Last Sunday at our Swan Hill church, our pastor shared a fantastic message about the concept of the 'family of origin.' His particular focus was on the idea that when two people enter a marriage they bring ideas and experiences that clash because of their different families of origin. In some ways Jeanille and I do and have experienced this, in the different ways we consider money, work, leisure time or simple household arrangements.
Yet differences even extend beyond origins. Not simply because Jeanille is Filipino and I am Aussie. Differences extend to the simple fact that as a man there are ways that my brain is wired that hers is not. There are things that I enjoy more than she does. I doubt she will ever truly love Star Wars or Marvel no matter how many times I drag her along to these films. Yet that is okay.
It is okay because I do not want Jeanille to be anything other than who she is. I don't want her to be someone with a different past, because I want to look at her the way that God sees her. Knowing that the past fuels the future. I hope and believe she looks at me the same way.
Because, really, all pasts are indefinite. They do not define us truly - except to provide a launching pad for our future. Yes indeed, in the wake of the US election the old idea that the best indicator of future behaviour is past behaviour may run true. However, I prefer to remember that the future is controlled not by the past but by God Himself.
And that to me makes all the difference. My past does not control my future. The past few days do not control the future of the world. We need to take responsibility for the future which God has in His hands and bring His Kingdom to the world.
So in short, no matter your past (years, months, week, days) trust in the Lord, remember that He is in control. And like I, myself have been learning, it's not about you!
5 Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; 6 in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight.
It's not my fault Donald Trump was elected. It's not my fault that Tony Abbott was elected. It's not my fault that other people are entirely ridiculous! Sound familiar?
Essentially this is what many, many people around the world have now been arguing: It's not my fault. And they're right. Not one single person as a citizen of Australia voted for the Presidency of the United States of America. News flash: no one from Canada, New Zealand, England, India, China, Russia and so on voted for Donald Trump. In fact, if we have to blame someone then we have to blame those clearly ignorant members of the United States of America who voted. At least it's not MY fault.
But you see, that is where it becomes entirely your fault. Your fault that you choose to look at other people and blame them as the cause of problems going on in the world. It is time that we as humanity actively took responsibility for our own actions and what we can control. But instead all too often the response to something we don't like is: tears, denial and a lack of responsibility.
I am not saying that I agree that Donald Trump is a great option. I have had a great laugh at the idea of walls being built between the United States and Mexico for instance. Bullying, sexism and racism on the other hands are not laughing matters. However, for those who did not vote Donald Trump to turn around and say 'he's not my president' (by implication an 'it's not my fault' statement) is to ignore the way their democracy works. To become selfishly obsessed with the fact that an outcome is 'not my outcome' is immature. More than that suggesting that 'America is doomed' or 'I'm leaving the country' if truly meant in a heartfelt manner, is to surrender to the very fear and hatred that many people worry about in Donald Trump.
Responsibility often appears to be made up of two words: Response and Ability. My parents often taught me that part of maturing in life is being willing to take responsibility for my own actions. For what I can control, and for what I do. These two words, Response and Ability, mean so very much when placed together. They mean the need to have an appropriate Response to any situation to the best Ability.
This post discusses the importance of being a real leader who never says 'It's not my fault.' Part of the responsibility of the Christian is to recognise where they must take responsibility. In 2 Timothy 1:6-7 Paul reminded Timothy of the responsibility Timothy had to look after the gifts God had given him. "6 For this reason I remind you to fan into flame the gift of God, which is in you through the laying on of my hands. 7 For God has not given us a spirit of timidity, but of power, love, and self-control."
Importantly, you see the reminder that Paul made here is not simply to take responsibility for the gift of God in Timothy's life. He also reminds Timothy that God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of love, power and a sound-mind (as other translations suggest). It is the power of God that allows us to be able to take true responsibility for the issues that concern us, that we are responsible for.
My encouragement is that the Christian and the non-Christian can become capable of stopping and taking responsibility. That as people we clamp down on stating that it is not our fault. That perhaps, just maybe, we instead say - but I may have a solution and the response and ability to see that solution through.
This Sunday will mark three months of marriage for Jeanille and myself. In such a relatively short space of time I have learnt so much more about God and what a relationship between Him and us should be so I wanted to share some of the parallels I have learnt. Ultimately, marriage so far is the most rewarding challenge I have ever undertaken as it both connects me to two rocks in my world in new and crazier ways.
With so much talk about 'changing the definition of marriage' here in Australia it is interesting to me to turn to sources of wisdom to find out more about what marriage is supposed to represent. Aside from learning to pray together for all sorts of things (houses, jobs, our families) and seeking advice from married couples around us, Jeanille and I have begun reading through Timothy Keller's The Meaning of Marriage. In his introduction Keller writes the following words:
"The Bible begins with a wedding (of Adam and Eve) and ends in the book of Revelation with a wedding (of Christ and the Church). Marriage is God's idea. It is certainly also a human institution, and it reflects the character of the particular human culture in which it is embedded..."
In short, what I want to talk about is what marriage so far in a short time has shown me about God's plans - not about whatever particular changes people may wish to make to the human institution. Humanity can 'redefine' marriage, but they can never truly capture God's heart for marriage unless they stick to a Biblical definition. After all even the most 'perfect' marriages break down in our modern society (look at Brangelina as of yesterday for a sad example).
Timothy Keller also points out the following two ideas
1. "It is possible to see marriage as merely a social transaction, a way of doing your duty to family, tribe and society. Traditional societies made the family the ultimate value in life, and so marriage was a mere transaction that helped your family's interest. By contrast, contemporary Western societies make the individual's happiness the ultimate value, and so marriage becomes primarily an experience of romantic fulfillment. But the Bible sees GOD as the supreme good - not the individual or the family - and that gives us a view of marriage that intimately unites feelings AND duty, passion AND promise. That is because at the heart of the Biblical idea of marriage is the covenant.”
2. "Through the gospel we get both the power and the pattern for the journey of marriage."
In the following video, Terry Crews shares his thoughts on being a Christian in Hollywood. One line he mentions stands out to me.
"If you get rid of the concept of father who are you getting rid of? You are getting rid of the concept of God." The same thing goes for marriage. If you get rid of the concept of a Biblical marriage as a standard - you are getting rid of a relationship with God as the standard. And that is a choice that individuals are free to make. The discussion just needs to be made that ultimately in the end marriage is meant to be a reflection of what a relationship between God and ourselves should be.
So with that long preamble I simply wanted to state what Biblical marriage is coming to mean to me both physically and spiritually, This is regardless of what our society places as the highest good (the love and satisfaction of the individual, the family etc.) as Biblically, marriage places the gospel as the highest priority. And here are some lessons I have learnt about the gospel as a result of the past three months.
1. Patience
Patience cuts both ways, yet we often can only see it from our perspective. How often do we look at any other person and think 'How many times have I been patient on that subject or towards your frustrating habits.' This goes for friends, as well as our other halves. Yet one thing that learning to be patient, and seeing Jeanille be patient in regards towards me, has revealed is this: God is infinitely patient towards us. How many times a day do we stumble from perfection? God is patient regardless and his patience is infinite - unlike the patience of a husband or wife.
2. Selflessness
I am a stubborn individual - we all are at times when we do not get things our way. Now of course there are some issues of integrity we can never release but that is not what I am referencing here. I am referencing those minor selfish qualities that do not really matter in the end. Like the difference between where we want to store various collectables or which house we love. Marriage is meant to be a partnership and one thing I am trying to learn and will continue to learn is when to let go of something that is a silly little desire of my own and not a necessity, after all what is mine is hers now. The same thing works out with God - why should we squabble over giving a little tithe to God (it's all His anyway) or going out and speaking a word of Faith or encouragement to someone when prompted. As I need to put my wife first (after God) so I need to put God first over myself.
3. Maturity and our identity
At one point when Jeanille was frustrated I found myself comforting her by reminding her that she was 'not normally like this.' She has numerously done the same thing over my own minor frustrations - reminding me of my true identity. And as a result, helping me to abandon childish habits or aspects in favour of maturity. God too does the same work in our lives spiritually - He is constantly exhorting us and reminding us of our spiritual inheritance and leading us to maturity as Christians.
4. God's unconditional love for 'strangers'
Timothy Keller points out that we never truly know the person we marry and that has been exciting for me. Every day I discover something about Jeanille that I never knew before and I learn to love her more for it. He states that, “The gospel is this: We are more sinful and flawed in ourselves than we ever dared believe, yet at the very same time we are more loved and accepted in Jesus Christ than we ever dared hope.” The two of us learning to love the aspects of the other that we did not know about, or never realised ran so deep, is a true example of how much God must love the deeply flawed aspects of our own persona.
5. You are never alone
The biggest adjustment that Jeanille and I have been making is getting used to the idea that we are always around each other. That is both an incredible gift of intimacy, but it is also something which creates tension in any person. If we as humans squabble with siblings simply because of their little annoying habits how much more is that exacerbated with 'annoyances' in our spouses. And sometimes this can lead us to hold back thoughts or ideas for fear of the consequences of 'will this make her mad for the next hour and I will not be able to go anywhere in this house?' Yet that is something that we can forget as Christians - God is always there with us as well. We are in essence 'married' to Him and so often we fail to acknowledge Him, talk to Him or reveal our hearts to Him. This is something that I am slowly being made more aware of as I continue to lovingly adjust to the mystery and beauty of married life.
6. Finally...the mystery
The Bible refers to marriage as a mystery, and everyday I realise more and more what this means in different ways. I am sure when I reach one year I will look back and realise how mysterious the whole process has been. And when I reach another year the past years will be more mysterious again...and so on and so on. Yet, that is exactly the same process of the gospel's saving power inside of me.
Some might read this and think 'he is only young in this, this won't stay the same.' I am neither naive enough to believe that everything will stay the same and indeed why should it, or to listen to the excuse that I am too young. After all Paul's exhortation to Timothy was "Don't let anyone look down on you because you are young, but set an example for the believers in speech, in conduct, in love, in faith and in purity." (1 Timothy 4:12)
And I take that as an example to learn from those who are older and wiser, to learn from those who are younger and to live out my own life (and now marriage) as an example to others around us. The road ahead is long and windy, and the gate is narrow, but the destination and the journey with Christ is going to be worth it all. For to paraphrase 1 John 4:4 greater is He who lives in me, than he who is in the world. So I want to step out in faith, believing that I can share what I am learning now and that I will learn even more in the future through the good times and the bad.
I started this blog almost two years ago now, to tackle some of the thoughts about daily life that God has and had impressed upon my spirit. For those who know me well in person you will know all about how God has lead me on a journey from: being the son of two pastors (during childhood), to leaving them behind to stay on at one church while they left, finding a wife at this church, and then now having been lead to leave Melbourne and move to Swan Hill. Throughout this journey God has been teaching me many things and I am a huge believer that 1) I need to seek God first in everything for his will (easier said than done), 2) that God draws us to places that we need to be, 3) God speaks to me through repetition of words, ideas and occurrences and 4) that God has given me gifts to teach and write for a purpose. Part of my blogging here has always been to follow this purpose.
With that long preamble out of the way I want to discuss something that God has brought to my heart - awoken by a series of excellent messages at my new church here in Swan Hill. It is a challenge for me at times to really go out and express these thoughts, because God's ideas always completely challenge the social normalities of any era. Therefore it is a struggle for me to talk about in some ways the truths I have been reminded of across these messages.
'The Bloke 2.0' has been an incredible series of messages about what it is to be a Godly man who is bold, courageous and possesses a strength and integrity not in and of himself. The first message reminded me that ultimately it is a truth that Christians must fight against that we are to build a Godly culture which is separate from any simple or normal Earth culture. The message on Sunday then emphasised that Jesus was a perfect example of being a man: a man of steel and a man of velvet.
Christian, as it has often been pointed out, stems from a word meaning 'little Christ.' The Bible often refers to us as sons and daughters, and having Skyped friends last night in the Philippines who have a young baby son, never was the idea about being a 'little Christ' more evident. We are to mimic Christ, in the same way that parents' children will mimic them consciously and unconsciously. Therefore we must become men of steel and men of velvet: men who have a hard moral center grounded in Christ but yet have the emotional sensitivity to humble themselves before God.
Modern culture loves to confuse the concept of what a man is, or what a woman is. However, the Bible - God's word - does not have that same confusion. Modern society is confused about what a marriage is - yet again the Bible is not confused on the issue. For every single modern problem that society has invented, the solution can be found in the Bible. There may not be a specific verse about modern ethical quandaries, yet there are so many clear instructions for the Christian about how to live life to a Godly standard.
And yet of course we all 'stuff up,' as the Bible reminds: Romans 3:23-24 "23 for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,24 and are justified freely by His grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus."
In Australia today, in the world today, there are so many convoluted issues. Having been studying the concept of identity with my students in Year 9 it scares and confronts me that this world can be so confused about the idea of what an identity is meant to look like. And yet the only solution many can offer is to scream insults at each other with little clarity about how life truly is meant to be lived.
The Bible, the Christian lifestyle, is not one lived in opposition to scientific facts or the reality of the world. But it is a life lived to honour God first. It is a life which holds to a Biblical definition of identity. It is a life which recognises that there exists a true Biblical definition of marriage: that God officiated the first marriage in the beginning and will officiate the last marriage between Himself and His bride the church.
It is a life which offers solutions to the growing problems of terrorism, bullying, addiction, abortion etc. It is not a life which throws around sayings such as 'love is love' or 'it is my body'. It is a life which holds to a set definition of love (1 Corinthians 13) and which explains that my body is not my own but the temple of God (1 Corinthians 6:19-20). It is a life in which there exists true equality as in Galatians 3:28 There is neither Jew nor Gentile, neither slave nor free, nor is there male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus.
Many argue that the church is regressive, but if it is it is not because it is following a Biblical lifestyle - but because it holds a form of Godliness and denies its power. In relation to Biblical marriage Timothy Keller points out in his book The Meaning of Marriage: "In other words, the Biblical authors' constantly challenge their own cultures' beliefs - they were not simple a product of ancient mores and practices. We cannot, therefore write off the Biblical view of marriage as one-dimensionally regressive or culturally obsolete." Rather, more than ever, the world needs a true revelation of the fact that the Christian life is not one of backwards thinking but of radical social difference.
Jesus never held to the status quo, he challenged cultural presuppositions. He told teachers of the law to give their taxes to Caesar if it belonged to Caesar - but not to hold back from God what belonged to Him. He told rich men to give all they had to the poor in order to follow Him. He made the lame walk, the mute talk, the blind see and he healed leapers and cast out demons. No one else at the time even dared to defy their culture like that and that is the man, that is the God-Man I want to emulate.
I saw on the news this morning some more news about the Plebiscite. Bill Shorten was expressing his disappointment that both the 'Yes' and 'No' sides would get funding because he was concerned that young people might commit suicide as a result. Immediately my heart was drawn to the issue because for me, to hear that I wonder at the deeper root of such an issue in our culture of death and destruction. I need, We as Christians need, to be the solution to such loss of life. We need to offer God's love and hope to a hopeless world.
That does not mean that we release all Biblical standards. It means we need to hold to the standards to a far greater level. Maybe the world is the way it is because we are not walking in the power that we should. Maybe life is the way it is because we are not being the culture-defining, groundbreaking little Christs that we need to be. My heart breaks for this broken world, but I know there is something I can do to make a difference. My gifts may be small compared to some, my capacity to give limited but I am striving more and more to get closer every day to becoming like Christ.
I showed my students the following poem as a great example of the power of words. I believe it is also an example of the belief we need to have in Christ - that we are not defined by the world and the issues in it. We are the world definers. We are not changed by the world. We are world changers.
Recently, Jeanille and I have been looking for houses. Modern wisdom states that if you find a house (or anything) that you like you get it if you can afford it. However, despite finding some houses that we potentially would like we have instead prayed about the issue and made offers we feel are at a God-provided level. Because in the end we do not want to live in the most wonderful house if God is not the one providing - we do not want to live in a neighbourhood surrounded by the nicest and most polite neighbours if God does not want us to be there and would rather have us in a reasonable house, surrounded by neighbours who need Him to work in their lives.
That is why I titled this blog post 'God's Way or the Highway,' because I truly believe we need to stop listening to modern wisdom and learn to live like Jesus did. Of course I struggle with this and I am far from perfect, so I am writing this as much for myself as for anyone else. But I believe this is what God wants me to say - that in the end we do have a choice, because God is a loving God. He has given us the free will to reject his decisions, yet like any loving parent, not choosing His way means that we are likely to be running along the Highway of Life at a leisurely pace and dodging cars as they come hurtling past, rather than taking the Fast Paced Way.
As Jesus Himself said in Matthew 11:28-30 "28Come to Me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. 29Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me; for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. 30For My yoke is easy and My burden is light.” And while many might read this passage and decide that Christianity has a 'yoke' and a 'burden' and therefore it is 'not for me,' the reality is all of us have yokes and burdens in life regardless. The true choice, therefore, is whether we choose the easy yoke and the light burden or do it Frank Sinatra's way alone. I know what I would rather do, how about you?
1 Corinthians 9:24-27 "Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one receives the prize? Run in such a way as to take the prize. Everyone who competes in the games trains with strict discipline. They do it for a crown that is perishable, but we do it for a crown that is imperishable. Therefore I do not run aimlessly; I do not fight like I am beating the air. No, I discipline my body and make it my slave, so that after I have preached to others, I myself will not be disqualified."
I have been watching and following many of the amazing Olympic stories these last two weeks. Whether it was Michael Phelps winning his 23rd Olympic gold, Kyle Chalmers winning gold at 18 years of age, Mo Farah winning after falling down, Wayde Van Niekerk winning the 400 metres and breaking the world record, and of course Usain Bolt stamping his authority as the greatest sprinter of all with his third Olympic gold were among the incredible feats of athleticism the world has seen.
Of those feats, I have appreciated how many of those athletes have paid witness to the fact that their greatness does not necessarily even come from their own choice. For instance how Usain Bolt as a devout Catholic made the sign of the cross before and after his race, and how Wayde Van Niekerk thanked God with his record breaking run. Their actions - pointing to God first reveal the true gift of those athletes is their spirit and heart.
This morning, I saw an ungracious act when cyclist Mark Cavendish moved down on the inside lane and clipped another cyclist. He won silver and when interviewed about his actions reportedly was aggressive and dismissive about them - further the interviews he did upon winning silver suggested a whinging attitude, not one of grace. I could only compare his attitude to that of the much maligned Sun Yang (and indeed to our own Aussie athletes on the whole). After failing his pet swim in the 1500 metres the explanation was to complain about sickness. The Aussie athletes the whole time complained about issues that (in the overall scheme of life) were minor. The amount of gold medals each of these athletes won reflects that attitude of complaint.
Indeed in his article today in The Herald Sun, Richard Craddock notes that "Those who showed a bit of Brazilience and got on with the job are the one we are seeing on top on the podium and will return home richer for the experience of having visited this mysterious, dangerous, captivating corner of the world."
So what is it that separates the true winners from the second placings and those who failed when it really mattered? For one, their consistency. For another, their ability. For a third, their character. And for a fourth, keeping their eye on the goal.
There were two brilliant pictures from this games that touched my heart and showed me precisely why Bolt and Phelps are the greatest in their fields.
And
The first so incredibly encapsulates the idea of keeping your eyes fixed upon the prize. While Phelps' opposition can only watch as he is defeated in the race. The second however, highlights simply how aware Bolt is of his own ability - his own race - that he can look back and smile as he triumphs.
Each of these champions demonstrated an awareness and ability to run THEIR own race. They didn't try to race like their opponents, or like a legend from history. They raced to the utmost of their own ability, eyes fixed upon the goal of victory.
That is what struck me the most when I saw the 400 metre race. Wayne Van Niekerk had the 'bad luck' of ending up in Lane 8 - where no one had won before. He did not complain (and if he lost I doubt he would have blamed Lane 8 for the result, such seems to be his character) and raced his heart out to the end. In the end he said, “I thought someone was going to catch me, because I felt very alone and I was like, ‘What’s going on? What’s going on? It gave me so much motivation to keep on pushing, keep on pushing, and as I got to the finish line I just dove for the finish line.” I believe that because Van Niekerk could not see any of his competitors in the lanes in front of him that it allowed him to truly focus on that finish line and his own race - that he could just freely run.
The Bible says in Hebrews 12:1-2, "Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off every encumbrance and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with endurance the race set out for us. Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before Him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God."
My challenge to take out of these Olympics is that to be truly a champion, you must be a champion in all ways and run your own race. If you are gifted in a particular area, you need to run your race in that area. I will be honest that there have been times in my life when I have wished I had a skill set in singing or a greater artistic skill (I can draw well enough but have never been particularly skilled in painting or in any outside the box methods) or was a true athlete. But my race lane is not marked out for me in those fields. I need to recognise my own race and run it with everything I am - running the race of a Godly teacher, writer, husband and friend. I need to get a little closer to that end goal every day - even if I do stumble, the important thing is to finish MY race.
What is your race? And are your running it to your own potential? Are you trying to run someone else's race? Or are you allowing things around you to distract you from your true potential?
The last two days my newsfeed on Facebook has been filled up with news about Manny Pacquiao. First to do with people talking about the fact that he likened homosexual relationships to being worse than animals, then secondly to do with Nike getting rid of his sponsorship. Many of the more violent and hyperbolic reactions that I read about came from celebrities in the Philippines such as Vice Ganda, some came from friends I know and others came from general online comments about how 'Many has always been a homophobe.'
Now, if there's one thing I know it is this - Many was not acting wisely when he said what he said. It was clumsy and it was only guaranteed to trigger fireworks. However, the context of the situation is that he was asked for his opinion and he provided it. The backlash against that opinion ultimately in my eyes has proven to be completely ridiculous.
Take for instance the following two articles which are laughable in their sheer media bias and lack of reason:
Each suggest that Many Pacquiao has somehow just destroyed his entire legacy by what he said. As if they don't know about his history of rumors to do with being a womaniser and abuser of substances. If you read the articles, one would think he had committed adultery or murder or some such crime. What instead did he do? He made one statement which was his opinion.
I care more about the way in which a person lives their life than about the singular statements they make on a spur of the moment decision. Some might argue that this shows Many's 'hatred' and 'bigotry' but I challenge you that if you are simply willing to throw stones at him and not consider his point of view then you are the one acting in a bigoted manner. I saw a man who, unswerving, holds to his faith despite what the popular opinion might be. He was not trying to gather favour with people but with God by holding to a Godly standard of sacredness.
Now in the following three videos (each go for about ten minutes and are fascinating viewing if you can find the time) Ravi Zacharias makes some fascinating points about differences of opinion. He challenges people about the type of society we live in and when people argue that it is an autocratic society, wherein we govern ourselves, he challenges them about whether opinions only matter to us when our opinion agrees with someone else. Whether you agree with him or not it's great viewing.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nPYRXop7aPA
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I-KbLYC4SP8
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=51rR4aC9aMg
Now Vice Ganda mockingly released a statement via Twitter asking along the lines of 'who even follows the entire Bible.' This is a common fall-back argument for many people that I have seen again and again. You know the answer? No one. I don't follow the entire Bible whatsoever. Not even a perfect looking church leader like Brian Houston or Billy Graham can. But you know what they do do? Possess a faith and a hope in the salvation of their lord and saviour Jesus Christ. They look to please Him before they please man on any issue of public redress and when God has made such a sacred thing as marriage they believe that humanity cannot mess with it.
So you see this is what I've concluded. You may not like Manny's opinion and expression of it. You might see him as bigoted, hateful or whatever choice phrase you pick. But I will support the right for him to have a decision and I challenge anyone throwing stones as to whether they can say that they are not being as hateful back in return.
I may not agree with your lifestyle. I will likely not support you in following that lifestyle necessarily - I wouldn't give a drug addict drugs; an alcoholic some wine; or a gambler money to spend on the races. But I will accept your human right to be human and make choices. Whether those choices are wrong or not - the choice is yours. As Dr. Ravi points out in the above speeches, it is part of our rights as humans and the beauty of being human is we have freedom of choice. However we do not freely choose the consequences of those choices. You can either choose to criticise and throw stones with the chorus or you can defend a fellow human's right to his opinion even if you disagree.
Not all beliefs, all religion, is equal. Dr Ravi stated that. It's the perfect phrasing of my own belief. Try criticising the Saudi government for their beliefs about gay marriage - in Saudi Arabia! You won't get very far. But that's the beauty of who God is: he unequivocally grants freedom to us to choose to love, to worship or to break the sacred commands he provides. Yet, humanity must ultimately pay the consequences of those freedoms and choices. The question remains - how are you using your freedom and will? Are you choosing to worship your creator or your own selfish desires? I believe that despite however clumsily Manny said it that he has made a conscious choice to look to his Lord first and that is truly the kind of admirable, excellent spirit that I am chasing after this year.
I recently began writing a story concept which has been floating around in my head for the better part of a year. I had always intended to begin writing it, but it took the encouragement of a writing friend to get on my horse and write. Why had I not begun writing before? Using my gifts of writing is a passion of mine, like reading or teaching or playing games and watching films. Why had I neglected a dream and a passion to write? In short: because I kept telling myself that I was too busy.
In reality this was an excuse for me. I was busy certainly, but the reality was that I had the idea that my written ideas were not quite polished, not going to become the story that I dreamed they could be. Yet, as was pointed out to me most recently: if you don't begin even in a small amount, how can you hope to achieve the goal that you set out for?
So this has become a blog post about goals and journeys meeting procrastination. It ties into the idea that my church in Melbourne discussed before I left - the idea that we need to position ourselves to receive God's blessing. After all, while you may be blessed if you go and surround yourself with trash can you fully use that blessing? Just food for thought that comes to mind. I said in my last blog post that I recognise how I have positioned myself for blessing through moving to Swan Hill and have seen in this first month just how God has provided me with great finances, a fantastic apartment location, staff that I can be an example to of Christ's love and the blessing of free internet and 150 dollars electricity credit despite minor setbacks.
I heard a message two weeks ago by Brian Houston. Now unfortunately some Christians, I have since read love to attack Hillsong for being 'ungodly'. In my view, I believe this is because they don't see Hillsong as having the same revelation of gospel and grace as themselves and therefore it must be 'false doctrine'. While my revelation is not precisely the same as Hillsong's in some ways I do accept that they are however following God's plans and purposes for their church in being a light on a hill to welcome all who need God's grace and it's sad to see fellow believers choosing instead to criticise rather than celebrate how God is using another part of his body.
That aside, this message was about how Daniel was separated and blessed by the nation who stole him away to Babylon and the subsequent conquerors of Babylon because of his Godly and excellent spirit. I believe God wants me to have that same spirit here in Swan Hill among my fellow staff and students - to distinguish myself through my very being and so spread the gospel where I may not openly be able to preach with words as much as in example.
I was struggling therefore yesterday with whether to tithe and how much and wondering if I was going to give out of obligation. I recognised however, that to hold the money back would be just as bad given my revelation about giving money gifts to God. So I continued to pray and realised that no I was not going to be giving in the end because I 'had' to but because I wanted to. The only thing holding me back was the idea of all the other things I could do with that money - such as buy and Xbox One or pay off more on my car. None of which are bad desires in and of themselves. But they should not be any reason to separate me from giving first and worshiping God first.
So I gave to my previous church, feeling at peace that this was a gift to God until I properly establish myself in the church up here. I won't say the amount because to me giving and talking about giving should not be about amounts but rather about the heart behind it. And as I was reflecting on this this morning in relation to my writing procrastination I was reminded of the story of Mary and Martha:
Luke 10: 38-42 (NIV)
38 As Jesus and his disciples were on their way, he came to a village where a woman named Martha opened her home to him. 39 She had a sister called Mary, who sat at the Lord’s feet listening to what he said.40 But Martha was distracted by all the preparations that had to be made. She came to him and asked, “Lord, don’t you care that my sister has left me to do the work by myself? Tell her to help me!” 41 “Martha, Martha,” the Lord answered, “you are worried and upset about many things, 42 but few things are needed—or indeed only one. Mary has chosen what is better, and it will not be taken away from her.”
Now Martha was concerned with the idea that her sister Mary was sitting down listening to Jesus rather than helping her look after her house. I don't think that there was anything wrong with the fact that Martha wanted her house looking beautiful for her Lord, but it's clear her heart was not in the place it should be with how Jesus told her that she was worried and upset over many things when all she needed was to be concerned with one thing. Which it seems to be implied is 'are you learning to follow Jesus truly as Lord.'
Martha was likely thinking of how she could make her house beautiful and spotless to make a good impression of herself. Jesus saw past that and reminded her that the most important thing was to be paying attention to Him. At times with my teaching I can be so concerned about teaching a lesson that I too forget that the most important thing is to pay attention to the needs of the students. Of course here, Jesus was reminding Martha to instead pay attention to the teacher and choose what is better.
Have you been like me recently? Too busy to chase after doing something you love, choosing more meaningless tasks over the important dreams you hold. Have you been too busy for God? Or have you been trying to spend time or in my case money on things other than Him? We all do it in various ways and this is not to guilt trip anyone but to encourage everyone to think about the fact that you do have time on your hands and are not too busy but may be like me: not spending it the right way in the right time. I know what I want to do, be more like Daniel with an excellent spirit who always had time for God.
Last week on New Year's Eve I sat down with my fiance to watch the fireworks from Williamstown. Minutes later I hear a voice, "you right there?" and feel a tap on my shoulder. The following day Jeanille and I were again out, this time shopping in the seemingly busy fruit market in the middle of Knox. Only to arrive at the counter and grumpily be told we couldn't be served because they closed half an hour ago. We still managed to get served but only after feeling disgruntled. Then yesterday the Chris Gayle incident happened.
What do these hold in common? The idea in my mind that there may often be a better way to say something. Chris Gayle could have made his comments off camera if at all. The gentleman asking me if I was right could have directly asked me to move location. The checkout lady could have politely explained that they were meant to have closed thirty minutes prior.
There is often a better, more gracious way to act and do things. My parents used to ask us to apologise for our misbehavior and to say it in a way that showed that we were sorry because it wasn't the apology that mattered but the actions accompanying the apology. The better way I am referring to is of course to do things with God. I just this week was offered a job which is in a location out of my way but which He led me to. I believe following Him now is the best for my life. What about you in 2016, are you following your own path or God's?
It's been a while since I last blogged, due to many busy aspects of my life. However, this idea for a blog post has been running around in my head for a while and now it is time to finally publish it in the digital domain. I have no doubt, however, that when Jeanille reads this and realises that it's focused around a Star Wars reference she will shake her head and think something along the lines of: you're so predictable.
I was watching Episode V recently, followed by Episode VI in a minor marathon while at home, and heard the famous line by Yoda once again "Do or do not - there is no try!" This was in response to Luke saying that he would try to use the Force and it's a line that has always confused me in its simplicity. But as I considered this line again, the truth of it hit me that the same thing goes for our lives and our walks with God.
You see, sometimes we will know that God is asking us to do something and instead of doing it we will say 'I will try.' Often what follows is a half-hearted effort of our own strength and willpower that ends up failing. But you see, if God tells us to do something in faith and we only 'try' and fail then we still haven't 'done'.
Think about the story of Peter when he stepped out of the boat, onto the water and began to walk to Jesus. In the moment he too walked on the water, he didn't just 'try', he did. There isn't really any option to just try things with God you see. There is either success or failure - and sometimes our failures are successes in God's eyes, not merely moments that we tried and failed. Remember how James 2:17 states that "Thus also faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead," James here is in some way saying that faith requires us to do not to do not. If we 'have faith' but don't act on that faith then our faith is meaningless and we are not trying or doing but rather doing not.
Right now the world is hurting over acts of terror situated in the Middle East and Europe. I have seen countless arguments over who is to blame - whether it is one terrorist group or another, whether it is Paris or the West, whether it is the entire Muslim community etc. But what does it profit the world to continue pointing fingers of blame and hatred at one another? That is the way of the great spiritual thief Satan who, as John 10:10 says "comes to steal kill and destroy." But as John 10:10 concludes, Jesus came that all might have life and have it to the full.
When the world, or evil in the world, tries to take away light and life, are we to point fingers at who is to blame? Are we to simply do nothing? There is a choice we all have to make when faced with tough realities - whether we choose God's way - the way of Jesus on the cross - or our way/the way of the thief. There is no 'trying' one way or the other, God doesn't allow us the option of 'trying out' a Christian life, but we can choose: His way of peace and security in the face of unknown adversity, or our own twisted path of unrighteousness and instability. I know what path I choose, I chose it long ago, and my challenge to anyone reading this is to ask youself, will I be someone who does chose the way of Godly love, or will I be someone who chooses to not do as God would and to live in fear. The choice, as always is yours - do or do not, there is no trying.
