I have a prayer list with lots of names. Daily, I remind God to take care of these people. I feel the need to repeatedly ask God to take care of certain situations and problems.
Is God like a baby-sitter you hire that needs to be given detailed instructions on how to take care of your child? Or like an easily distracted teenager who needs to be reminded of his responsibilities? Or like a husband, who needs to be nagged about a honey-do list?
Unfortunately, this is how I relate to God. When I spend time with Him, I’ve got into the habit of listing my concerns. This is a big part of what I call prayer.
It’s appropriate to yield or surrender our worries to God. I’m sure He hasn’t forgotten anything we said to Him yesterday. But if repeating our concerns make us feel less burdened, God is patient enough to hear us out.
streams
Tuesday, May 8, 2012
Monday, May 7, 2012
The Myth of an Egotistical God
The idea of a jealous God is from the Old Testament. Scripture also mentions that God is worthy of our worship and praise, so we assume that He needs our constant adulation. We have inadvertently projected our own egotistical and narcissistic tendencies onto God.
God deserves to be praised. When our hearts are turned toward God in worship, we tend to focus less on ourselves and our circumstances. Adoration of God is for our benefit, not His.
In modern Christian circles, “Praise and Worship” is equated with exuberant singing in church. This is not what I mean when I use these words. I prefer the word adoration because it brings to mind the Catholic practice of silently, reverentially, staying before God. It is an interior act that fills me with awe.
“Have you ever come on anything quite like this extravagant generosity of God, this deep, deep wisdom? It's way over our heads. We'll never figure it out.
Is there anyone around who can explain God?
Anyone smart enough to tell him what to do?
Anyone who has done him such a huge favor that God has to ask his advice?
Everything comes from him;
Everything happens through him;
Everything ends up in him.
Always glory! Always praise!” (Romans 11:33-36 MSG)
God deserves to be praised. When our hearts are turned toward God in worship, we tend to focus less on ourselves and our circumstances. Adoration of God is for our benefit, not His.
In modern Christian circles, “Praise and Worship” is equated with exuberant singing in church. This is not what I mean when I use these words. I prefer the word adoration because it brings to mind the Catholic practice of silently, reverentially, staying before God. It is an interior act that fills me with awe.
“Have you ever come on anything quite like this extravagant generosity of God, this deep, deep wisdom? It's way over our heads. We'll never figure it out.
Is there anyone around who can explain God?
Anyone smart enough to tell him what to do?
Anyone who has done him such a huge favor that God has to ask his advice?
Everything comes from him;
Everything happens through him;
Everything ends up in him.
Always glory! Always praise!” (Romans 11:33-36 MSG)
Saturday, May 5, 2012
The Myth of a Bargaining God
We imagine a God who likes to bargain with us. One who says, “If you do this for me, I’ll take care of you.” We have this idea of a tit for tat God. One who retaliates or rewards based on our actions.
In our attempt to understand God, we have reduced Him to our level. We attribute our characteristics to Him. Bargaining is what humans do. We try to strike the best deal in our transactions. We believe in “an eye for an eye” and that “there is no such thing as a free lunch”. Our ideas of justice and fairness are meshed in with individual rights and responsibilities.
Here is what Jesus had to say about this subject:
"Here's another old saying that deserves a second look: 'Eye for eye, tooth for tooth.' Is that going to get us anywhere? Here's what I propose: 'Don't hit back at all.' If someone strikes you, stand there and take it. If someone drags you into court and sues for the shirt off your back, gift-wrap your best coat and make a present of it. And if someone takes unfair advantage of you, use the occasion to practice the servant life. No more tit-for-tat stuff. Live generously.” (Matt. 5:38-42 MSG)
If this is what Jesus expects of us humans, why do we expect any less of God?
In our attempt to understand God, we have reduced Him to our level. We attribute our characteristics to Him. Bargaining is what humans do. We try to strike the best deal in our transactions. We believe in “an eye for an eye” and that “there is no such thing as a free lunch”. Our ideas of justice and fairness are meshed in with individual rights and responsibilities.
Here is what Jesus had to say about this subject:
"Here's another old saying that deserves a second look: 'Eye for eye, tooth for tooth.' Is that going to get us anywhere? Here's what I propose: 'Don't hit back at all.' If someone strikes you, stand there and take it. If someone drags you into court and sues for the shirt off your back, gift-wrap your best coat and make a present of it. And if someone takes unfair advantage of you, use the occasion to practice the servant life. No more tit-for-tat stuff. Live generously.” (Matt. 5:38-42 MSG)
If this is what Jesus expects of us humans, why do we expect any less of God?
Friday, May 4, 2012
The Myth of a Judgmental God
Traditional beliefs about God portray Him as a strict, stern parent with high expectations; a father figure who keeps tabs of our mistakes, shortcomings, and weaknesses; a legalistic, pushy, autocrat who demands perfection; one of those parents who would never suggest skipping school or piano practice to go fishing or watch funny TV shows with you past your bedtime.
In my experience, God is more like a responsible parent, who takes care of His children. He has high moral standards, yet understands that His children are still growing into maturity. He craves to be with us, play with us, laugh with us, and enjoy us.
In some ways, God might be more like a grandparent than a parent. Some wise grandparents have a broader perspective than first-time parents. Because they have more life experience, they tend to be more patient and empathetic as children struggle with developmental issues.
I’m not saying that God is wishy-washy and indulgent. I’m just saying that some of our traditional beliefs about Him might be a misrepresentation of who He really is.
In my experience, God is more like a responsible parent, who takes care of His children. He has high moral standards, yet understands that His children are still growing into maturity. He craves to be with us, play with us, laugh with us, and enjoy us.
In some ways, God might be more like a grandparent than a parent. Some wise grandparents have a broader perspective than first-time parents. Because they have more life experience, they tend to be more patient and empathetic as children struggle with developmental issues.
I’m not saying that God is wishy-washy and indulgent. I’m just saying that some of our traditional beliefs about Him might be a misrepresentation of who He really is.
Thursday, May 3, 2012
Traditional Beliefs
“If we obey what God says according to our sincere belief, God will break us from those traditional beliefs that misrepresent Him…If you will remain true to God, God will lead you directly through every barrier and right into the inner chamber of the knowledge of himself.” (My Utmost for His Highest, by Oswald Chambers)
What are some of the traditional beliefs we have about God that might be a misrepresentation of who He really is?
It takes years to get to know someone really well. If we remain faithful to God, He will reveal his innermost thoughts to us. I think God must be complex, with many sides. I believe He expresses himself differently to each of us depending on our own needs and personalities.
In my own experience, God has a sense of humor and is infinitely patient, forgiving, comforting, dependable, surprising, and strong. My only complaints about God are that He doesn’t work according to my schedule, and He allows pain and suffering.
Over the next few days, I’m going to delve into some of these myths about God…
What are some of the traditional beliefs we have about God that might be a misrepresentation of who He really is?
- A Judgmental God- A stern father-figure who holds us accountable and has high expectations of us.
- A God who lives “up there” rather than within us.
- A bargaining God- “If you do this for me, I’ll make sure things turn out all right for you.”
- An egotistical, jealous God who wants to be praised and worshiped all the time.
- A secretive God who doesn’t explain Himself or reveal Himself.
- A God that needs to be regularly reminded to take care of us and our loved ones.
It takes years to get to know someone really well. If we remain faithful to God, He will reveal his innermost thoughts to us. I think God must be complex, with many sides. I believe He expresses himself differently to each of us depending on our own needs and personalities.
In my own experience, God has a sense of humor and is infinitely patient, forgiving, comforting, dependable, surprising, and strong. My only complaints about God are that He doesn’t work according to my schedule, and He allows pain and suffering.
Over the next few days, I’m going to delve into some of these myths about God…
Wednesday, May 2, 2012
Noticing Problems
My friend and I regularly walk together. We do a minimum of three laps around our neighborhood. My friend always picks up things on the path that shouldn’t be there: nails, plastic bags, empty soda cans, candy wrappers etc. Sometimes these things will be way off the road, and she’ll go out of her way to pick it up. She carries it with her until we get to her house where she can dump it in her trash can. I walk alongside her, but I hardly ever notice these items on the ground until she bends over to pick them up. Why?
If these same items were in my house or in my yard, I think I would notice them. If there were a nail in my driveway, I think it would register in my brain that I needed to pick it up before I drove over it and got a flat tire. Somehow, I’ve learned to tune out problems in this world that don’t directly affect me.
It’s easy to get distracted. There are deadlines at work; our own kids have projects due at school; we have family emergencies; we have our own bills to pay, meals to cook, and homes to clean. We also need time to enjoy life, so we take time to plan parties, go on vacation, and go shopping.
It’s so easy to get absorbed in my own life, that I fail to notice the struggles of others. Until the Holy Spirit nudges me. He bends down to take care of something, and then I notice…
I notice the children that need help staying afloat in school. I notice the cleaning woman at the hospital and how tired she looks. I notice the Hispanic woman who serves me at McDonalds and the Burmese immigrants at the meat packing plant, all trying to assimilate, all trying to take care of their children...
If these same items were in my house or in my yard, I think I would notice them. If there were a nail in my driveway, I think it would register in my brain that I needed to pick it up before I drove over it and got a flat tire. Somehow, I’ve learned to tune out problems in this world that don’t directly affect me.
It’s easy to get distracted. There are deadlines at work; our own kids have projects due at school; we have family emergencies; we have our own bills to pay, meals to cook, and homes to clean. We also need time to enjoy life, so we take time to plan parties, go on vacation, and go shopping.
It’s so easy to get absorbed in my own life, that I fail to notice the struggles of others. Until the Holy Spirit nudges me. He bends down to take care of something, and then I notice…
I notice the children that need help staying afloat in school. I notice the cleaning woman at the hospital and how tired she looks. I notice the Hispanic woman who serves me at McDonalds and the Burmese immigrants at the meat packing plant, all trying to assimilate, all trying to take care of their children...
Tuesday, May 1, 2012
Responsibilities of the Privileged
My family is privileged. We are American citizens who speak English and have enough education to help our children with school work. We have the ability and the legal documents to work and support our family. We have health insurance. We do not live in fear that our family will be forcibly separated.
When I hear about undocumented immigrants in the news, I feel vaguely sad about their plight. But since I don’t know any of them personally, I’ve always been able to remain detached. Until now. A friend of mine got involved in the life of one of these families. (I’m changing all the names for obvious reasons.)
José works odd jobs and gets paid less than minimum wage. His wife takes care of their young child who has severe health problems. Their main reason for coming to the U.S. was to find treatment for their sick child. They also have a 13-year old child who had to be left behind. Recently, José went back to their native country to get their older son. As they were crossing over the border, they were both apprehended by border patrol and placed in a detention center. My friend, who is a U.S. citizen, is trying to help them out. It’s a messy situation.
What are our responsibilities as the privileged? I do think we are called to take care of those who are less fortunate than we are. I don’t think it’s optional.
“Great gifts mean great responsibilities; greater gifts, greater responsibilities!” (Luke 12:48 MSG)
Still searching…
When I hear about undocumented immigrants in the news, I feel vaguely sad about their plight. But since I don’t know any of them personally, I’ve always been able to remain detached. Until now. A friend of mine got involved in the life of one of these families. (I’m changing all the names for obvious reasons.)
José works odd jobs and gets paid less than minimum wage. His wife takes care of their young child who has severe health problems. Their main reason for coming to the U.S. was to find treatment for their sick child. They also have a 13-year old child who had to be left behind. Recently, José went back to their native country to get their older son. As they were crossing over the border, they were both apprehended by border patrol and placed in a detention center. My friend, who is a U.S. citizen, is trying to help them out. It’s a messy situation.
What are our responsibilities as the privileged? I do think we are called to take care of those who are less fortunate than we are. I don’t think it’s optional.
“Great gifts mean great responsibilities; greater gifts, greater responsibilities!” (Luke 12:48 MSG)
Still searching…
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