SoCal is so hot. It's crazy how much humidity plays into heat. I never really noticed it before. Back in Central PA the weather was always so humid and hot, but here in Simi Valley the weather is higher in temperature, but drier. I'm honestly not sure which is worse, but considering that the house I'm living at doesn't have AC, PA was a lot less grueling. It's almost like people plan their day out based around the weather. Gonna be a hot one? Get out of the house and go shopping or to the beach. Going to be a little cooler? Stay at home and get things done.
Life is amazing though, and God continues to bless me beyond any of my expectations. On the way down to Philadelphia the day before we flew out, I got a call from one of my roommates offering to find us a ride from LAX to our house. Done. We didn't have to pay $30 for a shuttle ticket. The house that we're living at? Phenomenal. Currently there's 7 guys and a couple living here. The other guys are all super chill and so much fun to hang with. They've been great tour guides as they've graciously shuttled us around the city, to the beach, from the airport, and to get groceries. The couple that owns that house that we rent from are a huge blessing to us. Rent is incredibly cheap for SoCal, and it also includes utilities. Pretty much the only thing we need to provide is our food, but there are also infrequent times that they'll feed us. Like tonight. Everywhere I look I see God time and time again coming through for us. Like today, we found two bikes on Craigslist and bought them. Sure, they're pieces of junk that make noises, clank, and rattle, but they're our transportation, and they were super cheap and had two wheels.
Today, I was in the mood for a bookstore and a thrift store so I looked them up on my phone, hopped on my bike and pedaled off. Unfortunately, I never ended up finding them. However, I ran across a store called 99 Cents Only which turned out to be a Godsend and a goldmine for future grocery trips. Thank you again, Lord!
Yesterday we went to Zuma beach in Malibu and just chilled for a while. It was awesome to be able to say that I have now been in two oceans! From what our roommates say, Eternity is crazy intense the first semester. We're still trying to decide if we should get jobs awhile or just wait a little bit.
To say that I'm enjoying living in SoCal would be a gross understatement. I'm loving it. Soaking every minute up. This opportunity is amazing, and to think that God would bless me with this life is an incredible thought. I have everything I need: Friends, a house and bed, food, transportation. God has provided everything.
Ways you can pray? Continued guidance as far as jobs go. Textbooks to pour in. And finally, good health.
Wednesday, August 8, 2012
Tuesday, July 24, 2012
That Hideous Strength
2 Chronicles 13:15 is in the middle of a battle between Israel and
Judah. Abijah, the fearless leader of Judah was at war with Jeroboam, the
leader of Israel. 13:15 shows evidence that if we call on our Lord--our
Helper and Strength--that He will pull through for us. He will fight for
us. Verse 16 goes on to say that the Israelites fled before Judah, and
God delivered them into their hands. In verse 18 it sums up the story
with this, "The men of Israel were subdued on that occasion, and the men
of Judah were victorious because they relied on the Lord, the God of their
fathers." How often do we rely on our own strength and don't
raise the battle cry that we need to against the attacks of our enemies?
God will fight for us. He will come through if we have
the faith to believe it.
Directly from that I began reading Romans 8:26, "In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit Himself intercedes for us with groans that words cannot express." A lot of times, especially when I pray, I find myself at a loss for words. What do I pray for specifically? It seems that I pray for the same things over and over again no matter what the situation: God's will be done, strength, peace, endurance, and wisdom. They seem to be the staple things that we pray for. But what if we stopped merely spewing words--what we thought the sitution needs--and instead listen to what God lays on our hearts. Like Francis Chan says in the opening chapter of "Crazy Love", "What if we stop talking at God?" Going off of that, what if we actually believe that God will give us strength and come through? "The Spirit helps us in our weakness." 2 Corinthians 12:10 also plays a part here. And then we get to the end of Romans 8. Boom goes the dynamite.
It's amazing how the Bible works together. We just read what happens in the Old Testament when people call on the name of the Lord. We just read in Romans 8:26 how God intercedes for us. Now, we read that God is for us. God is on the sideline of heaven cheering us on. 8:34 says that Jesus is at the right hand of God (which, in case you don't know, was--in that time period--the hand of honor as opposed to the left hand) interceding and cheering us on. Nothing can stop us when we have God on our side. Then finally in 37 we read, "No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us." The chapter ends with the affirmation that nothing can seperate us from the love of Christ. To quote the spin that the band My Heart To Fear put on these last two verses, "No demon, no man, no power that be will ever have the strength to keep you from Me." Isn't that truth incredible? Doesn't that make you want to fight your hardest and do everything you can to serve God wholly?
Lastly, the Daily Bible led me to Psalms 18:37-50. This is the second time that I'm reading through Psalms this year. The Bible took me through it the first half of the year, now it's taking me through it again. Time and time again I've turned back and looked to the Psalms for the strength that God will give me that day. It's a long passage, and I won't quote the whole thing, but David is finding his strength in God. His strength comes from God and he goes back to battle against them and wins. Verse 39 says, "You [God] armed me with strength for battle; you made my adversaries bow at my feet."
See, all this is great. We've looked at several different passages today and all point towards God giving us the strength when we need it. God gives us the willpower to fight against not only the attacks of Satan, but the multiple ways the world will try to put us down as well. But that's not the end. The end is summed up in Psalms 18:46-50. David doesn't just end the Psalms by saying that God will gives us strength, he ends the Psalms with praise and thanksgiving to God for the strengtht that He provided. "The Lord lives! Praise be to my Rock! Exalted be God my Savior!" Verse 49, "Therefore, I will praise you among the nations, O Lord; I will sing praises to Your name."
The past few weeks I've been in a battle to the death with my flesh. My body screams and pulls one way, but the Spirit leads me another. To be honest, I haven't been seeking for strength from God. I have to admit, I've been seeking my own strength. The problem with that is that I'm never strong enough. I always have my downfalls and I am a very weak person. This post is more for me than anyone else. I need to focus more on the strength of God than the failing strength of me.
Directly from that I began reading Romans 8:26, "In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit Himself intercedes for us with groans that words cannot express." A lot of times, especially when I pray, I find myself at a loss for words. What do I pray for specifically? It seems that I pray for the same things over and over again no matter what the situation: God's will be done, strength, peace, endurance, and wisdom. They seem to be the staple things that we pray for. But what if we stopped merely spewing words--what we thought the sitution needs--and instead listen to what God lays on our hearts. Like Francis Chan says in the opening chapter of "Crazy Love", "What if we stop talking at God?" Going off of that, what if we actually believe that God will give us strength and come through? "The Spirit helps us in our weakness." 2 Corinthians 12:10 also plays a part here. And then we get to the end of Romans 8. Boom goes the dynamite.
It's amazing how the Bible works together. We just read what happens in the Old Testament when people call on the name of the Lord. We just read in Romans 8:26 how God intercedes for us. Now, we read that God is for us. God is on the sideline of heaven cheering us on. 8:34 says that Jesus is at the right hand of God (which, in case you don't know, was--in that time period--the hand of honor as opposed to the left hand) interceding and cheering us on. Nothing can stop us when we have God on our side. Then finally in 37 we read, "No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us." The chapter ends with the affirmation that nothing can seperate us from the love of Christ. To quote the spin that the band My Heart To Fear put on these last two verses, "No demon, no man, no power that be will ever have the strength to keep you from Me." Isn't that truth incredible? Doesn't that make you want to fight your hardest and do everything you can to serve God wholly?
Lastly, the Daily Bible led me to Psalms 18:37-50. This is the second time that I'm reading through Psalms this year. The Bible took me through it the first half of the year, now it's taking me through it again. Time and time again I've turned back and looked to the Psalms for the strength that God will give me that day. It's a long passage, and I won't quote the whole thing, but David is finding his strength in God. His strength comes from God and he goes back to battle against them and wins. Verse 39 says, "You [God] armed me with strength for battle; you made my adversaries bow at my feet."
See, all this is great. We've looked at several different passages today and all point towards God giving us the strength when we need it. God gives us the willpower to fight against not only the attacks of Satan, but the multiple ways the world will try to put us down as well. But that's not the end. The end is summed up in Psalms 18:46-50. David doesn't just end the Psalms by saying that God will gives us strength, he ends the Psalms with praise and thanksgiving to God for the strengtht that He provided. "The Lord lives! Praise be to my Rock! Exalted be God my Savior!" Verse 49, "Therefore, I will praise you among the nations, O Lord; I will sing praises to Your name."
The past few weeks I've been in a battle to the death with my flesh. My body screams and pulls one way, but the Spirit leads me another. To be honest, I haven't been seeking for strength from God. I have to admit, I've been seeking my own strength. The problem with that is that I'm never strong enough. I always have my downfalls and I am a very weak person. This post is more for me than anyone else. I need to focus more on the strength of God than the failing strength of me.
My Heart To Fear - "The Witching Hour"
Monday, July 23, 2012
Two Weeks!
Here I sit on my favorite chair, still at my home in the armpit of Pennsylvania. Milton. The place that I spent the last 18 years of my life growing up, maturing, working, playing sports, making friends, going to church and school, and occasionally paying visits to the hospital. Can I just say how crazy of a feeling it is to know that the time has come for me to move on. In 336 hours I will be turning the next page in the book of my life (Which I have appropriately titled, "Freudian Slips: The Brain-Mouth Filter Conundrum") and starting to let God write Chapter 2, which has yet to be titled. In 336 hours, I will be starting to make new friends, taking in new sites and sounds, setting foot on soil that has never moved under my feet, and preparing to spend the next four years of my life dedicating it to not only the study and memorization of Scripture, but the application of it. I'll be learning from some of the most respected theological leaders in my known world as the breathe the words that have been placed on their hearts that God will use to change mine. 336 hours. Tomorrow, I will embark on my first visit to the Big Apple. I felt if I was leaving the l(East) Coast I should at least be able to say that I was to NYC. After a few days there, I will come back home only to be whisked away again by a few other friends as I spend a day or two at one of my friend's lake house. Coming home late that night, I'll grab a few hours of sleep before packing up the car once more for a week of service and volunteer at Camp Hebron--where I previously spent three summers on staff. The week there will fly rapidly by, and I'll soon find myself journeying home only to find my brother inhabiting the home I'm writing this blog from, and the next day and a half are going to be spent packing, storing, and worshiping as I try to square away last minute details while also trying to feverishly say goodbye to every person I've ever known in my entire existence. The next day (if you've been following, it's now August 5th) will be spent going to my church of the past 9 years for the last time, saying goodbye to the people that have helped me grow in my walk of faith the most, grabbing lunch, locking doors and windows, and packing up the car before heading down to stop in at a family reunion in Lancaster for a few minutes and finally making my last stop at a friend's house in Philly for the night. The final day starts with a flight at 8:35 in the morning, and by 3 in the afternoon I'll be setting foot in LAX. The beginning. Let me tell you, I'm a PSYCHED!
Now that you have an update on my life, let me share a few thoughts with you that God has been pouring into me recently.
Identity is such a loaded word. One of my favorite movie trilogies focuses on a trained assassin losing his and forming an opposite second identity to combat the consequences of the first. When someone says, "Identify yourself", or, "Tell me a little bit about yourself", we can literally mention anything in the entire world that we identify with and be seen as who we want to be seen as. Depending on your identity, people will look at you differently. If you identify as a Steelers fan (yes, I am, deal with it), people already form preconceived ideas on who you are. Maybe they think you are a bandwagon fan and like them because they're one of the most valuable sport franchises in history. Maybe it's their Bowl rings. Then they may associate that to you being arrogant and stuck up. What about music? If you say you like country music, people form a picture in their head of cowboy boots, voices that croon along with the wolves, pickup trucks, beer, horses, and horrible relationship choices. Heavier music paints a completely different stigma. Skinny jeans, tank tops, chains, bracelets, long hair, and tattoos. If you see someone dressed like that on the street don't you paint an imaginative identity on top of them? Don't you have your own expectations on how they treat people? How they act? Words they say? Maybe your identity is school. If you go to a school like Penn State University or even Bloomsburg University (thankyouverymuch) people may associate you with different feelings. Both are party schools, and without even getting to know the person, we paint our own phrases, identities, and stereotypes on top of people attending them. Whether we like to admit it or not, we each have our own identity. We have things we're passionate about. We having things that we identify with, things that get our blood boiling, tears flowing, or emotions rising. We have adjectives we identify with. Things we use to describe ourselves. This is life. We are our own unique individual, and we are all created differently. We all have a different identity.
Identity has been something that has caused me much grief over the past five or so years. When I was younger, I put my identity in relationships. But when they were taken away, my identity was shattered. I found out quickly how easy it was to jump from crowd to crowd. It was simple to be part of one group and take on their characteristics and interests, but then turn around and be part of another group with completely different personalities and interests. Frankly, in the early to mid stages of high school, I had no idea who I was. I was whoever you wanted me to be. Whoever got me the most friends. Whoever made me more popular. I was that. If only I knew then what I know now:
After high school, things got worse. I entered out of my Christian school shell that I had been in the past 18 years of my life and entered into the real world working two jobs back to back. Right out of high school I was also hit hard by C. Diff--a virus that destroys your digestive system--and was put on a vegetable and meat diet for three months. It was embarrassing which further pushed me deeper into my insecurity. On top of that, I was entering two worlds I had never experienced before: 1. Workforce, 2. The non-Christian world. Not only was I learning how to adapt to working two jobs, but I was also shoved straight into the face of the real world. My Christian bubble had popped and it was time for me to stand...on my own. I couldn't do it. Because my identity was wrapped up in making sure I looked good, money, and friends--and all those are temporary--my identity was once again shattered.
There is good at the end of my story. Over the past two years, God has been teaching me about how irrelevant who I think I am is, and ultimately who He thinks I am. I have learned that my identity can't be in earthly, temporary things or I will fail. Hard.
My identity is not only a son of God that's been redeemed by grace, but a worshiper. My entire life now needs to be one whole act of worship and devotion in appreciation of the salvation that has been extended to me. My life needs to be a living sacrifice, holy, and pleasing to God (Romans 12:1). Because of that, the way of life that I am now called and devoted to live, I have been set apart, from birth, and called by grace so that I might be a witness to others.(Galatians 1:11-17) I have been therefore set on this race of endlessly giving devotion and honor to Him. That's my identity; that's my life. I am by no means perfect, and I still have a lot of ground to cover, but unreachable perfection is the--I believe--standard, not requirement, that Christ has set for each of us. So I will press on to take hold of that and strive to be all that He is calling me to be. (Phillipians 3:12) I will still have my days where I mess up. I will still have my days where I blatantly choose to dishonor God and bring glory to myself. Occasionally I will choose to satisfy my sinful nature instead of glorifying His heavenly nature, but I have been eternally purchased through blood; a transaction that cannot be undone while I am still in service to Him. Because of this love, those mistakes I make will not be eternally held against me. They will not be my damnation. No, for those in Christ--for those redeemed--there is no condemnation. (Romans 8:1)
Therefore, my identity is no longer in what I look like, how I dress, or how much hair I have on my face. My identity is not in my popularity, how many friends I have, words I say, the figures in my bank account, or the music on my iPod. My identity is not in the movies I watch, the facade of Hollywood stars, or the human skills of athletics or academics. My identity is in continually submitting to God's will in my life, dying to myself (Matthew 16:24), and living to bring Him glory even when it isn't convenient or doesn't make sense.
--DyingAnOriginal
Also, as an after thought. This song just came to mind while naming this blog. Uhh...yeah...
Now that you have an update on my life, let me share a few thoughts with you that God has been pouring into me recently.
Identity is such a loaded word. One of my favorite movie trilogies focuses on a trained assassin losing his and forming an opposite second identity to combat the consequences of the first. When someone says, "Identify yourself", or, "Tell me a little bit about yourself", we can literally mention anything in the entire world that we identify with and be seen as who we want to be seen as. Depending on your identity, people will look at you differently. If you identify as a Steelers fan (yes, I am, deal with it), people already form preconceived ideas on who you are. Maybe they think you are a bandwagon fan and like them because they're one of the most valuable sport franchises in history. Maybe it's their Bowl rings. Then they may associate that to you being arrogant and stuck up. What about music? If you say you like country music, people form a picture in their head of cowboy boots, voices that croon along with the wolves, pickup trucks, beer, horses, and horrible relationship choices. Heavier music paints a completely different stigma. Skinny jeans, tank tops, chains, bracelets, long hair, and tattoos. If you see someone dressed like that on the street don't you paint an imaginative identity on top of them? Don't you have your own expectations on how they treat people? How they act? Words they say? Maybe your identity is school. If you go to a school like Penn State University or even Bloomsburg University (thankyouverymuch) people may associate you with different feelings. Both are party schools, and without even getting to know the person, we paint our own phrases, identities, and stereotypes on top of people attending them. Whether we like to admit it or not, we each have our own identity. We have things we're passionate about. We having things that we identify with, things that get our blood boiling, tears flowing, or emotions rising. We have adjectives we identify with. Things we use to describe ourselves. This is life. We are our own unique individual, and we are all created differently. We all have a different identity.
Identity has been something that has caused me much grief over the past five or so years. When I was younger, I put my identity in relationships. But when they were taken away, my identity was shattered. I found out quickly how easy it was to jump from crowd to crowd. It was simple to be part of one group and take on their characteristics and interests, but then turn around and be part of another group with completely different personalities and interests. Frankly, in the early to mid stages of high school, I had no idea who I was. I was whoever you wanted me to be. Whoever got me the most friends. Whoever made me more popular. I was that. If only I knew then what I know now:
"Identity needs to be permanent for us to have a true sense of who we are."My identity wasn't permanent. It jumped around and changed a lot. Towards the latter two years of high school it really started to catch up with me. My friends all had their identities and their own hobbies. They had things they were interested in and they pursued them. They had ideas of where they wanted to go to school and they researched them. They were thinking about what they wanted to be after they graduated because they had a sense of self-identity. Me? I was clueless. I didn't have any consistent hobbies and I was very impulsive. I had many ideas of what would be fun to do after high school, but none were practical or even permanent. My college choices were dependent on where all my friends were going. I was lost. I didn't know who I was. Because of that, I struggled with social anxiety. I would occasionally have problems in public eating. I couldn't do it. I would be too worried about how I looked when I eat and who was looking at me. Were they judging me by what I was eating? Were my manners okay? One too many times I found myself hiding the gagging that was going on in the back of my throat. I wasn't anorexic. I wasn't bulimic. I was simply very insecure.
After high school, things got worse. I entered out of my Christian school shell that I had been in the past 18 years of my life and entered into the real world working two jobs back to back. Right out of high school I was also hit hard by C. Diff--a virus that destroys your digestive system--and was put on a vegetable and meat diet for three months. It was embarrassing which further pushed me deeper into my insecurity. On top of that, I was entering two worlds I had never experienced before: 1. Workforce, 2. The non-Christian world. Not only was I learning how to adapt to working two jobs, but I was also shoved straight into the face of the real world. My Christian bubble had popped and it was time for me to stand...on my own. I couldn't do it. Because my identity was wrapped up in making sure I looked good, money, and friends--and all those are temporary--my identity was once again shattered.
There is good at the end of my story. Over the past two years, God has been teaching me about how irrelevant who I think I am is, and ultimately who He thinks I am. I have learned that my identity can't be in earthly, temporary things or I will fail. Hard.
"My identity needs to be in a gracious Savior who looks down in incomprehensible and incomparable love at what He sees in me."So much love, in fact, that He gave his one and only son. For me. (John 3:16) He gave His life as a ransom for mine because he loved me so much that He wants to spend the rest of my life and all of eternity with me. On that cross was where the incredible love of God was poured out on mankind through Jesus, the Son. On that cross was where the fearsome and holy wrath of God was removed from our heads and placed on his own son. (Ephesians 2:3) On that cross was where the nails were driven in that created the scars of my redemption on the hands of my Redeemer. Those scars bear my name. (Isaiah 49:16)
My identity is not only a son of God that's been redeemed by grace, but a worshiper. My entire life now needs to be one whole act of worship and devotion in appreciation of the salvation that has been extended to me. My life needs to be a living sacrifice, holy, and pleasing to God (Romans 12:1). Because of that, the way of life that I am now called and devoted to live, I have been set apart, from birth, and called by grace so that I might be a witness to others.(Galatians 1:11-17) I have been therefore set on this race of endlessly giving devotion and honor to Him. That's my identity; that's my life. I am by no means perfect, and I still have a lot of ground to cover, but unreachable perfection is the--I believe--standard, not requirement, that Christ has set for each of us. So I will press on to take hold of that and strive to be all that He is calling me to be. (Phillipians 3:12) I will still have my days where I mess up. I will still have my days where I blatantly choose to dishonor God and bring glory to myself. Occasionally I will choose to satisfy my sinful nature instead of glorifying His heavenly nature, but I have been eternally purchased through blood; a transaction that cannot be undone while I am still in service to Him. Because of this love, those mistakes I make will not be eternally held against me. They will not be my damnation. No, for those in Christ--for those redeemed--there is no condemnation. (Romans 8:1)
Therefore, my identity is no longer in what I look like, how I dress, or how much hair I have on my face. My identity is not in my popularity, how many friends I have, words I say, the figures in my bank account, or the music on my iPod. My identity is not in the movies I watch, the facade of Hollywood stars, or the human skills of athletics or academics. My identity is in continually submitting to God's will in my life, dying to myself (Matthew 16:24), and living to bring Him glory even when it isn't convenient or doesn't make sense.
"My identity is in Jesus Christ. He is the rock on which I stand. What can mortal man do to me? (Psalms 56:4)"
--DyingAnOriginal
Also, as an after thought. This song just came to mind while naming this blog. Uhh...yeah...
All That Remains - Two Weeks
Tuesday, July 3, 2012
Blast From the Past
Started packing/cleaning to move to California and I came across a stash of old journals. Some date back to 2006. I found this song that I wrote in 2006 called, "The Crows Are Getting Hungry". If I remember correctly, I wrote it out of frustration deep in the midst of a struggle with lust. Pretty dark for a 15 year old me, but here it is:
Cut open my heart to stop the bleeding.
This black infection runs deeper than my soul.
Break the glass that keeps me from You.
Watch the blood flow; cleansing renewed.
The perfection of everything I see is a knife in my throat.
Tear these hands away from you. Dismember if you have to
All these lies have led me down.
Now I have nowhere to go, but to drown, drown...
Drown this sickness.
Kill this perfect imperfection.
Kill my weakness.
Install my detection.
Because the blackness pulls me away from you.
Gouge out my eyes.
Dig through my brain.
Break my fingers, my demise.
Cut open my heart, let this ooze drain.
All the imperfect perfection I saw has only filled me with shards of glass.
Now I'm begging, Lord, take away cleanse me of my past!
Left with nowhere to run to, no path to be found.
I'll feel my neck break, but first I have to drown, drown...
Drown this sickness.
Kill this perfect imperfection.
Kill my weakness.
Install my detection.
Because the blackness tears my soul from you.
Let my blood run new.
Cleanse me for you.
Rewind the past, maybe I'll last.
Then I'll find, you clear my mind.
Drown this weakness.
Kill this perfect imperfection.
Kill my weakness.
Install my detection.
Because this blackness pulls me away from you.
Cut open my heart to stop the bleeding.
This black infection runs deeper than my soul.
Break the glass that keeps me from You.
Watch the blood flow; cleansing renewed.
The perfection of everything I see is a knife in my throat.
Tear these hands away from you. Dismember if you have to
All these lies have led me down.
Now I have nowhere to go, but to drown, drown...
Drown this sickness.
Kill this perfect imperfection.
Kill my weakness.
Install my detection.
Because the blackness pulls me away from you.
Gouge out my eyes.
Dig through my brain.
Break my fingers, my demise.
Cut open my heart, let this ooze drain.
All the imperfect perfection I saw has only filled me with shards of glass.
Now I'm begging, Lord, take away cleanse me of my past!
Left with nowhere to run to, no path to be found.
I'll feel my neck break, but first I have to drown, drown...
Drown this sickness.
Kill this perfect imperfection.
Kill my weakness.
Install my detection.
Because the blackness tears my soul from you.
Let my blood run new.
Cleanse me for you.
Rewind the past, maybe I'll last.
Then I'll find, you clear my mind.
Drown this weakness.
Kill this perfect imperfection.
Kill my weakness.
Install my detection.
Because this blackness pulls me away from you.
Saturday, June 2, 2012
Sacrificing our Food
Currently, my youth group is reading through 1 Corinthians in our weekly meetings. The Corinthian duo is definitely my favorite Biblical duo when it comes to books. There is so much packed within these two letters to the church in Corinth that it takes weeks to actually dissect and tear apart everything that Paul is pleading. They're just so good, and if you have never spent time to read them, or even if you have read them in the past but it's been a while, go ahead and read them again because you won't be disappointed.
The last few weeks that we've been studying 1 Corinthians, we've been spending time around chapters 5-8. 5 deals with accountability within the church. 6 talks about judgment within the church before switching gears and tackling sexual immorality. 7 speaks volumes about marriage and the life that it encompasses while also sparring with the life of singleness and the gift that it is from God. This week's chapter, 8 is labeled as, "Food Sacrificed To Idols". My initial thoughts when reading this for the first time were confused. I mean, Paul just got done talking about sexual immorality and accountability while tying the subjects of marriage and being single together into one package. Those subjects flow very well together, but then we come to chapter 8 and it seems out of place. It seems random and haphazardly thrown in at the first glance. It took me a few minutes to actually realize what Paul was trying to get across here.
On the surface, this passage is random. To anyone just skimming their Bible it seems out of place and strange. If you dig a little deeper beyond the surface, it's not really about eating food sacrificed to idols at all. Paul is talking about the unity of believers and touching on accountability again. It was just a mere two chapters prior to writing this that Paul wrote (6:12), "'Everything is permissible for me'--but not everything is beneficial. 'Everything is permissible for me'--but I will not be mastered by anything." In chapter 8 he picks up that same thinking and applies it to the church as a unified body of Christ. To really get the meat of what he is saying here, take a look starting at verse 9, "Be careful, however that the exercise of your freedom does not become a stumbling block for the weak. For if anyone with a weak conscience sees you who have this knowledge eating in an idol's temple, won't he be emboldened to eat what has been sacrificed to idols? So this weak brother, for whom Christ died, is destroyed by your knowledge." To sum this passage up, what I believe Paul is saying here is, "What right for you may not be right for everyone else. Be careful, because it may become a stumbling block to them." He even rephrases what he just said in verse 13, "Therefore, if what I eat [the activities I partake in] causes my brother to fall into sin, I will never eat meat again, so that I will not cause him to fall."
Think of it this way. There's two groups of friends, group A and group B, with four people total. All claim Christ and live by His Word. Group A goes out to eat and being over 21 orders an alcoholic drink to go with their meal. No problem! Drinking in and of itself is not a sin and neither of them are bound in addiction to alcohol. Their maturity in Christ trumps all other addictions and alcohol is not a problem for either of them. Group B now goes out into the same situation that Group A was just in. Both are Christians walking in Christ. One person in Group B has no problem with alcohol like Group A, and they are not bound to their worldly addictions. Alcoholism and drunkenness is not a temptation for them. The other person, however, is tempted by alcohol. While drinking a drink may not be a sin, it is tempting for them to continue past the point of inebriation (which is a sin and is addressed two chapters earlier in 6:10). Alcohol is tempting to them and it is an addiction, a struggle that they're making war with. What Paul is saying in this passage in 1 Corinthians is that not everyone is the same. All people are tempted by different things and everyone has their weak spot. If you know that a brother struggles with something that you don't struggle with, don't tempt him by exercising your freedom and causing him to struggle all the more (verse 9). Paul goes so far as to say that if you cause your brother to fall into sin and stumble (verse 12), "You sin against Christ."
So what does this mean for us today? It all points back to the body of Christ being unified. One of the main ways that I'm going to know the brothers I have in Christ is by spending time with them. The more I get to know them and spend time with them, the greater the accountability we have to each other. I find out their weaknesses, and I find out their strengths. You don't know what someone likes or dislikes unless you actually get to know the person, and the same goes for here too. I don't know what temptations my best friends face daily unless we're all unified together and sanctified though the blood of Christ and in fellowship with one another.
I had to cut this blog a little short due to leaving for work in a few minutes, but that's no excuse for you not to take your own time and study this passage. Study it, read it, and comment down below on your thoughts.
--DyingAnOriginal
The last few weeks that we've been studying 1 Corinthians, we've been spending time around chapters 5-8. 5 deals with accountability within the church. 6 talks about judgment within the church before switching gears and tackling sexual immorality. 7 speaks volumes about marriage and the life that it encompasses while also sparring with the life of singleness and the gift that it is from God. This week's chapter, 8 is labeled as, "Food Sacrificed To Idols". My initial thoughts when reading this for the first time were confused. I mean, Paul just got done talking about sexual immorality and accountability while tying the subjects of marriage and being single together into one package. Those subjects flow very well together, but then we come to chapter 8 and it seems out of place. It seems random and haphazardly thrown in at the first glance. It took me a few minutes to actually realize what Paul was trying to get across here.
On the surface, this passage is random. To anyone just skimming their Bible it seems out of place and strange. If you dig a little deeper beyond the surface, it's not really about eating food sacrificed to idols at all. Paul is talking about the unity of believers and touching on accountability again. It was just a mere two chapters prior to writing this that Paul wrote (6:12), "'Everything is permissible for me'--but not everything is beneficial. 'Everything is permissible for me'--but I will not be mastered by anything." In chapter 8 he picks up that same thinking and applies it to the church as a unified body of Christ. To really get the meat of what he is saying here, take a look starting at verse 9, "Be careful, however that the exercise of your freedom does not become a stumbling block for the weak. For if anyone with a weak conscience sees you who have this knowledge eating in an idol's temple, won't he be emboldened to eat what has been sacrificed to idols? So this weak brother, for whom Christ died, is destroyed by your knowledge." To sum this passage up, what I believe Paul is saying here is, "What right for you may not be right for everyone else. Be careful, because it may become a stumbling block to them." He even rephrases what he just said in verse 13, "Therefore, if what I eat [the activities I partake in] causes my brother to fall into sin, I will never eat meat again, so that I will not cause him to fall."
Think of it this way. There's two groups of friends, group A and group B, with four people total. All claim Christ and live by His Word. Group A goes out to eat and being over 21 orders an alcoholic drink to go with their meal. No problem! Drinking in and of itself is not a sin and neither of them are bound in addiction to alcohol. Their maturity in Christ trumps all other addictions and alcohol is not a problem for either of them. Group B now goes out into the same situation that Group A was just in. Both are Christians walking in Christ. One person in Group B has no problem with alcohol like Group A, and they are not bound to their worldly addictions. Alcoholism and drunkenness is not a temptation for them. The other person, however, is tempted by alcohol. While drinking a drink may not be a sin, it is tempting for them to continue past the point of inebriation (which is a sin and is addressed two chapters earlier in 6:10). Alcohol is tempting to them and it is an addiction, a struggle that they're making war with. What Paul is saying in this passage in 1 Corinthians is that not everyone is the same. All people are tempted by different things and everyone has their weak spot. If you know that a brother struggles with something that you don't struggle with, don't tempt him by exercising your freedom and causing him to struggle all the more (verse 9). Paul goes so far as to say that if you cause your brother to fall into sin and stumble (verse 12), "You sin against Christ."
So what does this mean for us today? It all points back to the body of Christ being unified. One of the main ways that I'm going to know the brothers I have in Christ is by spending time with them. The more I get to know them and spend time with them, the greater the accountability we have to each other. I find out their weaknesses, and I find out their strengths. You don't know what someone likes or dislikes unless you actually get to know the person, and the same goes for here too. I don't know what temptations my best friends face daily unless we're all unified together and sanctified though the blood of Christ and in fellowship with one another.
I had to cut this blog a little short due to leaving for work in a few minutes, but that's no excuse for you not to take your own time and study this passage. Study it, read it, and comment down below on your thoughts.
--DyingAnOriginal
Sunday, April 1, 2012
Spoken Word
So this is a little spoken word that I made up on the fly one night.
Lord, teach me right from wrong. Open my heart let me sing a new song
That everyone can hear so the world will learn to fear the lord who is so near and dear to my heart. From the very start he switched up this broken man to become part of a perfect plan to set the world on fire with one desire to lift the name of Jesus higher. And higher. And higher. Your will is my way and may I never stop to say, "Thy kingdom come, thy will be done from heaven to under the sun" because you are the one who holds all things together like a tether to the earth for the meek and those with no worth in their own eyes that despise and ears that listen to all the lies and cries from the highs the world tries to deny. You are a haven for the broken and a refuge for those choking on the tears they've wasted throughout the years their fears spoke in their ears all the pain and disdain of this manic planet. and if I ever turn somewhere different and turn away in resentment from the ailments my human desires have lit up with fire let me burn on a pyre alone as a liar because the words I proclaim were only for fame and about my name. It's about you, lord, so let it be true that when death comes to steal that as I would kneel before your throne you would say, "welcome home."
Lord, teach me right from wrong. Open my heart let me sing a new song
That everyone can hear so the world will learn to fear the lord who is so near and dear to my heart. From the very start he switched up this broken man to become part of a perfect plan to set the world on fire with one desire to lift the name of Jesus higher. And higher. And higher. Your will is my way and may I never stop to say, "Thy kingdom come, thy will be done from heaven to under the sun" because you are the one who holds all things together like a tether to the earth for the meek and those with no worth in their own eyes that despise and ears that listen to all the lies and cries from the highs the world tries to deny. You are a haven for the broken and a refuge for those choking on the tears they've wasted throughout the years their fears spoke in their ears all the pain and disdain of this manic planet. and if I ever turn somewhere different and turn away in resentment from the ailments my human desires have lit up with fire let me burn on a pyre alone as a liar because the words I proclaim were only for fame and about my name. It's about you, lord, so let it be true that when death comes to steal that as I would kneel before your throne you would say, "welcome home."
Saturday, March 31, 2012
What Do I Do With The Old Testament?
The past several years at the beginning of each year I have vowed to myself that I was going to read through the entire Bible for the first time in my life. Each year, with good intentions, I faithfully start out on the daily plans and every morning or night I'd settle down and read the words that God had for me that day. This may have lasted a month, maybe half a month, and I'd always get at the same place--the beginning of Exodus--before I'd accidentally miss a day. Once I missed that day, it was all downhill from there and soon I'd be missing two days. Then three. Four. Five. And before I know it, a whole week has gone by without me opening my Bible. Then two. Three. And soon enough, I'm back to my old routine without doing my devotions and allowing my apathy to create a chasm in between God and I that I would not breach.
This year has been different, though, in several aspects. I honestly don't know how to explain the changes that have been happening in my life except that it has to be God's hand moving and working in my life. Last summer my time at Camp Hebron was, without a doubt, life changing, and it has pushed my life off of the top of the hill and set it in a full, down-hill sprint. That's definitely not to say that there haven't been some rocks on the path and a few bumps in the road, but my life is screaming forward now at a breakneck speed that I never thought would happen. God used my time at Camp last summer as a catalyst (You see what I did there?) in my life to set in motion future events and to bring me out of the life that I was living and into a new, better life. It was January 2nd at the first night of Passion and I remember in the middle of the first worship set that evening getting this overwhelming longing for change. I remember looking at my self (not literally, but figuratively) and saying these exact words, "Alright, Ben. It's time to grow up. It's time to become a man." Coincidentally, I was reading Wild At Heart by John Eldredge at the same time. Or not coincidentally, because I don't believe in coincidence. From that moment on, my life has been put on a rollercoaster. My college plans completely changed as I got accepted to Eternity Bible College. My future plans drastically changed as I am now planning on moving permanently (Lord willing) out to Simi Valley, California. My current life has completely changed because tomorrow is April 1st, and I am still keeping up with the One Year Bible, and there is absolutely, positively no end in sight. When I got home from Passion I was really feeling convicted of all the time that I had wasted in front of the computer playing games the previous year and felt like God was telling me that I needed a cleansing from that. So like any other crazy, abnormal person who is solely led by God I got rid of all my video games that I was so ensnared in and have been game-free for three months now (and loving it). I've been listening more to myself and my thoughts and feelings, passions and hobbies. One thing that I like doing is taking pictures, and someday I want to become really good at it, so I made the commitment (the previous Ben was awful at keeping them) to complete Project 366 this year and take a picture every day of this entire year. I also began learning more and more guitar because it's something that God gave me to enjoy. My parents left and are on an assignment for a year, so I'm living by myself which has helped me grow up and fend for myself in this world without holding on to the coattails of my parents. Like I said, my life is on a fast track right now. To where? I have no idea, only He knows.
That was a very lengthy introduction, and if you're still tracking with me, I'd like to get into the heart of what I felt prompted to blog about this morning. Like I said before, I've been going through the One Year Bible this year, and I'm currently in the middle of Deuteronomy. In my previous attempts to begin devotions or complete the One Year assignment, I came to Exodus-Deuteronomy and completely lost all hope of ever reading the entire Bible. How could anyone in their right mind slog through the seemingly endless laws, ritual requirements, commandments, and festival instructions in the Pentateuch? To tell you the truth, it's probably one of the most boring written accounts of history that have ever been conceived, and there have been a few days where I've woken up early in the morning to get ready for school and in my groggy, half-awake state the last thing that I want to do is dive back in to reading about what would happen if your neighbor kills your uncle's dog and where he should run to, blah, blah, blah...(Note: Not literally in the Bible). Part of me feels guilty for saying such things about the Holy Word of God and what a gift it is to even be able to read these accounts that have been passed down over thousands and thousands of years, but the other part of me is screaming, "Give me a break!" However, in the midst of all this I am reminded of two things that I want to hopefully pass on to you:
1. The penalty of sin is death, and Christ's death on the cross was the ultimate sacrifice for us, so that we don't have to face that penalty
I was reading this morning about how if something happened it was punishable by death and all this stuff about do's and do not's. I couldn't help but to be reminded (how "coincidental" that it is the Easter season) of the ultimate sacrifice that was paid for all of our sins. When Christ came to earth and died on the cross, he completely rewrote the laws of redemption. In Old Testament times, if someone wanted to be forgiven of their sins, they had to go through all these rituals that involved sacrifices at the temple and do all this stuff to make themselves clean and holy again. When Christ came he said, "No, guys, I'm throwing out the entire playbook and we're changing the game. The Levite priests are no longer your mediation between God and man, and you will no longer have to go through them to seek forgiveness and redemption. I came down to earth, I humbled myself, I died for you so that you can come straight to me." This is the whole reason why the curtain in the temple that protected the Holy of Holies (where God's spirit previously dwelt)was ripped in two during the crucifixion. God's spirit--read: The Holy Spirit--was released on the world, and we now have mediation to Christ through the Holy Spirit, or Jesus Himself. In the Old Testament the penalty for anything wrong that you may have done was death, and when Christ came down, he canceled that out and said, "It's okay guys, I conquered the grave, and I conquered death. Every bad thing that you have done, are doing, and will do was laid on my shoulders, I took that upon myself and I took the death penalty for you. Crazy, right? I know. All you have to do to accept forgiveness of sin is believe in me and accept the forgiveness that I'm giving you and lay down your life--your human desires and your earthly plans--and sacrifice what you want for what I want for you." He rewrote the game and he changed the rules. We no longer have to fear death if we are in Christ, because He already beat death back to the very pit of hell whence it came.
2. God wants us to be sanctified through Him and be different from the world, even if that means looking a little different.
If you read the Old Testament laws, some of them are pretty outlandish and crazy. My favorite is where if two men are fighting and the wife of one of them tries to intervene and grabs the other one's genitals by accident her hand has to be cut off (Not exactly sure where it's at at this very moment). If you were an Israelite you could only eat certain animals at certain times of the year, you had to pay all these crazy sacrifices with all these crazy animals and follow all these crazy rules for all these crazy festivals. You had to follow all these rituals for cleansing if you had mildew in your tent or if you were having your menstrual cycle or having sex or if you had a nocturnal emission. There was all this crazy stuff that they filled four books of the Bible with it. It reminds me of just how badly Christ wants us to be different from the world. Some of the stuff in and by itself is not inherently bad, such as eating certain animals. There's absolutely nothing wrong with eating these animals, but if you were an Israelite, they were forbidden by God and you couldn't eat them. In my series that I started a while ago about hypocrisy within the church, the next topics that I want to do are swearing, drinking, and sexual activity. Swearing is one thing that I've struggled with in the past. I'll go more into this later, but part of me thinks that swearing is okay because it's a word just like any other word, it's the feelings behind the word that matter. The other, greater part of me believes that swearing may not be inherently evil (like eating certain animals), but it's something that blurs the lines between us and the world. In a world that is supposed to be black and white, Christian and Nonchristian, by swearing we're creating this fuzzy gray line right down the center. We're supposed to be separate from the world, yet when we swear we look exactly like the world. That's why swearing is wrong.
So with that said, God wants us to be sanctified from the world to Him. We're not supposed to look like the rest of the world, we're supposed to look different, and if we're doing something that may make people wonder, then we shouldn't do it. Period.
Wow. Well, if you're still reading this then you're a trooper, and I thank you. It's just one more step on the journey that God has been teaching me in my life. With all that said, I hope to catch up on my Hiding Behind The Mask series this next week, possibly even on my day off tomorrow, but we'll see. Thank you so much for reading, and take the words that God is speaking through me to heart.
--DyingAnOriginal
This year has been different, though, in several aspects. I honestly don't know how to explain the changes that have been happening in my life except that it has to be God's hand moving and working in my life. Last summer my time at Camp Hebron was, without a doubt, life changing, and it has pushed my life off of the top of the hill and set it in a full, down-hill sprint. That's definitely not to say that there haven't been some rocks on the path and a few bumps in the road, but my life is screaming forward now at a breakneck speed that I never thought would happen. God used my time at Camp last summer as a catalyst (You see what I did there?) in my life to set in motion future events and to bring me out of the life that I was living and into a new, better life. It was January 2nd at the first night of Passion and I remember in the middle of the first worship set that evening getting this overwhelming longing for change. I remember looking at my self (not literally, but figuratively) and saying these exact words, "Alright, Ben. It's time to grow up. It's time to become a man." Coincidentally, I was reading Wild At Heart by John Eldredge at the same time. Or not coincidentally, because I don't believe in coincidence. From that moment on, my life has been put on a rollercoaster. My college plans completely changed as I got accepted to Eternity Bible College. My future plans drastically changed as I am now planning on moving permanently (Lord willing) out to Simi Valley, California. My current life has completely changed because tomorrow is April 1st, and I am still keeping up with the One Year Bible, and there is absolutely, positively no end in sight. When I got home from Passion I was really feeling convicted of all the time that I had wasted in front of the computer playing games the previous year and felt like God was telling me that I needed a cleansing from that. So like any other crazy, abnormal person who is solely led by God I got rid of all my video games that I was so ensnared in and have been game-free for three months now (and loving it). I've been listening more to myself and my thoughts and feelings, passions and hobbies. One thing that I like doing is taking pictures, and someday I want to become really good at it, so I made the commitment (the previous Ben was awful at keeping them) to complete Project 366 this year and take a picture every day of this entire year. I also began learning more and more guitar because it's something that God gave me to enjoy. My parents left and are on an assignment for a year, so I'm living by myself which has helped me grow up and fend for myself in this world without holding on to the coattails of my parents. Like I said, my life is on a fast track right now. To where? I have no idea, only He knows.
That was a very lengthy introduction, and if you're still tracking with me, I'd like to get into the heart of what I felt prompted to blog about this morning. Like I said before, I've been going through the One Year Bible this year, and I'm currently in the middle of Deuteronomy. In my previous attempts to begin devotions or complete the One Year assignment, I came to Exodus-Deuteronomy and completely lost all hope of ever reading the entire Bible. How could anyone in their right mind slog through the seemingly endless laws, ritual requirements, commandments, and festival instructions in the Pentateuch? To tell you the truth, it's probably one of the most boring written accounts of history that have ever been conceived, and there have been a few days where I've woken up early in the morning to get ready for school and in my groggy, half-awake state the last thing that I want to do is dive back in to reading about what would happen if your neighbor kills your uncle's dog and where he should run to, blah, blah, blah...(Note: Not literally in the Bible). Part of me feels guilty for saying such things about the Holy Word of God and what a gift it is to even be able to read these accounts that have been passed down over thousands and thousands of years, but the other part of me is screaming, "Give me a break!" However, in the midst of all this I am reminded of two things that I want to hopefully pass on to you:
1. The penalty of sin is death, and Christ's death on the cross was the ultimate sacrifice for us, so that we don't have to face that penalty
I was reading this morning about how if something happened it was punishable by death and all this stuff about do's and do not's. I couldn't help but to be reminded (how "coincidental" that it is the Easter season) of the ultimate sacrifice that was paid for all of our sins. When Christ came to earth and died on the cross, he completely rewrote the laws of redemption. In Old Testament times, if someone wanted to be forgiven of their sins, they had to go through all these rituals that involved sacrifices at the temple and do all this stuff to make themselves clean and holy again. When Christ came he said, "No, guys, I'm throwing out the entire playbook and we're changing the game. The Levite priests are no longer your mediation between God and man, and you will no longer have to go through them to seek forgiveness and redemption. I came down to earth, I humbled myself, I died for you so that you can come straight to me." This is the whole reason why the curtain in the temple that protected the Holy of Holies (where God's spirit previously dwelt)was ripped in two during the crucifixion. God's spirit--read: The Holy Spirit--was released on the world, and we now have mediation to Christ through the Holy Spirit, or Jesus Himself. In the Old Testament the penalty for anything wrong that you may have done was death, and when Christ came down, he canceled that out and said, "It's okay guys, I conquered the grave, and I conquered death. Every bad thing that you have done, are doing, and will do was laid on my shoulders, I took that upon myself and I took the death penalty for you. Crazy, right? I know. All you have to do to accept forgiveness of sin is believe in me and accept the forgiveness that I'm giving you and lay down your life--your human desires and your earthly plans--and sacrifice what you want for what I want for you." He rewrote the game and he changed the rules. We no longer have to fear death if we are in Christ, because He already beat death back to the very pit of hell whence it came.
2. God wants us to be sanctified through Him and be different from the world, even if that means looking a little different.
If you read the Old Testament laws, some of them are pretty outlandish and crazy. My favorite is where if two men are fighting and the wife of one of them tries to intervene and grabs the other one's genitals by accident her hand has to be cut off (Not exactly sure where it's at at this very moment). If you were an Israelite you could only eat certain animals at certain times of the year, you had to pay all these crazy sacrifices with all these crazy animals and follow all these crazy rules for all these crazy festivals. You had to follow all these rituals for cleansing if you had mildew in your tent or if you were having your menstrual cycle or having sex or if you had a nocturnal emission. There was all this crazy stuff that they filled four books of the Bible with it. It reminds me of just how badly Christ wants us to be different from the world. Some of the stuff in and by itself is not inherently bad, such as eating certain animals. There's absolutely nothing wrong with eating these animals, but if you were an Israelite, they were forbidden by God and you couldn't eat them. In my series that I started a while ago about hypocrisy within the church, the next topics that I want to do are swearing, drinking, and sexual activity. Swearing is one thing that I've struggled with in the past. I'll go more into this later, but part of me thinks that swearing is okay because it's a word just like any other word, it's the feelings behind the word that matter. The other, greater part of me believes that swearing may not be inherently evil (like eating certain animals), but it's something that blurs the lines between us and the world. In a world that is supposed to be black and white, Christian and Nonchristian, by swearing we're creating this fuzzy gray line right down the center. We're supposed to be separate from the world, yet when we swear we look exactly like the world. That's why swearing is wrong.
So with that said, God wants us to be sanctified from the world to Him. We're not supposed to look like the rest of the world, we're supposed to look different, and if we're doing something that may make people wonder, then we shouldn't do it. Period.
Wow. Well, if you're still reading this then you're a trooper, and I thank you. It's just one more step on the journey that God has been teaching me in my life. With all that said, I hope to catch up on my Hiding Behind The Mask series this next week, possibly even on my day off tomorrow, but we'll see. Thank you so much for reading, and take the words that God is speaking through me to heart.
--DyingAnOriginal
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