The
Musings 22
Saturday,
February 2
Read:
Genesis 4, 27
Sunday, February
3; Every individual in this nation is waiting eagerly for the much awaited NFL
game of the season- The Super Bowl. The Super Bowl fever is not only in every
home and hearts of individual, but the repercussion can be seen and felt even in some food markets.
One of the costly item today and tomorrow would be Fried Chicken Wings and Soda.
Chicken Wings have become very rare in all the markets. It was only yesterday
that I realized that most of the supermarket do not have chicken wings any
more. Every rack in the super market that had chicken wings is empty. This is
basically because the very concept of watching Super Bowl is not you sitting in
your home and watching it alone, but on the contrary having like minded friends
come over to your place, and watch the game in the giant screen of your television
over fried chicken wings and other drinks- both non prohibited and prohibited 
. Some youth friends called me to watch the
match and when I told them that I have
two prayer meetings in the evening tomorrow- he replied " Hey Achen You
need to cancel all prayer meeting tomorrow- When the whole nation is in front
of big TV, watching super bowl, who do you think will come for the prayer
meetings". However, I reassured him that I would join him later in the
night to watch super bowl. Yes the nation is waiting in anticipation for the
much awaited final match of the season between Baltimore Ravens and San Francisco
49ers. The news agencies have already coined the term that this super bowl is "Harbowl".
This is basically because though the game is going to be fight between Ravens
and 49ers, the actual fight is between two brothers- John Harbaugh and Jim
Harbaugh. John is the coach of Baltimore Ravens while Jim is the coach of San Francisco
49ers. Every individual in this nation is waiting expectantly as to how these
two brothers are going to compete with each other. As brothers battle it out on
the sports field, it is their father Jack Harbaugh, the patriarch of the NFL
reigning first family, who is also in the spotlight. Which of his children will
he support on Sunday and how will he feel when one son is the victor while the
other the vanquished?. These are the questions reigning in ever ones mind. But
the battle between the brothers is only in the playing arena. They both are
thorough professionals fully knowing where to draw the line between personal
feeling of brother hood and committing fully for the victory of the respective
teams that they coach. I do not want to delve on the rivalry between the
brothers on the sporting field but affirm something wonderful that both John
and Jim Harbaugh retreated during the press conference yesterday. While
speaking to the press, both the brothers attributed their success in their
sporting career to the their family members especially there mother. Jim testified yesterday that their mother was
very competitive and she always believed in both the brothers and according to
Jim that was very important to both himself and his brother. Both Jim and John
stated that it was their mother who took them to games, played catch with them,
shot baskets with them but on the top of it the both Jim and John proudly says
that "Our Mother Believed In Us". A mother who takes her children to
games, playing with them and develops in them a sense of self-esteem and
confidence. Remarkable!. I think on
Sunday irrespective whether Ravens or 49ers win or lose, the ultimate winner
would be the Harbaugh family. In world
where even family members do not loose opportunity to pull down their own, and
there is bitterness and fierce rivalry between sibling over so many petty
issues, the Harbaugh family stands tall in their witness and commitment to
stand together. A mother who loves both her son equally and develops in each of
them potentials and talents to world class level is something that we need to
proudly acclaim.
. Some youth friends called me to watch the
match and when I told them that I have
two prayer meetings in the evening tomorrow- he replied " Hey Achen You
need to cancel all prayer meeting tomorrow- When the whole nation is in front
of big TV, watching super bowl, who do you think will come for the prayer
meetings". However, I reassured him that I would join him later in the
night to watch super bowl. Yes the nation is waiting in anticipation for the
much awaited final match of the season between Baltimore Ravens and San Francisco
49ers. The news agencies have already coined the term that this super bowl is "Harbowl".
This is basically because though the game is going to be fight between Ravens
and 49ers, the actual fight is between two brothers- John Harbaugh and Jim
Harbaugh. John is the coach of Baltimore Ravens while Jim is the coach of San Francisco
49ers. Every individual in this nation is waiting expectantly as to how these
two brothers are going to compete with each other. As brothers battle it out on
the sports field, it is their father Jack Harbaugh, the patriarch of the NFL
reigning first family, who is also in the spotlight. Which of his children will
he support on Sunday and how will he feel when one son is the victor while the
other the vanquished?. These are the questions reigning in ever ones mind. But
the battle between the brothers is only in the playing arena. They both are
thorough professionals fully knowing where to draw the line between personal
feeling of brother hood and committing fully for the victory of the respective
teams that they coach. I do not want to delve on the rivalry between the
brothers on the sporting field but affirm something wonderful that both John
and Jim Harbaugh retreated during the press conference yesterday. While
speaking to the press, both the brothers attributed their success in their
sporting career to the their family members especially there mother. Jim testified yesterday that their mother was
very competitive and she always believed in both the brothers and according to
Jim that was very important to both himself and his brother. Both Jim and John
stated that it was their mother who took them to games, played catch with them,
shot baskets with them but on the top of it the both Jim and John proudly says
that "Our Mother Believed In Us". A mother who takes her children to
games, playing with them and develops in them a sense of self-esteem and
confidence. Remarkable!. I think on
Sunday irrespective whether Ravens or 49ers win or lose, the ultimate winner
would be the Harbaugh family. In world
where even family members do not loose opportunity to pull down their own, and
there is bitterness and fierce rivalry between sibling over so many petty
issues, the Harbaugh family stands tall in their witness and commitment to
stand together. A mother who loves both her son equally and develops in each of
them potentials and talents to world class level is something that we need to
proudly acclaim.
When we read the
Word of God, we also find a number of incidents of sibling rivalry. This is
recorded in Genesis 4, and Genesis 27. The sibling rivalry of Cain and Abel, Jacob
and Esau are two rivalries that stands out. Both these rivalries unlike the
Harbaugh sibling rivalry were negative and full back stabbing. A rivalry that
was full of deceit, because their relationship was built on deceit and lies. I
think we need to look into what actually made brothers like Jacob and Esau to
despise each other. It all starts with the negative mind set and wrong models
that their parents witnessed in the family. A family where the father and
mother sets wrong patterns and model of living. In Gen 25: 27-29, we find that
both Jacob and Esau had different personality traits. Esau was outgoing, an
extrovert and loved adventure like hunting, while Jacob was an introvert, quiet
and was always indoors. This difference in personality traits not only
separated them but their parents Isaac and Rebekah. Instead of affirming their individual
traits and bringing about a harmony between those traits and brothers, the
parents especially the mother begins to sow seeds of division and animosity
among the children. It is said in v: 28, that Isaac loved Esau and while
Rebekah loved Jacob. Later in Gen 27, you find the tragic incident of how a
mother plots with one of her son against her own husband, causing pain and
tragedy not only in their marital and family relationship, but a deep wedge
between brothers. Later because of the deceit and treachery, Jacob becomes a fugitive and his life become a total mess.
He finally realizes that life is not worth living, when founded on lies and deceit,
life not worth living in pursuing individual happiness, but life become much
more meaningful when life is lived in unity, in harmony, accepting and embracing
not only personality difference among siblings, but differences that may arise when
growing together. I think this was what Is sac and Rebekah should have taught
their children, but they failed and the children had to go through deep crisis
in life. I think as parents we also need to be very careful as to the kind of
models that we leave for our children. Tomorrow, as Harbaugh brothers Jim and
John battle it out in New Orleans for the super bowl trophy, they stand as a
model to all family, in witnessing that it in togetherness, though distinctly
different, harmony and union of family relationship, is what life is all about
and a life experience that is worth living.
