It’s up to us to roll the ball

So, the other day I’m out mowing — well, to be more specific, I was zigzagging around the yard looking for weeds to decimate – when I started to get a little peeved. Granted, my mood wasn’t the best the moment I grabbed the mower.

There it was, early April, and I was sweating in 85-degree weather doing something I didn’t think I’d have to contend with until June. There were so many weeds, and my yard is so horribly large. Looking across the lawn, I was reminded of those airplane views of massive herds of wildebeests pausing in their trek across the Serengeti — except that the Serengeti has more grass.

Sweat was pouring off my face, and I was getting nowhere with the weeds. They had seemed to adapt somehow to the point that they were able to duck when they saw the mower coming. I think they even were able to signal to their brother weeds up ahead.

I began to feel exasperated. I finally looked up to God and asked, "Could you use a little help up there? All we need is a little more cool weather, maybe a snow shower or two. It’s not brain surgery!"

Granted, I really dislike yard work.

And the more I thought about it, the more I began to wonder about our relationship with God. I began to wonder if maybe, at times, what we have is not necessarily a Father/child relationship, but sort of a Quarterback/receiver relationship.

See, I’m not sure we humans always give ourselves enough credit. After all, we’ve done some pretty great things. For instance, God made lemons, but it was a human being who invented lemonade.

And along the same line of thinking, God invented the tree, but we invented Taco Bell.

God invented dogs – which I admit was pretty impressive — but it was human beings who domesticated them, teaching them to do important things like sit, beg, roll over, and take messages, much like we’ve learned to do ourselves over the years.

Yes, God invented flowers — from the lovely daffodil to the alluring tulip — but it was human beings who invented allergy medication.

God invented fire, but we invented marshmallows.

God invented the cow; we devised car deodorizers.

God created Donald Rumsfeld; we invented the mute button.

God came up with electricity, but humans created "The Beverly Hillbillies."

God invented the mosquito; we invented "Off."

And yes, God gave us the Ten Commandments: "Don’t lie; don’t steal; honor your parents…" But when you think about it, is there even one word in those Ten Commandments about how to fix your car when it breaks down on the highway? No. That we had to learn that on our own.

Now, I realize I’m being a little facetious. God’s touch is upon all things, even those made by human beings. He gave us our mind, our ingenuity, and our creativity to make great things happen.

No, we can’t control the weather, nor should we question God’s motives in creating abysmally hot days in April. He knows what He’s doing.

When you think about it, our relationship with God is, in a way, a lot like a relationship between teammates. You don’t stand around and wait for God to make things happen, just as you don’t stand around on a football field and wait for the ball to sprout legs and run itself to the end zone. When you’re on a team you have to contribute. You have to make things happen.

And the great thing about God is, even if you make a bad play, you can rest assured that you’ll never be traded.

In other words (don’t worry – this is the last sports analogy) God sets up the bowling pins, but it’s up to us to roll the ball. Whether you get a strike, a spare or a gutter ball depends on how you send the ball down the lane. But regardless of how you bowl, God will always be there to reset the pins.