Shaken not stirred....

Lots of people know this phrase from author Ian Flemings well known fictional series of novels and movies about a British Secret Service Agent named James Bond. ‘Shaken not stirred’, refers to the characters preference for how his martini should be made, the indication being that a shaken martini will be colder and more watered down so as not to interfere with the super sleuths senses or slow his reactions down while on assignment.
Shaken but not stirred deep enough is how I would describe many of the comments I have heard recently from both Christians and those who are not of the house hold of faith regarding recent world events. Shaken is abundantly clear. People everywhere are feeling the sense of insecurity and uncertainty as literally the earth beneath our feet is moving. Earthquakes are happening around the globe at an alarming rate and this has shaken confidence, it has shaken the already fragile economic world and it has shaken people out of their little individual worlds to lend a hand to a neighbour in need. However, one church that was sensing the near hypocrisy of the moment wrote on their bulletin board, “You don’t have to have experience an earthquake to be a good neighbour.” My read on this was that they are trying to get their readers to push a little deeper than just being ‘stirred” by the moment; to dig a little deeper than to suddenly be interested in something or someone other than themselves! Shaken, indeed, but stirred, not nearly deep enough as this billboard would indicate.
Listening to some Christians blather on about judgment and gays and lesbians and sin and this is how God deals with the world today is disheartening and frustrating and simply a sign of not being stirred deep enough as well. It is a fall-back position for those who have the luxury of saying such things because their hearts are hard, their love is shallow and their thin understanding of God is disgracefully projected on a poor, broken and needy world of hurting people. Agenda driven and shaken but not stirred deep enough is what is so troubling about these brothers and sisters.
On the other hand, Christianity is not the only group that has its share of doomsayers out there babbling on about ‘just desserts’ and other nonsensical things like ‘karma’, i.e. what goes around comes around. I read recently of the whale protectionist group who spoke this way of the Japanese, attributing their current multi-front disaster, quake, tsunami, and nuclear meltdowns to karma because of their whale hunting practices. This is so aggravating! It is a clear case of kicking someone when they are already down. Shaken but certainly not stirred deep enough!
In my estimation we need to see how deeply stirred Jesus was when he encountered the destructive power of death in the story of Lazarus. Jesus saw how it causes such turmoil and grief and his response was to be angry about death, to be angry about its destructive nature, to be angry because it is clearly the greatest of enemies to all of life. But he was not only moved to anger he was stirred to weep as well. The grief, suffering and pain that death had brought moved him to weep with those who wept, to be empathetic, compassionate and sorrowful for those affected by this great tragedy. Finally, his anger mixed with his grief stirred him to action. In this case it was to counter the work of death and bring life and hope back into the picture. Jesus efforts were meant to restore, to deliver, to turn around the effects of deaths devastation and bring back joy, laughter and life.
As believers we must imitate the master. We must follow his lead. Be angry at our common enemy death and the destruction it causes, weep with those who suffer and then begin the work of restoration, to counter the effects of death and restore life, joy and laughter wherever we can.