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Tuesday, March 21, 2017

...................Whimsical Wednesdays............

"It is sad to me that some people are so intent on leaving their mark on the world, that they don't care if that mark is a scar."
                                                   -Unknown

We all want to be remembered. No one among us can truly say that we would not particularly care if we slipped from this life to the next unnoticed, without making a difference, or leaving a legacy. Since the dawn of time, man has set out to change the world we were placed in. This is tragic. This is beautiful. This is truth.
We all have our heroes and villains... Vices and Versus.... Just to name a few,
Jim Elliot was a powerful young missionary to a godless tribe in Ecuador. He lived to minister. He died young, at the age of twenty-eight. Much like Christ, he was murdered at the hands of those he came to minister to... yet his words live on.
_______________________________

"He is no fool who gives 
what he cannot gain to gain 
what he cannot lose."
________________________________

C.S. Lewis was an Atheist-turned-Christian, who beautifully wove the Greater Love story of the cross into his famous series, "The Chronicles of Narnia." He was a defender of the faith, using his knowledge and wisdom to further the kingdom. He wrote, 
____________________

"It is my hope that 
When I die, all of Hell
rejoices that I am out of
the fight."
____________________

Martin Luther King Jr. Led a revolution of love against the hate of racism. He had a dream, and he dedicated his life to turning that dream into a reality. He lived, and died for his cause. He said, 

______________________

"Darkness cannot drive out 
darkness, only light can do that. 
Hate cannot drive out hate, 
only love can do that." 
________________________

These men were dream-believers, world-shakers, and kingdom-shapers. They were giants of the faith, and their legacy is an inspiration to this day. However, there are other types of world changers as well. On the other side of the coin we have, 
Adolf Hitler... his plan for world domination acted as a blade which cut the population of Jews by 63% . 5,962,129 Jewish humans were killed in the holocaust. He famously quoted, 

________________________________________

"Make the lie big, 
make it simple, 
keep saying it, 
and eventually they 
will believe it."
___________________________________

Margaret Sanger founded planned parenthood, at her best, she was a racist who viewed minority groups as, "Weeds which must be exterminated." At her worst, she possessed a killing mindset that was necessary to establish a superior race. Since it's founding, Planned Parenthood has resulted in over 50 million deaths, (at this time, more than that of the holocaust.)  She was quoted, 

___________________________________

"The most merciful thing 
that a family does to one 
of it's infant members
is to kill it."
__________________________________

These individuals have left a definite mark on the world, but that mark is a scar that will never completely heal this side of eternity. The difference between the hurters and healers, I believe is in their drive. The world cutters are driven by hate. Be it of people groups, or the voice of the victim, their hate drives them down the road of their ultimate demise. 
The comforters on the other hand are driven by a love that is not their own, They live , and at times, die for equality in chance, in choice, in voice. They long to draw others to the Greater Love of Christ by reflecting His sacrificial love to the world. We can choose to be driven by love, or by hate, and realize that we are each world changers, even if we are not the visionaries. We each have the power to invest in our environment for Christ. 
When the fallen nature of man has a significant influence, we as the church can be tempted to assume that when a ministry is not our dream, or vision, that it is not right or effective. I hope to always be aware that each established ministry is the preexisting work, and dream, of another. I want to avoid discounting a dream simply because it is not MY vision. Especially when the most prominent characteristic of a leader is their sacrifice.
I have recently felt the effects of a scar maker. The cut hurt, but the pain was not mine to claim. I do not bear the scars. It is my hope that you will go out this week ready to dream the impossible, and with God's help make it into a reality. As Elizabeth Elliot, (the wife of the martyred Jim Elliot) best put it, 

_____________________________________

"When You're wounded, 
talk to the man with 
the scars."
____________________________________

Tuesday, March 7, 2017

...................Whimsical Wednesdays............

"Knowledge speaks, but Wisdom listens."
                                                       - Jimi Hendrix
These simple, well-put words have surfaced from the shadows of my mind to the forefront of my heart. Their truth rings through the tangled thoughts and trite expressions that tear our culture apart today. 
It is often difficult to decipher the difference between knowledge and wisdom, I suppose that the separation lies in the location. Knowledge is head work, wisdom is heart work. Simply put, knowledge is an award for the pursuit of learning. Wisdom on the other hand, is a gift given to the humble seeking heart. Knowledge takes many different forms in our society. The artist interprets their version of the truth. The scholar invents questions never meant to be answered, and the philosopher questions his purpose. We listen to their pleas for attention and offer up our concentration to the desperate pursuit of knowledge on the altar of progress. This way of thinking is not segregated to the secular world, this mindset is often applied in the church today. Pastor's and teacher's wield knowledge in a desperate attempt to become more appealing to the public. There are several issues hidden in the folds of this practice. The first being that Knowledge is human gained, and anything with a significant amount of influence from man's fallen nature holds the definite potential for pride. The second point comes from the Bible in Ecclesiastes 12:12 which warns, 
"My son, beware of anything beyond these. Of making many books there is no end, and much study is a weariness of the flesh." This is not to say that knowledge is evil... But rather that knowledge without the proper dose of wisdom is not profitable to the soul, it tends to produce legalism, and religion; the very principles Jesus came to abolish. If we could have 'earned' Heaven, or worked our way out of the pit of sin, the cross wouldn't have been necessary. The cup of suffering could have passed. But that's not how history panned out. It pleased the Father to crush the son because the God of hope is a champion of the helpless. Where do we come off thinking that we can earn it? How dare we dream of doing it on our own? Why do we feel that we must portray the perfect image of ourselves at all times. Do we really have it all together? Personally, I believe that my beauty is found in  my willing brokenness before the "offense" of the bloodied battered cross. It captivates me daily with it's perfect mixture of suffering, sorrow, sacrifice, shame, boldness, brokenness, bravery, beauty, LOVE. So I kneel in the shadow of the cross and accept from this symbol of death the life that it offers. 
I want to mirror Jesus's love to the world... And one of the things that I love about Jesus, is that when the crowds gathered and longed to talk to Him, He didn't interrupt, He didn't disregard them, He didn't listen with the intent of responding. He showed that He cherished them in His focused listening. I want to do the same. I want to listen to others as a wisdom gleaner... Will you join me? Together we can reignite the fire of the church if we accept the gift of unity that Christ offers. Let us set out today determined to live in the wisdom and love that has been lavished on us since before the start of time. The world may call us child-like, but then, isn't that the ultimate goal? Perhaps we shouldn't focus on dissecting God's word, but rather set our hearts on living it out. After all, once you start dissecting something, it's already dead. Today I want to accept the word of God without question. As Evelyn Underhill best said, 
"If God were small enough to be understood, He would not be big enough to be worshiped."
I do not wnat to become so entangled in the pursuit of knowing everything ABOUT God that I miss the experience of ACTUALLY knowing God.