On any other day...

While I'm on sermons, I was mightily encouraged by a talk I heard on Colossians this morning. As the section at the end of Col 1:1-14 starts getting into the outworking of salvation as we 'live a life worthy', the temptation is to move into works based salvation, or at the very least forget the ongoing unmerited nature of the rescue whilst we focus on the one way I need to act differently once I leave church. This temptation was avoided by couching and prefacing the entire discussion in the context of thanksgiving. How thankfulness is the starting point because of the undeserving essence of the deliverance. How good to remember this, when we are constantly on the lookout for 'real application'.

A brilliant illustration also cropped up about the trapped minors in Chile, needing to rely completely on their rescuers. Which in the extremity of the situation is already insightful. But get this: The next line (moving us back into the language of Colossians 1:12), was "Their rescue will transfer them from the darkness and into the light". On any other day of the year, such a Dad joke just wouldn't pass muster. But on Father's Day, it was entirely appropriate.

An interesting theory was also put forward that the 'bearing fruit in every good work' of Col 1:10 was an echo of creation in Genesis. This would then also offer more reasons behind the 'image' language that follows in the remainder of the chapter. Yet seeing as though Paul has already used the phrase 'bearing fruit and growing' as a general description of the progress of the gospel, I'm not convinced Paul is necessary calling creation to mind with the phrase. But it is worth further thought.

Tangent:
As a married bloke without kids, I was asked by a friend how I found Father's Day at church today. In a word, patronising. For some reason the image of two Christians at the Supermarket with shopping trolleys is popping in my mind. You know the moment where you come around the corner and only just avoid a collision, but in the real world someone usually gives way, and the other proceeds. And yet in my mind, the two Christian's (knowing perhaps that the last will be first) are trapped in an eternal humility stand-off with neither willing to proceed before the other. That kind of frustrating thing, where you know the intention is noble but the practice lacks something in application. That's how I felt today. Well meaning Christians have understood that these celebrations can be sadness for some. Just like Mother's Day can causes pain for many, for those whose mother's have died, for single women, for those unable to have children, for those who have lost a child. And so well-meaning Christians tend to turn it into a 'Woman's Day'. That's what happened today. All men were invited to participate in everything. It was sweet, but patronising.

One thing done well was the reminder in the kids spot that God is our Father and that whether we know our Dad or not, whether we live with him or not, whether he is a good Dad or not, we can celebrate Father's Day because we have our heavenly Father who we can call Dad, and who loves us.

But as for just making Father's Day a 'Man's Day', I think it's taking it too far. There's being insensitive  and then there's offending those who are sensitive. Sure, avoid being insensitive, but the second is inevitable, so don't try and defeat it. Our society has the celebration, so let's celebrate and honour our Dad's. Just make sure we pray for all those for whom this is a time of sadness. Acknowledge the sadness, pray for us, mention it a couple of times on the way if necessary. But please, I repeat, please never ever make us stand up with all the Dad's. Then hopefully we'll avoid the situation like today where despite the call for all blokes to stand, the guy behind me remained because he knew it was Father's Day, but those well-meaning ladies surrounding him kept egging him on 'Do you have kids?', 'Stand-up deary', 'It's for all the men', 'It doesn't matter that it's Father's Day'.