This morning author Gary Thomas tweeted 'despair and infatuation can both lead to idolatry.' That really struck a chord with me. It's easy to see how infatuation can lead to idolatry, but despair? I had to read his tweet three times. Idolatry?
Idolatry is one of those words that makes me nervous. As a lover of God, I don't ever want to put anything before Him. In 1 Corinthians 7:32-34, is Paul saying that is is natural to idolize your spouse? And if so, how does the married person avoid that trap?
As I'm sure you gathered from my previous blog post if you read it, I love my husband. Nothing wrong with that right? But sometimes I wonder if it does in fact borderline infatuation. The times I do despair is probably because of the weight I put on his perception of and satisfaction with me as a wife. That my expectations of him as my husband (I try to avoid putting expectations anywhere but in the Lord but I'm being honest here, I'm not always successful).
Idolatry is the worship of anything apart from God. An excessive adoration or devotion. I shudder at the thought that I am guilty and in need of repentance. But before I can repent, I need understanding. Without it, it's only a matter of time before I return to the Throne of Grace again with the same sin.
I replied to Gary Thomas' tweet with the same questions; Is Paul saying it is natural to idolize your spouse? and How does the married person avoid that trap? He then tweeted "How to avoid idolatry (of all kinds) in marriage: Matt. 6:33, on the one hand, and Phillip. 4:6-8 on the other."
I know both scriptures by heart but I opened up my Bible and turned to them anyway. I love how God speaks different things for different seasons with the same Word. So Matthew 6:33 this time in the context of this question says to me to focus on pleasing God first and the pleasing of the husband is encompassed in this or 'added unto you'.
The great thing about pleasing God is that people who are submitted to Him take no issue with other people who are submitted to Him. When we're shooting at the same basket, we're on the same team. I'm not mad at you taking shots because you have to take them to make them and when you score, we both score. My husband is a righteous man. He would probably actually prefer a righteous woman to a needy one.
Philippians 4:6-8 warns against anxiety, something that comes with wondering if you're doing the right thing(s). In God, we don't have to wonder. He's given us His Word. We can measure ourselves against it. He has given us His Spirit to convict us when we stray and guide us into the right way. With man, we have to guess.
When we guess, we pretty much have a 50% chance of getting it right. Right for me leads to infatuation. Wrong leads to despair. Both lead to idolatry. Better stick to what I know for sure. And the benefit of that is all those things "shall be added" unto me.
Be blessed.
D
Tuesday, July 5, 2011
Sunday, July 3, 2011
Unapologetically in Love
My husband is my complete opposite. Maybe that's why he intrigues me so. Perhaps the reason I have him on the brain so much is because after 9 years, he still confounds me. I love the man. I never thought that loving someone would create animosity with my friends.
Not an obvious animosity, but more subtle things like eye-rolling at the mention of his name. I began to notice the pretend gagging and heavily annoyed sighs. I soon realized that my single and not-so-happily-married friends were irritated by my sharing about our date nights, laid back evenings at home or the little things he does that make life easier for me. So I began to guard my speech a little more. Still, I find myself daydreaming about anything positive in a sea of negativity urging me to dive in.
I don't want to dive in. I don't want to focus on the negative things about him. No, he's not perfect. Neither am I. And frankly, I'd be crushed to find out he was drinking coffee with the fellas sharing the things about me that drive him crazy.
I'm not sure if it's just me or if husband bashing is more acceptable than celebrating, but if it is, I still opt out. I'm not sorry for being in love. I don't want to change that part of me. That part that feels like I'm 21 again seeing the rest of my life in his eyes. With everything going on in the world, he is home and home is where I exhale.
So I guess that means I'm that chick. And I'm okay with that.
D
Not an obvious animosity, but more subtle things like eye-rolling at the mention of his name. I began to notice the pretend gagging and heavily annoyed sighs. I soon realized that my single and not-so-happily-married friends were irritated by my sharing about our date nights, laid back evenings at home or the little things he does that make life easier for me. So I began to guard my speech a little more. Still, I find myself daydreaming about anything positive in a sea of negativity urging me to dive in.
I don't want to dive in. I don't want to focus on the negative things about him. No, he's not perfect. Neither am I. And frankly, I'd be crushed to find out he was drinking coffee with the fellas sharing the things about me that drive him crazy.
I'm not sure if it's just me or if husband bashing is more acceptable than celebrating, but if it is, I still opt out. I'm not sorry for being in love. I don't want to change that part of me. That part that feels like I'm 21 again seeing the rest of my life in his eyes. With everything going on in the world, he is home and home is where I exhale.
So I guess that means I'm that chick. And I'm okay with that.
D
Wednesday, June 29, 2011
Beautiful Advocacy for Children
"VOICE OF THE UNIVERSAL CHILD" by Bruce Scott
Someone posted this on Facebook and I had to re-copy it here. I think it is one of the most profound pieces for any parent, Ever! Thanks Way of a Peaceful Parent!
"I really am your gift. I am not just a little person who needs to be "raised" and taught, and taken to activities....I came to the people in my life to bring a message: slow down. Feel. Be. Over and over again. When you do, you will notice immediately, that I am not an obstacle to your work, or inconvenient to your daily life, Instead, you will come to appreciate my honesty, humor, presence and love
• Include me before making decisions that affect me.
...
• Do not throw anything away that belongs to me, unless I am asked first.
• Find out what my experience is like with the teachers in school, and believe me. Take action if necessary. Stand up for me too, as a person.
• Talk to me in the same voice you talk to adults with
• Respect my interests even though they may seem just cute to you
• Do not refer to me as a "terrible two" person
• See me as a whole feeling person when I am a teenager. I am more than raging hormones or "just a teenager." I will do the same for you no matter what your age.
• If you are afraid for me, tell me so honestly with your heart.
• Do not punish me ever. Teach me. Hold me. Love me. Trust that I,
just like you, want to do what is right, and don’t want to hurt anyone.
• Help me understand what I don’t know. Don't call me names, or label me or compare me, or make me compete for anything. Help me cooperate and collaborate. Be the example for me.
• Hug me, Kiss me, and Hold me a lot. Be kind with your smile. It’s all ok.
• If you are upset with something in your life, know when you are upset. Don't be angry with me or blame me, or judge me. If you want me to know something and hear you, notice your voice and angry or judgmental thoughts before you give them to me. I, like you, do not feel good when I am admonished, made wrong or blamed. It just doesn't feel good. I want to hear and understand you. I like being connected.
• If you feel embarrassed by something I am doing, hug me. Come closer. I am being myself completely. If I need to be more aware of others, I want to know that. I can hear your kind voice remind me.
• When you are with me, be completely with me. If you are in your thoughts, pretending to be with me, then you are not with me at all.
• Treat me exactly like you would want me to treat you. Exactly.
• Assume that I “see” everything. I am exquisitely sensitive and can feel pretense, falseness, and hidden agendas. I can also feel love.
• Know when you are sarcastic. Sarcasm is mean and creates distance, hurt and separates us, almost without noticing. Humor brings us together.
• If I am fidgety, seem bored, have difficulty sitting still, talk too much, appear to have a short attention span, please join with me. Ask me, with an attitude of wonder, what my experience is in the classroom, or wherever I appear to not want to be. I am not ADD or ADHD, or any diagnosis. I simply want to be where there is life, movement and creativity happening. (ask me what I mean by all this). Together, we’ll find understanding.
When it looks like I am having, what you call a tantrum, it is all I know to do
to make contact, to be heard, to be taken seriously, to be held.
• I am naturally creative. Notice how I make things out of leaves, or sticks, or bubbles, or crayons. Notice how I like to climb and explore, and discover everything all at once. Listen to my imagination at work. That's not just kid stuff. That is what you might do too if you would join with me.
• Sometimes, I know what to do without reading written instructions. I don't have words for it, I just know. I have the ability to see how things go together. I may do things differently than the way you learned. That's ok. Both ways may work. And anyway, I have fun finding my own way. The destination don't matter that much.
• I may take longer than you completing something. That is because I am in no hurry to get anything done. I haven't learned yet that hurrying, being busy and always anxious, are fun.
• I do not need you to always say Yes to me. Actually, yes or no don't matter. What matters is how you hold me in your heart, how you see me, and your appreciation for me. 'Cause when you appreciate me, and see through my eyes too, a yes or no will always be the right thing for both of us.
• I do not need you to be with me. I need you to be with yourself. When you are with yourself, you are with me.
• No matter how old I am, three years old, sixteen, or forty-five, I am not intending to deceive you, take advantage of you, use you or disrespect you. If you have those thoughts or the belief that I am "asking too much," that is not my intent. I am really, searching out ways to make contact, and to be with you, to acknowledge my presence.
• When I cry, I am feeling. Crying can be like sneezing, feeling close to you, singing or running. It is just my body expressing itself. I might have been sad, or hurt or afraid. When I am feeling in my body, I am relieved. All you need do is be present with me so that I know you are there, but not trying to stop me or make me feel better.
• I am wise. I know things. I see things. I know naturally what I need to know. I believe and trust myself and my intuition. Unless I learn to not trust myself. I have to be taught from the outside to not believe the truth of things.
• I sometimes feel safe in the world. Sometimes I don't. If I feel or sense something, and others don't, (maybe even make fun of me), I get even more scared. I can feel so alone and wrong. It helps when you take me seriously, regardless of my age, and ask me more questions about what I “see,” feel or sense. I might be seeing something you need to know.
• I really am your gift. I am not just a little person who needs to be "raised" and taught, and taken to activities. I am not, by accident in your life. Incredible or unbelievable as this may sound, I came to the people in my life to bring a message: slow down. Feel. Be. Over and over again. When you do, you will notice immediately, that I am not an obstacle to your work, or inconvenient to your daily life. Instead, you will come to appreciate my honesty, humor, presence and love.
Be yourself, and if you don’t know for sure, what yourself is, ask me. (Bruce Scott)
Tuesday, June 28, 2011
Monday, January 3, 2011
Follow the Leader, Leader
Every one of us is a leader and a follower. We follow God looking to anyone who can encourage, edify and inspire us along the way. We lead our children, friends and family and others under our influence. We follow and lead our husbands at the same time as we are both in prayerful submission and chaste conversation. At any given time on any given day we are both followers and leaders.
Women are well known for our ability to multitask, however, we can have a tendency to either follow well or lead well seasonally. It is crucial to our walk that we are obedient and attentive to those God has placed over us yet at the same time it is vital for our children, friends and others that we stand firm on what we believe, not wavering, armed with the gospel and always a light regardless of the darkness around us.
Being a submitted follower and strong leader at the same time is difficult, but there is good news; Matthew 19:26 tells us~But Jesus beheld them, and said unto them, With men this is impossible; but with God all things are possible.
As the mothers of the next generation, we have an enormous responsibility on our shoulders. We are raising the future. We have to be on point. We must raise our children to be obedient to authority, to trust in the Lord with all their heart and to be people of integrity doing all things as unto the Lord.
As God's daughters we have the same responsibility to our peers. Onlookers should be able to give a good report on our account, a godly report. Pastor Fred Burleson of Living Faith Christian Center teaches that ALL of us are in ministry. Whether we like it or not, whether we would have chosen work in the house of the Lord or not, we are walking, living and speaking the testimony of Jesus Christ. As soon as we are born again, we are a testament to the power of God. We are either showing those we lead that God is able, or that He isn't.
While working for a local hospital, we were trained on what is appropriate "on stage" and "off stage" behavior. On stage is when any guest or patient can see or hear an employee. Off stage is when they can't. Break room~off stage, cafeteria~on stage. This is an important point because most of us eat in the cafeteria. We're on break, but we're still on stage. It is supposed to be a time of relaxation, but because we are in eye and earshot of guests and patients, we must still conduct ourselves in a way that positively represents the hospital.
Now, the exact same thing applies to our lives as Christians. We don't have the luxury of always learning and never teaching. Must do both. The only time we are not on stage is when we are alone with ourselves and God. That time too is precious because He will both fill us up to be able to teach more, as well as give us more understanding in our own walk.
I pray that every person reading this will accept their position in ministry. We are ministers to our spouses, children, friends, family, loved ones, acquaintances, any and all we have contact with. I invite you to pray with me and read the scriptures below:
Dear Heavenly Father,
I thank You for every position I hold; every hat I wear. I thank You for entrusting people to me no matter how large or small a role they play in my life. I bless You for calling me to Yourself and teaching me to be a light to those who have any sort of encounter with me. I confess to You that I have not been disciplined in my role as a minister to the young and to the lost. I pray that You will forgive me for my double-mindedness. Help me to keep Your praise on my lips. Teach me to pray before I speak, to acknowledge You in all my ways, ALL my ways Father, that You may direct my paths.
Help me to accept Your grace and gracefully step into my role as minister to Your people.
I thank You for Your Word. I thank You for those always willing to learn and walk with me as I learn. These things I pray in Jesus' precious name,
Amen
Scriptures to Review
Deuteronomy 11:19~And ye shall teach them your children, speaking of them when thou sittest in thine house, and when thou walkest by the way, when thou liest down, and when thou risest up.
Psalm 78:4-7~
4 Telling to the generation to come the praises of the LORD,
And His strength and His wonderful works that He has done.
5 For He established a testimony in Jacob,
And appointed a law in Israel,
Which He commanded our fathers,
That they should make them known to their children;
6 That the generation to come might know them,
The children who would be born,
That they may arise and declare them to their children,
7 That they may set their hope in God,
And not forget the works of God,
But keep His commandments;
And His strength and His wonderful works that He has done.
5 For He established a testimony in Jacob,
And appointed a law in Israel,
Which He commanded our fathers,
That they should make them known to their children;
6 That the generation to come might know them,
The children who would be born,
That they may arise and declare them to their children,
7 That they may set their hope in God,
And not forget the works of God,
But keep His commandments;
Philippians 3:14~ I press toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.
Proverbs 18:21~ Death and life are in the power of the tongue,
And those who love it will eat its fruit.
And those who love it will eat its fruit.
Proverbs 31:26-28~
28 She opens her mouth with wisdom,
And on her tongue is the law of kindness.
And on her tongue is the law of kindness.
27 She watches over the ways of her household,
And does not eat the bread of idleness.
28 Her children rise up and call her blessed;
Her husband also, and he praises her:
And does not eat the bread of idleness.
28 Her children rise up and call her blessed;
Her husband also, and he praises her:
Sunday, January 2, 2011
Joseph~A Submitted Man
One of the most difficult virtues to understand and practice as a Christian is submission. Submission to God, husbands and wives submitted one to another, it is against the very nature of the flesh. Women will say, "I could follow if he would lead." Men will say, "I don't hear from God. How can I know His will?" Both sound reasonable to an extent right?
Mary is an infamous virtuos woman in the bible. I mean, God chose her to be the mother of Christ! She had to be spiritually legit right? In reading Matthew chapters 1 and 2 , I noticed something I'd never really paid much attention to before. In the first two chapters of the New Testament, little is said about Mary. Her character, at least in these chapters is assumed. We don't see her giving Joseph backlash when he tells her they must up and go. We don't see her questioning what it is that the Savior should be named. We see her lining up with a man, her man, Joseph.
I saw a book years ago that I admit I have been meaning to read but haven't yet. Still, I have not forgotten the title of that book, Husband's Who Won't Lead and Wives Who Won't Follow. It spoke volumes to me because it's a predicament I've been puzzled with myself. How do you follow someone wandering aimlessly trying to find himself? How do you lead when you aren't sure you're headed where you're supposed to be?
Joseph is a great example of a submitted man. Everything God said do, he did. We don't even see a dialogue with God! An angel appeared in a dream with specific instructions, Joseph rose up and carried them out. We know that Mary found favor in the eyes of the Lord. I can't help but wonder if the man she was espoused to had something to do with that. Mary could have been the most godly woman on earth and had she been engaged to a self-righteous or disobedient man, may not have been a candidate to birth the Lord Jesus. But she was to marry a leader who also happened to be a great follower.
Had Joseph not followed the Lord's instructions to the tee, King Herod's men might have found and killed Christ. Had he not been submitted to God, he would have never married Mary in the first place!
Jesus is our only hope as non Jews for eternity with God. We are blessed today because Joseph was wholly submitted to God and balanced following God and leading his family.
Tomorrow I will share an article I wrote back in 2007 called Follow the Leader.......Leader. It is more focused on women following and leading those under our influence. In the meantime, pray for the men in your life to fully submit to the Word of God and follow His instruction without hesitation. Men and their families will be blessed for it.
God bless and keep you,
Devyn
Mary is an infamous virtuos woman in the bible. I mean, God chose her to be the mother of Christ! She had to be spiritually legit right? In reading Matthew chapters 1 and 2 , I noticed something I'd never really paid much attention to before. In the first two chapters of the New Testament, little is said about Mary. Her character, at least in these chapters is assumed. We don't see her giving Joseph backlash when he tells her they must up and go. We don't see her questioning what it is that the Savior should be named. We see her lining up with a man, her man, Joseph.
I saw a book years ago that I admit I have been meaning to read but haven't yet. Still, I have not forgotten the title of that book, Husband's Who Won't Lead and Wives Who Won't Follow. It spoke volumes to me because it's a predicament I've been puzzled with myself. How do you follow someone wandering aimlessly trying to find himself? How do you lead when you aren't sure you're headed where you're supposed to be?
Joseph is a great example of a submitted man. Everything God said do, he did. We don't even see a dialogue with God! An angel appeared in a dream with specific instructions, Joseph rose up and carried them out. We know that Mary found favor in the eyes of the Lord. I can't help but wonder if the man she was espoused to had something to do with that. Mary could have been the most godly woman on earth and had she been engaged to a self-righteous or disobedient man, may not have been a candidate to birth the Lord Jesus. But she was to marry a leader who also happened to be a great follower.
Had Joseph not followed the Lord's instructions to the tee, King Herod's men might have found and killed Christ. Had he not been submitted to God, he would have never married Mary in the first place!
Jesus is our only hope as non Jews for eternity with God. We are blessed today because Joseph was wholly submitted to God and balanced following God and leading his family.
Tomorrow I will share an article I wrote back in 2007 called Follow the Leader.......Leader. It is more focused on women following and leading those under our influence. In the meantime, pray for the men in your life to fully submit to the Word of God and follow His instruction without hesitation. Men and their families will be blessed for it.
God bless and keep you,
Devyn
Saturday, January 1, 2011
Straight & Narrow with Love
Happy New Year! I rang in 2011 in church, shouting, hugging, giving high fives and full of new hope, inspiration and a determination to make this year the best year of my life.
As I reflect over 2010 and all I took part in; coaching youth volleyball and basketball, serving as president of my college's honor society and completing my prerequisites for nursing school while being the best wife and mom I knew how to be, I realize why this new year feels so different. I worked with a lot of different people to include students, parents, college faculty and kids not to mention my own circle of friends and family. I learned something very valuable.
Not something I could sit down and read about, meditate on and then write about, this lesson came with each step I took in 2010. Every time a practice started, every time I had to correct a player or console the team after a loss. The lesson was reinforced as friends divorced and hooked up with new boyfriends leaving us with different lifestyles. It was something I had to practice as a leader in a public institution, one that discourages anything that could possibly be interpreted as religious or "preachy." The lesson was in relating without partaking.
We've heard it said so many times, we are in the world not of the world. If we aren't careful though, we can subconsciously take on an attitude of elitism. I'm not talking about the attitude of the elite that the bible talks about, I mean a holier-than-thou attitude that can prevent true ministry to ever take place. Jesus said if He be lifted up, He would draw all men unto Himself. Lifting Jesus without lifing ourselves isn't as easy as it sounds.
If you've ever known someone important, a person of known status or even celebrity, you know that you can feel a heightened sense of self-worth simply because this person deems you worty of their time and attention. Sometimes people even name-drop for the same reason. Christians can fall into the same way of thinking because we know Christ.
I'm not sure there is anything more liberating than knowing who you are in Christ Jesus. The freedom that comes with not having to perform. The peace that comes with knowing your quirks are actually gifts that set you apart from the billions of other people in the world. It's one of the many wonderful things salvation has to offer. As people with peers and influencing figures in our lives, how do we then keep ourselves from falling back into the same destructive practices that made us realize we need Christ in the first place?
We can (and should) surround ourselves with likeminded people. People who have a desire to honor God in their day-to-day living. It helps keep us straight to have people in our lives who will hold us accountable to the Word. We can also avoid relationships with people who do not share our desire to live for Christ. But we cannot eliminate all contact with those of different persuasions, beliefs and lifestyles. And we shouldn't. Instead, we must learn how to navigate the sometimes tricky waters of a world we most definitely are in with the rest of humanity. We cannot esteem ourselves higher than our neighbors, in fact, the Word teaches us to esteem others higher than ourselves. The easiest way I have found to do this is by treating others with love.
Love is kind and is not puffed up and best of all, never fails.
Even though we know that God is love, and as simple as the commandment to love our neighbor sounds, it is my experience that for some, it is the missing ingredient in our recipe to a productive life in Christ. For many others, however, they can love all day long anyone they come accross but have trouble staying on the path that leads to life. This has been a struggle for me but I have to think of it like this: We are on a road that will intersect many others. People will come and go in and out of our lives. We will really, really like some of these people and want them to stay longer, but they may be on a different path. They may be loving, well-meaning individuals. They may beg you to come with them on new adventures. But we are on a path too. A path that leads to life. It is straight and it is narrow and the Word already warns us that few will find it.
I have been on streets many times in my car and decided since no one was driving that road, I must have taken a wrong turn somewhere. While this may be true of driving, it is not of living for Christ. There will be many times when we feel like we are alone. Believe it or not, I have felt very alone during the happiest times of my marriage! Certainly that doesn't mean something was wrong, sometimes right is just rare.
This lesson isn't one that wraps up. We don't get to take a final exam and forget about it. It is a moment-by-moment, day-to-day way of living that requires staying in the Word, praying consistently and examining ourselves by choice in an effort to line up with the Word.
Most of us came to Christ through relationship. A relationship with a family member, a friend, a youth leader or even teammate. Relationship is vital in bringing people to Christ. The common denominator in most relationship is something shared. Whether it's interests, activities, work or school, we start with something in common and relationship evolves from there. As relationship grows, we tend to spend more time around each other and that is when we learn our differences. That is when we have the opportunity to practice relating to people without partaking in sin.
My excitement for 2011 isn't simply from putting another year behind me or the hope of a clean slate, it is from the joy that comes with a better understanding and new opportunities to continue to walk this thing out. Where I started out last year fearful of how to approach success in school while maintaining rightstanding with God, this year I'm starting out with lots of practice. Lessons learned from past failures as well as tested and proved successes. I'm excited simply because I'm learning how to walk again and sometimes the second time is sweeter. When we first learn to walk, it's a natural progression, an expected milestone. But if something happens and we can no longer walk, once our strength is built back up and we can do it again, the joy that comes with each step can be difficult to hide.
So Happy New Year and God bless and keep you as you too strive to walk the straight and narrow with love. Much more to come as I continue in the faith and write along the way.
Devyn
As I reflect over 2010 and all I took part in; coaching youth volleyball and basketball, serving as president of my college's honor society and completing my prerequisites for nursing school while being the best wife and mom I knew how to be, I realize why this new year feels so different. I worked with a lot of different people to include students, parents, college faculty and kids not to mention my own circle of friends and family. I learned something very valuable.
Not something I could sit down and read about, meditate on and then write about, this lesson came with each step I took in 2010. Every time a practice started, every time I had to correct a player or console the team after a loss. The lesson was reinforced as friends divorced and hooked up with new boyfriends leaving us with different lifestyles. It was something I had to practice as a leader in a public institution, one that discourages anything that could possibly be interpreted as religious or "preachy." The lesson was in relating without partaking.
We've heard it said so many times, we are in the world not of the world. If we aren't careful though, we can subconsciously take on an attitude of elitism. I'm not talking about the attitude of the elite that the bible talks about, I mean a holier-than-thou attitude that can prevent true ministry to ever take place. Jesus said if He be lifted up, He would draw all men unto Himself. Lifting Jesus without lifing ourselves isn't as easy as it sounds.
If you've ever known someone important, a person of known status or even celebrity, you know that you can feel a heightened sense of self-worth simply because this person deems you worty of their time and attention. Sometimes people even name-drop for the same reason. Christians can fall into the same way of thinking because we know Christ.
I'm not sure there is anything more liberating than knowing who you are in Christ Jesus. The freedom that comes with not having to perform. The peace that comes with knowing your quirks are actually gifts that set you apart from the billions of other people in the world. It's one of the many wonderful things salvation has to offer. As people with peers and influencing figures in our lives, how do we then keep ourselves from falling back into the same destructive practices that made us realize we need Christ in the first place?
We can (and should) surround ourselves with likeminded people. People who have a desire to honor God in their day-to-day living. It helps keep us straight to have people in our lives who will hold us accountable to the Word. We can also avoid relationships with people who do not share our desire to live for Christ. But we cannot eliminate all contact with those of different persuasions, beliefs and lifestyles. And we shouldn't. Instead, we must learn how to navigate the sometimes tricky waters of a world we most definitely are in with the rest of humanity. We cannot esteem ourselves higher than our neighbors, in fact, the Word teaches us to esteem others higher than ourselves. The easiest way I have found to do this is by treating others with love.
Love is kind and is not puffed up and best of all, never fails.
Even though we know that God is love, and as simple as the commandment to love our neighbor sounds, it is my experience that for some, it is the missing ingredient in our recipe to a productive life in Christ. For many others, however, they can love all day long anyone they come accross but have trouble staying on the path that leads to life. This has been a struggle for me but I have to think of it like this: We are on a road that will intersect many others. People will come and go in and out of our lives. We will really, really like some of these people and want them to stay longer, but they may be on a different path. They may be loving, well-meaning individuals. They may beg you to come with them on new adventures. But we are on a path too. A path that leads to life. It is straight and it is narrow and the Word already warns us that few will find it.
I have been on streets many times in my car and decided since no one was driving that road, I must have taken a wrong turn somewhere. While this may be true of driving, it is not of living for Christ. There will be many times when we feel like we are alone. Believe it or not, I have felt very alone during the happiest times of my marriage! Certainly that doesn't mean something was wrong, sometimes right is just rare.
This lesson isn't one that wraps up. We don't get to take a final exam and forget about it. It is a moment-by-moment, day-to-day way of living that requires staying in the Word, praying consistently and examining ourselves by choice in an effort to line up with the Word.
Most of us came to Christ through relationship. A relationship with a family member, a friend, a youth leader or even teammate. Relationship is vital in bringing people to Christ. The common denominator in most relationship is something shared. Whether it's interests, activities, work or school, we start with something in common and relationship evolves from there. As relationship grows, we tend to spend more time around each other and that is when we learn our differences. That is when we have the opportunity to practice relating to people without partaking in sin.
My excitement for 2011 isn't simply from putting another year behind me or the hope of a clean slate, it is from the joy that comes with a better understanding and new opportunities to continue to walk this thing out. Where I started out last year fearful of how to approach success in school while maintaining rightstanding with God, this year I'm starting out with lots of practice. Lessons learned from past failures as well as tested and proved successes. I'm excited simply because I'm learning how to walk again and sometimes the second time is sweeter. When we first learn to walk, it's a natural progression, an expected milestone. But if something happens and we can no longer walk, once our strength is built back up and we can do it again, the joy that comes with each step can be difficult to hide.
So Happy New Year and God bless and keep you as you too strive to walk the straight and narrow with love. Much more to come as I continue in the faith and write along the way.
Devyn
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