My generation is a peculiar lot.
I keep bumping into people in their late 20's and early 30's that are trying so hard to find themselves inside the context of Christianity. I'm not talking about lost souls trying to find their way to God (though there are many of those out there). I'm talking about people who love Jesus but are grappling so hard to find they're way through the labyrinth of cultural Christianity and the status quo of modern rock 'n roll church. I actually understand it all too well.
I'm not even upset about it. I'm just concerned for where it leads so many people my age. In a desire to distance themselves from what they see as hype and platitude they swing the pendulum so far that they (in many cases I've seen) fall out of relationship with the Lord all together. It's a casualty of 'war' of which I'd like to see less.
I feel the pull constantly. I share a lot of the concerns with my friends that are disenfranchised with church. I often think we major on minors. I agree that there's not enough focus on social justice in the majority of the 'modern' church. I don't like 25 minute worship sets and don't get very excited about video announcements. But, I also don't believe that everything has to be catered to my ideals and personality. I think, herein lies the difference.
Don't get me wrong, I can belly-ache and become hyper critical in a heart-beat. But there's something of the gravity of God's grace in me right now that pulls me back to the middle and makes me consider it all again. I can either become jaded and disappointed with the church or I can put more pressure on my personal time with the Lord. It's not the 'institutions' job to meet 100% of all my spiritual, emotional and physical needs. That's God's job and I have full access to Him. He meets me in my personality. He get's my quirkiness. He's not intimidated by my melancholic moods.
Anything that is designed to work in mass is not going to be fulfilling to the individuality of people. That's a no brainer. So, for now I let a portion of my needs be met in the corporate environments and another portion be met in my personal time with God. The third portion is met through my relationships with others. Just jamming with some friends for longer than 25 minutes :) or writing songs about life and love that nobody in my church will ever sing helps counter-balance my individuality from the needed 'more corporate' side of my life.
I hope more of my generation will find the balance before they plunge themselves into 'Christian Despair'. It's not becoming of the glory we carry as Believers.
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Thursday, March 17, 2011
Sunday, March 6, 2011
Bypassing Behavior
I'm actually not that great of a church attender. I mean, I'm there but I'm not a super good 'engaged listener'. Or maybe I'm not giving myself enough credit. Maybe it's that I'm too engaged. (or maybe it's that I'm usually in the same service 3 times on a weekend? ;) I tend to listen to the message to the point that I hear something that stirs me to start a conversation with God on and then I'm off. Off to journal and wrestle with the concept until I get a measure of peace or revelation on the topic and then reengage with the rest of the 'class'. It's just the way it works for me.
Ever had one of those revelations that seemed like deja vu? It's like, 'haven't I had this revelation before?' and yet you're having it in that moment. Everything is a process and sometimes things are revealed in stages so that could be the reason for those kind of moments. I don't know. All I know is that I had one of them today.
Jesus speaks life. He doesn't just teach or help. He speaks, and life is created and formed. He bypasses our behavior so as not to be distracted by the smoke-screen and speaks life to the death in us that causes the behavior. He's good. He's very, very good. We camp out on the behavior. We condemn it, mask it, ridicule it, manage it and engage it to the point that we are just exhausted and angry with ourselves and God. All the while, Jesus is speaking life.
Sin is not a behavioral issue. It is the evidence that there is death in me. Jesus came to give life, and when His life takes root in me I change from the inside out. It's so amazing after all these years of walking with Him that, when I get quiet and ask, He still shows me places in my hear that are dead and have been causing behavior that is counterproductive to the life that is inside of me. So, once I get the revelation I set to work on how to fix it. And, He lovingly just bypasses my work and my behavior and speaks life.
To quote Jon Foreman "You're raising the dead in me."
Ever had one of those revelations that seemed like deja vu? It's like, 'haven't I had this revelation before?' and yet you're having it in that moment. Everything is a process and sometimes things are revealed in stages so that could be the reason for those kind of moments. I don't know. All I know is that I had one of them today.
Jesus speaks life. He doesn't just teach or help. He speaks, and life is created and formed. He bypasses our behavior so as not to be distracted by the smoke-screen and speaks life to the death in us that causes the behavior. He's good. He's very, very good. We camp out on the behavior. We condemn it, mask it, ridicule it, manage it and engage it to the point that we are just exhausted and angry with ourselves and God. All the while, Jesus is speaking life.
Sin is not a behavioral issue. It is the evidence that there is death in me. Jesus came to give life, and when His life takes root in me I change from the inside out. It's so amazing after all these years of walking with Him that, when I get quiet and ask, He still shows me places in my hear that are dead and have been causing behavior that is counterproductive to the life that is inside of me. So, once I get the revelation I set to work on how to fix it. And, He lovingly just bypasses my work and my behavior and speaks life.
To quote Jon Foreman "You're raising the dead in me."
Saturday, March 5, 2011
A saint abroad and a devil at home
I'm sure this flurry of blogging will die down once the newness wears off. But, let me continue to strike while the iron is hot...
So I'm reading The Pilgrim's Progress by John Bunyan. I don't always read stodgy Old English books but after asking a highly respected friend to challenge me to read something good he prescribed this one. I'm so glad he did. Happily, this pilgrim is making progress through the book and have come to contemplate one of the many fascinating characters... Talkative.
As soon as the characters name showed up in the story I felt my heart begin to pound. Would I find too much of myself in this guy? Would he be a positively portrayed character? Would he be the butt of all the jokes? My concern stems from my own awareness that I enjoy 'chewing the cud', as it where, as much (or more) than the next guy.
If you don't know the book I won't give you much context. I would rather provoke you to read it yourself. However, the bare minimum for this discussion is that Christian and Faithful are journeying together toward Mount Zion after leaving City of Destruction. Along the way they encounter a fellow sojourner named Talkative. He speaks of the journey so well. He talks in a way that shows him to be absolutely congruent to the desires of Christian and Faithful. The problem is... Christian knows the guy from past experience and Faithful does not.
Faithful makes a case for Talkative as he discusses his character with Christian privately. But the thing that makes it clear to Faithful that Talkative may not be all he appears to be is a quote that Christian makes. In describing Talkative's reputation back home he says that the people there know Talkative as "A saint abroad, and a devil at home."
I heard John Maxwell once say that there have been, unfortunately, several people in his life that he respected less and less the more he got to know them. I've seen that happen as well. There was a time in my life when I'm sure it was true of me and without the Lord's help I could easily return to the 'cud of my youth'. (that phrase is a stretch) In our desire to connect with people and make friends it's so important that our lives can cash the checks our mouths are writing. Because, as we know, 'the Kingdom of God is not of talk but of power.' (I Cor 4:20)
What will become of Talkative in the story? I feel I already know. But, more importantly, what will happen with me or with us in this life? Will we speak so well about the will of God and His goodness and have none of it to show in our character? I pray not. My hope is that my 'talk' is based on the evidence I and others see in my life more than the desire I have in my heart.
Oh to be a saint abroad and at home. Oh to be a saint.... at all.
So I'm reading The Pilgrim's Progress by John Bunyan. I don't always read stodgy Old English books but after asking a highly respected friend to challenge me to read something good he prescribed this one. I'm so glad he did. Happily, this pilgrim is making progress through the book and have come to contemplate one of the many fascinating characters... Talkative.
As soon as the characters name showed up in the story I felt my heart begin to pound. Would I find too much of myself in this guy? Would he be a positively portrayed character? Would he be the butt of all the jokes? My concern stems from my own awareness that I enjoy 'chewing the cud', as it where, as much (or more) than the next guy.
If you don't know the book I won't give you much context. I would rather provoke you to read it yourself. However, the bare minimum for this discussion is that Christian and Faithful are journeying together toward Mount Zion after leaving City of Destruction. Along the way they encounter a fellow sojourner named Talkative. He speaks of the journey so well. He talks in a way that shows him to be absolutely congruent to the desires of Christian and Faithful. The problem is... Christian knows the guy from past experience and Faithful does not.
Faithful makes a case for Talkative as he discusses his character with Christian privately. But the thing that makes it clear to Faithful that Talkative may not be all he appears to be is a quote that Christian makes. In describing Talkative's reputation back home he says that the people there know Talkative as "A saint abroad, and a devil at home."
I heard John Maxwell once say that there have been, unfortunately, several people in his life that he respected less and less the more he got to know them. I've seen that happen as well. There was a time in my life when I'm sure it was true of me and without the Lord's help I could easily return to the 'cud of my youth'. (that phrase is a stretch) In our desire to connect with people and make friends it's so important that our lives can cash the checks our mouths are writing. Because, as we know, 'the Kingdom of God is not of talk but of power.' (I Cor 4:20)
What will become of Talkative in the story? I feel I already know. But, more importantly, what will happen with me or with us in this life? Will we speak so well about the will of God and His goodness and have none of it to show in our character? I pray not. My hope is that my 'talk' is based on the evidence I and others see in my life more than the desire I have in my heart.
Oh to be a saint abroad and at home. Oh to be a saint.... at all.
A poem for now... a song for later
Life's not ones and zeros
Some stories are supposed to be sad
For who would need a hero
If our situations never seemed that bad
While God is still a mystery
And our brains are still pretty small
If we lose the will to wonder
We'll never see a miracle at all.
-Nathan
Some stories are supposed to be sad
For who would need a hero
If our situations never seemed that bad
While God is still a mystery
And our brains are still pretty small
If we lose the will to wonder
We'll never see a miracle at all.
-Nathan
Friday, March 4, 2011
Shaken and Stirred
To be as much of a thinker as I am, it's amazing that I haven't 'blogged' before. I think in my old age (31) I'm called more to the comfort of pen and paper, the slowness of paying cash and the fascinating quiet of sitting in a room that doesn't have a television in it. All that being said, I am intrigued at this and will, quite irregularly, flip the lid on my brain to those of you poor souls that would stop and wonder at the spectacle.
Tonight I'm up later than usual. I'm contemplating the beauty of God as seen in the delight of having good friends. I do hope you can relate. If not, allow me to make you jealous enough to give yourself away in friendship like you never have before. Life is so much better with the inconvenience of friendship.
Lately, I've been confronted with the value of shared responsibility and life done in community. It is such an assault on our normal narcissism. It is sloppy and inefficient and so incredibly wonderful. Sharing your life, your responsibilities, your successes and your failures is a very vulnerable thing. But, that's also why it's so rewarding. The biggest challenge for me has been sharing my window of opportunity. You know, the moments you get to do the thing that really makes you come alive. Ya, sharing that with others who have the calling to it but maybe not the same consistent access as you or, in this case, me. I mean, this is my chance to go for it. This is what I do. Creating capacity for others to share that moment has been a bigger joy than I ever expected. Why? I'm still learning that. I do know that I love it because I get the reward of knowing I had a hand in these people tasting the same joy I know. Yes, it creates less opportunity for me, but somehow I love it even more. Could it be that I'm actually growing up?
Friends that believe in you and trust you and look to you will most often be found when you're giving yourself away and creating capacity for others to come along. And if you do it with enough love, and keep it up long enough they might just catch it and create capacity for others to come along with them as well! I stand on the shoulders of great men and women, dear friends, that created capacity for me to hitch a ride on their blessing. Who's riding 'shot-gun' with you?
Tonight I'm up later than usual. I'm contemplating the beauty of God as seen in the delight of having good friends. I do hope you can relate. If not, allow me to make you jealous enough to give yourself away in friendship like you never have before. Life is so much better with the inconvenience of friendship.
Lately, I've been confronted with the value of shared responsibility and life done in community. It is such an assault on our normal narcissism. It is sloppy and inefficient and so incredibly wonderful. Sharing your life, your responsibilities, your successes and your failures is a very vulnerable thing. But, that's also why it's so rewarding. The biggest challenge for me has been sharing my window of opportunity. You know, the moments you get to do the thing that really makes you come alive. Ya, sharing that with others who have the calling to it but maybe not the same consistent access as you or, in this case, me. I mean, this is my chance to go for it. This is what I do. Creating capacity for others to share that moment has been a bigger joy than I ever expected. Why? I'm still learning that. I do know that I love it because I get the reward of knowing I had a hand in these people tasting the same joy I know. Yes, it creates less opportunity for me, but somehow I love it even more. Could it be that I'm actually growing up?
Friends that believe in you and trust you and look to you will most often be found when you're giving yourself away and creating capacity for others to come along. And if you do it with enough love, and keep it up long enough they might just catch it and create capacity for others to come along with them as well! I stand on the shoulders of great men and women, dear friends, that created capacity for me to hitch a ride on their blessing. Who's riding 'shot-gun' with you?
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