{"id":827,"date":"2021-06-29T09:13:29","date_gmt":"2021-06-29T13:13:29","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/js1cd06kre.onrocket.site\/?p=827"},"modified":"2021-06-29T09:13:29","modified_gmt":"2021-06-29T13:13:29","slug":"its-time-to-jump","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/glennsreflections.com\/index.php\/2021\/06\/29\/its-time-to-jump\/","title":{"rendered":"It’s Time to Jump"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

The notion that people can \u201ctrain fleas\u201d is just an urban legend, right?

Every now and then, however, urban legends turn out to be true \u2013 and it just so happens that one of the smallest entities that might lurk in our carpets can be taught a fascinating trick.

There are more than 2,500 species of this tiny, wingless insect.  When full-grown, they rarely exceed one-eighth of an inch in length. 

Fleas, however, are world-class jumpers.  Because of their highly specialized back legs, they can propel themselves 40 to 100 times their body length.  If an average-size human being could do that, he or she could hop over 300 feet.  Forget the Olympics.  We\u2019d be talking about a new Marvel Comics superhero. 

Training fleas not <\/em>to jump would seem to be a remarkable achievement.

But it\u2019s actually not that challenging.

All you need is a Mason jar.  Add a generous handful of fleas.  Secure the lid.  Then wait for the fleas to do what fleas do so well \u2013 jump. 

A flea will jump right into the walls of its container.  Splat.  <\/em>Now even a creature with a flea-sized brain will ultimately conclude, \u201cYou know, it might not hurt so badly if I don\u2019t jump so high the next time.\u201d  Within two days the fleas will have fully accommodated themselves to the shape of the Mason jar \u2013 so much so that when the lid is removed, the fleas will not jump to safety.  They are fully capable of launching themselves beyond their glass prison.  But they have been trained to be satisfied with lesser goals. 

We should know exactly how this feels.  It happens to ordinary people all the time. 

For some kids, expectations were contained from Day One:  \u201cWhy do you want to go to college?  You\u2019re not trying to leave our family behind, are you?\u201d  Splat<\/em>.  A pioneering spirit gets squelched.

Some of us were told we\u2019re not really high jumpers:  \u201cYou should avoid anything that requires math or science,\u201d insists a teacher.  Splat<\/em>.  Doors close. 

Others of us feel as if the world has become an unsafe place: \u201cAfter my marriage fell apart, I lost confidence that I can ever be in a healthy relationship.\u201d  Splat<\/em>.  Our fear becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy.

Then there are the Seven Last Words of the Church:  \u201cWe\u2019ve never done it that way before<\/em>.  Thanks for sharing your interesting idea; maybe you should try the Lutherans.\u201d  Splat<\/em>.  A spiritual entrepreneur wonders if she ever heard God\u2019s voice in the first place. 

And there\u2019s always this clincher:  \u201cI\u2019m too old to try something new.\u201d  Splat<\/em>.  It\u2019s so easy to talk ourselves into settling for modest expectations and modest results. 

If we don\u2019t jump so high the next time, it won\u2019t hurt so badly.

But that\u2019s true only if we believe the lie that the lid is still on life\u2019s jar \u2013 that something or someone (second-rate DNA, toxic parents, unimaginative teachers, an unsupportive spouse, a lousy boss, or just plain bad luck) has always held us back.  We\u2019ve coached ourselves into seeing walls that no longer exist, and cling to the suspicion that risk-taking is just way too risky.

There\u2019s no verse of Scripture that says, \u201cThe lid is off.  You can jump!\u201d    

But in a sense, that\u2019s the message of the entire New Testament. 

That\u2019s what Peter preaches on the day of Pentecost when the Holy Spirit falls upon the early church, and young and old, male and female alike are gifted and empowered to begin remaking the world (see Acts chapter 2).  And that\u2019s what Paul writes in his extraordinary, crazy, run-on sentence that takes up a whopping 11 verses in Ephesians chapter 1 \u2013 that those who abandon themselves to Christ are blessed, called, chosen, forgiven, predestined, redeemed, loved, included, and sealed with the Spirit.

God has taken off the lid of stuffiness and religiosity.  He has torn down the walls of spiritual fear and insecurity. 

We are free in Christ.  It’s time to jump.

God\u2019s Yes is bigger than any of the No\u2019s we ever thought might be holding us back.   
<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The notion that people can \u201ctrain fleas\u201d is just an urban legend, right? Every now and then, however, urban legends turn out to be true \u2013 and it just so happens that one of the smallest entities that might lurk in our carpets can be taught a fascinating trick. There are more than 2,500 species of this tiny, wingless insect. … Read more »<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":828,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[257,175],"class_list":["post-827","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized","tag-confidence","tag-spiritual-identity"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/glennsreflections.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/827","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/glennsreflections.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/glennsreflections.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/glennsreflections.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/glennsreflections.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=827"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/glennsreflections.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/827\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":829,"href":"https:\/\/glennsreflections.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/827\/revisions\/829"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/glennsreflections.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/828"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/glennsreflections.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=827"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/glennsreflections.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=827"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/glennsreflections.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=827"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}