Sin is believing the lie that you are self-created, self-dependent and self-sustained
-Augustine
A friend asked if Jesus ever feared when he was alive. Now I am no theologian but it certainly got me thinking. What is fear and why do we have it? I know that this is such a complex question but hang with me because i might be on to something. And what if sin was as st. Augustine describes it? Is sin maybe simply the manifestation of the idea that everything is about yourself?
I feel like possibly the only thing that causes seperation might be when one believes in this lie.
Eve saw that the fruit was good and took of it and ate it because she believed that she could be self-dependent if she did so. I feel like we all do this. We all want to be self-dependent for some reason and i feel like we tend not to look at how damaging it is.
In college, i question why i tend to be so proud about things that i acomplish and do well on. I also question why i become crushed when i feel inadequet about a paper or a class. It seems silly to bring this up but it needs to be said. Because it is not what you do that defines you. It is what has been done for you.
The Christ has come. He died for the sin of man and destroyed the penalty of sin so that we could be be adopted into the kingdom of God. We are children of God because of what He did for us. There are tons of thoughts filling minds of college students that say who they are. Most are wrong, some are subjectively true depending on the time, but what is true no matter what for those who are saved is that they are a child of God. What greater confidence could someone attain?
Looking back on Jesus, maybe He was so aware of who He was that His confidence could not be shaken. This may have been why He never sinned. This could have been why He never feared. So why do we if we know who now lives in us?
Love, Frank
Sunday, October 30, 2011
Sunday, October 23, 2011
Be Angry
I have found that sometimes i give up on things. Like working out or getting good at ping pong or writting letters. I somehow become apathetic towards things like this. Sometimes i feel apathetic towards my spiritual life too. I normally have strong feelings and emotions regarding what path God is taking me down but every once in awhile it all drifts away as i begin to feel nothing.
I think is the most dangerous place for a person to be.
Note that i say person and not Christian. Because people have emotions that become vital to be expressed. Humanity has been created to be affectionate beings. This doesn't just pertain to the Christian "way-of-life". Actually, i think Christians are more prone to take this level of apathy to a scarier place. We let apathy in and pretend it's not there.
This is like suppressing a cough when you are sick in an attempt to convince others that you are fine. There is no logic in it and yet i can promise you that each follower of Christ has fallen to this at some point. I feel like a Christian campus is a cesspool of supressed coughs.
I guess what i am saying is that most Christians think that it is totally inappropriate to be angry. This ticks me off and makes me want to punch a wall.
I have found that i become much closer to God when i am up in His face yelling at Him. Like in Genesis when Jacob and God were wrestling for hours and hours, God used that time to truly empower and speak to Jacob about his calling and who he was as a man.
For God's and your own sake, get over what you have learned about political correctness and get angry at things that you find wrong and take them straight to God. Be angry about fast-food, or hippies, or America, or denominations, or things in the bible, or rich people, or whatever it is that you seriously think is wrong. You may be wrong and you may be right but at least you are passionate about something. And when you take these things to God He will show you who you are and affirm you in the direction that you are called to go.
Don't lose sight in the Chirstian fog. Remember that you are created in the image of someone who hates and despises evil and darkness. Let him show you what to love and what to hate. Just keep wrestling with the big guy.
Love, Frank
I think is the most dangerous place for a person to be.
Note that i say person and not Christian. Because people have emotions that become vital to be expressed. Humanity has been created to be affectionate beings. This doesn't just pertain to the Christian "way-of-life". Actually, i think Christians are more prone to take this level of apathy to a scarier place. We let apathy in and pretend it's not there.
This is like suppressing a cough when you are sick in an attempt to convince others that you are fine. There is no logic in it and yet i can promise you that each follower of Christ has fallen to this at some point. I feel like a Christian campus is a cesspool of supressed coughs.
I guess what i am saying is that most Christians think that it is totally inappropriate to be angry. This ticks me off and makes me want to punch a wall.
I have found that i become much closer to God when i am up in His face yelling at Him. Like in Genesis when Jacob and God were wrestling for hours and hours, God used that time to truly empower and speak to Jacob about his calling and who he was as a man.
For God's and your own sake, get over what you have learned about political correctness and get angry at things that you find wrong and take them straight to God. Be angry about fast-food, or hippies, or America, or denominations, or things in the bible, or rich people, or whatever it is that you seriously think is wrong. You may be wrong and you may be right but at least you are passionate about something. And when you take these things to God He will show you who you are and affirm you in the direction that you are called to go.
Don't lose sight in the Chirstian fog. Remember that you are created in the image of someone who hates and despises evil and darkness. Let him show you what to love and what to hate. Just keep wrestling with the big guy.
Love, Frank
Sunday, October 16, 2011
Recognition
Somehow, every person who chooses to do unwise things eventually comes to find that it was, in fact, unwise.
What i find interesting about this is that choice does not only have to be attributed with an action. You can also choose to believe something. You can choose to believe that basketballs are green. If you have seen one in a while and you walk into a conversation that explains the green nature of this ball, you may choose to believe that this is true.
What i find to be very sad in all of this is that we seldom recognize that we do this.
Therefore, we don't exactly know what we believe.
Our choices seem less reflected upon.
We become unable to discern whether we are doing wise or unwise things.
This is dangerous.
Being in a college campus, i find myself clinging to new ideas at a very fast pace without even considering how i view myself at times. This is understandable but not desirable.
If we are unable to recognize when we think that we are ugly or stupid or unlovable or worthless it makes something that is already terrible and turns it into something even worse. Thinking those things is bad enough, but when you think it without even seeing that it is evil and wrong to believe in this way, it does more damage. Somehow, the act of recognizing what is occurring in our souls often leads us to a state of panic. We become scared of coming to this point and even try to avoid it at times. I am here to tell you that if you want to live a full life, you must come to this point.
God doesn't need us to fix the things that are deep down. He's got that. He just wants us to give them to him. We can't do this without truly recognizing the specific things in our life that need to be address. It's terrifying, it's difficult, and it is extremely worth it.
What i find interesting about this is that choice does not only have to be attributed with an action. You can also choose to believe something. You can choose to believe that basketballs are green. If you have seen one in a while and you walk into a conversation that explains the green nature of this ball, you may choose to believe that this is true.
What i find to be very sad in all of this is that we seldom recognize that we do this.
Therefore, we don't exactly know what we believe.
Our choices seem less reflected upon.
We become unable to discern whether we are doing wise or unwise things.
This is dangerous.
Being in a college campus, i find myself clinging to new ideas at a very fast pace without even considering how i view myself at times. This is understandable but not desirable.
If we are unable to recognize when we think that we are ugly or stupid or unlovable or worthless it makes something that is already terrible and turns it into something even worse. Thinking those things is bad enough, but when you think it without even seeing that it is evil and wrong to believe in this way, it does more damage. Somehow, the act of recognizing what is occurring in our souls often leads us to a state of panic. We become scared of coming to this point and even try to avoid it at times. I am here to tell you that if you want to live a full life, you must come to this point.
God doesn't need us to fix the things that are deep down. He's got that. He just wants us to give them to him. We can't do this without truly recognizing the specific things in our life that need to be address. It's terrifying, it's difficult, and it is extremely worth it.
Monday, October 3, 2011
The Whole Point.
Could it be possible that these lives that we lead simply cannot contribute to the world of good if our focus is on ourselves?
If one's motivation to do good, is only in the form of bettering their own well-being, life will be miserable. Ultimately, i believe that everyone desires to do good and to experience goodness. It is a natural by-product of being created by a God who only created good things.
However, when striving for something to produce goodness that could never provide, disappointment always follows. Satan will be forever jealous of Humanity due to his assumption which turned quickly into disappointment. In his lies he attempted to bring himself closer to goodness in a very literal manner. As he slithered into the garden he struck down humanity in order to be be closer to God. This is what caused Satan to be further from goodness than any being in the world. In some sense humanity has been reciprocating the same philosophy in many times in history. "If i build this tower up to God, i will be closer to Him". "If i wear exspensive clothing, pray in the streets, and publically give to the poor, i will be closer to Him". "If i send an army of Christians to kill Muslims who are guarding the holy land, i will be closer to God." Was peace ever found for these naturally desirous people?
My answer to them is no.
For i know of a God who reaches us in a different way.
As i impatiently awaited my arrival of the promised land of Eastern University, i expected to be closer to God than at any other time in my life. I saw all of the social justice programs, scholarships, oppurtunities, and sense of adventure originally as a way for me to help the world with the help of God. I slowly turned into a serpent that only wanted what was best for me. My private Christian college became a place where i could feel good about the works i was doing, do it for cheap, have many venues to please myself, and to have fun doing it all.
Everything became about me just as it had for Satan and i struck down the humanity in myself because of my immature assumption. The truth is it that this life i have was given freely to me. The only way that we can truly live, however, is if i give it back to its maker. The light i have was not given to me to light up the pages of a book so that i can better understand everything going on, for my light's home is on the hill that God chooses to put it on.
The Light isn't just for me!
He sanctifies me and makes me brighter and purer so that others may see His light and run towards it. This is the whole point. It was never God's motivation to come down from Heaven and to save and sanctify us in order to make us comfy. Neither should it by our motivation. I've tried and it does not work. Instead of focusing so much on myself and what i would benefit from, let my principle driving force be to benefit others with my life. I have a feeling it will indirectly be more beneficial if i just gave up and let God deicde.
I hope you take this to heart because i would hate to see anyone go through this as i did. I hope you feel the love coming from God that speaks affirmation and simply requires your trust in return. Follow that voice. I say this because those around you depend on the light that will shine from you because of it.
Love, Frank
If one's motivation to do good, is only in the form of bettering their own well-being, life will be miserable. Ultimately, i believe that everyone desires to do good and to experience goodness. It is a natural by-product of being created by a God who only created good things.
However, when striving for something to produce goodness that could never provide, disappointment always follows. Satan will be forever jealous of Humanity due to his assumption which turned quickly into disappointment. In his lies he attempted to bring himself closer to goodness in a very literal manner. As he slithered into the garden he struck down humanity in order to be be closer to God. This is what caused Satan to be further from goodness than any being in the world. In some sense humanity has been reciprocating the same philosophy in many times in history. "If i build this tower up to God, i will be closer to Him". "If i wear exspensive clothing, pray in the streets, and publically give to the poor, i will be closer to Him". "If i send an army of Christians to kill Muslims who are guarding the holy land, i will be closer to God." Was peace ever found for these naturally desirous people?
My answer to them is no.
For i know of a God who reaches us in a different way.
As i impatiently awaited my arrival of the promised land of Eastern University, i expected to be closer to God than at any other time in my life. I saw all of the social justice programs, scholarships, oppurtunities, and sense of adventure originally as a way for me to help the world with the help of God. I slowly turned into a serpent that only wanted what was best for me. My private Christian college became a place where i could feel good about the works i was doing, do it for cheap, have many venues to please myself, and to have fun doing it all.
Everything became about me just as it had for Satan and i struck down the humanity in myself because of my immature assumption. The truth is it that this life i have was given freely to me. The only way that we can truly live, however, is if i give it back to its maker. The light i have was not given to me to light up the pages of a book so that i can better understand everything going on, for my light's home is on the hill that God chooses to put it on.
The Light isn't just for me!
He sanctifies me and makes me brighter and purer so that others may see His light and run towards it. This is the whole point. It was never God's motivation to come down from Heaven and to save and sanctify us in order to make us comfy. Neither should it by our motivation. I've tried and it does not work. Instead of focusing so much on myself and what i would benefit from, let my principle driving force be to benefit others with my life. I have a feeling it will indirectly be more beneficial if i just gave up and let God deicde.
I hope you take this to heart because i would hate to see anyone go through this as i did. I hope you feel the love coming from God that speaks affirmation and simply requires your trust in return. Follow that voice. I say this because those around you depend on the light that will shine from you because of it.
Love, Frank
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