A poem ...it's important 'what' is said, and it's important 'how' it is said. And I often have to excuse myself on both accounts.

Jayo Bee

There was a man named Jayo Bee

A friend to many as a man can be

Came a time, could've used a friend

Through thick and thin to the very end

One stepped up, no direction or cause

And proud he was, this Eliphaz

His claim to fame was in his dream

A legend in his own mind, it seems.

Yes, he stood tall, he must be heard;

To challenge his experience, that'd be absurd!?!

Listening to the eloquence, standing all he can,

Jayo Bee simply states, "No doubt you're the man!"

Void of all happy, drowning in sad

Still no relief ...no thanks to Bildad.

Eager to add to what's been said so far,

Steps up, so-called friend three, Zophar.

What would you say of Jayo Bee?

Had he one close friend, or two, or three?

He found no comfort by his side

Who'd trust these three ...men full of pride.

Then the youngest, named Elihu

Thought he'd add something new

After all, this upcoming generation

One day'll be bestowed the dutiful veneration.

Though one's faith may seem quite unbending,

Never should one be perceived as condescending

Okay, perhaps there're times one may bend a bit,

But, 'bend not break' may more accurately fit.

The wondrous works we see today

Are not 'shock & awe' in a powerful display.

It's through the hearts of those who humbly pray,

And go beyond themselves to hear what others say.

It should be well-known that this applies to both you and me.

It's not hard to both talk & listen; they're both free.

Lest we listen, and show others we care,

The burden we'd not be invited to share.

Yet, if we both listen to the still, small voice

Perhaps we'd learn to make the better choice.

Just be certain that not by me is wisdom sought.

But, by the One whom I seek, and by whom I'm taught.

********

And a great and strong wind was rending the mountains and breaking in pieces the rocks, but He was not in the wind. And after the wind an earthquake, but He was not in the earthquake. After the earthquake a fire, but He was not in the fire; and after the fire a sound of a gentle breeze ...a whisper, a calmness, a still and soft voice.

(From the 19th Chapter of 1st Kings)

And the poem is the same, whether it's Jay-O-Bee ...Jay O. Bee ...or Jayo Bee. Just remember, it's between Esther and Psalms.

When asked something ....we often simply don't know the answer.

How do we respond to these situations??

Sometimes we humbly admit we don't know.

Sometimes we proudly pretend we do know.

But, more often we get excited ...and get caught up in the moment.  And we actually think it through quickly, without actually thinking it through.  We get so eager to express our opinion, we just begin speaking ...and it sounds kind of good to us.  We kind of think we know ...and even convince ourselves that we know, and if we have the attention of others, we often feel they agree.  In this case, none of this is intentional on our part.

This appears to be the case with Job's friends.  Knowledge can be legitimate ...yet, when built upon and conclusions drawn concerning things that aren't really known, it's like filling in the gaps without considering the troublesome one between our ears.

It's great to be learned, and to have an increased understanding of God's character ...yet, it is two different things to know God's precise statement on something, and to know how He is going to respond to our shortcomings, in view of the precise statement.

How He responds to our shortcomings often is expressed as grace ...and we often are not too graceful with our own views or how we respond to those same shortcomings that we see in others.

Grace means unmerited or undeserving favor ...and it's God's favor, not ours that makes the difference.  Yet, in knowing how God's grace is extended to us, we should keep that in mind when we are viewing the lives of others.

So much to be said on this subject ...and so many directions of lessons to be learned, yet please lend me your favor to allow this to go where it may. As long as it does still glorify God.

Glorifying God is to not misrepresent who He is. It's trying to be as accurate as we can be ...in our adoration of Him.

We talk of our personal relationship with Him ...and how He touches our lives.  We look to His guidance through the Holy Spirit ...and we each have personal experiences with this.  Our experiences can be somewhat similar, or they can be somewhat different.  But, what we do have in common is His Word, the Bible.

We glorify God by trusting His Word, and sharing accurately what He has shared with us ...through His Word.

Sometimes we sincerely look to His Word, yet are a bit confused. Perhaps we are not sure about what to think of slight variations in how certain verses are interpreted. We can pray together about it, but for some reason those uncertainties are not always cleared up.  

How do we respond to these situations??

Some of us are eager to explore God's Word, and our imaginations kick in.

Some of us fear that we could be wrong, and we feel the old interpretations are a safer route.  After all, even some of the most eager students of the Bible would likely hesitate to say that they feel they are more knowledgeable than all those years of scholars who've invested much more time and effort in their committed beliefs. Tradition usually has much support, and it's difficult to imagine it would not give a fight to maintain itself.

And ...of course, there is the popular view of unity. Though unity is often a way to unite us in not actually being united ... as it is also called compromise.

This is somewhat how tradition works ....

Tradition is often the teacher.

And the student would be the eager learner, not necessarily trying to challenge tradition, but at a minimum trying to understand it.  Something more thoroughly understood, has more of a chance or more likelihood of being thoroughly accepted. 

A student asks a Biblical question.

Teacher answers, "I don't know."

The student wants to discuss it, but the teacher has been through this before ...and no conclusive answer has ever been reached.  The teacher doesn't want to necessarily discuss the various viewpoints on this subject ...because today's lesson is about something else, and a discussion on this would just be some form of diversion or effect a result much like a filibuster to the lesson planned for the day. Yet, the teacher's failure to offer input in a timely fashion ...gives the student an avenue to start the conversation with an eager opinion.

The teacher is now forced to abandon the day's lesson plan, and go with the student's interest ...or to change the "I don't know" answer to a stronger traditional answer which offers an explanation ...perhaps not the most correct, but at least the most common.

If the student challenges the traditional view, then the teacher can agree that the student does have an interesting point of view ...or the teacher can state that it's not the way the student is viewing it, and firmly restates the most widely accepted traditional view.

A clever student may then say, "How is it that you don't know by knowing?"

The teacher replies, "I don't really know, I just know you are not right."

Two problems quickly arise ...evidencing themselves.

It is not good to think that too many fresh ideas should flow ...at the expense of abandoning many well-thought-out ones.  Some ideas are too spontaneous and filled more with excitable emotion void of much sound thinking. 

Yet, on the other hand, readily accepting tradition with little thought ...has allowed a few errors to suffer longevity in a rather comfortable state of not much suffering.  Those who dare to challenge tradition, more dare to suffer.

Thanks for suffering through this with me, and here's some more to suffer through: (http://doyoubelievethatitisnot.blogspot.com/).  It is not really suffering ...only mildly so, if required reading, which this is not. And let's pray for all those who are truly suffering throughout the world.

My life? How do I view it??  Am I more serious about defending myself and my views ...or am I more concerned how people view God??? As much as I mess up representing Him, my life is in God’s hands …and He handed us Jesus. I can hold a Bible in my hand, but also in my heart. If you read the Bible, certainly more is said than I can say ….but most of us spend more time right here in front of a computer. Sadly, how often do we read something of substance? The Bible is a “must read” as far as I’m concerned. What else can I say?