Posted on: Saturday, October 9, 2004

EXPRESSIONS OF FAITH

By H. Murray Hohns

I do silly things at times. For example, I go out on my lanai and start every day spending some time with an invisible God.

I talk with him every morning and thank him for the favor he has shown me and will yet show me.

Some days, I sing to him. If you ever heard me sing, you will know how silly I can be.

I live in Makiki, an area of condominiums nestled up against the mountains with Diamond Head beyond. The view from our lanai is magnificent. My wife has filled our home with lovely things.

We are totally content where we live. We have everything we want. Our home is totally furnished. Our closets and cabinets are filled. Nothing is missing. We do not want anything to change. We have arrived, and we are ready to stay for the long haul.

It wasn't that way 25 years ago. I remember one vacation I took when there was no lady in my life. I went by myself that year to Europe and wandered the streets of several of its cities.

I went shopping all alone one day in Copenhagen and looked through the wonderful shops that featured its fine china and porcelain.

I've always liked pretty things. I was silly that day when I bought a large porcelain piece of art called the wave and the rock. I probably shouldn't have spent that much money on something that was only pretty.

The statue stands 18 inches tall and features a man sitting with his hands tied to a rock behind him.

A beautiful young lady is before him, and their lips are joined. It is lovely but when you think about what it portrays, you realize that the man cannot have the enticing beauty before him. His hands are bound, and he is helpless to help himself. I was that man back then, and that porcelain woman personified the beauty of the life for which I so yearned.

When I got home, I put the statue on the dresser in my bedroom of my very modest home in California and looked at it often. And then I started doing something silly. Every morning I touched the cords that bound the man in that statue and said "in the name of Jesus."

I kind of hesitate to tell all of you that I did something this silly but I did. Indeed, I did this over and over for months.

If you come by our home in Makiki, my wife and I will show you the statue. It sits on a shelf in our living room. When we have finished admiring the statue, we will sit on the lanai, and you can tell me if you think I was really being silly back in the time I touched that statue and said those words every day.

H. Murray Hohns of Makiki is a retired engineer and an associate pastor at New Hope Christian Fellowship. Expressions of Faith is a column that welcomes written works from pastors, priests, lay workers and other leaders in faith and spirituality. E-mail faith@honoluluadvertiser.com or call 525-8035. Articles submitted to The Advertiser may be published or distributed in print, electronic or other forms.