In His Love, All I Have to Give
Thoreau
“Be salt not sugar. Nice girls don’t change the world.” (Lynne Herbel)
Herbel defines “nice” as someone who conforms, someone afraid to speak their mind in the name of righteousness and justice, someone who fears man more than fearing the destruction of their conscience, someone who everyone considers sweet and caring, someone who would never offend anyone, someone who tries to please everyone.
Guilty as charged.
Saltiness preserves life. Saltiness is where the fish and life dwell. Saltiness stings.
I want to go back to that state of activism I once had. The kind of righteous indignation that would not only cry frustrated and angry tears upon seeing injustice but also be moved to approach people about it.
Change the world.
This is a horrible phrase. Horribly idealistic, horribly misplaced, horribly prideful.
Make every effort to keep your conscience pure.
We cannot act upon every single injustice known to man. But the ones that speak to us that we feel called to act upon, we can.
I’m guilty of apathy, the ONE thing that frustrated me to no end about two years ago. I still am frustrated about apathy, but it doesn’t invigorate me lately anymore.
Two years ago, I would tell everyone how insulting it was to call yourself Agnostic but in reality be Apathetic. Apathy means to “not care.” Agnosticism means an intellectual decision that “you can’t know.”
Two years ago, I would pester everyone about the latest natural disaster, humanitarian project, etc. Yes, I was exceedingly prideful in that I wanted to be the face of the statement, “change the world.”
But now, I don’t seem to make an effort at all to do anything besides donations.
Was I overly idealistic?
Did the passion die out, as my co-workers say will happen after 1-2 years?
Or have I simply secluded myself as a monk in the arms of a loving God who only wants me to become an expert on peace, meditation, and happy thoughts?
No. I’m guilty of putting God into a box again.
GOD is a wrathful God. He’s wrathful because of the injustices and crimes being committed on this Earth. Judgment is only scary to evildoers. Judgment is the most blessed sense of relief for the weak, oppressed, vulnerable.
GOD is a God in anguish over our souls. He strikes us down so that we may humble ourselves before Him and realize who we are and what our place is. He wants us to realize our inherent brokenness.
Even though God has been speaking to me about His fury and wrath and showing me His love through this aspect of Himself, I don’t think I’ve truly been understanding what He’s trying to tell me. I’ve been thanking Him for helping me to see Him as One who cares so much so as to allow suffering in order to teach us perseverance, patience, trusting in Him, etc.
But I haven’t realized that I’m also called to imitate Him.
As my co-worker says, “My favorite passage is when Jesus turned tables!” Jesus was righteously angry, but He never sinned.
It is an atrocity when we only tell people of the gentleness and meekness of Jesus. The raw realness of God lies in His tragic, pained anguish, in order that His people might come to know Him. This is what led Jesus to the cross. NOT to make our lives “prosperous and successful” in terms of superficial blessings, but that we might rely on the Sovereign Lord in all that we do, because GOD is the blessing, not anything else.
I’m convicted and convicted over and over again and it’s such a joy, because convictions have been showing me how personally God has been working in my life and how good He is to me.
“If only the will to walk is there He is pleased even with their stumbles.” (C. S. Lewis)
LORD Jesus, I pray that You would fill my heart with the will to walk wherever You call. I don’t want what’s comfortable. Master, give me the heart that hungers and thirsts after You purely; not after virtues, godly character, or any type of spiritual blessing in and of itself. Sovereign LORD, You are my rock and You are the One that I will cling to alone. I pray that You would allow me to act upon my convictions in the name of injustices but also humble me in this process that I might not become prideful in what I do. LORD, help me to make every effort to keep my conscience clear before man and You. LORD, I am breaking out of my monk shell. I want to engage the world through Your Spirit. Would it dwell within me powerfully and intimately, working in ways that are so inexplainable that I would be forced down to my knees in praise of how majestic and glorious and powerful You are, LORD God. Jesus, whatever You are convicting me of right now, I pray that You would also distance me away from the notion of serving as many people as possible. LORD, help me to recognize You as Sovereign, the One who changes the world. May it be in me as You will, the still small voice teaching me to simply be faithful in where I have been called. You are my Saviour and I thank You for rescuing me in my brokenness. I thank you that on the day I was born, I was thrown into the open field. No one came to look for me, and everyone despised me. Then, as I lay there in my blood, You came to me and said “LIVE!” (Ezk 16 paraphrased). I thank You LORD, that You constantly remind me and say, “Why will you die, O House of Israel? REPENT AND LIVE!” (Ezk 20). Would I always remember that You have granted me life and not sink back to what’s comfortable in the short-run. Would I remember that You came that we might have life and have it in abundance. Would I enjoy Your presence and continue to remember Your goodness and walk in the way You have called, not to spite man, but in spite of man. I don’t want to fear man any longer. Teach me how to fear You first, LORD Jesus.
Amen.
Avlularına Al Beni - Türkçe Hristiyan İlahisi.
Hello, would any of you be able to connect me to any Christians fluent in Arabic, French, Hindi, Khmer, Mongolian, Russian, Thai, Turkish, and any other developing country languages? We at the Pan Pacific Film Festival are trying to translate our four Gospel-focused films into as many languages as possible before January 15th so we can send them to missionaries.
Thanks so much!
Seeing God as Holy without seeing Him as our Lover —-> Condemnation
Seeing God as our Lover without seeing Him as Holy —-> Prosperity Gospel
Seeing God as both completely Holy and as our Lover <3
