Dissonance: a tension or clash resulting from the combination of two disharmonious or unsuitable elements (Google Dictionary).
There are many things in life that would be dissonant, if it were left up to me to bring harmony, consonance, the environmental shalom that is dissonance's antonym, to my environment. I enjoy music that goes straight to my heart and makes me feel good, noble or powerful. I enjoy sitting down in a room that has an "Ahh-ness" about it. Likely what I mean is fen shui stripped of its religious overtones. A meal well-balanced, properly-proportioned, and skillfully-served brings a pleasure that transcends nourishment and taste, though those are important elements. All of those are aspects of life that feel right to me but are beyond my grasp. I greatly enjoy the gifts and labor of others who are able to make those environments and experiences a reality. If I were to attempt any of them--and I have on occasion tried some of them--the result would be cacophony, disarray,.and perhaps gastric distress. A walk along a creek on a spring morning, or a hike up a hill, covered in new-fallen snow, when the moon is full, or a cup of coffee at the top of a cliff with the surf cascading in its endless rhythm are examples of our Creator's ability to create a world that embraces us in its rightness. The pile of rubble that was a house, visiting a friend at the end of a battle with cancer, a family in chaos, or the ravages of government gone bad are examples of sin's power to twist, distort, violate, and hollow-out until the world is filled with a screeching sound that wails,
"This isn't right."It is at this point that dissonance does its work. Our God, Who is the supreme of order and rightness, has brought even the diss-ness of this world under His sovereign will. There is an unmistakable wisdom in the answer of the fool who explained why he kept hitting himself with a hammer, "Because it feels so good when I stop. Don't rush out to the hardware store, but the much-bruised fellow makes a point, a point that is made without the idiocy in
Romans 8. Read it. Think about it. Repeat. Do it again. Let the truth, especially the reality of two words, "in hope" in verse 24 soak down into your bones.
I helped my son move into a "new" house. The list of things to be fixed is, as the saying goes, as long as my arm. He and his family didn't move here to settle down n the chaos. He and his wife did some calculations. They conclude that it is within their means, that they have the skills necessary to make this a house where the kitchen faucet doesn't make the sound of a distressed animal, the air conditioner goes on and off when it is supposed to, and where the cabinet door in the bathroom
swings on hinges instead of lying in the floor. In only the few days I have been here I see order emerging. I have hope--I believe it is an entirely realistic hope--that this house, somewhat battered by neglect and even outright abuse, will become a haven from the turmoil of the world--dare I say, "tranquil"?
God is doing that in His world. The dissonance that surrounds us should serve to remind us that this is not the way it is supposed to be, it's not the way it is going to be, and by His grace, God has given me the opportunity to be part of the project that makes all things right.
I don't expect you to enjoy that clunking sound from the transmission on your car or the bitter taste of that coffee that's been on the heater too long, and I'm certainly not asking you to go around saying that what is very bad is really good. I am encouraging you, however, to join me in a project. When confronted with life's dissonances, let's be reminded that God is going to make this right, and, then, let's ask ourselves, "What can we do about it right now?"
It's STTA.(The STTA link above will take you to an archive of many Things to Think About. Enjoy & Think.)
No comments:
Post a Comment