So tonight was awesome...If you have ever heard of it, the film "Lord Save Us From Your Followers" was shown here at my school and we brought the filmmaker in with it for some Q & A...I'm telling you this film affirms me and brings me back into my mode where I think I can do crazy things for God and its ok...The documentary was pretty much challenging the way things had been done in the past or in large by the church in America today, led by the right wing evangelicals...The filmmaker, Dan Merchant went around just asking a lot of people what they thought of Christians and interviewed and featured a lot of cool things people around the country were doing for Christ, as well as showed the crap that gets represented by the church sometimes too...All the stuff people hate about the church and how it turns them off to Christianity...I don't do this thing justice by trying to explain it though...You have to watch it if you can get your hand on a copy...It's one of the best documentaries I have ever seen...
In recent times, I have really become fed up with the way the evangelical church is represented by and large here in the states...I do recognize though, that I came from the church and just ripping on it does nothing for the kingdom of God here on earth...Tony Campolo said something in the movie that struck me, "The church in America is a whore, but she is also my mother." Dead on. As screwed up as the church is, it still is God's people...I wouldn't ever leave it, after all, who is going to change it if everyone who wants the change leaves? But I have found something inside myself I lost...I used to be freaking nuts for God and had no problem thinking of doing crazy off-the-wall things that were destined to fail unless divinely intervened...I want to completely trust God first and let everything else pour out of that...I want to just put God in my sight and leave it there with nothing else on the horizon...I want to love people just because I love them...Out of God's love for me pours love for anyone, ANYONE...No matter where they are at, how poor or rich, what color they are, or how much patience they drive from my body...I want people to see my love and joy in life and attach it to God without question...This is definitely freaking hard, but sooo worth it...
"Hear O Israel, the Lord is out God, the Lord is One. Love the Lord your God will all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength. The second is this: Love your neighbor as yourself. There is no commandment greater than these."
Mark 12:29-31
Frick. It's so simple...How do I manage to complicate this? All I sincerely want in life is to love God and love people...It seems so weird to, but I need to ask God to help me love Him...Weird...And out of that I need to ask Him to help me see Him in everyone I see...That is by far going to be the hardest part...How did two commands given 2,000+ years ago by some Jewish carpenter get to be so hard, but yet at the same time bring the most satisfaction from life?
6 comments:
So true. It's the great paradox of "my yolk is easy, my burden is light" and "pick up your cross and follow me".....Christianity somehow manages to be incredibly difficult and also the most satisfying thing imaginable.
Good words. We need more people to do crazy things for God......even more then that, we need people that will live out their everyday lives according to the Word. Wouldn't that be something to see?
Peace brother.
It's like a two way road. The Church has misrepresented Christ in so many ways. And left those on the outside feeling alienated and frustrated. However, if you take a long look at all of the love that The Church dishes out every day in feeding the hungry and seeing those in prison and reaching those that are lost, you see that Jesus is still very much active in it. And in fact, in perfect control.
Well said Jake. Your words made me think about how I treat others.
Also, thanks for your encouraging words on my blog! Trusting God is a big one for me, in fact I didn't realize how little I trust him until my job situation happened. So, he's teaching me a lot....and it's nice to know I'm not the only one that struggles with this:) Meeting Carly was awesome! She's a gem.
God bless you
Jake,
I loved your post...... you make me think deeper every time and that is what I always want!
Bless you
Carly x
I'm still waiting for another post sinkovitz. Don't pull a Slager on me.
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