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Eitan with harmonica and dog
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The exhibit at the New Mexico
History Museum was called "Voices of Counterculture in the Southwest". We
walked into one of the alcoves, entitled "Placitas". This was the name
of the small town outside of Albuquerque where Connie and I enjoyed our
January 1969 honeymoon in a cave, and were later that spring awakened by
a rattlesnake in the rock wall of our refurbished adobe cellar.
In that museum alcove I had a strange experience. Right there, on the
classy exhibit wall was a photo showing me in an impromptu jam session
with a bunch of hippie friends! Seeing yourself in a museum is quite an
experience. The exhibit documented that we were not alone in "leaving
civilization" in our very early 20s to carve out an alternative
organic/tribal/close-to-the-land/non-monetary existence. The professors
of modern anthropology and the museum curators obviously saw our "back to
the land" movement as an historical phenomenon worthy of study and
display.
Disenchantment with the Status Quo
What compelled us? How did we summon the idealism and raw determination
to leave the comfortable familiarity of cities and suburbs? For one thing
we were disenchanted with the status quo. The burgeoning materialism of
post-World War II America and the mushrooming influence of technology
caused us to ask, "Is all this really bringing us closer to each other
and to the bedrock meaning of life?"
Second, we had a dream. Our dream was to create a "society" in which
people would help each other, work together, and enjoy the simplest
things in life - thus bettering the world. True, the experiment did not
endure. But that was because each of us "did what was right in our own
eyes," lacking the overarching unifier of the Redeemer and His
magnificent redemption.
So, what are we supposed to learn from this - both for aging baby-boomers
and for 20-somethings who are searching for life direction?
The Radical Bent of Youth
"Your old men shall dream dreams (and) your young men shall see
visions" (Joel 2:28). Through Joel, the Lord is speaking to our
generations simultaneously. Seeing our times, the prophet anticipated the
importance of approaching the modern predicament with Heaven-born hope
and courage at a time when the outward signs would be anything but
hopeful.
Here's the take home lesson: it is vital not to lose our idealism.
We must fuel the fire of vision - or recover it if it is dying out. The
next stage of history will hand us the opportunity. The approaching time
of conflict and confusion is our cue. By walking in refreshed faith and
renewed vision we can be Messiah's messengers, seeing many lives
transformed.
When I was young and radical there was a certain way of thinking. We took
a hard look at the world around us and found it severely wanting. (It
still is.) We were carried by a utopian vision. And we were ready to make
sacrifices to pull it off. Is this so different from our situation in
2017? Underneath the veneer of internet entertainment is a loneliness and
self-centeredness that begs for change. There is a disillusionment
similar to what we felt fifty years ago. And so I dare say we are poised
for a wave of the Spirit even greater than the one that swept millions
into the Kingdom back in the late '0s and early '70s.
A Museum Wall or a Current Event?
I don't want merely to adorn a museum wall. By His grace God washed
my heart and gave me His dreams. No less than in our commune days, I want
to devote myself to a vision worthy of my all. But this vision (without
which we run amok - see Proverbs 29:18) comes from the Most High. It is
the vision of living by the Spirit of God in such a way that
sinners' hearts are captured by Yeshua's love and Israel's
revival impacts all the nations of the world. With that in our hearts,
let us proceed with renewed and sanctified idealism as visionary pioneers
in the last days.
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