Day 21 - In a World of Boffins & Brandybucks, Be a Baggins

by Grace Outlaw

Matthew 19:24; 12:12

I think I might have been a hobbit in an alternate universe. I am more than content sitting at home with a fire crackling in the hearth, a cozy blanket, a cuppa Earl Grey, and a good book  (not to mention, 2x the human amount of meals per day seems like a huge plus)!

In J.R.R. Tolkein’s The Hobbit, Gandalf appears on Bilbo Baggins’ doorstep late one evening and says, “I am looking for someone to share in an adventure that I am arranging, and it's very difficult to find anyone.” Bilbo (who I am assuming bore an uncomfortable resemblance to myself all comfy-cozy with my book on the couch) responds, “I should think so – in these parts! We are plain quiet folk and have no use for adventures. Nasty disturbing uncomfortable things! Make you late for dinner!”

I imagine we are all hobbits in that way. When confronted with even the smallest amount of discomfort, we reject it! (If you have no idea what I’ve been talking about so far, I want to thank you for sticking with me – and also encourage you to go read The Hobbit because it’s amazing, especially when enjoyed by a fire with a blanket and a cup of tea).

Most of us are likely familiar with the passage in Matthew 19; a young, rich man approaches Jesus and asks him ‘what good thing’ must he do to get eternal life? Ultimately, Jesus challenges him to sell everything… everything he owns… and follow him. 

Would you have done it? Sell EVERYTHING?? Why, Jesus? Surely I need some things… Surely there are other ways to get into heaven…

This young, rich man’s idol was his wealth and possessions, and it kept him from following the Lord and Savior of the universe. Is wealth your idol? Is it work? Even ‘good’ things can be idols… What about your family? (That’s tough for me personally… what wouldn’t I do for my children?) But do I extend the same devotion to Jesus when I feel the call to give up something comfortable for him?

In Matthew 12, Jesus pushes some other people out of their comfort zone. In this passage, it is the Sabbath, and the Pharisees have become increasingly frustrated by Jesus, his teachings, and his followers. Jesus enters the synagogue and sees a man with a shriveled hand. To finish up his head-to-head with the Pharisees, he powerfully declares, “... it is lawful to do good on the Sabbath.” And heals the man in front of them.

“But the Pharisees went out and plotted how they might kill Jesus,” verse 14.

The Pharisees were so threatened by Jesus that they sought to kill him for healing someone. Why? What a wild way of thinking!

The Pharisees saw this Jesus movement… and rejected it. It threatened their traditions, their way of life… their comfort. Their very religion had become their idol, and they were so threatened by discomfort that they sought to kill the fulfillment of the law they held so dear.

Jesus is very good at pushing us out of our comfort zones, and it often seems like these interruptions come at the worst possible moment. These can be little things: 

• A new small group is starting up, but ughh with the kids’ baseball practices, I don’t really have time for that…

• The church needs volunteers in the kids’ ministry, but ughh I really just want to sit in service, and not have to chase kids around for another hour…

• Hmm, I haven’t seen that family before… Maybe I should go introduce myself? Nah, I’m sure someone else will do it…

To the biggest possible interruptions imaginable:

• A scary diagnosis…

• An unexpected pregnancy…

• A job offer that will move your family away…

In all of these situations, Jesus calls us to do one thing… give it up, and follow him. It won’t always be easy, or joyful. But we can choose how we respond to Jesus’ interruptions to our comfort. Will you shrink away, and decline to rise to your Savior’s call like the young, rich man? Will you feel threatened and fight back like the Pharisees?

Or will you run barefooted, bounding down the lane, yelling to all who will listen, “I’m going on an adventure!”