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A View from the Pew
003
I Don't Wanna be a Slacker
I was pondering my ill-fitting pants one morning, and I thought of the word “slacks”. I remember that's what my grandmother always called women's pants. I don't think I ever saw my grandmother in a pair of jeans. I was thinking about all older women and the pants they wear and how they really are slacks. I don't know why, but that word really suits the roomy-polyester, elastic-waist style. The discomfort I was feeling with my own selection that morning made me realize with dismay why older people begin to gravitate to that style.
Later that day, this word "slacks" returned to mind. The light bulb went off and I realized it could be a play on words and the Lord was wanting to tell me something. Instead of "slacks," I thought, "slack." Ohhh, slack! At first glance, the biggest part of the word is lack. I knew it wasn't a great word. I decided to look it up. Here is some of the definition: A part that is slack or hangs loose; a lack of tension or tautness, looseness; a stoppage of movement in a current; a time of little activity, a dull period, a lull. How about the word slacker? One who attempts to evade a responsibility or duty, especially one who shirks an obligation to his country in time of war.
Yikes. Several things stand out to me in those definitions.
A part that is slack or hangs loose. What areas of our lives are we allowing to just flap in the wind? "I know I should get this or that area of my life under better submission, but I'm just letting it hang loose," we say. We're being slack.
A stoppage of movement in a current. "I've been flowing in the Holy Spirit, alive and excited in my worship and prayer, but I think I'll just take a month or two off." Anybody been there? Slack. In a dull season? That's the time to push through and redouble our efforts in worship, prayer/warfare and Bible study. It is definitely not a time to skip services and go weeks without opening our Bibles.
Evading responsibility or duty... especially in time of war. Our communities and nation are in very important times right now. A lot hangs in the balance spiritually. We are supposed to be interceding and fasting. If My people will humble themselves and pray... I'm His people. What have I been doing lately? The war is raging all around me. Am I napping behind a tree?
A sidebar to this - The Call prayer rally on 7/7/07 will be very important, but possibly even more crucial is the 40-day fast that has been called leading up to it. How easy would it be to simply not start this fast, to just ignore it. No. This may make a huge difference in the destiny of our nation, and I want to be counted among those who made a stand, who completed the task.
Community Church of Manchester, Ky. is spending its Wednesday nights this summer prayer walking our community. Today is the first day we're going out, and it's been raining all day. I was out late last night, and I have had thoughts cross my mind about how great it would be to just go home after work and settle in with a good book. That's not happening. As much as my flesh doesn't want to be out in the rain, that's what we're doing, and I'll be there.
"Slack" and "slacker" are both good words for me right now, but I am going to fight through this. What was it called when men in the civil war would sneak away from the battle and go home? AWOL? No, worse...deserters. That's not going to be me. Not this year. There's too much at stake.
Anyone is welcome to join us prayer walking. Just meet us at the church on Wednesdays at 7 p.m.
Will Rogers once said that even if you're on the right track, you'll get run over if you just sit there.
That's just my View from the Pew (well, chairs).
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