Great Cry and Little Wool

Great Cry and Little Wool

It won’t surprise you, if you have read recently, that I am dipping from the well once again of C.H. Spurgeon and his John Ploughman’s Pictures. The artwork at the beginning of the present chapter shows a man shearing his animal in order to collect wool. The problem is that he is shearing, not a sheep, but a pig. That explains our title, in that the pig gives “great cry” but “little wool”.

The first application is to our pursuit of pleasure. Listen to the critique: “There is noise enough - laughter and shouting and boasting; but where is the comfort which can warm the heart and give peace to the spirit? Generally there’s plenty of smoke and very little fire in what is called pleasure.” If our entertainment makes us miserable, perhaps we are seeking to gather wool from a pig.

But then one could speak of the entertainment that takes place at church. Is this also an end in itself? Of course, there are different types of churches, and thus different types of entertainment. For some, it might be the band. For others, the preacher or homily. For others, the people with whom they rub shoulders and exchange conversation. It might be the experience of the grand cathedral, or even the joy of watching the children. Each and all of these most likely have less to do with entertainment described in our chapter as “all fizz and bang and done for.” You carry the experience with you as you exit the doors and resume normal life. I pray that it is deeper, touching not only the senses but also the soul. And for the churches seeking to draw crowds as though they were a stadium or coliseum, you may just get what you deserve: great cry and little wool.

Of course, there are other applications as well. Have you ever heard a person laugh loudly, not because of happiness but because they merely wanted people to believe that they were happy? Wouldn’t it be better just to find the true source of happiness and enjoy it rather than pretending? Or perhaps worse, the person who grumbles and complains about the miseries of their life, and, lo and behold, we find their life is not all that bad. Why not focus on what is good instead of bad? Why not be thankful for the blessings? The persons who plays the martyr may soon find a response from others that secretly hopes your martyrdom finds success. Great cry and little wool. It is present in politics and marketing and the workplace and in our own souls.

The Sheep has been sheared and He has given His wool. We don’t have to shear it ourselves. What we must do is to embrace the proper Resource, not a pig, but the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world, and find in Him what is good and true and beautiful.