Tug-of-war!!!!!

I freakin love tug-of-wars!!! It reminds me of this tradition that the elementary school I attended does every year. The tradition is all the fifth grade classes come together at the end of the year for a class battle, and one of the events is tug-of-war. I remember the best battle were the ones that would go back and forth...one class would be close to the "pit" and then they'd pull their opponent to the pit. Such a rad game and I bet the teachers were stoked watching the battles.

Tug-of-war is a super fun game, but when "tug-of-wars" take its toll on your faith... not so fun at all. God has created me to be a person of heart. I tend to do nearly all things from the source of my heart. The bad thing about being all heart is that being all mind is like a really distant.....cousin. You know...those cousins who you wonder if they're really related at all?

"Love the Lord your God will all your heart, soul, mind and strength. And love thy neighbor as thy self."

For some reason, heart and mind are the two strongest qualities that people "are." I am a man of heart. I do use my mind and logically try to approach many things, but when it comes down to being in the moment of quick decisions, my heart leads. My wife, Hanna, is a woman of mind. She is a passionate woman and is a big lover, but I believe that is a life or spiritual threatening moment was to happen and she had to make the next step quickly, her mind would lead her.

Jesus' gives this great command and because of his mysterious, trinitarian nature, he lays down something that is so familiar, yet foreign. Most of the people I hang with are minds. I guess I purposely surround myself with minds because I secretly am desperate for a better balance with my love towards God. I'd like to think it's been helping, but who knows.

I just look at this way... if I wanted to be a professional tennis player, I'm not going to go out and hire a karate master. And I also see it this way...we should stray from spiritual tug-of-wars as a church or a believer, and run towards being a balanced church/believer. And if we look to the body of Christ, we can learn and grow a healthy balance as we work daily on loving the Lord our God will all our heart, soul, mind and strength.

Strong and Powerful...me?

I've been thinking a lot lately about the idea of being strong and victorious as a follower of Christ. I guess the reason why I've been soaking in this idea is because I've had my fair share of flesh-vs-spirit battles in the past (and to this day) like seeking freedom from certain bondages, praying for a different mindset, and such things like that. There are a couple truths that I've been exposed to that has...humbled me.

One truth is that across the world, since the beginning of man, various forms of pride have existed. From Cain killing his blood brother over an offering to Joey & Hanna being stubborn and not wanting humble themselves to understand their lovers heart during an argument (I love you Princess!). Pride is so confusing, it has birthed so many different forms from the depth of its heart. And I believe, just like a disease, it has infested or linked itself to other forms like misconception.

I grew up in the faith misconceived about this power that we possess as Christians.

Unfortunately, the new thing among churches in America is to be seeker sensitive...seeker sensitive: presenting the gospel that will not offend the congregation, or give them the meal that they want, but "hold the onions". And something that is hard to avoid with this mission is that there is no separation between the world and the church. I'm not saying that congregations can't be righteous or whatever...but going in to the world and preaching the gospel requires that we present the name of Jesus with power, authority, and through the righteousness that comes through Jesus.

My point is this...with this mentality of being seeker-sensitive or as the church, staying level with the world, the idea of being powerful and victorious has been infested. We have this misconception swayed by the world that we can be powerful and victorious. Like from the line of one of Hillsong United's songs...

"The same power that conquered the grave lives in me"

To be honest, after I sing this song, I feel like a conquerer. But the main truth that I've been learning is this from the great Apostle Paul....

"But he said to me, "My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness." Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ's power may rest on me. That is why, for Christ's sake, I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in hardships, in persecutions, in difficulties. For when I am weak, then I am strong." - 2 Cor. 12:9, 10


The same power that conquered the grave lives in me... PRAISE JESUS for that truth because the power that Jesus had while on earth does live within God's children! BUT that power that is in us isn't our power...it's His and His alone.

So...I'm starting to rid myself from the sad misconception that exists within the church. I realized that I am not strong. That I am not powerful. But I will boast about my weaknesses and live in Christ's stength and victory!!!!