“A man in his life may have many teachers, some most unexpected.  The question lies with the man himself:  Will he learn from them?”      –Louis L’Amour

“Society has adopted the judicial process as its moral yardstick and forfeited common sense and personal responsibility.”       –John Vermillion

Well, it was a week; a good start, and I handed out a few lessons besides academia.  But they came running out of the chute and I had no clue as to what to expect.  Hmmm, that’s not exactly true.  After teaching a few years one kind of gets a sense of what to expect very quickly.  The real proof will be many encounters throughout the year.
Somewhere along this trek there will be nudges, maybe even some obstinance, many successes, and most will relate to attitude and choice.  I even had one already show his colors.  There was a smart aleck who belligerently challenged me so I told him how the cow eats the cabbage.  The next morning he was at my room complaining that he didn’t like the way I yelled at him.  If I didn’t have to get in serious mode right quick it might have made me laugh.  I didn’t even raise my voice to him, but I did give him that “tone.”  This particular morning I told him that I knew how to yell and he could experience it if he so wished.  He declined.
But this is another case of what is happening.  It is alright to be disrespectful, and even apologize later, but don’t dare hurt anyone’s feelings with a reprimand.  What is going to happen when the world smacks him in the face?  Does the world care about your feelings?  I think most of the time it disregards and doesn’t care if you win or lay in the gutter on the side of the street.
I recall the story of a new guy hired on and getting ready to ride out.  He was partnered with an old-timer.   He rode off right in front of the man of experience and in a matter of seconds was on the ground–roped, and tied like a calf.  He learned very quickly that he overstepped his bounds; he had not yet paid the price.  One of the things I see missing lately is the fact that people don’t think they have to pay their dues.  It goes back to that sense of entitlement.  It is important that we teach that there is a price to be paid for success.

“Now Samuel had not yet experienced the Lord, because the word of the Lord had not yet been revealed to him.”         –1 Samuel 3:7 (HCSB)

“Faith is a reasoning trust, a trust which reckons thoughtfully and confidently upon the trustworthiness of God.”       –John R. Stott

“His knowledge of this land might mean the difference between life and death, and he was too competent a fighting man not to devote time to a study of the terrain.”         –Louis L’Amour

One of the words used so often today that I despise is “awesome.”  When people use that word what do they mean?  They will say, “That was awesome.”  Or “He is awesome.”  The term is used so flippantly that when something is truly “awesome” what word can be used?
My wife and I went to Saguaro National Park in southern Arizona this summer.  Now, those cacti are amazing and are on the verge in my mind of being awesome.  It is quite a sight to see, especially a forest of them.  As we drove and hiked this the cactus forest we saw some amazing saguaro.  Then when you read about them, they are even more awesome in God’s special creation, and they live up to 700-800 years.
We traveled to the Grand Canyon a few years ago.  Mercy me, now that is an awesome sight!  We stayed there several days and saw the sun rise and set depicting different hues.  A storm came through the canyon and added to the sight.  I think that is the way it is when we encounter God.  He is overwhelming–awesome in power and majesty.  It was like Moses on the mountain, trembling before the power of God.  But that is not knowing Him, just like looking at the Grand Canyon is not knowing the canyon.
I try to imagine the settlers traveling West in the 1800s.  When they saw the mountains, back before pollution, they were faced with an awesome spectacle.  They did not know the mountains, they just stood amazed.  However, there were men who knew the mountains.  They knew the trails, the canyons, the gorges, the rivers and streams.  They knew the storms and the seasons.  They had a working relationship with the mountains.
To know something you have to live with it, learn about and from it, become intimate in it throughout all seasons and that includes the seasons of life.  We see the awesomeness of the Grand Canyon or the Rocky Mountains, but you really don’t know them unless you get down inside them and travel them.  Moses understood that with God.  He saw and felt the awesomeness of God, but he wanted more.  He wanted to see His face, to have a relationship with Him.  We might see the power of God and say He is awesome, but that does not mean we really know Him.