Were you at [lit] Sunday night? Our good friend, Nathan, from A Love Not Lost, proposed to Karly from the stage, in the company of our youth group, and many of their friends and family. It was in the context of what they'll be doing together in the future - what God has gifted them to do and given them a passion to do together - leading worship! It was awesome. And it was a great "object lesson" right in front of us, for the message Jay shared.
He taught us that the love of Christ can be demonstrated in our relationships, whether they are friendships, dating relationships, familial relationships... and ultimately, in marriage. The Bible is very clear that a marriage relationship is designed by God to be a reflection of Himself and His love for His people, reflected to the world and to one another.
How are your relationships reflecting the love of Christ? Are they reflecting it like a freshly cleaned mirror? Maybe like a mirror, but squinting in the dark to see the reflection? Maybe more like a rusty faucet, where the reflected image is distorded by the discoloration and the bent shape of the pipe? In any case, our relationships are INTENDED (DESIGNED) by God, to BE a reflection of His love for us. Whether we are actually using those relationships to convey His love, His truth, and His glory... now that can be another story. Too often, our relationships do not fulfill their God-given purpose.
Will you join me this week in praying that God will give us grace to change? To become more like Christ in our love for our friends, our family members, our loved ones, and even our enemies? Will you pray with me that God will change us, His Church, to become more like the people He has created us to be? There is hope. He is making us new in Christ. Don't give up. Consider your relatinoships this week - your relationship with God, and with everyone within your sphere of influence. And ask God's help in making you more like the "you" He has called you to become in Christ.
Ephesians 2:10 - For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand so that we would walk in them. [NASB]
Thursday, October 13, 2011
Tuesday, September 27, 2011
Tweet Based Faith
I will be the first to say that I love the social media that is available to us in this generation. It is a great way to keep up with current students in the youth ministry, connect with former students from previous churches and check in on some old friends from my high school years (though I limit those).....
From LiveJournal to Xanga, to Myspace and on to Facebook and Twitter, we have so many ways to communicate and express ourselves, which for the most part is a wonderful mode. But recently I have been noticing a trend among Christians on facebook and twitter and it seems to be a norm or trend.
It's all about the catchphrase, the short snippet, the quick info. Some are very clever and leave you wanting more but no one has the time to really read these days it seems. Also, as the writer posting the update, we have become accustomed to narrowing our thoughts and carefully selecting more descriptive words in our posts and updates, so the reader can get a sense in just a few short statements what our entire day has been about.
This does sadden me a little that we can abbreviate our days and moments in just a few short statements. I have said for years that one of the downfalls of social media is that it has taken away the sense of wonder from actually meeting someone face to face, carrying on a riveting conversation filled with heart felt emotion, hand gestures and facial expressions. Now, the reader has to guess if a certain post is sarcastic or not, often times being read into and even more often, being misread.
Some have said that social media has "dumbed" down our generation and while I am not quite ready to jump on that band wagon, I do believe it has taken away much of our depth as people who need and thrive on communication. Our communication skills are become fast food moments and not wonderful meals shared at a table for an hour or two.
Sadly, I do see this trend also interfering with and becoming acceptable in our discipleship and growth as Christians. We want the one verse that says it all instead of reading and studying a theme from chapter to chapter. We want the one bible verse that has been paraphrased so we can share it as a post on facebook or twitter instead of the many verses that need to be read with that one verse. The Bible warns of this in Hebrews (click the link to read it) If not, here ya go:
Hebrews 5:11-13
11About this we have much to say, and it is hard to explain, since you have become dull of hearing. 12For though by this time you ought to be teachers, you need someone to teach you again the basic principles of the oracles of God. You need milk, not solid food, 13for everyone who lives on milk is unskilled in the word of righteousness, since he is a child.
Dull of hearing, ought to be teachers, you need someone to teach you "again", basic principles, milk instead of solid food, unskilled.......unskilled in the Word of righteousness!
Wow, could I have made my point any more clear. We need to be in the Word, studying, searching, praying, discussing, wrestling, finding, being open to the clarity and movement of the Holy Spirit.......Y'all, this takes time and patience. Something none of us seem to have any more. So instead of seeking truth in scripture, we look for the quote the minister says so we can remember it. Now we have remembered the quote but have no recollection where it came from in Scripture. Thus, in my mind, writing it on the tweet of hearts and failing to dive into the meat of the Word. We want to sip it and go and not take a knife and fork to it. I am guilty of this myself and my conviction meter is peeking right now, anyone else?
As Francis Chan said in one of his sermons I listened to, "Get alone with this Book, Get alone with this Book, Get alone with God's Word on a daily basis."
From LiveJournal to Xanga, to Myspace and on to Facebook and Twitter, we have so many ways to communicate and express ourselves, which for the most part is a wonderful mode. But recently I have been noticing a trend among Christians on facebook and twitter and it seems to be a norm or trend.
It's all about the catchphrase, the short snippet, the quick info. Some are very clever and leave you wanting more but no one has the time to really read these days it seems. Also, as the writer posting the update, we have become accustomed to narrowing our thoughts and carefully selecting more descriptive words in our posts and updates, so the reader can get a sense in just a few short statements what our entire day has been about.
This does sadden me a little that we can abbreviate our days and moments in just a few short statements. I have said for years that one of the downfalls of social media is that it has taken away the sense of wonder from actually meeting someone face to face, carrying on a riveting conversation filled with heart felt emotion, hand gestures and facial expressions. Now, the reader has to guess if a certain post is sarcastic or not, often times being read into and even more often, being misread.
Some have said that social media has "dumbed" down our generation and while I am not quite ready to jump on that band wagon, I do believe it has taken away much of our depth as people who need and thrive on communication. Our communication skills are become fast food moments and not wonderful meals shared at a table for an hour or two.
Sadly, I do see this trend also interfering with and becoming acceptable in our discipleship and growth as Christians. We want the one verse that says it all instead of reading and studying a theme from chapter to chapter. We want the one bible verse that has been paraphrased so we can share it as a post on facebook or twitter instead of the many verses that need to be read with that one verse. The Bible warns of this in Hebrews (click the link to read it) If not, here ya go:
Hebrews 5:11-13
11About this we have much to say, and it is hard to explain, since you have become dull of hearing. 12For though by this time you ought to be teachers, you need someone to teach you again the basic principles of the oracles of God. You need milk, not solid food, 13for everyone who lives on milk is unskilled in the word of righteousness, since he is a child.
Dull of hearing, ought to be teachers, you need someone to teach you "again", basic principles, milk instead of solid food, unskilled.......unskilled in the Word of righteousness!
Wow, could I have made my point any more clear. We need to be in the Word, studying, searching, praying, discussing, wrestling, finding, being open to the clarity and movement of the Holy Spirit.......Y'all, this takes time and patience. Something none of us seem to have any more. So instead of seeking truth in scripture, we look for the quote the minister says so we can remember it. Now we have remembered the quote but have no recollection where it came from in Scripture. Thus, in my mind, writing it on the tweet of hearts and failing to dive into the meat of the Word. We want to sip it and go and not take a knife and fork to it. I am guilty of this myself and my conviction meter is peeking right now, anyone else?
As Francis Chan said in one of his sermons I listened to, "Get alone with this Book, Get alone with this Book, Get alone with God's Word on a daily basis."
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