Trinity and Humanity

Warning: The following is based on a true story. Any similarity to people and events in my family is wholly intentional, based on my real and previously doggy polluted, and fallen, imagination!

Over Spring Break we had a houseful of family visiting with us for 8 days. Not only did this mean 8 additional people in our home, including two under the age of one, but it also meant the arrival of a pitbull named Bully! Whoa!! Talk about scared (and that was just of the two who were under the age of one! It’s been awhile since my daughters were young and kicking & screaming like that!)

But what was super scary was the thought of trying to embrace a pitbull and not being able to get any sleep 24 hours a day, for 8 days in a row! Talk about a frightening thought!

And, of course, EVERYTHING I had ever feared about pitbulls came true!

As soon as Bully entered the door with his massive body, and the thick steel chain and collar around his neck (that I demanded), he looked me right in the face with those fierce and weird Golden eyes, preparing for his attack!

“Get down Bully!!” his master yelled as he ran, throwing all his weighty muscle upon me, eager to destroy me as he began to hurt…I mean “Hump my leg for goodness sake?!” “He’s in heat and he likes you already! Down, Bully Down!” his master laughed. “Yes, down you filthy beast”, I said as I woke up from my brief fainting spell(I couldn’t be out for too long and let him destroy me!) But Bully was nowhere to be seen. He was however to be heard as he ran furiously through the house, banging against walls, chasing down our little less-than 5lb shih-tzu, Remy! “Noooooooo…”, I screamed in horror as I ran into the other room and saw Bully begin to swallow her whol…I mean “smell her rear end, whole?!” “And look! Remy seems to be standing up to him better than I am! What’s going on here?! This is insane”

The rest of the 8 days went similarly as Bully truly caused my heart to drop when I saw him take my oldest daughters right arm into his mouth, teeth agape, and chomp down with “ferocity”, I mean “fun loving play with just the right bite pressure???! Can’t be!” And then he “attacked” me, AGAIN, knocking me to the ground and taking my left arm into his mouth, “tearing my flesh apart”, I mean “training me to play with him???!” Impossible! I’ve heard about their bite and the impossibility of prying their mouths open as they clamp down till you’re dead!”

The last straw came as I heard him howling on the 7^th day with “fury”, and with a high pitched “shriek” (or was that a howl of pain and a lonely, whining cry for relationship and wanting to be around people???! His tail is wagging furiously like a puppies!) that broke me down and made me determined that he had to go home…I mean – come inside our home with me so that I could give him some “suga”, hugs, snacks, relationship and play, and feel even more secure with him inside to protect all of us! “What?! This is turning my pitbull world upside down!!!”

Yes, instead of me breaking him, he broke me! He won me over! On the last day of his stay I played with Bully the Pit Bull joyfully and happily, tussling with him on the lawn, putting my arm into his mouth (on purpose!), letting him lick my face, and pressing others to take pictures of he and I together in relationship. I sure miss him!!!

Yes, embracing God and pitbulls can be similar! I must admit, my embrace of the God revealed in Jesus Christ has been about as challenging, scary, and positively transforming! No, make that WAY MORE CHALLENGING AND WAY MORE POSITIVELY TRANSFORMING! It’s one thing to have a wretched “pitbullology” and fear physical death. It’s a whole other thing to have wretched theology, inducing a fear of the God intent to put my soul to death and in the fires of hell forever if I didn’t confess his name, go to church, or keep His rules! Yikes!

Like my experience with Bully the pitbull, it has taken me various frightening experiences and interactions with God the Father, Son and Spirit over MANY YEARS to finally begin interpreting his interaction and movement toward me in a graceful and relational way as he said and demonstrated in Jesus! John 3:17. My wretched theology had convinced me that God was single and solitary and only drew near me to attack me for not keeping his rules. He was always and only sniffing around my life because he was a control freak and “large and in charge”. Those times he was snarling and howling at the things that were trying to hurt me, I misinterpreted as a personal attack on me (or others).

And those things I misinterpreted as “shrieking howls” and “piercing whines” deep in my soul I now see were not intended to make me shiver with fright but were one of his various ways of “singing over me” and clamoring for my time and attention in his loving discipline. Zephaniah 3:17.

I am happy to say that because of more relational grace, clarity and jaw-dropping Spirit led education, the triune God of grace has broken me and won me over! And unlike Bully, the pitbull, my relationship with Him in Jesus (and yours) will never end, and is not TRULY to be feared at all! 1 John 4:18. And, fortunately for all of humanity, we have been embraced by the Father, Son and Spirit in such a way, and in such vibrant relationship, he’ll never let us go!  This is permanently revealed in Jesus Christ! Colossians 2:9.

For a better theology, check out: http://www.gci.org/god/revealed