Life

I have been wrestling back and forth with a number of thoughts and the issues we see most hotly debated today, many of these issues for me circulate around how to walk the fine/grey lines of life, to be in the world, yet not of the world. How to perceive diversity in culture/thought/ideology and discern between what is simply differences and what the Scriptures teach, which I believe to the Truth. When is something right or wrong, and when is something simply different?? How to love the sinner, yet not love the sin [which is a much more Biblical "approach" than to say "hate the sin, not the sinner"]. How do I speak truth, and yet speak it in love?? How to be seasoned in my thoughts and actions with meekness and humility. How do I meditate upon and contemplate the great grace I have been shown, and yet not become proud that I have been able to walk in that grace for the last ten years?? How to be thankful for the many lessons I have learned in life, especially the last 5 years, and yet be cognizant of the grandeur of the lessons I have yet to learn. How to appreciate the abundance of blessings I have in my life (spiritual, relational, emotional, physical) and yet to walk circumspectly and in diligence aware that I am simply a steward of all that I have, and I possess nothing except for my beliefs and acting out of those beliefs. How do I look at and respect others who are different than me? How do you?

In my personal life these questions play themselves out in myriad ways.

First to mind is in that my calling to Jamaica was to be a Godly male role model to children, specifically teen boys, that are at risk, primarily because of their lack of Godly male role models in their lives. So how do I, someone who was by the sheer Providence of God granted an upbringing FULL of Godly male role models, possibly relate to and walk through life with young people who were likewise brought into this life by the sheer Providence of God yet in a situation opposite of mine, where they were brought up, perhaps, without a single Godly male role model?? I really have nothing to offer in and of myself. Except for my beliefs and the actions I take based upon those beliefs. So I must go back to the cross, to which I cling, recognizing that without the cross I am nothing. From there I can see that although I may have been born into a situation that is quite different from many of the kids I work with, I am no better than them and they are no less than me. I must Recognize Reality that God made them just as He made me, that He loves them just as He loves me and that He, a tri-une God that is three different persons with three different roles and yet One God, has made us in His image, therefore stamping each of us with unique character traits and roles in life that in one way, shape or form mirror His nature. Once I do this, I will be able to Eagerly Expect others to think differently than me, to process life in a way that is different than me, to understand roles and relationships and societal values and morality in a way that is different than me. Why? Well because they have a completely different life experience than me, one that is unique and that has thousands of variables just as my life has had thousands of variables. Yet still ordained and authored by God, taking me back to step 1, recognizing the One who granted their life just as He granted my own. Then, if I expect these different filters of thought, I will be able to Slow, Suspend and Stop the process of judging my boys and despising or looking down on them or their actions. Why? Go back to the cross. Is it good for me to think less of them for the actions they take? No, just as I too filter life through a different lens, be it right, wrong or different. It is only by the cross that I am saved, and at the foot of the cross no one is any better than another. From here I can shift from a carnal mindset that would judge to a spiritual mindset that intercedes by Prayerfully Petition both for their heart/soul/mind and for my own, allowing me with confidence to draw near to the throne of grace, that I may receive mercy (for I am in need of it just as my boys are in need of it) and find grace to help in time of need, grace that leads me to truth and spiritual discernment between those hard things in life that are SO grey, that line that separates what is simply unique/different from that which is contrary to truth and sin. (Heb 4:16) Coming out of the throne room of grace is like walking from night into day, we see things in a whole new light and those "differences" that I saw in the beliefs/thoughts/actions/perspectives of others I can now see in the glorious light of Truth, which allows me to either; Earnestly Enjoy those things which are simply beautiful diversity (cultural/ethnic/racial/lingual/personal, etc) because I have gone back to the beginning, realizing that just as God Himself is a diverse God so He has made us in His image, therefore we are a diverse people, OR; this process allows me to come out of the throne room of grace and Earnestly Empathize with those whose actions/thoughts/beliefs/etc that are NOT simply diverse reflections of our inherent uniqueness but are in actuality contrary to the nature of God and therefore contrary to truth and hence, sin. You see, this is where we so often fail as followers of Jesus, because we do not first put on the mind of Christ when we are confronting sensitive issues that are contrary to truth and we do not seek to listen and learn and be spiritual in our mind and in our response. Just as Jesus was empathetic and compassionate with the prostitutes and thieves, so too ought we be empathetic and compassionate. Jesus judged in a sense that he told the woman at the well to "go and sin no more" and yet He did so in a way that was full of empathy and encouragement in truth. It was compassionate, He knew the full story behind her actions, He knew of the challenges she faced in her life the and inner longing to love and be loved. We must KNOW the full story behind the actions/beliefs/perspectives of others as well before we will ever be able to empathize and exhort them to become more like Jesus. We must always recognize that the SAME needs I have are the same needs that OTHERS have. This is empathy. So now that I can either enjoy the diversity God has made or empathize with the root issues of the sinner in need of grace (which I am also), I am able to Consciously Consider others, my Deaf teen Jamaican boys, better than myself, this hearing adult American man. It is God's desire that His children, in humility, count others more significant than ourselves, looking not only to our own interests, but also to the interests of others. Having the mind of Christ Jesus, who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but made himself nothing, taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. (Php 2:3-8) Jesus put MY needs above HIS rights, and all He desires of me is that I put the needs of others ahead of my rights. By doing all of these things, I will fulfill the golden rule and the fruit is that I will Truthfully Treat others the way that I would want to be treated and as I have ALREADY been treated by God.

Let me recap a quick story from the sermon I linked below that I would encourage you to listen to. Word association is a practice to help you realize the meaning and thought that you associate with a word. When I say "deaf" what do you think of? Perhaps "can't hear" or "can't talk" come to your mind...and years ago that's what I would have thought too, before I knew a bit more of the reality and context in which a Deaf person lives out their life. Now I no longer think of it like that, rather I see a different yet beautiful way to experience life, one that is full of color and emotion and extremely visual. I didn't always think of it that way...my association with that word has changed since most of my adult life has been surrounded by the Deaf world. Just as Jesus is able to respond to our TRUE needs because He truly knows us, so we need to know the true needs of others in order to respond effectively in grace and truth and love.

Another word association. What do you think about when I say: Jonah. You immediately think of what? I won't even type it because we all know that you thought of what swallowed him and that's ok. But let's get to know the TRUE essence of this story and then perhaps we will associate something else. Jonah was a prophet of God, meaning he had access to communion and dialog with God, thereby knew of His power and might and nature. When Jonah was called to go to warn the people of Nineveh of God's planned destruction, he ran away from the opportunity to warn them(kind of silly when we consider that Jonah knew God cannot be hidden from). At the end of the book in Ch 4 Jonah explains why he fled when he says  "I knew that you are a gracious God and merciful, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love, and relenting from disaster." Do you see the heart of Jonah? He didn't want to see the people of Nineveh spared. He wanted to see them suffer. He hated them. God loved them. Is my heart so different than Jonah's? Is yours?

What word association did Jonah have for the people of Nineveh? It wasn't good. Probably his first thought was of hatred, despise, wishful destruction. And God asks, "is this heart condition a good thing?"

So let's try this word association again. Let's try and think of the "Ninevehs" of today. What are those things/people/ideals that make your face flush and your blood boil and cause you to start developing a heart condition similar to Jonah's, because you are either completely FOR or completely AGAINST?

Christian?
Muslim?
Atheist?
Democrat?
Republican?
Left?
Right?
LGBT rights?
Religious freedom?
Gay marriage?
Biblical marriage?
Abortion?
Obama?
Bush?
Clinton?
Black?
White?
Gun rights?
Media?
Freedom of speech?
Welfare?
Poverty?
Aid?
Taxes?
Human rights?
ISIS?
Islam?
Bible?
Church?