Intoxicated Sponsor
“Son of man, eat whatever you find here. Eat this scroll, and go, speak to the house of Israel.” So I opened my mouth, and he gave me this scroll to eat. Ezekiel 3:1-2
I had my medical degree and license before I had children of my own, which means that as a Family Practice physician, I distributed advice on raising children that was probably less than helpful. Ignorant and naïve, I just had no real-life experience. All I had to give was book knowledge, which was perhaps medically accurate, but lacked the common sense that comes with actually raising children. When I finally had children of my own, I realized that I had no idea what I was doing. I’m not a perfect parent now, but having my own children certainly made me a better physician.
The necessity of knowing something personally before sharing it with others is found in today’s passage. In it, the prophet Ezekiel recounts a vision in which God commanded him to eat the scroll of his word. Before Ezekiel could feed God’s commands to others, he first had to ingest it and live it himself. He could not merely say the right words. The message needed to be manifested in his own life first.
This has profound implications in my own life. Like my naïve parenting advice, I have tried to give others advice on recovery while I was relapsing. I have tried to teach Sunday School while living only for myself. Like a drunk sponsor, I have tried to tell others how to live, while my own life was a disaster.
This is unfortunately quite natural for us. When we hear God’s word, we often think of others who need to hear it. If only my spouse could hear this sermon on patience. He (or she) really needs this! God’s word is first and foremost, something that we must ingest and live ourselves though. It is not a weapon we primarily point at others. We don’t need to be perfect to spread God’s message, but we must always apply his word to our own lives before we attempt to share it with those around us.
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Hi Scott,
Another great post that made me think. In my past experience as a drug/alcohol/gambling treatment center chaplain, I used to share a story about a heart attack victim complaining about the lack of empathy he received from his cardiologist after going to the ER. I explained that it is unreasonable to expect your cardiologist to have a myocardial infarction to improve their empathy or establish their competence as a cardiologist. If they’ve survived a medical crisis of that magnitude, it will certainly improve their understanding of the patient experience. I don’t think it prevents them from helping their patients the best way they can. People generally care, even if they lack the education (wisdom) that comes from experience.
This is a simple challenge to the person seeking recovery to let go of some preconceived notions about how can God can reach into their lives. In other words, God can use normies to reach out to addicts. God can even use sinners to reach out to His saints.
I don’t mean to belabor the point.
As a person in recovery for 23 years, I understand that one person in the program reaching out to another person in the program has more potency and credibility than someone who doesn’t share the mutual experience of addiction and recovery. That being said, I encourage people to stay open-minded to the who/what/why/when of God reaching into their life. It’s a nod to the doctrine of sovereignty.
I better cut this off right here. Another great post, thanks for sharing.
Pastor Jeremy E.
Ha! Thanks Jeremy. That thought occurred to me as I was writing. I can’t possibly hope to experience everything that my patients do. There are some things though, that I must first experience before I try to share them. If I am addicted, it will ring hollow to insist that others be sober. I’ve done this with God’s word, and though I know I won’t do it perfectly, I must take in God’s word daily, if I hope to live it and preach it.
Amen and amen!