Dec
10
2014
Line Of Demarcation
Posted in Christmas 2 Comments
It is like night and day.
The differences are obvious.
The worldview is evident.
There is a line of demarcation between the two houses.
The houses are on a road that runs parallel to a main road.
I take this other road when I want to avoid traffic during the busier times of day.
It is a road where the speed is marked 25 miles an hour.
Going slow, down this curvy road, allows me look at the houses a bit as I drive.
That is how I happened to notice the stark contrast.
Neither house decorates to offend the other.
They each decorate their own way.
They each focus on what is important to them at this time of year.
The one house has a wooden manger on the front lawn.
Beautiful wooden angels are scattered about telling the Story by their very presence.
The Gospel is proclaimed simply on a small sign.
Near the manger is a cross for the Baby that was born to save the people from their sins.
It is as if someone took a marker and drew a distinct line between the properties.
The line actually extends around the perimeter.
It is a line of tin soldiers that are probably illuminated at night.
It is a Christmas toy land on the front lawn of that house.
The other house has illumination as well.
One spotlight is on the manger.
One spotlight is on the Story.
The only spotlight is on Christ.
I am sure that small children love the decorations on the other lawn.
They are bright and festive.
They are pleasing to the eye.
They are everything that children see in the stores this time of year.
A different kind of eye is needed to look at the decorations at the other house.
A spiritual eye is needed.
An eye that has been opened by the Holy Spirit to see the line of demarcation.
An eye that is able to discern the difference.
Wendell Berry, a writer that I enjoy reading, wrote a book entitled, Andy Catlett.
It is the story of the fictional town of Port William.
A nine-year-old boy travels alone by bus to visit his grandparents.
His adventures on this trip are seen as a rite of passage.
Two sets of grandparents.
Two ways of doing things.
Modernity encroaching on the old ways.
Farm life in 1943, where a horse and wagon was the means of transportation.
Andy’s other set of grandparents owned a car.
Andy experienced both modes of transportation on his trip.
He reflected on both.
He was able to see them and compare them, though he actually compared much more.
Granddaddy’s old car would seem crude to us now in “the new millennium.” It was crude in comparison even to my daddy’s car, which was newer. But on that day, having returned to motor travel from my trip with Dick and Grandpa in the wagon, and after nearly two days of getting about on foot, I felt the car’s ease and speed. We were effortlessly and in just minutes covering a distance that had seemed long to me the morning before. And I noticed something else. The car was not only easier and faster than the team and wagon. It gave a new aspect and a new motion to the world. The wagon passed through the country at a speed that allowed your eyes to rest. Whatever you wanted to look at in the road ditch or the fencerow or the field beyond, your sight could dwell on and you could see it. But from the side of Granddaddy’s car where I was looking out, the country seemed to be turning by like a great wheel. The rim of the wheel, at the roadside, was turning so fast, that everything was a blur. To pick out a detail – one fencepost, one rock, one tree trunk – was impossible. The effort to do so made me feel cross-eyed and kind of sick. Farther away, the wheel turned more slowly and you could look at things, you could stop them in your eyes, but the smaller details were getting lost.
(Excerpt from Andy Catlett by Wendell Berry)
The smaller details were getting lost.
I thought of this book and Andy’s comparison as I passed the two houses.
Each family has a right to decorate the way they choose, or not decorate if so inclined.
The house resembling a toy land would be similar to Andy’s thoughts concerning the car.
Everything was a blur; everything was turning so fast.
The house with the manger, the angels, and the cross was similar to Grandpa’s wagon.
Slow enough so your eyes could rest.
Slow enough so your eyes could dwell on some things and see every detail.
Each had its place in Andy’s mind; each has its place on the road where I was driving.
A matter of perspective.
A worldview.
A line that is absolutely drawn between the two.
One quiet; one a bit louder and busier.
One calls for contemplation.
One screams to be noticed.
One is easily accepted by the world.
One is only understood by a few.
For He Himself is our peace, who has made the two one and has destroyed the barrier, the dividing wall of hostility by abolishing in His flesh the law with its commandments and regulations. His purpose was to create in Himself one new man out of the two, thus making peace, and in this one body to reconcile both of them to God through the cross, by which He put to death their hostility. He came and preached peace to you who were far away and peace to those who were near. For through Him we have access to the Father through the Spirit. (Ephesians 2:14-18)
The line of demarcation is gone.
The dividing wall is no more.
One new man out of the two.
Reconciliation through the cross.
How lovely to slow down and see every detail.
Take the time this Christmas to really see.
Gina, I loved reading this! You have captured the truth of the two. You and I are just temporary residents. We know where our home is and where we are going. Praise God!
For the world this is as good as it gets….sadly! But for a few, a slow drive along this tiny road allows them to see the entire Salvation story. To know that our God born a babe with the cross as the mission, loves them and died so that they might live with Him eternally. Thanks for posting this reminder of what we celebrate and how very important is the GIFT!
Would that all that see His gentle face in the lawn would accept and open their hearts!
Judy,
What a blessing to tell His Story. I do pray that we all slow down so that we can really see. Thank you for your quiet ministry that speaks volumes. You bless many.
Gina