Wednesday, July 6, 2011

WILD THING! YOU MAKE MY HEART SING!

Step into the Garden

May my heart sing to you and not be silent

“Wild thing! You make my heart sing!” (from the film, “Major League,” 1989)

WARNING: Clip contains some rough language. If you don’t want to deal with that, skip the clip.

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Why, you ask, do I put a clip like that in a Christian devotional piece? Well, this may surprise you, but the “colorful” language is not the point. What is the point? You ask again, and why are you offending me? You ask.

Well, let’s see . . . tell you what, let’s drop back a few years, maybe 2,000 of them and ask ourselves a question: Did Jesus ever hear language like this? And if he did, what was his response?

Take a look at the fans in the crowd. Listen to what they say to each other. Definitely not a scene from any church I know. Yet it was from people like this that Jesus chose his apostles!

We are not told too much about the language of the disciples, but we are told that they were fishermen. Ever been around commercial fishermen? You getting the point yet? It is no accident that Peter fell to cursing and swearing when he denied Jesus. He was -- no doubt about it -- comfortable with such language.

Sometimes, not often, but sometimes when I stand to sing in church, I wet my cheeks with tears. Through this, I try to sing, but I choke, my voice squeaks, and I quickly shut my trembling lips so that others may not wonder.

What do I think others might wonder? Perhaps I am embarrassed that they might see a grown man cry over the words and melody of a powerful hymn. Perhaps they might think me spiritual – that would be embarrassing. No one can possibly imagine how hopelessly unspiritual I feel.

But whatever others think, (if they notice at all), I doubt that they think I am singing to them. I am not that good of a singer that anyone would want to listen.

But there is One who wants to listen, and who does listen. Am I too bold and arrogant to think that he understands the tears? There is One who knows why I sing, and to whom. But then, maybe I should amp up the guitar and get the drums thudding.

“Wild thing! You make my heart sing.”

Wait a minute! Listen! This is no longer me singing. It is a sound that comes from the heavens. It is God looking at me and saying, ”Wild thing! I love you. The anthem that is you, the symphony that is your life, puts stimulating, provoking, pounding, drum-thumping, joyous melody in my heart.”

May God help you understand who and what you are. May God show you that you and I are no different from the character standing on the mound in Major League. And those fans in the bleachers are the “great cloud of witnesses” spoken of in the Bible. Ok, maybe not, but you have to remember Abraham, Moses and Elijah were all of them, disciples with feet of clay. They were people, just like us. Their lives were anything but pristine. And the guy standing at the plate with the big bat is whoever and whatever it is that keeps you from being all God meant you to be.

So let your light shine! Show them your stuff. Let’s see that fastball! You need corrective lenses? Then let your faith, your connectedness with God, sharpen your vision and narrow your focus on the strike zone! Find them horn-rimmed glasses and put’em on. You know what you want, now go get it. Let your stomach growl with hunger for “Parkman.” Put him on the tracks and crank up the train.

Wild Thing! You make God’s heart sing!

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1 comment:

  1. If you were singing beside me and your cheeks were wet I would cry with you. Can you even imagine the singing in heaven?? Wow. It staggers the mind. And those Massai warriors will be jumping up and down while they are singing!! Diane G

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