Really?

I really don't know what I want to say.
Hundreds of thoughts have been going through my head tonight.

Most everything centers around this: I live in a culture where people settle.

All of the following statements are things that I have seen first in myself...

People settle for less.
People settle for less than God's best.
We tinker around with college's, relationships, ministry, etc.
We are not people that commit to something and then go do it over the long haul.
We like to do ministry...but we like to do it for a week, or two weeks, or whenever it's convenient.
We are a convenient culture, preaching and living a convenient Gospel.
We too often preach a Gospel that says "pray this prayer, then you're saved" when that's not at all what Jesus said.
We settle for low ambitions.
We fritter away much of our time. And yes, I think fritter is a real word.
It means: to squander.
We squander much of our time.
We are halfhearted creatures fooling around when priceless joy is offered to us.
We are far too easily pleased.
We settle for lifeless relationships/friendships.
We settle for meaningless talks.
Meaningless nights.
We are afraid to be real.
We are insecure.
We don't trust.
We don't love like Jesus.
We just don't.

We like to think we do.
We like to think we've got our theology all figured out, and we put God in a box, wrap it with a perfect sermon, and then go live our own lives persuing our own agendas.
We would rather maintain the status quo than chase anything of real and lasting value.

But when it comes down to it, we are broken, we are sinful, we are messed up, and we tend to think about ourselves 99.9999999% of the time if we really get honest with ourselves.
We often do the right thing because it makes us feel good, or it makes us feel like we are in a better standing with God.

I'm reading a book called "The Ragamuffin Gospel," and while I don't know fully what I think of all of this yet, here is some food for thought:

"The gospel declares that no matter how dutiful or prayerful we are, we can't save ourselves. What Jesus did was sufficient. To the extent that we are self-made saints like the Pharisees or neutral like Pilate (never making the leap in trust), we let the prostitutes and publicans go first into the kingdom while we, in Flannery O'Connor's unforgettable image, are in the background having our alleged virtue burnt out of us. The hookers and the swindlers enter before us because they know they cannot save themselves, that they cannot make themselves presentable or lovable. They risked everything on Jesus, and knowing they didn't have it all together, were not too proud to accept the handout of amazing grace.

When we accept ownership of our powerlessness and helplessness, then God can make something beautiful out of us.

To be alive is to be broken. And to be broken is to stand in need of grace. Honesty keeps us in touch with our neediness and the truth that we are saved sinners. There is a beautiful transparency to honest disciples who never wear a false face and do not pretend to be anything but who they are.

There was the sinful woman in the village who kissed Jesus' feet. There was freedom in doing that. Despised as a prostitute, she had accepted the truth of her utter nothingness before the Lord. She had nothing to lose. She loved much because much had been forgiven her.

The Good Samaritan, chosen as the model of Christian compassion, was despised as a heretic of mixed pagan and Jewish ancestry. He was so unclean already that, unlike the priest and Levite who passed by with their halos on tight, he could afford to express his love for the wounded man left for dead.

Getting honest with ourselves does not make us unacceptable to God. It does not distance us from God, but draws us to Him-as nothing else can-and opens us anew to the flow of grace." - The Ragamuffin Gospel


Perhaps it's time to embrace the fact that we are sinners, and throw ourselves fully on Jesus.
He is the only One who is worthy of our trust, and the only One who can forgive and wash us with grace.
He can handle our messiness.
Kids are messy. We are kids. We are messy. And that's OK.
He loves us anyways.
He doesn't love us because we are good enough.
He doesn't love us because we "look good."
He loves us because He loves us.
There is freedom in that.
There is trust in that.

As children of God, most of our issues come down to our view of God.
If are insecure, it's because of how we view God.
If we don't trust others, it's because we don't trust God.
If we aren't real with others, it's because we aren't being real with God.
Our vertical relationship with God affects all of our horizontal relationships with other humans.

Or perhaps, we are simply faking it like the Pharisees.
Maybe our "faith" isn't real. Maybe we need to really examine our hearts to see where they are before God.

For those of us who have experienced true life change, and for those of us in the kingdom:
Let's start living in that reality that Jesus loves us because He loves us, not because of anything that we do. Let the freedom and the trust that comes from that help us to live joy-filled lives. Help us to live all out, all the time, no matter what...instead of settling for second rate...for shallow lives...for low ambitions.
Really?
Yes, really.
"Walk in a manner worthy of the Gospel."
Does your life make sense?