Tuesday, October 6, 2009

Ok God, I Get It. I'm a Chicken! Cluck, Cluck!

There's not much point in me having two blogs if I'm just going to repost everything I write on my bible blog onto this one, but I'm going to do it anyway because I'm excited about it!

Luke 19:26 (The Message). Risk your life and get more than you ever dreamed of. Play it safe and end up holding the bag.

This verse is the moral of Jesus' parable about the rich man who gave his servants money to hold for him. The servants who invested it and made more money were rewarded, but the one servant who buried his in the ground was punished. I'm not sure if I really understand what Jesus was getting at - some of the parables are a bit beyond me - but I take it as a reflection on our lives as Christian. If you are a "safe" Christian, you just go about your life loving Jesus, but you don't get out into the world and spread his message of love and forgiveness. If you are the type of person that Jesus wants you to be, you do everything you can to spread the word about him, even at risk to your comfortable life.

   I will readily, though not proudly, admit that I am a safe Christian. I think I mentioned in a previous post that I am not a brave or strong person at all. I'm pretty average on the courage front, even leaning a little bit towards chicken. I don't stand on high things, ride roller coasters, touch bugs, or tell strangers about Jesus. Heck, I rarely even tell my friends about Jesus! I have definitely been a chicken when it comes to following God's wishes. I always have some excuse, but usually the truth is that I'm just plain scared! It might seem to some people that this way would be the most comfortable way to live, and that is the truth! But who really wants a totally comfortable life? For all my fears, I really like adventure! I love to travel and try new things. I can't think of any greater excitement than following God's perfect plan and being his disciple. Think about the prophets. Do you think Moses, Daniel or Paul wished for a more comfortable, dull life? No! Their lives were exciting and fulfilling because of what God did through them. They weren't scared, or if they were, they didn't let it stop them! I want to let God take me on my life's greatest adventures, and with him at my side, who could be afraid?

Lord, you are the king of excitement! I don't want to be a safe Christian and only do comfortable things. I want to have adventures with you! The problem is, I'm scared. I have gotten too comfortable in my own life. I need you to shake things up! Use me for your will! I'm terrified as I'm writing this, but I know that you will give me the strength to do whatever needs to be done. Thank you so much, Father! Amen!

Monday, October 5, 2009

The Stuff Challenge!

I am copying this from my bible study blog so you can see it.

Luke 18:29-30 No one who has sacrificed home, spouse, brothers and sisters, parents, children—whatever—will lose out. It will all come back multiplied many times over in your lifetime. And then the bonus of eternal life!

Jesus has been telling a rich man that the way for him to have eternal life is to give up all of his possessions. Peter, being the suck-up that he always is, chimes in with "We left everything we owned and followed you, didn't we?" Jesus tells him that they will be rewarded for their sacrifice while they're on earth, but even better, they will live forever in heaven!

The issue of material possessions is a hot one in this day and age. We are so obsessed with wealth and stuff. I love stuff. Only a few minutes ago, I caught myself getting mesmerized by a Target commercial! Stuff is a big stumbling block for me. I don't have a problem with money — I can give it away just as easily as I can spend it. It's the stuff I can buy with the money that really gets me. Oh, I know that possessions shouldn't be so important to me. I know I can't take my new shoes to heaven with me. But somehow I always turn back to shopping for a feel-good outlet. Recently, God has been putting this on my heart. One of our scriptures last week talked about worldly things and our preoccupation with them. It was Luke 12:29-32- "What I'm trying to do here is get you to relax, not be so preoccupied with getting so you can respond to God's giving. People who don't know God and the way he works fuss over these things, but you know both God and how he works." I woke up the next morning, which happened to be pay day, and thought, "I am not going to buy anything this month and see what happens." I knew that God had put this challenge on my heart for a reason. I was up for it, but before I could stop myself I started thinking about what cool things I could buy at the end of the month with the money I had saved. Then I heard a very distinct voice in my head say "No. Give it away." I rolled my eyes in disgust at myself. Of course, give it away! What good would it do me to go the whole month without shopping, just to blow it on November 1? So, I made a commitment to refrain from buying all the extras I usually would scoop up this month (obviously, I will need to buy things like gas and food). So far, it has been difficult but I am doing pretty well. Of course, I'm only five days in! I am definitely going to need to do a lot of praying to succeed with this challenge. I can't wait to see what God is going to accomplish in me this month!

Father God, I have read your words about not letting the things of this world take precedence over you. Then I heard it straight from you. I will need your help to accomplish the task you have given me. Thank you for not giving up on weak, material, human me. I love you so much. Amen.