Joy in Trials, and Why that's Cool

There some times that are just painful. But I'm finding something REALLY weird. I'm GLAD! I know it's weird. And I find there is this spark of joy in the midst of the sadness or hardship. It's as if the outsides of me are aligned with the circumstances, warranting the hurt, but something deeper continues to shine in the darkness.

And then, when you think about things you realize, that many of those painful periods HAD to be REALLY painful. We WANT them to be painful. Of course I realize this post hoc. Why? Because sometimes these painful periods are times when our eyes are off of Christ. If our eyes are off of Christ, strange though it may seem, WE WANT TO SINK. If we don't sink, or better stated, when our eyes are off Christ and we are sinking but we don't realize we are sinking what greater messes would we find ourselves? Pain is a great thing when it's used properly. We wouldn't want all our pain sensors in our hands to be turned off. We'd hold that hot cauldron and unbeknownst to us, our hand would be burned past useability.

So in a small way this shows why we CAN count trials a real joy, for it is indicative of who we really are, and if not, it's only an indicator of us missing Him in the illusion of it all.

Rambling Wonderings...

You know, there are two things that I find interesting, things Christ is not often witnessed to be doing in the Gospels. Reading the Torah and writing. I MAY be wrong, but the only time I recall Him reading scriptures was when He read from Isaiah declaring the blessed year of the Lord. And in the only case of writing we don't even know what He wrote in the dust with His finger. [Yes I know He had to read the scriptures to know them, that's not my point.]

He seems to have spent a great deal of time in prayer, that's for sure...especially in the morning.

Here's something interesting about us Christians. It's almost a badge of honor that a Christian is known to read the scripture in the mornings. A holy habit if you will. But Christ seems to be engaged more with the Father personally and directly than with scriptural writings.

Not that there is anything wrong with readings in the morning. It just seems we often take Christ's words thusly though, "I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through the Bible."

I have no problem with our biblical readings. But perchance our attitude, as attested to by our actions: who we honor and why, what we talk about, and what we regard as good and holy activity; belies a faith where the Bible is like some Christmas tree where the Father, Christ, and the Holy Spirit are ornaments. When the reality is God the Person is the tree and all the things that point to Him are the ornaments instead.

Way, Truth and Life

"I am the WAY, the TRUTH, and the LIFE. No one comes to the Father except through me." (John 14:6)
"...but faith having come..." (Galatians 3:25)
"...Christ is all, and in all..." (Colossians 3:11)

Intriguing thought. If Christ is all in all, then He is the all of everything that is a Christian. Then...

He is faith. He's the WAY of faith, the TRUTH of faith, and the LIFE of faith.

He is hope. He's the WAY of hope, the TRUTH of hope, and the LIFE of hope.

He is love. He's the WAY of love, the TRUTH of love, and the LIFE of love.

Interestingly, the life of anything is the essence, the reality of anything. He is the life of all. He's the be all end all, all in all. He's the point, the focus, He's IT. If it's not Him, we as Christians have missed the boat.

Relationship with Christ: Before...

Here's what I used to think a relationship with Christ meant (it hurts me to even read it).

This is what I remember as best as I can recall and piece together, when someone said "an intimate relationship with Christ" or "a personal relationship with Jesus." [These are what the norm was, not that there were not genuine times where He manifested Himself.]

It meant making sure you talked to God regularly. But this quickly turned into scheduled times. And it was understood that THE MOST SPIRITUAL times were in the mornings, first thing in the morning, and even better very early in the morning.

A relationship with Christ meant that under any circumstance you should stand up for Him when He was derided or when I perceived that that was so. It also meant that if I did not do so, I'd feel guilty, unworthy, and condemned. I spent a great deal of time failing Him in my relationship.

A relationship with Christ was modelling and emulating Him.

A relationship with Christ was suppressing the carnal as best I possibly could.

A relationship with Christ was external, distant, and bye and bye. All was done FOR Him. He was this voyeur, this prison guard, this hovering unseen accountant of wrongs and rights. Though He could see and knew all, He wasn't present present, not here and now, not really really so.

The relationship was actually a relationship with several different concepts honestly. There was an almost ritualistic relationship with the historical mental concept of Jesus. The one who I was suppose to love, but I honestly found staid and boring. Then there was the present one who I gave lip-service to being in me, but thought of that to be more metaphoric expression, for it had not one iota of reality to me (much of the time, or so it seemed). The present Jesus was in heaven, high up and far away. But He was here in the sense that He had some supernatural telescope to watch my behavior. I knew He could peer into my heart, but I was WAY more concerned with what I did and did not do -- but that wasn't too much of a concern, I was naturally a pretty good kid and a pretty good guy (or so I thought, and projected as much). Then there was Jesus of the future. He was coming back soon and I hoped not so soon. There were a great deal of things I wanted to accomplish before I began the eternal duty of serving Him. Heaven seemed pretty boring but I'd take eternal boredom over everlasting pain -- which I frankly didn't worry too much about because I was saved anyway. There were the periods of conviction and/or condemnation where I had a sinking suspicion that by my moral and productive failures I had in fact stumbled upon a way to lose my salvation, but those periods were few, though severe.

It was hard to have an intimate relationship to Jesus because He wasn't so much a person as He was a concept. He wasn't so much a reality as He was a label, a categorizing pin, for doing the right things, believing the right things, assenting to the right things, joining the right thing, exhibiting the right things, arguing for the right things, studying the right things, thinking about the right things, etc & etc... Even when I did things FOR Him. It was really more for some conceptualization that I thought was true and good and right. I mean, every "good Christian" did all things FOR Him. But what it really meant, deep deep down was that we were, or at least I in particular and honestly, was doing stuff in an effort to appease or manipulate God. So there was the relationship. I was "loving", polite, etc...PRIMARILY, not 100%, but primarily because I wanted God to notice, because He was watching, and give me what I wanted or not give me any unwanted pain or discomfort.

My relationship with Jesus was one of slavery. Not sonship. I knew not truly who I was, nor did I know deeply who He is.

Faith in faith is NOT faith

Faith in faith is not faith in God.

For a faith in faith is a faith in conceptualizations of the mind. It is a faith in a doctrine. It is a faith in an understanding. It is, honestly, a faith in oneself. None of these things can do anything. Only God can do. It's about a faith in Him and Him solely.

In OUR presence or In HIS Presence?

Have you noticed the difference that makes a difference is really a big deal.

Example. Why are diamonds more valuable than water, water obviously is much more useful. It's actually really simple, it's on the margin, called marginal value, the difference that makes a difference. One more diamond (on the margin) is more valuable than say one more bucket of water.

Okay, fine, what's your point? This. Paul's mature perspective and focus versus our overly skewed daily one.

What do we often seek in the Christian experience? For God to be in our presence. Paul throughout his epistles has the perspective that we are in the Father's presence (in Christ). Seems very similar, but again, it's the difference that makes the difference -- where the real value lies.

In OUR presence means it occurs only, or is true to us, when WE feel it.
In HIS presence means it occurs, or is true, no matter what WE feel.

In our presence (IOP)-- God's our genie, say the right things, do the right things and BAM, we get the experience we want, like feeling like He loves us.
In His presence (IHP)-- we're His child. He loves us unconditionally.

IOP -- self-focus, what do I have to do to get the experience back.
IHP -- God focus, it's all what He has done. True whether I feel it or not.

IOP -- preeminently I, me, my
IHP -- not I, but Christ

IOP -- I surely must do, should do
IHP -- He surely has done.

IOP -- earthly focus
IHP -- focus on things above, heavenly

IOP -- blessings through works
IHP -- grace through faith

IOP -- empirical (experience based, emotion based)
IHP -- spiritual, scriptually factually based

IOP -- navel gazing (self-focus, self-judging)
IHP -- gazing upon Him

Perhaps it is partially this perspective of God that allows Paul to be content in all situations. His joy, his contentment, his identity, was not based on circumstances but Christ's revelation to him. Where God is, who God is, what God's done. Only from that point does Paul turn his eyes to his circumstances.

The difference that makes a big difference.

Now this is not to say that the experience of feeling His presence is bad or wrong. It is true, it occurs. But does its occurence or lack have anything to do with your standing before the Father? Nope. It's all about Christ Jesus.

Is the God of our Churches an ATM?

God is a person. But in our churches God is an ATM. Look at how you interact with Him -- or at least how we fool ourselves into thinking that we are interacting with Him.

An ATM is at a certain location. You go to that location to ACCESS your blessing. You are free once it is accessed to go anywhere you like with it. Hmmmm sounds like normal church to me. AND DEFINITELY does not sound like it involves a person.

Look at our language, "Meet us in this place...Bless us here...We come before you to worship you now...Grant your Spirit ot us here..." Ah the addressing of the ATM. You cannot access an ATM without addressing it. Addressing it is putting in the card, the membership card if you will.

Worship -- good the right PIN number must be pressed, otherwise NO BLESSING. And if you don't do it right with enough tries, the card is taken. Fellowship and blessing REVOKED.

Sermon -- ahhh HOW to access the blessings, and for that matter, how to know how much you have access to, and how to manage what you have (what acccount SHOULD it be in), and how much can I attempt to take out now without feeling guilty, i.e. incurring fees and penalties.

Worship Part II -- ahh the physical confirmation of blessing. Now cash in hand aren't the blessing, they are the stuff of the blessing, what you can buy/do is the blessing. So it is with that good feeling you get post instruction/sermon.

Offering -- In order to get further blessings you have to have access to the source of the blessing for later. I cannot stress this enough. If you don't tithe, you've left your card in the ATM, and it won't do you any good next time you come. With some ATMs they may not even dispense the blessing tokens until you take the card.

The Rest of the Week -- using the blessing tokens you've attained HOPING they are still legal tender.

Sure it's tongue and cheek and perhaps a tad harsh. But isn't that more like how we are in church than some truly spiritual exercise?

Planting Churches?

In thinking of the statement that Paul did not plant churches but instead planted Christ. How does this relate to our "struggle" to find/administer/retain/found an authentic church?

I think the fact that Paul planted the gospel, which is the testimony of Christ, therefore Paul was planting a Person, is key. In this sense. If you are planting a person then what will naturally develop is community, family, fellowship, and freedom. When you are planting a "church" you are planting a humanly defined construct. Basically a teaching and therefore you are really planting law, conformity, formalism, and the other fleshly manifestations of missing the mark.

It's not so much that we need to go back to a particular pattern. That's looking backward, or better stated outward in. We are looking at the outward manifestations in the Scripture, trying to copy them and therefore expecting that the inward reality will just show up. That seems backward. The outward manifestations are manifested BECAUSE of an inward reality, not because of a constructed systematized memorized conforming doctrine. Christ was planted, a Person. Therefore that which is personal flowed from it. Helping one another, loving one another, serving one another. One anothering.

When you plant a "church" meaning an institution you are planting a teaching really. It's ABOUT Christ, but it is NOT Christ. It is man's impressions, interpretations, expectations, and fantasies rolled into a pivotal doctrine or two packaged and administered by an institution. When you plant a person you get the freedom of community. When you plant an institution you get the bondage of conformity.

Why? A person is ALIVE. And THIS Person is LIFE itself. An institution is NOT living. Therefore it will not impart what you truly seek.

So do we need to go back and do what they did? I think that misses the point. We can see what they did, now the question is WHY did they do those things, what was the cause, the foundation? It was Christ. Start there, and He will build His church. And He will cleanse us from this fleshly religious gobbledegook that we've passed off as truth, faith, and worship.

Freedom From; Freedom To

Legalism vs. libertinism vs. reality in Christ

Legalism is focused on one's freedom from punishment. Libertinism is focused on one's freedom to do whatever one wants. Neither needs Christ for its impetus and "reality". Both miss the freedom of God's grace completely. Legalism by defining it as a new law/principle. Libertinism by defining it as license. Both claim freedom but both lead you into complete bondage of the self. Legalism relies on self's power to produce righteousness while libertinism relies on self's appetites. Both are two sides of the same self-centered coin.

Only Christ frees and it is only in Him that there is true freedom. Man is not free when he is expressing falleness. Freedom is only when, by faith, He expresses Himself through us the vessel.

Musings on self, light, and darkness

A little self leveaneth the whole lump.

But a little darkness does not penetrate or cover the light.

To get darkness something "good" often has to get in the way.

Light can go around a bit and even go through some -- but it will not violate the obstacle.

Behind the obstacle is the darkness, the shadow, the absence of the light.

Another View on Principles

The principle in soccer that everyone reacts to a feint is not applied to the likes of the great dribblers. They do not apply this principle, they embody it, they are one with it, they are above it. The principle tells, indicates, describes a reality. The principle does not produce that reality.

Two Quotes on Religion

religion...readily offers hollow answers for the unanswerable. Jesus never does that. He simply points to Himself and gently whispers, "Believe."
pg. 13 Grace Amazing by Steve McVey

Religion is what rushes in to fill the vacuum created by the absence of personal intimacy with God.
pg. 16 Grace Amazing by Steve McVey

Contrarian Questions on Discipleship

It's always good to ask the tough questions...

What if our questions are "wrong" on Pauline vs. Jesus model of discipleship?

What if either one is equivalent to WWJD imitation rather than what would be true biblical participation?

What if we are stuck in the question/rubric of model and pattern? What if that was not the Holy Spirit’s intent?

What if what we are doing is like reading a historical document and building one's life around it?

What if what we are doing is like reading a witness of something and constructing your reality around it.

Three thoughts on Reality

Seeing only half of a reality is seeing fully an illusion.

A willingness to see only half a reality is a willingness to accept fully an illusion.

Reality does not need to be protected. It only needs to be revealed and accepted.