Current Events Monday: Would You Do This?
With all the usual harrowing news taking up space over the weekend, you may have missed a rather interesting and unique occurrence in (or over) Paris. As a way of celebrating France’s annual “Heritage Days,” Nathan Paulin hooked up a high line wire between the Eiffel Tower and Chaillot Theatre and progressed to walk across the line barefooted. To put this in perspective, Paulin’s wire was about 230 feet in the air, and he walked on it for around 2000 feet, or a half-mile. French daredevil takes hair-raising Seine tightrope walk (yahoo.com)
Some days it’s hard for me to get out of bed, much less walk a high-wire. At any rate, Paulin accomplished his feat (pun-intended), and he apparently did so after a long period of wrangling with city leaders for necessary permits. It sounds like Paris operates a bit like Austin in that regard. When interviewed, Paulin remarked that he performed the high wire act “to bring a new perspective on heritage.” I’m personally a little foggy on what walking a half-mile while suspended 230 feet above the ground has to do with heritage, but more power to him.
Paulin’s hijinks did however strike a momentous thought. I harkened back to a story in which William Carey—quite an effective missionary—found a rather critical and harsh audience when he first proposed going to India in a meeting with his ministerial colleagues. Carey is quoted to have said to the unruly audience, “Expect great things from God, attempt great things for God,” thus tipping the scales in his favor under the guidance of the Holy Spirit.
God may call us at times to do tasks that appear to others as if you are walking on a tightrope from the Eiffel Tower. Consider how Paul and his cohort got to Macedonia. Or how Peter welcomed Gentiles into the Kingdom. Or how Jesus ate with “sinners.” Or how Joshua’s spies befriended Rahab the prostitute. If God is for us, who can be against us?