The Winding Path to Love

Sanctification:

The process of becoming set apart or declared holy; consecrated.

“so that no human being might boast in the presence of God. ³⁰And because of him you are in Christ Jesus, who became to us wisdom from God, righteousness and sanctification and redemption, ³¹so that, as it is written, “Let the one who boasts, boast in the Lord.” ~ 1 Corinthians 1:28-31

One of the greatest places where we can see the grace of God most evident would be in the doctrine and process of Sanctification. As a Christian, we are most certainly thankful for this process, because if it just stopped at Justification, we would wonder if our Justification was right in the first place. Sanctification is the means of which we stay in check with God, and grow in every aspect of our life.

Sanctification is the process following our Justification by God, that looks more like a winding, uphill path with eternal life with Christ as it’s final stop. It’s messy, it’s tough, but it is beautiful still. And I think we forget that we are in the sanctification process a lot more than we might think we do.

This is evident often in the choices we make, behaviors we exhibit, and honestly a multitude of quite obvious things that can sometimes cause us to forget that we are on a journey, and ultimately that it isn’t perfect because we are only being made perfect, not perfect in itself. I tend to easily critique decisions I want to make or do make, and sometimes I take it closer to heart than I should. In those moments I realize that I have forgotten that sanctification is this perfecting process, and it doesn’t mean failure…it means a new turn, or new lesson learn, or outright new growth taking place. Growth hurts, and often hits your pride where it needs to be hit and knocked down. Then, the next step after repentance, we start again from there keeping in mind what has happened. In other words, it can be a fancy, spiritual word for growing in maturity.

How do you deal with your mishaps? Can it devastate you if you let it? I tend to do that, especially if it pertains to ministry. I think God has lead me on a path towards ministry, and if I forget that growing in maturity is taking place at all times, any mistake I make can cause me to think I have messed up beyond repair, when at times it could just be a careless mistake that just wasn’t handle properly once, but won’t happen again. I’m always looking for the one thing that will ruin it for me for the rest of my life. How silly does that sound? I am waiting for myself to mess up what God has put into motion. Hmm…. Relying on my own strength or on my own actions is dangerous, especially to being useful or to growth.

This is all from personal, and quite recent experience. A careless and innocent (but still quite serious) mistake happened concerning boundaries, easily fixable and was more a matter of a “better and best” decision, but it left me devastated for a few days because I want to avoid compromising in any area, especially if it affects other people outright…and I didn’t chose best (if that makes sense). Now I did it. I messed up where I shouldn’t have, my abilities as a leader have been ruined and now I have to try and fix it. Do you see the heinous and prideful way about all of this? In essence, I was calling shots in areas where God was just trying to keep in order, not completely stop in their tracks. I am so thankful for His revealing this, because honestly no heart can take that kind of weight. The weight of being perfect and making all the right decisions is ruthless. It isn’t meant to be carried alone, or really carried at all. It isn’t ours to bear. It has already been carried, we just need to be obedient to heed the restraints and corrections of God to push forward and to keep doing the will of God.

“But now that you have been set free from sin and have become slaves of God, the fruit you get leads to sanctification and its end, eternal life.”
~ Romans 6:22

Romans 6:22 is such a good verse to remember when times turn out looking like the mess I was describing above. This process takes a lifetime. A lifetimes of great and awesome successes, and frustrating and painful mistakes. As a culture, we buy into trying to get something now or be in some state of our lives now. And this can infiltrate EVERY part of our lives if we let it. But God clearly has kept it so that there is not reaching perfection in this life. The mistakes and successes all add up to who God is making us to be, to someday be perfect in His eyes and ready for what the Kingdom has in store for us. This is so comforting. While we try and avoid mistakes or when things go badly, they sometimes will happen, and for a reason. Sanctification is beautiful, messy, lovely, and rough…but by the grace of God an invaluable gift. And we should avoid all mistakes, but we won’t be able to avoid them all. We are to try though, and with God’s guidance we will be directed how we should go and do what we should when we obey. His leading is never wrong.

I think it is time to take a gander at the Sanctification paper I wrote in Romans class…it was probably one of my favorite papers to write. If you have not heard about the doctrine of Sanctification or are curious about it, let me know. The Book of Romans has a lot on the doctrine.

Someone Elses Child

There is a common saying amongst parents of children lost in war, or when their children are overseas fighting that states "It can't always be someone else's son." We get worked up about the other parents that are hoping against any decision their child might make to join the military and fight. We will get so frustrated, thinking "do they know who I am?! Do they remember who they are saying this to?" And so, in that respect this little tension begins, sometimes it is forgotten, sometimes it is not. But, the saying still goes "It can't always be someone else's son." And it usually only applies to war, but I thought about this in a different light today. And the light I found it under was that of global justice and compassion.

There is this tendency when it comes to giving of gifts or sharing with the impoverished that looks almost familial to the previous statement above. We don't usually voice it though, because if we did we would clearly show our lack of compassion, and we want to keep that face as pristine as possible. Even if it is fake. However, in our hearts and minds, we know our thought when we see people in poverty on the street, we think that someone else will give them money. Or someone else will reach out, it can't always be us. My one question is when was giving ever given a limit? And who decides who gets to give and when someone else will? If we all have this in the back of our minds, I am thinking that more often then not nobody is giving anything up.

So, in a sense we are saying "It can't always be my paycheck", or "it can't always be this time around when I am in the city", or "I only have enough for me, and two dollars would be lame so I won't give at all...just walk by fast and not make eye contact...then you don't have to feel so bad". And so it goes from Christian society to secular society, and the world continues to collapse into hardened attitudes and deeper poverty (monetarily and emotionally). I may be a bit dreamer-esque in my writing tonight, trying to find the cure to this white-elephant-in-the-room issue...but clearly if this issue has been brought up so much, we aren't listening.

I think the most frustrating this is when it is in your own family of circle of people. Your heart can burn for the world at large around you, you see needs and you know the help is out there...but nobody else seems to see it the way you do. Especially family, and they usually think you are unreasonable to want to not always care to live completely secure financially, that you want so much to help alleviate issues that you see can at least for the moment be dulled. It is doubly hard if they are Christians and desire your comfortable lifestyle, going up against a lot of what that titled of Christian constitutes. I have found that harder lately, when my heart grows burdensome for the homeless, the poor, or even just people in need emotionally and spiritually around me that if I attempt at anything to help, many people see it as reckless and clearly some 24-year-old doesn't know how to handle money or make proper choices. These voices in my ears keep conflicting with the Scripture in my eyes. This is where the true test begins. God's Word over man's mad attempt at controlling it all and knowing it all. It's enticing to pursue the comfort of everything reasonable. But the pursuit clashes with what is expected in terms of obedience. Christ never had it comfortable, his disciples surely never had it comfortable, and Foxes Book of Martyrs would tell you otherwise as well. A Cross that is to be picked up daily is never comfortable. It is heavy, it causes splinters to dig into your skin, it causes fatigue, and that is all just the figurative. In reality, our crosses we bear are not meant to be just a statement to help us sound more righteous...they actually do cause discomfort. We shouldn't be surprised. The Cross is to be counted as joy, the things we endure as joy, the decisions we have to make as joy...even if they are against what the rest of the world tells us.

So where do we go from here. Right now, this is a rant coming from a girl who is trying to discern God's voice on this issue against the voices of culture and family members. Who will we listen to? It can't always be someone else, and we should be jumping at the opportunity to share in the wealth of hope we have in Christ, and that means of our pockets and blessings that we hold on too tightly to. May we see people as Christ sees them, and may we be willing to listen when God calls us to care for his people in need. May we learn to be obedient despite the call to rationality.

There and Back Again

I don't really remember the last time I posted on here. It has been a while since I have discovered Tumblr, but I miss the true art of a good blog. Sure, Tumblr has some perks, it is a lot easier to use, but simplicity isn't always a good thing. So, here I am again on Blogger, glad to be for an unprofessional on a more professional blog.

So, I am back in Connecticut, living at home. I just looked at the last time I posted and it was over a year ago! WHOA! So much has changed. I went back to school for the fall semester, but ended up dropping out of Seminary to come back home. Dropping out really isn't the proper term to use, more like gracefully bowing out or...listening to God when He tells me again to do something since I didn't listen the first time. Good ol' Dad. I knew in May of 2010 I wanted to come home and should have stayed home, but fear made me turn back and go back to school. God was patient with me, thankfully. It wasn't until my desires changed and when I grew up a little that I realized Lynchburg in all its loveliness was no longer my home. There was a bigger need here in New England.

Almost full circle from when I began to feel the pull to come home, and I am still not all that sure what I am doing here. I can tell you that it has been a whirl-wind of decisions and wrestling with God that has turned out to be a wonderful time if I let it be. I heard today while listening to Jon Acuff's convocation talk that when we wrestle with God it is one of the highest forms of intimacy. You cannot wrestle with someone who is distant. So for all the moments I have huffed, mumbled, and griped about this frustrating season of God-wrestlemania, I am starting to see what he is talking about.

The major struggles I have had lately have been trying to see what the past three years away at school have to do with how things are now. Did I pick the right major? Should I be looking to something different? Why do I feel like I have failed? Am I really any different than when I left to go to school? What do I make of all of this? Why didn't anyone tell me I would have to work for the rest of my life? (I don't know how I didn't really grasp this one. I mean HELLO?!) And lastly...What is God doing?

What is God doing? He's doing a lot of things that in the moment just seem like one big test of my patience. It's like making a dog do a trick for a treat. You know, the one where you put the treat on their nose and make them hold it there until you say "go!" Those moments are so frustrating, they make your stomach ache for something that you can see (or can just feel) and you have to wait to retrieve them. What's more frustrating is when you don't know what the treat is, if it exists, or if God is just putting His finger on your nose just to see if you will listen either way. Lovely.

One of the greatest blessings I have received since I got home and been churning through these questions and emotions has been the counsel and encouragement from wonderful Christians around me. I could name a few people, but I think they know who they are. They have been beacons for me to search out when I feel lost, and have been motivating to me to the nth the degree. WHAT a blessing. They probably just think they are doing what comes natural, making it even more awe-inspiring to me. Natural grace, power, meekness, and compassion can turn a normal moment together into one etched in the mind of those on the receiving end. I just had a weekend full of those moments.

Anyways, more to come on the frustrations and joys of life, now that I am back on Blogger. So many more adventures to come now with my new camera, new hiking backpack, and new ideas that I am learning to have the confidence to seek after. God is good...oh so very good.

"Our passions are the true phoenixes; when the old one is burnt out, a new one rises from its ashes. " ~ Johann Wolfgang von Goethe