As I consider football coaches and managers, from an external perspective, they fall into three types. First, there are the hired guns. Individuals last as long as they accomplish what others expect. Then there are journeymen practitioners. When compared to the hired guns, expectations are significantly lower. Finally, there are the anointed ones. You know they are anointed by their hiring process or the way they endure regardless. It is as if the owners in this group followed the Divine response to David; “I found David, my servant, poured holy oil on his head.” (Psalm 89.20)
As I consider my journey and the relationships I have professionally and personally, they tend to fall into one of the three buckets. Specific usefulness, for one or both parties. Casual friends and colleagues that last as long as it makes sense. And the third, friends that one trusts implicitly, confident of who and what they are.
At different times, I have tried to put God into every bucket. Candidly, the first is trying to use God for my own benefits. Most of the time I get it wrong and the results that followed reinforce the preconceived conclusion. For big chunks of my life, I have been apathetic. While I might express interest and confidence, my actions did not tend to say anything positive. At my best, I have embraced what God had already done for me and in doing so found myself anointed in return.
As with many things in life, the past is not an accurate indicator of the future. There is a fresh decision to be made. In this context, I find myself reflecting on the following reminders.
The best relationship is one where one is chosen by the other. Be it Divinity or anyone else, when they choose you and you know it, everything is possible. In God’s case, embracing what Divinity has and is doing for you is the best thing you can do. In doing so, one always ends up realizing s/he is anointed for compassion, community and caring. An appointment worthy of gods.
