It's the day after Christmas and I love everything I received. Among the many gifts I received, two stand out for very different reasons. The first notable gift is Optimash Prime. Now Darth Tater has a companion on the shelf. The second gift worthy of comment, and by far my favorite (but not for the reasons you expect), is my Obi-Wan Kenobi light sabre. The gift of the light sabre actually has a few spiritual applications. In order to understand those, you'll have to read the whole story.
Earlier in the fall as my family began making Christmas lists, the one thing I put on my list was the aforementioned weapon of choice by one of the greatest known Jedi knights. They only cost about seven or eight dollars, so I figured this would be a shoe-in. My wife knows I like to get toys and she also knows how Star Wars seems to dominate our family's life at times.
My hopes of getting this light sabre disappeared when a local sporting goods store began clearancing out its camping gear. We had the opportunity to buy a nice family sized tent for only 40% of the original cost. We gave our boys a choice. We could a) spend our entire alloted Christmas budget for Mommy & Daddy gifts on the tent or b) give the boys the money to buy individual gifts for us so they could have the opportunity to go shopping. They chose A, so my wife and I received our Christmas gift in early November. We bought a tent that is literally the size of our bedroom.
Now, it must be added that we reminded the boys they had their own money they could choose to spend on Mommy and Daddy if they wanted. Of course, we did not expect them to. In the meantime, I had been planning to buy a light sabre with my own money after Christmas so that the boys and I could have some Jedi fun whenever we needed to burn off some energy.
On Christmas morning I was surprised to receive the very thing I wanted most - my very own Obi-Wan Kenobi light sabre. It was a gift from my boys and it warmed my heart so. Not only was I surprised at the gift itself, but I was surprised they had managed to keep it a secret, especially my youngest.
While pondering this wonderful gift, two important lessons came to mind. First, the boys bought this with their own money. It was something they really wanted to do because they knew how much I wanted it. They actually demonstrated some level of selflessness and thinking beyond themselves for a change. For those of you who have wondered if your children will ever get there, take this as hope that they will. My boys aren't completely selfless, but this was a step.
In order to appreciate the second lesson, you must hear the rest of the story. My boys sent their mother out shopping for the light sabre. All she knew was it had to be a blue light sabre. Much to her dismay upon bringing it home, she was told very quickly that she had bought the wrong one. She had bought the Anakin Skywalker light sabre. As you can see from the picture above, they are vey different (Obi-Wan is on top, Anakin on the bottom). She was not aware that such a distinction existed. She was able to return the wrong one and exchange it for the proper replica.
Here's the lesson, and despite all premises, it's a deep and important one. Lots of people "buy" what they think is real Christianity. They find something that resembles what little they know about it. Sometimes that's not a risky choice; sometimes it is. Some people don't even know that light sabres come in different colors, let alone may have different handles. Some people don't know that Christianity is not just like all the other religions. All religions do not lead to the same place.
So what do you do if you are one of these people that knows very little about faith in general but you are searching for authentic Christianity? At some point you have to become familiar with the product. As I always say here, never do it alone. Go to the Bible to find out the details on the story. Begin your search with another group of people. Make sure there are people like yourself AND people who already have the answers in that group. Keep yourself open to the direction of the Holy Spirit. If you get off track and bring home the wrong model, the Holy Spirit will redirect you.
The most important thing to do is to do something. You'll never be a real Jedi by wishing you had a light sabre. You'll never know more about God or have a real relationship with him by just thinking it would be a good thing. And if you get the wrong color or the wrong handle, keep looking and keep open - he'll make sure you get it right.
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