I was playing a computer game on Facebook, and the sidebar mentioned that today was a friend’s birthday. Knowing she was a twin, I expanded the pane to find all of today’s birthdays. One of them was a friend who lives in Mexico. I was scrolling through her page to decide whether to post her birthday greetings in Español or English (her postings were in both, so I went with English) when halfway down the page I found this way-cool poster. Here’s how I first saw it.
I live in a “civilized” society. The chances of running face-to-face with a real lion (Panthera leo) who is not caged, restrained, or tamed (unless I travel to Africa) are so slim as to be almost non-existent. Still, the image hit me in the gut, even before opening it so I could read the caption to the right (I’ll show the full picture later). The pure power! It’s a still picture, but it doesn’t feel like a still. This lion is on the move.
The Lion of Judah has my back!
Always before when I considered the Lion of Judah, I saw a man. Maybe a powerful man, like Jesus, who is also God, but still, in my mind, a man. But this picture put such a powerful image to it that I will never hear that phrase the same way again.
C. S. Lewis appears to have borrowed on this image when creating Aslan for the Narnia series. When I looked it up, I discovered that “Aslan” means “lion” in Turkish (source is Wikipedia, which gave a good reference for the translation.). Aslan is described as “not a tame lion” which I remember finding very amusing when I read the books. But then, I have a strange sense of humor. A talking, not tame, lion was just fine with me. Lewis in an interview related Aslan to the Lion of Judah/Jesus.
I decided to listen to music while writing. The first few songs Pandora paid had definite religious overtones. The first played was Old Coat by Peter, Paul, and Mary. It keeps referring to life being difficult “on this side of Jordan.”
Next was Hallelujah by Leonard Cohen. It starts with
Now I’ve heard there was a secret chord
That David played, and it pleased the Lord
The next verse continues a darker part of the story of David with
Your faith was strong but you needed proof
You saw her bathing on the roof
Her beauty and the moonlight overthrew you
The verse ends with a reference to Samson and how “she cut your hair.”
I find this very timely. My church is starting a 6-week series on the life of David next week. It is sure to be entertaining. If you are looking for more knowledge of the story and a new way to hear it, come join us. Drop me a line and I’ll get you the details.
God is everywhere, in details large and small. I can’t always see him, but I know he is there. I try to keep an eye out. Today, it was webpages, literature, and music. Here is the full size picture. Another reference to David!
