Every Thursday night as youngsters my brothers and I would be glued to the television watching Star Trek. This galactic adventure introduced us not only to the universe, but also to a rich tapestry of characters and cultures. One of the most intriguing was the arch-nemesis of Captain Kirk and the crew of the USS Enterprise – the Klingons! A proud, warrior-like species, the Klingons were known for their strict code of honor, fierce combat culture, and devotion to strength and loyalty.
Then, completely out of the blue, a commercial came on promoting new dryer sheets that would combat ‘Klingons’. What? Dryer sheets combating Klingons? How could a simple dryer sheet be any match for Klingon warriors? I’m sure, with no small amount of teasing, my brothers quickly schooled me on the difference between a celestial warrior and static cling.
And yet years later I wonder if, at their core, they are actually that different – both pointing to the same deeper question: what are the things we cling to? The Klingons are fierce, loyal, and unyielding. They cling to honor, to tradition, to identity. Static cling, defying gravity, stubbornly attaches a sock to a shirt – unless, of course, you have a ‘Klingon’ to battle it off… I mean, a dryer sheet that fights cling.
All of this inevitably begs the question: what do we cling to?
• Possessions
• Pennies
• People
• Position
• Power
• Perspective
• Possibilities
• The Past
It can be a healthy exercise for all of us to regularly review the things we hold tightly – what we cling to. These are the very things that shape not only how we spend our time, but who we are becoming.
“For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also” (Matthew 6:21). And as Martin Luther reminds us, “Whatever your heart clings to and confides in, that is really your God.”
“My soul clings to you; your right hand upholds me” (Psalm 63:8).
BP