Living Life Wonder-fully

TROWEL & SWORD

Resources - Meditations

October 2000

This and That

Living Life Wonder-fully

Harry Burggraaf

“What does a man gain from all his labour at which he toils under the sun?…
What does the worker gain from his toil? I have seen the burden God has laid on men. He has made everything beautiful in its time. He has also set eternity in the hearts of men…” (Ecclesiastes)

Some time ago I had the opportunity to go sailing with my son. We hired a catamaran and ventured into the rather unpredictable water and wind of Lake Jindabyne. For someone who doesn’t know the difference between port and starboard, or a jib and mainsail it was a rather educational experience. In the first quarter of an hour we capsized four times, ran aground twice, narrowly missed ramming another boat, snagged the line of an irate fisherman and then got becalmed so far offshore that the obliging man who hired out the boat had to come and drag us back in. Then the wind picked up again and we hurtled along at some ferocious pace until the boat turned topsy-turvy and we were in the water more than in the boat. But who cares. It was great fun and added to that invaluable bank of memories that holidays and out of the ordinary experiences so often provide.

What does a person gain if he owns the whole world... but loses his heart and soul?

I love working. I love doing what I’m doing. I love the challenge of teaching and being involved in the cause of Christian education. I think work is vitally important and a privileged way of serving God.

But if I were to score the life that’s stretching out behind me, I know that I would often reward the highest marks to those rare moments that don’t have much to do with working. Moments when we’ve camped under canvas with our kids and been washed out by a torrential downpour in the middle of the night... when we’ve climbed the highest peak in the district and seen God’s rolling countryside displayed in splendour... when we’ve snorkled in the clear waters of the Great Barrier Reef... when I’ve smelt and felt the wood with which I built some bookshelves... enjoyed a Thai meal in some tucked away little restaurant with my wife... dived into cold waves in the middle of winter… counted stars on an inky night... read books to my kids snuggled in bed with some coke and chips... was moved by some haunting music... breathed in an early morning sunrise... touched creation all around me, and sensed that God IS here.

The writer of Ecclesiastes makes the point that there is a time for everything and a season for every activity. It is a rich diversity of experiences that provide the vibrancy of a life that is meaningful. We should not burden ourselves with living in only one dimension.

What does a person gain if his life is so full of urgent demands and screaming deadlines and long hours and endless appointments and big budgets and other terribly important things... that he has only ten minutes a month to live?

I have no idea who wrote the following lines, but I think I know how he or she felt. And every now and again, when I feel I’m living in one dimension I read them again:

“If I had my life over again,
I’d try to make some more mistakes next time.
I would relax. I would limber up.
I would be sillier than I have ever been this trip.
I know of very few things I would take too seriously.
I would travel more. I would be crazier.
I would climb more mountains, swim more rivers,
and watch more sunsets.
I would do more walking and looking.
I would eat more ice cream and less beans.
I would have more actual troubles and fewer imaginary ones.
You see, I’m one of those people
who lives life carefully and sensibly,
hour after hour, day after day.
I’ve been one of those people who
never go anywhere without
a thermometer, a hot water-bottle,
a gargle, a raincoat, an aspirin and a parachute.
If I had to live life over again,
I would start barefoot earlier in the spring,
And stay that way later in the autumn.
I would skip school more.
I wouldn’t get such good marks except by accident.
(children are NOT to take this seriously)
I would ride on more merry-go-rounds.
I’d pick more daisies.”

What does a man gain if he goes out of this world...
not knowing why he came into it?

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