Today's passage is Philemon 1-14.
Paul writes from prison, asking Philemon to take back Onesimus, his former slave but now Christian brother, appealing to him out of love even though he says he could order him to do so.
I spent most of the day with the Indonesian mission team preparing for our trip, doing various activities. We always begin with our daily QT.
The questions we asked were: What is your prison? Who is your Joab? We saw both Onesimus and Philemon as kinds of Joabs.
My prison is my aging back that's half crippling me because I try to do things I cannot do anymore. I'm chafing in my prison, wanting the freedom of the body I used to have.
The pain and the limitation I'm suffering is training for acceptance of the age and condition I now am. I can't do taekwondo with the team but I can focus on my role in the skit drama about Jesus, a presentation of the gospel.
My Joab is my vice principal. Because I did not make a clear and firm decision on the punching episode at school, she made one that she communicated to the parents of the punched boy, which was that the puncher would be permanently expelled from the school.
That was not her decision to make, it was mine. In the last few months she's made a couple of decisions that belong to me, but which I let slide because they were either what I would've done or they were ones I didn't want to be bothered with. I helped create my Joab.
The crisis that has occurred because of the punching is training I have tried to avoid.
I am the school leader and everyone looks to me to make decisions, set policy and give guidance.
In that role the chance for mistakes and opposition is great.
I wanted to avoid both.
Now I cannot. I will make a decision that will be opposed by just about everyone and I will make it because it's right.
Because that decision--to reinstate the expelled boy--will earn me strong disagreement and opposition, I'm reluctant to make it.
That reluctance led to confusion on the part of many people.
I needed to say that I wanted time to pray, reflect, sift the information and get an objective point of view that would best serve all concerned. I didnt'.
I let my anger at the boy further poison an already poisoned atmosphere in which my vice principal and executive officer misread what I truly wanted.
The boy's family is in crisis over the punching episode. It's brought up confessions from the mother, rejection by the father and denial of significance by the boy.
He needs psychological counselling, as does the mother. But if they don't stay at the school, it won't take place.
They are shallow Christians and this is God's calling to them.
If I cast them away, where will they get help.
If they stay at the school, there will be problems, yes, but with God's grace we will work through them.
Part of my application today was to fast from this morning till tomorrow morning so that I could focus my thoughts and prayers on this issue.
I need God's strength to face my office.
Like Daniel, I'm trusting that this fast will help me see clearly and act in God's interest for everyone concerned.
