Down the Rabbit Hole

Life Notes—October 25, 2012 

“But where shall wisdom be found?  And where is the place of understanding?  Mortals do not know the way to it, and it is not found in the land of the living.”  Job 28:12-13

As a teen my daughter, Grace, had a black and white, Dutch bunny that her brother, Reid, named Oreo.  Oreo had a cage in our garage with her food bowl, her water bottle, a heat lamp and a blanket.  She could go outside from her cage through a little doorway into her fenced ‘yard,’ complete with a wooden sundeck and plenty of dirt in which to dig.  She managed to construct a rather elaborate and deep series of tunnels in her yard, where she preferred to spend much of her days and nights.  One day Oreo became very ill.  She had been lethargic for a few days until, finally, she failed to come running at mealtime.  In fact, she didn’t exit her rabbit hole all day.  Since she wouldn’t come out, I had to go after her.  I stuck my arm down as far as I could reach, but felt no bunny.  I had to begin digging into the rabbit hole, through many tree roots (also through the telephone and cable lines), until I finally found her three or four feet below the surface.  She was still alive and made an emergency visit to the vet.

The wisdom proverb from Job, above, ponders where we will find wisdom, and concludes it is not found in the land of the living.  To me this means wisdom must be sought.  As in finding Oreo, it will not often be obvious or easily attained.  And there are no guarantees that venturing into the unknown—going into a rabbit hole—will yield wisdom.  When I put my arm into Oreo’s rabbit hole I did so reluctantly.  We were aware of a fairly large rat snake that we thought might share the underworld with Oreo at times.  I think the lesson for Job, as for us, was that to find wisdom we must seek it in places beyond the familiar.  Fortunately, in my trip down the rabbit hole, I found a live bunny, not an angry snake.  And after a few days with the vet, Oreo was able to enjoy several more years of life on earth.  And we were able to enjoy several more years of Oreo.

And what wisdom did I gain?  Well, I learned that telephone and cable lines look a lot like tree roots.  I learned that telephone lines that have been cut by a shovel will give a shock to bare skin.  I learned that it’s expensive to have the telephone and cable companies come out to repair lines cut in a dive down a rabbit hole.  And I learned that our health insurance does not cover emergency veterinary services for sick bunnies. Finally, I learned that a happy healthy bunny, like wisdom, is worth the price of an occasional dive down a rabbit hole.

Tom is preaching downtown where Life worship is at 10:00 AM in Brady Hall and traditional worship is at 8:30 and 11:00 in the sanctuary.  Mitch will preach at the west campus where worship is at 9:00 and 11:00.

Come home to church this Sunday.  If you’re going into a rabbit hole, go with a friend.

Greg Hildenbrand, Life Music Coordinator