We've been looking into faith at church. And like all things that are biblical, they're to be affective in our life They're not supposed to be words and ideas. they are supposed to actually change our lives! they're supposed to have some skin. some reality.
And so we've been looking at faith. There are so many definitions, most of them crap! The one commonly accepted is from Hebrews 11:1 it says that "faith is; being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see" Obviously thats a good way to describe it. the originator of the idea is the one who penned it. It does have some vagueness to it. I do like the way that Scott and Jim (the pastors) described it. "Faith is: recognizing that God is who he says he is and will do the things that he has promised to do."
so we looked at poker... basically when life happens; what is the basis of your faith, does it crumble like a house of cards. It will if its not found in Christ. Who is also named the solid rock By the way. but what I'm faced with more is what we talked about this week. Again looking at the Poker idea; Going "all in" every chip you have, all you are, everything, on the turn of one card. And it will determine the validity of your choice. For Christians looking at faith like this, the character of God is that last card. Noah was a foolish man to do what he did, get up every morning for decades and go out into a field FAR away from water and build a huge boat. The only reason he's not gone through history as a laughing stock is because of the character of God to be faithful to what he told Noah. And because of the outcome of God's faithfulness Noah is a legend who put everything he had on the character of God. That idea of having an all in kind of faith resonates with me. I started writing a book in the first few years after I became a christian (never finished it though) about reckless abandon. dropping everything when God speaks, even thought even christians scoff at this kind of proactive faith, I see it in many characters in scripture. And is something that, since seeing it in print, I have been called out on by God. Most times I do well to be a radical. someways are hard but mostly I kinda like it.
The irony is that going all in has been the question off and on for a great part of the last year with myself and particular girl.(I know it all comes back to a girl right) With roadblocks and obstacles, the frequency of which I have never seen, and obviously never expected. And the question of "all in" was always the thing we kept coming back too...no not sex....but marriage, get your mind back (har har har) So Scott was speaking yesterday in church and he was asking as a means of application, saying "what does 'all in' faith look like in your life." Yeah... that's hard to extrapolate. Thanks allot Scott!! (shmo) With unfortunate clarity, it seams that the best way (not the easiest way mind you ;) of "all in" means placing the chips into Gods hands. I can do that, I can place myself into Gods hands. Actually I kinda like doing that (...usually) Its not too bad of a move when its not something like a job, or a decision over where to live. For certain it becomes a harder maneuver when placing into Gods hands the object of your affection and not just yourself. My fait and my life seams easy to allow God to shift and shape more readily than to allow it to be more than me and my crazy life. Now it affects more, affects greater... has deeper meaning and effect. God I'm thankful that you are who you are. but at the same time I cant help but be anxious even in your hands... call it a lack of trust, or an unrest, you can if you wish. In my foggy eyes it looks more like weight and gravity. But the assurance is in your character and creativity that I've tasted in my life already, I can read of the heros and cheer the work there, but really, I don't care there as much as I should. But it has connection to me what is already mine, what you already have been. and the promise there is that you never cease being...
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