I love being outside. Something about it is magical, holy, - being in creation reminds me that this world is better than the movies and the media make it out to be, that there is still some beauty that we have not ruined.
I think I also love it because being outside reminds me that the world is so much bigger than me. It is enormous, a vast expanse that I cannot control and that will do what it was created to do whether I am there or not. The rocks will still be massive, the trees will still be moved by the wind, the flowers will still bloom, the grass will still whisper quietly…Being in creation reminds me that it is all not ultimately about me.
It is this perspective that helps me when I listen to reports about the healthcare situation. How did we get to the point where we think it is a valid argument to say that some people should not have even a basic level of coverage because the quality of our’s might decrease? What makes my life more important than my neighbor’s? How did this mindset become so pervasive? It is not ultimately about government control vs. my control, my personal finances, my ability to decide what I want – it is about human life. The message of our world that I am the most important has poisoned our thinking to the point that now we would deny mothers and their children even the most basic treatment simply so that I can have all that I “deserve.”
“Learn to do good; seek justice, correct oppression; bring justice to the fatherless, plead the widow’s cause.” – Isaiah 1:17
If we all realized that there is more to this world than us, that we are held to a standard that calls us to take care of the poor, the widow, the fatherless, the child that can not care for himself – then I think we might think twice about arguing against providing for these people. There are some standards that apply to ALL of us – no matter our personal views, lifestyles, or callings.
Jesus tells his followers over and over in His Word that the way He would recognize if they truly know Him in their hearts is by the way they care for others. Matthew 25 makes it clear that if we truly know and love Jesus, we will love and care for the poor and the oppressed around us. In the book of James, the author says that pure religion is one that visits orphans and widows (James 1:27). Later on James says that if one truly has faith, good works will follow – and what is the first thing he lists as these good works that should follow faith? “If a brother or sister is poorly clothed and lacking in daily food, and one of you says to them, ‘Go in peace, be warmed and filled.’ Without giving them the tings needed for the body, what good is that? So also faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead” (James 2:15-17).
How can we say the politically correct, “War is bad, help the poor and needy, love everyone, etc…” and then in the next breath deny our neighbors even the most basic form of healthcare? The Church can be one of the most powerful tools in this world to bring Christ’s love and salvation to people – if the Church speaks up, the government will listen. Helping provide basic coverage to our brothers and sisters is a means to provide the “clothes and daily food” James is talking about! Spreading Christ’s message of salvation goes hand in hand with showing Jesus to those same people – telling them they should know Jesus while at the same time telling them they are not worth basic health coverage is blatantly contradictory and, really, not the true Gospel. We are called to live out the love of Christ, to show Jesus while we are preaching His name. Let’s examine our lives and make sure we are doing that in our every belief and action – are we truly living like we know this world is not all about us?
Monday, March 22, 2010
Thursday, March 4, 2010
Prayer
I pray that this is my prayer every day when I wake up, and that it becomes the prayer of the Church around the world, so that we are constantly living in Christ's vision to love and redeem this world:
"Dear God, give me the courage to live and work for a new heaven and a new earth as Jesus did. Give me the freedom to be critical where I see evil and to offer praises where I see good. Most of all, make me faithful to the vision you have given me, so that wherever I go and whomever I meet, I can be a sign of your all-renewing love. Amen." - A prayer by Henri Nouwen
http://www.ijm.org/justicecampaigns
"Dear God, give me the courage to live and work for a new heaven and a new earth as Jesus did. Give me the freedom to be critical where I see evil and to offer praises where I see good. Most of all, make me faithful to the vision you have given me, so that wherever I go and whomever I meet, I can be a sign of your all-renewing love. Amen." - A prayer by Henri Nouwen
http://www.ijm.org/justicecampaigns
A really bad trend....
In an age where political correctness reigns, there is an important trend that must be noticed:
As the demand for “acceptance” has increased, actual compassion for people has decreased. Care, grace, and love for others has lessened in our modern world of simply “accepting” how people are and moving on without taking the time to find out who they are and why.
This ultimately stems from selfishness. Selfishness has exploded. We do not even notice it anymore – it is a permanent mindset that we must consciously fight if we are to see Reality. Our culture tells us we deserve whatever we can get, that this world exists to serve our purposes, that life really is all about me. Why shouldn’t I do what I want, take what I can get, assume that everything I have is mine?
But the reality is, in fact, that I am not the center of the universe. There is more to this life than me being happy, than the world running on my needs and desires, than me having and doing and being all that I want. My nature, my corrupt being that is exaggerated by this self-focused culture, tells me so strongly that this universe revolves around me that I find myself in a selfish state of mind constantly. My first thought after a friend tells me about something going on in her life is “How will this affect me?” My first thought after I read Scripture is “How does this help me?” My initial reaction even after a humanitarian event or human rights talk is “How will it look for me if I am involved in this?” Because of the work of our great God in my life, it now only takes me a couple seconds to catch myself and even less than that to be disgusted with myself.
Being married for the extremely extended period of one week has shown me this nasty part of my nature even more. I love my husband more than anyone else on this earth and it is through him that God has helped me see what selfless love looks like: I want to give up more of myself for him. I want to see him elevated above myself. I want him to have more than me, to live longer than me, to receive more praise than me (because he definitely deserves it!) I decided not to do a job that I’ve wanted to do for several years now so I can help him more with his job and just serve him better. I woke up at 6 AM this morning to go into his 5th grade classroom and help him put papers together for his students. I love doing his dishes, washing his clothes, and making him food. Things that I never thought I would want to do for someone, that are opposite of what my selfish nature tells me I should be doing - that are opposite of what my selfish nature tells me I deserve – I love doing. God has already used this marriage relationship in extraordinary ways to show me what it looks like to love someone more than myself.
Even in this relationship I have to fight against my natural instinct. My nature tells me I should have slept in, I should have done what I wanted to benefit my future career and my interests. But the Reality is that the more we focus on ourselves and the more we are motivated by selfish interests, the worse this world will become.
I think it is a pretty popular thing today to say “The world needs to change.” A lot of people, especially a lot of people in my generation, say that the world is not perfect and that a lot of things need to change. There are many people who have set out to “change the world,” myself being one of them. And it’s completely true: the world does need to change. But attempting to eradicate poverty, homelessness, disease, war, etc will not change the world. It might on the surface for a while, but the root causes of these evils will still be there, and will generate them again before long. It is humanity’s self-focused, hardened hearts that need to be changed. Until we are made aware of our selfish nature and are constantly fighting against it, the world will not change much. The politically correct position of acceptance will continue to grow and compassion for people will continue to decrease – even as humanitarian organizations grow and non-profit work continues to be the fad. As long as the mindset of self is taught, emphasized, and allowed in our culture and in our homes and in our classes, we will say we want to change the world and then in the next breath complain about how we need more money to live the lifestyle we feel we are entitled to. This is a disconnect that must be remedied.
Every day we must fight our natural instinct and tune out the voices around us that tell us to focus on the I, the we, and the me. Maybe we should question more what is right and normal. Maybe we should question what we deserve. Maybe we could not think we are entitled to every penny in this world. Maybe we could give more – maybe we could even give some money, time, and possessions that are “rightfully” ours. Maybe we could look at other people, no matter their race, gender, or economic situation, and consider that they deserve just as much as I do. Maybe I could actually change something about the way I live to better the life of someone else.
“…many who are first will be last, and the last first…” (Matthew 19:30). When Christ walked this earth, He introduced an “upside down kingdom” that messed with people’s heads – He challenged man’s inclination to help himself first, and even asserted that the actual Right way to live was to put all others before yourself. His message was one of service, grace, mercy, compassion, and selfless love – a message that He lived out with every part of His being when He put all of humanity first by giving His life for our’s on the Cross.
It is this selfless mindset we must seek after today. This nature of mercy and grace and peace must daily be put on and sought after as our first inclination, as our outlook on the world. When this is our view, when we are second and other’s first, when we know the love that Christ offers and are therefore able to offer it to the world – it is then that the world will truly be changed.
“He must increase, but I must decrease.” – John 3:30
“The world is overcome not through destruction, but through reconciliation. Not ideals, nor programs, nor conscience, nor duty, nor responsibility, nor virtue, but only God's perfect love can encounter reality and overcome it. Nor is it some universal idea of love, but rather the love of God in Jesus Christ, a love genuinely lived, that does this.”-Dietrich Bonhoeffer
As the demand for “acceptance” has increased, actual compassion for people has decreased. Care, grace, and love for others has lessened in our modern world of simply “accepting” how people are and moving on without taking the time to find out who they are and why.
This ultimately stems from selfishness. Selfishness has exploded. We do not even notice it anymore – it is a permanent mindset that we must consciously fight if we are to see Reality. Our culture tells us we deserve whatever we can get, that this world exists to serve our purposes, that life really is all about me. Why shouldn’t I do what I want, take what I can get, assume that everything I have is mine?
But the reality is, in fact, that I am not the center of the universe. There is more to this life than me being happy, than the world running on my needs and desires, than me having and doing and being all that I want. My nature, my corrupt being that is exaggerated by this self-focused culture, tells me so strongly that this universe revolves around me that I find myself in a selfish state of mind constantly. My first thought after a friend tells me about something going on in her life is “How will this affect me?” My first thought after I read Scripture is “How does this help me?” My initial reaction even after a humanitarian event or human rights talk is “How will it look for me if I am involved in this?” Because of the work of our great God in my life, it now only takes me a couple seconds to catch myself and even less than that to be disgusted with myself.
Being married for the extremely extended period of one week has shown me this nasty part of my nature even more. I love my husband more than anyone else on this earth and it is through him that God has helped me see what selfless love looks like: I want to give up more of myself for him. I want to see him elevated above myself. I want him to have more than me, to live longer than me, to receive more praise than me (because he definitely deserves it!) I decided not to do a job that I’ve wanted to do for several years now so I can help him more with his job and just serve him better. I woke up at 6 AM this morning to go into his 5th grade classroom and help him put papers together for his students. I love doing his dishes, washing his clothes, and making him food. Things that I never thought I would want to do for someone, that are opposite of what my selfish nature tells me I should be doing - that are opposite of what my selfish nature tells me I deserve – I love doing. God has already used this marriage relationship in extraordinary ways to show me what it looks like to love someone more than myself.
Even in this relationship I have to fight against my natural instinct. My nature tells me I should have slept in, I should have done what I wanted to benefit my future career and my interests. But the Reality is that the more we focus on ourselves and the more we are motivated by selfish interests, the worse this world will become.
I think it is a pretty popular thing today to say “The world needs to change.” A lot of people, especially a lot of people in my generation, say that the world is not perfect and that a lot of things need to change. There are many people who have set out to “change the world,” myself being one of them. And it’s completely true: the world does need to change. But attempting to eradicate poverty, homelessness, disease, war, etc will not change the world. It might on the surface for a while, but the root causes of these evils will still be there, and will generate them again before long. It is humanity’s self-focused, hardened hearts that need to be changed. Until we are made aware of our selfish nature and are constantly fighting against it, the world will not change much. The politically correct position of acceptance will continue to grow and compassion for people will continue to decrease – even as humanitarian organizations grow and non-profit work continues to be the fad. As long as the mindset of self is taught, emphasized, and allowed in our culture and in our homes and in our classes, we will say we want to change the world and then in the next breath complain about how we need more money to live the lifestyle we feel we are entitled to. This is a disconnect that must be remedied.
Every day we must fight our natural instinct and tune out the voices around us that tell us to focus on the I, the we, and the me. Maybe we should question more what is right and normal. Maybe we should question what we deserve. Maybe we could not think we are entitled to every penny in this world. Maybe we could give more – maybe we could even give some money, time, and possessions that are “rightfully” ours. Maybe we could look at other people, no matter their race, gender, or economic situation, and consider that they deserve just as much as I do. Maybe I could actually change something about the way I live to better the life of someone else.
“…many who are first will be last, and the last first…” (Matthew 19:30). When Christ walked this earth, He introduced an “upside down kingdom” that messed with people’s heads – He challenged man’s inclination to help himself first, and even asserted that the actual Right way to live was to put all others before yourself. His message was one of service, grace, mercy, compassion, and selfless love – a message that He lived out with every part of His being when He put all of humanity first by giving His life for our’s on the Cross.
It is this selfless mindset we must seek after today. This nature of mercy and grace and peace must daily be put on and sought after as our first inclination, as our outlook on the world. When this is our view, when we are second and other’s first, when we know the love that Christ offers and are therefore able to offer it to the world – it is then that the world will truly be changed.
“He must increase, but I must decrease.” – John 3:30
“The world is overcome not through destruction, but through reconciliation. Not ideals, nor programs, nor conscience, nor duty, nor responsibility, nor virtue, but only God's perfect love can encounter reality and overcome it. Nor is it some universal idea of love, but rather the love of God in Jesus Christ, a love genuinely lived, that does this.”-Dietrich Bonhoeffer
Different
There are no words to describe the beauty, the holiness of marriage – the sacredness of knowing I am one with another person, that for the rest of our lives it is us together, living in God’s brilliant plan for this world.
What God has already reminded me of so much just through one week of marriage is that we are DIFFERENT. We are ALL meant to be different.
Just through one week of marriage God has shown me so much more of Himself and His incredibly massive vision for this world. It is grander than anything I could imagine, bigger than my little life. God, by His grace, wants to use Stephen and me to join this glorious adventure, this vision that has been the same since Adam and Moses and Esther – this vision to save the world. And it’s going to look so different - more amazing - than anything I could ever imagine.
The magic of being united with Stephen has helped me see that. I think our human habit is to fall into routine, into what it comfortable. It is to follow prototypes and examples of what is “right” that have been laid out before us by other “good” people. But there is no “prototype” for the unearthly, beautiful dreams of God. The heartbeat He is molding our hearts to feel is to a rhythm unlike any other. We are called to close our eyes and believe something bigger, something greater than we have ever seen before.
I completely believe that we should look to those that have gone before for wisdom and guidance. I believe wholeheartedly that there are some that are called to follow certain paths. But I have seen that taken to the extreme and abused, and have seen passionate, fiery people “calmed down” by the mold they were forced to fit. Get married, have kids, go to church, maybe work in youth ministry….none of these things are wrong, but if they are done simply because it is what is expected – because it is what is “good” and comfortable – and not because it is the calling of God to bring His glory and salvation into the world, then it is wrong. I believe there is more, there is something different and beautiful and fascinating that God has called each of us to that will blow our minds if we would believe that He wants to use us in this amazing huge vision. The girl crying in the brothel, the boy with no food, the parents who don’t talk anymore, the man in your office who gets quieter every day – God wants to change their lives with His love and make this world different and wants us to wake up everyday believing it can happen and believing that just like Moses, God desires us to stand up and declare FREEDOM for His people.
For some reason, God has given me a passion for government and the power it has to bring about real change if used in the right way. I have a deep interest in politics and advocacy and helping God’s people through these avenues. But I also love working with people, discussing theology, counseling others, and helping guide them to know more of God and His purposes. The past few years as I’ve been praying for God to show me His will for my life, I’ve though, because the world has told me, that I had to choose one path or the other, one passion or the other. But through my relationship with Stephen and God opening my eyes to more of His incredible, mind-blowing purpose for us in this world, I am realizing my life is supposed to look different. Just because I like working with kids, being around people, and having deep conversations doesn’t mean I have to have kids at age 23 and work with youth the rest of my life. I believe with my whole heart that God has given me a passion for government, advocacy, and political change for a reason. I believe He wants to use that just as much as He wants to use my love of people to change the world. But that doesn’t mean I can only work on Capitol Hill the rest of my life either – God is bigger than black and white, one or the other. And I believe He led me to a man who perfectly balances out the gifts He has given me with his own passions and talents – a man who perfectly completes the vision God has for us.
It’s scary because that vision is so beyond me. I can’t understand it and I don’t know how it will look. The path Steve and I are called to take is different. I am a political science major with a passion for politics who is working at a summer camp. I am married to a teacher who knows more about how to teach people than anyone I have ever met. We feel led to China, Scotland, the inner-city, the streets of Capitol Hill, the halls of nursing homes, churches, classrooms, seminaries…..
And all of it is for His glory – it is part of a wider, deeper, and more glorious picture than we will ever know. But we are called into it. We are not called to live our lives just for the sake of living them, or to fulfill a certain role or goal for ourselves. I am not called down a certain path because that is what I “should do” or because that is what makes the most sense or makes Stephen and I look the best. We are called to a higher way, a holy perspective. Everyone should look DIFFERENT. All of us should go down a path forged by a fiery passion for the vision of the redeeming love of Christ being brought onto this earth, a vision of His saving glory making this world the way God intended it to be before time began.
It is this vision that should drive us. It that leads us to a pretty normal looking life, then praise God – if the perspective is right then it is RIGHT. But nothing – nothing different or “normal” should be done with the motive of self, of comfort, of normalcy. We are called to empty ourselves, and we are called to this for a reason: the less we think of ourselves and the more we look to the throne room of God and desire His glory on this earth, the more we will pour out His love that is consuming fire, and the faster it will sweep over this pitiful, dying world. The more we desire His Way and keep the vision of Moses, Isaiah, and Paul, the vision that we are created for something more and live for something more – the vision that brings salvation – the more we let this be our perspective, the more we will look DIFFERENT. We can have PEACE in His greater plan, even though we may never see the whole picture ourselves. His love “surpasses knowledge” (Eph. 3:19), but we can LIVE it.
What God has already reminded me of so much just through one week of marriage is that we are DIFFERENT. We are ALL meant to be different.
Just through one week of marriage God has shown me so much more of Himself and His incredibly massive vision for this world. It is grander than anything I could imagine, bigger than my little life. God, by His grace, wants to use Stephen and me to join this glorious adventure, this vision that has been the same since Adam and Moses and Esther – this vision to save the world. And it’s going to look so different - more amazing - than anything I could ever imagine.
The magic of being united with Stephen has helped me see that. I think our human habit is to fall into routine, into what it comfortable. It is to follow prototypes and examples of what is “right” that have been laid out before us by other “good” people. But there is no “prototype” for the unearthly, beautiful dreams of God. The heartbeat He is molding our hearts to feel is to a rhythm unlike any other. We are called to close our eyes and believe something bigger, something greater than we have ever seen before.
I completely believe that we should look to those that have gone before for wisdom and guidance. I believe wholeheartedly that there are some that are called to follow certain paths. But I have seen that taken to the extreme and abused, and have seen passionate, fiery people “calmed down” by the mold they were forced to fit. Get married, have kids, go to church, maybe work in youth ministry….none of these things are wrong, but if they are done simply because it is what is expected – because it is what is “good” and comfortable – and not because it is the calling of God to bring His glory and salvation into the world, then it is wrong. I believe there is more, there is something different and beautiful and fascinating that God has called each of us to that will blow our minds if we would believe that He wants to use us in this amazing huge vision. The girl crying in the brothel, the boy with no food, the parents who don’t talk anymore, the man in your office who gets quieter every day – God wants to change their lives with His love and make this world different and wants us to wake up everyday believing it can happen and believing that just like Moses, God desires us to stand up and declare FREEDOM for His people.
For some reason, God has given me a passion for government and the power it has to bring about real change if used in the right way. I have a deep interest in politics and advocacy and helping God’s people through these avenues. But I also love working with people, discussing theology, counseling others, and helping guide them to know more of God and His purposes. The past few years as I’ve been praying for God to show me His will for my life, I’ve though, because the world has told me, that I had to choose one path or the other, one passion or the other. But through my relationship with Stephen and God opening my eyes to more of His incredible, mind-blowing purpose for us in this world, I am realizing my life is supposed to look different. Just because I like working with kids, being around people, and having deep conversations doesn’t mean I have to have kids at age 23 and work with youth the rest of my life. I believe with my whole heart that God has given me a passion for government, advocacy, and political change for a reason. I believe He wants to use that just as much as He wants to use my love of people to change the world. But that doesn’t mean I can only work on Capitol Hill the rest of my life either – God is bigger than black and white, one or the other. And I believe He led me to a man who perfectly balances out the gifts He has given me with his own passions and talents – a man who perfectly completes the vision God has for us.
It’s scary because that vision is so beyond me. I can’t understand it and I don’t know how it will look. The path Steve and I are called to take is different. I am a political science major with a passion for politics who is working at a summer camp. I am married to a teacher who knows more about how to teach people than anyone I have ever met. We feel led to China, Scotland, the inner-city, the streets of Capitol Hill, the halls of nursing homes, churches, classrooms, seminaries…..
And all of it is for His glory – it is part of a wider, deeper, and more glorious picture than we will ever know. But we are called into it. We are not called to live our lives just for the sake of living them, or to fulfill a certain role or goal for ourselves. I am not called down a certain path because that is what I “should do” or because that is what makes the most sense or makes Stephen and I look the best. We are called to a higher way, a holy perspective. Everyone should look DIFFERENT. All of us should go down a path forged by a fiery passion for the vision of the redeeming love of Christ being brought onto this earth, a vision of His saving glory making this world the way God intended it to be before time began.
It is this vision that should drive us. It that leads us to a pretty normal looking life, then praise God – if the perspective is right then it is RIGHT. But nothing – nothing different or “normal” should be done with the motive of self, of comfort, of normalcy. We are called to empty ourselves, and we are called to this for a reason: the less we think of ourselves and the more we look to the throne room of God and desire His glory on this earth, the more we will pour out His love that is consuming fire, and the faster it will sweep over this pitiful, dying world. The more we desire His Way and keep the vision of Moses, Isaiah, and Paul, the vision that we are created for something more and live for something more – the vision that brings salvation – the more we let this be our perspective, the more we will look DIFFERENT. We can have PEACE in His greater plan, even though we may never see the whole picture ourselves. His love “surpasses knowledge” (Eph. 3:19), but we can LIVE it.
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