Drawing Lines in the Sand

First of all Admiral Nelson is not Captain Morgan. You have to be careful which pirates you bring home. Arrgh.....

Now to my story. I was very sad last night. (who cares aah? well, this may have meaning or it may not...) I had had a hard day or so, over extended myself. When I came home I drank too much of a bad liquor and a had a terrible spell. You know that one, the world is coming to an end spell, the nobody loves me spell, my life is a small sad joke spell, it is a dark and pitiable thing. Surely the doing of some devilish pirate. So under the influence of this dark spell I laid awake crying and composing e-mails to the various offenders. These were quite articulate and all fully justifiable. It is fortunate that I do not have a handy laptop in the bedroom, all fired up and online or else these dreadful missives may have gone out spreading the dark spell further in nasty little tendrils like the slime trails of a snail. I did have the sense to know I was poisoned, that it would pass, that I needed to hold tight to mast of the ship in the storm. For me that mast is prayer, like a tree, rooted and rising, holding me here when I would hurl away in a storm.

So in the morning I did feel better. But I still felt I needed to calmly communicate that these offenders behaved unacceptably towards me and draw some firm lines in the sand. But first, breakfast and bible reading (yes I am that way, though not every day). Today I knew I needed to read in John. So over eggs and toast, my big parallel bible already open on the dining table, I flipped over to John and at random fell in at John chapter 8. "Lets him among you who is without sin cast the first stone." "You judge the flesh. I do not judge."

Oh my, so, there you have it. I had been gathering up my stones to cast all night. This morning I set aside the boulders but I was still testing my pitch on the fist sized ones. Okay, I'm thinking, so I won't cut off from these groups and persons that made me feel bad. However, I still get to write them nicer little notes about how sad I am due their behavior, right? I can tell them this sweet little bible story and point out how gracious I am to let pass their terrible offenses to me, right? I can wrap up the stones with flowery notes and a rubber band, "Dear Sister So and So....." But no. I just get to suck it up and grow up and know they had a bad day too. That's all. And that is grace, the practice that is so hard for me to Get It.

In that story from John chapter 8, Jesus has this whole interaction with the Pharisees about not stoning this woman. Twice it details that he bent to ground and wrote with his finger in the dirt. Why add this detail? How is that so important that it is noted twice? One version says that he drew on the ground as if he did not hear them. And then while all the accusers were drifting away he wasn't even watching. After they are gone, He looks up and says where are they? What does detail of his manner mean? I think it shows detachment. He not only did not condone the casting of stones, he didn't even get himself personally involved in the drama. I like that picture. I can see that, squatting down, drawing in the sand, letting them drift away.