A LESSON FROM TRAINS

On a recent bike trip that put me high above two parallel train tracks, I beheld something something quite instructive. Two trains were passing each in opposite directions. I could see that both were coal trains, a common sight here in Colorado. The train heading north was empty. The train heading to the south was loaded with coal, each car bursting with that black treasure mined from the bowels of the earth. I stood and watched for some minutes, wondering what, if anything, God might teach me by this rare spectacle.

I immediately began to think about the Bible narrative. The empty train represented man in his desperation. Whether man knows it or not he is an empty vessel, devoid of all ability and virtue. And sadly, he hasn’t a single resource to cure his emptiness however hard he might try. But then I thought; emptiness is not a bad thing if it leads to something better. In fact, emptiness is a prerequisite for receiving the better. The philosopher Laozi said ‘an empty bowl is the most useful.’ What he meant is that a bowl that is full has no potential, it already has realized its purpose. But an empty bowl has infinite potential; it can be used in a myriad of ways. Its potential is infinite. As Christians we can alter Laozi’s maxim to say ‘an empty bowl is most blessed.’ When we are empty we are in a position to realize who we really are and to acknowledge God for who He really is. An empty bowl knows it is insufficient. The empty soul looks to the God who is all-sufficient. Then I thought that prayer is simply playing the part of an empty bowl. And when we know we are empty then we cry out to the only One who can fill us. Emptiness is the engine of prayer because only in emptiness do we look outside ourselves. Full bowls sit pat and do nothing. Jesus noted this when he said, ‘blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness for they will be filled.’ Hungering and thirsting are conditions of incompletion. We are hungry because we have no food, we are thirsty because we have no drink. The one who prays is the one who sees great needs in his life and seeks help. He is like that empty train chugging northward in order to be filled. I noted how this train was moving along at a fast clip. The train that was full labored noticeably but not this train. It sped along seeking its destination. It reminded me that desperate souls pray vehemently. They cry like the blind man, ‘Son of David, have mercy on me!’ We should pray speedily as if we were that train heading north to be filled. The beauty in prayer is that unlike the train which may find no coal at the end of the journey, the desperate Christian will always find a God of infinite resources ready to fill him up with good things. God’s instruction in 81:10 is comforting, ‘open your mouth wide and I will fill it.’ Of course there are many skeptics who say this verse is not true. They have asked God for things many times and He has not answered them. Perhaps they were not desperate. Complacent prayers are rarely answered. Consider the little chick with its mouth opened wide as the mother shows up with the worm. The chick must have that food and the chick will get it. Often we are not desperate enough, empty enough to warrant and answer. Most of what we ask for are things we would like to have, not things we must have. One of the problems with many Christians is that they fail to identify the things that are desperately important. You would like that bigger house to raise your 4 children. That is a need, but is it a desperate need? Another mistake made by many is to ask for things that fail to glorify God’s name. God answers prayers that show forth His glory to the world. When we ask God for something, especially healing, it is generally motivated by our desire to feel better. In other words our comfort is what energizes our prayer not God’s glory. Could it be that God would receive more glory by sustaining a person through the suffering rather than healing him. To ask anything in Christ’s name is to ask in accordance with His character. Thus, the highest of all prayers would be to ask God to mold and shape us into the character of His Son. Prayers that magnify the beauty of Jesus strike right at the heart of God’s will. We can always expect answers to such prayers. But again, when we pray that Christ might be magnified we are looking away from ourselves, away from our emptiness and we are acknowledging His fullness, His glory, His beauty. The bottom line is if you desperately pray for God’s glory He will surely fill up your train with great things.

Now I noted that the train heading south was full. Its dozens of cars were all filled with that rich treasure of black coal. But it chugged along very slowly. Why? Because its cargo was rich and weighty. In desperation we pray quickly, but in patience we wait slowly. The bible is quick to point out how slow God’s answers to prayer often are. ‘David one of your sons will sit on your throne.’ ‘How wonderful!’ said David. ‘Oh, but David, can you wait one thousand years?’ Good gifts take time to season. To give us the best answers, God responds to our desperate pleas thoughtfully and deliberately. Wine takes years to ferment and beautiful answers to prayer take even longer. When we want quick answers we are telling God we prefer a fast food meal rather than a slowly cooked steak dinner. Elaborate meals take time and so it is with divine meals. Bunyan understood the beauty of waiting for God’s answer with his characters Passion and Patience. He writes, ‘I saw moreover in my Dream, that the Interpreter took him by the hand, and had him into a little room, where sat two little Children, each one in his chair. The name of the eldest was Passion, and the name of the other Patience. Passion seemed to be much discontent; but Patience was very quiet. Then Christian asked, What is the reason of the discontent of Passion? The Interpreter answered, The Governor of them would have him stay for his best things till the beginning of the next year; but he will have all now; but Patience is willing to wait.’

Passion wanted something now but Patience was willing to wait for God’s best. When God purposes to give us the most beautiful answers to our prayers everything slows down. He wants us to enjoy the full benefit of the gift not the temporary jolt of instant gratification. He wants His answers to be lasting not ephemeral. So many of us want God’s light and fluffy answer and then when we receive it we it toss it aside as a child tosses aside an unwanted Christmas gift. God wants to give us something we shall never forget. In gifting to humanity the Savior God took hundreds of years to prepare Him for the exact moment He would come. And when the fullness of time came, there lying in that manger was the perfect answer to all our needs. To craft the perfect corner stone God, the Builder, must take time to fit that stone perfectly to our need. And according to Isaiah 28:16 it was well worth the wait for ‘he that believes shall not make haste.’ Once in awhile the answers to our prayers are hindered by the devil. Daniel had a vision and needed an answer but the appointed time was long in coming (10:1). When it finally came Daniel was informed that Michael the archangel had to fight the Prince of Persia in order to deliver the answer (Dan 10:10-14). You may be waiting on an answer because your prayer is so in line with God’s glory that Satan may be keen to oppose it. If that is your case, keep your vessel empty and wait on.

So here is the lesson from the trains. If you are praying as an empty desperate sinner and you want nothing more than for God to be glorified in your life then know that God is coming to you. And when He arrives you will see Him in a way you have never seen Him before. So keep heading north with that empty vessel called your life and keep asking. And you know what? Someday you will return home with your vessels filled to the brim to glory of your Savior and for your joy.