24

It's Monday! Every Monday evening, I gather with a few good friends in my basement and watch "24". I really enjoy it! We meet an hour before the show to fellowship and talk about the spiritual significance of "24". Actually, we end up talking about all kinds of subjects, until we realize it's 9:00 and have to run downstairs. Some of the people at our church have laughed at the idea, so I decided to give my "24" spiritual insight from last week's episode.

Phillip Bauer, Jack's dad, is a very intriguing character. He has already murdered one son, threatened the lives of the other son and a daughter-in-law, and kidnapped his grandson. In last week's episode, Phillip has his grandson trapped in a hotel room. As Josh, the grandson, is trying to escape, Phillip pulls a gun on him. Then, he says something like this: "No one's life is worth losing what I worked my whole life to build." A bit extreme? Well, it got me thinking about what we're willing to exchange for success (however we define it). When my desire for success, money, fame, pleasure, etc. becomes the focus of my life, then others become a pawn in my game. Broken relationships become the collateral damage of my pursuit.

If you bite and ravage each other, watch out - in no time at all you will be annihilating each other, and where will your precious freedom be then? (Galatians 5:15 - The Message)