Green Eggs and Ham
In one of Dr. Seuss’ books Green Eggs and Ham a character named Sam-I-Am spends all his time begging, pleading, cajoling, and otherwise relentlessly trying to get another yellow character with a tall black hat whose name we never learn, to try Green Eggs and Ham. Some of us may admire the character in the black hat for his self-knowledge, steadfastness, and refusal to be pressured into eating a meal high in cholesterol, fat, and sodium. Others may regard him as stubborn, close-minded, and frankly boring because he’s so set in his ways he’s not willing to try something new. The funny thing is everything we like in life whether a type of food, a style of music, or a friend – at some point was new to us and something we’d never tried or experienced before.
Christians can often be just like our yellow friend in the black hat, refusing to try new things despite the fact that the Bible clearly and repeatedly teaches that God is in the business of doing new things. We see this from the first book of the Bible to the last. Genesis begins with the God doing something new – creating the heavens and the earth and all that is in them. When it comes to becoming a Christian it’s about having a new birth, a new heart and spirit and a new life.
Paul in 2 Corinthians tells us that “if anyone is in Christ, there is a new creation: everything old has passed away; see, everything has become new!”
Being open to something new allows us to truly become a light for all people to see Christ by. As society and culture moves on the church must hold onto its traditions of faith yet at the same time learn how to speak and address 21st century people. This means that as Christians we do not try new things just for the sake of it, we venture into the new because God is the God of new things and because we are called to bear witness. Sometimes just like the yellow Dr. Suess character in the black hat we will discover something wonderful, exciting, refreshing and spiritually nourishing in giving new things a go!
We have recently been journeying through Revelation and God’s blessing upon us in chapter 21:1-4 is worth hearing again and again. May the beauty of the promise of new things bless you this day and every day.
“Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth; ... 3 And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “See, the home of God is among mortals. He will dwell with them as their God; they will be his peoples, and God himself will be with them; 4 he will wipe every tear from their eyes. Death will be no more; mourning and crying and pain will be no more, for the first things have passed away.”