Apathy Costs too Much

Put to death the things of the flesh and live righteously in the all consuming presence of your Lord.

One idea I think we can all agree on is that change signifies the end of something and the beginning of its replacement.  When something begins to change in me it usually takes some time and I do not typically see the actual change in my life until it is nearly complete.  I will not go into much detail concerning my own personal life and thane changes I have recently gone through (not what this blog is for).  Instead I want to emphasize the importance of change in a believer's life.

Our first step is deciding whether or not we need a change.  In most circumstances this is seen as an easy decision, but usually this is due to gross oversight on the part of our own personal conviction that we are doing "okay."  Sure it may have been a while wince the last time we talked to someone about Christ.  Our Bible may have gathered dust, and we don't even really know where we stand on issues some of our brothers and sisters are so passionate about.  Our prayer life may be relegated to a simple habit before dinner and maybe before sleep takes us on our beds.  When we talk to our brothers and sisters it is hardly ever about faith or the Church because we did that on Sunday didn't we?  We tell ourselves that faith is difficult and doing "okay" is actually like pulling a B+ in the hardest class we have ever taken.  Besides, it's not like we are hurting anyone by being "okay".  Friends this is what apathy is.  Apathy is "okay".  Apathy is the begin "okay" which has blinded itself to anything beyond its own dull senses.  Sisters and brothers we cannot afford to pay apathy.

The Church (you and me sisters and brothers) is called to make disciples.  Do you realize how great this call is?  We have been called to not only continually change and pursue righteous living, but also help others do this too.  You cannot make disciples if you yourself are not being made into a disciple.  Your life cannot be used for the Great Commission if you yourself have not been found in Christ.  Pick up your passion again brothers and sisters!  Dust off the Bibles, pray fervently, walk the streets with open ears and eyes and begin to encounter people.  Seek righteous living.  Put to death your apathy, lusts, rage, and foolishness.  Allow the Spirit to lead you.  You will know this when you begin to change. because we do not so much change ourselves as the Spirit reveals who we are in Christ.  The small steps of courage are always harder than speaking a big game.  Know this though, with Christ we are more than conquerors.  Ours is a struggle already won.  Let us claim that victory in ours and others lives.

Blessings  

Sit and stare.

We get in to a rhythm after enough practice.

This rhythm becomes our pulse for a time.

For that time we take for granted the intricacies of the individual relationships we have become a part of.

These relationships grow under our very noses.

Our lack of sight leaves us blind until hindsight arrives.

By the time hindsight arrives we have already stumbled into a mumbled "good-bye".

In that very moment of mumbling "good-bye" the reality of the relationship dawns on us.

At this dawning we realize there is and was something here more so than just everyday "hellos".

In those hellos there was a rhythm.

In that rhythm a pulse.

In that pulse a heart.

In that heart a soul.

For a very brief moment during that "good-bye" we have the chance to behold what another person's soul means to us.

This summer I would get caught up in the rhythm of my work, rest, and relationships a lot.  Fortunately I had a few brief glimpses at myself and others to understand who we all are in relation to one another.  This morning I said good-bye to my supervisor and part of my host family.  I am still in Massachusetts living in a home that is not my own, but the rhythm I have going in my life says that I live here.  I have learned to live in the present.     I thank God for the brief moments.  I thank God for the "good-byes" as well as the "hellos".  To all of you whether I know you or not; may you be blessed this day.

  

I stand Now

Anxiety: 

1. A feeling of worry, unease, nervousness, typically about an imminent event or something with an uncertain outcome.
2. Desire to do something, typically accompanied with unease.
3. A nervous disorder characterized by a state of excessive uneasiness and apprehension, typically with compulsive behavior or panic attacks.
    

I have always had a hint of timidity in me, but anxiety is a new one for me.  As I approach my senior year at college I begin to feel some unease.  I said in an earlier post that I did not like the common question "Where do you see yourself in 2-5 years Vince?"  In all honesty I despise that question.  I only get to see myself in a mirror in the present time. Okay I got the cynic out of me.  No, but seriously I have some ideas as to what I may be doing and where I might be geographically but does that really matter that far down the road?  Let me take this past year of my life as an example for you.

One year of my life in review (bullet point style).

• August 2010 travel to Israel.
• September 2010 begin study and life in Israel.
• October 2010 begin to find a belonging of sorts in Israel.
• November 2010 actually feel at home in Jerusalem and make true friends.
• December 2010 fly back to the US. (Ambivalence)
• January 2011 reacquaint myself with Calvin (did not expect this).
• February 2011 begin the busiest most fulfilling semester at Calvin.
• March 2011 commit to coming to Boston for an internship I know little about.
• April 2011 knuckle down on grades and grow in relationships.
• May 2011 conclude semester and come home for a short period of time.
• June 2011 reacquaint myself with people back home.  See friends from Calvin at Meulinks' wedding. Go to Boston.
• July 2011 figure out this whole internship thing and make more true friends.  Grow in leaps and bounds in my walk with the Lord.
• Early August 2011 try and look too far forward without looking back at the ways God has provided.  that is up until now.

Even for a history major it is easy for one to overlook where they have been.  The reason I do not like the question "Where do you see yourself?' is because I'd rather talk about where I've been.  I can tell you that Israel was nothing like what I thought it would have been.  I thank God for that.  I can tell you that the relationships I have at Calvin are not what I thought they'd be when I came back in December.  I thank God for that.  I can tell you that my internship has been more than I could have asked for out of this small church.  I thank God for that.  So yes to a point I am unsure of where I might be, but only because experience has taught me that expectations are always superseded by the provision of God's grace.  I do not know what relationships, work, trials, and joys God has in store for me.  Even tomorrow will be more than I expect.  I am in over my head as it is.  Today I am giving a test to my ESL class.  I have never written a test.  Today I have prayers to pray, scriptures to read, challenges to meet, and relationships to build.  In other words God is the architect and construction worker who is building me.  I only get to guess as to what my floor plan, exterior design, and landscaping might end up looking like.  My job is to stand ready.  I am to keep my eyes open and ears in tune with the whispers of God.  I am called to live a life in the present, because the future is not guaranteed and the past is gone in an instant. 

Writing is therapy for my mind.  Thanks for reading.

Blessings    

Biography (friends from the past)

Yesterday was a big day in my internship.  I was given the opportunity to speak in front of members of the Church.  My presentation (not a sermon that will have to wait for another day) was on Jonathan Edwards arguably the biggest personality to work for the Church in America.  After studying Edwards for about two weeks I found myself being inspired by his life. 

The Church that stands in Northampton now.

Edwards grew up in a large family.  He was one of eleven children.  He was the fifth child and the only son.  I cannot imagine what that would be like.  He was also a very curious boy (something I can relate to).  From an early age Jonathan showed academic promise and at age 13 he enrolled at Yale.  He graduated from Yale at the top of his class and stayed to study theology.  In 1727 Jonathan 24 at the time was invited by his grandfather Solomon Stoddard (also a person worth looking in to) to become an assistant pastor at the Northampton Congregationalist Church.  Jonathan became known as the “scholar-pastor” for his 13 hour long days at the church studying, writing, and other scholarly activities.  Two years later Stoddard passed away leaving the 26 year old Jonathan as the sole overseer of one the largest and most widely known congregations in the Massachusetts area.  No big deal right?  It probably would have been easy enough if Jonathan wanted simply keep the status quo.  Jonathan wasn’t geared that way though.  He had this deep desire to se people more biblical lives (this ought to be the aim of every single pastor, elder, deacon, and teacher) and with this desire he began to pursue genuine conversion in people.  At the time the youth in the region were absorbed in the idea of spiritual independence.  In a nutshell this idea led most to believe that to be sinful meant to be morally impoverished and salvation was simply living in accord with Christ’s moral teachings.  Jonathan confronted this idea with a series of Calvinists sermons.  By 1733 the congregation had been so affected by the Holy Spirit that it began to experience a revival that was to last until 1735 and bring in 300 new members.  After a period of quiet the congregation again exploded into revival and this time it spilled in to other parts of the colonies.  The First Great Awakening had begun.  Methodists and Baptists began to evangelize in the west.  Presbyterians and Reformers worked in the New England cities.  People began to learn and be converted to Christ.  In all this Jonathan was still pursuing a more devote life from his congregation.  This pursuit eventually became too much for the congregation and they voted him out of the church, a decision most of that council came to regret later.

Jonathan was invited to numerous different places after leaving Northampton, but he was led to the most humble.  Instead of going to NYC or even to Scotland Jonathan was brought to the Housatonic Indians in western Massachusetts.  He had to preach and council through an interpreter.  He had to become one of the only Indian advocates in the area.  He served the Indians faithfully for 8 years. 

This is just a glance at a life for Christ.  Jonathan Edwards was not perfect, but he strove to be more faithful to Christ.  His soft spoken yet powerful sermons aimed to show the truth of God’s nature. 

I had the opportunity to share all this and a little more to about 15 people from the congregation yesterday.  We drove about 2 hours to the Northampton Church that now stands where the one stood that Jonathan Edwards preached in for 23 years.  One of the readings I was given this summer emphasized the power of Christians reading Christian’s biographies.  I can say Christian biography has left an impression on me and I have not even read that much of it.  I begin to realize that what I am doing has already been done by those who came before me.  I just have the opportunity to do it for my generation. 

Me rambling on and on......look at that nose haha!

On the way back from the field trip I was asked what do you think you want to do next.  I said I want to work for the Church but maybe seminary is where I belong for a time?  The question remains at what time do I do this?  Then a man shared some insights with me.  Doors will open where God wants them to be open.  It is up to us to step up.  He experienced this in his own life.  Sometimes we think the door is open but it is actually locked for the time being.  You’d never know this if you never touched the door knob.  Amazing how common sense works.  I am at the point where I am choosing which door knob to touch first.  Exciting, daunting, and thrilling.  I pray God speaks in your life as he has in mine and others.  I pray you find someone like Jonathan Edwards who can inspire you to a deeper faith.

Blessings!