Today’s passage is Matthew 11:1-6. Jesus went throughout Galilee preaching and teaching. From prison John the Baptist sent his disciples to ask Jesus if he was the Messiah. Jesus told them to tell him what they saw and heard.
Despite recognizing Jesus at his baptism, John never followed him, never became his disciple!
Now he wonders if Jesus is the Messiah because he’s not behaving the way John expected. He missed the point.
I’m the same. I miss the point a lot.
I didn’t see the worth of my father while the thousand people who came to his funeral did.
I didn’t see that my first wife was an alcoholic while everyone else did.
I didn’t see that I was not the new CS Lewis while everyone else knew it.
I didn’t see that continuing my affair after the death of my first wife was pretty stupid, but my friends and family did.
I kept missing the point because I didn’t see things objectively.
I looked at things the way I wanted to see them. I still look at things that way.
What am I missing today?
I feel like John the Baptist, stuck in the prison of my own power, trusting too much in my own strength, my own abilities, unable to see clearly.
My summer school class ended today and my students more than met my hopes.
Unexpectedly, they thanked me for a great class because they learned more than they had expected and, because of the way I organized the course, they had the proof of their learning and they felt confident.
For a moment I was once again the highly praised teacher I had been for over 20 years. I was John the Baptist.
Then I had to walk into my office and become principal again.
Suddenly, I had no power. The job is beyond me.
The undeniably good changes that have occurred in my school since I have been principal are all God’s work.
I have been his weak instrument. Now, after exulting in my own power as teacher, I was back again as humble principal and I felt uncomfortable.
Once again I was going to have to depend utterly on the Lord to know what to do and then trust in him to make it happen.
In a day I went from power to weakness, from independence to dependence.
It’s not been a spiritually comfortable day for me.
Thank you, Lord, for showing me how John the Baptist is in me.
Take me out of my prison and put my cross back in my hands to carry.
My application is push “Delete” to my imagined speeches to my teachers and wait trustingly on the Lord to provide the vision and words we all need at my school.
