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My heart beats for love. I want to be different. I want to be who I am called to be. WORTHY and LOVED!

Sunday, March 30, 2008

Atonement

I saw the movie Atonement for the first time the other day and walked away thinking about sin. I'm not really sure if that's what other people thought of when they saw the movie, but I was so caught up in how one persons sin, one lie from one little girl, ruined so many peoples lives. How one man, Hitler's, desire for power led to so many deaths in World War II. How have my sins effected other people?

What I am about to say could make you uncomfortable. It could be deemed heretical, but believe me, I am in no way trying to be blasphemous

U2's song Pride (In the Name of Love) starts out
"One man came in the name of love,
One man come and go,
One come he to justify,
One man to overthrow."
It can be debated if this song is talking about Christ or not, but lets assume it is and settle on the fact that even if it wasn't intended to, it still applies to Him. Christ came and conquered death out of love for us. He took our sins and bore them on himself so that we could be in right relationship with the Godhead. He came not only in the name of love but to teach us to love. Isn't this the entire message of Christianity.

Now enter the shaky part of what I have to say. 
Even though Christ died for our sins, and forgives us, it does not mean that our sins do not have consequences. I am in no way diminishing the death of Christ, but I think we need to acknowledge that forgiveness doesn't abolish all consequences. There isn't such a beast as private sin because we live in relationship. What I do effects other people. 

One lie. One piece of gossip. One unkind word. 
They all have consequences.

Christ warns us of this. Look at the Sermon on the Mount. Do you notice that each of the sins that he expands upon impacts not only the sinner but someone else, someone innocent, as well. 

We really need to start rethinking sin the culture of the church. Really, as the body of Christ, we need to go back to the gospel and see what sin is. We need to go back to the Hebrew Scriptures (ie the Old Testament) and see the impact of sin - separation from God. We need to start realizing that we are sinners. Because, if we can't acknowledge that then we aren't in need of a Savior. And maybe that's our biggest problem of all. Because we gloss over sin, because we don't see how it effects our relationship with the Godhead and with others and mars our loving them (which of course is Jesus' greatest commandment) than it makes it incredibly easy to not mention Christ in church, which is happening far more often then we'd like to admit. We need to get the focus right, in order for Christ's atoning sacrifice and Resurrection to be seen for all its worth.

We cannot celebrate Easter apart from Good Friday. 

The Getty's Prove Why Wesleyan Traditions Matters!

This past weekend I was at a conference at Messiah College for youth workers, the contents of which will be used to compose a later post. As part of this conference the Getty's led worship in the morning and held a concert in the evening. Of course, located outside of the auditorium was the obligatory merch table. 

Then this morning I went to church at a very large church, which shall remain nameless, and the Getty's were, unbeknowance to my friend and I, leading worship. That was fantastic. But then a fatal mistake, in my Wesleyan Traditions with Dr. Eckley, trained eyes was made. During the introduction of the Getty's it was mentioned that they would have a merch table in the church following the service.

My jaw dropped open while everyone else went along singing "Hear the Call of the Kingdom".

Back up. This is a worship service. We are hear to praise God not the Getty's. And no matter how great their song writing is and how enriching its been to church worship music, this was not their concert. [However, I will say that we sang nine Getty songs, and only hear seven verses of scripture. Can we pause and think about that for a moment? It's times like this I wish Dr. Schultz would have been there because I know what he would have said.] 

We, as the body of Christ, need to start getting our priorities back in line. You do not NEED the Getty's or any other Christian artist to worship God. You do not NEED to hear the latest sermon on the radio or to buy the new book out there. Maybe, and I stress the word maybe, this can enhance your worship to God, but your primary reason for being there isn't to be entertained or to even be enriched. You are there to WORSHIP GOD, because he is worthy of worship. 

And when the Church gathers and loses focus of that, what are we supposed to do? If our worship is all about coming for us, or to see a big name artist, instead of spending time with God because we adore and desire Him alone, we've lost our identity. We are no longer Christianity. 

Saturday, March 29, 2008

I find my DELIGHT in God!

And he finds DELIGHT in me!

I am Blessed!

Friday, March 28, 2008

What if your fear of screwing up makes you miss the chance?

Wednesday, March 26, 2008

Job's Friends

I've been reading through the book of Job lately and find myself getting more and more frustrated with Job's friends as the story progresses. Finally, today, a question emerged in my mind: Why weren't Job's friends tested?

The answer I came to, after some thought, is not one that I'm all together comfortable with, but I'll share it anyway. Maybe, we need to be worthy of being tested. Maybe, just maybe, Job's friends wouldn't have been able to handle that situation. They would have crumbled. They relied more on the culture's idea of blessings and curses instead of being in relationship with God. Or maybe, worse, they had been tested, had seen the pain of life, but instead of using their experiences to strengthen and encourage Job they ripped him apart, because obviously God had to see Job as chief among sinners. Compared to him, they looked like saints. 

All too often the church functions like the friends in the book of Job, not presenting the idea that Job is being tested and refined by God, rather that he is being punished for his sins. Yes, I do feel that we should constantly be examining ourselves to see if sin is disrupting our relationship with God, but I do not feel that every time turbulence hits in life that God is displaying his vengeance for us. We, that is the Church, still force this idea of punishment on people because it creates the idea that someone else is worse off then us. When we having a living breathing example of God's wrath raining down on someone else then we feel safe, like we aren't really that bad. Sadly, I think the result of pressing this idea is not self-reflection or examination, but alienation from a relationship with God. With someone constantly placing the question "What did you do to deserve this from God?" before you, who could blame people if their relationship with the Almighty backslides. They constantly being told that they aren't good enough and they deserve to be punished, thus creating the absolute worst punishment anyone could be handed by God, a lack of relationship with Love. 

Job wasn't being punished by God, and I think that God is rarely punishing those of us who experience aching pain. I think we need to face the reality, that relationships are tried and strengthened during times of pain, including our relationship with the Father. It's during theses times that God calls us most intimately to himself, and we cannot be fooled by the cries of others that he has abandoned us or that we shouldn't approach him. The jeers of men do not reflect the heart of God. As we run to the Father, crying in pain, he is there, even when we can't feel him. And if we keep running, he will meet us and revel himself to us. Through our personal crosses we find the grace and power of The Cross.

Sunday, March 23, 2008

Pro-Life

While I was in the doctor's office the other day I had a special treat, a TV was on and a news program was airing talking about Christians' influence in politics, especially where the evangelical vote lies in the upcoming election. The woman who was being interviewed made the comment that evangelicals are starting to feel that more is important in electing a president than where he or she stands on the "big issues" which were further classified as abortion, homosexual marriage, and stem cell research. 

Ahhh!!!! (Did you catch on to my anger and discontentment with that idea)

I really only want to hit on the abortion issue today and if I feel so inclined write about the others  later. But what exactly does it mean to be pro life? The common answer is that, as Christians we value the sanctity of human life and therefore are against abortion. Okay. I can buy that. But didn't Christ die for ALL people? So shouldn't ALL human life be considered worth fighting for?

A few years ago, the comment was made to me that it is hypocritical to be against abortion, but for the capitol punishment (ie the death penality in whatever form it is administered). I firmly agree. If all human life has value, and God is the one who deems our worth, then we don't have the right to say that grace extends to the unborn more than the murderer. 

But it goes so far beyond that. As Christians we are so stuck on seeing things in black and white that we miss the fact that one issue, such as being pro-life, doesn't just mean one thing. Being pro-life means that I care about genocide and feel that the lives of those who I don't see everyday, have value. It means that I believe that children shouldn't be going to war. It means I don't believe in "just war" because Christ says whoever lives by the sword will die by the sword. It means that when I think about the war in Iraq I see brothers and sisters who God has created who are dying because as Americans we had innocent people die in 09/11. What about the innocent civilians who are dying in Iraq? If I'm pro-life I have to stand for their lives to. 

And even sitting here, trying to expand my own view of what pro-life entails, I know that I'm missing things.  We need to value the lives of all people, because God has created all people. 

Sunday, March 9, 2008

If being loved only results in other people's pain, then the desire to be loved in the most selfish thing.

Wednesday, March 5, 2008

My Psalm 130

Father God, I feel lost and broken on the inside. I am fearful that I am going to drown in the circumstances, in myself. Hear me! Reach down and save me! Are you even listening?

Lord, you could be causing all o this as a sign of judgement, but I believe that you forgive. That I am your forgiven child. Even though you haven't caused all of this, you can save me from it. You can redeem this situation if you choose.

It's so hard to be patient in the midst of this, to be be patient when I can not see the still small light. I hope for the light but I am engulfed in the pitch black. I will wait for you Lord, for there is nothing else to do. I will be patient. 

If hope is waiting for what you know will come, then I hope in you Father. For only in your perfect love do I find my worth, and only there do I know hat I'm loved. Your power will redeem me when you are ready. I am not forgotten.