Recently my friend Brian Ladd emailed some web links to me that introduced me to a guy named Nate Larkin. Then he brought me a copy of his book entitled Samson and the Pirate Monks. I have been reading the book for about 2-3 weeks. (It usually takes me awhile to get through one because I read 3-4 at a time.) The book is Nate's story of being addicted to pornography and his subsequent recovery process. Nate picked up his first prostitute while on the way to conduct a candle light service at the church he was pastoring. Now many would say Nate couldn't have been a Christian while at the same time committing such a grievous sin. There was a time when I would have thought the same thing. Truth is, being a Christian isn't about, to quote Nate, "being very good at being very good." But I was brought up to believe Christianity is about, first of all recieving Christ as personal savior; which by the way I still believe. But then the next thing was the task of being the best you, you can be, doing all the right things, and following all the rules. You know, the ones in that book the denomination wrote. That makes God like you better. When you don't "DO" all those things you're not in God's good graces. I tried so hard to be my own savior. I didn't know that was what I was doing. I believed that when I took a personal inventory of my life and I had more good marks than bad I was tight with God. No that's not true. What I really believed was when there was only one bad mark I was no longer in the family.
Let me pause and say I had an encounter with God when I was 14 years old that was a close second to Saul's Damascus Road experience. In that moment I immeidately realized that I must surrender my life to Jesus Christ or I would be eternally lost. I love God more than anyone or anything. I desire to live a holy life. I have no desire to live in sin; any sin. That said, my conduct is not always holy. Neither are my thoughts; and I do sin.
Now back to "being very good at being very good." Nates says it so well in his retelling of the story of the rich young ruler in Mark 10. "The young man was very good at being very good, and his life was marked with the kind of success that religious people usually associate with virtue." When the rich kid gave Jesus the wrong answers Jesus looked at him and loved him. When we think we're doing it right but we aren't, we're still loved by God. Now along with that love always comes instruction on how not to stay like we are. That's real love. (Man, if you love me, love me enough to tell me the truth. Don't let me keep driving toward the bridge that's out.)
The next thing Neal writes about this dialogue between Jesus and Richy Rich is interesting.
"...here's what I suggest. Leave this audience. Sell the stage, the costumes, and the props follow me on a great adventure. The poor young man couldn't do it. He had become so obsessed with with building his own goodness. For too long he had been keeping the rules and making up more, thinking that if only he were right, if only he could do all the right things and learn all the right things and get all the right things and say all the right things, he could bring himself to life. Jesus was saying, 'It's not about being good! It's about being! God is good and that's good enough."
I am realizing that I want to do what Jesus was suggesting to Daddy Warbucks; place my trust in a goodness not my own...abandon my pious, false life in order to find my real one. I have decided to stop trying to live for Christ and live in Christ
Yes, just being is better than being good.
If you're interested in knowing more of Nate Larkin's story and how God is now using him in ministry go to http://www.iamsecond.com/ to view a portion of his story.
AMERICAN BARBARISM
ReplyDelete"Dear is in the eyes of the Lord's death his saints." (Psalm 116.15)
In recent days, sad news reached the United States and Germany.
In an action of barbarism, a man went to a Baptist church in Marevellous, Illinois, and began firing at the pastor Fred Winters who was preaching in the cult, killing him and wounding two people. The murderer was arrested by the parishioners who were able to reduce it.
Almost a few days later there was another barbarism in Alabama. A man murderer among relatives of 10 people, men, women and children, made a tour of several sites, after being cornered by police, he committed suicide.
But barbarism also transcend borders. In Germany, a couple of 17 years, emulating other suicide Americans entered the armed institute where I studied and killed 13 students among them teachers, in their flight killed two more people, then engage in shootout with police youth suicide was shot in the head.
These facts, which are not the only ones that occur in the United States or Europe, seem to indicate that there is a culture of murder among the people of the northern hemisphere.
On August 12, 2007 in Neosho, Missouri, a man killed a pastor and two worshipers in the cult. There is a history of mass killings of students in Finland in 2008 and Canada in 2006.
Given these facts, the U.S. government, and evangelical churches have done nothing to achieve reverse this situation, which has been happening since long atrás.
I am Christian and express my indignation and my anger against the American evangelical churches that are enclosed in their spiritual bubbles do not realize the harsh reality is happening around them.
How many more must die pastors to the churches just do something to prevent these deaths? How many young students and children have to die to protect the churches decide deranged people?
The Christian life consists not only make social life, and walks. The Christian life is to do something for our society that is crumbling.
Work is not only the state and its institutions to ensure the safety of society, work is also of the church. If that does not understand the American church then they are at the bottom of the sea to fish and evangelicen. Genuine Christians, perhaps in another country, take charge of evangelizing American society.
Why do not intend to make the church a community united in its campaign to disarm the families who have guns?
Why not start with themselves Christians kept their weapons? For a Christian who wants a gun? To remove the evil spirits?
Do not be surprised if this church worsen with the passage of days.
Still time to prevent future massacres.
Do not make the blood of those holy brethren who gave their lives for the church has been spilled in vain