Burden-Lite

“Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, 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 yours souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.” (Matthew 11:28-30)

In his book “The Spirit of the Disciplines”, author Dallas Willard points out, “The secret of the easy yoke is simple, actually. It is the intelligent, informed, unyielding resolve to live as Jesus lived in all aspects of his life, not just in the moment of specific choice or action” (p.10). He makes very valid points about the common practice of Christianity–try to make choices “as Jesus would”, when faced with decisions. The problem with this mindset, the author notes, is that it creates a false sense of security. This thinking makes the believer think “If I face decisions and make them with the Idea–What Would Jesus Do? then I’m living like Christ!’ This is seriously lacking if that is ALL that they do.

The secret to following Jesus is choosing to live ALL of your life like Him, not just when facing certain decisions. It’s much like a young athlete trying to imitate his favorite hero during the game. He tries to move like him, throw like him, run the way he runs, etc. However, if he doesn’t LIVE like that athlete, with the same kind of workouts, drills, eating habits, and resting schedules that the professional athlete subjects himself to, the teenage athlete will never become as good as his hero.

If we are to live like Christ, it can’t be just during “the Game” of life, but must subject ourselves to the same habits that Jesus lived. Jesus was in constant communication with His Father. Jesus Fasted as well. If we do not chose to make Jesus’ habits, our habits, then the Christian life will not only be “Hard” but “impossible”. That is why He said, “COME TO ME…”(Matt. 11:28). We can only live the way He lived if we are in constant contact with Him. THEN His life becomes easy. WHY? Because we are never alone; He carries the yoke WITH us! Now THAT’s awesome!

Getting God’s Attention

“But Noah found favor in the eyes of the LORD.” (Genesis 6:8)

In a time when the culture got so bad that “every inclination of the thoughts” of men was only evil all the time (Gen. 6:5), even God regretted making man. The Bible details that God’s “heart was filled with pain” (Gen. 6:6b). Man, talk about disappointing. The Great God Almighty invested himself into his creation, not because he was deficient without Man, but because he wanted to. Now, his pride and joy, the zenith of all creation had turned their backs on God, so that every inclination of their hearts were against him! THIS brought pain to God’s heart.

I’m sure you can imagine the anger God felt when he invested himself with Man, a privilege they were not deserving of, a blessing they did not merit, was ignored, despised, and rejected. This anger built to the climax when he finally had enough of all of it–he was going to wipe the planet clean.

BUT…there was a man. There still was one who was different.
When the entire Earth was filled with Rebellious Man, there was still ONE who remained faithful. There still was a person God could trust.
“But Noah found favor in the eyes of the LORD.”

This is what the Bible describes Noah:
Noah was a righteous man, blameless among the people of his time, and he walked with God. (Gen. 6:9).

Apparently Noah lived counter to his culture, and that’s why God took noticed. When everyone else followed his/her own way, Noah chose the way of his fathers, and called on the name of the LORD (Gen. 4:26).

Therefore, how do I now live, in a materialistic, self-seeking culture–how do I live differently from the World? What does it look like? What personal decisions do I need to make to live the kind of life that God honors?

I believe it begins and ends with an honest evaluation of yourself in light of the Perfect and Holy God. I must daily measure myself with God’s standards, and that is found by spending time in the WORD of God and Prayer. It means having an attitude of constant REPENTANCE, for when we make that comparison with God’s standards, we fall short. BUT thank God for his SON Jesus Christ who bridges my shortcomings with the his perfection by faith and identification with HIM.

So, if you are like me, and desperately desire to be the kind of person that God takes notice of (not in a religious-sort-of-way), then choose to measure yourself against the Word of God, and seek to mold yourself to THAT standard, instead of trying to fit how the Word of God fits into your life.
Develop a love for God’s WORD.

Living to Please God

1 Thessalonians 4:1 “Finally, bothers, we instructed you how to live in order to please God…”

I find it incredible, and yet frustrating at times how God’s Word gives direction without being specific at times. The apostle Paul specifically wrote, “we instructed you how to live”, not “what to do”. Why is this designation important? I believe it informs us how we are to make decisions–not on a code of “do’s” and “don’ts”, but from a life that has been changed by the Spirit of God!

Now, I understand that the make-up of a lifestyle comes about by a series of specific decisions, like puzzle pieces make up the whole. But what I am emphasizing is that according to scripture the ideal motivation comes about from an internal control. That control is given to the Holy Spirit of GOD.

This is only a random muse on what I read in Scripture today, colliding with the decisions I face for Tomorrow. May even in my cloudy times of direction, God speak and guide me in the dark!