​EMBODIMENT OF WONDER: Good Guides are Connoisseurs of ‘Living’

“Wine makes every meal an occasion, every table more elegant, every day more civilized.”
--Andre Simon
“...wine [is] a constant proof that God loves us and loves to see us happy.”
― Benjamin Franklin, a drafter and signer of the US Constitution

Good Guides Do What Good Wine Does
So, our Galapagos guides took us one morning to a very special event: a feeding frenzy of the blue-footed boobies.   Hundreds of blue-footed boobies—a comical waterfowl with bright blue legs and webbed feet, and a silly high-stepping mating dance.

Hundreds of them swooping high over our heads, then quickly pulling a 180 to dive bomb the water’s surface (at speeds up to 60 mph) to feast on the schools of mackerel that gathered like an all you can eat buffet in the off-shore shallows.  We stood, mesmerized by the disappearing boobies all around our pangas.  Splash! Splash! Splash!
Watching those graceful, fun-loving beasts dive and feed, then take off again to dive and feed--it was magical, and we were frozen, awed, alive.  And our Galapagos guides, who had experienced this hundreds of times, were also caught up in the magic and wonder of the moment. 

 I can imagine all of us viewing this amazing ritual, and maybe lifting an invisible glass of wine to celebrate the blue-footed boobie feast. But, why would wine be what comes to mind to add to this special moment?  Why not tea? Or root beer?  Or beer?  What is it about wine that enhances and celebrates momentous occasions?  And why do so many people/cultures treat ‘wine’ as a special occasion in and of itself?

Why Wine?
So, I asked Google, “What’s so special about wine? Why do so many cultures think of wine as “the” beverage for celebration, for honoring someone, for sharing a meal and making connections?  What is the history there?

Here are some of the sentiments Google returned:

• Wine-making dates back to 6000 BCE.
• Wine has played a part in many faith traditions--Jewish, Islam, Christian. 
• The New Testament, records ​three VERY key moments in the salvation narrative.: 
  • Wine was a part of the wedding celebration in Cana (when Jesus honored his mother's request to transform barrels of water into "the best" wine). 
  • Wine was a part of the Last Supper,  where Jesus used wine as a metaphor for the shedding of His blood for the redemption of sin.
  • Bitter wine was lifted up to a crucified Jesus to 'quench his thirst' while he expired on the cross. 
• Wine elevates dining by setting a mirthful tone, by slowing the pace of a shared meal, and by enhancing flavors of good foods.
• A wine’s uniqueness is heavily influenced by the soil and climate in which the grapes were cultivated—tasting a wine “is like tasting a specific time and place.”
• Wine has symbolized love, joy, human experience (at its best and at its worst), in music, narratives and poetry throughout history.

Because so many thoughts are coming to my  mind, I'm just going to make a clear connection:

Good Guides  (good tour guides, good life guides, good elementary school teachers, etc.) are connoisseurs of intoxicating experiences.   Our tour guides took us from one intoxicating event to another.  The booby feast is one example of many (like the chocolate tasting event which was life changing for sure!)

Another example--my 5th grade homeroom teacher, Mrs. Lawler.  Mrs. Lawler believed in active learning for sure.  Because of her, I learned to square dance (in Texas history studies),  I learned to do the Polynesian dance - Tinikling (the bamboo pole dance) studying the history of the Hawaiian Islands.  I still sing the 50 states song she used to teach the 50 states (in alphabetical order).  Mrs. Lawler created experiences that made learning intoxicating in the best sense of the word . And she had fun along with us.  Mrs. Lawler was a Good Guide.

"I Like Life. Life Likes Me.”
The #6 definition of ‘wine’ (according to Dictionary.com) is: “something that invigorates, cheers, or intoxicates.” Intoxicating experiences are the 'wine' of life--they slow the pace of our lives so that we 'taste and see' more beauty and gain more insight than we would have on our own.  As we 'taste and see,' we change.  We may gain a new perspective, a deep appreciation, empathy when we have walked in (or near) someone else's world.

The 1970 holiday movie/musical Scrooge is the perfect visual representation of that definition. The movie recounts Charles Dickens’ well-known story of redemption of a miserable, selfish, lonely, bitter man. Scrooge is guided by Christmas ghosts to visit key moments in his life—good and bad—to perhaps begin to perceive life and people a little differently.

With the encouragement of the Ghost of Christmas’ Present, and a cup of “the milk of human kindness” to drink, Ebenezer Scrooge learns to sing:
​
“I like life. Life Likes ME!
I make life a perpetual spree!
Eating food, Drinking wine,
Thinking who’d like the privilege to dine me!
I like drinking the drink I’m drinking.
I like thinking the thoughts I’m thinking."

Scrooge’s transformation resulted from some special, supernatural encounters that served to open his heart, and bring him to life.  

Invigorated? Yes. 
From misery to joy?  Yes.
Intoxicated by people, by love, by connection?  Yes.

The wonder in those encounters could not be ignored--a Christmas miracle!

Think of a time when you experienced a miracle moment that sparked a passion in your heart for something new.   Maybe someone noticed you for something you enjoy and excel in.  Maybe it encouraged you to take that road less travelled.

​Once again, a couple of teachers come to my mind: an 8th grade English teacher encouraged me by selecting my original Halloween short-story to read aloud to the class. In high school, a crusty women's tennis coach I was always afraid of complimented my backhand (prior to that I felt 100% non-athletic).  Interesting thought---Words of encouragement can intoxicate and invigorate too!

What about those moments when your heavenly Father sends a very clear sign that you are loved, and that you are not alone.  Like,

• A scripture comes to mind that perfectly meets your need in that hour. 
• A special worship song plays at just the right moment on your radio or in a worship service.
• OR, you go to the altar for prayer, and a prayer partner comes to you with a very specific message you needed to hear, and that prayer partner would have had no prior knowledge of what that message from God would mean for you.

 
Remember that “Wow, Lord!” feeling?

Bald eagle sightings have become, for me, a symbol of God’s nearness and His affirmation.  Several times I have sought God’s counsel over a matter, then after acting on what I believed was His instruction, one or more eagles crossed my path those same days. 

The first time the majestic bird was roosting high in a leafless tree on my way, for the first time, to the food pantry where I had just volunteered, believing God was leading me there to serve.

The second time the eagle was at MY house, over our pasture, gracefully riding the thermals.  It was beautiful and served to affirm a decision I had made, from a place of brokenness and desperation, to do the hard (but right) thing. 

THEN the third experience, over all too quickly, is vividly etched in my mind.  A bald eagle flying toward my moving vehicle suddenly swooped down and back up in time for me to have an extreme close -up view of his fully spread, snow -white tail feathers. Stunning!

When serendipitous moments like those happen, I am elated, transported to another realm, and intoxicated with the wonder that God would take time for me.  I hear God say, “Well done.  I love you. I am pleased with you. Keep following me, and you will soar!” 

That is my Great Guide, the Holy Spirit. I know what it is to be filled with Holy Spirit joy—better than being intoxicated with wine!!
 
To Wine or Not to Wine:
Now, I cannot leave this analogy without including the Scriptural cautions against over-indulging, and the parallel for ‘over-guidance’.
​
Proverbs (20:1 , 23:29-32, 31:6-7) warns that too much of a good thing comes with consequences. In New Testament passages (1 Timothy and Ephesians) Paul cautions believers to “not be addicted to much wine” and to “not get drunk with wine,” but instead, to be filled with (and changed by) God’s Spirit. 

I believe a good guide will not over-guide.  We can invite/lead another (or be led) to an experience.  A good guide will stop there.  Over-indulgence/ over-direction will rob the follower of discovering something wonderful on their own. 

I honestly can’t imagine a tour guide telling me what I should have seen or heard or felt.  Some relationships are very susceptible to the ‘should have, could have, would have’ dynamic, like teaching, or coaching, or parenting.

​Forcing a particular outcome by micro-managing the experience can result --not in inspiring, invigorating, or energizing the other--but rather, deflating, discouraging, or frustrating the other—a killer of magic and joy.

Even the Holy Spirit does not micro-manage our spiritual development. Whether we follow His guidance, or go out on our own, we learn.  We experience. 

If we take a step of faith, we experience God, and if we are willing, we keep following the Spirit deeper in, and to greater beauty and wonder. 

Not the 7-11 Big Gulp.  

​But sips to savor.

Prayer:
Father, doing life with You is a great adventure.  As you tell us in Your Word, we can taste and see that You are Good. I have tasted the wine of living in Your presence.  I know you are good.  And I know many adventures await.  In some, you will lead me to lead someone else to ‘taste and see’.  You are a perfect guide.  Help me follow your lead, be in the moment, and give your Holy Spirit the reins. Show me the next steps and keep me mindful —you lead me into green pastures for rest, you lead me to still waters to quench my thirst, and you restore my soul (Ps 23). Everywhere you guide me is good.
Don't let me miss a thing.  Amen

P.S.--(fun facts!)  Check out some 'wine' commentary by some prominent clergy and theologians:

“Beer is made by men, wine by God.”
― Martin Luther, German priest, theologian, Reformation mover and shaker, hymnwriter
 
“Wine is like the incarnation--it is both divine and human”
― Paul Tillich, German/American Theologian and Philosopher

"Men are like wine--some turn to vinegar, but the best improve with age."
--Pope John XXIII