Distractions

Isn't it funny the many ways that we seek out distractions? Movies, TV, internet, music, friends, can all be used as a sort of diversion. We may not always do this for the purpose of being distracted, but there are definitely times when we do. We find ourselves wanting to unplug and zone out. But distractions can be a huge disservice to us. They can blind us from what's really going on around us and cause us to disconnect from ourselves and others.

As a Christian, trying to "hear from God" I find it hard to hear His voice clearly beyond all the other voices in life. Matt Redman, a musician and author says, "The hardest part in trying to hear God's voice is not getting God to speak, it's quieting ourselves so that we can hear what He is already speaking." This is so true. We spend so much time distracting ourselves that it is almost virtually impossible for us to hear God speak.

I am reminded of the account of Elijah on Mount Horeb. There was a great and mighty wind that passed by him, but the Lord was not in the wind. There was an earthquake, but the Lord was not in the earthquake. There was a fire, but the Lord was not in the fire. But then, after the fire there was a voice, a soft quiet voice. The Lord was speaking. I believe God speaks to us much like He did with Elijah, in a soft quiet voice. But how will we hear this voice if we are not quiet? How can God's quiet voice compete with the noise that we surround ourselves with?

I tell people that God speaks to me the most when I'm shaving. I don't do this to get laughs, although most of the time I do get a chuckle or two. I really have heard His voice while shaving. I think the reason for this is that in those moments I am completely quiet. I'm not focused on what's going on around me, I'm not talking, I'm not concerned about what things I need to accomplish that day. I'm staring at a mirror and running a razor across my face. Thats it. I'm in a perfect place to hear God speak. My hope is to make time for more moments like these. To quiet myself from the noise of life and just listen for that small quiet voice.

HOMOSEXUALITY: IS IT A SIN?

Is homosexuality a sin? This is one topic which has spawned much heated debate for sure and has become something of a moot point in many churches today. I believe the reason that this topic has become a moot point is because it has not been properly addressed. Many pastors simply string together a few scriptures on this topic and try to answer this question in a practical way instead of searching for a theological explanation on why the scriptures say what they say about the issue of homosexuality. So what is the theological explanation for the bible's stance on homosexuality?

Let's start at the beginning. In Genesis chapter 1, we find that God creates the first people, Adam and Eve. Verse 27 tells us, "In the image of God he created them; male and female created them." So we see that God's creative order is Male to female relations. Homosexual relations deviate from and violate this order. So from a theological perspective, homosexuality is sinful because it violates God's creative order.

This leads us to another question, are people born homosexuals? If people are born homosexuals and homosexuality is a sin, that would make God schizophrenic based on the scriptures that condemn homosexual relations. Also, if people are born homosexuals then God is unjust and cruel because of the standards He places on sexual relations. Or to swing the pendulum in the other direction, if people are born homosexuals and God allows us to stay this way then Jesus' work of redemption on the cross is cheapened. However, if we look at scripture what we find is that no one is born gay or straight but rather all of us are born sinners and as such are born into brokenness. It makes as much sense to say that someone is born gay or straight as it does to say that someone is born an alcoholic. We may be born with certain propensities, but theologically we are all born sinners, fully depraved because of the fall.

So from a theological perspective homosexual relations are sinful because they violate God’s creative order. And secondly, every person is born a sinner with propensity toward sin. This is why Jesus is so important.

Is Apathy Really Living?

Apathy (also called impassivity or perfunctoriness) is a state of indifference, or the suppression of emotions such as concern, excitement, motivation and passion. An apathetic individual has an absence of interest or concern to emotional, social, or physical life. They may also exhibit an insensibility or sluggishness.

Apathy drains our lives. It makes us numb. It keeps us from reaching for something more.It affects the way we think, the way we act, the way we treat others, the way we treat ourselves. It destroys our ambitions. It keeps us from achievements.

It causes us to be zombies, we’re walking around on the outside when really we are dead. 

Apathy was never God’s intention for humanity. (See Genesis 1) God chose to put people in charge of His creation. This is a massive responsibility! God gave people ownership over everything that He had made. And man had intimate fellowship with God. The bible says that God walked in the cool of the garden with man! 

When we lost our focus of God’s purpose for humanity we became apathetic. We settled for something far less than what we were created for. We sold out for something less than all God had for us. 

Apathy isn’t hard to engage in. We live in a culture that is extremely apathetic. We take things for granted. We buy into a consumerism mentality thinking that if we buy more stuff we’ll be happier people. Sometimes we become apathetic because life is hard. All the drama, all the busyness of life, all the pain. Sometimes we find ourselves wanting to hide from all of it or maybe just zone out for a while. We can become detached from life and glazed over. We can feel like all hope is lost and give up. 

But we have a hope and His name is Jesus. Jesus came to save us and bring us back to God’s original purpose for humanity. This includes saving us from apathy. In John 10:10 Jesus says, "The thief comes to steal kill and destroy. I come that they may have life in abundance." Jesus is talking about life here and now, abundant living while we're alive. I think one of the best examples of this is the story of Jesus raising Lazurus from the dead. Jesus calls Lazurus (who is physically dead) to come to life and come out of his grave. In the same way that Jesus calls to Lazurus who is dead He calls to us who are dead in our apathy to come alive to His abundant life.

1 Tim 6:17 says that God has made all things for our enjoyment. Creation, friends, music, food, books, coffee, sports. God created it all for our enjoyment. James 1:17 says that every desirable and beneficial gift comes out of heaven from the Father of Light. If it’s good it’s from God and He has made it for our enjoyment. God wants us to enjoy life. He wants us to live fully alive and engaged not detached or glazed over. He has people for us to touch and minister to. He has a plan for each us but it will never be fully realized in us if we live in apathy. Jesus calls for us to come to life and come out of our grave. To live life to the fullest. To enjoy all that He has made for us and given to us. To see beyond ourselves to the broken and hurting around us and to share with them the life giving presence of God that lives in us. Let's choose to live abundant life rather than living in apathy. That is if apathy is really living at all.  

 

LENT

Lent begins this Wednesday and I couldn’t be more excited about participating in it! I have never been part of a church where Lent has been observed by the entire congregation so I cant wait to participate. 

Lent is the forty-day-long liturgical season of fasting and prayer before Easter. The forty days represent the time Jesus spent in the desert, where he endured temptation by Satan.The purpose of Lent is the preparation of the believer—through prayer, penitence, almsgiving, fasting and self-denial—for the annual commemoration during Holy Week of the Death and Resurrection of Jesus, which culminates in Easter, the celebration of the Resurrection of Jesus. What a great practice. 

For Lent, I am fasting recreational use of the internet. That’s right, no Facebook, no CNN, no movie trailers, no music downloading, no blogging. I am really looking forward to observing this great tradition and drawing closer to GOD during these forty days.   

Fickle Is As Fickle Does

The human heart is a fickle thing. One minute calm, the next angry. One minute ecstatic, the next suicidal. Our hearts find things they desire only to be replaced with something else we desire as much or more than what they already have. They are often very misleading and easily distracted. There's a line from a hymn called "Come Thou Fount of Every Blessing" that speaks of the heart this way, "Prone to wander, Lord, I feel it, prone to leave the God I love." Powerful words that speak of the fickleness of our hearts. Too many times I find my heart is distracted, disengaged, disheartened, disenfranchised, and many other "dis words" than it is focused on the grander scheme of life. I find myself often more concerned about what to eat for lunch than about making a difference in this world in which I live. The Bible has this to say about the human heart, "The LORD saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every intention of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually" Genesis 6:5. Comforting stuff. I have an evil heart. You have an evil heart. And because of this our outlook on life is skewed. Life becomes self focused and all about my wants and needs. We're told to follow our heart, and make decisions based on what seems right in our heart. The only problem is that our hearts are fickle. They are evil and misleading. If we chased all of our hearts desires we would be in some serious trouble. 

Being a Pastor I see numerous examples of the fickleness of the human heart. Loads of people walk through the doors of the church with the intention of learning what it means to be a follower of JESUS. They listen to teachings, ask questions, build relationships with other "church people" etc. But when it comes to the living out the teaching and living out the words of worship songs that we sing, the fickleness of our heart shows itself. You see it's not exactly convenient to live a "Christian" life. In fact it's really hard. So hard in fact that JESUS says,“If anyone wishes to come after Me, he must deny himself, and take up his cross and follow Me. For whoever wishes to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake and the gospel’s will save it." Self denial. Giving up our lives. These are not convenient ideas at all. So when the challenge of Christianity comes face to face with the reality of everyday life it's not always a beautiful thing. Choosing to follow Christ requires us to die, and we don't want to. And so in my experience, I watch people come to meet JESUS and begin the journey of Christianity only to bail out time and time again to chase after the distractions of life instead of the life-giver. It's as though we don't believe that JESUS is really any better than all the other stuff in the world. Fickleness. The Bible also gives GOD's stance on fickleness. In the book of Revelation is says, "So, because you are lukewarm, and neither hot nor cold, I will spit you out of my mouth." It makes GOD sick to his stomach. 

So how do we become less fickle hearted? I believe that the answer is to allow GOD to perfect His work in our lives. And how does He do that? "Consider it all joy, my brethren, when you encounter various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces endurance. And let endurance have its perfect result, so that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing" James 1. Trials and testing of our faith, not magically morphing into a Super-Christian, but following GOD obediently when it's easy and when it takes everything that we have. We have to make a choice. Will we be fickle or will we surrender our fickle hearts in obedience to GOD? And so today I make a choice to refuse the temptation of living fickly and choose to allow GOD to perfect my faith. It's not the easier route but it is indeed the better one.