don't force the fruit

i've given up trying to be good. no longer will i waste time simply trying to be thankful. its not worth it trying to be loving, joyful, or kind. sure, i can try and possibly come close to succeeding in any of these areas, but any attempt that is full of myself and empty of the Spirit of God is ended in futility. for the longest time, i always tried to do these things, failed, and wondered why. all my attempts had nothing but my own will in them. i would look at Galatians 5 and think, OK, i'm a Christian so this is how I should be. it never occurred to me that if i am full of the Spirit, this is how my life will look like. this is often the trap we fall in when trying to follow God's Law. we think, since You want me to be this way, God, I will do this. we lose sight of the fact that we do not accomplish His Will by human effort, but through His Spirit. that is specifically why the passage calls these things the 'fruit of the Spirit,' not the fruit of our effort or the fruit of our will, because that isn't how we reap these aspects of God's Law. therefore, our goal should not necessarily be to fulfill God's Law, but to be intoxicated by His Spirit (i always thought that was the best way to put it). we begin and continue with the Spirit, and the rest will follow.

who's your God?

this is a bit unusual, but the Lord's been burdening my heart on something for a while and i'd like to get some input from others on this. some of you may have seen or heard of this, but apparently there's a common drama that's been performed at several youth groups and the like of someone being tempted and kept from Jesus by several other idols each portrayed by a different person, all being set to the Lifehouse song, 'everything.' in case you haven't seen this, its quite a moving performance, particularly when enacted by a convincing cast. i even found myself getting goosebumps and even a little teared up, which is a little unusual for me. the reason i bring this up is Lifehouse, despite all their air1 airplay, and what most high school girls might tell you, is not a Christian group even in the lightest sense. now, i'm not saying at all that secular music is wrong. i listen to it all the time. here's what bugs me: Lifehouse music comes off as Christian to people because whoever writes their songs relates to their girlfriend or whoever much like a Christ- follower would relate to God. i could go on and on about how this is seen in their lyrics, but the point is, how can you play this song in relation to a drama that illustrates our need to come only to Jesus and have no other idols? i can understand that the song and the band in general are quite misleading, I can even understand using worldly concepts to illustrate a concept in the Bible, but what should our response be when there's such a figurative juxtaposition as this? and, perhaps more importantly, how should we respond when there is such a widespread misconception that a band or person is trying to praise God, when in fact they are praising other things? in all honesty, i'm not sure why i posted this and i don't know if i'm making this more than it really is, but i just really felt burdened to open this up for comment. 

you can see the skit here:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U_M33GcJAmU

or search 'lifehouse everything drama' on YouTube

possibly the dopest quote not from the Bible

"like the eye which sees everything in front of it and never sees itself, faith is occupied with the Object upon which it rests and pays no attention to itself at all. while we are looking at God, we do not see ourselves-- blessed riddance. The man who has struggled to purify himself and has had nothing but repeated failures will experience real relief when he stops tinkering with his soul and looks away to the Perfect One."

- A. W. Tozer

conTRAST

as a graphic design major, my education is deeply rooted in the basic elements of art. one of the most important of these is contrast. i have found out that whatever you are making, be it a painting or a webpage, it needs contrast to look attractive. if everything in a work of art looks the same, nothing stands out and there's no focus. that is exactly what Christ brought when He walked on earth: contrast. He became the white against the black; perfection amidst absolute sin. within us is no variation, we all fall short of His Glory. not only was Christ without sin unlike us (i make it sound petty, but that is actually His most perfect and defining quality), He was actually a physical contrast to our grounded- ness. He came to earth and defied pretty much every physical law (check this out). law of gravity.  Jesus walked on water. law of conservation of matter. Jesus took a couple of rolls and sardines and fed thousands (with leftovers). law of water is water is water. Jesus took water, called it wine, and walla! law of if you're dead, you're dead. not only did Jesus raise others from death, He conquered it Himself.

start with Love

as Christians, when it comes to sharing our Faith, you can hear several opinions on how to reach out to people. i've often heard ideas like handing out booklets, inviting someone to a church event, or simply inquiring as to someone's beliefs. although these might be thought up with good intentions and could very well be successful, i believe something gets lost in the midst of thoughts along the lines of, "i've got to do whatever i can for this person to believe what i believe." there seems to be a factor of misdirection when we approach someone with the attitude that all we want is to show them the way to True Life. there's a slippery slope at that point between "i'm doing this for you" and "i'm doing this for me." there's a reason that Christians have a reputation for being egotistical and hypocritical (the second one is a given, i know, but often perceived in the wrong sense). instead, i believe that our main approach (sounds like a sales pitch, but i don't know how else to put it) should be centered simply around Love. the reason most people don't understand the concept of Salvation is because they don't know the concept of God's Love (in order to understand something, the reason for it is critical), and that starts with seeing His Love in us. lives aren't going to be changed by wanting to change lives, they will be changed by seeing God's Love. so show someone that Love. if you can show that you love somebody, you can eventually show them the Love of God.

a list of words that cannot be overused:

Love

God

Jesus

Spirit

Life

home

i keep several cards that my family has written to me on my desk. ever since i started college, i have been keeping most of the cards i've received for christmas and birthdays, and read them whenever i feel sentimental or just when i feel far from home. although this helps me feel closer to those that mean the most to me, there's no substitute for the sense of belonging that comes from God. a lot of times, we search for belonging, we search for a home, in the wrong places. whether you look for it in food, comfort, or even friends and family, anything short of the perfection of God's Love is simply insufficient. a lot of times, we deceive ourselves into thinking that what we have at the the moment is sufficient. i can remember sometimes when i try to make something more than it actually is, hoping i'll enjoy it more, but in the end i realize i'm just kidding myself. other times, we keep on searching for something we think will bring some comfort and fulfillment, but come up short time after time. instead of coming to God, we search for a home somewhere in the physical. sometimes, we just need to relish in the neverending and perfect love comfort He has for us, and thats the only way to truly experience Home.