Devotionals
There were two men tied together by a rope. The rope extended between the two men and was tied around the waist of each. One of the men-let's call him Pagan-charged off in one direction full speed. The man at the other end of the rope-let's call him Christian-wants to go in the exact opposite direction. He also wants Pagan to go in that direction (the direction opposite to the one he's currently going).
As you can imagine, Christian had a dilemma, and one he'd better solve quickly lest he be dragged off in the same direction as Pagan. Several options flashed quickly through his mind. He could stand firm in his current location, brace his legs and pull on the rope with all his might so that Pagan might be brought to the place where Christian now stood. Pagan, though, had the full force of his weight behind him and a head of steam to boot, so Christian's arms would have to be mighty strong to succeed at pulling Pagan to his current location. What's worse, that wouldn't solve the problem because Pagan still wouldn't be heading in the desired direction. Neither would Christian, for that matter.
Ah, but perhaps Christian could go to where Pagan was now and convince him to turn around and head in the proper direction. To do that, though, Christian realized, he would have to go in the same direction as Pagan. At the least, he have to head that way until he convinced Pagan to turn around. Why would Pagan even agree to turn around and head in the correct direction? If it was so great, wouldn't Christian be going that way himself?
Of course, he could always try to block Pagan's path so that he wouldn't be able to go in the direction he desires. Pagan, though, was running full speed and it seemed quite unlikely Christian could stop him from charging in that direction. Should he decide to dive at Pagan's knees, it might slow the charge down, but probably would only anger Pagan. It wouldn't solve the ultimate problem, anyway, which involved getting Pagan to head in the correct direction.
What to do? Christian pondered, as he attempted to hold his ground. He laughed with delight as the solution came to mind. Grabbing a stretch of rope, he hoisted it to his shoulder, turned in the direction he wanted to go and pulled and tugged the rope with as much force as he could. His legs churned the ground as he strove to move himself in the correct direction despite the other man's opposition. The going was slow at first, but gradually he picked up speed as the clarity of the Goal that lay before him became more apparent. He longed to go in the correct direction toward that Goal and that longing gave him strength to overcome the opposition of Pagan.
But he still wanted Pagan to travel in the same direction. Instead, he could feel Pagan try harder to go in the opposite direction despite the apparent futility of his efforts. So, Christian called out to him, telling him how futile his efforts were and how horrible his destination was if he continued in the wrong direction. Pagan couldn't see the horror of his ultimate destination, so Christian tried to show him how magnificent the correct destination was. Pagan glimpsed over his shoulder but couldn't see anything past the clouds that impeded his vision.
Christian, though, continued to implore Pagan to change directions. After all, though headed in opposite directions, their physical separation wasn't great. Pagan could hear Christian's words, but would he understand? Christian continued to call out to Pagan, all the while charging full steam in the correct direction.
Pagan had some choices to make. He could continue going in the direction he was headed despite its dawning futility. His constant striving appeared to be getting nowhere and simply left him drained and empty. Pagan looked at his destination for the first time, and it didn't seem very appealing. He couldn't see any other way to go, for clouds obscured his vision in the opposite direction yet Christian told him it was wondrous beyond imagination. Could he trust Christian? Christian's efforts were hurting Pagan, but he claimed those efforts were for Pagan's own good. Could that be true? He wondered.
Meanwhile, Christian redoubled his efforts though he had begun to grow weary of the effort. Pagan simply pulled harder the more Christian tried to go in the correct direction. He sometimes hoped he could just give up, yet something about the Goal that lay ahead of him compelled him to keep pulling on that rope. Wearied and tired of the burden he bore, yet Christian pulled.
Pagan resisted, pulled the other way, hoping that Christian would relent or let him go. Finally, he fell down in a heap, crying 'Stop! I give up. I want to go in the direction you're heading. I can't see it very well, but it has to be better than the way I'm headed.'
Christian smiled and stopped his charge. He turned and went back to help Pagan to his feet. Yet, somehow it didn't feel like he was going backward, but forward, heading in the direction of his goal. Christian helped Pagan to his feet and turned Pagan to face the correct direction. Pagan looked and the clouds had parted slightly to reveal something of the destination toward which he had decided to head. His eyes lit up and he smiled in wonder, for he saw the beauty that lay ahead, in part. How could he have ever wanted to go any other way?
'You are no longer Pagan, any more,' Christian said with a smile. 'Your name is Christian now, too. Let us go together toward our goal.' Christian agreed and set off joyfully in, finally, the correct direction.
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