New Background

Can You Hear Me Now?

Friday, May 12, 2006

Box Talk

“Don’t keep God in a box!”

We’ve all heard it and it conjures so many thoughts, at least for me, and images that bring to life what I’m learning about this ‘God-in-a-box’ mentality.

My first visual is very ancient boxes, dating back hundreds, even thousands of years, where people before me ‘kept” God.


It gives me some assurance that I was not the first to “capture” God and put him safely within the confines of my box. He has been ‘boxed’ for thousands of years by better people then me!

The next thing I think about is the variety of boxes…there are tall boxes, short boxes, fat boxes, skinny boxes, round boxes, square boxes…to me it would look like this:


or this


There are also locked boxes where I imagine people feel certain God is at risk and must be protected from the outside world!

and beautifully wrapped boxes because God deserves a beautiful place to stay! Plus the ribbons adds additional security. Have you ever seen people struggle trying to remove ribbon from a box. It’s quite amusing sometimes. I’m a double knotter…so they really struggle! I laugh out loud as I watch them…My husband just gets scissors…spoilsport! I digress….

The whole box analogy comes with the call to be an OPEN box and some of us just can’t get there ALL THE WAY…but we become closer like boxes with holes!

For me the ‘boxing God’ came to bring order from seeming chaos (in the spiritual sense). I felt certain I must box God to protect my ‘isms’, my own personal theology. A part of me was always worried that God would ‘escape’ if I opened the box and I’d never be able to find Him again. There is a security in the box, at least for me.

God hasn’t called me to security…He has called me to OPENNESS! Openness for Him means He can reach others from MY BOX. Openness for me means I can trust that the work we do will always grow and evolve as will my own wisdom through the journey. My box is not big enough to hold God or the call God has placed on me...no one's is!

I hope one day to completely open my box and see just where God takes me and if He comes back.

Happy Friday from the Box Lady!

7 comments:

someone else said...

I really like the open box idea. Really good thoughts today!

GiBee said...

Wow -- you really made me stop and think about this!!! I want to be an open box, too!

Diane Viere said...

What a great post today! I'll be thinking abuot open boxes all day long!

Thanks--diane

the lizness said...

I don't have words to describe how this post challenged me.

You should write a devotional book.

Claire Joy said...

You go girl...

Shalee said...

This post reminds me of a song my son learned in Bible class.

I wish I had a little red box to put my good friends in.
I’d take them out and mmm, mmm, mmm (those are hugs, BTW)
And put them right back again.

I wish I had a little red box to put my bad friends in.
I’d take them out and clap, clap, clap (those are disciplinary actions, I’m guessing)
And put them right back again.

I wish I had a little red box to put the devil in.
I’d take him out and hit, hit, hit (that devil gets a POUNDING)
And throw him in the garbage can.

I wish I had a little red box to put my Jesus in in.
I’d take him out and talk with him
And never put Him back again.
And never put Him back again.

I like the thought of never putting him back, but rather, talking with him daily.

kpjara said...

Thanks for the encouragement in this daily endeavor everyone! and Shalee, I LOVE that song...I absolutely love it and I love your edit at the end too!