Monday, April 27, 2015

No More 'Kinda Sorta'

          If you’ve ever seen the movie To Save a Life, you may recognize this question that the main character, Jake Taylor, asks when he’s at church:
            “What’s the point of all of this if you’re not going to let this change you?”
Ever since watching that movie, the question kind of haunts me. Especially since I’ve been going to church and a Christian school my entire life. And even now while I’m at a Christian university. But what really is the point if I don’t let it change me?
            Maybe some people are forced to go to church or a Christian school, but most people make that choice. Yes, people are flawed in nature and make mistakes. But does that really give us an excuse to not have a change of heart? Honestly, what’s the point of claiming to be a Christian but not making choices every Friday night that don’t match up? What’s the point of going to church on Sunday but leaving the building unchanged? What’s the point of going to chapel, Bible studies, or Bible classes without it having any effect on your relationship with God?
In Revelation 3, Christ warns the church about being lukewarm in our pursuit of him.
“So, because you are lukewarm—neither hot nor cold—I am about to spit you out of my mouth.” –Revelation 3:16
            When we are prospering and have so many opportunities to pursue and follow Christ, we tend to slow down and walk instead of run. We tend to cool down and instead of being on fire for Christ, we’re somewhere in the middle. In relationships, do you want someone to just “kinda sorta” love you? When you go to see a doctor for a medical issue, do you want the doctor to just “kinda sorta” know what they’re doing? When you’re playing a team sport, do you want your teammates to just “kinda sorta” try? When you’re working on a group project, do you want the rest of the group to just “kinda sorta” pull their weight? Who would say yes to any of these questions?
            God makes it clear that He doesn’t want our “kinda sorta.” If that’s all you’re giving him, then you are completely missing the point. God wants all of you, or He wants nothing. Honestly pursuing him is a “go big or go home” type of thing. I’ll be the first to say that it’s not easy, especially when there are tons of other commitments that I’ve already made. But my commitment to pursuing God wholeheartedly should be my priority. A kinda sorta commitment to God isn’t going to change you. It isn’t enough to just have found God, it’s the pursuit that makes the difference.  
“To have found God and still pursue Him is the soul’s paradox of love.” –A.W. Tozer
            When I pursue my relationship with God and pursue godly things above all else, then everything else will fall into place wherever God intends for it to be. With my first year of college coming to an end in a few weeks, if anything, that is the most important thing I have learned… That nothing else will fulfill me more than a growing faith in who God is. Good grades won’t make me happy, a good game on the volleyball court won’t make me happy, a fun Friday night out won’t make me happy, not even just going to chapel a couple times a week will truly make me happy. It’s my effort, it’s my desire, it’s my fire, and the pursuit of God that fulfills me.
            So no more lukewarm “kinda sortas.” Stop walking and jogging towards the finish line. Start sprinting in the race to Christ and you’ll be amazed to find God waiting at the next checkpoint with open arms and a glass of ice cold water to fill you up over and over again until you finally finish the race. 

Monday, April 20, 2015

You. Are. Loved.

            When you’re not confident in who you are, be confident in who God is. In Exodus 20, God says that He is literally jealous of us. Really think about that. Our God, the greatest, most powerful God, the one and only God, is jealous of you. He wants you as his own, He wants you for who you are, insecurities and all. Every little doubt you have about who you are is nothing in the eyes of God.
            I don’t know about you, but this concept is extremely difficult for me to grasp. Why me? With all my flaws and inadequacies, He loves me. The craziest thing of all is that I don’t have to change or try to earn his love and attention. There is absolutely nothing I can do that will make me any more or less beautiful in his sight. You are beautiful and you are loved just the way you are. You probably hear this all the time. But do you believe it? Do you live your life like you believe it? We are God’s bride. He took you in, He sent his son so He could have a relationship with you. He is jealous of you.

            Even if you don’t know who are you or aren’t confident in who you are, God is confident in you. He loves you despite that. Don’t think about your flaws, think about God’s love. Think about how God looks at you. I don’t care how many times you’ve heard it, but you are beautiful and you are loved. I promise that no matter how many mistakes you’ve made and no matter how messed up you think you are, there is no person that God’s love doesn’t reach. I can’t stress it enough. So take a deep breath and really think for a minute about how much God loves you. 

Monday, April 13, 2015

Like a Betta Fish...

            I once had a betta fish that literally seemed to never die. Don’t get me wrong I didn’t want him to die, but the average life span is something like 2-3 years and this fish must’ve lived for more than 8 years. He was definitely a trooper. We fed him and cleaned his bowl on a regular basis, but this little fish experienced quite a few challenges in life. I could name 3 events that could’ve killed this fish, but he hung on to his dear life and kept on living.
1.      Without going into too much detail, there was a time when I almost started our house on fire, and in doing so the fish bowl became like a personalized hot tub that you think would have been difficult for a fish to survive through… But he did.
2.      Another time, in the process of cleaning out the fish bowl, the poor little guy was dropped on the floor. He probably fell at least 5 feet, but we managed to scoop him back up and once again… he survived.
3.      The last tragic event that this fish experienced was also a complete accident. While trying to move the fish, somehow he fell into the sink and down the garbage disposal. Granted it wasn’t on, but for a little betta fish I’m betting it wasn’t too fun to be flopping around down there. Multiple people tried to reach their hands down the drain and get the fish out, but no one could get him with just their hands. Our last rescue attempt consisted of using salad tongs to grab him and pull him out. We did manage this time and although he had a couple cuts, he still lived.
Yes, he was just a fish. But for the simple life of a pet fish living by himself in a bowl, he experienced quite a lot. Now the point of that isn’t just to say that my fish was awesome, but more importantly maybe you can in some way compare this to your life. For that fish, nothing that happened to him was in his control. It wasn’t his fault that he got dropped down the drain, nor did he probably ever see it coming. But it happened anyways and there wasn’t a whole lot he could do about it except for rely on us to get him out.
            Sometimes we’re just going on in life and unexpected tragedy strikes. Often, these kind of events are completely out of our control and we feel helpless. People say everything happens for a reason, but do we really believe it when something bad is actually happening? Most likely not. Although maybe God allowed something to happen and we often don’t understand the reasons why, it is our responsibility to lean on him to get us through whatever situation we’re going through. Like that little fish, we are pretty helpless without a God who is in complete control. No matter how hard we try, we can’t really fix or help ourselves.
                      “If I say, ‘Surely the darkness will overwhelm me,
                   And the light around me will be night,’
Even the darkness is not dark to You,
          And the night is as bright as the day.
          Darkness and light are alike to You.” -Psalm 139:11-12

The darkness is not dark to God, and that’s something that as humans we tend to forget. Think of God being like a star. Stars are always in the sky. We can’t always see them. When the sun is out and it’s light outside, we forget the stars are there. But that doesn’t mean they aren’t. When the sun goes down and it gets dark outside, the stars start to shine and can be seen more clearly. When life is good, we often forget to praise God for blessing us and always being there. But remember that when you’re in the midst of one of your darkest battles, that God can often be seen more clearly if we know where to look and rely on him to be in control.
“When you go through deep waters, I will be with you.” –God (Psalm 43:2)
            Maybe we’re all just betta fish. We’re supposed to “just keep swimming” and when we get ourselves stuck in the garbage disposal, we have to have faith that God is going to get us out. 

Monday, April 6, 2015

The Power of Forgiveness

We've been forgiven, so why do we make it so complicated to forgive others?
This past weekend people all over the world remembered and celebrated the day that Jesus conquered death so that we may live. He died on the cross for our sins and our mistakes although he was not deserving at all. And yet if we ask for forgiveness, all our sins, our mistakes, and all the times we fall short of God's commands for our lives, we are completely forgiven. We become new, we become whole, and we are freed from the burden of our own sins.
            When you think about Christ and the cross and how easily He stretched out his arms and took the nails in his hands to give us life and forgiveness, how can you not forgive others of the wrongdoings that they've done against you? As we celebrate Jesus' resurrection, it's also a time to ask Christ for forgiveness, to ask others for forgiveness, and to forgive others of the things they've done against us... Even if they don't deserve forgiveness, because in reality we aren't deserving of Christ's forgiveness either. 
 I’ll be the first to say that forgiveness isn’t easy. But I’ll also be the first to say that holding a grudge and so much bitterness and contempt for someone isn’t that much easier. Instead, it can easily begin to tear you apart. Scripture even tells us that if we can’t forgive others of the wrongs they have done against us, then why should God forgive us?
“For if you forgive men when they sin against you, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive men their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins.” – Matthew 6:14-15
If you want to feel true freedom, it is important to not only find forgiveness in Christ, but to also forgive others. In Corinthians we learn that real love keeps no record of wrong. Having the power to forgive others also gives us the power to truly love others. To love like Jesus and to live like Jesus, we have to learn to forgive like Jesus. When we read that following Christ means to “take up your cross,” maybe this is one of its meanings. Maybe taking up your cross is letting go of the anger, turning the other cheek, and forgiving people no matter what they’ve done. 
“We must develop and maintain the capacity to forgive. He who is devoid of the power to forgive is devoid of the power to love. There is some good in the worst of us and some evil in the best of us. When we discover this, we are less prone to hate our enemies.”

- Martin Luther King, Jr.