Yesterday we
watched the movie of one of my favorite books.
Typically the movie versions of books frustrate me. Though I wasn’t disappointed with the
Velveteen Rabbit, there were many differences since it was only inspired by the
book. So today, we read the book.
The following is the
dialogue where the horse tells the rabbit about the progression of becoming
"real"
"What is REAL?" asked the Rabbit
"Real isn't how you are made," said the Skin Horse.
"It's a thing that happens to you. When a child loves you for a long, long
time, not just to play with, but REALLY loves you, then you become Real."
"Does it hurt?" asked the Rabbit.
"Sometimes," said the Skin Horse, for he was always
truthful. "When you are Real you don't mind being hurt."
"Does it happen all at once, like being wound up," he
asked, "or bit by bit?"
"It doesn't happen all at once," said the Skin Horse.
"You become. It takes a long time. That's why it doesn't happen often to
people who break easily, or have sharp edges, or who have to be carefully kept.
Generally, by the time you are Real, most of your hair has been loved off, and
your eyes drop out and you get loose in the joints and very shabby. But these
things don't matter at all, because once you are Real you can't be ugly, except
to people who don't understand."
"I suppose you are real?" said the Rabbit. And
then he wished he had not said it, for he thought the Skin Horse might be
sensitive.
But the Skin Horse only smiled. "The Boy's Uncle made me
Real," he said. "That was a great many years ago; but once you are
Real you can't become unreal again. It lasts for always."
This
made me think about my journey and how God’s love has changed my life. At times, it has been a painful journey. It was almost as if I had to allow my life,
my temple to be torn down. There were so
many areas that had to be stripped away.
When the process began I was so afraid. I really wasn’t sure if God would begin to
rebuild, and if He did, I thought it would be a long time before He began. I assumed that He wouldn’t restore me to who
I used to be. The thing is He didn’t try. He is gradually molding me into someone
better. “The future glory of this Temple will be greater than its past glory, says the LORD
of Heaven's Armies. And in this place I will bring peace. (Haggai 2:9 NLT).
The
thing is I didn’t get into my negative patterns over night, so I cannot expect
this transformation to be instant. I’m
reminded of the saying, "It took forty days for the Israelites to get out
of Egypt and 40 years to get Egypt out of the Israelites." Even though the
Israelites left Egypt fairly quickly, it took them a lifetime to learn to trust God and rid
themselves of their old hurts, habits, and hang-ups.
How Long (Terry MacAlmon)
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