Hey wimp!

I have been reading Paul's letters quite a bit lately. At first it was for prepping a Bible study but then I left my personal study of Luke to jump into what Paul is saying. Let me just say I have a huge issue. I have heard a lot of messages that water down Paul's message. It seems to me that Paul has really high standards for Christians. Yet I have heard many messages and read many books that make excuses for Paul's standards. "We are sinners and can't help it," seems to be the mentality. Paul doesn't by it. He calls the people out on the carpet over and over and over. Did they sin? Of course! But Paul did not excuse it. He said it's time to change. Paul sets high standards for getting along, marriage, lawsuits, food, worship, the Lord's supper, love, spiritual gifts, forgiveness, and generosity to name a few. I have to believe that these things are applicable to me as a follower of Christ. We need a detox from the 'Christian wimp' mentality. We have set low standards but that must change. Will we sin? Of course! But we do not have to be stuck there.

1 Corinthians 1:8-9 'He will keep you strong to the end, so that you will be blameless on the day of our Lord Jesus Christ. God, who has called you into fellowship with his Son Jesus Christ our Lord, is faithful.'

We have been saved by grace. We have been given this gift. How will we respond? In weakness or in the strength that comes from Christ himself?

Devotion

The disciples "devoted themselves to the apostles' teaching and to the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer." Acts 2:42

A thought crossed my mind today. Perhaps a prompting of the Holy Spirit. What if God called you to give up all movies, tv, books, etc and asked you to study the scriptures only? What if we were to give up video games, surfing the internet, and tuning out the world with mp3's and devoted ourselves to building up the body of Christ? What if we were to give up a little sleep, that cherished latte, and our comfy couches and dedicated ourselves to worship and Bible study together on Sundays? What if we gave up our sins, our faults, our pride, our grudges, and our lives and devoted ourselves to prayer?

What if when Acts says the disciples devoted themselves, it was actually true?

We have to ask ourselves...are we disciples? Really and truly?

Into the Garden

Jesus comes to Gethsemane in the dark. He steps into the darkness of the Garden knowing that there is no other way. For us who desire to follow Christ – there is no other way. We too must make our way into darkness of the Garden.

Jesus knew he was called to die, to surrender fully to God. We are called to die, to put to death the sin in our lives, to fully surrender to God’s will, to walk away from our past.

But we are the disciples falling asleep when we should be in prayer. We are an unwilling lot, clinging to our old lives. We find comfort in our sin. We find solace in our dysfunction. The cross becomes our crutch. Grace becomes our excuse.

Let this be no more.

Tonight let us enter the garden.

However fearful we might be let us come into the garden.

However reluctant we might be let us come into the garden.

Tonight let us put to death our selfish pride, our greed, our anger, our darkest sin.

Tonight in the garden let us lay bare our souls before God.

Let us fall to our knees and pray that God’s will might be done.

Let us pray

Joyless Living

Things are easy to get caught up in...things like sports teams. Have a favorite? Maybe you are a fanatic. A favorite pasttime? Perhaps you can't get enough fishing, reading, or piano time. I am guilty. My often involve inward journeys. I get caught up in worry, self-hatred, negativity, and doubt. My one track mind likes to play out the worst case scenero for everything. So a confession is forthwith coming. For the longest time I have been caught up in the whirlwind of the postmodern, what's-wrong-with-the-organized-church, the sky is falling discussion. In all of my reading, discussions, and complaints - has this helped me to grow? Grow more cynical perhaps. Grow angry at the errors of our ways. Angry at government or leaders. Much of what is being publised by Christian publishers fuels this fire. I grab a book know that it will grow my discontent but I read it anyway. Is my anger righteous? Is my frustration founded? Perhaps. More likely it is piety and pride.

See I am the chief of sinners. I can point out your sin, the churches sin, and the world's sin. Yet I cannot face myself in the mirror. I cannot stand before God and say "here is my sin Lord". Because that would require surrender. That would require me to die to myself.

Yet here I find myself in the midst of Grace. God who is faithful and just is willing to forgive. Willing to say "my child I love you and I forgive you." Now I must face the mirror. I must fall on my knees before the cross.

The truth is I will probably not cause the next revival. I will not save the world. In fact I cannot even save myself. It is God who loves and acts and moves in and through me that brings about any good. It is God who saves. I am looking at the plank in my eye and asking God to remove it. I desire to serve and obey. The church may not be perfect. It may be modern and the world may be passing it by. But is my love. It is my home. It is where grace falls like rain. It is where I shall live in joy all the days of my life.