I forgot!

It is so easy to forget...that our lives are his, not our own.

I hate that I desire my own way!!! UGH!!

          Do you ever get totally livid at the fact that you can’t break your own selfishness?? I mean... what the heck! My own will frustrates me to no end. It’s somewhat laughable because… I get a bad attitude whenever my will has taken 2nd priority to another’s will; then, when I realize my selfishness and [un]Christ-likeness, I get a bad attitude at my stupid, idiotic, ugly, sinful, self-serving nature! I know, I know, don’t be too hard on yourself, Nate, Right? Look…I know that we are all like this in a sense, right?

Right?!

If it is only me then I guess I really have a problem. Well…anyways, sometimes I just get tired of the fight, you know- the endless battle to tear away the things (sin) that make me/us so ugly. Thank God… that God can see through those things; through the “ugliness”. Thank god that he was willing to take the form of a man and sacrifice his Son in order to make that possible. But…you know… even though God forgives… and can see Christ’s righteousness in me… It still doesn’t take away my desire to honor Him, to be more like Him, to model my wonderful, perfect, good, loving, serving, gracious, just, willing to go to the death for his love, God. He is worthy…and I love Him… and I hate any desire that is at enmity with His perfect Kingdom.

Heaven.

In order to come to any rational conclusion, the laws of logic are imperative. God has ingrained in mankind the ability to reason using the laws of logic. These laws are built in the fabric of our minds because we are created in the image of God...of Jesus! He knew that we would need this tool to function in a world full of deceit, corruption and sin. I mean, just think, would we need to use this logic in a world of truth? No, but in a world of sin. When all we have is truth, all we have is truth! Here there is no place for argument, no place for correction, gray areas, or false judgments…

Heaven!

Law of Logic -vs- Faith

 When speaking of general knowledge, morality, and basic laws of the material world, I would say that the three basic principles of logic- the law of noncontradiction, the law of excluded middle, and law of identity, are very rooted in the Creator God.¹ For example, to say that the natural color of grass is blue could never be a true statement, because we know that the natural color of grass is always green. There are no grey areas or middle grounds with the natural color of grass.

 On the other hand, I would have to say that, as a child of God, faith in God goes far beyond these borders of logic. For example, in the book of Joshua, and in the sixth chapter, it states in the 21^st verse-

“They devoted the city to the LORD and destroyed with the sword every living thing in it—men and women, young and old, cattle, sheep and donkeys (Joshua.”

…and also states in verse 24…

“Then they burned the whole city and everything in it, but they put the silver and gold and the articles of bronze and iron into the treasury of the LORD’s house.”   

Wow.

I don’t know about you….but these two verses are very disturbing for me. Actually more of a shock! Is this the God I serve? Is this the same God of love spoken of in John chapter four- a God ordering his people to go into cities and slaughter innocent children (1 Jn 4:8)? I think it is safe to claim the, “lean not on your own understanding” verse here, you think (Pr 3:5)? What about the sixth commandment “Thou shall not murder”? It would seem that the law of noncontradiction, along with the law of excluded middle, seemed to have just projected out the window at this point…and I still haven’t even touched base on verse 24 yet! I don’t think I really need to expound much about the content of that verse…it speaks for it self.

 The rational truth in this circumstance, that a believer must conclude, is that we cannot understand the mind of God, the actions of God, or the motives of our Lord. This is very imperative to our faith! Faith means believing in something we cannot fully understand. Faith goes beyond the laws of logic…better stated- God goes beyond the laws of logic. Obviously the city of Jericho, that was destroyed in the book of Joshua, was a city that was standing in the middle of God’s will, and God needed to forcefully move that obstacle out of the way….and boy did he ever! I have to trust that God’s motives and actions were just and righteous in his dealing with Jericho. I believe that God is truly a God of love, not based on the laws of logic, but based on the laws of faith.

1. James s. Spiegel, The Love of Wisdom (Nashville, B&H Publishing, 2009) pg. 18

  

Music and Entertainment

   People are very particular about the type of music and entertainment they are interested in. Music seems to take the lead in the entertainment bracket, when it comes to things to be particular about. Movies and recreation seem to be, kind of, on the back burner in comparison with music. I believe this is because music speaks directly to the soul. It can arouse or discourage emotion, courage, tenderness, anger, hurt, compassion, unity, love, bitterness, hate, sensuality, etc. It truly is a magical force given to us as a gift from a loving God. However, as with all things given to man, we have the ability, and are prone, to pervert the very gifts from God; and so it is with music!

   As a Follower of Christ, and as one seeking to honor the Lord with all members of my body; including the ears, it would be easy to exclude all types of music, save, Spiritual songs of praise and hymns (Rom 6:13). However, I believe this would be a very legalistic approach to music as a whole. And we must remember that we have freedom in Christ, but yet, all that we partake in is not always beneficial for growing our relationship with God (1 Cor. 10:23). That being said, I would like to delve into what qualifies a certain type of music as “God honoring”.

  Music comes in all shapes and sizes, colors, and sounds. Each differing sound appeals to diverse generations and people, cultures and races.  What may be a disturbing sound to you may be a soothing or beautiful sound to another. Need proof? Go ask your grandmother what she thinks of your latest music download. In the debate of what sound is right or God honoring, truly, as the old saying goes, beauty is in the eye of the beholder….or ear! So, what then would disqualify a type of music from being God honoring? Inevitably, the “God honoring” quality, lies in the lyrics. Additionally, the actions of the performer play a big role in how we measure the music. For example, a music artist could sing about Jesus until he/she is blue in the face, but if his music videos are full of inappropriately dressed women, I think it would be safe to start questioning the God honoring aspect of the artists’ music….wouldn’t you? I am not suggesting that each lyric has to be a sermon-in-a-song to be of godly quality. However, we must measure our music and entertainment by Gods measuring stick, given to us in Philippians chapter four:

“Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things (Phil. 4:8).”

  Music is a type of mediation. It can be used as a way to cope, an escape from reality, or a form of relaxation. Whether we are focusing on the lyrics or not, when we are listening to a certain artist, the lyrics still make their way into the subconscious, growing or decaying our spirit. If you disagree with this, maybe you could test it for yourself? Try listening to only music with lyrics that edify a godly spirit for one month, and see if it does or doesn’t result in spiritual conviction and growth.

   Unfortunately, we cannot tuck our lives away from the secular world around us. This means that we will take in our fair share of ungodly media. I believe this is why the bible explains- what goes into the man is not what qualifies him as godly, but what comes from within him defiles the man (Matt. 15:16-20). This scripture speaks of food; however, it is a metaphor for all circumstances in life. God knew that we would have to get our senses dirty, so-to-speak, to minister to the lost. We must be aware of what drives the lives and choices of those people around us. God loved us enough that he wanted to understand our depraved condition, so he became one of us to understand us….to save us! Christ did everything “short of sin” to show us how much he loved us; how much he wanted to understand his creation.¹ I conclude with this statement from Paul.

“I have made myself a servant to all, that I might win the more; and to the Jews I became as a Jew, that I might win Jews; to those who are under the law, as under the law that I might win those who are under the law; to those who are without law, as without law (not being without law toward God, but under law toward Christ), that I might win those who are without law; to the weak I became as  weak, that I might win the weak. I have become all things to all men that I might by all means save some. Now this I do for the gospel’s sake, that I may be partaker of it with you.”

1.      1.Gross, Mahon, Starving Jesus (Colorado Springs, David C. Cook 2007) pg. 141-157

God's Design

   This video is about freshwater mussels and how they attract fish to their mouths to feed. I watched a TV show that had a segment on these species of mussels and was blown away by how awesome our God is. This video really just put me in awe of how great of a designer our Creator God really is.

   Notice the flaps of tissue that resemble a swimming minnow gently floating on the freshwater current just outside of the mussels opening/mouth? That flap of skin specifically resembles the type of minnow that attracts the specific type of fish that that specific mussel feeds on! WOW!

Can I just say "WOW" again??

Okay,

WOW!!!

How amazing is that?!

   It's unfortunate that your average everyday atheist denies the use of creation, such as- wildlife, weather and plants, as a means of proving a designer. It really takes someone heavily blinded by sin and Satan himself to not be able to see God's divine design in something as simple as these little clams.

   These little mussels sing shout's of praise to our God without one word spoken! And through these little clams my heart sing's a melody of praise to our great designer....our wonderful Creator....our God!

Revelation 10:6 

"And he swore by him who lives for ever and ever, who created the heavens and all that is in them, the earth and all that is in it, and the sea and all that is in it, and said, "There will be no more delay!"

Psalm 148:7 

 "Praise the LORD from the earth, you great sea creatures and all ocean depths,"

     
 

The "I just can't do this anymore!" marriage. (PART 2)

   Just for the record, if you are looking to this article for an excuse to leave your spouse....you've completely missed the objective of this post. My goal is not to separate, but to reconcile! It is always about reconciliation save adultery, abuse or Spiritual differences that are irreconcilable(1 Cor. 7:15). But even in those circumstances reconciliation is possible and encouraged! A Christ-like perception on this matter seems to point to long-suffering, grace, mercy, forgiveness, patience with each other, commitment...You get the point, right?

   When I mentioned in part one of this blog, if their was "an OUT that honors God," I was referring to a marriage situation that was becoming unbearable living situations with a spouse. For example- I know of a few couples that are dealing with either intense verbal abuse, pornography, indulgent spending from one spouse or the other that is constantly thrusting them further and further in debt....and it is a constant battle for control. And there are other situations worthy of this I'm sure. However, all of these situations are either at or reaching their boiling points.You may even know of a few couples dealing with these same circumstances, if you aren't in one yourself.

   So....What can we do? When all attempts have failed and you

"just can't do this anymore!" 

    I'm sure I will be skating on thin ice with this logic....but here we go!

I say..... get out! 

That's right, just move out! 

   Now, this is so very sensitive. This really has a lot to do with the spiritual condition of the spouse leaving. If your intent on leaving is to start seeking a new relationship.... then you are WAY out of line and you have moved in the opposite direction of this post. However, if you moving out is to save or reconcile your relationship to your spouse...then you have interpreted this post correctly!  Like I was saying "it is ALWAYS about reconciliation. 
   
    You can function without your spouse! Their is bound to be some separation anxiety, but you can survive. You may not have to rent a place....but maybe you can move in with family or friends. Now...this is also a very sensitive issue! Who are you surrounding yourself to get you through this? Who is speaking encouragement and wisdom into your life? This is so very important and I cannot stress this enough! You MUST be around those who encourage you to be strong in the faith! You must NOT surround yourself with those who encourage you to "get out" of the relationship, or kick your spouse to the curb. This is very unhealthy and ungodly advice. 

   Here is a verse from 1 Corinthians 7 that deals with this issue, it reads-

"A wife is not to depart from her husband. But even if she does depart, let her remain unmarried or be reconciled to her husband. And a husband is not to divorce his wife."

    If you are opposed to this advice it is probably because you have never crossed paths with an unbearable issue in your marriage. But trust me, they are alive in many marriages today! Sadly, most of them will end in divorce! So what is better I ask you- separation with intent to reconcile or divorce? Like I said, this type of action has to be determined by the spiritual condition of the leaving spouse. I believe that this type of action can really be God honoring. This is not an action that is about punishing the spouse, getting even or starting a new life without your spouse. If you have seen this post in that light then you have once again missed it!

It is always about reconciling the marriage!

   The intent of this type of action is to speak a number of things: 

• First, it is to allows the both of you to examine yourselves. Examine your relationship with your spouse, with God.....Examine your intentions and expectations. Maybe your expectations of your spouse are extremely high and impossible to achieve? Maybe not. Maybe your intentions are selfish and based on material things? Maybe not! None-the-less...you are both moving in a direction that allows you to think.  

• Secondly , it allows you both to just breathe....Most of the couples in these situation feel like they are suffocating on each other. Anger, resentment and bitterness consume you, with no real escape. Space allows each of you to collect yourselves. I believe it can recharge your marital batteries if your objective is to reconcile.  

• Thirdly, this action will let your spouse know just how serious this issue really is. It let's your spouse know, without a doubt, that you mean business! Unfortunately a lot of spouses never really know the severity of an issue until it is too late. When reconciliation is what drives your decisions, then you are choosing to honor God to the best of your ability in your broken marriage. 

   I am not condoning leaving your spouse at the drop of a hat...or over trivial disputes or normal marital issues. That type of action is ridiculous and absurd! I know that some people will use this advice to condone an action of divorce....they always do! But I truly believe that those people had divorce in mind from the beginning of any action taken. I believe that their motive was never reconciliation.

   Also remember that we have made this commitment to our spouse in the presence of God....and to God! Their is actually scripture that encourages us to stay together if at all possible...even when it becomes difficult! Even when the husband/wife is not acting in line with God's word!

Yes, I said, even when the husband/wife is not acting in line with God's word!

1 Peter 3:1-6 deals with this point directly, speaking of how the unbelieving or spiritually weak husband may be "won over" by his wife's godly character and her submission to God and to her husband.

   Let  me conclude with this, a broken marriage can ALWAYS be mended! Don't give up! Fight for your family! Fight for your marriage! And when you don't have any more fight left.....give it to the Lord! Move out of the way and allow him to work in your heart and allow him to work in your spouse. God can work a miracle in your marriage if you both allow him to.

   Unfortunately, The ugly truth is that your spouse may not have reconciliation in mind.  You are not in control of your spouse! But know this, we are only responsible for our actions....how we choose to honor God  with our choices. But you can have peace in knowing that your actions have always been about reconciliation no matter the outcome.
    
     I pray this blog was encouraging to you! I hope that the one theme from this blog that is rolling over in your mind is not "how to leave my spouse," but that it is always about reconciliation of your marriage! God bless!