An Open Heart

“He that would seriously set upon the search of truth ought in the first place to prepare his mind with a love of it. For he that loves it not will not take much pains to get it; nor be much concerned when he misses it.” John Locke (An EssayConcerning Human Understanding: Book 4: Chapter 19)

Why are certain scriptures appear so straight-forward are yet commonly misunderstood?  For example, a verse very familiar to us, Mark 16:16, “He who believes and is baptized will be saved; but he who does not believe will be condemned.”  It’s a simple equation: believe + baptism = salvation.  No belief (and therefore, no baptism) = no salvation.  Yet how many times have you run into someone who does not believe baptism is essential?

Another example is in one of the great themes of Hebrews of remaining faithful.  Hebrews 2:1, “Therefore we must give the more earnest heed to the things we have heard, lest we drift away.”  Hebrews 4:1, “Therefore, since a promise remains of entering His rest, let us fear lest any of you seem to have come short of it.”  Also, Hebrews 6:12, “that you do not become sluggish, but imitate those who through faith and patience inherit the promises.”  It is clear to me that we must remain faithful in order to receive God’s promises.  Yet it is a common belief that once you are saved you cannot lose that salvation.  

Why is it that someone can profess a love for truth, read a passage in the Bible and then either dismiss it completely or ascribe a different meaning to it?  Granted, all passages must be understood in context of the large themes, but some things are so straight forward it seems almost difficult to misunderstand.  Yet it is quite a common feat.  

Is there a fundamental desire to disbelieve the truth?  I don’t think so.  After all, no one likes being wrong.  Is the problem that there is no interest in truth?  While apathy might be prevalent, that’s not the underlying cause.  The problem at its root is a lack of an honest and open heart.  You see, it is less emotionally distressing to go through life believing what your parents, peers and mentors teach you than it is to run the risk of losing those close to you by disagreeing with convention and preaching truth.  But if one has an open and honest heart, God’s truths matter more than opinions of friends and family.  Luke 8:15, “But the seed in the good soil, these are the ones who have heard the word in an honest and good heart, and hold it fast, and bear fruit with perseverance.”  1 John 2:5-6 “But whoever keeps His word, truly the love of God is perfected in him. By this we know that we are in Him. He who says he abides in Him ought himself also to walk just as He walked.”

Do we really have an interest in truth?  Do we sit down to read the Bible in order to prove what we already believe, or do we read with an open and honest heart?  If we all read with open and honest hearts, there would be no disagreement on the fundamentals of salvation, about acceptable worship, or how to live daily.  We must be careful that we do not gather only the truths that we find to be attractive.  That is why it is crucial to first and foremost, have a love for God.  In truly doing so, we will have a love for His truths.  

So I must ask myself, do I have a love for truth?  And the corollary to that is, am I saying these things to prove what I already believe?  Am I simply seeking to condemn others and using the love for truth as a guise to do so?  Results are critical but so is motivation.  It is my responsibility to train myself to be up to the psychological challenge of questioning my own beliefs in the search for truth. 

Credit:  Based on an article in Common SenseChristian, Friday, October 21, 2011

We Chose Our Perspective

So...

Do the bad memories crowd out the good ones?  If so, I'm truly sorry.  But I must ask a question that most of us do not wish to confront.  Why?  I'm afraid the answer may force us to shift the blame from external sources to a locale a bit closer to home.

Is a negative outlook a choice we make on our own or is it induced from some external source?  Maybe it's genetic or maybe it's a disorder.  It could be environmental, social, or something greater.  You know, we are all subject to forces greater than ourselves at some point in our lives, especially when we deny it... but I digress.

Even if it's not a choice, we still have have free will.  So what is the implication?  Even if life dishes out difficulties and metes out misery, we still have the choice of how we will process and react.  Life is not about what happens to us - it's really about how we handle the hand we are dealt.

So I ask again; do the bad memories crowd out the good ones?  For some people they do and it's not a choice.  However, barring some mental incapacity to be happy, it shouldn't be reality.  Yet we often see miserable people go through their miserable lives all the time and in a state of malaise.  These people aren't uncommon and they are certainly not alone.  I certainly don't begrudge these people their cynicism, their sour attitudes or the malaise.  I'm guilty of that myself.

Being borderline numbered among the emotionally down-trodden, I have a certain insight that may just be relevant.  However, each person on this planet is in the same boat, regardless of our physical circumstances.  That really is the human condition.  IT'S TOUGH.  It's difficult to overcome the bad memories, the long days, the worry, the stress and the injustices.  Of all people, I understand how this feels... I'm human.  But if there is one thing that I know with great clarity, it is that great people of inspiration and unending hope feel these same things.  We chose how we react to life and the memories it provides.  It is a matter of choice as to how we cultivate the fields of history in our minds.  Do we decide to water and grow the distasteful or do we select to pull the weeds and carefully foster the good, seek out the benefits, embrace the challenges, and applaud how life has made us stronger?

It's a matter of perspective.  Perspective is how we look at the world.  Admittedly, some of us could be looking up at it from a wheel chair or a hospital bed, but we still have the choice to select our lenses.  One of the most cheerful people I know looks at life through the lenses of a polio-ridden body.  For some of us it is only with great difficulty and resolve of will to select the rose-colored glasses over the whiskey sour.  In fact, I dare say it is with great difficulty that MOST of us look at the brighter side of life and not dwell on the negatives.  Nevertheless, it is still a choice.

So do the bad memories crowd out the good?  It was your decision all along.

Getting “Cooked in the Squat”

I’m always getting ready to do something. I like to think I try to improve myself and I used to read a lot of self help-type literature and would get fired up about it. Funny thing is; I usually fizzle out quick too. My biggest problem is it sounds good the night before but when morning comes, the old routine sets in. “I’ll start tomorrow.”

I want to borrow some of what Zig Zigglar said in one of his motivational CDs. He called what I’m talking about “getting cooked in the squat.” This was a story I could relate to since Mom would make biscuits from scratch and sometimes they came out tall and fluffy and sometimes they would be hockey pucks, without ever much explanation for their condition. They just failed to rise sometimes. Zig talks about the next door cook named Maude who would make biscuits that turned out “no bigger than my wrist watch.” He asked Maude what happened and in his words, “she rared back, gave a big ‘o tummy laugh.” Zig would squat down like he was getting ready to jump up and said, “I’ll tell you what happened. They squatted to rise but they just got cooked in the squat.”

Man, that’s me. How about you? I’ve got big plans but they stay plans! I’ve got great intentions but you know what they say about where the road paved with good intentions goes. I have to finish whatever it is I’m in the middle of and maybe then I’ll get started. But wouldn’t you know something else always comes up to take its place! It seems sometimes life is a series of “fires to put out,” as the saying goes. So I’ve had difficulty sticking with some exercise regime, going to bed at a set time, eating more vegetables, relaxing more, reading my Bible through in a year, or sharing my faith.

That last one has always been kind of a sticky subject. I always seem to start the others pretty easily (and frequently) but that whole sharing my faith thing seems to require more “forethought,” more “practice,” and more “research.” I’ve taken personal evangelism classes, put together notes and scriptures on common topics and objections, and even practiced roll playing about talking with friends and coworkers… but I still never feel ready.

You ever feel that way? Like there’s just not enough you can do to prepare to share your faith and sound credible, genuine, and convincing? Why do I feel the need to become evangelically eloquent? I know the answer and who’s responsible. But I don’t like to admit it.

1. Fear:

• Luke 12:4-5 And I say to you, My friends, do not be afraid of those who kill the body, and after that have no more that they can do. (5) But I will warn you of whom you shall fear: Fear Him who, after He has killed, has authority to cast into hell. Yea, I say to you, fear Him.
• Rev 21:8 But the fearful, and the unbelieving, and the abominable, and murderers, and whoremongers, and sorcerers, and idolaters, and all liars, will have their part in the Lake burning with fire and brimstone, which is the second death.

          Talk about getting cooked in the squat.

• 1Jn 4:18 There is no fear in love, but perfect love casts out fear, because fear has torment. He who fears has not been perfected in love.

2. Influence of the Devil and the World: Mat 13:18-22 Therefore hear the parable of the sower. … (20) But that which was sown on the stony places is this: he who hears the Word and immediately receives it with joy. (21) But he has no root in himself, and is temporary. For when tribulation or persecution arises on account of the Word, he immediately stumbles. (22) And that sown into the thorns is this: he who hears the Word; and the anxiety of this world, and the deceit of riches, choke the Word, and he becomes unfruitful.

I’m always going to start “tomorrow” and when I don’t… I’ll just start the next day. You know; I’ve realized I’m running out of days.  James 4:14 ... For what is your life? For it is a vapor, which appears for a little time, and then disappears.

Time to stop fiddling with my excuses and trying to be prepared for every argument someone might have! What’s happened instead? I spent so much time preparing I can’t remember what I prepared for when I started. And along the way, the pilot light went out.

• 2 Cor 5:11 Therefore, knowing the fear of the Lord, we persuade men…
• Philippians 1:14 And most of the brothers in the Lord, becoming confident by my bonds, are much more bold to speak the Word without fear.

Getting cooked in the squat isn’t just a bad thing for me; it’s ultimately going to permanently cook the people I don’t share the truth with as well.

• Jude 1:23 But save others with fear, snatching them out of the fire…
• Heb 10:26 For if we sin willfully after we have received the knowledge of the truth, there remains no more sacrifice for sins, (27) but a certain fearful looking for judgment and fiery indignation, which shall devour the adversaries.

There sure is a fire that will cook you permanently. I better hurry up and rise before that happens.

The clock of life is wound but once

And no man has the power

To tell just when the hands will stop

At late or early hour.

Now is the only time you own.

Live, love, toil with a will.

Place no faith in time.

For the clock may soon be still.