Posts tagged bible
Posts tagged bible
Growing up in church, I was taught that the word “apologetics” can be defined as “in defense of the Christian faith.” It’s all those things we say or point to which can prove our faith in Jesus to be valid, or reasonable. Things like archeological discoveries backing up the story of a biblical account. Or theological and philosophical arguments that lead us to conclude Jesus as Lord. The existence of apologetic debate implies that there are two sides to the argument, and in every argument there is usually someone on the defense. I believe that, in many ways, we Christians have been the ones being defensive.
The ceiling in my bedroom is white. I am confident of that. The can which the paint came in was labeled as “white.” The brushes that spread the paint turned white when they touched it. This is not something to argue. If tomorrow you visited me, came to my door and I invited you in, I would not exasperate myself, insisting on showing you the ceiling and convincing you how white the ceiling is. You would just know by looking at it. Now, if you came in and insisted the ceiling were red, we would have your eyes checked. Society has set standards for absolute truth, at least in these things. White is white. Red is red. School children are screened for colorblindness because some things are not subjective, and those who cannot see the obvious clearly are labeled as blind. And we pity the blind. We don’t yell at them for not seeing.
I used to argue so many things. My stepfather was once on the SWAT team, and I would argue with him quite a bit. And I often won. And I enjoyed winning. There is a sense of satisfaction, coupled with an adrenaline rush, which comes with talking someone into concession. And if someone presents a conflicting point-of-view, we can get insulted, offended. How dare they not believe precisely what we do? He was an inactive Catholic, and I was a recently Holy Spirit-filled seventeen year old. The combination was explosive.
Looking back, I realize that so much of my arguing came from a place of insecurity. If I was unable to convert someone to my beliefs, did that mean I was a failure? Was I not smart enough, knowledgeable enough? I felt so much fear and anxiety, worried that if someone didn’t see God when and how I thought they should, they would be forever lost: perhaps accidentally being hit by a bus and sent to Hell because I didn’t talk them into belief. Whenever I could, I took it upon myself to defend my church, the Bible, and ultimately, God Himself.
But does God need defending? Jesus said about himself, “I am the way, the truth, and the life.” (John 14:6) He didn’t say, “I think I might be one way…” No, he was confident in who he was. God is not insecure. Look at the list. He calls Himself “the God who sanctifies”, “the God who provides”, “the God of peace”, “Almighty…” This doesn’t sound like someone who is unsure of themself.
And yet, how many of us have been guilty of acting as if we need to defend God? We are very careful to present only the best, thinking it makes Him look better. As if God needs a marketing scheme, a PR rep. We represent God on earth, so we had better be perfect. And the second we see an imperfection elsewhere we are quick to point it out, and argue it out.
Does God need us to be perfect in order for others to recognize His perfection? Does He become irritated when someone doesn’t see Him quite yet? Jesus healed the blind: He never got annoyed with them for being so. And sometimes it took more than one turn, but He waited it out.
He took the blind man by the hand and led him outside the village. When he had spit on the man’s eyes and put his hands on him, Jesus asked, “Do you see anything?” He looked up and said, “I see people; they look like trees walking around.” Once more Jesus put his hands on the man’s eyes. Then his eyes were opened, his sight was restored, and he saw everything clearly.
Mark 8:23-25
Jesus led that blind man by the hand, walking with him a good distance. I wonder what their conversation was along the way. Was he impatient when the man stumbled, rolling his eyes? Or was Jesus understanding, helpful and confident knowing that eventually the man would see clearly? Did Jesus expect the blind man to keep up with him, or did Jesus slow down to the blind man’s pace?
I can’t help but wonder if we should apologize for apologetics. To defend the Christian faith, in a way, seems almost as silly as defending whether or not my ceiling is white. It’s just true. God has never been defensive, but we have. The impatient irritation we can feel when someone acts differently, thinks differently, doubts a belief…this is not in God’s character. That’s OUR character. Archeology, healthy debate, these things are all good and well, but true change in others is not inspired by explanation, but rather by example.We would do well to learn how to walk with the blind like Jesus did, confident knowing that our walking with them, and not our arguing, is the first step toward helping them see.
Source cited: Names of God(http://www.navigators.org/us/resources/items/Thirty%20Days%20of%20Praying%20the%20Names%20and%20Attributes%20of%20God)
Today on Facebook I read a post saying that “being a Mother is the most important job in the world.”
But what if it isn’t your job?
I was at my job today, Mother’s Day, cleaning the church and keeping things spiffy for everyone. I took an hour out to call my mom in Ohio to thank her for treating me as if being my mom was the single most important job in the world. I miss her and thank God for the positive influence she is in my life. I am glad the world is full of moms who take the job seriously, love doing it, and give their best to their families. There are so many great women I know and think of on this day. And I fully believe that to the women who are moms, being a great mom is indeed the most important job in the world.
That being said, I also found myself thinking of the other women I know. Some were infertile, others widowed at a young age. Some are not mothers yet, but hope to be one day, while some have had the heartbreak of burying a child. And then there are those like me, who have chosen to not be a mom (at least not yet), in order to keep themselves more available and flexible to respond to God’s specific calling on their lives. What about us?
If being a mom is the most important job in the world for any woman, then consider us failures. The best is behind us, or worse yet, may never come. We are doomed to live a life of almost great, almost able to do something fantastic but always falling into second place.
I once tried to tell my old roommate my reasons for being open to a childless existence. I have always been convinced that I am called to be a writer, and am keenly aware of how easily distracted I am when trying to write. I have not yet had God confirm it in my heart that I am absolutely supposed to be a mom, but I have been made certain about the writing. If I take on an assumed calling, it would almost certainly jeopardize my confirmed calling. Therefore to protect the call I am sure of, I wait. And I am OK with that. My roommate wanted nothing of it, and would interrupt me by saying “sad” each time I tried to answer his question.
“Yes but I feel that maybe..”
“Sad!”
“But I know I’m supposed to..”
“Sad!”
And so society goes, telling us that motherhood is IT. And if we don’t get it, don’t want it, or lose it, then there’s something missing in us…in our lives.
Kids ARE a blessing. Other’s people’s kids have saved my life, growing up to be my doctors, church bus drivers, preachers. Other’s people’s kids have improved my life, becoming my friends, the smiling florist, artists, or songwriters. I am glad that people are creating more of these people. And think about Mary, the mother of Jesus: can you imagine if she had decided against becoming a mother? Surely Mary had it right, had it best. People often pride themselves, value themselves, based on the successes of their adult children. Forget your son becoming a doctor-how about your son becoming the Savior of the world!?
I’m reminded of a passage in the Bible. Jesus is sitting there, teaching a crowd of people, when a woman in the back blurted out “Blessed is the mother who gave you birth and nursed you.” (Luke 11:27 NIV) And was she right? Absolutely. By most standards, Mary had achieved the greatest thing a woman could. Not only had she raised a healthy, vibrant son, she had brought into the world our Savior. No other mother on the planet had nor ever would achieve greater…right?
Not exactly. In the following verse, Jesus replies, “Blessed rather are those who hear the word of God and obey it.” That’s the NIV version. Others use the phrasing “even more blessed.”
Wait. Did we read that right? Did Jesus just say that, although she was blessed to be Jesus’ mom, Mary’s blessing can’t compare to what WE can get? Did Jesus just say that being a mom is NOT the only big blessing, and not the biggest? Yah. He did. He didn’t say Mary wasn’t blessed, but He did say that we can do even better.
Better. Better than being considered the mother of God. That’s pretty good stuff. And how do we achieve it? Simply by reading God’s word (the Bible), and doing what it tells us to do.
For whatever her reason may be, the woman who does not create life still has a choice to have a blessed life. This kind of blessing has nothing to do with anatomy, luck, health, or loss. It is not a physiological choice, but it does involve the heart. Giving your heart, and your trust, to God will bring the biggest blessing. The best days are not behind you. You will never have to settle for second best. And your arms will never be empty, because when you ask God Himself will fill them.
Trusting that, and living for Him, is the most important job in the world. No matter what your job is.
