I was asked a question tonight by a fellow sister in Christ that really made me think about my current situation and how I'm affecting the Kingdom of God... If Jesus were alive today in our world, where would he be? My first thought was that he most certainly would not be on the campus of Drake University. He would be in India (where Mother Teresa spent her life in poverty), he would be in prisons, he would be on the streets with the homeless, he would be in Africa in the middle of the Aids pandemic, giving them all a hope. Why aren't I doing this? Doesn't it seem kinda ridiculous that the only people I'm giving hope to are those who pay $30,000 to get an education and then go on to jobs and become nothing but a blend of white, middle class America? It seems ridiculous to me at least..
The book of Esther kind of talks about this situation. Esther is a Jewish Queen and her surrogate father, Mordecai, is on the verge of death, along with all other Jews in the nation, unless Esther speaks up to the King about this injustice. Esther 4:14 says, "If you keep quiet at a time like this, deliverance and relief for the Jews will arise from some other place, but you and your relatives will die. Who knows if perhaps you were made queen for just such a time as this?” Basically what that says is that if we keep quiet, others will possibly take care of the problem. It really seems however that in our culture, no one cares about those who really need caring for. That passage in Esther says that if we ignore injustice, it will come back to us on Judgment Day and that we were made for times like this.
I must say however, I am the biggest hypocrite of you all. I preach this, yet do I really do anything about it? At this point, I have to say that no I have not, and I am somewhat ashamed. I usually simply walk by a homeless person on the street instead of offering them a hot meal, and I know most of you just walk by as well. I always ask myself what happens if this guy robs me, what if he has a disease, what if I have to be to work early in the morning. All of these are absolutely valid questions mind you, but what did MLK say about this? Yesterday I brought up a quote where he said that we should develop a dangerous unselfishness. Not just the kind that gives when it's safe and easy.
Jesus spent most of his time with those who have nothing. Mother Teresa spent her life in absolute poverty for the sake of others. Martin Luther King, Jr. gave his life to a people being persecuted and beaten every day. Where do I give my time? To people who are getting an education, to people who have more food than they need, to people who have a roof over their head every single night. Even as I right this I realize that I wont be immediately going into the streets helping people, and that thought kind of sickens me, but it's reality. All I can do is love God with my whole being, and hopefully along the way, help the people who really need it.
Tuesday, October 2, 2007
Monday, October 1, 2007
Random Musings
1. I came across a couple amazing readings today in my Intro to Religion class... The first one I would like to share is a very simple saying from St. Francis of Assisi, "Beware of the sin of ingratitude." - I think it's so easy to get caught up in everything in this world that we forget about the simple things that God gives us. The grass, the blue sky, smiles.. the little things. Very simple saying, very deep and profound meaning.
2. The second comes from Martin Luther speaking on faith, "Faith is God's work in us, that changes us and gives new birth from God. Faith cannot help doing good works constantly. It doesnt stop to ask if good works ought to be done, but before anyone asks, it already has done them and continues to do them without ceasing. Faith is a living, bold trust in God's grace, so certain of God's favor that it would risk death a thousand times trusting in it. Such confidence and knowledge of God's grace makes you happy, joyful and bold in your relationship to God and all creatures. It is just as impossible to separate faith and works as it is to separate heat from fire." There's a lot to digest here, but it's unbelievable. Fire doesnt think about the fact that it gives off heat, it just does. It's part of the nature of fire. This is how good works should be in our life. So many times I end up thinking about whether or not I should serve somewhere, when really it should just be an innate quality about my life...
3. The third comes from another Martin Luther, only this one has a King, Jr. tacked on at the end. He says very simply, "Let us develop a kind of dangerous unselfishness." This is so unbelievably profound. He says we should not ask the question, 'If I help this person what will happen to me', but rather, 'If I don't help this person, what will happen to them'. This truth can literally change our lives. In Matthew 6 Jesus talks about the giving to the needy and he says over and over, 'When you give to the needy...'. It doesnt say if, it says when. Jesus commands us to help the needy, but how often does that truth actually reflect our lifestyle in the least bit?
4. I'd like to quickly mention 'To Write Love On Her Arms' (TWLOHA). This is non-profit movement designed to help people struggling with depression and cutting. This is a real issue in America today, and the story behind this movement is absolutely unreal. PLEASE check out the website and the story at www.twloha.com
2. The second comes from Martin Luther speaking on faith, "Faith is God's work in us, that changes us and gives new birth from God. Faith cannot help doing good works constantly. It doesnt stop to ask if good works ought to be done, but before anyone asks, it already has done them and continues to do them without ceasing. Faith is a living, bold trust in God's grace, so certain of God's favor that it would risk death a thousand times trusting in it. Such confidence and knowledge of God's grace makes you happy, joyful and bold in your relationship to God and all creatures. It is just as impossible to separate faith and works as it is to separate heat from fire." There's a lot to digest here, but it's unbelievable. Fire doesnt think about the fact that it gives off heat, it just does. It's part of the nature of fire. This is how good works should be in our life. So many times I end up thinking about whether or not I should serve somewhere, when really it should just be an innate quality about my life...
3. The third comes from another Martin Luther, only this one has a King, Jr. tacked on at the end. He says very simply, "Let us develop a kind of dangerous unselfishness." This is so unbelievably profound. He says we should not ask the question, 'If I help this person what will happen to me', but rather, 'If I don't help this person, what will happen to them'. This truth can literally change our lives. In Matthew 6 Jesus talks about the giving to the needy and he says over and over, 'When you give to the needy...'. It doesnt say if, it says when. Jesus commands us to help the needy, but how often does that truth actually reflect our lifestyle in the least bit?
4. I'd like to quickly mention 'To Write Love On Her Arms' (TWLOHA). This is non-profit movement designed to help people struggling with depression and cutting. This is a real issue in America today, and the story behind this movement is absolutely unreal. PLEASE check out the website and the story at www.twloha.com
Sunday, September 30, 2007
The Epic Story of Humanity
So I watched Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring for the first time tonight, (isn't that ridiculous in itself), and I was absolutely blown away. The theology of that movie astonishes me. The Lord has really been teaching about the story of humanity lately and how insane it really is. I've recently been reading a book called Epic that talks about this very topic...
Why does every epic story in our culture (300, LOTR, Star Wars, Narnia, Gladiator) look exactly the same? Essentially, it is some good that has gone horribly wrong, and the good guys get pitted against the bad guys, and are usually severely outnumbered. Somehow though, the good guys always pull it out.. albeit not always right away.
They all look the same because this is the basic story of humanity itself, minus the flashy special effects. The world started out good, with Eden and of course Adam and Eve. But then Evil entered the world and intoxicated it. (the Sith, the Orcs, the Persians, etc.) And then some seemingly normal character is born into this great war between Good and Evil. Luke Skywalker doesnt choose to be born into the war, neither does Frodo Baggins or the Pevinsy's of Narnia. But they are. That is inevitable. None of them felt like they had the power to change the world, but they did. None of them were special by any means, they just had outstanding courage.
The Good guys are always outnumbered by the Bad guys to the point of hopelessness. This is true of our culture today. Those who truly follow Christ are severely outnumbered. We WILL obtain victory every time however because our God is always backing us up. None of us today chose to be born into a war of Good vs. Evil, but that's just what reality is. We were born right into the middle of this Epic story, and we can be a part of it. Most people go through life without ever realizing there is a constant battle going on right under their nose. The reason we so love these epic stories is because we are in one. It may not be flashy like it is in the movies, but stories are real. Satan is real. God is real. This spiritual war is extremely real. The quicker we realize this, the more we can be prepared.
One last thing to notice.. The main character may die, but that is NEVER the end of the story. Maximus is reunited with his family in Gladiator. In Star Wars, Obi Wan gives himself over to death, but does the story end? Absolutely not. Death has no power over us, and in fact is only the beginning of our story. Our life of 70 years is NOTHING in comparison to reality. The sooner we realize this fact, the sooner we can really start doing the Lord's work while we remain on the desolate planet.
Life is an epic story, and Reality tells us that we are in a battle of Good vs. Evil. It wont always be easy to stand for good. But guess what? Good will ALWAYS prevail. PTL!
Why does every epic story in our culture (300, LOTR, Star Wars, Narnia, Gladiator) look exactly the same? Essentially, it is some good that has gone horribly wrong, and the good guys get pitted against the bad guys, and are usually severely outnumbered. Somehow though, the good guys always pull it out.. albeit not always right away.
They all look the same because this is the basic story of humanity itself, minus the flashy special effects. The world started out good, with Eden and of course Adam and Eve. But then Evil entered the world and intoxicated it. (the Sith, the Orcs, the Persians, etc.) And then some seemingly normal character is born into this great war between Good and Evil. Luke Skywalker doesnt choose to be born into the war, neither does Frodo Baggins or the Pevinsy's of Narnia. But they are. That is inevitable. None of them felt like they had the power to change the world, but they did. None of them were special by any means, they just had outstanding courage.
The Good guys are always outnumbered by the Bad guys to the point of hopelessness. This is true of our culture today. Those who truly follow Christ are severely outnumbered. We WILL obtain victory every time however because our God is always backing us up. None of us today chose to be born into a war of Good vs. Evil, but that's just what reality is. We were born right into the middle of this Epic story, and we can be a part of it. Most people go through life without ever realizing there is a constant battle going on right under their nose. The reason we so love these epic stories is because we are in one. It may not be flashy like it is in the movies, but stories are real. Satan is real. God is real. This spiritual war is extremely real. The quicker we realize this, the more we can be prepared.
One last thing to notice.. The main character may die, but that is NEVER the end of the story. Maximus is reunited with his family in Gladiator. In Star Wars, Obi Wan gives himself over to death, but does the story end? Absolutely not. Death has no power over us, and in fact is only the beginning of our story. Our life of 70 years is NOTHING in comparison to reality. The sooner we realize this fact, the sooner we can really start doing the Lord's work while we remain on the desolate planet.
Life is an epic story, and Reality tells us that we are in a battle of Good vs. Evil. It wont always be easy to stand for good. But guess what? Good will ALWAYS prevail. PTL!
Saturday, September 29, 2007
Apparantly This is My First Post
I didnt even realize this blog existed until right now... But apparantly it does, so I'm gonna start using it.
The Lord has been so good lately.. I dont even know how to describe it.
A recent story that happened might do a justice. So I went to a little festival the other night, and I got really upset because of all the money wasted on entertaining white, middle America. I felt very alone in the world that night, that this world was such a waste, and that American culture just makes me want to vomit. So I went out and had some time with the Lord, after which I was still feeling discouraged. So I got a text as I was sitting ready to go back to my dorm.. Someone had texted me their verse of the day which happened to be Philippians 3:20 which roughly tells me that my citizenship is in heaven. This little event was so unbelievable to me.. The Lord used something as simple as a text message to convict me. PTL! (Praise the Lord!)
I found a sweet blog the other day called Jesus Creed.. the main topic is the idea of the Emerging Church..
Also, one of my new favorite sites is Relevant Mag.. there are tons of amazing articles.
Two questions that popped into my head Thursday night:
Why didn't the Lord just give the Bible to man like he did the Ten Commandments vs. having people write it?
Where did Satan come from? How did he become Satan? There are all sorts of stories, but is there anywhere in the Bible that talks about how he came to be?
Thoughts on these would be AWESOME.
The Lord has been so good lately.. I dont even know how to describe it.
A recent story that happened might do a justice. So I went to a little festival the other night, and I got really upset because of all the money wasted on entertaining white, middle America. I felt very alone in the world that night, that this world was such a waste, and that American culture just makes me want to vomit. So I went out and had some time with the Lord, after which I was still feeling discouraged. So I got a text as I was sitting ready to go back to my dorm.. Someone had texted me their verse of the day which happened to be Philippians 3:20 which roughly tells me that my citizenship is in heaven. This little event was so unbelievable to me.. The Lord used something as simple as a text message to convict me. PTL! (Praise the Lord!)
I found a sweet blog the other day called Jesus Creed.. the main topic is the idea of the Emerging Church..
Also, one of my new favorite sites is Relevant Mag.. there are tons of amazing articles.
Two questions that popped into my head Thursday night:
Why didn't the Lord just give the Bible to man like he did the Ten Commandments vs. having people write it?
Where did Satan come from? How did he become Satan? There are all sorts of stories, but is there anywhere in the Bible that talks about how he came to be?
Thoughts on these would be AWESOME.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)