Peace Like a River Blog # 9

“Yes-not like I ever heard anybody pray.” On page 217, Roxanna states to Reuben that she has never heard anybody pray like Jeremiah had prayed the night before.

When I read this it struck me because as Christians we are called to be different, to be set apart. When people hear us pray they should know that we are not just saying a simple prayer to get us through the night. They should know that we are serious about talking to God. Although Christians ought to pray I think that this creates a problem for today’s society.

Today we are all about what can God do for us, how will God answer our prayers, and how soon can God answer our prayers. Today we say quick, one-minute, heartless prayers and then we wonder why God doesn’t answer them, well at least answer them in our ways. Jeremiah truly knew how to pray- he was set apart.

In Matthew 6:5-15 it says, “And when you pray, do not be like the hypocrites, for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the street corners to be seen by others. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward in full. But when you pray, go into your room, close the door and pray to your Father, who is unseen. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you. And when you pray, do not keep on babbling like pagans, for they think they will be heard because of their many words. Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask him. “This, then, is how you should pray:  “‘Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name, your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Give us today our daily bread. And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one.’

Simply stated these scriptures say that you shouldn’t pray to be seen by others or to be glorified by others. You should pray when you are alone and you should pray like you mean it. So often today, when people do those long heart felt prayers, they simply do it to grab the attention of man and not the attention of God.

 As I mentioned before that in today’s society we find people doing heartless, quick prayers. In the scripture above, it says not to keep babbling like pagans, they think they will be heard because of their many words. Even though quick prayers aren’t a bad thing, it’s a bad thing if you don’t mean what you are saying and that you are only doing it because you need something which is commonly found in today’s culture and society.

Southeastern certainly teaches the importance of prayer. Not only do most of my classes incorporate prayer but when I go to talk to my academic advisor, he always advises me to pray about any decision that I need to make. The students that I have met and that I have shared my heart with, have always advised me to pray to God with everything that I have- to seek him before anything else.

This part of the book may not challenge or create a problem for Southeastern University since they stress the importance of prayer but in today’s society and even in some churches, this creates a problem since most churches don’t earnestly seek God- they aren’t set apart.

Problematize- Peace like a River Blog #8

Although this is a problematize post, I feel like there isn’t a problem or a conflict with my beliefs and with the book Peace Like A River. I do believe, however, that there are situations that arise in this book that are a problem for some Christians.

The first problem is dealing with vengeance. In the very first chapters two boys, Israel Finch and Tommy Basca, threaten Ruben’s father and family. (Page 12) The most common response to human beings is to seek vengeance on these two boys especially after they placed tar all over the front door of the Land’s house.  Surprisingly, the father is not worried about it, doesn’t complain about it, and doesn’t plan to correct the two boys for doing this horrible thing to his house. When people read this and see that Ruben’s father is different than any other person, this may seem puzzling to them. They may begin to think “Why didn’t he do anything back to them? Why isn’t he angry? Why doesn’t he talk to their parents? Why does he not complain about cleaning up the tar and not complaining when the tar doesn’t come off the door?” Ruben’s father had every right to be upset and to correct the two boys but instead he stayed calm and didn’t complain. As a student of SEU, I think the culture here would like us to take on the attitude of Ruben’s father. How many times have the RA’s or RD’s heard about someone wrong doing someone else when instead we should follow God’s word and turn the other cheek? How many times have the professors heard us complain about the amount of work that is given to us when instead we should be like Ruben’s father and do what needs to be done without griping or complaining?

The second problem is dealing with fear. On page 3 it says, “My sister, Swede, who often sees the nub, offered this: People fear miracles because they fear being changed- though ignoring them will change you also.” As human beings our natural tendency is to be scared and to not do certain things because we are afraid of what may happen when in fact when we don’t do those things, we end up changing. Southeastern’s main focus in my opinion is to follow the will of God for your life no matter what that may be or how that may look. Sitting through chapel and even getting to know people here on campus, I sense that majority of people are afraid of doing what God is calling them to do, including me. But besides doing the will of God, I feel as if the students on this campus are afraid to really encounter God like He would like to encounter us. We may say that we are willing, but if you look around, are the students here really willing to do whatever it may take? As many students are afraid of the will of God or miracles because they are afraid of where it may take them, ignoring them will take them to places- places that they may not want to go to.

Although this book, Peace Like A River, may not go against our beliefs or the way Southeastern thinks but it does challenge the way we do things as Christians. It challenges us to against our human nature and not take vengeance on one’s that have threatened us or has already began to hurt us. It challenges us to not fear miracles and the will of God in our lives. This book certainly challenges our ways of doing things but I personally think that it will strengthen us to become better as followers of Christ.

It Is Well With My Soul- Reflective

After reading the lyrics to the classic and beautiful hymn, “It Is Well With My Soul” it has reassured me that no matter what situations arise in my life, I can rest and trust in God.

I researched the writer, Horatio Spafford, and learned that this poem wasn’t written when everything was going well in life, in fact this song was written when everything was crumbling. His only son died of scarlet fever when he was 4 years old, all of his real estate investments burned up in flames from the Great Chicago fire, and all four of his daughters died in a shipwreck.  

It amazes me at how someone can be going through all of that heartache and pain but still rest in God and know that no matter what, you always have to say “It is well with my soul.” To be perfectly honest, I’m not sure that I could still praise God in the midst of what seems to be a flash-flooding, high- intensity, tornado. Yes, I would love to say that I will follow what I have been taught about praising God in every situation but when the storm rages once and then rages again and then keeps raging, I don’t know if I could stay under control.

I really like the line that says “Whatever my lot, thou has taught me to say, it is well, it is well, with my soul.” To me, this is a phrase that needs to be continually running through my head. No matter what happens- no matter if my house burns down, no matter if I get a 50 on a test, no matter if I get made fun of, no matter if I get dumped by the love of my life, no matter if my family dies- I will always say “it is well with my soul.” I think you can really tell how solid someone is by the way they react when the storms come. Horatio is a perfect example of being that person that no matter what may happen in his life, he is going to continue to rejoice in God and say “it is well with my soul.”

Seeing how well Horatio handled the storm makes me want to be a better person. As I mentioned before, I’m not sure if I could continue to sing praises when my life is falling apart but after looking deeper into this song I know that I want to and that I will forever say “It is well with my soul” despite anything that may come into my life.

Lanyard- Annotation

In the poem “Lanyard” by Billy Collins, the main character talks about how he had made a “worthless thing I wove out of boredom” for his mother in order to repay her for everything that she has done for him. While many people think of lanyards as pointless and even a bit nerdy, the definition says something different. According to the Merriam-Webster Dictionary, lanyard is defined as: “a cord or strap to hold something (as a knife or a whistle) and usually worn around the neck; a cord worn as a symbol of a military citation; and a strong line to activate a system (as in firing a cannon).”

If we say that a lanyard is a symbol of a military citation than the lanyard in the poem isn’t as worthless as the main character had originally suspected. Since this poem is from a point of view as looking back on a childhood, we as the readers could easily interfere that the grown man is a military man who had just received recognition. In this recognition, he could have received a lanyard, symbolic to his position in the military. When he hands the lanyard to his mom he is thanking her for giving him life, milk from her breasts, nursing him in a sick room, lifting spoons of medicine to his lips, laying cold face-cloths on his forehead, teaching him how to walk and swim, cooking him meals, giving him clothes, and giving him a good education.

Although he has now made a name for himself in the military (if we were to interpret it this way), he will never be able to fully repay his mother for everything that she has done for him. No matter what ranking he receives, he will never be able to repay her for the countless sleepless nights, the endless meals she had to cook, or even the number of dishes she had to wash.

The word lanyard, in my opinion, is used in two different ways. As a child he made a simple lanyard out of rope during camp and now he has been given a lanyard in the military. I believe that this word is symbolic because when he was a child he wasn’t able to repay his mother for everything that she has done for him by giving her a simple red and white lanyard and now that he is older, he isn’t able to repay her by being recognized in the military.

Once you realize the several definitions that the word lanyard has to offer, you begin to see the deeper meaning that this poem holds. It simply isn’t talking about a child creating a twisted rope at summer camp but it’s talking about how even a grown man, with all the resources that he may have, can’t repay his mother for everything that she has done.

"What Is the Theme of Billy Collin's "Lanyard"?" Enotes.com. 13 May 2009. Web. 2 Mar. 2011.
                <http://www.enotes.com/billy-collins/q-and-a/what-theme-billy-collins-lanyard-83711>.