Embracing

Supposedly, there is a time for it and a time for refraining from it. I could leave you to guess what it might be; it could be anything - running, speaking, eating steak, petting spiders - but from verse five of Ecclesiastes: (there is) a time for embracing and a time for shunning embracing. What? When would we shun embracing? Who doesn't want a hug? Isn't that what's wrong with this world - that we've learned to avoid hugging? Embracing?



I like embracing. It feels good. Hugging Christine is like a little trip down memory lane. I can remember my first embrace with her (I will spare you the details) but walking into her open arms is like a ship finding a safe cove out of the wind. All storms cease; the protection of her arms is as needed as running, speaking, steak and spiders (I can do without them, though). I'm not writing this to brown nose because our anniversary is in a couple of weeks (maybe a little bit) but I think all of us, even the men (especially the men, perhaps) enjoy a daily hug. Hugs are a bit different nowadays though in my household. Now, as I approach Christine for a hug like a plane coming in for a landing, I have to prepare for the inevitable wriggling and wiggling of the girls prying their little bodies inbetween Christine and I needing to be part of the group hug. Good times. Good times. Pretty soon they will too big to wiggle between the two of us.



Is there a difference between embracing and hugging? That's the true question from this blog, I think. And, I believe there is a difference. Hugging has a time limit. I looked it up. The Guinness Book of World Records says that Paul and Sandra Gerrard set the record at 24 hours and 1 minute. Surprisingly, the world's longest kiss is six hours longer. Karmit Tsubera and Dror Orpaz found a way to lock lips for just under 31 consecutive hours. They obviously did not have children trying to wedge between them.



Anyway, hugging has a time limit. There is only so long that two humans can be connected. It's a natural thing. By that, I mean, nature has intended a certain amount of space to between everything. All atoms, molecules, insects, plants and animals seek a modicum of space to thrive and survive. That is why, in most psychologist minds, it is incredibly healthy for couples to have a hobby, or a circle of friends that help them find space outside of the marital relationship. Distance makes the heart grow fonder, as they say - But at the same time, too much space makes the heart wander. We'll talk about that some other time.



Embrasure is different than hugging. I believe that embracing is more than just physical bodies touching. Embracing is the use of the whole person - mind, body, strength and soul. When one would say "I embrace life," or "I'm embracing the past," "I'm finding a way to embrace my feminine side." ( I haven't said that yet.) To embrace means to encircle something with every part of your being. I believe this is what Jesus was talking about, and the shema from Deut:6 "Love the Lord your God with all your heart, your soul and your might."



In other words, embrace God.



It's hard though. We find too many ways to distance ourselves; we find things that wedge between us and God. Perhaps unconsciously we'd rather hug God, find a little bit of comfort, peace from the storm, and then let him go. I feel better; now I can make it on my own, thank you very much. God becomes a wonderfully soft Teddy bear sitting on my bed at night.



But this, I don't think, is the embracing that Solomon is writing about in Ecclesiastes. Throughout the first three chapters, the king writes distinctly about the futility of all things like a chasing after the wind. At the end of chapter three he writes: Thus I realized that the only worthwhile thing there is for (people) to enjoy themselves and do what is good in their lifetime; also, that whenever a (person) does eat and drink and get enjoyment out of wealth, it is a gift from God (3:12-13).



Embracing the good things in life is a gift from God. Pleasure is a gift. Hugging is a gift. Steak, is a gift (even if the cow would disagree).



But there are certain things that we are allowed to refrain from. Life, at times, can seem like a cosmic buffet; I'll take a smidgen of this, a serving of that, a dollop of this and a slice of that. Pretty soon, our plate is full and we become stuffed with our own gluttony of life. Paul says in 1 Corinthians 6:12, All things are lawful for me, but not all things are beneficial. Surely life is full of pleasures, and none of them can tear us away from the love of God in Christ, but not all of them are beneficial. Our society revels in the bacchanalia; if it feels good, do it. Drugs? No worries. Sex? What can it hurt? Food? Fifty-eight million Americans alone are overweight. Forty million are obese. According to www.annecollins.com, three million Americans are morbidly obese. The website also states that 78% of Americans do not meet the daily basic activity amount to remain physically healthy. 25% of Americans are completely sedentary. According to A Healthier America, if 1 in 10 Americans would embrace a walking program (a walking program!) the country would save 5.6 billion dollars per year in heart related health costs.

We refrain from embracing healthy activity because it takes work and sometimes work doesn't feel as good. Well, there was my soapbox for healthy activity.

But beyond that the ability to refrain from certain activities makes us well rounded individuals - adults. Adults have to make decisions about what they do, what they say and what they embrace. Imagine the chaos of the world if we never filtered the things that we said or if we never curbed our appetites for pleasure. This planet would be ruined in short time.

There is a time for embracing - heart, soul, mind and strength - God, health, relationships.

There is a time for refraining:

I'll let you decide when that is.