I have never been as close to a python as I was two days ago. It was huge and I understood how the snake, lying asleep in a curled ball, just a foot in front of me, could manage to unlock its jaws and eat a whole animal or person. The glass wall that separated us brought a certain degree of comfort but it didn't stop me from thinking about the power that was locked inside this great creature's body. Indeed every animal that we viewed at the zoo that day, left me with a mixed feeling of what was and what could have been. Even the monkeys looked playful and interesting inside their glass prison and the giraffes looked serene as they arrogantly stared down at their audience. And while the created world of a zoo lets us view all these wonderful outworkings of God's imagination and design in our own back yard, not only does it leave with a false sense of security but also can never really recreate the world in which the animal was intended to exist. As I walked through the 'exhibitions' of frogs, snakes, lizards and toads occupying small 'natural' habitats in their own sections, I though of how quickly they would know every part of their restricted world and even with the right conditions to survive, surely there's nothing more stimulating than exploration of the undiscovered. How different the world of Kruger is. In my only experience of the great park that covers vast areas of the north west of South Africa, there is no such obvious restriction on discovery for those animals that choose to travel. Acres upon acres of bush, scrub, watering holes and barely passable tracks have become the temporary homes of the nomadic elephants, zebras, rhinos, lions, cheetahs and giraffes that wander and rest at their leisure and along with many other lesser animals and birds, spend their entire existence looking for food and avoiding being dinner. And when you go to visit them in their backyard, one becomes strangely aware of the insecurity and lack of safety when everyone is on the same side of the cage or the transparent barrier between man and wild animal is no longer glass but only air. For no longer are animals where you expect to find them and often they are more likely to be watching you than you seeing them. I guess that's the thrill which Kruger or any other such park gives you that you can never find in a zoo. But at the end of the day, it's still only a park and eventually there will be a fence or a barrier. The only difference is that it takes longer to reach the limits, but I reckon it's a touch more fulfilling for them.
And to me, that is the difference between a 'being' Christian and a 'doing' Christian, one who is quite happy to eke out their faith in the comfort zone where they know the limits and the other who wants to explore further what faith really means when you leave that comfort zone behind and see how far God can take you. For Moses, it was a choice between tending the family flock or going to the Promised Land via Egypt. For James and John it was fishermen or fishers of men. For Paul, it was a top position in the church or a shipwreck, stoning and prison. For Judas it was some extra pocket money or a seat at the Master's table. For the rich, young and religious ruler it was a comfortable and wealthy existence or a charity sale. And not everybody made the correct decision. You see, when we trust in God completely, He makes the boundaries, not us and of course, as Paul tells the church at Thessalonica, 'The Lord is faithful, and he will strengthen and protect you from the evil one.' That's why moving out of the comfort zone, expanding your faith horizons, exploring the vast corners of His plan for your life might cause trepidation but never abandonment.
And tonight, I find these words from the prophet Micah that tell me all I need to know. 'The day for building your walls will come, the day for extending your boundaries.' Now I know why more animals spend their day sleeping in the zoo but not in Kruger! ........Comfortable?
