God, a Woman, and a Tiger
One day, a young woman went to the mountain Hermit seeking help.
“I need a potion for my husband’s depression,” she cried to him. “He came from war and doesn’t speak to me. He doesn’t listen to me. I try to caress him but he brushes me aside. I serve him food and he pushes it and angrily leaves the room. He then goes up a hill and just stares out to sea… Oh kindly sir, make me a potion so that I could give it to my husband and heal his depression!”
The Hermit closed his eyes and thought for a long while. After what seemed like a very long time, he then said to her, “I will make a special potion for your husband. But it needs a special ingredient. Get me a whisker of a live tiger.”
The woman was shocked. “Sir? I cannot get that…”
“But if you want your husband to get well, you will,” said the Hermit.
The woman ran home, prepared a bowl of food, and carried it deep in the forest—where a tiger lived inside a cave. She placed down the bowl of food at the opening of the tiger’s cave and called on the tiger. “Tiger, I brought food for you. Come and eat!”
But the tiger did not come out.
The next day, the woman came again with a bowl of food and called on the tiger to eat. But the tiger did not come out again.
She kept doing this everyday, and tiger was getting used to her voice.
After one month, the tiger would peek through the opening, but he still would not eat her bowl of food.
After two months, the tiger finally left the cave and felt secure looking at the strange woman giving him food.
After three months, the tiger would finally eat the food as the woman watched from the distance.
After four months, the woman could actually sit beside the tiger as he ate.
After five months, the woman could wrap her arms around the tiger as he ate. She was now a friend and he was totally at peace with her.
After six months, as the woman caressed the tiger and as the tiger playfully rested his head on her lap, she whispered to his ear, “I hope you won’t get angry, but I will get something from you—for my husband whom I love.” She then snipped one of his whiskers. The tiger did not even flinch.
After which, she ran to the Hermit and said, “I now have the whisker of a live tiger! Please make the potion for my depressed and angry husband…”
The Hermit took the whisker from her hand and threw it into the fire behind him.
“Nooooooo!” the woman screamed, “why did you do that?”
“You don’t need a potion,” the Hermit said, “because you are the potion to your husband.”
“I don’t understand,” the woman asked.
“What is more fierce? A tiger or a man? A tiger of course. But for six months you learned how to tame his anger. You were able to bring him out of his cave. With patience. With care. With love. Now I want you to use all that and bring your husband out of his cave and heal his depression.”
Do You Know The Difference Between Toxic Faith And Real Faith?
I share you this story because I believe that God is like that woman.
We are that tiger. We are in darkness. We are in that cave. Like that woman, God comes to us with a lot of gentleness and a bowl of food. The food of His love. The food of His grace.
He will not force us to eat His food. He will not impose His power, His rule, His authority over us. Instead, He will wait, patiently and gently, for us to learn to trust Him. Day after day, week after week, month after month—year after year.
When we are ready, He will feed us.
When we are ready, He will wrap His arms around us.
That’s the difference between Toxic Faith and Real Faith.
Toxic Faith imagines God as a Judge that condemns and forces us to follow Him, using threats and intimidation. Toxic Faith requires that His followers do the same—impose, judge, label, pull rank, and intimidate.
Real Faith is very different. It imagines God as a woman patiently waiting for the tiger to leave his cave, so she could feed him and caress him. Real Faith requires that His followers do the same—love, forgive, share, care, bless, and serve.
I choose Real Faith.
Real Faith heals my addictions. Toxic Faith worsens them.
Choose Real Faith.
I remain your friend,
Bo Sanchez
