Fog is one of the most dangerous conditions in which to drive. It reduces visibility so much that even at slow speeds a driver may come upon an object--another car, a person, a bend, etc.--with no warning and at too close of a proximity to stop in time. In areas where this phenomena exists, it often huddles in pockets, meaning that drivers can be speeding along in clear conditions and dip down into a low-lying area and be suddenly encompassed in a zero-visibility situation. Additionally, drivers are encouraged to increase the normal 2-second vehicle spacing to 5 seconds, yet this is extraordinarily difficult when the other car is not even visible. Even the trusted headlights whose job is to illuminate the darkness are to be used counterintuitively in fog--low beams or fog lights that are less bright actually help more. Truly, fog can cause even the best driver to get hopelessly confused.
Fog is not only a physical phenomena but a spiritual and mental one as well. The current generation especially in America has whole-heartedly embraced the journey of life in a fog of self-absorption [Courtney]. We awake into the constant weight of a world that encourages us to focus on our own needs and problems, to default to what’s best “for me”. Living in the weight of this fog little character flaws like small critters who find the cover of fog consoling begin to increase. As we focus on ourselves and neglect those around us, these character flaws alienate us from those around us.
Sadly, as we are created to be relational people, this very fog that promises us self-promotion pushes us away from others. It whispers that we can do everything ourselves; not only from a perspective of ability but obligation as well--we should be self-sufficient and independent [Andy]. By the time we realize that our strength is woefully inadequate to the task, our friends have given up on us due to our constant refusal of help. Feeling abandoned, we cling to the lie that we were right all along: we can’t trust anyone but ourselves.
In trusting ourselves we determine in the fog what is right and wrong, blurring the lines of truth. After all, things look different from where we are and so shouldn’t we know best? We become our own authority, our own pastors and embrace wholeheartedly the message of postmodern relativism [Charis]. As we wander in our selfish paths, we wonder why we have no leaders to encourage us, unaware that we have rebelled against them so completely that they lack the freedom to correct or protect us anymore. Many of them are of the same generation and refuse to speak absolutes to anyone, knowing that to do so would be to admit that they are also held to a standard that is not self-determined.
In our completion of Maslow’s hierarchy, we pat ourselves on the back as we sit in lonely self-actualization. Our counselors, psychiatrists and psychologists provide adequate justification for this foggy prevailing spirit of the age. After all, any problems we do have were probably caused by someone else and we just need to focus more inward in order to be healthy. As we increase in our own estimation we leave aside Biblical teaching that clearly says we should give rather than receive, take up our cross, and lose our lives for His Kingdom.
The Kingdom suffers in the end as our testimony is compromised in the thick pea soup of self-consumption. We miss the whole reason for salvation, namely serving, bringing people to Jesus [Jeff]. Christianity becomes religion, where everything is about us, about looking good and getting something for ourselves. The majority of converts are not committed because we often come to Jesus in negotiation saying “I will serve You if You give me ____.” If we truly want Him, He will out of His immense love for us put His hand on that very thing that we insist on--what we consider our true self’s desire--and demand that it die on the altar. He knows that anything before Him will kill us and cause us to lose in the end the very self that we are seeking.
Fog is serious and frightening but it does not have to paralyze us. Just as we can be taught how to drive cautiously and prudently in the fog we can learn to walk wisely and carefully in the pervading selfish fog we continually awake in. The key is the Holy Spirit; learning to walk moment by moment in discernment and relationship, listening to His voice and trusting that He alone knows best. Moreover we can guard our hearts and minds, think on things that are Godly, encourage and seek out wise relationships, and cultivate a deeper relationship with God. Drive carefully, be aware of the fog, and choose to be aLight.
