Believing Lies

“How trustworthy are the messages we get from our world each day?  I want to suggest to you that many, if not most, are extremely dangerous and will destroy our lives if we live by them.  Unfortunately, we are so brainwashed into believing these lies, minute by minute, day by day, that they not only appear harmless, but also true.” (The Lies We Believe by Chris Thurman)

All of us believe things in life that aren’t true. We do not do it purposely, in fact often we are not even aware we are believing these lies. Lies come from our distorted beliefs, family practices, self-protective behavior, egotistical or ethnocentric beliefs, and even from our culture.

What is it that you might believe that isn’t true? Can you name anything? How would your life be different if you changed just one of your beliefs and choose to start believing the truth?

Christian heritage, culture, or lifestyle?

I have a dear friend who I met when she was in Junior High and I worked for the school system. She and I used to spend a lot of time talking and on-line chatting. I even spent time at her home and got to know her family fairly well. One of the things we would talk about were the differences in our beliefs and culture. She is Jewish. Her family is Jewish by heritage. Her lifestyle was Jewish by culture. When she was in school I would not have described her as being Jewish by belief. Last year I had the privilege to attend her wedding. Again I could see the Jewish heritage and culture, but this time I could see how her beliefs have grown and changed and how her Jewish beliefs were now a part of her life in many ways.

Christianity in America is very similar to what I witnessed in my friend. Many of us have been raised in Christian homes where we have been raised with a heritage. We have been raised in a culture that has Christian beliefs, language, and practices spread throughout and incorporated into our daily lives. We can speak the language, walk the walk, tell the stories, and repeat the histories. We know the information and facts about Christianity. We have memorized scriptures, attended and even worked in churches, and claim to shape our lives around our Christian beliefs. There is a problem though. We are trying to fit Christianity into our lifestyle, rather than changing our lives to be like Christ.

Can you answer honestly in your heart that you are living a Christian lifestyle not because of a heritage you have been raised with or a culture you have been a part of? Do you have beliefs that go beyond the surface? Do you really want to live a Christian lifestyle? Do you really want to live your beliefs? If you say yes, how is it going to change your life? Your decisions? Your actions? Your commitments?

Are you willing to pay the price to follow, or is the price too high?

Are we cheapening Christ?

I haven’t been posting much lately. It isn’t because I don’t have things to post, but actually because I can’t organize my thoughts enough to post. My mind has been so full with thoughts, dreams, things I am learning and musing about. Words don’t always come easily to me so sometimes it is tough to put them into writing.

One of the things heavily on my heart and mind lately is about how we cheapen Christianity, faith, Jesus, God, and the Church. I have been struck by how many times I am just like the hypocrite I get upset at.

I just finished reading A New Kind of Christian by Brian McLaren. This quote struck me, “I may have a personal home, personal car, personal computer, personal identification number, personal digital assistant, personal hot tub-all in need now is personal salvation for my own personal savior.  I hope I’m not offending you-it is all strikes me as Christianity diced through the modern Veg-o-matic.”

How many ways do we misrepresent God, his Word, and his heart? How many times do we do certain actions because they are “right” but our heart behind doing them is completely wrong? How many times do we say we will do something and not follow through?

James say, “Do not merely listen to the Word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says.” (1:22). I have been taking that to God daily lately (and need to for the rest of my life). Am I deceiving myself and thinking I am living by the word? Am I really doing what it says? Am I doing what it says because my heart truly desires to follow God’s ways, or just because I know it is the way Christian’s should behave?

From the Inside Out

A few weeks ago I had a tree taken down. As I watched the workmen I thought of all the trees that will come down over the next few months. The winds, water, snow, ice, and many other weather elements will wear on the trees and one by one some of them will bend, break, and topple. Some of them will shatter and splinter, others will be uprooted, and some will just lean slowly over until they are down.

Our lives can be compared to these trees. Some of us or those around us will bend, break and topple in the near future. Some will shatter and splinter. Some will be uprooted, and some will just lean over. One of the keys for trees and humans is what is on the inside. A tree may look very healthy on the outside, and it may even bear fruit or leaves that appear to be healthy, but inside it can be rotting away. Many people’s lives are similar to the tree. They appear healthy, successful, and even happy on the outside, but what is really inside is empty, broken, and rotting away.

What is your life filled with? Is it filled with life, hope, promise, and purpose found in living for God, or is it rotting away due to stress, disobedience, lack of faith, and living for yourself? You have a choice today, who are you going to live for today? Tomorrow you can ask the question again, but for now, just take things one day at a time.