Free To Love ...

The natural result of liberation is the exhilaration that accompanies freedom.  Seems fairly obvious, but Christians who have been trapped for so many years in a failure-forgiveness-failure cycle have no idea what it feels like to experience the exhilaration of real freedom from sin.  The freedom that comes from the victories of Christ in your own personal experience is a joy that words can hardly describe.  It is quite literally heaven on earth.  The surrender of self, and the death of my stubborn will, leads to the unexplainable victories over self inflicted pain by Jesus on my behalf.  Freedom is so new, so real, so weight lifting of the burden on the soul, it is pure exhilaration.  But the near immediate thought becomes … now what?

Caught in a daze of ecstasy the mind is finally freed of constantly focusing on failure.  The mind has literally been freed of this, but then, freed for what.  The answer quite simply is free to love.  People believe they experience love throughout their lives, most in a few different contexts.  The loving relationships of parent and child, friend to friend, and the romantic interest with a significant other, are all representations of love.  But even within all these various contexts the love in the relationships suffers from human weakness.  The biggest culprit in ruining relationships and lessening the true joy of pure love is the same root of all evil, self. 

Self interest is the reason why people say a marriage is a 50 / 50 proposition.  But this is fallacy as it simply does not work.  Making the decision to give, but only to a self-described pre-defined limit, is a virtual surety for disappointment.  Whether by intent, or by omission, partners disappoint each other – particularly when focused on their own self interests.  The only recipe for a truly successful marriage is 100 / 100.  The difference is not just numeric, it is substantive.  It means both partners will give 100% of themselves, ALL the time, no matter what, no matter when, no matter how – and perhaps most importantly – no matter what their partner does with this gift.  Doing this is nearing the character of Christ, and being successful at it, requires the knowledge we have uncovered of surrender to His will.

Applying the 100 / 100 rule to dating tends to lead back to marriage again.  Although in all honesty the energy this takes is quite difficult to pull off in a multiple partner scenario; which is why the context of marriage makes the idea of giving 100% of yourself to your partner more palatable.  It takes intimacy to do this.  It takes trust to do this.  It is not so much about what you get out of the relationship from your partner, but what you get out of it from SERVING your partner.  The service is the reward.  This concept is a constant in all types of loving relationships.

Parents love their children instinctually, but this does not eliminate human weakness in the parents.  Quite frankly parents get tired.  In fact, not just tired, fricking exhausted.  They just want sleep.  If they cannot get that, then just some quiet moments might be a welcome relief.  Does this diminish the love they feel for the noisy child?  No.  But it does explain some the hair-brained ideas that leak out of a parents mouth when at wits end dealing with an energetic self willed child.  Some of these sentiments do not make sense.  Some defy physics.  But it is human weakness that exerts itself when the bumps in the road occur.  The truth is that parents give to their children on a level that children do not understand or appreciate.  The giving is more automatic, and less appreciated.  The difference between children and adults, are that adults understand and appreciate how much sacrifice has been done on their account – children remain blind to this concept.

The idea of giving 100% of yourself seems inconsistent with your history and ability levels.  It is because this idea is not achievable within human limits or human strength.  Over time, even the most patient, most giving person, wears out, wears thin, and exerts signs of human frailty.  Christians understand human weakness as they have been immersed in it.  So forgiveness provides the glue to repair the cracks, breaks, and fractures human frailty causes.  But living in a world of true surrender, means living in a world where the normal limits are not applicable anymore.  It is not you, but Him.  It is not your strength, but His strength.  It is not your body’s limits that will provide the gateway, it is your body subordinated to the superhuman abilities of God Himself.

Unburdened by self inflicted pain, and armed with the exhilaration of freedom from self inflicted evil, the mind and body are renewed in an energy that does not diminish.  The entire intent of liberation is to make you free from what would have previously bound you.  Freedom from fear for example; imagine yourself free from the fear that interrupts or impedes your abilities to love another.  You need not fear rejection any longer, as you KNOW you are loved beyond measure by the source of all love.  God’s love for you is deeply personal as you have already begun to experience.  His love and His will, will guide you to the proper desire of your heart.  Subordinating your will to His will, and allowing your desires to be molded to the desires He would have for you – frees you.  It frees you from fear of rejection, fear of betrayal, fear of being ridiculed.  These responses come from those who have not had the intimacy that you are experiencing with God.

Imagine what Mary’s life must have been like with a child like Jesus to raise.  Jesus was and is the source of all Love.  He was ALWAYS willing to serve, to be useful, to do for others – his mother would have been no exception, rather, as the closest member of his contacts, he would have been serving her perhaps most of all, just due to proximity.  Jesus gave of himself 100% every day.  He subordinated His will to that of His Father.  And what is our God like?  They are one in service to others, in Their particular case, in service to Their own creation.  Self interest does not enter the equation.  Jesus was burdened with the same human infirmities as we all have, yet through constant submission to His Father, He served.  So can we.  So should we.

Free to love.  Ever wondered what it would be like to have the time to do what you want to do.  Time management like everything else in our lives before surrender is prioritized by our self interest.  But surrender brings a new outlook on what we have time to do.  Specifically the time we would have previously spent on serving self is now free to serve another.  It comes packaged with the strength and energy we need, and is activated by the faith in motion of stepping forward despite the outlook.  We move knowing that what we need will be there when we need it.  Whether that be funds, time, energy, or even mental ability.  Nothing is restricted from those who surrender their own wills, to the will of our Father.  The exhilaration of liberation knows no bounds.

The most fundamental change that comes from real surrender is the source of happiness moves from the transient insatiable focus on self to the fulfilling and lasting service to others.  Happiness deepens.  Contentment reaches a level you did not think possible.  It all comes from the surrender of your will to His.  It all comes from accepting the entire gift He offers, not just a part of it.  As the core of you changes, you become more like Christ.  You begin to take joy in what He takes joy in.  And conversely you begin to experience pain in what He finds pain in.  But the change is so complete, so wonderful, and so enlightening – it will be the reason that world wants to know why you are so different.  If they are not asking yet, don’t worry, keep surrendering, and they will.

Time to join God in the pursuit of His existence – to love others.  Welcome to the freedom he offers to make this possible.  The text that all things are possible with Him, has never been more true, more real, or more attainable.  Surrender and find out what it is I am talking about …

Nothing But Upside ...

Have you rediscovered your childhood yet?  Most adults of a certain age, have a hard time imagining themselves as children once again – young, innocent, protected, provided for, and loved unconditionally.  Adults who are parents aspire to make these conditions a reality for their own children, but even parents have a hard time thinking of themselves as mere children.  Yet our Savior said … “of such (referring to little children) is the Kingdom of Heaven.”  He then went on to stress the importance of receiving the Kingdom of Heaven like little children.  So I ask again, have you gotten back in touch with your inner-child?

One of the biggest shortcomings of today’s Christian believer is how similar they are to the world around them.  Both believers and unbelievers suffer the same set of conditions in the world, some good, and some not.  But today’s Christian is hardly distinguishable from the non-believer in terms of their responses to the situations life presents.  The core of the reason for this problem is the interjection of “self” into the Christian religion.  Christians focus on “self” to find the will to resist temptation, overcome their own sins, and share the gospel with others – pointing out to them all the faults the Bible helps plainly identify.  They assume this to be their Christian duty.  It is not.  Neither is the gospel, the Gospel, when self lies at its core.

The entire concept of Christians gaining control over their own impulses, or over their periodic temptations is an illusion inspired by focusing on self as the means to the end – rather than on Christ who alone can achieve these goals.  “Control” is itself a fantasy.  The only being that could possibly exert control is God, and then only when we get out of the way and allow Him to do so.  But denying God control over our lives does not mean we take it back.  It means we default control to another being who remains our sworn enemy.  But the humans who most easily understand their lack of control, and do not seem to mind at all, are children.

Children have no need of control, as everything in their world is taken care of for them … nothing but upside really.  When we relinquish our perceived control over to God for Him to implement His will in our lives, we are freed from all the stress, anguish, and exhaustion that comes from trying so hard to be the good parent, the responsible adult, the failing prodigal.  God becomes our parent.  It is He who takes care to make sure we eat.  It is He who takes care to make sure we have cloths to wear, shelter from the elements, and protection from the enemy.  Who better to provide for every one of our needs than our own Father God? 

Do children stress out over these very real and very present needs?  No.  Generally, they are too busy playing and having fun.  Children are free to laugh, play, and enjoy the friendship of the Lord.  Children find joy in discovery.  Children find joy in sharing with their playmates, inventing games, talking with each other, hanging out.  Children don’t stress about unemployment, recessions, homelessness, or starvation – at least the children who are being provided for.  And with the Lord as your parent, can you not be the child who becomes free from all these worries as well?

Think about it – you do NOT control your career.  You can send out 10 thousand resumes and never get a hit.  You can interview hundreds of time and rejected every single time.  You can be demoted.  You can be fired.  You can lose your benefits, your pay, your insurance – at the drop of a hat.  Your company can go out of business, through no fault of your own.  All these things can happen to you without any control on your part.  So do you blame God for them when they do?  I wonder, when the converse happens, do you believe you are any more in control than when catastrophe strikes?  When you get a raise, a promotion, a new job at a new firm – do you take the credit for your outstanding work efforts, your skills, prowess, political ability, or task performance?  Why?  It is no more you in control when the good things happen, than you in control when trouble comes your way.

But children do not concern themselves with these things.  So why should you?  Be free from it all.  Trust in your Father, that He will provide you with what you need to survive.  He will cause a job to come your way.  He will guide you on the job.  He will insure your success, and your downfalls, according to the larger needs of your life – according to what is truly important, beyond mere financial success, to spiritual success.  But start by learning to let it all go, like a child, and trust your Dad, your Heavenly based Dad.

Once you work, you eat, you tend to find shelter and clothing.  The discipline of work keeps your hands busy and your mind from becoming idle.  But children do not live to work.  Neither do they live to play.  They live to love.  And they are much more able than their adult counterparts to remember that love means more than work, play, or even eating.  Children sacrifice themselves for love.  They will give their food to a hungry pet because they love them.  They will give away their favorite toys, for love.  They hold nothing back, because nothing is held from them.

This is what your Father in Heaven died literally to give to you.  He wants to take care of your every need, your every desire, and shield you from every pain.  This is the continued good news of Salvation, it is the gift basis it comes in.  It requires nothing of you.  Your “self” can safely die and in its place can be born a servant’s heart.  Instead of trying so hard to master your own destiny, experience the freedom of becoming a child whose destiny lies in the loving hands of a Heavenly parent who is fully capable of insuring we reach it.  It is not up to us what we become, it is up to God.  All we need to do, is get out of the way, and allow Him to lead us there.

There is nothing but upside when God is allowed the control over our wills.  This is a daily surrender with phenomenal results.  And change is not only possible like this, it is IMPOSSIBLE to resist.  It is real, current, and happens.  You will become a new person.  And in so doing you will look less and less like your counterparts in the world around you.  You may experience the same situations they encounter, but your responses will be completely different.  Your attitudes completely stress free.  The difference is that God has become REAL to you.  Not just a collection of stories in a Bible you read about other people’s relationships with Him – No – He becomes REAL to you.  It is the birth of a personal salvation you are experiencing. 

An end to the sin you have struggled so hard and so long to overcome; now it simply melts away from you; unburdening your heart from the stress, guilt, and painful cycles you have been bound to.  It simply goes away.  Your desires begin to become purified.  Your thoughts begin to be lifted from the mire and dirt of this world to the sublime peace of the next one.  Your love begins to intensify in a way you could otherwise not have ever experienced.  These are the differences the world longs to know.  These are the true reasons the gospel spread all over the world, not be an albatross around the necks of the guilty – but to be the key that unlocks the chains of sin that have so long bound the world to its pain.  This is the gospel in its simplicity and its power.

I have found the freedom of letting it all go to the Lord.  I am far from perfect, and would class myself as chief among sinners, but now I see more than a hope for the end of sin, I am experiencing the reality of it.  Though not yet fully employed again, I am not stressing out over it at all.  I have embraced the peace of trusting to God’s greater will, my employment will come from Him, where and when and for who He decides.  I will have no credit in it, as I have no control over it.  It is humbling to be completely dependent on God, but more so it is completely liberating.  I serve no abstract God.  My God is real.  And I pray my life will be a testimony to the reality of His goodness.  For now I go back to playing till Dad calls me up again …

Even More Gifts ...

Imagine yourself on a Christmas morning and after you and your family finish opening presents to each other.  A Semi-tractor-trailer pulls up in front of your house completely filled with yet more presents for you and your loved ones.  Astonished, you and your family set about opening up these hundreds of new and unexpected things.  You can hardly imagine where you are going to put everything, when a train whistle blows and a messenger informs you, that an entire train load of gifts is destined to your home.  What do you do?

Most of us cannot imagine ourselves in this kind of situation.  We know all about the presents we buy for each other around birthdays and holidays like Christmas.  We know how much we spent, on who, and more or less have an idea what they will think of our gifts.  But a semi-truck full of stuff we love but never expected?  How could this be?  Who would be spending so extravagantly on us?  Followed by an entire train-load of even more things?  It is too much.  It is way more than we … expected, deserved, have room for, perhaps … more than we can even appreciate.

You might begin to think about sharing your new found fortune with others in your more extended circle of family and friends.  If the bounty is even too much for them (picture an entire train cargo car filled with Playstation 3 gear), you may even share some bounty with your neighbors.  People would wonder at your new found fortune.  It might even make the local news story, how for some reason you are so richly blessed.  This would be uncommon.  This would look like a real miracle to most.

This entire concept of giving itself is so central to our gospel.  There are those less happy Christians who believe all they have been given is a second chance.  Still others who believe heaven is a gift, but so uncertain about how freedom from sin will ever occur.  Then there are those believers who begin to understand the magnitude of the gift we have been offered by our God.  Freedom from sinful behavior would have been far more than we deserved, but the gift is nowhere near finished with just restricting our actions.  No, so much more is offered; freedom from sinful tendencies; from sinful thoughts; from sinful desires.  Our minds are made free by the gift of salvation.  Our bodies follow.

But the gift is not done yet.  The freedom from the pain of self inflicted misery leads to a life of joy, a life of service that brings contentment and fulfillment that the world cannot touch, but only envy.  Since the world at large is so focused on self, it cannot understand or appreciate the simple joy of giving with no expectation.  Yet this truth is revealed in shining glory to those whose minds have been set free from accepting the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ.  Mental clarity; bound neither to tradition or genetic influence; clearness and presence of mind to realize even more how much this gift keeps on giving.

It is impossible to experience this kind of freedom and joy and not want to share it with those you love.  When you love someone you want them to be happy, you want what is in their best interest.  So it is plain and obvious that upon experiencing this kind of life altering event you would want to share it with those you care about.  You cannot help yourself.  You cannot contain it.  And the sharing is so simple and easy.  It is merely pointing out what made the changes within you, the source of all love, all freedom, all joy – Jesus Christ and His gift of salvation to man.  That’s all there is to it.  You don’t need to point out the sin in others, God will do that; just as surely as He will fix it within them.  It does not matter how they live now, what they do now, what they want now – all those things will be changed by God in His time when they simply accept the gift.  God will save them, that is not your job either; which makes the sharing of this gift simple, easy, and burden free.

This is the fulfillment of the text of our brother James wrote that “Faith without works is dead”.  When you accept the gift of God, and allow Him to transform your life, He takes away ALL of your pain, and gives you peace.  You can face any adversity, bare any circumstances, tolerate any cruelty the world and the devil send your way – for the Lord is with you.  And the peace that leaps from your heart is like a light the whole world marvels at.  It is impossible to contain it.  As our brother James states, you would have to be dead, not to share what you have found, once you find it.

The biggest problem with Christian “witnessing” today is that people have no idea “what” it is they are supposed to be sharing.  This is because they have NOT personally experienced it.  They know no victory over sin from the unexplainable power of God.  They know no infinite joy from the freedom over even the tendency to do evil, as they focus on self all the time and evil that lives within it.  Christians call themselves by a name, but have no idea what the gospel really is.  They sing worship songs, and listen to the relationship stories of others, instead of having one of their own.  They try to share with others the need to repent of sins they themselves have every desire to commit.  They condemn others for their lack of faith and interest in God, while offering no real reason to inquire about the differences He has made in their lives – as there are none.  These poor Christians must learn to let go of self, and allow God to create a new them.

The joy of sharing the gift with someone else, and watching God work in their lives like He works in your own is almost unfathomable.  But the gift is not done giving there either.  You barely have unpacked the semi truck of gifts from God, when the message comes that entire TRAIN is waiting for you.  But that is correct.  The third part of our Creator Godhead, named the Holy Spirit has an additional set of gifts only He can bestow on the newly changed hearts.  Just when you thought it would be impossible to have room for more joy, here comes a trainload.

The text outlining them is found beginning in 1 Corinthians 12:8; they consist of … the word of Wisdom; the word of Knowledge; Faith; gifts of Healing; working of Miracles; Prophesy; Discerning of spirits; Speaking in multiple languages; and the Interpretation of languages.  And along with the various abilities the Holy Spirit can bestow there are also a number of profiles that believers may find themselves gifted with as well, they are ordered as follows … Apostles; Prophets; Teachers; Miracle workers; Healers; Helpers; Administrators; and Communicators.  Not everyone is given every gift, or can do every function.

But who decides who gets what gifts – as stated earlier God (in the form of the Holy Spirit).  These are His gifts to give and He makes the decisions regarding who gets what.  And herein is the trainload of even more joy.  Every believer is given from this offering.  Upon discovering the joy of altering your entire life, comes the heretofore unknowable joy of interacting with the divine on a level only a person of faith could begin to appreciate.  Experiencing the Power of our God in these ways on a personal level tends to make one bold in the face of evil.  As you begin to understand the infinite power of our God, and the extents He has gone to save you – you are at the same time humbled to prostrate yourself on your face before our God – but also emboldened to stand and face any evil the devil may throw at you with no fear at all – for it is not your power but God’s he must face. 

This is how the Apostles could stand in front of the Sanhedrin or in the courts of earthly kings and preach with the passion of our God.  It is not that they were well educated, articulate, well read, well spoken leaders born of generations of Ivy-League privilege.  They were merely simply fisherman, sinners, who bowed their heads in shame before their Lord.  But as these gifts of the Spirit were given them, they became something more than common, more than meager fishermen, they became orators such as the world has never known.  The convicting power of the Holy Spirit moved through those assemblies reaching out to every hardened heart trying so desperately to love them back to reconciliation with their estranged God.  But most would have none of it.  They stiffened their opposition, burying selfish motives in moral platitudes thinking they did the work of God, when in fact though they were the established church to that point in time, they did the work of Satan himself.

So if God gives us salvation, and then continues to give us these gifts, what else does that mean for believers.  Perhaps it means we should honor our God, by accepting His gifts and His servants into the roles He intends for them to perform.  Christians were given the Holy Spirit upon accepting the Gospel of Jesus Christ, not after studying for years and years and years about it.  It was immediate, and real.  And it can be again.  But we must not harden our hearts and refuse to take counsel or advice from someone because they are too old, too young, too new at being a Christian, a female, a sinner, perhaps even a homosexual.  To whom God bestows His gifts, we should not dare to second guess, or impede His plans for us, or for our brothers in faith.  And just when you think the gift might be done in the giving … there is so so much more …

Smelling the Color Green ...

There are times when our human nature focuses the mind so intently on our current condition that we forget what anything else might actually be like.  We have talked a great number of times about the importance of focus, and on its influence in helping determine our reality.  This week, I went to the movies to see the new hit Watchmen, and found it visually stunning, but generally dark.  What I thought might be an escape flick into an alternate reality, was more of a humanizing portrayal of your average superhero.

On leaving the theatre, all the problems and bad news on the economy was right back in my face, and my focus was dragged into the dark once again.  But then I got to thinking, what will it be like to be truly and finally free from evil and all of its influences?  Free from the addiction of sin.  Free from the repetitious downward cycles of relapse and repentance.  Free to think clearly.  Free to trust that your desires are free of what would otherwise ruin you.  The freedom of Salvation fully and finally realized.

The where is less important than the when.  Could I see this condition within my own life time here on planet earth?  Long have I believed that perfection was impossible to attain.  I was partially correct.  Perfection, as accomplished by humans, for humans, is impossible.  But perfection as accomplished by God within humans is not only possible, it is the very gift of Salvation.  It is not our work to perform, but to witness.  It is not our job to do, but our reward to benefit from.  Golden streets are great, but weighed down with the chains of addictive evil, the golden streets would lose their shine.  Heaven’s great walls would become merely a new shiny prison if still trapped in the bondage to sin.  It is freedom from sin God offers first, not eternal life.

We associate the color green with rich forests, blades of grass, leaves on trees, and if you stretch your mind a little, with the smells that accompany these items.  But green is also the color of money, mold, and bacteria that all carry a far less pleasant odor.  We don’t try to smell color, but if we did, what we associate with Green says more about what we focus on than perhaps we would like to admit.  Our nagging current condition always seems to bring us down, bring us back, to a focus on self – even if it is only to loathe self.  With some effort, we can break this bond, choose to center our minds on positive things, and smell the forest green, the pines, the deep forest air.

The best part about being free, is the joy that comes with it.  It is nearly impossible to have joy without freedom.  Our bondage to sin robs us of the joy we would otherwise have, and replaces it with woe.  But someday, maybe even soon, we will be free.  And our freedom creates such joy within us.  If we could focus more on it now, we would feel that joy more now.  It might actually change our demeanor.  It might actually make us happier people, capable of looking at the same sad surroundings as our peers, but able to see beyond the bondage and into a time of REAL freedom, and real joy.

I like happy people.  For that matter I enjoy happy movies, or movies that end with a happy ending.  I like watching happiness.  For some of us, this is as close to happiness as we have ever been, to watch it happen in others.  So often happiness has been associated with temporary gratification, which turns a happy moment, into a fleeting one.  You can’t maintain or extend a happy moment that is based on mere gratification.  Once gratified, the moment is gone.  You need another happy fix.  This is the basis of most all chemical addiction.

But have you ever seen happiness that does not go away; Happiness that lasts and lasts and does not seem to diminish.  Or perhaps you have a happy memory that has not dimmed over time.  If this is true, I would be willing to bet the memory, or the feeling you witnessed, is grounded in love for others.  When we serve, and we love another, we find a happiness that does not fritter away.  While serving others we focus less on ourselves, more on the needs we are trying to meet.  In so doing we set our focus away from self, the source of all evil, and again we become free to have joy.

Christians were made to be happy.  Christians are by design, setup for extended bouts of joy, bouts that seem to have no end.  Our cares, concerns, and worries we are able to lay on the altar of prayer.  We can trust in our God like a small child trusts a parent (completely and implicitly).  And the gift of salvation (the saving of man from the evil he is now slave to) literally inspires joy within us.  Therefore, sad Christians, must have fallen into the trap of looking the wrong way.  In light of your God, there is no reason to be anything but filled with JOY.

Christians can have joy that is not fleeting, not based on chemical additives, not self indulgent, and it can come in HUGE quantities.  Christians get many things with their joy.  They get freedom.  They get salvation from evil.  They get a tender loving Father God who wishes only to be present in their lives.  Christians get intimacy with the Creator of all things.  Christians even get forgiveness for things they wish they had never even done.  What a package comes with our joy.

It is not the occasional worship song, or special music, or weekly sermon that is the source of our joy.  The true source of our joy is the knowledge of where it comes from, and the freedom that accompanies it.  If we had our fundamentals in order we would understand this so much better.  Salvation is not being saved from the Fires of Hell.  Salvation is not being made ready for Heaven.  Salvation is not brainwashing away your intellect and replacing it with blind obedience to an invisible God.  Salvation is not even walking down golden streets, and living forever in a city whose light comes from the Throne of God himself.  Saved from evil.  Saved from slavery.  Saved from self.  Reconciled back to God.  This is salvation.

Rather than trying to fix ourselves, or smell the color green, perhaps we should learn to simply accept what He offers.  Rather than accept a life focused on darkness, why not accept the light that illuminates our freedom, and shines on our joy.  I love that our God is not about negativity, not about dictatorship, not about solemnity.  I love that our God gave us the gift of joy; of loud unabashed joy; of grateful noisy joy; of joy you cannot possibly contain; of joy that lasts and lasts.  Our God is truly good …