Continuing on the theme of my last blog post, a friend just shared with me his thoughts on passage from Matthew 11:28-30 where Jesus talks about His yoke being easy and burden light. My friend Ron's thoughts come from a paraphrased version of the Bible called 'The Message'..
"Are you tired? Worn out? Burned out on religion? Come to me. Get away with me and you'll recover your life. I'll show you how to take a real rest. Walk with me and work with me—watch how I do it. Learn the unforced rhythms of grace. I won't lay anything heavy or ill-fitting on you. Keep company with me and you'll learn to live freely and lightly."
in other words:
"Live in the unforced rhythm of God's grace, not by the forced rhythm of your own efforts"
(my friend Ron's personal paraphrase)
Is this something so many of us have failed to understand? Haven't we been taught, trained and disciplined to give our best, 100% all the time? At work, in church, at home, in relationships, it seems to boil down to performance, to give all we have. There of course are moments we need to give 110%, yet these should be moments, perhaps even exceptional moments. Imagine if we gave 110% all of the time, this would become quick formula for burn out! But God has not designed us or instructed us to perform this way! So where do we get the idea that we should?
How many scriptures talk about giving 100%, and how many scriptures talk about rest? Haven't done a count yet, but I'm guessing rest will win at least 2:1...
I truly believe God doesn't give anyone more than they can carry or bear. On our own initiative we take on projects that consume more energy or time than we've been given. Many businessmen, pastors, leaders act as if they have been given superpowers. Then try to deal with the burdens of disapointment, bitterness and unforgiveness when things don't develop as hoped for or expected. These are the things that weigh us down more than we can bear. And no matter how hard we try, we cannot resolve these issues within us by our own effort.
True peace and rest can only come when we let go and let God lead us in His unforced rhythm of grace.
Tuesday, September 29, 2009
Friday, September 25, 2009
a house can't build itself...
We make plans to build or rebuild our lives, sometimes from clear ground but often from a mess that that either we or others have created. These are mostly noble plans with good intentions. We ask God to bless our work, help us in overcoming obsticles, barriers and unforseen problems. Call Him our miracle provider.
In this time of rebuilding my life, I've noticed through my actions and prayers I seem to consider myself the main builder with God there to guide and help me along the way. My understanding is I need to give my full effort, as this is what God expects from me. Perhaps others also have this flawed view.
Flawed view? Are we not supposed to do our part, give 100% and God will do what we can't do? If this is the 'formula', why have so many things that I have put 110% of my heart and effort into failed?? And even now while I am resting and rebuilding, why isn't there progress with my efforts? Have I failed or not done enough?
A friend just shared a scripture with me from Jeremiah 31. If you take a moment to read it, ask the question 'Who was doing the rebuilding?' Was the house being restored by the building materials themselves, or is God the one rebuilding?
Well it seems kind of ridiculous that the building material would start reassembling itself into a house. Pretty neat trick if it could be done. What makes us think we can restore our own lives? We have been conditioned to beleive that we ourselves must make the effort. The problem is, no matter how hard we try our efforts fail. Someone else must do the building. The builder. And we shouldn't interfere much in the process, let The Pro handle it.
Although I'm not much of a builder, I've been thinking about the sawmill project in Norway. I remember pouring the foundation and all the preperation that took place to get it just right. It took many days before the foundation was ready to build on. Putting up walls is much more interesting and seems more produtive, but without a proper foundation those walls would just fall down.
Isn't it the same way in our lives? We want to see the walls come up fast, yet the builder knows He needs to get the foundation right first. But we keep picking up the hammer, building walls which we think are good, without the wisdom The Builder has. Ephesians 2:10 say's we are God's workmanship, not our own.
We just need to learn to trust The Builder's hands.
In this time of rebuilding my life, I've noticed through my actions and prayers I seem to consider myself the main builder with God there to guide and help me along the way. My understanding is I need to give my full effort, as this is what God expects from me. Perhaps others also have this flawed view.
Flawed view? Are we not supposed to do our part, give 100% and God will do what we can't do? If this is the 'formula', why have so many things that I have put 110% of my heart and effort into failed?? And even now while I am resting and rebuilding, why isn't there progress with my efforts? Have I failed or not done enough?
A friend just shared a scripture with me from Jeremiah 31. If you take a moment to read it, ask the question 'Who was doing the rebuilding?' Was the house being restored by the building materials themselves, or is God the one rebuilding?
Well it seems kind of ridiculous that the building material would start reassembling itself into a house. Pretty neat trick if it could be done. What makes us think we can restore our own lives? We have been conditioned to beleive that we ourselves must make the effort. The problem is, no matter how hard we try our efforts fail. Someone else must do the building. The builder. And we shouldn't interfere much in the process, let The Pro handle it.
Although I'm not much of a builder, I've been thinking about the sawmill project in Norway. I remember pouring the foundation and all the preperation that took place to get it just right. It took many days before the foundation was ready to build on. Putting up walls is much more interesting and seems more produtive, but without a proper foundation those walls would just fall down.
Isn't it the same way in our lives? We want to see the walls come up fast, yet the builder knows He needs to get the foundation right first. But we keep picking up the hammer, building walls which we think are good, without the wisdom The Builder has. Ephesians 2:10 say's we are God's workmanship, not our own.
We just need to learn to trust The Builder's hands.
Monday, September 14, 2009
the bear that changed my day
(this post is being updated as I reflect back on this day)
I decided to spend a quiet day alone today to reflect and pray, took a bicycle and rode down to the other end of the lake along a gravel road. As i was quietly riding, absorbed by the beauty of nature, occasionally there would be a bird that would be startled by me approaching. But as I was riding slowly up one hill, an unusual grunt from between the trees startled me. I looked, about 20-25 meters from me was a bear staring right at me, apparently I had startled it first. My heart stopped for a moment, the only thought in my head was "Nice bear, please stay there.." Trying not to make any sudden movements I continued to pedal uphill, looking back occasionally, but I could no longer see the bear.
Needless to say, i was feeling quite uneasy after the encounter. Since this was a pretty secluded road, I started to make much noise, not sure if it was the wisest thing to do to distract potentially dangerous wildlife. At first I was ringing the bell and praying out loud, a bit later I started singing. Of course it was hard to sing while huffing and puffing from a fairly vigerous bike ride, my voice became quite harsh and weak.
How did this encounter changed my initial plan to spend a quiet day in meditation? All of a sudden my fucus was dictated by fear and not peace. No, I didn't pend every minute in fear praying for protection, but I was accutely aware of a looming danger, regardless of how real or unreal the danger was. I did not feel at ease or at peace.
I made it clear to myself that the chance of seeing the bear a second time is two million to one, so I boldly started to cycle back. Well my boldness and courage was short lived, as I started worrying about startling the bear again, or worse encountering a pack of wolves that might see me as an easy catch peddling or limping slowly uphill (my knee was giving me some trouble again). Fear eventually got the best of me, and I took out my phone and asked someone to pick me up.
There was some excitement when i got back to the base, told my bear story about a dozen times. I was still not as calm as I could be for a "quiet prayer or devotion" until the next day.
So my question now is, what are these 'bears' or encounters that excite us and cause us to refocus? are they good or bad? What can we learn about ourselves in these encouters?
to be continued...
I decided to spend a quiet day alone today to reflect and pray, took a bicycle and rode down to the other end of the lake along a gravel road. As i was quietly riding, absorbed by the beauty of nature, occasionally there would be a bird that would be startled by me approaching. But as I was riding slowly up one hill, an unusual grunt from between the trees startled me. I looked, about 20-25 meters from me was a bear staring right at me, apparently I had startled it first. My heart stopped for a moment, the only thought in my head was "Nice bear, please stay there.." Trying not to make any sudden movements I continued to pedal uphill, looking back occasionally, but I could no longer see the bear.
Needless to say, i was feeling quite uneasy after the encounter. Since this was a pretty secluded road, I started to make much noise, not sure if it was the wisest thing to do to distract potentially dangerous wildlife. At first I was ringing the bell and praying out loud, a bit later I started singing. Of course it was hard to sing while huffing and puffing from a fairly vigerous bike ride, my voice became quite harsh and weak.
How did this encounter changed my initial plan to spend a quiet day in meditation? All of a sudden my fucus was dictated by fear and not peace. No, I didn't pend every minute in fear praying for protection, but I was accutely aware of a looming danger, regardless of how real or unreal the danger was. I did not feel at ease or at peace.
I made it clear to myself that the chance of seeing the bear a second time is two million to one, so I boldly started to cycle back. Well my boldness and courage was short lived, as I started worrying about startling the bear again, or worse encountering a pack of wolves that might see me as an easy catch peddling or limping slowly uphill (my knee was giving me some trouble again). Fear eventually got the best of me, and I took out my phone and asked someone to pick me up.
There was some excitement when i got back to the base, told my bear story about a dozen times. I was still not as calm as I could be for a "quiet prayer or devotion" until the next day.
So my question now is, what are these 'bears' or encounters that excite us and cause us to refocus? are they good or bad? What can we learn about ourselves in these encouters?
to be continued...
Friday, September 4, 2009
our theory of attraction..
Last night I started thinking about the strange things we do to attract others. We make attempts to win the other's approval by our elequant words or gracious acts. But are our actions truly gracious or are they under a gracious veil self serving?
We tend to believe certain type of behaviour is nescessary to woo or secure another person's affection for us. These are often based on expectations reflected from our homes, churches and society. We expect to receive in exchange for our giving, to be loved for our words, and accepted for our good deeds. Is it any wonder we get so messed up in our relationships when we start to barter for love and acceptance...
So, do actions lead to love or does love lead to actions?
I believe both are quite possible, however love that grows out of actions tends to remain somewhat conditional. In other words "as long as you do this, i will love you". Isn't this the model society portrays, that love is dependant on words, actions, looks, status, wealth... If it's so, wouldn't our quest for love and acceptance become more of a performance? What would happen when we tire or become incapable of performing? Would we still be loved for who we are, or loved for only what we do?
This performance mentality is often translated to our relationship with God. We worship, praise, perform good deeds to please Him. We have been taught and conditioned to do this, it's something we believe is acceptable to God. With all the 'sweet-talking' and actions, are we really trying to attract God? What exactly is our purpose in attracting Him? Do we think flattery will bring us closer to God, help gain His favour, acceptance or love?
What then is the basis for true love? Are there conditions of performance attached to love or is true love unconditional? Imagine if God already loved us just as we are, without the need for our elequant words or good deeds. And if His love were unconditional with no strings attached, maybe we wouldn't need to put on a performance to attract or please Him.
God's love is true. It led to actions, giving all He had, His life, absolutely unconditionally. Just think about it for a moment,.. perhaps He's the one who's trying to attract us...
We tend to believe certain type of behaviour is nescessary to woo or secure another person's affection for us. These are often based on expectations reflected from our homes, churches and society. We expect to receive in exchange for our giving, to be loved for our words, and accepted for our good deeds. Is it any wonder we get so messed up in our relationships when we start to barter for love and acceptance...
So, do actions lead to love or does love lead to actions?
I believe both are quite possible, however love that grows out of actions tends to remain somewhat conditional. In other words "as long as you do this, i will love you". Isn't this the model society portrays, that love is dependant on words, actions, looks, status, wealth... If it's so, wouldn't our quest for love and acceptance become more of a performance? What would happen when we tire or become incapable of performing? Would we still be loved for who we are, or loved for only what we do?
This performance mentality is often translated to our relationship with God. We worship, praise, perform good deeds to please Him. We have been taught and conditioned to do this, it's something we believe is acceptable to God. With all the 'sweet-talking' and actions, are we really trying to attract God? What exactly is our purpose in attracting Him? Do we think flattery will bring us closer to God, help gain His favour, acceptance or love?
What then is the basis for true love? Are there conditions of performance attached to love or is true love unconditional? Imagine if God already loved us just as we are, without the need for our elequant words or good deeds. And if His love were unconditional with no strings attached, maybe we wouldn't need to put on a performance to attract or please Him.
God's love is true. It led to actions, giving all He had, His life, absolutely unconditionally. Just think about it for a moment,.. perhaps He's the one who's trying to attract us...
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