Moses said, 'Here I am.' 'Do not come any closer,' God said. 'Take off your sandals, for the place where you are standing is holy ground.'"

Perhaps the lessons I am learning would be helpful. (1) Watch for the divine initiative. (2) Don't discount the common things. They're God's special tools to help us see. (3) Take steps toward God no matter where you are. He notices. (4) Ask God to open your eyes to see the fire. (5) Ask God to open your ears so you can hear his call. (6) Respond immediately. (7) Know that in his presence you are on holy ground. So, take off your shoes and forget the blackberries.

In his book Recapture the Wonder, Ravi Zacharias says: "In the end, life is like a balance sheet of gains and losses. The real battle lies in knowing what we can afford to lose and what we must uncompromisingly hold onto."

I can lose my blackberries but I must hold uncompromisingly to the holy times when God touches and it is mandatory to kick off my shoes. I must beg God for the understanding to know the difference. I would challenge you to the same.

As I see it, there are two choices: blackberries and bare feet. Only one of them can be the priority. This issue is not an "either/or" matter. If we choose only adoration then we would do no more than gaze and graze and God may want us to set things ablaze with his love. But choosing activity alone is also a cop-out. Sometimes it's easier to work for God than be with God. He wants our hearts more than our sweat.

This is a "first/second" concern. First, adoration. Second, God-led activity. C.S. Lewis is credited with reminding us that if we put second things first, we will not get first or second things. But if we choose first things first, we get both first and second things. That's just another way of saying what Jesus declared in Matthew 6:33, "But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well."