Billy Coffey
Billy Coffey

Either/Or

January 8, 2009  

My uncle picked this tomahawk up last summer and gave it to my daughter, a budding Indiana Jones. And when I said he picked it up, I mean it literally. He found it in a cornfield between the South River and the Hershey plant, about six miles from my home.

People a lot smarter than me say there were never any permanent native settlements in this area. The Shenandoah Valley was instead a kind of ancient superhighway that various tribes traveled through on their way from one place to another. Mohawk, Oneida, Onondaga, Cayuga, Seneca, Catawba, and Delaware Indians visited this area at various times, as well as my ancestors, the Cherokee.

The problem was that in a fairly limited amount of space, one tribe was bound to run into another. The results weren’t pretty. For thousands of years, much of our valley was one big battlefield.

Evidence of these tribal wars can be found every spring when the farmers start plowing their fields. There are arrowheads by the millions, flint scalping blades by the thousands, and sometimes, the head of a tomahawk.

I’ve spent many a lost moment with this tomahawk in my hands, asking the unanswerable.

Who made this? When? How did it end up in a cornfield?

Why, I suppose, is a question that that doesn’t need asking. To the Native American male, a tomahawk was his most prized possession. Much like the samurai and his sword, the tomahawk held an almost mythical position. It was the weapon of a warrior. A instrument of death.

But maybe asking why it was made does matter. Maybe that’s the question that matters most.

I never go hiking without a tomahawk. From building a shelter to securing food and water, it can perform tasks that a knife simply cannot. One of the wisest pieces of advice about going into the woods came from my father: “You can take a knife into the mountains and live like a prince. But you can take a tomahawk into the mountains and live like a king.”

My point?

Though the tomahawk can certainly be used as a weapon, it is first and foremost a tool. It’s a thing. And like all things, it can be used for good or for bad. It can improve life or destroy it. It all depends on the user.

Maybe it’s no surprise that the ancient people who once roamed these parts chose to use their tools to destroy life. After all, they were ignorant savages. Right?

But consider what you’re using to read this post. The Internet is quite possibly greatest invention of the last century. It allows people from almost any country to connect with people they would otherwise never meet. To be exposed to other cultures and ideas. To connect. It is a treasure of information and knowledge. Don’t know something? Google it. You’ll have your answer in seconds.

But this wondrous invention that can improve the lives of millions of people has destroyed just as many. There are an estimated twenty million websites devoted exclusively to pornography. You can google how to make a bomb just as easily as how to make a birthday cake. And for every highcallingblogs.com there is a jihadist calling for death and destruction.

Maybe we’re all ignorant savages.

Not much has changed since that unknown person dropped his tomahawk and my uncle picked it up. We’re still taking what was made for good and using it for bad. And I suppose we always will. We may be smarter and more capable than our ancestors, and our children may grow to be smarter and more capable than us, but we all carry around the same fallen nature.

That’s why I get a little leery when I start hearing about how things will get better when this person’s in charge or that country gets fixed or that peace agreement gets signed. I know better.

And I know this, too: each day we are faced with this one choice: what will I do? What will I do with what God has given me? Will I use my mind to think about how I can help others, or will I use it to think about how I can help myself? Will I open my heart and risk loving even more, or will I close it because I’m too frightened of hurt? And will I use my faith as a salve to pour on open wounds, or as a weapon to fester those wounds more?

This ancient tomahawk sitting beside me was likely used to both preserve the life of its owner and take the life of his enemy. Us? We’re not a matter of both, I think. I think we’re either/or. Either serving God or serving ourselves. Either helping others or not.

Either bringing the world a little closer to heaven or a little closer to hell.

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Filed under: Peace, conflict, living, purpose
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Comments

  • sharilyn

    what a great analogy… i, myself, grow weary of hearing of the “hope” a man can bring to us… as truly, the only Man Who can bring us HOPE is Jesus. it is only by His Spirit within us that we can live a life bringing glory to God and “bring the world a little closer to heaven.”

    i am grateful for your words and the heart behind them… there are many days when you remind me of the important things in life…

  • janelle

    Yes, either or; God himself said he’d rather have us be cold than lukewarm.

    On a side note, one of the best vacations this mid-westerner ever went on included a tour of the Hershey plant.

  • lynnrush

    What that is a great one. So true. Nicely written. You got me thinkin’ now…. **smile**

  • Chris Godfredsen

    I agree with Sharilyn about your heart. The post is a great one, but what stirs in me – what resonates with me – are the questions at the end…what will I do? What will I do with what God has given me? Will I use my mind to think about how I can help others, or will I use it to think about how I can help myself? Will I open my heart and risk loving even more, or will I close it because I’m too frightened of hurt? And will I use my faith as a salve to pour on open wounds, or as a weapon to fester those wounds more?

    I pray with have Christ-like answers to your questions…thanks for allowing me to stop and think today!

  • Sherri Watt

    I love your words! They are inspired and they glorify our Lord! I have been uplifted, encouraged and spurred on by what you say.

    God Bless you Billy!

  • sam van eman

    nice post, billy. most days i could tell you whether my life is pushing toward heaven or hell.

    i’m not sure about our overall movement as moral beings, but i know we’re not getting worse. we frequently say, “what’s this world coming to?” but if it’s true that we’re declining, and every generation before us thinks the same, then this has got to be pretty close to hell itself. or else it’s just around the bend.

    when i, too, get caught up in this hog wash logic, it helps to think of the historical momentum forward that God is somehow orchestrating. regardless of my daily behavior, or this nation’s slide or that country’s progress, there is an unmistakable story unfolding.

    and as it is written in micah 4:3, that story ends with tomahawks used only for good.

    i can press on for that.

  • Scott McQueen

    You are wise beyond your years Billy! Thank you for this post. I needed this little reminder right now. It would be so easy, so natural for me to react to current stresses with selfishness in my heart. It would be so easy to respond with anger and revenge instead of healing and forgiveness. Thanks for reminding me to take “Me” out of the picture. Man it is hard to turn the other cheek at times, even feels like a sacrifice. But I know in the end, there will be no regret in forgiving.

    Take care of those precious little gifts! They will outgrow you before you know it.

  • Amy Deardon

    Great post! Thought-provoking. We can’t take the potential for fallen-ness out of this world, no matter how good something is. Thanks for sharing!

  • sharilyn

    i forgot to mention that when we were kids, my family (from MI) camped in NY, PA, Maryland, WV…and we toured the Hershey plant… mmmmmm! : )

  • God’s Not Finished With Us Yet…

    I’ve always felt the same about the Intenet, as you speak about it; that it can be used for good or evil. I know a family whose marriage was broken up as a final result of the spouse viewing inappropriate content online.

    So ‘Either/Or’ is right; it can be the question and/or the solution.

    How do we serve God in our lives is a valid and fair question, but is everyone honest about it? Does everyone REALLY serve him appropriately or do they only adverstise they do to sound good?

    So I guess for my own personal thinking from you post is to ask myself: Do I serve Christ to bring those I’m in contact with closer to Him or away from Him? I’d like to think closer; within my family unite, my neighborhood…but I know I’ll have to search my heart in the ways I bring them closer to Him outside of them? Truthfully, not always. I’m an honest person and at time I fall in this area, but later ask forgivesness.

    Well this comment/reply is waaay to long as it is already….and I’d hate to be a bore…..I haven’t even had my morning shower yet……lol.

    Great thought provoking post!!! Very needed at that. I’m going to ponder over this and work on my my ‘either/or’ ways as I face the public, not just my family.

  • Lore

    Good observation, great telling!

  • Lorrie

    Very deep insights! Thanks for visiting my site a few days ago ~ it inspired me to come see what you’ve been up to. I’m glad I did. I really enjoyed this post and it has given me a bit to chew on :-)

  • Joelle

    Profound. Makes me think of a Nichole Nordeman song: “You’ve Gotta Serve Somebody.” So difficult and so true. Huge responsibility, this choice thing is. One I’d be happy to evade, pass the buck. But it really is up to me–how I use what I have. Thought provoking post….

  • Jennifer

    I so want to serve Him — but find myself putting my own selfish interests ahead of His too often. Thanks the reminder, Billy.