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Like a Child

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As we strive to accept the people we are designed to become, we can become confused and overwhelmed.  The teachings of the Bible are not simple, they are complex as the human to God relationship is life changing.  Jesus himself greatly reduced this complexity when he spoke of receiving God "like a child."

Anyone who has children can appreciate the innocent and honest way that they approach the world.  When I explain a fact to my son or daughter, they accept that fact and operate their lives having accepted said fact.  We tell them not to touch something hot and they don't.  We tell them to wash their hands and they do.  Our children look to us for guidance and life-giving wisdom.  Our relationship is powerful, and made effective due to my kids' nature of acceptance and deferment to their parents.  

Last Sunday in Sunday School, my son painted the following picture.  

Not Invented Here

I just read an article that was blasting a certain celebrity for inventing her own science about whether vaccines are safe for children.  Apparently there was a long discredited UK study that she was citing, as well as citing "her own intuition".  Many TV programs gave her airtime, and many Mom's listened to her made up science.  Unfortunately, we are now dealing with the largest outbreak of Measles in decades.  The invention of her own science is more than just wrong, it is damaging to others.

Also recently I was discussing a diet plan with someone.  This person had all of the facts at their disposal, but had chosen to tweak the plan here and there based on personal preferences.  Rather than listening to the experts, the person was tailoring the expert knowledge with his own less-than-expert knowledge.  The invention of his own diet proved unsuccessful.

We see this same scenario with Christians, so much that the term "Cafeteria Christian" was coined. 

Religion is Complicated, Faith is Simple

As we are in the Easter week, there are a lot of activities around the churches and on TV.  There are dinners and ceremonies, super early services and special events.  All of this is great, but for some it can be overwhelming.  I always think of the double dutch jump rope activity ... you can just see that person waiting and watching; trying to time their entry just right so they don't trip on those ropes!

Religion can often feel like entering that double dutch jump rope.  For many, there are so many words, activities, and traditions that it is all too easy to feel like they don't belong.  For every person who jumps in with both feet, there is likely at least one other person who shrugs and walks away.  The reality is that religion is complicated because we have made it complicated.  There are so many denominations, so many events, and so much terminology.  When you are in that double dutch jump rope, it seems easy.  But for all too many, it is too tough to even try.

Good Soil

Today my son and oldest daughter decided that they would like to plant a sunflower seed. They asked what we needed to accomplish this task.  I responded that we needed to buy some potting soil.  My son asked, "why can't we just use dirt from the ground."  I told him that we could, but that the high quality potting soil would help that sunflower really grow fast and well.  

Many humans may think of themselves as seeds planted in mere dirt from the ground, but the reality is that we are all planted in high quality potting soil.  Whether we have been kind or not to this soil over the years is immaterial.  The potting soil is still there, the nutrients are in place, and we are ready to grow into the people we are designed to be.  None of us, no matter how poorly we have behaved, is planted merely in dirt.

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Beyond humility ...

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Pride is, as C.S. Lewis said, "the great sin."  So many problems stem from pride.  When we are trying to accept the person we are designed to become, we are vulnerable to pride. When we finally see how life is supposed to go and how our relationship with God is supposed to be, we are tempted to puff up our chest with pride.  

Over and over we are told that, as humans, we are designed to become more humble over time.  Our task is to comprehend enough of the human to God relationship that we have no other option but to be humble and serving.

Beyond humility, what else are we designed to become.  There are plenty of caricatures of Christians that we see in movies and TV ... surely we are not designed to be like that, right? Let's try on some terms and see how they sit with you:  loving, joyful, peaceful, patient, kind, good, faithful, gentle, and controlled.  Does anyone want to be like that ... yep!  

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Who are We Supposed to Become?

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It seems that everyone is trying to find themselves.  The shelves at the bookstores are full of books telling us to find something, find someone, or ignore everything.  If we consider basic market forces, it stands to reason that all of these materials exist because there are many people who are struggling.  

"Accepting yourself" is not about accepting who you are today, but understanding and accepting who you are designed to become.  We are all intended to be on a journey of improvement.  However, many of us have veered down destructive paths. If you are on such a destructive path, you are drifting further and further away from the person you are supposed to become.

Left to our own devices, we are destined to slide down the wrong paths.  As humans we are simply not capable of avoiding the self-centeredness that generally results in a wandering spirit.  The truth is that there is a natural order to things, and the more we are focused on ourselves, the more we run afoul of this natural order.