Let me begin by saying that I am an imperfect sinner who struggles with many of things that bother me. I swim in the dirty water that I deplore. I am guilty of the things that upset and disappoint me. So this does not come from one who thinks he has it all together. Rather, these are the words of a fellow man who falls short of the glory of God.
As I write these words I look on my desk and see my iPod plugged into my iHome. While not playing anything at the moment, it could be turned on and I could select from thousands of things to listen to. And if there is nothing there, I could go online and download just about anything I want within seconds.
Have we done the same with God?
Just think about it.
How many of us take our iGod and choose the one we want?
Feeling like you want to fit in with your friends today? Grab your iGod and select the "God in a Box" who will silently stay in your back pocket at school or work while you tell off-color jokes, make fun of the person everyone laughs at, or lie and cheat to get ahead.
Maybe you want to be a trendy Christian. Grab iGod and dial up the "God who likes the music, regardless of the lyrics." Didn't God give that person the ability to play like that? This musician claims to be a follower of Jesus. He talks about God when he accepts his Grammy. He even has a song with a spiritual reference. Can we just overlook the fact that he has three other songs that degrade women and glorify greed? I just want to fit in.
Want to be the churchy Christian? This is where you put your iGod on shuffle. Whenever you get around those church people it's time to act all holy. Sure, you might have been out drinking last night. Maybe on Friday night you were playing cards and winning money while taking advantage of your friends. You could have been using that girlfriend of yours to please yourself. You brushed off the student or coworker that looked lonely. But now it's Sunday morning. Time to sing the hymns, bow the head, and take communion.
Then there are more subtle choices like "Happy Christian." This is where your iGod playlist changes. You have struggles and hurts, but when you get around your Christian friends you smile and say everything is great. It could be pride. Maybe it's fear of embarrassment or rejection. Whatever it is, we serve the "everything is great on the outside" God while we are dying on the inside.
What about the secular/spiritual setting on your iGod? This is where we act like our two worlds are not connected. Spirituality is a private matter. Sure, I live a moral life, but other than that God is a personal thing. Never mind what Jesus said about losing my life for the sake of Gospel. He was taking to martyrs. That rich young ruler that Jesus told to sell everything. He was just making a point.
Wait...one more. Does your iGod have a playlist called "God is another hobby?" This is one of the most popular downloads. I can get up every morning at 6:00am or stay after school for two hours for a sport. I will spend hours and even entire weekends hunting, fishing, or playing golf. It is nothing to spending Sunday afternoons watching football. But you want me to give up a few hours a month to serve the homeless? Do I have to "go to church" Wednesday night? It's been a busy week. I don't really have time to get up 20 minutes earlier to pray. I was up late last night watching a good movie.
Frankly, I am tired of my iGod. I want to put it away and live a dedicated life. I don't want to care whether or not I am dressed fashionably while some people in Oakland County would just like to have a coat. I get mad at myself for watching even an hour of television while people within walking distance of my house barely have food to eat. I am frustrated that I am in more conversations about sports and entertainment than I am about the power of God. I get discouraged that we often spend more time figuring out where to eat out on Sunday afternoons than finding someone to have in our home who can't afford a meal. Have we become so absorbed in the consumerism around us that we want God at our disposal like a service technician?
Don't get me wrong. I am not saying that entertainment or clothing anything else in our culture is inherently sinful, but are we serving the wrong gods? Is it not backwards when we compliment someone more about the way they are dressed than the way they serve? Is it not upside down when we spend one hour serving the poor and hours upon hours serving ourselves at restaurants, stores, move theaters, and in front of the TV?
Jesus did not come to give us a comfortable, enjoyable life. He came to give us life abundant. I don't think He ever imagined that abundance would mean big houses, nice cars, and big bank accounts. I think He had in mind hearts full of compassion, people seeking joy in simplicity, and hands reaching out to others. The abundant life is not about us; it never was intended to be about us. It is about loving God and loving others. It is about laying down our life so that someone else's life could be better.
Is "The American Dream" what has spoiled our view of God? Has Manifest Destiny created a consumeristic God? Has the American "God" become a God of capitalism and individualism? Has the God who has always valued community become of God of commodity? Is the Way of selflessness become a way of selfishness? Do we serve with our lives or do we serve to help justify our lifestyle and feel better about ourselves?
I think about people like Mother Teresa and Martin Luther King and weep at the kind of follower of Jesus I am. The more I get to know Jesus, the more I realize how little I really follow Him. I feel like Peter, who followed at a distance, but was willing to deny Jesus when it interfered with his comfort.
I am more and more convinced every day we as a people of God need to spend more time with Jesus. Sure, this involves time in the Bible and time in prayer. But it is much more than that. We follow a man who didn't have a place to lay His head, didn't worry about owning much of anything, and was willing to stand up for what was right, regardless of the circumstances. We follow this man, Jesus, by building bigger and bigger houses, gathering as many possessions as we can, and compromising our principles when necessary. Are we following or just admiring from a distance?
My biggest fear in life is that I am just admiring while pretending to be a follower. I want to pick up my cross, but often I am afraid to lay down the things that I am already holding in my hands. What I am learning is that ultimately, it's not about what you own...it's about what owns you.
shine!
Jason
Tuesday, November 28, 2006
iGod
Let me begin by saying that I am an imperfect sinner who struggles with many of things that bother me. I swim in the dirty water that I deplore. I am guilty of the things that upset and disappoint me. So this does not come from one who thinks he has it all together. Rather, these are the words of a fellow man who falls short of the glory of God.
As I write these words I look on my desk and see my iPod plugged into my iHome. While not playing anything at the moment, it could be turned on and I could select from thousands of things to listen to. And if there is nothing there, I could go online and download just about anything I want within seconds.
Have we done the same with God?
Just think about it.
How many of us take our iGod and choose the one we want?
Feeling like you want to fit in with your friends today? Grab your iGod and select the "God in a Box" who will silently stay in your back pocket at school or work while you tell off-color jokes, make fun of the person everyone laughs at, or lie and cheat to get ahead.
Maybe you want to be a trendy Christian. Grab iGod and dial up the "God who likes the music, regardless of the lyrics." Didn't God give that person the ability to play like that? This musician claims to be a follower of Jesus. He talks about God when he accepts his Grammy. He even has a song with a spiritual reference. Can we just overlook the fact that he has three other songs that degrade women and glorify greed? I just want to fit in.
Want to be the churchy Christian? This is where you put your iGod on shuffle. Whenever you get around those church people it's time to act all holy. Sure, you might have been out drinking last night. Maybe on Friday night you were playing cards and winning money while taking advantage of your friends. You could have been using that girlfriend of yours to please yourself. You brushed off the student or coworker that looked lonely. But now it's Sunday morning. Time to sing the hymns, bow the head, and take communion.
Then there are more subtle choices like "Happy Christian." This is where your iGod playlist changes. You have struggles and hurts, but when you get around your Christian friends you smile and say everything is great. It could be pride. Maybe it's fear of embarrassment or rejection. Whatever it is, we serve the "everything is great on the outside" God while we are dying on the inside.
What about the secular/spiritual setting on your iGod? This is where we act like our two worlds are not connected. Spirituality is a private matter. Sure, I live a moral life, but other than that God is a personal thing. Never mind what Jesus said about losing my life for the sake of Gospel. He was taking to martyrs. That rich young ruler that Jesus told to sell everything. He was just making a point.
Wait...one more. Does your iGod have a playlist called "God is another hobby?" This is one of the most popular downloads. I can get up every morning at 6:00am or stay after school for two hours for a sport. I will spend hours and even entire weekends hunting, fishing, or playing golf. It is nothing to spending Sunday afternoons watching football. But you want me to give up a few hours a month to serve the homeless? Do I have to "go to church" Wednesday night? It's been a busy week. I don't really have time to get up 20 minutes earlier to pray. I was up late last night watching a good movie.
Frankly, I am tired of my iGod. I want to put it away and live a dedicated life. I don't want to care whether or not I am dressed fashionably while some people in Oakland County would just like to have a coat. I get mad at myself for watching even an hour of television while people within walking distance of my house barely have food to eat. I am frustrated that I am in more conversations about sports and entertainment than I am about the power of God. I get discouraged that we often spend more time figuring out where to eat out on Sunday afternoons than finding someone to have in our home who can't afford a meal. Have we become so absorbed in the consumerism around us that we want God at our disposal like a service technician?
Don't get me wrong. I am not saying that entertainment or clothing anything else in our culture is inherently sinful, but are we serving the wrong gods? Is it not backwards when we compliment someone more about the way they are dressed than the way they serve? Is it not upside down when we spend one hour serving the poor and hours upon hours serving ourselves at restaurants, stores, move theaters, and in front of the TV?
Jesus did not come to give us a comfortable, enjoyable life. He came to give us life abundant. I don't think He ever imagined that abundance would mean big houses, nice cars, and big bank accounts. I think He had in mind hearts full of compassion, people seeking joy in simplicity, and hands reaching out to others. The abundant life is not about us; it never was intended to be about us. It is about loving God and loving others. It is about laying down our life so that someone else's life could be better.
Is "The American Dream" what has spoiled our view of God? Has Manifest Destiny created a consumeristic God? Has the American "God" become a God of capitalism and individualism? Has the God who has always valued community become of God of commodity? Is the Way of selflessness become a way of selfishness? Do we serve with our lives or do we serve to help justify our lifestyle and feel better about ourselves?
I think about people like Mother Teresa and Martin Luther King and weep at the kind of follower of Jesus I am. The more I get to know Jesus, the more I realize how little I really follow Him. I feel like Peter, who followed at a distance, but was willing to deny Jesus when it interfered with his comfort.
I am more and more convinced every day we as a people of God need to spend more time with Jesus. Sure, this involves time in the Bible and time in prayer. But it is much more than that. We follow a man who didn't have a place to lay His head, didn't worry about owning much of anything, and was willing to stand up for what was right, regardless of the circumstances. We follow this man, Jesus, by building bigger and bigger houses, gathering as many possessions as we can, and compromising our principles when necessary. Are we following or just admiring from a distance?
My biggest fear in life is that I am just admiring while pretending to be a follower. I want to pick up my cross, but often I am afraid to lay down the things that I am already holding in my hands. What I am learning is that ultimately, it's not about what you own...it's about what owns you.
shine!
Jason
As I write these words I look on my desk and see my iPod plugged into my iHome. While not playing anything at the moment, it could be turned on and I could select from thousands of things to listen to. And if there is nothing there, I could go online and download just about anything I want within seconds.
Have we done the same with God?
Just think about it.
How many of us take our iGod and choose the one we want?
Feeling like you want to fit in with your friends today? Grab your iGod and select the "God in a Box" who will silently stay in your back pocket at school or work while you tell off-color jokes, make fun of the person everyone laughs at, or lie and cheat to get ahead.
Maybe you want to be a trendy Christian. Grab iGod and dial up the "God who likes the music, regardless of the lyrics." Didn't God give that person the ability to play like that? This musician claims to be a follower of Jesus. He talks about God when he accepts his Grammy. He even has a song with a spiritual reference. Can we just overlook the fact that he has three other songs that degrade women and glorify greed? I just want to fit in.
Want to be the churchy Christian? This is where you put your iGod on shuffle. Whenever you get around those church people it's time to act all holy. Sure, you might have been out drinking last night. Maybe on Friday night you were playing cards and winning money while taking advantage of your friends. You could have been using that girlfriend of yours to please yourself. You brushed off the student or coworker that looked lonely. But now it's Sunday morning. Time to sing the hymns, bow the head, and take communion.
Then there are more subtle choices like "Happy Christian." This is where your iGod playlist changes. You have struggles and hurts, but when you get around your Christian friends you smile and say everything is great. It could be pride. Maybe it's fear of embarrassment or rejection. Whatever it is, we serve the "everything is great on the outside" God while we are dying on the inside.
What about the secular/spiritual setting on your iGod? This is where we act like our two worlds are not connected. Spirituality is a private matter. Sure, I live a moral life, but other than that God is a personal thing. Never mind what Jesus said about losing my life for the sake of Gospel. He was taking to martyrs. That rich young ruler that Jesus told to sell everything. He was just making a point.
Wait...one more. Does your iGod have a playlist called "God is another hobby?" This is one of the most popular downloads. I can get up every morning at 6:00am or stay after school for two hours for a sport. I will spend hours and even entire weekends hunting, fishing, or playing golf. It is nothing to spending Sunday afternoons watching football. But you want me to give up a few hours a month to serve the homeless? Do I have to "go to church" Wednesday night? It's been a busy week. I don't really have time to get up 20 minutes earlier to pray. I was up late last night watching a good movie.
Frankly, I am tired of my iGod. I want to put it away and live a dedicated life. I don't want to care whether or not I am dressed fashionably while some people in Oakland County would just like to have a coat. I get mad at myself for watching even an hour of television while people within walking distance of my house barely have food to eat. I am frustrated that I am in more conversations about sports and entertainment than I am about the power of God. I get discouraged that we often spend more time figuring out where to eat out on Sunday afternoons than finding someone to have in our home who can't afford a meal. Have we become so absorbed in the consumerism around us that we want God at our disposal like a service technician?
Don't get me wrong. I am not saying that entertainment or clothing anything else in our culture is inherently sinful, but are we serving the wrong gods? Is it not backwards when we compliment someone more about the way they are dressed than the way they serve? Is it not upside down when we spend one hour serving the poor and hours upon hours serving ourselves at restaurants, stores, move theaters, and in front of the TV?
Jesus did not come to give us a comfortable, enjoyable life. He came to give us life abundant. I don't think He ever imagined that abundance would mean big houses, nice cars, and big bank accounts. I think He had in mind hearts full of compassion, people seeking joy in simplicity, and hands reaching out to others. The abundant life is not about us; it never was intended to be about us. It is about loving God and loving others. It is about laying down our life so that someone else's life could be better.
Is "The American Dream" what has spoiled our view of God? Has Manifest Destiny created a consumeristic God? Has the American "God" become a God of capitalism and individualism? Has the God who has always valued community become of God of commodity? Is the Way of selflessness become a way of selfishness? Do we serve with our lives or do we serve to help justify our lifestyle and feel better about ourselves?
I think about people like Mother Teresa and Martin Luther King and weep at the kind of follower of Jesus I am. The more I get to know Jesus, the more I realize how little I really follow Him. I feel like Peter, who followed at a distance, but was willing to deny Jesus when it interfered with his comfort.
I am more and more convinced every day we as a people of God need to spend more time with Jesus. Sure, this involves time in the Bible and time in prayer. But it is much more than that. We follow a man who didn't have a place to lay His head, didn't worry about owning much of anything, and was willing to stand up for what was right, regardless of the circumstances. We follow this man, Jesus, by building bigger and bigger houses, gathering as many possessions as we can, and compromising our principles when necessary. Are we following or just admiring from a distance?
My biggest fear in life is that I am just admiring while pretending to be a follower. I want to pick up my cross, but often I am afraid to lay down the things that I am already holding in my hands. What I am learning is that ultimately, it's not about what you own...it's about what owns you.
shine!
Jason
Monday, November 20, 2006
Life flashing before my eyes...
This past weekend I had one of those encouraging, emotional, reaffirming, sad, joyful, and fun experiences. I was at the Belpre Youth Rally. I saw people from almost every part of my full-time ministry experience...
There were adults and teenagers from Amherst.
There was a teenager from Amherst who is also a student at OVU.
There were adults, kids, and teenagers from Belpre.
There were college students from OVU.
There was a teenager from Belpre who is a student at Rochester College.
There were college students from the Rochester Church.
There were admissions counselors I have known for years.
There were OVU employees.
I think that just about covers it all.
It was one of those times where God allows you to see how many lives you have touched. Although I played such a small part in many of these people's lives, it is still cool to see how God uses us.
Even more encouraging to me is how much all of the people I saw this weekend have impacted my life. Seeing so many friends was like stepping back and looking at a mosaic of the people who have helped shape my faith.
When I pulled away from the Belpre Youth Rally it was time to return to where God has brought me to, but for a few days in November I was able to look back at the last seven years of my life and see how God shapes a man using the people around him.
To everyone I saw this weekend who reads this I want to say "Thank you."
Thank you for showing me what it means to be faithful.
Thank you for showing me what it means to be loving.
Thank you for showing me what it means to be kind.
Thank you for showing me what it means to be passionate about God.
Thank you for showing me what it means to be a friend.
shine!
Jason
There were adults and teenagers from Amherst.
There was a teenager from Amherst who is also a student at OVU.
There were adults, kids, and teenagers from Belpre.
There were college students from OVU.
There was a teenager from Belpre who is a student at Rochester College.
There were college students from the Rochester Church.
There were admissions counselors I have known for years.
There were OVU employees.
I think that just about covers it all.
It was one of those times where God allows you to see how many lives you have touched. Although I played such a small part in many of these people's lives, it is still cool to see how God uses us.
Even more encouraging to me is how much all of the people I saw this weekend have impacted my life. Seeing so many friends was like stepping back and looking at a mosaic of the people who have helped shape my faith.
When I pulled away from the Belpre Youth Rally it was time to return to where God has brought me to, but for a few days in November I was able to look back at the last seven years of my life and see how God shapes a man using the people around him.
To everyone I saw this weekend who reads this I want to say "Thank you."
Thank you for showing me what it means to be faithful.
Thank you for showing me what it means to be loving.
Thank you for showing me what it means to be kind.
Thank you for showing me what it means to be passionate about God.
Thank you for showing me what it means to be a friend.
shine!
Jason
Life flashing before my eyes...
This past weekend I had one of those encouraging, emotional, reaffirming, sad, joyful, and fun experiences. I was at the Belpre Youth Rally. I saw people from almost every part of my full-time ministry experience...
There were adults and teenagers from Amherst.
There was a teenager from Amherst who is also a student at OVU.
There were adults, kids, and teenagers from Belpre.
There were college students from OVU.
There was a teenager from Belpre who is a student at Rochester College.
There were college students from the Rochester Church.
There were admissions counselors I have known for years.
There were OVU employees.
I think that just about covers it all.
It was one of those times where God allows you to see how many lives you have touched. Although I played such a small part in many of these people's lives, it is still cool to see how God uses us.
Even more encouraging to me is how much all of the people I saw this weekend have impacted my life. Seeing so many friends was like stepping back and looking at a mosaic of the people who have helped shape my faith.
When I pulled away from the Belpre Youth Rally it was time to return to where God has brought me to, but for a few days in November I was able to look back at the last seven years of my life and see how God shapes a man using the people around him.
To everyone I saw this weekend who reads this I want to say "Thank you."
Thank you for showing me what it means to be faithful.
Thank you for showing me what it means to be loving.
Thank you for showing me what it means to be kind.
Thank you for showing me what it means to be passionate about God.
Thank you for showing me what it means to be a friend.
shine!
Jason
There were adults and teenagers from Amherst.
There was a teenager from Amherst who is also a student at OVU.
There were adults, kids, and teenagers from Belpre.
There were college students from OVU.
There was a teenager from Belpre who is a student at Rochester College.
There were college students from the Rochester Church.
There were admissions counselors I have known for years.
There were OVU employees.
I think that just about covers it all.
It was one of those times where God allows you to see how many lives you have touched. Although I played such a small part in many of these people's lives, it is still cool to see how God uses us.
Even more encouraging to me is how much all of the people I saw this weekend have impacted my life. Seeing so many friends was like stepping back and looking at a mosaic of the people who have helped shape my faith.
When I pulled away from the Belpre Youth Rally it was time to return to where God has brought me to, but for a few days in November I was able to look back at the last seven years of my life and see how God shapes a man using the people around him.
To everyone I saw this weekend who reads this I want to say "Thank you."
Thank you for showing me what it means to be faithful.
Thank you for showing me what it means to be loving.
Thank you for showing me what it means to be kind.
Thank you for showing me what it means to be passionate about God.
Thank you for showing me what it means to be a friend.
shine!
Jason
Tuesday, November 07, 2006
Still a political science junkie
Here I am watching FoxNews to see the results of the election. As much as I have distanced myself from politics, it is still a mild passion for me. But this is the key to keeping your sanity in the midst of the craziness. God will keep working no matter who controls Congress.
So many people, even Christians, place so much of their hope in the outcome of elections. Don't get me wrong. If we feel like a candidate supports our views we should vote for them. It is our responsibility as citizens to vote.
However, our faith should never be in who is President or controls Congress. Our ability to follow God is not dictated by what political party is in the majority.
I will probably make more comments after the election results are finalized, but I am tired and need to get to bed soon. Who will be in control when the dust clears? Republicans? Democrats? How about God?
shine!
Jason
So many people, even Christians, place so much of their hope in the outcome of elections. Don't get me wrong. If we feel like a candidate supports our views we should vote for them. It is our responsibility as citizens to vote.
However, our faith should never be in who is President or controls Congress. Our ability to follow God is not dictated by what political party is in the majority.
I will probably make more comments after the election results are finalized, but I am tired and need to get to bed soon. Who will be in control when the dust clears? Republicans? Democrats? How about God?
shine!
Jason
Still a political science junkie
Here I am watching FoxNews to see the results of the election. As much as I have distanced myself from politics, it is still a mild passion for me. But this is the key to keeping your sanity in the midst of the craziness. God will keep working no matter who controls Congress.
So many people, even Christians, place so much of their hope in the outcome of elections. Don't get me wrong. If we feel like a candidate supports our views we should vote for them. It is our responsibility as citizens to vote.
However, our faith should never be in who is President or controls Congress. Our ability to follow God is not dictated by what political party is in the majority.
I will probably make more comments after the election results are finalized, but I am tired and need to get to bed soon. Who will be in control when the dust clears? Republicans? Democrats? How about God?
shine!
Jason
So many people, even Christians, place so much of their hope in the outcome of elections. Don't get me wrong. If we feel like a candidate supports our views we should vote for them. It is our responsibility as citizens to vote.
However, our faith should never be in who is President or controls Congress. Our ability to follow God is not dictated by what political party is in the majority.
I will probably make more comments after the election results are finalized, but I am tired and need to get to bed soon. Who will be in control when the dust clears? Republicans? Democrats? How about God?
shine!
Jason
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