Motivated by Love or Hate?

The day after a horrible shooting in Arizona the word “hate” is being thrown around as if it belongs to one special group-one type of person. Does that then mean that “love” is reserved to only certain groups and certain people? I think not.

What does it mean then to be motivated by love and not by hate? Dr. Larry Crabb in Understanding People wrote: “the most significant fact about people is not that they are complicated psychologically or irresponsible morally, but rather that they were made to love and be loved. We were designed for relationship. Consequently we yearn for it. Our deepest parts cry out for intimacy and meaningful involvement with others. (pg. 83) Unfortunately for some, they never feel that love in their lives and they never feel that connectedness to another leading to unsatisfying relationships and “a profound loneliness that strengthens our determination to protect ourselves from the hurt we fear. People are caught up in a vicious cycle of hurt, defense retreat, more hurt, more retreat.” (pg. 83) I wonder if this cycle doesn’t then lead to the murderous acts we witnessed of a man so lost and lonely that he felt someone must pay the price for his hurt and pain?

Don’t get me wrong. I’m not saying he is in any way justified by his actions. But before we start throwing around the “hate” word, maybe we should look at our own lives and measure how we are doing on the love scale. Are we using God’s love to change the heart of another; are we reaching through to a fellow human being to develop a loving relationship? Or are we walking past these people because they aren’t like us or they are simply too wounded to be worthy my time?

Jesus says in Matthew 11:28-30 “Come to me, all you that are weary and are carrying heavy burdens, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me; for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.”

Henri J. M. Nouwen wrote “At issue here is the question: ‘to whom do I belong? To God or to the world?’…As long as I keep running about asking ‘Do you love me? Do you really love me?’ I give all the power to the voices of the world and put myself in bondage because the world if filled with ‘if’s.’ The words say: ‘Yes, I love you IF you are good-looking, intelligent, and wealthy. I love you IF you have a good education, a good job, and good connections. I love you IF you produce much, sell much, and buy much.’ There are endless ‘if’s’ hidden in the world’s love. These ‘ifs’ enslave me since it is impossible to respond adequately to all of them. The worlds’ love is and always will be conditional. As long as I keep looking for my true self in the world of conditional love, I will remain ‘hooked’ to the world—trying, failing, and trying again.”

I am more than a little tired of the finger pointing that goes on between political factions---each claiming they are more right than the other. Each side seems all too willing to jump on the latest tragedy and use it to flame the fire. Each rising in righteous indignation to prove the kind of hate those others have is destroying this nation, ignoring the hate in their own heart. Maybe, just maybe, if we were each to ask how we can love the other better we might find that there is no room for hate in the country that has so much to offer everyone living here.

My question to you then is how will you love that person you disagree with today? Are YOU willing to take the first step to connect and understand someone thus lightening their burden today? Can you love someone today even if they don’t look, act, or believe like you? I pray that you will find the way to love one person today that you never thought was possible. ONE PERSON –is that too much to do to transform our nation?

Crabb, Larry (1987), Understanding people, Zondervan, Grand Rapids, Michigan

Nouwen, Henri J. M. (2004) Advent and Christmas wisdom from Henri J.M. Nowen: Daily Scripture and prayers together with Nouwen’s own words., Liguori Publications, Liguori, Missouri

New Year = New Commitments to Transformation

“Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will.” Romans 12:2 NIV

It has been quite a while since I wrote anything for this blog and I guess the start of a new year is as good a time as ever to start over with the blog. When I first started writing I did it for a group of young women who were studying Romans 12:2, one of my favorite verses , and trying to grasp what that meant for their future. Most of those women have gone on to college and I find this is still one the most important verses for me, especially with the start of a new year and all the talk about resolutions for 2011. This new entry is dedicated to those young women and my friends who are walking this walk.

Marie Chapian in the Women’s Devotional Bible says: “It is a challenge to live our lives as sacrifices to God. When we do, we aren’t the masters of our bodies and minds—God is.” How simple that sounds and yet it is a daily struggle for me to let God be that master of my body and mind. We are bombarded by things of this world that tell us we can live however we want as long as we are happy. And yet in the simplest of terms Jesus said: “A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so must you love another. “ John 13:34. It ALL starts with his love that compels us to love others in the same way.

So then what of love and its role in the way we as Christians live our lives—lives that the New Living Version of the same verse says “Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think.” If we skip ahead to verses 9-10 Paul tell us “Don’t just pretend that you love others. Really love them. Hate what is wrong. Stand on the side of the good. Love each other with genuine affection, and take delight in honoring each other. “

This love springs from God’s love of us and we are thus compelled to love others in the way that he loves us. Not a simple task for mere humans; at least not this human. I can quickly become selfish and intolerant if someone doesn’t respond the way I think they should. I can become demanding of things I think I deserve. I can be cold-hearted if people and things don’t fit in my schedule. I whine if I don’t have the attention I think I should. I guess I pretend more than I would like to admit.

Notice a trend here? All about me! A worldly 21^st Century attitude that I pray I can change in the coming year. William P. Young in “The Shack” speaking as God said: “ Paradigms power perception and perceptions power emotions. Most emotions are responses to perception—what you think is true about a given situation. If your perception is false, then your emotional response to it will be false too. So check your perceptions, and beyond that check the truthfulness of your paradigms—what you believe. Just because you believe something firmly doesn’t make it true. Be willing to reexamine what you believe. The more you live in the truth, the more your emotions will help you see clearly. But even then, you don’t want to trust them more than me. “

In the year ahead I pray that we all find ourselves living God’s love in all that we do and that we constantly seek HIS truth in all situations, casting aside our selfish desires for his. Today I take another step on my spiritual journey and I invite you to share yours with me that together we may grow strong in our walk and gain more of God’s wisdom with each new step.

Can't You Let Us Have This One?

Last night the House passed the Health Care Reform Bill which included an amendment to restrict Federal funding of insurance plans from paying for abortions. Today there were many reports of “enraged liberals” (NY Daily News, Washington Post) over the vote by some in the Democratic Party in support of this additional amendment. Anyone participating in a plan paid for by Federal subsidies will not be permitted to obtain money for an abortion.

Why is this a shocking revelation to everyone? According to Federal News Radio: “the Hyde amendment bars federal funds for abortion _ except in cases of rape and incest or if the mother's life would be endangered. The law applies those restrictions to Medicaid, forcing states that cover abortion for low-income women to do so with their own money. Separate laws apply the restrictions to the federal employee health plan and military and other programs.” Almost everyone on the Hill, including the voting Congress, is covered under the Federal Employees Health Benefits Program, so it certainly shouldn’t come as a surprise to them that some would want to carry that restriction over into this new health care program.

Planned Parenthood has reacted as if Rowe v Wade has been overturned…like that is such a bad idea. But it HAS NOT been overturned. We, the average citizen who vote pro-life, simply won’t have to pay for abortions which we disdain. It doesn’t make us heartless; it just means that we finally won a round for our side. Many of us understand all too well.

People who know me will tell you that I am one of the last to jump on the political wagon in a public forum. But the protection of human life is one of those rare times when I feel compelled to take a stand –something I learned when my daughter took a very public stand at school last year. You see I just don’t think that my tax dollars should go to something that I find so damaging to women. Yes, women who decide that there is no other way will have to pay for an abortion – just like I did. I paid financially and emotionally. And yes, maybe it will be more difficult, but in one of the few countries in the world that still allows abortion on demand, is that such a hard thing to live with?

Most women I know will tell you they live with the scars of their abortion – some even live with physical scars. It is never an easy decision to give up your child – either through adoption or abortion. We all think about that child – especially the unborn child. Was it a boy or girl? How old would he or she be now? Did I do the right thing? Today was the day….Every woman I know who has given up a child asks herself these questions. The mother who gives up a child for adoption has some peace though in hoping that her child is being cared for. The abortion survivors, however, don’t have that peace. Many have found forgiveness in the loving arms of Jesus, but even then…we wonder…

For many of us it is simply what we have come to believe: "For you created my inmost being. You knit me together in my mother's womb....Your eyes say my unformed body." Psalm 139:13-16. We believe God created all life – and that life began in the womb at conception. Maybe you don’t see it that way, but could you take a minute and understand how those of us with this conviction mean it with our whole heart. Some of us have learned the hard way—by living it. Some have seen other women (and men) recover from what we consider a sin. Maybe this isn’t your truth, but it is ours. Rather than call us names and make fun of our convictions – could you look in our eyes and see the pain of loss and the love of life we have? Could you walk with us a minute and hear our stories? Could you just respect us this one time?

We aren’t overturning the laws of the country; we are upholding them at this point. You have your Supreme Court judgment – could we just have this one crumb of respect and not pay to put women through the torture and aftermath of abortion? Believe me, no woman will tell you that she bounced into an abortion clinic or a doctor’s table for her abortion. No woman I know of would want to be there. No woman I know who has been there would easily recommend it to another. So please – you will have your health care reform – an issue I am NOT debating – please give us a small slice of life.

God's Will in Our Lives

So it seems that the next question then is about how one “will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing, and perfect will.” How do we come to trust God with the plan for our lives?

The easiest starting point is the Bible sitting on your night stand or gathering dust on the shelf. The best way to renew our minds and to fight against a culture that tells you to live a different life, is reshape our minds by diving into the Word. The more of God’s Word we use to fill our thinking the more likely we are to understand how to make decisions.

So if as Ed Young says, “God is preparing us for what he has prepared for us.”, than we need to take some steps. John Ortberg says it begins with meeting God in Scripture—asking God to speak to you as you read. Ortberg says: “It is uniquely in the Bible that we encounter Jesus.” He goes on to suggest that we:

• Read the Bible in a Repentant Spirit—a spirit of surrender.
• Meditate on a Fairly Brief Passage or Narrative—the goal is to get the Scripture in us.
• Take One Thought or Verse with You Through the Day—mediation is a slow process.
• Allow This Thought to Become Part of Your Memory—hide Scripture in your heart.

If we are to be more than just transformed for our selves, than we need to learn about other world views and we have to learn about our own faith. We can not simply rest on what we hear on Sunday and hope it will carry us through the week. We need to be deliberate about personal change and a desire to live a life in God’s will. This will become our greatest testimony and one that will draw others a desire to change accordingly.

If we want to avoid being sucked into today’s world than we have to understand what we are facing—and appreciate how difficult this is to live above the fray. According to Clifford Orwin, there is one element of common ground between the postmodern liberal society and Christianity—“a yearning for something higher, shared, and meaningful.” Richard Rorty, a postmodern liberal theorist admits that liberalism is a matter of faith, not reason, freeloading atheists who rely on a Judeo-Christian legacy of human concern. He says that postmodernists pillage Biblical tradition for their moral code but maintain an atheistic stance.

The challenge for Christian theists is to take the common ground, the points of dissention and bridge the gap with the humility of someone who is not judgmental but as one who genuinely cares for their spiritual wellbeing. Dr. Jeremiah suggests that we should focus on four things to put spirituality into focus:

• · Discover what Scripture says about spirituality and explore these riches daily.
• · Avoid any manner of spirituality that does not require commitment in the true God.
• · Seek fellowship with other Christians wherever they may do.
• · Look for mature leaders who will guide and nurture you in the Lord.

So the bottom line for me is…don’t think it to death. Read my Bible. Pray. Ask the Holy Spirit into my life so that what I read and meditate on has deep meaning. Have friends who hold me accountable…and then believe that nothing is too big for God to fix. If I go off on my own than he will still use me for his glory---I just have to be willing to be in his will. The FIRST STEP!

Transformation: Romans 12:2--A starting place.

Paul tells us in Romans 12:2: “Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind.” (NIV) The Life Recovery Bible – New Living Translation says: “Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think.” The last part of that verse often goes unsaid: “Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing, and perfect will.” That is what I strive most for in my life and what I find most difficult to understand.

The goal of this blog is to share with one another how we approach transformation in our lives – to take a step out of self and to share with others our experiences and how God has used those periods of time to change us. And to explore new ways in which God is leading us to not conform with the behavior and customs of this world so that we can live in his will and be a witness to others that we Christians are not your average Joe!

John Ortberg explains that the word conformed used by Paul is summorphizo—to shape a thing into a durable likeness—a spiritual molding process. Transformed, Ortberg describes as metamorphoo—metamorphosis—“like a creeping caterpillar is transformed into a soaring butterfly”

We were all something before—something before we took the leap into change. Or maybe you are just beginning the process and wondering what to do…how to change your behavior into a new person. In some cases the journey has been a slow cautious walk forward. Some of us are in the midst of this period of change. I think if we desire to grow in the Lord, we should all be in a period of change, coming out of that period, or realizing that God is nudging us to look at the next areas in our life that he would like to heal in us.

There are things, people, or events that have shaped the people we are – or the people we were before transformation. Some of those events left wonderful memories of love, of strength, and of hope. Unfortunately, for some there were events in our lives that left scars, that when scratched bleed on the joy that God intended for us and those events color our actions.

Celebrate Recovery, a Christ-based 12-step program founded by Saddleback Church talks about taking a first step by admitting: “I know that nothing good lives in me, that is, in my sinful nature. For I have the desire to do what is good, but I cannot carry it out.” And thus begins a journey of change from our hurts, habits, and hang-ups—leading to a place of hope. Paul says in Philippians 3:13: “No dear brothers, I am still not all I should be but I am bringing all my energies to bear on this one thing: forgetting the past and looking forward to what lies ahead.”

So the journey starts with Romans 12: 2—where does it go from hear? What next steps would you take to no longer conform but be transformed???