Samuel-Part 4

Sometimes, you just think you know better...

One summer day when I was young, my mom had some critical errands to run.  My sister and I would normally be dragged around with her throughout the day on whatever household business there was to attend to, but this day's business was too important, or adult, or long....or something...for kids to attend.  So mom began to try and make arrangements for us to have a babysitter come over for a few hours.  Now, I'm sure that based on my angelic demeanor most of you would be shocked by this, but I DESPISED babysitters when I was young.  I was actually quite notorious among the teenage church girls for the torturous nights they had endured as my caretakers.  We’re talking Macaulay Culkin in “Home Alone” level mischief, here.  So on this day, mom showed a slight hesitance to jump into the process of hiring a babysitter for the afternoon.

My sister, a near-teenager herself, sensed the opportunity at hand and threw herself headlong into the task of convincing my mother that it would be perfectly fine to leave us home alone, and that she and her best friend, Cassie, would take excellent care of me.  My mom was resistant to the idea.  She had not left us home alone before, and she wasn't quite sure if my sister was up to the task.  However, my sister and Cassie were nice, responsible girls.  They were good students, generally followed the rules, and they were even Honor Stars (for all of you life-time A/G faithfuls who know what that means).

Now, I was not in the habit of voluntarily placing myself in submission to my sister’s authority, but alas, when weighing the two evils of my sister or a babysitter I decided that my sister would be the lesser evil of the two.  

“What’s the worst that could happen,” I thought, “Mom says I’d be better off with a babysitter, but surely having my own sister in charge would be better than that, right?”

So, I joined the nagging chorus and began to beg for mom to leave us home alone.  For a while, mom stood her ground-- it was not a good idea for us to be left alone.  However, with the time for important business drawing near, and the babysitter prospects dwindling into undesirable territory, she eventually acquiesced to our demands. 

We watched out the window as my mother nervously backed her car out of the driveway and began to drive down the street.  We had done it.  We were free.

And that’s when the trouble started…

See, I didn’t know it, but my sister had been particularly annoyed with me that day.  Within minutes, she and Cassie exacted their diabolical revenge.

First they held me down and painted my face with every single cosmetic item in the household until I looked like the offspring of an early-90s female televangelist and Bozo the Clown.  Next, they found every hair-clip and barrette they could and began to clip them, daisy-chain them, tangle them, and knot them throughout my hair until a set of clippers would be the only capable tool for their removal.

Finally, for the coup de grace, they decided it would be a fun idea to roll me up in a sleeping bag like a chubby little clown-faced, ratty-haired, burrito and then unroll me as fast as they could.  The only problem was that when they yanked on the end of the sleeping bag, it did not unroll as quickly as they thought it would.  Instead, they hoisted me into the air, and I came crashing back to the ground head first, with no arms to cushion my fall.  Dizzy and concussed, I began stumbling around and projectile vomiting throughout the house.

In retrospect, perhaps I should’ve just submitted to my mother’s authority instead of thinking that I knew better.

Don't we still do this same sort of thing all the time (albeit in less concussion-y forms)?  Israel sure did.  In 1 Samuel 8, we see Israel demanding a king to rule over them so that they can be like everyone else.  In their own minds, it was certainly in their best interest.  God had put a system of authority in place as He saw fit, but the people continuously rejected that authority, and demanded to subject themselves to a lesser authority.  God warned them that this would only bring trouble for them, but they would not listen.

In what ways might we be doing the same thing?  Has God placed you under an authority that you know in your heart you’re rebelling against?  What about that thing that God has told you to lay down but that you just can’t help yourself from picking back up?  Do you ever see your friends, even your Christian friends, participating in talk and activities that in your flesh you would love to join in, but in your heart you know God has directed you otherwise?

There is not one example to be found where people rejected the things of God and His authority and came out better off for it.  So let’s continue to focus on the things of God, and on trusting His will, and not be led into captivity by thinking we know better.

Written by: Travis Buerky

Edited by: Tamara Sturdivant