“So watch your step. Use your head. Make the most of every chance you get. These are desperate times. Don’t live carelessly, unthinkingly. Make sure you understand what the Master wants. Don’t drink too much wine. That cheapens your life. Drink the Spirit of God, huge draughts of Him.” – Ephesians 5:15-17 MSG
In the not too distant past, I would complain about how little time that I had. There were seemingly constant demands on my time and while I got to do fun and interesting things once or twice a week, I still complained about there not being more to it. One day it finally occurred to me that this is what life is all about – and it’s good! I resolved that I would quit hiding away because frankly… life is in the living of it! Since I had that “epiphany of sorts” I have been really excited about my life, family, friends and each day.
I got caught into the trap of thinking that “it’s gotta be better than this.” and I think lots of us get that idea without any real basis of why we even think that way. It sometimes (“sometimes” is an understatement probably) seems that we are looking for something that will amplify or hype up our lives in some way – not realizing that what we are living more times than not is pretty good. It is in fact, life. The general population’s approach to life reminds me of the scripture above. I won’t really get into the conversation of “drinking” but it does bring up an interesting point in my mind particularly regarding people who drink and why – even casually. Stay with me and I’ll loop it all together.
I would go out on a limb and say that there are very few people who actually drink because they enjoy the taste of alcohol. There may be some wines or other drinks that can arguably be considered tasty, but I would venture to say that the taste doesn’t necessarily make people want to reach for it like it’s a glass of Kool-Aid. Lots of times for the flavored drinks, they would taste better without the alcohol. So in my mind drinking is really a means to an end. It’s chasing a feeling. That might be a tough thing to admit for some, but it’s true.
“I need a drink” is not an uncommon mantra for those who’ve had a rough day. Why? Because it’s chasing a feeling that the drink brings of escaping from stress thru little inhibition or relaxation. It’s sometimes “liquid courage” when reaching for more guts to do something feared. People turn to drinks before (and while) going out to party and have a good time because of the euphoric feeling it brings and even the alibi for excuse the next day when doing something out of the ordinary. And perhaps way too common is having to be “tipsy” for sex or to get in the mood. All of these are examples of buying into havng to have the heightened state to enjoy life.
This same concept applies to every area of our lives, beyond alcohol. We are looking for some heightened form of what life should be from everywhere without really understanding what life is supposed to be like. We look for it with drama in relationships because we think if there’s no drama then something must be wrong. We’re always looking for the next best job, when at the moment the one we have is good. Married people checking outside their marriage comparing what someone else told them it should be. It’s like the scripture above – where there is no revelation of life, the option is “turning to wine.” It’s turning to an alternative substance to generate what you’re after.
Because we lack revelation of what life is supposed to deliver to us. We always assume there is something more to it. And maybe there’s nothing more to it except the lie that there’s something more to it. We become “feeling/exhiliration addicts.” Things have to be on “TEN” to feel like we enjoy life. It creates such discontent the more we pursue the “intoxicants” of the world the less fulfillment we get out of life. We never check it to do life God’s way or even enjoy and make the most of every opportunity we have.
Stop “drinking the wine.” Stop believing that just because we have access to the choices of the world’s wine that you have to partake. The world says “There’s something you’re missing that will make it better.” The world is deceiving you to a point of depression when you can’t the fulfillment you seek in the wrong place.
Wine tries to make what God created better but it’s a simulated intoxicated version. We tend to exalt the intoxicated version and try to put it above what God created. And that leads us to living the intoxicated life. We think that our situations are an exception so we have a right to search for an alternative. But here’s news for you, most of the problems in our life exist in the realm of normal. And you’ve fallen for the okie-doke thinking otherwise.
Embrace Life as it is. Get High on Life, the one you have. Life is Enjoyed in the Living of It.
Whoever it was who said that, “If you give your life to Jesus, all your problems will be over” was a miserable liar. I understand that they are just trying to campaign for Jesus and persuade those from the “dark side” unto the marvelous Light, however, saying things that are untrue do more of a disservice to the cause than help it.
What generally happens is that a person will decide to “try out” Christianity (Which is a problem in itself– you don’t try Christianity, you are supposed to be getting into a relationship with Jesus) and that person is neither told that problems will arise nor is taught to be equipped to handle such problems when they actually manifest themselves.
Consequently, that ill-equipped baby Christian will give up on standing against the challenge, give up on themselves and ultimately give up on God, who is the only one fully capable of helping them out of the negative situation. They then decide that “this Christian thing doesn’t work,” to their own chagrin.
Now, let me disspell the myth: The good news is that Jesus will never lie to you. He is Truth. Let me tell you what Jesus said about trouble: (John 16:33)
“…In the world you will have trouble…”
How’s that for a reality check? Jesus lets you know that you will have trouble in the world even as a born-again Christian. Now, more good news: (John 16:33)
“but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world [ and deprived it of any power to harm you] Amplified translation
You can count on some trouble but just as sure as you can count on that trouble you can be confident in that fact that you will not be ultimately destroyed by that trouble. You have help!! So don’t give up in that trouble. Pray for the help that is promised you. No matter how bad it looks, if you can outlast the trouble you will surely come out of it, unharmed and stronger.
So maybe those Christians are not unbelieveable liars. They have good motives. Maybe the fact that God will deliver you out of trouble means in effect, you really don’t have any trouble. Well, either way…
Other scriptures:
1 John 4:4- “You are of God, little children, and have overcome them because greater is He that is in you than he that is in the world”
Psalm 34:19- “Many are the afflictions of the righteous, but the Lord delivers them out of them ALL.”
1 Corinthian 10:13-
KenJos who I follow on Twitter, recently wrote a blog called Agnosticism. I suppose that I’ll briefly define that term for you, especially since lots of people hold this belief, (some without knowing that it actually has a name!)
An agnostic can briefly be defined as a person who claims that they cannot have true knowledge about the existence of God, but does not deny that God might exist. They generally claim they do not know or are unable to know whether God exists. I think I’ve even seen it defined as someone who is doubtful or noncommittal about something.
I’m sometimes tickled by the philosophy of agnosticism because it seems to be the philosophy of the “just to be on the safe side.” However, I am a strong believer that if a person can easily mock someone else’s beliefs than they don’t fully understand it so I won’t go there. I can say that I understand some of KenJos’s points in his blog. (If you haven’t read it check it out here.) But I figure I’d comment on his general idea and share just a couple thoughts.
KenJos says we should just admit that “I don’t know” all there is to know about the whole subject of God. He sites Charles Darwin. And I don’t think that you’d meet any believer of any religion that would disagree with that. Most of us believe that God is manifold, many faceted. But at the same time people are just as complex. I think it’s fair to say that I can never know the whole subject of KenJos or even me, David. My parents have been married for 30 years and they tell me that they are daily discovering more about one another.
1. You don’t have to deny the existence of God or abandon any belief that you currently have to say “I don’t know.” Before any person could see or understand the limitless universe that KenJos references, they took that as a starting point. A hypothesis. That’s one of the essential beauties of faith. You believe having not seen… and then God reveals himself to you in ways. But it generally works in that order.
2. So “I don’t completely know” is a fair starting point but it does not have to be a permanent posture. Eventually you have to dive in somewhere. KenJos says, “until you are able to admit that you do not know, you will never be able to fully and unconditionally receive the answers.” That’s fair. But standing at “I don’t know” about everything forever is just willing and blind ignorance. If that posture is supposed to open you up to receive answers than why would an agnostic remain an agnostic? Wouldn’t he eventually discover something? Would he eventually discover that yes, God is out there and my next step is determining how to know Him, if he can be known, or that God does not exist at all and he is a figment of our imaginations.
3. I just want for people to be honest. Everyone. Believers included. KenJos makes good points about people waging wars, estranging family members and doing a bunch of other things under the banner of religion but this is the part of the ‘non-knowing nuances’ that believers have to admit they don’t know about. It’s easy to rile up a crowd of people who have rejected religion using the examples of things done in the name of religion by people who are the general exception and not the rule. You’ll find that most people in most religions would condemn those types of behaviors. I want believers to admit that they don’t fully know their God but they are everyday in process of relationship with Him to learn about Him. And I believer as a Christian myself that before you surrender you heart in true compliance to really getting to know God, He does prove Himself. He does cause Himself to be known.
I want agnostics to be honest and admit that they are just more comfortable riding the fence. The fact of the matter is that everyone is “feeling after God.” People in civilized or industrialized places make the claim that we all made up God to make ourselves feel comfortable when we discovered that we die. But that does little to explain the other nations that have very much the same tenets of rules in their society that most major religions have without having had any interaction. It’s ok to feel after God. Even those who claim ‘The Universe’ is doing good things for them are really responding to something inside themselves that there’s something bigger than self.
I want agnostics to try out some of the beliefs with full compliance hearts. Even scientists who make these discoveries start at a place of I don’t know, but weren’t content there. But they took theories and tested hypothesis in order to eliminate the question mark.
However the reality is that until a person realizes that they are in NEED of a savior and a real life relationship with God, even that won’t help. And will in effect but stuck at that place. If that person actually really wanted to honestly admit that they were open to true and real knowledge with their stance of “I don’t know” God would reveal Himself. That’s why I don’t completely buy the whole, it’s freeing to ‘not know’ deal. But that’s another story for another time.
