It's that time of year again - when you're preparing to eat a turkey that you're not really wanting to eat because you'd rather stuff your face with apple cider (as close as I ever got to hard liquor as an 8 year old) and broccoli casserole, but you do anyhow because, well it's Thanksgiving! Turkey's died for this day! It's also a time of confusion for a lot of people. Like, do I sing a Christmas carol because 103.5 is calling themselves our station for Christmas tunes? And yesterday I saw a car at the gym with antlers. Also Christmas lights are already up around the neighborhood...but to be fair they've been up all year (Is it just me who always looks down on those people until we have to start packing away the Christmas lights or untangling those suckers when they come out? Seriously, headphones on steroids.) Just all around a confusing time.
But for quite a few people it's a time where family starts to come together, talk and laugh and play pranks that only the holidays could make possible - but then there are those select few who take these days a different way. They begin to think about things, about life. It's a tender time that only a loving season can create. A couple years before I was saved this was me - except instead of taking a step towards an answer I crept back into music, video games, porn and cheap food. I didn't want to open the hole. I used generic ideas to create a barricade from God that kept me from having to deal with him. Today I wanted to deal with one of those question/statements.
"If God is so good, why does he allow bad things to happen to good people? It's not fair. I can't love a God who would do that. It says somewhere in that thick book called the Bible that God loves me. Then why let all these things happen to me?"
That's a fallacy that needs to be addressed here and now.
So a lot of people throw out, 'God is good', 'God is love', 'God created evil' but there's a sad degradation of the English language today that we don't know a quarter of what words actually mean. Words that were used to represent a fear of God, like awesome, now are used to describe a cheap pizza or a 1900*1600 resolution. Love - the word for something that is used to describe the deepest passion that you have with someone, something that goes beyond human instinct and drives you to take a bullet for that person is now used to freely when talking about a pair of shoes. We throw words around with such ease - but remember, God used words to form this earth. What we say has the power to change lives. So when people say, 'God is good' what does that really mean?
Good is described as something that's pleasant, agreeable and of high quality. Sounds legit. I mean that all matches up with what we know of good, right? Well that's how the world defines it - but what about the Bible? If there's really a word that describes what good is it'd be this one - God.
God is holy. Righteous. That means he's praise worthy. Without blame. Morally on the right side of the coin.
See, without God humans are at a place where we can't define what, 'good' and 'bad' are. There is no absolute (I read some stuff that I want to post on here but I'll save it for another post. Freakin' intense science that gets deep into atheists trying to prove some crazy stuff). But Christians know that God is our absolute. Without a higher power there is no good and bad. There are simply actions and reactions. So we're going to assume that there is a God for the rest of this talk and we're going to say that He is our standard of what is good in life and he gives us a level to live by which jumps right into my next point (how convenient.) - what is evil? If good is God then evil is essentially the opposite of everything that God is. And those are your definitions.
Another word that goes along with God is just. He follows the rules. Christ died as a sacrifice for our sins, right? Well why didn't God just say, 'Heck, I'm the head honcho! I love you all you can just come into Heaven! No need to sacrifice m'boy for you all.' That'd defy who God is, his very nature. He sticks to the things he's set in motion. If he didn't then we'd be able to accuse him of not sticking to his word. But you might ask,
'Why have sin in the world anyway? Just create a perfect world and let us live awesome lives!'
Funny you say that because that's exactly what he did. See, if you check out Genesis 1: 26-31 we see that God created man in his own image, a spiritual image of perfection and in the last verse, just to add a little more bang to your buck, he said it was very good (and we remember what good is). So man was without sin, a perfect world. But he also gave man the choice to make certain decisions in his life (Proverbs 16:9, Genesis 2:19-20). The decision of right and wrong (which are different from good and evil. Something can be the wrong choice but not a sin/evil. Won't go in depth on it here.) was given to Adam. He made the wrong choice which, at that moment, let sin erupt through out the earth. (If you need more clarification and how Adam was without sin but still sinned, ask in a comment and I'll go deeper) Since God is just he kept to the decision of man. There was a punishment given because of a crime committed and because of who God is we have to live out that sentence.
That's not fair!
I know...if it were fair we'd be living a life completely apart from God, burning in Hell and that'd be the end of the story. That'd be fair. We've sinned and there's a punishment to be paid for that.
It'd be God saying, 'Follow these rules but in the end you're just going to suffer and go to Hell.'
But He doesn't.
He says, 'I'll pay your debt, man. In fact not only will I catch your bill, which is more expensive then you know, but I'm building a house up here for you and I've had my son, who's a carpenter, working on it for 2000+ years. Just accept my gift and it's yours.'
That sounds like a good God to me.
But I'm not going to sugar coat it - when you become a Christian it's not like everything becomes all lollipops and Guitar Hero, there are times where we still suffer. Talk to Job (well he's kinda dead but in a figure of speech way you should talk to him). That brother had it hard BECAUSE he followed God. Satan prayed on that man to the point of taking everything except his nagging wife and he STILL couldn't break Job. All because God wanted to prove a point and to teach Job.
See, God allows (Important word to remember: allows) things to happen to us to build us up. When we have it easy all our life then why do we even need God? Sometimes He brings us to our knees so that the only place we can look is up, to remember him. That may not seem fair to someone who doesn't believe but to a Christian the best time of our life is spent on our knees. You talk to any old Christian veteran and he'll agree that he wouldn't be where he is today if not for the challenges God put in his life.
God allows it to build us up.
And when we're not one of God's children? He'll use it the exact same way, to make us see that he really is Lord and to bring it to him.
(Though that's not the only way He can make your salvation happen)
But let's say you don't agree with God and you're a hard core atheist or diest or agnostic who just doesn't care about all that - two points.
1) If you say that God is evil because he won't purge the earth of evil then I ask this - if there is no God then you set the moral standard for life and you're the only one who can do something about it so why aren't you? I'm assuming you have at least a dollar to your name? Send that to Africa! Your whole being should be devoted to fighting this evil in the world. You can't accuse God of something and turn around and not do absolutely everything in your power to fix it. That's the essence of a hypocrite.
2) If you want God to take away all evil from the world, then what does that actually mean? You want him to take away world hunger, murder, rape, abuse and war? But where do you want him to stop? Because evil doesn't just stop there. We are sinners. We've lied, stolen and cussed. If God takes away evil then he takes away your will to choose, and he eliminates who you are. Are you willing to loose your ability to think? See most things we love are sin. Do you really want God to take them away from you?
So it's not so much a question of God letting things bad things happen to good people but more, why does he allow good things to happen to bad people? None of us are really good (equal to God). We need to be thankful for the blessings he gives us now and thankful that he doesn't decide to simply, make things fair.
Anyhow, I have a ton more I'd love to post on here but if you're reading this sentence then I applaud you being able to get through it all and I won't make you suffer through any more. I think I might do a part two - on the science of it all. Anyhow, I'd appreciate a +1 off Google or a share on Facebook and you can always follow me =) It's super encouraging to get feedback of any kind! Comments or questions? Just give me a holler!
In His name,
- Parker
Friday, November 22, 2013
Monday, November 11, 2013
The, 'Normal' Life
Oh my gosh! He's writing again! Something tragic must have happened in his life - like the death of a hamster or a tragic loss of his crops. Yeah, no. Tanjida just gave me a kick in the butt to write again =D So thanks, Tanji! You da' bess!
I've been saved for a month a day and a year and if I wanted to psych some people out I could tell them how many hours. Minutes? Brother please, let's not get crazy. But for as long as I've been saved I've always had this one question - how can I do anything but serve God?
Now before you start biting your nails and thinking, 'Oh man, this kid's a religious fanatic! Flee, flee for your lives!' Please, stay 'till the end of the next paragraph at least.
Now before you start biting your nails and thinking, 'Oh man, this kid's a religious fanatic! Flee, flee for your lives!' Please, stay 'till the end of the next paragraph at least.
1 Cor. 10:31 - For all that you do, do for the glory of God.
Well I'm sitting on the toilet (not currently, and I know you were thinking I was)...how does that work out? I'm pretty sure after dropping a heavy duty, bean burrito mixture that I'm not really living up to that verses standards - as anyone downwind of my bathroom could tell you.
What about watching a show like The Walking Dead on a Sunday night, and though I'm sure God probably the idea of a zombie apocalypse (Isiah 26:19-20), the show isn't exactly umm...what are the words I'm looking for? Oh yeah, Godly and uplifting - though Hershel did pick up a Bible a few times so I'm hoping that'll counts as a few points towards me.
What about traveling without the purpose of hunting out tribal villages to share down God's word? Will I ever get to go to New Zealand to see the hobbitsis??
Heck, even reading a book like Percy Jackson! Greek mythology and fiction?? Double time waster.
What about watching a show like The Walking Dead on a Sunday night, and though I'm sure God probably the idea of a zombie apocalypse (Isiah 26:19-20), the show isn't exactly umm...what are the words I'm looking for? Oh yeah, Godly and uplifting - though Hershel did pick up a Bible a few times so I'm hoping that'll counts as a few points towards me.
What about traveling without the purpose of hunting out tribal villages to share down God's word? Will I ever get to go to New Zealand to see the hobbitsis??
Heck, even reading a book like Percy Jackson! Greek mythology and fiction?? Double time waster.
Well I remember sitting at one of the tables of this Mexican restaurant during my college groups Tuesday night men's bible study. Fresh corn chips, home made salsa and unlimited refills - and I didn't even have to pay! Normally I was pretty into our discussions but that night I wasn't really feeling it.
It had just finished down pouring on the tools I'd forgotten to cover in the back of my truck bed and I was having trouble concentrating on the lesson. I was at the point where I was supposed to pick out a career for my life. Supposed to be a big deal or something. I absolutely loved to work with my hands so the choice was pretty clear to me; get a trade!
But yet - but yet I was saved. I mean all the signs were pointing towards going into Air Conditioning. I had so many connections in that line of work, it was scientific and fun and good work with, ahem, good pay but how could I do that when the world needed preachers or full time missionaries? Look at Paul! Dude didn't even get married, just decided to write like half of the books of the New Testament and become the most successful theologian/evangelist this side of the galaxy. How could I just concentrate on my life? On getting a wife and kids and a normal job? How could I do anything but sun-up to sun-down serve God and where could a normal life fit in that? Depressing, right? That seemed worse than my 7 year old fear of heaven being 24/7 church listening to the preacher talk.
It had just finished down pouring on the tools I'd forgotten to cover in the back of my truck bed and I was having trouble concentrating on the lesson. I was at the point where I was supposed to pick out a career for my life. Supposed to be a big deal or something. I absolutely loved to work with my hands so the choice was pretty clear to me; get a trade!
But yet - but yet I was saved. I mean all the signs were pointing towards going into Air Conditioning. I had so many connections in that line of work, it was scientific and fun and good work with, ahem, good pay but how could I do that when the world needed preachers or full time missionaries? Look at Paul! Dude didn't even get married, just decided to write like half of the books of the New Testament and become the most successful theologian/evangelist this side of the galaxy. How could I just concentrate on my life? On getting a wife and kids and a normal job? How could I do anything but sun-up to sun-down serve God and where could a normal life fit in that? Depressing, right? That seemed worse than my 7 year old fear of heaven being 24/7 church listening to the preacher talk.
Needless to say, and that's why I'm going to say it anyhow, I was feeling a little woozy. I imagine Alice feeling the same way at the Mad Hatter's Table - okay, I don't really get how I imagine that but it's still working for me. I'll leave you to tie in the symbolism. Anyhow It was question that everyone else had seemed to answer in their life without a problem and they all seemed happy with their choices. So what was I doing wrong? The way I saw it, you've gotta be all or nothing. Working out, you either had to run until you saw black spots or do a Netflix binge complete with unlimited cream soda and Doritos. No middle ground! Die or diet! No guts no glory! No socks no shoes! Read a book over the span of three weeks? Brother please! 46 hours straight until I'd powered through that sucker!
...God or life. There was no middle ground. Sadly that's the way I saw it.
Thank Heavens I wasn't dumb enough to stop there! See there's this cool thing called proper application and it can screw your life over worse than having to work a weekend shift during Christmas when your favorite cousins are in from Florida, you know, the ones who actually know how to buy a good present! Apparently I wasn't using this application tool properly. There should be an app for that.
That night after the Bible study, after I had finished bemoaning the drenching of my precious Echo weed whacker (After much rehabilitation, a through cleaning and few good meals of gasoline and 2 cycle oil I'm happy to say he's doing much better.) I decided to ask one of my friends/mentors about it. Good choice.
So I let out my heart felt spiel, expecting to hear all the answers I'd already come to - I was going to have to devote my life to wearing beige cargo pants, a wide brimmed shade hat, some kind of Jesus shirt and be preaching to ant eaters in the wilds of some country I couldn't pronounce. His answer - the Air Conditioning world needs missionaries too.
The heavens had opened! God's cornucopia of wisdom and amazingness had just poured down on me. Choirs of angels sang and beams of heavenly light poured down on me! Kind of - if Angels were hissing alley cats dueling over the trash and beams of light were after shower mists.
It's pretty simple and I still had more questions on the subject but it was the start I needed.
I had a co-worker who wasn't saved. I tried to share but he was pretty much turned off to it all. Not hostile but not interested. And then things started happening. His mom, wheelchair bound and homeless mind you, began to prostitute herself. His girlfriend had just left him because of a black out rage and he hated his job. Shrinks, hypnotists, 12 step programs - he was willing to try anything for an answer. His friends could only offer him a beer and say sorry but I'd been put in a position to share with this dude and If not for being in that position I never would have had a chance to. That jumps into my next point.
I had a co-worker who wasn't saved. I tried to share but he was pretty much turned off to it all. Not hostile but not interested. And then things started happening. His mom, wheelchair bound and homeless mind you, began to prostitute herself. His girlfriend had just left him because of a black out rage and he hated his job. Shrinks, hypnotists, 12 step programs - he was willing to try anything for an answer. His friends could only offer him a beer and say sorry but I'd been put in a position to share with this dude and If not for being in that position I never would have had a chance to. That jumps into my next point.
See, now look at 1 Cor. 10:31 again. In all you do, do for the glory of God. While a bathroom disaster might not please God (or any of his senses) what if I thank God while I'm on the, umm, facilites for the sewage system, the people that work it or, heck, even the water to take the sewage away. The money we have to pay for the right to use the facilities or just the fact that I can go to the bathroom on my own!
The meaning of Glory is to give praise to someone for something and while it's pretty much impossible to plan your whole life so it will give you the maximum opportunity to praise God (though that's not a bad thing) I look at the verse like this - in whatever you find yourself doing, give the maximum amount of praise to God for it!
If you're feeling called to be a missionary then heck, go for it! That's awesome! But something I learned pretty early on, if your heart isn't in it, you shouldn't be either because, in the words of the 70's generation, you'll be giving off the wrong vibes, dude. Now that doesn't mean that when something gets uncomfortable you're allowed to run away, arms flailing and that whole deal. God sometimes calls us to do things that make us sick to our stomachs but it's still something he's called us to do.
But how to know if it's something he's called you to do? Well since God is, well, God he has his ways of making it pretty obvious what he wants us to do. Sorta like getting swallowed by a giant fish or being blinded with beams of light and having donkeys talk to you or having pillars of fire lead you across the desert and stuff - believe you me, whether he wants you to get married or preach, he gets his point across. Just saying that if we don't see God pushing us towards something and we don't want to go their our self, why go?
If you're feeling called to be a missionary then heck, go for it! That's awesome! But something I learned pretty early on, if your heart isn't in it, you shouldn't be either because, in the words of the 70's generation, you'll be giving off the wrong vibes, dude. Now that doesn't mean that when something gets uncomfortable you're allowed to run away, arms flailing and that whole deal. God sometimes calls us to do things that make us sick to our stomachs but it's still something he's called us to do.
But how to know if it's something he's called you to do? Well since God is, well, God he has his ways of making it pretty obvious what he wants us to do. Sorta like getting swallowed by a giant fish or being blinded with beams of light and having donkeys talk to you or having pillars of fire lead you across the desert and stuff - believe you me, whether he wants you to get married or preach, he gets his point across. Just saying that if we don't see God pushing us towards something and we don't want to go their our self, why go?
See life was given for us to serve (Ephesians 2:10) and when that's being done we have the freedom to enjoy ourselves. Why would God give us marriage (women could just have been built to self-fertilize) or beautiful scenery or the capacity to laugh and feel love? Because God created us in his own image (Genesis 1:27) and God loved, he cried, he created, He was angry.
He felt and we feel. I don't need a verse to prove that to you.
As long as we're following Christ, giving praise to him in every situation in life whether or not it's to people with bones sticking through their noses or to sweaty blue collar workers or traveling to cool places or simply watching a sick zombie show to just unwind (as much as you can on the edge of your seat) then I take my hat off to you.
We were built to give God glory, so give it to him. No matter how bad it gets there's always something to say thank you for (James 1:2) but no one says that we have to go 24/7 Bible study beast mode. If you try then believe me, you'll burn out.
We were built to give God glory, so give it to him. No matter how bad it gets there's always something to say thank you for (James 1:2) but no one says that we have to go 24/7 Bible study beast mode. If you try then believe me, you'll burn out.
When you're pumping iron you'll reach a point to where if you don't stop you literally start to do more damage to your body than good. Muscles eat themselves, your brain can begin to shut down and you'll internally explode! Okay, maybe not the last one but the message is clear - you'll burn out. It's the same with God's word. We need a time of rest. God took a breather to show all the lame people that won't take a break that we need to seriously chill out. Now check this - Joshua 1:8 says that the word of God should constantly be on your lips, on your mind day and night. Even though we're not at a Bible study or evangelizing, our minds should be on God, giving him thanks for this and that. It makes everything about us better. Believe me, remembering God when you're about to blow your top over your sister drinking your protein shake, it'll calm you down right quick.
So all in all it doesn't matter the occupation - fight hard when the fight is needed, work hard when there's work to be done. Serve when service is needed. Rest when the time calls for it and follow your heart and God's word.
Thanks for reading!
So all in all it doesn't matter the occupation - fight hard when the fight is needed, work hard when there's work to be done. Serve when service is needed. Rest when the time calls for it and follow your heart and God's word.
Thanks for reading!
Any comments or questions or stuff? Just comment or question or stuff.
Have a blessed one!
In His name, Parker.
Wednesday, June 26, 2013
Well that was...awkward.
Two weeks? It is to laugh.
Anyhow just jumped on to say I haven't fallen off the bandwagon. Really I came to a thought, and a pretty good one at that. They come every once in a while in the bathroom and while I'm taking out the trash.
I'll write to you whenever I'm doing a lesson for WoL. I just got a job and it's taking up quite a bit of my time (yes, I did just give that lame cop out) and though I'm still keeping to devotions and a good hunk of prayer time but to blog about it, I don't have the energy to think up any of those quality words and sentences and periods and stuff. But when it comes to WoL it's something that I have to do and make time for and so it'll come out quality on the blog and allow me to refine it for my lesson. Win, win!
So anyhow, I'll catch you all on the flipside. Should be posting in a few days on the lesson me and my teacher dude friend (Ryan) did on Wed. Sound good? Cool, cus that's how it's going down anyhow! Later!
In His name,
PKLizardi
Anyhow just jumped on to say I haven't fallen off the bandwagon. Really I came to a thought, and a pretty good one at that. They come every once in a while in the bathroom and while I'm taking out the trash.
I'll write to you whenever I'm doing a lesson for WoL. I just got a job and it's taking up quite a bit of my time (yes, I did just give that lame cop out) and though I'm still keeping to devotions and a good hunk of prayer time but to blog about it, I don't have the energy to think up any of those quality words and sentences and periods and stuff. But when it comes to WoL it's something that I have to do and make time for and so it'll come out quality on the blog and allow me to refine it for my lesson. Win, win!
So anyhow, I'll catch you all on the flipside. Should be posting in a few days on the lesson me and my teacher dude friend (Ryan) did on Wed. Sound good? Cool, cus that's how it's going down anyhow! Later!
In His name,
PKLizardi
Tuesday, May 14, 2013
The Idolatry Of Ourselves
So I have six drafts for this sucker of a blog but this will be the last! As you might have been able to tell from the lack of hair on my head, the number of drafts I've failed to finish or the ridiculous number of CC's of coffee I've been pumping into me that this blog isn't going down quite as I had planned. I don't know why the topic of idolatry is proving to be so difficult for me. It's so simple in definition but that's where it seems to get so complicated - in its simplicity. We'll see where the ball lands. For now we're starting with it in my court.
Idol, normally the word brings to mind a golden statue that was big enough to have its own gravitational pull or a little smiling chubby Asian dude whose belly you'd rub for good luck. They were something used by the Vikings who prayed for fare sea weather, ancient Egyptians for flooding of the Nile or fertility, or the Greeks for bumper crops or victory in battle. But except for a more symbolic use by a few religions, idols have become outdated, something old and no longer needed. Science, Wikipedia and Google has seen to that. We have our weather patterns, Navy SEAL teams, satellite reconnaissance and doctors with wooden sticks that they are somehow legally allowed to jam down our throats or a reasonable answer to most of our questions. Idols were for the ignorant who didn't have a cell phone. A comfort pillow. So why talk about something that's faded with the past? Because that's the thing. It hasn't.
C.S Lewis, in his book The Screwtape Letters, writes,
“Indeed the safest road to Hell is the gradual one--the gentle slope, soft underfoot, without sudden
turnings, without milestones, without signposts..."
See, you have to understand that this is how Satan works. Looking back at some of his best cases you won't see a massive attack on a man's faith, a proverbial Bunker Hill. If it were we'd be able to have something to stand against and beat back. It's easy to hit a target when there's a target to hit. But Satan's finest work, it's the gradual, slow, fade. That is what kills the man's soul.
For me it was computers. That's how it began. Robert E. Lee Civil War General, Backyard baseball, Stronghold, Bugs Life. At 10 I was essentially dying for any piece of technology I could get my hands. I would salivate over the chance to play. School was a passing thought, and the only reason I did it was to play.
Suddenly one night it dawned on me...I wanted more time on the computer to be with my troops, cities and cartoon baseball teams, so why not just wait until everyone had gone to bed and then I'd just sneak to the backroom turn the sound down and play all night! I still remember that night. I was terrified that my mom would come walking out and find me. I got as far as the startup window before my nerve broke and I tore out the power cable and made a dash for my room and huddled in my bed. How I wished it had stopped there.
Six years later that spark of rebellion had cacooned itself into a choking weed that, in no time at all had fully corrupted me, slipping its fingers through every inch of my life and choking me to Hell. I had stolen hundreds of dollars (possibly even a thousand) from my grandma (who was sick with beginning level dementia, that, years later, was paid back) to pay for my World of Warcraft/gaming addiction , which, after thousands of late nights by myself with a computer had branched off into another addiction to pornography. My life was falling apart with my family, daily yelling matches with my mom, ugly fights with my sisters. I wanted nothing to do with God and really, I didn't give a fig newton about any of it. I knew I'd still have the addictions to go back to. The comfort sins. Talk to pastor? Fine, if it'd keep the parents quite. It's not like I had to listen and I could just hack the computer later that night and get my dose. And honestly, if you had asked me (and was able to pry out a truly honest response) about how I could do it all and not feel bad, I would have just shrugged and said, 'Because I just don't care.'
It started out small. Harmless games and laughs. But between a perfect blend of slow cooked apathy and cheap entertainment I ended up with addictions that I'm still struggling to overcome to this day. But you want to know what really ticks me off? It's how easy it was to take me down. How little of a fight I put up. I wanted it. Maybe not the addictions that came along with it but I wanted the cheap fun instead of school and family and God. Instead of struggling for my life, my little 10 year old mind decided to wimp out and take the wide, cushy, road. It was easier than God so I took it.
And that blogger people, that...that is an idol. It's not a golden statue that we bow down to physically but it's anything that has that worth to you. The moment when you run over someone else to appease that idol, the desire, that's when you need to realize that you're loosing the battle. An idol demands worship, it demands everything from you, and why? Because it's fueled by our own desires. We are that idol. We want more sex, more games, more money, more praise, more attention. See the games were never the root of the problem. It was who I am. It was the greed in my heart, my selfish desires. I wanted more so I took it and didn't let anything stop me. It could have just as easily been any other catalyst - girls or cars or, let's face it, murder, but it's the route I set my self up on. We don't have idols...we have an idol and that idol is ourself.
Paul writes to the Colossians (Colossians 3:5)
5 Put to death, therefore, whatever belongs to your earthly nature:sexual immorality, impurity, lust,
evil desires and greed, which is idolatry.
See, Paul, the greatest known theologian (except for Christ which really isn't a fare comparison) of his time, states that idolatry is pure greed. Need to back that up? Ephesians. 5:5
5 For of this you can be sure: No immoral, impure or greedy person—such a person is an idolater—
has any inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and of God
See, idolatry is made complicated by it's simplicity. Teachers say we idolize sports or TV or clothes. No, no, no! We idolize ourselves by giving ourselves whatever we want and from that we seep these little side issues, what the world has taught us to call, 'idols'. That's the mistake. It's not plural! And look at the consequences of it is...idolaters have no inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and of God. How crushing is that? When we feed our every desire we leave no room for Christ. He is to be the only one we serve. Phil. 1:21 (one of my favorite verses) - As for me, to live is Christ to die is gain. Everything we do, we do for the glory of our God. Idolatry stands between that lifestyle.
So where do you stand? Do you put yourself before Christ? Don't know? Here's an easy way to see. When it comes to devotions and you want to sleep or play video games or exercise (weirdo) or eat or jump on Facebook, do homework (something is deff wrong with you then) or, even, doing something for God/the Church (Luke 10:38-42)(believe me, it gets tricky there.) and you pass the Bible and the teaching of the Holy Spirit, you need to take a look at what's going on. If Christ comes after you in anyway then you can be sure Satan is standing behind you whispering that it's fine, that's it just the one time. He's trying to slip his daily dose of idolatry into your life. Don't let him. Please, I'm begging you. Don't put yourself and everyone else who loves you through it. You can beat this! Christ is your power. 1 Cor 10:13. He will provide a way out from under it but realize that we're under it. It's weight is crushing but we have to fight to claw out from it. Please...start before your mole hill becomes a mountain. Just remember that in the end, you will kneel before Christ, the only true idol worth worship, and all you'll want to hear from his mouth is, 'Well done good and faithful servant.'
Don't be the chaff he throws to the wind. The fish that is thrown back. The wo/man that is spit out. Flee from greed. From the love of yourself. Today I've sold my PS3, have top of the line restrictions set on my internet (seriously every possible device) (Covenanteyes.com is a beast of a site that I seriously recommend), skip all songs that have even a hint of sexual content, dropped 95% of the shows I watch and replaced it with God. It's the only way. I challenge you. Take that step. Step into the ring and begin to go toe to toe with that lion who stalks the earth, looking for your soul to devour.
One more thing that's on my heart that I need to share before I sign off on this guy. I heard a sermon on the radio a few weeks ago while I was going to my Air Conditioning class. It hit me like an overweight rhino.
"People watch or listen to raunchy shows or songs or video games full of sex and cursing and all
un-Godliness and say, it doesn't bother me. That's the problem! If you're saved you should be
appalled! People...your conscious has died."
God gave us a that Jiminy Cricket on our shoulder, pleading with us to stop. That first night I went to play on the computer, I felt sick to my stomach. Why? Because my conscious was begging me to stop. When you fall to the Father below, he smothers that voice. Is Jiminy trying to stop you? Please...listen. It may be all that's holding you back from Hell. Is he gone? Fall to your knees and beg God to turn your life around. You may not have hit rock bottom. Don't let it. Brothers, sisters. Take action. This is a war. We will fight the good fight and in the end we'll share our stories in Heaven. I hope to see you there.
PKL
Godbless
Idol, normally the word brings to mind a golden statue that was big enough to have its own gravitational pull or a little smiling chubby Asian dude whose belly you'd rub for good luck. They were something used by the Vikings who prayed for fare sea weather, ancient Egyptians for flooding of the Nile or fertility, or the Greeks for bumper crops or victory in battle. But except for a more symbolic use by a few religions, idols have become outdated, something old and no longer needed. Science, Wikipedia and Google has seen to that. We have our weather patterns, Navy SEAL teams, satellite reconnaissance and doctors with wooden sticks that they are somehow legally allowed to jam down our throats or a reasonable answer to most of our questions. Idols were for the ignorant who didn't have a cell phone. A comfort pillow. So why talk about something that's faded with the past? Because that's the thing. It hasn't.
C.S Lewis, in his book The Screwtape Letters, writes,
“Indeed the safest road to Hell is the gradual one--the gentle slope, soft underfoot, without sudden
turnings, without milestones, without signposts..."
See, you have to understand that this is how Satan works. Looking back at some of his best cases you won't see a massive attack on a man's faith, a proverbial Bunker Hill. If it were we'd be able to have something to stand against and beat back. It's easy to hit a target when there's a target to hit. But Satan's finest work, it's the gradual, slow, fade. That is what kills the man's soul.
For me it was computers. That's how it began. Robert E. Lee Civil War General, Backyard baseball, Stronghold, Bugs Life. At 10 I was essentially dying for any piece of technology I could get my hands. I would salivate over the chance to play. School was a passing thought, and the only reason I did it was to play.
Suddenly one night it dawned on me...I wanted more time on the computer to be with my troops, cities and cartoon baseball teams, so why not just wait until everyone had gone to bed and then I'd just sneak to the backroom turn the sound down and play all night! I still remember that night. I was terrified that my mom would come walking out and find me. I got as far as the startup window before my nerve broke and I tore out the power cable and made a dash for my room and huddled in my bed. How I wished it had stopped there.
Six years later that spark of rebellion had cacooned itself into a choking weed that, in no time at all had fully corrupted me, slipping its fingers through every inch of my life and choking me to Hell. I had stolen hundreds of dollars (possibly even a thousand) from my grandma (who was sick with beginning level dementia, that, years later, was paid back) to pay for my World of Warcraft/gaming addiction , which, after thousands of late nights by myself with a computer had branched off into another addiction to pornography. My life was falling apart with my family, daily yelling matches with my mom, ugly fights with my sisters. I wanted nothing to do with God and really, I didn't give a fig newton about any of it. I knew I'd still have the addictions to go back to. The comfort sins. Talk to pastor? Fine, if it'd keep the parents quite. It's not like I had to listen and I could just hack the computer later that night and get my dose. And honestly, if you had asked me (and was able to pry out a truly honest response) about how I could do it all and not feel bad, I would have just shrugged and said, 'Because I just don't care.'
It started out small. Harmless games and laughs. But between a perfect blend of slow cooked apathy and cheap entertainment I ended up with addictions that I'm still struggling to overcome to this day. But you want to know what really ticks me off? It's how easy it was to take me down. How little of a fight I put up. I wanted it. Maybe not the addictions that came along with it but I wanted the cheap fun instead of school and family and God. Instead of struggling for my life, my little 10 year old mind decided to wimp out and take the wide, cushy, road. It was easier than God so I took it.
And that blogger people, that...that is an idol. It's not a golden statue that we bow down to physically but it's anything that has that worth to you. The moment when you run over someone else to appease that idol, the desire, that's when you need to realize that you're loosing the battle. An idol demands worship, it demands everything from you, and why? Because it's fueled by our own desires. We are that idol. We want more sex, more games, more money, more praise, more attention. See the games were never the root of the problem. It was who I am. It was the greed in my heart, my selfish desires. I wanted more so I took it and didn't let anything stop me. It could have just as easily been any other catalyst - girls or cars or, let's face it, murder, but it's the route I set my self up on. We don't have idols...we have an idol and that idol is ourself.
Paul writes to the Colossians (Colossians 3:5)
5 Put to death, therefore, whatever belongs to your earthly nature:sexual immorality, impurity, lust,
evil desires and greed, which is idolatry.
See, Paul, the greatest known theologian (except for Christ which really isn't a fare comparison) of his time, states that idolatry is pure greed. Need to back that up? Ephesians. 5:5
5 For of this you can be sure: No immoral, impure or greedy person—such a person is an idolater—
has any inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and of God
See, idolatry is made complicated by it's simplicity. Teachers say we idolize sports or TV or clothes. No, no, no! We idolize ourselves by giving ourselves whatever we want and from that we seep these little side issues, what the world has taught us to call, 'idols'. That's the mistake. It's not plural! And look at the consequences of it is...idolaters have no inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and of God. How crushing is that? When we feed our every desire we leave no room for Christ. He is to be the only one we serve. Phil. 1:21 (one of my favorite verses) - As for me, to live is Christ to die is gain. Everything we do, we do for the glory of our God. Idolatry stands between that lifestyle.
So where do you stand? Do you put yourself before Christ? Don't know? Here's an easy way to see. When it comes to devotions and you want to sleep or play video games or exercise (weirdo) or eat or jump on Facebook, do homework (something is deff wrong with you then) or, even, doing something for God/the Church (Luke 10:38-42)(believe me, it gets tricky there.) and you pass the Bible and the teaching of the Holy Spirit, you need to take a look at what's going on. If Christ comes after you in anyway then you can be sure Satan is standing behind you whispering that it's fine, that's it just the one time. He's trying to slip his daily dose of idolatry into your life. Don't let him. Please, I'm begging you. Don't put yourself and everyone else who loves you through it. You can beat this! Christ is your power. 1 Cor 10:13. He will provide a way out from under it but realize that we're under it. It's weight is crushing but we have to fight to claw out from it. Please...start before your mole hill becomes a mountain. Just remember that in the end, you will kneel before Christ, the only true idol worth worship, and all you'll want to hear from his mouth is, 'Well done good and faithful servant.'
Don't be the chaff he throws to the wind. The fish that is thrown back. The wo/man that is spit out. Flee from greed. From the love of yourself. Today I've sold my PS3, have top of the line restrictions set on my internet (seriously every possible device) (Covenanteyes.com is a beast of a site that I seriously recommend), skip all songs that have even a hint of sexual content, dropped 95% of the shows I watch and replaced it with God. It's the only way. I challenge you. Take that step. Step into the ring and begin to go toe to toe with that lion who stalks the earth, looking for your soul to devour.
One more thing that's on my heart that I need to share before I sign off on this guy. I heard a sermon on the radio a few weeks ago while I was going to my Air Conditioning class. It hit me like an overweight rhino.
"People watch or listen to raunchy shows or songs or video games full of sex and cursing and all
un-Godliness and say, it doesn't bother me. That's the problem! If you're saved you should be
appalled! People...your conscious has died."
God gave us a that Jiminy Cricket on our shoulder, pleading with us to stop. That first night I went to play on the computer, I felt sick to my stomach. Why? Because my conscious was begging me to stop. When you fall to the Father below, he smothers that voice. Is Jiminy trying to stop you? Please...listen. It may be all that's holding you back from Hell. Is he gone? Fall to your knees and beg God to turn your life around. You may not have hit rock bottom. Don't let it. Brothers, sisters. Take action. This is a war. We will fight the good fight and in the end we'll share our stories in Heaven. I hope to see you there.
PKL
Godbless
Friday, May 3, 2013
A Little Note
No scripture or crazy ideas just a little truth I had sucker punch me this morning - Christ gave us salvation through grace, giving us something we didn't at all deserve. That's bloody amazing and something I can't even fathom but beware the moment you start abusing that grace and committing sins on God's tab...I've seen first hand what it'll do and the moment you start down that road it doesn't end well. The moment you begin to rationalize ANY sin in any form, drop to your knees and beg God to help. Satan's most effective weapon is the slow fade, slowly integrating apathy into your every day diet until there's no stopping it...please, watch out. Just a note from the moron who's gone through it before. It all comes back to which father we serve, above or below. It ALL comes back to one.
Wednesday, May 1, 2013
Clarification
So just wanted to give you a quick update on how often I'll be writing. I didn't really specify. Anyhow, anytime I complete a subject or (pride, self control, marriage, lying, anger, faith) I'll write a post. I might for throw some stuff out, quote that I found that were cool or powerful verses but for the most part it'll be on subjects. How often will a subject come? No idea.
Anyhow, I'll be off now. Chores to do, clogged sinuses to deal with, and headaches to get over. Fun day.
PKL
God bless!
Anyhow, I'll be off now. Chores to do, clogged sinuses to deal with, and headaches to get over. Fun day.
PKL
God bless!
Tuesday, April 30, 2013
Pride Under Humility
So I'm a mentor for my churches Wednesday night highschool ministry, Word of Life. I felt like doors were opening in that direction so I completed the app process and heck, they took me in! I also mentioned an interest to do some teaching. Little did I know that meant immediately/every two weeks. It's enough time to get ready and prepare but honestly, I can tell you that going from the socially awkward homeschooler to giving lessons to a group of guys who are looking for spiritual guidance, that is terrifying. But it's stretching my quiet time in a way I've never experienced before! Now that I've got all the info I just need to figure out how to make it relavant.
Also, cool fact, you can never seem to pee often enough before having to get up and talk in front of a bunch of people.
So I was wondering what I'd teach on. The class is going through Ezekiel and oh man, I figured out just how far out of my comfort zone I was about the time I got to the four faces on the giant six winged angels that flew around with wheels inside wheels following them. I mean Revelations was a piece of cake compared to figuring out this stuff! So with all the talk about Gog and invading kingdoms and murder and heavenly beings flying around I decided to talk about the issue of pride.
So before you go thinking that I crumpled, first hear the reasoning behind why I crumpled. The majority of our kids are church kids which means they've heard the stories, know the words and enough basic theology to answer questions without looking like a bench warmer - a.k.a me. But there's no fire there. In Romans the Jews had zeal but no knowledge. Today we have knowledge but no zeal! And the knowledge we have is so wet it's break apart to the touch. So I took a look back and realized, why get into theology, hermeneutics, eschatology, evangelism or apologetics when they don't even know the basics? So I'm going back to the basics, taking the essentials of what our faith is based on and trying to make it connect. Two weeks ago (My first lesson) was on self control (Psalms 25:28 being the key verse) and tomorrow I'm going into pride. Why? Well I teach the highschool guys, no girls, and I think an issue we really struggle with is pride, though we may not know it. So here's what I learned.
1) First you have to understand what pride is. I looked up a bunch of definitions and essays and essentially smashed it down to a few word: It's self worship (Obadiah 1:3). I'll get into why that's wrong in a second, but this is just talking about what pride is so I'll stick to that.
Another thing about pride is that it's a 2 part emotion, built of the thought (internal) (Mark 7:20-22) as well as the reaction to the thought (external output). By that I mean you have the, 'Oh I wonder...' thought running through your mind, which is then followed by the external output, like puffing up your chest as that girl walks by or lashing out in an argument even when you know you're wrong. That's pride.
2) You have to realize that you can't do anything about that first aspect, or that thought and you've got to realize, that thought isn't a sin! Now before you go shutting the browser on me, hear me out. A thought is instantaneous, a burst of electricity (something that moves at the speed of light) through neurons in our brains. We can't control that. It's going to happen. From the most holy-ish paster to the lowest criminal, we're going to have those thoughts. Jesus himself was tempted in Matthew 4. Temptation is a thought to do something, but Christ was without sin, and sense he was tempted and temptation isn't a sin, heck that initial thought isn't a sin!
Now do realize that what you do after that initial thought is where sin begins. Either we choose to think on something different, pray to God that he'll drive the thought from our mind, or we sit and mull over the thought as we twist it to make it, allowable.
Honestly that was a breath of fresh air to me! I'd always had trouble trying not to have these thoughts and I thought it was sin and I somehow needed to get it to just stop! Nope. It's going to happen. I can't stop it. Now, blogger people, listen to me, those thoughts still aren't the best to have but wanna know the cool thing? Even though we can't change them, Christ can. Our thoughts reflect the father we serve, either above or below (2 Cor. 2:13) (Matt. 6:24). Good indication on what we're doing with our life, no?
3) Now how do you spot when you're being prideful? Where does the balance tip from self image or doing a task to taking pride in something? Sometimes it's pretty simple and you know it. Flexing your muscles or driving fast or revving your engine at the red light. Like I said, obvious pride signs. But what about when it comes to the the type of shirt you pick out? Doing your hair? Reading a passage of scripture in class or answering the question the teacher poses. Sometimes it even comes down, at least for me, closing my eyes while I pray for my food, or how long I take to pray or closing my eyes during worship.
So I had to struggle to find the balance. I could go to church with clothes on duh, but I like to dress fairly nice. Is that pride? Is it prideful to buy those new clothes for Sunday service? Is it prideful to answer the question? It'll be drawing peoples attention to you and how smart/hot you are. There was a lot of frustration here for me but one day I was driving and like a whack-a-mole it hit me. Follow your 3 eyes. For those of you who are cyclopses this might seem normal but to everyone else let me explain.
The three eyes idea is pretty simple. We have two eyes in our head and one in our mind. Wondering if it's pride that's starting to creep in? Take notice of where your three eyes are looking.
While you're praying: Are you focusing on God or that girl in the corner pew, three rows back who you saw glancing at you six months ago so obviously, she's been checking you out ever since. And heck, she needs to know how holy you are.
To answer that question: For edification of the class, pointing out a thread that you've studied on and think might help other people or because everyone else has been answering so you need to keep your game up.
How you dress: Fine line between self image and pride. Personally I think having a good self image is a good thing to have but if you disagree, post a comment and I'll share what I believe in another blog. We represent our church. To dress with class is to show people that you're not some whacko. The best witness, I believe, is in shape, dressed fashionable, clean cut, mannered, knows some solid theology and humble! People will listen to someone they respect, not the neighbor hood hobo. Now not saying it's a bad thing to be different, I'm just saying the closer to normal you can be the more people will listen to you. Also self image is essential when sharing your faith. If you're confident in yourself then you'll have some courage to share with somebody, and they'll have more of a chance to listen to you. It's all about presentation. The good news of Christ needs everything it can possibly get to help with bringing people to him. Now that doesn't mean you should go to night clubs or start cussing or wearing skimpy clothes, but if it's cool with God then it's cool to do. So hair/clothes/shoes/look is fine. It really kind of helps when you approach people about Christ. We're Christ's emissaries. That's my opinion at least.
There are more thingies but I think you get the picture. Are your eyes on God or are they on man?
Another tip that I think defines point three (spotting pride) really well is by C.S Lewis in Mere Christianity
Also, cool fact, you can never seem to pee often enough before having to get up and talk in front of a bunch of people.
So I was wondering what I'd teach on. The class is going through Ezekiel and oh man, I figured out just how far out of my comfort zone I was about the time I got to the four faces on the giant six winged angels that flew around with wheels inside wheels following them. I mean Revelations was a piece of cake compared to figuring out this stuff! So with all the talk about Gog and invading kingdoms and murder and heavenly beings flying around I decided to talk about the issue of pride.
So before you go thinking that I crumpled, first hear the reasoning behind why I crumpled. The majority of our kids are church kids which means they've heard the stories, know the words and enough basic theology to answer questions without looking like a bench warmer - a.k.a me. But there's no fire there. In Romans the Jews had zeal but no knowledge. Today we have knowledge but no zeal! And the knowledge we have is so wet it's break apart to the touch. So I took a look back and realized, why get into theology, hermeneutics, eschatology, evangelism or apologetics when they don't even know the basics? So I'm going back to the basics, taking the essentials of what our faith is based on and trying to make it connect. Two weeks ago (My first lesson) was on self control (Psalms 25:28 being the key verse) and tomorrow I'm going into pride. Why? Well I teach the highschool guys, no girls, and I think an issue we really struggle with is pride, though we may not know it. So here's what I learned.
1) First you have to understand what pride is. I looked up a bunch of definitions and essays and essentially smashed it down to a few word: It's self worship (Obadiah 1:3). I'll get into why that's wrong in a second, but this is just talking about what pride is so I'll stick to that.
Another thing about pride is that it's a 2 part emotion, built of the thought (internal) (Mark 7:20-22) as well as the reaction to the thought (external output). By that I mean you have the, 'Oh I wonder...' thought running through your mind, which is then followed by the external output, like puffing up your chest as that girl walks by or lashing out in an argument even when you know you're wrong. That's pride.
2) You have to realize that you can't do anything about that first aspect, or that thought and you've got to realize, that thought isn't a sin! Now before you go shutting the browser on me, hear me out. A thought is instantaneous, a burst of electricity (something that moves at the speed of light) through neurons in our brains. We can't control that. It's going to happen. From the most holy-ish paster to the lowest criminal, we're going to have those thoughts. Jesus himself was tempted in Matthew 4. Temptation is a thought to do something, but Christ was without sin, and sense he was tempted and temptation isn't a sin, heck that initial thought isn't a sin!
Now do realize that what you do after that initial thought is where sin begins. Either we choose to think on something different, pray to God that he'll drive the thought from our mind, or we sit and mull over the thought as we twist it to make it, allowable.
Honestly that was a breath of fresh air to me! I'd always had trouble trying not to have these thoughts and I thought it was sin and I somehow needed to get it to just stop! Nope. It's going to happen. I can't stop it. Now, blogger people, listen to me, those thoughts still aren't the best to have but wanna know the cool thing? Even though we can't change them, Christ can. Our thoughts reflect the father we serve, either above or below (2 Cor. 2:13) (Matt. 6:24). Good indication on what we're doing with our life, no?
3) Now how do you spot when you're being prideful? Where does the balance tip from self image or doing a task to taking pride in something? Sometimes it's pretty simple and you know it. Flexing your muscles or driving fast or revving your engine at the red light. Like I said, obvious pride signs. But what about when it comes to the the type of shirt you pick out? Doing your hair? Reading a passage of scripture in class or answering the question the teacher poses. Sometimes it even comes down, at least for me, closing my eyes while I pray for my food, or how long I take to pray or closing my eyes during worship.
So I had to struggle to find the balance. I could go to church with clothes on duh, but I like to dress fairly nice. Is that pride? Is it prideful to buy those new clothes for Sunday service? Is it prideful to answer the question? It'll be drawing peoples attention to you and how smart/hot you are. There was a lot of frustration here for me but one day I was driving and like a whack-a-mole it hit me. Follow your 3 eyes. For those of you who are cyclopses this might seem normal but to everyone else let me explain.
The three eyes idea is pretty simple. We have two eyes in our head and one in our mind. Wondering if it's pride that's starting to creep in? Take notice of where your three eyes are looking.
While you're praying: Are you focusing on God or that girl in the corner pew, three rows back who you saw glancing at you six months ago so obviously, she's been checking you out ever since. And heck, she needs to know how holy you are.
To answer that question: For edification of the class, pointing out a thread that you've studied on and think might help other people or because everyone else has been answering so you need to keep your game up.
How you dress: Fine line between self image and pride. Personally I think having a good self image is a good thing to have but if you disagree, post a comment and I'll share what I believe in another blog. We represent our church. To dress with class is to show people that you're not some whacko. The best witness, I believe, is in shape, dressed fashionable, clean cut, mannered, knows some solid theology and humble! People will listen to someone they respect, not the neighbor hood hobo. Now not saying it's a bad thing to be different, I'm just saying the closer to normal you can be the more people will listen to you. Also self image is essential when sharing your faith. If you're confident in yourself then you'll have some courage to share with somebody, and they'll have more of a chance to listen to you. It's all about presentation. The good news of Christ needs everything it can possibly get to help with bringing people to him. Now that doesn't mean you should go to night clubs or start cussing or wearing skimpy clothes, but if it's cool with God then it's cool to do. So hair/clothes/shoes/look is fine. It really kind of helps when you approach people about Christ. We're Christ's emissaries. That's my opinion at least.
There are more thingies but I think you get the picture. Are your eyes on God or are they on man?
Another tip that I think defines point three (spotting pride) really well is by C.S Lewis in Mere Christianity
“Pride gets no pleasure out of having something, only out of having more of it than the next man... It is the comparison that makes you proud: the pleasure of being above the rest. Once the element of competition is gone, pride is gone.”
Pride is fueled by competition. How? Self worship. That means we're something worth worshiping and the only reason we have worship is because something is better and worth the praise. But better than what? All the underlings! But what happens when some peon passes us up? Pride. Are you competing with someone else? Is it a competition? Are you doing what you're doing so you can be above, or looked at as above and lofty? Ahh, dragged that Obadiah reference back in. If so you should take another look at whatever it is you're doing.
I'm sure there are more ways to depth charging (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Depth_charge) Pride but these were the only two I could come up with. Post if you've got any more ideas! I love being able to add! I sure as heck have room!
4) When we've figured out where pride is seeping/raging through it's our job to combat it. But how? Avoid situations where it's going to happen. That person who just blows your top in an argument who will tip you over the edge to argue for the sake of pride (Proverbs 13:10), that hall where you know she's going to be, really anyplace it could get sketchy. Now obviously you can't go live in a bubble. Things are going to happen but we can lessen the chance. But when it does happen the best weapon we have is prayer and scripture and prayer. As soon as it starts to come into your mind (initial thought) cry out to God (seriously, cry out in your mind) for him to take it from you and start quoting John 3:16 or singing the lyrics of a hymn. Anything to get your mind off of it. Pray that God will humble you. Showing you how you're nothing! How can we be prideful about something we don't own? Something that can be taken in an instant (Luke 14:11). The Lord gives and the Lord takes away (Job 1:21).
Lastly, when it comes to stopping pride JUST DO IT! So much easier said than done but I believe it's what we done in the moments of weakness, when we're that much closer to bending the knee in defeat, that really matter. It's easy to be in love with God when everything is going swell, but what about when the world is crumbling around you? That's when it matters. Buck up, we're in this together. You can tell me about it in Heaven. I'll invite you over to my mansion for a cup of coffee.
5) Pride can be a good thing! Taking pride in a job is fine as long as you remember that God gave you the talent to do it. Also flaunting it is a big no, no. We're allowed to boast in Christ, (2 Cor. 10:17) and nothing more. Now you can think, 'Wow, I did a good job picking up that poop.' but that should be followed up with, 'and thanks, God, for the shovel, the arms to do it, and dogs to clean up after!'
I already see it going through your mind. He's got to be joking. (2 Cor. 10: 3-6 (Especially verse 5)). Not joking. Take every thought captive with God! It's hard but you'll see the change. It's worth it, believe a struggling pride addict.
But when I say it's a good thing here's the main reason why - James 1:2. It brings us closer to God when we turn to Him to give thanks. We thank Him for the skill to do something and check it out, we're communicating with God! That's beauty. Now that's something we share between us and God. You don't go to someone saying, 'Look at what God gave me the awesome skill to accomplish.' That's competition/pride. We share pride in something with God and ourselves (Also no comparing what we've done and thinking that puts us above someone else (Remember Job 1:21? Yeah...)) and that's about it. That's humility, the antonym of pride. That's what we're striving for.
6) Lastly, why the heck change? Simple: James 4:6, Isaiah 2:11. God WILL oppose you. He will bring you to your knees. Blogger people, he will put your sorry butt back in check. Pride tears us from Christ. It's saying we know better than God. It's worshiping ourself. Every piece of communication with Christ is cut off when pride comes into the picture and not only does it break us off from God but, using the same logic, from relationships with people! No one likes a proud man, believe me. How can a woman love a man who won't submit (Eph. 5:25 (then read Phil 2:8)) to her? Yeah, it applies with parents, friends and anyone who has a mind to think with. We all want people to be humble with us (Matt. 7:12).
If you're still alive and God hasn't returned I congratulate you for reading through. I wouldn't be able to. But anyhow, that's about it. I know I left stuff out or looked things over or just haven't thought of certain things but hey, if you find a fault or something extra you thought up, post a comment. Only a fool rebukes knowledge. That's what learning is all about, learning!
PKL
God Bless
Monday, April 29, 2013
Genesis
I wake up 6 every morning, let the dogs out, start the kettle boiling for coffee, put the oatmeal over the stove, open the kitchen window curtain that overlooks the sunrise, grab my Bible from my desk, sit down at the kitchen table and start to pray. That's about the time I begin to slip into a sleeping coma, hallucinations of pillows and blankets welcoming me back to my warm bed with unexplainable arms.
Philippians 1:21. "To live is Christ and to die is gain."
At the end of the game, when the monopoly money we fought so hard to tear from the fingers of our used-to-be-friends is put back into the box, we find out that all that's left, all that there ever was, is what He did for us and what we tried to do for Him. I pray to God that this might be used as a tool to cause the energy-efficient light to come on in someone's life.
Hopefully we can grow together in Christ. He'll be the corner stone but we have to build.
Random Thought of The Day: Why did God call us to be a light to to the world when they have a Bible to lead them? Because a map is useless to a man in the dark.
God bless!
- PKL
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)