Andrea: My Thoughts, My Passion, My Life
It’s where I’d like to share my thoughts, my passion, my life: the world of Christian Education. For more of my blogs, take a look at http://360.yahoo.com/akiskandar/ To have a peek at my world, go to http://www.flickr.com/photos/akiskandar/
Manusia Merdeka
Kemerdekaan. Kebebasan. Itu adalah satu hal yang sangat saya syukuri. Di sepanjang hidup saya, ada banyak hal yang ingin saya lakukan dan saya merasa terkekang. Ada begitu banyak kendala. Tetapi ketika membandingkan dengan orang-orang lain, baru saya menyadari betapa bebasnya saya.
Menjelang lulus SD, saya bebas memilih SMP. Begitu juga SMP ke SMA dan saat kuliah. Bahkan ketika lulus dari perguruan tinggi, saya pun bebas mengambil sebuah kehidupan yang berbeda dan tak terduga sebelumnya - menjadi guru. Sungguh luar biasa bagaimana orang tua saya mengizinkan saya menjadi guru, sementara ada tawaran-tawaran pekerjaan dengan pendapatan lima kali lipat, suatu angka yang jauh di atas rata-rata.
Di dalam menjalani kehidupan, saya juga melihat bagaimana sehari-hari banyak orang terhalang untuk melakukan banyak hal karena harus mengemudi sendiri, karena harus menempuh perjalanan jauh dan menghabiskan banyak waktu di jalan, belum lagi harus mengantar orang tuanya, saudaranya, dsb. Acara-acara ini dan itu, sepertinya banyak sekali porsi dari agenda mereka yang berada di tangan orang lain sedangkan bagi saya, agenda saya nampaknya praktis seluruhnya berada di tangan saya sendiri.
Tiadanya kebutuhan transportasi, waktu yang dihabiskan di jalan, kebebasan dalam pekerjaan dan dalam berkarya, kebebasan bergerak di dalam kehidupan ini untuk mengambil keputusan-keputusan yang tidak populer, memilih jalan hidup yang tidak lazim, memilih suatu bentuk kehidupan yang berbeda dari orang kebanyakan … semua itu adalah hal-hal yang sangat luar biasa, kemerdekaan yang tak ternilai harganya, yang harus dipergunakan dengan bertanggung jawab. Tetapi di dalam semuanya, Tuhan selalu memelihara. Tuhan selalu menjaga dan mencukupkan semua kebutuhan pada waktunya. Di dalam pemeliharaan-Nya, semua berjalan dengan baik.
Kemerdekaan adalah hasrat terbesar manusia dan saya, saya percaya, telah mendapatkannya sejak saat pertama saya dipercayakan Tuhan kepada keluarga saya.
1 Comment So Far
Dear Andrea
I really really hate to disappoint you. But the thing is … freedom is nothing but illusion. For us, mortals with countless limitations and absolutely no idea of what’s gonna come up like 5 minutes ahead, it is too easy to find ourselves believing that we have freedom in our hands.
Ever watch the ants in the kitchen ?
Sometimes so many of them line up on the wall across the room. Blow the whole troop with a strong wind from the fan, spray them with water, or give a nice dose of pesticide. You just put their long march to a tragic end without they even begin to grasp what had happened. Or, you can also keep all the food in the closet but left a trace of sugar somewhere. You bet that’s where they all will be heading.
We can find this subtle manipulation between humans at much higher level. One can carefully study another’s character, talents, and tendencies. This study results in ability to predict another’s reaction under various conditions. In turn, he can make another person do certain things simply by providing the right stimulations. Interaction between the sexes is richly coloured by this.
A being enjoys its freedom within its limited perspective of “choice”. Meanwhile, there may be another being, more superior than the first one, which is subtly watching or directing the first one’s destiny like a puppet master without the first one realize even the first signs of the second being’s existence, not to mention its active manipulation.
Too often our privilege as the only self-aware creature in this material world has led us to focus only on our abilities and forget our natural boundaries. Humanism still plays a dominant role in shaping the way we perceive our place in this world. The fact that we have a very special place in this world leads us to believe that all this world is our place. Is it ?
It’s a bit hilarious a creature with no ability whatsoever to silence the urge to empty his bladder may stake a claim of freedom. My writing actually pauses here for I have to do as the urge tell me to. Ironically, self-awareness is also the key which should have shamed men from making such a claim. Yet our eyes gaze only things that please our hearts. After the fall a man believes that the rightful ruler of his heart is none other than the man he looks in the mirror. No wonder the ruler gives such a warm welcome to the illusion of freedom … for Satan is always there, right beside him, unceasingly directs his actions in the present and in turn these actions will seal his future. Try picture Wormtongue beside King Theoden’s throne in the Lord of The Rings.
Freedom is of course a vital ingredient to steer a man’s life far away from the light. Making a man believes that he is the commander of his life is enough. Then, Satan just sits back enjoying every moment as he watches mortal of all ages run as fast as they can to join him in eternal darkness. This is perfectly understandable since entering the light means only one thing, acknowledging A Being greater than man and submit to His will. THAT would spoil all the fun, right ?
I just wanna end this blablablah with two crucial points:
ONE. Freedom exists only in our mind which is totally depraved by sin. We just don’t have what it takes to get absolute freedom. There are God and Satan (who acts according to God’s plan) who constantly interfere with our lifes. We can’t even see them so don’t start with the crazy idea that we can tell them to stay away and leave us alone.
TWO. We, inferior creatures but so loved by our Creator, only have two choices. Step down from the throne and let God rule in our hearts. We will be number two or 379,562 depending on the case but we surely have eternal life. Or, keep your lovely seat and have hell of a ride with your life. After a blink of an eye if compared to eternity, the roller coaster slows to a stop and it turns out that you were having a ride to hell on the tracks carefully laid out by Satan. I myself have never been there so I can’t tell what to expect but I know a thing you won’t find there. It is hope.
Look at the speedometer, it’s 60 miles an hour. It’s always a good time to pull over and check who’s grabbing the steering wheel. If the person is any of us, feel free to hand over the wheel to The One with the ultimate driving licence. Well, if you like driving so much, suit yourself. Hit the road, Captain.
