The Superman Problem

And David was angry because the LORD had broken out against Uzzah. 2 Samuel 6:8

When I first began going to recovery meetings, I was surprised to meet people there who had 10 or 20 years sober. I desperately wanted that but it seemed so impossible. I had days of sobriety, and I was struggling. It may sound absurd, but those guys seemed like Superman, having accomplished some miraculous feat that I was now expected to attempt. My only superpower was relapsing, and I was good at it. I expressed my frustration at one meeting and those who had years of sobriety assured me that they were once just like me. Then they started working on recovery and took it one day at a time, which eventually built up to years. That seemed impossible. They were superheroes and I was a super-failure.

The problem with superheroes of course, is that they’re not real. Those guys with years of recovery weren’t magically gifted, and they weren’t asking me to be. They simply decided to follow God, daily surrendering to his will, and then experienced the miracle of God’s transformation. And that, they assured me, was available to everyone. I believed in God, but still, I had my doubts.

I look at characters in the Bible the same way sometimes – as impossible superheroes. David killed Goliath with a stone. I doubt that I’d have the bravery to try, much less succeed. So, when I read about David, I put his faith on a pedestal. He followed God in every decision. That’s impossible. I’ll never get there, so why even try? I know David didn’t live a sinless life, but at this point in his story, he seemed awfully perfect.

So, I appreciate passages like today, which display David’s humanity. In the story, the people of Israel were transporting the ark of the covenant in a massive parade, when one of the men managing the cart accidentally touched the ark. This was apparently forbidden and so, God struck the man dead. The passage goes on to explain that David was angry at God for this. This makes me feel better. I’m not glad that David and God had a falling out. I just see God being overly harsh in the story and it makes me feel better that David did too. David’s faith wasn’t perfect, which I find oddly comforting.

I don’t have to be perfect, and I don’t have to be a superhero to get sober and follow God’s will. Superheroes aren’t real. But God is. And if I daily follow him, one day at a time, he will work miraculous changes in my life. I don’t have to have miraculous powers. I just need to follow the one who does.