There once was a young man driving through an unknown small town. Wanting to find out more about the small town, he decided to park his car and walk around a bit. He came upon an old man sitting on a park bench and asked, “Were there any famous men born in this town?” The old man looked off to the side for a brief moment in thoughtful reflection and then quipped, “No, just babies.”
I am part of a Christian Group of Men known as F3 – Fitness, faith, and fellowship. We usually meet up around 5:00 a.m. to engage in exercise, such as jogging, biking, and walking. Then afterwards, we meet for coffee to discuss life’s issues. On Mondays, we even work our way through a spiritual life-related book. We recently started out reading a particular book that I have been quite taken back by. It is very similar to the movie “It’s a Wonderful Life,” but in it, the protagonist has the opportunity to travel through history to glean wisdom for living from famous historical people.
I must admit the book has been quite the let down. Because every time the protaginist encounters the historical figure in the midst of the crisis they had to over come which led them to become famous historical people, they all pass on advice as if they had already knew at that moment what their life would teach them. In movies and novels, these type of Characters are known as “Mary Sues.”
Dictionary.Com defines a Mary Sue as “a term used to describe a fictional character, … who is seen as too perfect and almost boring for lack of flaws …” That is why many look at Luke Skywalker as someone on a hero’s journey and Rey as a Mary Sue, one who could do all things well with no need for trials or struggles to learn.
It has been said of Jesus :
- Luke 2:40, 52 ESV – [40] And the child grew and became strong, filled with wisdom. And the favor of God was upon him. … [52] And Jesus increased in wisdom and in stature and in favor with God and man.
Though scripture reveals Jesus as flawless, he still needs to grow as a human being. He is not immune to the same struggles we went through.
- Hebrews 4:15 KJV – [15] For we have not an high priest which cannot be touched with the feeling of our infirmities; but was in all points tempted like as [we are, yet] without sin.
To face struggles and grow from them is considered normal by even God’s standards. It is when we fail to learn from that the real tragedy happens. I once had a mentor from West Virginia who said, “There is no sense gained from the second kick of a mule.”
There are two prayers I like to say God always answers. The first is “Help.” The second is “What’s wrong with me?” And quite often, I find that the answer to the second prayer is also the answer to the first prayer. If we never stop to reflect on how and why we are who we are, there can be no growth.
We are fond as Christians to say, “We need to be more like Jesus.” If we truly mean that then we need to be open to the fact that we must to be open to the idea that no one has ever arrived on this planet fully mature and capable. Not even Jesus. We all need to grow and mature. Because to deny the need for personal or spiritual growth was not even an option for Jesus.
Unspoken Theology 