Too Crazy to EVER be Crazy! - 1
Let’s face it, to LIVE for Jesus is crazy!
Crazy radical! Crazy fun! Crazy lonely! Sometimes comes with Crazy threats! And, should always be abounding with CRAZY LOVE! Most of us fake it and therefore, most don’t really notice what’s REAL. We reward big numbers, big buildings and big events but forget that knowing the nameless, feeding the famine or caring for the castoffs is where the HUGE CRAZY heart of Jesus beats loudest!
12 Truths that Keep Me Sane! (part 1)
1. Save the Best for the BEST!
“Come now, let’s settle this,” says the lord. “Though your sins are like scarlet, I will make them as white as snow. Though they are red like crimson, I will make them as white as wool. Isaiah 1:18
Before daybreak the next morning, Jesus got up and went out to an isolated place to pray. Mark 1:35
Did you know the Creator of the universe wants to spend personal time with you? This is one of those appointments we should see as important. If you were going to a job interview, you’d show up prepared. You wouldn’t be tired, or easily distracted. You’d listen well and do your best to communicate clearly. The same is true with time spent with God: show up ready to listen and learn (don’t see this as a perfect example: you need to try to impress your perspective boss; this isn’t true with God). One way to help you get ready is to pick a time when you are at your best. Are you a morning person or a night person? Set aside your best time for the best person in your life: God. You may show up to math class tired, and if you did it all the time, you’d never learn. Why do we sometimes live out our faith like it’s a class we don’t like?
2. No Days Off!
O God, you are my God; I earnestly search for you. My soul thirsts for you; my whole body longs for you in this parched and weary land where there is no water…Your unfailing love is better than life itself; how I praise you! I will praise you as long as I live, lifting up my hands to you in prayer. Psalm 63:1, 3-4
You need to be consistent with the time you spend with God; once a month, or even once a week simply won’t cut it. This principle is very easy to understand but difficult to practice. You’d be surprised at the number of people who complain of a stagnant faith, yet haven’t read their Bible in a month, and then wonder why they’re not growing. It's important to create a consistent time (even five minutes a day is a great start) and place, where you are comfortable, away from distractions, and is easily accessible. Quality AND quantity is important! Take a look at your time, how much are you wasting?
3. Lookout for Potholes!
“I know all the things you do. I have seen your hard work and your patient endurance. I know you don’t tolerate evil people. You have examined the claims of those who say they are apostles but are not. You have discovered they are liars. 3 You have patiently suffered for me without quitting. 4 “But I have this complaint against you. You don’t love me or each other as you did at first! 5 Look how far you have fallen! Turn back to me and do the works you did at first. If you don’t repent, I will come and remove your lampstand from its place among the churches. Revelation 2:2-5
This is one of the most important RULEs on this list because this passage was originally written on this issue of faith getting stuck in a rut. John’s advice is simple and to the point: do the things you did when you first became a Christian. Remember the joy and excitement you had when you began taking God seriously? Remember the anticipation you felt right before you went to church or read your Bible--that feeling of, “I can’t wait for this!”
When I first became a Christian, I spent a lot of time reading the Bible, making notes and writing out my questions. I journaled nearly everyday because I wanted to make sure I discovered the things God wanted to teach me that day. Sometimes I forget to do these “first things” because I pridefully label them as “basic,” thinking that I’m too advanced for those baby steps (I’m ashamed that sometimes I even think, “I don’t need to read this passage in Scripture, I’ve read it a million times before”). Nothing could be further from the truth! Leaving behind the “first things” is a sure way to remain in the rut. What were those first things you loved to do? If a Christian wants to avoid (or climb out of) the rut, he or she needs to do the “first things” always. Here’s a great goal: live every day of faith as if it were the first day. Rediscover the “first things” you did to grow, and pursue them with all of your heart.
4. Forgive Like You Want to be Forgiven!
I don’t mean to say that I have already achieved these things or that I have already reached perfection. But I press on to possess that perfection for which Christ Jesus first possessed me. 13 No, dear brothers and sisters, I have not achieved it, but I focus on this one thing: Forgetting the past and looking forward to what lies ahead, 14 I press on to reach the end of the race and receive the heavenly prize for which God, through Christ Jesus, is calling us. Philippians 3:12-15
“So if you are presenting a sacrifice at the altar in the Temple and you suddenly remember that someone has something against you, 24 leave your sacrifice there at the altar. Go and be reconciled to that person. Then come and offer your sacrifice to God. Matthew 5:23-24
Don’t feel guilty for missing past quiet times--especially to the point of paralysis. The purpose of guilt is to move you closer to God, not the despair of moving further away. Every Christian makes mistakes, and guilt is the Holy Spirit’s whisper inviting you back to the Cross for God’s forgiveness. When you stumble in your faith, commit to “failing forward:” come to God and ask his forgiveness. If you slack off in your current devotional plan (you should have one, see below, the “Variety RULE”), don’t try to “catch up.” Just continue to move forward. Rest in God’s grace, it is the only path for continual growth.
There is another aspect of this RULE: if you want to worship God in the way that he intended, you need to seek the forgiveness of others when you wrong them. If you have offended another person, you’ll need to do what it takes to make amends in order to remove that stumbling block to your growth.
5. Obey your way past your Feelings!
In the same way, when you obey me you should say, ‘We are unworthy servants who have simply done our duty.’” Luke 17:10
There is an interesting and complicated relationship between our feelings and our actions. While I can’t pretend to understand all of the intricacies of the how we were made, I do know that feelings and actions impact each other. Actions change feelings, and feelings change actions. Here is the truth of this principle: don’t let the overwhelming feelings that come from rut-like spirituality keep you from obedience. Negative feelings shouldn’t keep you from doing the good we already know to do.
6. Don’t Fake the Faith!
So the lord will spell out his message for them again, one line at a time, one line at a time, a little here, and a little there, so that they will stumble and fall. They will be injured, trapped, and captured.. Isaiah 28:13
“Watch out! Don’t do your good deeds publicly, to be admired by others, for you will lose the reward from your Father in heaven. Matthew 6:1
It’s abundantly clear that God is concerned with the condition of a person’s heart. There’s a word that describes a person whose actions don’t reflect their heart: hypocrite. God wants pure hearts, not falsified actions. He isn’t looking for people who “act” good but aren’t good on the inside. It is important for a Christian not to do things simply because it’s what “looks good” or is the Christian “socially acceptable” thing to do.
Unfortunately, Christians are great shots when it comes to shooting their wounded. This creates an environment where people feel the need to be fake, fearfully hiding spiritual weaknesses. It’s important not to do things when you don’t feel like doing them. Don’t ritualize your faith, turning it into a series of meaningless, empty actions. Just “going through the motions” isn’t helpful for continued spiritual growth, and it doesn’t impress God.
**come back tomorrow for Part 2.
