Ahh...The Baptist

So what does it take to begin thinking outside the box? Growing up in a independent fundamental Baptist church you never took risks, always stuck to the same proto call and never left your original boundaries. There were times it seemed the only thing we learned from God was how to judge someone.

These days I find myself caught in the middle of where I came from and where God is taking me. The other day me and Brad were discussing church softball and we were trying to figure out how many players we had. So Brad started naming off the players and two or three didn’t go to church. Then I ask Brad "is it fair that we let the guys who don’t go to church play when we have so many who do go to church interested?" We started discussing it and it didn’t take long for me to realize I just wasn’t thinking outside the box. Now I definitely wasn’t on the way to raising cane about this or leaving church or anything. Bitterness was not present. But the fundamentalist in me made an attempt to show his face. It really wouldn’t be a terrible thing if there were more than 2 or 3 non-church goers playing on the team. I’m not going to mention the names of these guys but pray for them. These guys know that we are Christians and they know what we are about. It’s just a matter of God convicting their hearts to show up on Sunday morning.

Another thing that really bugged me and I needed to get off my chest. The other day I heard someone say that we should only pray to God that his will be done. Did God not long for us to come to him with our selfish prayers? Now don’t get me wrong, by selfish prayers I don’t mean ask God for a million dollars, a hot wife or husband and a huge mansion. I’m talking about the "Lord please heal my Mother. Please heal my Grandfather. Lord please let alcohol and drug abuse in my Father cease" kind of prayers. What is wrong with laying these prayers at the feet of God? I don’t think it’s wrong to be selfish in this way as long as AFTER the fact we are satisfied with the way God handled the situation.

I am the Pharisee

Luke 18:9-14

Story of the Pharisee and Tax Collector

9Then Jesus told this story to some who had great self-confidence and scorned everyone else: 10"Two men went to the Temple to pray. One was a Pharisee, and the other was a dishonest tax collector. 11The proud Pharisee stood by himself and prayed this prayer: `I thank you, God, that I am not a sinner like everyone else, especially like that tax collector over there! For I never cheat, I don't sin, I don't commit adultery, 12I fast twice a week, and I give you a tenth of my income.'
13"But the tax collector stood at a distance and dared not even lift his eyes to heaven as he prayed. Instead, he beat his chest in sorrow, saying, `O God, be merciful to me, for I am a sinner.' 14I tell you, this sinner, not the Pharisee, returned home justified before God. For the proud will be humbled, but the humble will be honored."



So often I feel like the Pharisee. Notice how as he is praying to God he points out the other sinner and thanks God he is not like that man, when really, the humble tax collector is exactly who he needs to be. I need to have less self-confidence in myself and become humble before God and put my confidence directly at his feet. I am the pharisee. The one who's self-righteousness pushes away other believers and non-believers.

Phillipians 3:18

18For I have told you often before, and I say it again with tears in my eyes, that there are many whose conduct shows they are really enemies of the cross of Christ.

I cringe at what Paul says to the church because I know that at times I am the enemy of the cross. I am only an object of destruction. I pray that God works in my life and humbles my spirit. I don't want to be the enemy. I don't want to become the prideful Pharisee. Pray that God humbles us and gives us the mighty power to conquer the pride within us.

The Slippery Slope

Getting back to where we know God wants us and the mistakes we make along the way ultimately costs us everything. Why veer so far off the path and let things get to that point? A few weeks ago Brad quoted Donnie Foster as saying "Sin will take you farther than you ever wanted to go, keep you longer than you wanted to stay and cost you more than you ever wanted to pay." I love that quote because it paints a perfect picture for what effect sin can have on our lives. The cocaine addict didn’t want to end up in a rehab clinic for six months, the rapist didn’t want to be stuck in a prison cell for 25 years and the murderer didn’t want to lose his life to the needle. But sin has no boundaries. Our human mind and soul does not possess the ability to control sin in our lives. Donnie’s quote puts that fact in clear view. Sin does not allow our minds the competence to decide how far we’ll go physically in a relationship, how many drinks we’ll take or the number of hits we’ll stop at. You CANNOT set boundaries on someone as powerful as the devil.

So what does someone do that has already started down that slippery slope? All it takes is letting pride fall by the wayside. Letting God take complete control is the only escape. This idea goes against everything we stand for in life but is the very light in which salvation exists. God has already delivered us from sin and as long as we relinquish all authority to Him, sin will not become a dominant force in our lives.