Royalty
Hello,
When I arrived in LA from Mexico, I rushed to shower and get to the airport (thanks, Kaveneys!) on time for my flight. I was headed to Boston for a week-long conference for work. When I got to the airport, I was informed that the flight to Boston was full and that only middle seats were left. The Boeing 757 airplane can hold between 200 and 300 people, depending on the configuration of the seats. I was not very pleased to know that I would be seated between two people for this long, five hour flight. The flight left at 11pm and landed just after 7am in Boston. It should be noted that I had a conference to be at not long after I landed (about 9am) – any sleep I was going to have for the day would have to come on this flight.
Before we boarded, I gazed around me and saw the weird guy. You know, the one you secretly hope you don’t have to sit next to on the plane. We boarded the plane and I found my seat… you guessed it… next to the weird guy.
I don’t know if you have the ability to sleep on an airplane, but I usually find it difficult. I finally fell asleep at some point and estimate I got about three hours of sleep. It was good to be in Boston and off that crowded plane. I got my bags and then had to wait 35 minutes for a taxi. (Boston is an old city and the streets were made for horses, not cars. Drivers in Boston make LA drivers look peaceful and calm. Most people take cabs, when they can.) I arrived at my hotel and checked in. I was put on the 29th floor of the hotel and I could not find an elevator that went there – all the elevators went to the 25th floor. Then I found a special express elevator that went all the way to the top. It turns out that I was given a “Club Level†room on the top floor of the hotel. (This was probably a mistake due to the hotel being overbooked.) The view was spectacular! I dropped off my things and then hurried to catch a shuttle to the conference.
I have never been to Boston before and I truly loved the city. The word that comes to mind is “character†when I think of Boston. To walk by buildings that are over a hundred years old, to walk on streets built two hundred years ago, to see historical placards all over – all adds up to a place of great character.
The conference was put on by EMC, a storage company. My company is one of their largest customers. We were given breakfast and lunch every day. We were given apparel and trinkets by all kinds of companies wanting our business. We were basically treated like royalty. The second night, we were taken out to a delicious dinner by EMC. There was about 15 or 18 people there and the bill came to over $2000. I ate some sashimi tuna (the best raw tuna I have ever had – it was an inch thick, an inch wide, and three inches long) and then I had a $47 pepper steak that was very good. We were then taken over to a private party put on by Cisco where an Aerosmith cover band was playing and we got autographs from Teddy Bruschi and Ben Watson (New England Patriots). We were taken from one place to another – everywhere we went we were treated like kings. Wednesday night we attended an amazing private party where the food was exotic (sushi martinis) and the drinks were served in glasses that had blinking LEDs in them. The forks glowed in the dark and everyone was given all the glo-ropes they wanted. Then we watched a private concert with the Barenaked Ladies. Thursday night, I hung out with a couple of my friends and we saw some sights. We found the oldest tavern in America. It was built in the 1790s. We walked down streets that transported us to a time long ago. Each night and morning, I would look out my window and see the Charles River. Across the river is MIT. During the day, I could see the Harvard rowing teams practicing on the river. In the afternoons, I saw countless sailboats. The buildings are all tall and full of apartments. It is amazing how cramped everything seems.
The most amazing thing about the trip was not the delicious food or the character of the city. The most amazing thing for me was the parallel of being in Mexico just a few days before, witnessing the most extreme poverty and now being in Boston and being treated like royalty. This truly was a paradox. But not one that was lost on me.
When I was in LA, my friend Chris lent me a car to use for the day. His trunk was completely full of disco balls of various sizes (I have no idea why). There were so many that there was one in the backseat, as well. While I drove around LA (I sure do miss those freeways!) this ball would roll around in the backseat. I would notice the little glimmering reflections shining on the ceiling and seats of the car. I noticed that no matter what direction I was driving, the sun was reflected somewhere in the car. I just had to change my perspective to notice them.
I have recently learned that in absolute poverty and in absolute wealth, God is present. I just need to modify my perspective to notice Him. No matter where I am, no matter what I am doing – God is there. I have been reading in 1 Samuel about the relationship between Saul and David. David bounced between being loved by Saul to being hated by Saul. Saul had David as his personal musician and then he tried to kill David. Saul tried many different tactics to kill David. David finally fled, and Saul spent the rest of his life chasing David. During his flight from Saul, David flees to the countryside and spends several chapters trying to evade Saul. I have to think about how David lived when he was in the palace. As the king’s personal musician, he probably lived very well. He was treated like royalty. When he was running away, he lived in caves. The difference between these two ways of life was probably very great.
We know that David wrote a great many Psalms (at least 73 of them), but we do not know exactly when they were all written. Certainly some of them were written while he was the king’s musician. And we know that others were written while he was fleeing Saul in the countryside (Psalm 57, 59, 142). David was able to find God and worship Him no matter what his situation was.
Most of us do not spend great amounts of time in absolute poverty. Most of us do not spend great amounts of time in extreme wealth. Somewhere in the middle, though, we need to discover God and worship Him. And when we are surrounded by poverty or surrounded by wealth – let us continue to seek Him and find Him and worship Him.
When David was in a cave, being chased by Saul, he wrote these words, (Psalm 57:9-11): I will give thanks to you, O Lord, among the peoples; I will sing praises to you among the nations. For your steadfast love is great to the heavens, your faithfulness to the clouds. Be exalted, O God, above the heavens! Let your glory be over all the earth!
No matter what situation you are in – you may be treated like a king or treated like dirt. You may be surrounded by wealth or surrounded by poverty. You may be sick or have health. You may be happy or you may be sad. No matter what situation you are in – seek God and find Him. Change your perspective, if need be, and find Him. He is there.
I thank God for showing Himself to me in both Mexico and in Boston. How will you see God and worship Him today?
-z
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