Imago Gospels - 10 - Buffalo
Many of us have heard the question asked at parties and in icebreakers and the sort. If your home was on fire and your family was all safe, but you could take only one thing out, what would it be? I have answered it a variety of different ways ranging from our wedding album to our backup hard drive with all our pictures on it to a host of other things. But this morning when that question came to mind for me as I came towards the end of chapter 13, I thought of this. An initial glance says that its just a carved buffalo. However, if you read the inscription on the bottom, you’d see the meaning it has to me - it was carved by my father and was a high school graduation gift for me. My family and I had a lot of bonding moments over Colorado football games and this buffalo became a part of traditions with my roommates and friends in college as we headed to games most Saturdays (this was when CU football was good). It has traveled with me to seminary, to my first call out of seminary, and now here. It has lived at home and in my office. But whenever I see it, I am reminded of the gift that it was from my dad to me and for that I am thankful. There’s no way that this could ever be replaced.
I thought of this and my other answers to the above question as I read the parables throughout chapter thirteen about the kingdom of God, especially those in verses 44 and on. The value of the kingdom of God - greater than anything else…the #1 thing we should want to take if we could only take one thing. Jesus talks many times over about what we value and whether we can serve masters beyond God (hint, you can’t really do that) and the absolute value of the kingdom of heaven. That’s the #1 thing we should seek after, protect, grow, share. As valuable to me as this buffalo is, it does pale in comparison to the tremendous gift of God that is the kingdom of heaven.
So, I guess this post is thanking two fathers…