Enjoying Your Gifts
The line comes from the new The Chronicles of Narnia: The Voyage of the Dawn Treader movie, but in so many ways defines how this year begins for both Brad and Wayne: "I've spent too long wanting what was taken from me and not what I was given." Through family changes and their own spiritual journeys they are freshly learning how to embrace what God has given instead of getting focused on the hurtful actions of others or the changing tides of life. That's where you'll find true treasure. Their conversation revisits some familiar themes of living light-handedly with truth, so you can love people and not force your will on them and to keep embracing the joy of relationships and God's work in them even though at times you may be treated unfairly by some.
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Hey Guys, Enjoyed your venting. To me it’s more about living in the freedom in which our Creator has for us rather than “enjoying” our gifts. After all would we truly know the difference between a good gift and a bad one ( Rms 8)? May we all enjoy the journey and adventure of living a life created for us before the foundation of this world! (No matter how unseemly it may appear to others) Forever and ever in His name, Gman.
Interestingly I listen to the stories of manipulative church histories and I can’t really relate that well. I walked a way from the organization in which I was raised, partially because it seemed like it was just a nice group of folks hanging out for some nice talk for a couple of hours. I could not have told you what they really considered key and essential articles. Certainly there did not seem to be anything worth dying for, or even disrupting sunday lunch over, so there wasn’t much to live for either. There is a lot of lukewarminess (probably not a real word) in what passes for the body and a call to a passionate walk with Lord does not seem like a bad thing to me. Yeah, I get that there is always someone with an agenda wanting to manipulate or misappropriate that passion but from things I have heard on this podcasts there are some issues you guys are not lukewarm about either. I don’t think Father’s love for us is lukewarm, I think it is radically passionate and if He is conforming us to His image…well. Can it lead to mistakes, absolutely and it always seems to be messy, I think there is this whole thing about Grace and Love needing to be the center of everything. I heard that same teaching about Lukewarm and loving it and I didn’t hear it as a call to guilt and shame but a plea to stop living a life of a little bit of God and a whole lot of comfortable country living and calling it good.
Really sorry to hear about the young woman who wrote the poetry book. I don’t understand why God won’t heal her or intervene. Do you feel God putting anything on your heart about her situation? I was really touched by her poems. Do you think God will save her?
You provide an interesting observation Doug. I suppose that even the ZA (zao agape-d) approach is reduced to just another form of legalism if “how to and pontificating” take priority over the Spirit-generated outflow of agape. “If it’s not flowin” might as well be just another bar star … or something like that.
Stella, I have no idea what Father has in mind for Jenny. My heart breaks for her and her family. I hold them before Father as often as he brings her to mind. I know that God has already saved her into his life and whether she continues on in the flesh or joins him in his eternal kingdom sooner than any of us would like, her life will be to his glory. I have no idea what kind of healing is ahead for Jenny, but I do know that this Father loves her more than I do and will do the very best on her behalf as fits his purpose in the world. I don’t begin to understand it in my own life. So I don’t try to second-guess him in Jenny’s. I pray for her and entrust her to the God of all glory and grace. I now those prayers shape something in her and in her parents. I’m content to live there.
I really appreciate the contrasting perspectives in this podcast:
Yes, there are times when we need to stop, rest and grieve for what we have lost. It’s okay, even necessary, to feel that sorrow fully.
But then like Caspian, we reach a point where we know we have “spent too long” lingering there. So we draw a deep breath of gratitude, and journey on.
Neither is the one “right” attitude for every day, rather they are seasons…
I understand your attitude toward “prophesying our hopes” – but the flip side I think is that Jesus said that we can “speak to the mountain”.
I feel free to “speak to mountain” often – but I try to be sensitive about it (in regards to who hears me speaking to the mountain). I realize that when I speak to the mountain there are conditions ( I have to believe, have no doubts and forgive all ) and there are many times when I think I’ve met all the conditions and in reality I have not.
If I speak to the mountain and yet I don’t really believe or I have doubts or I am not forgiving – then my speaking to the mountain (publicly) is like that clanging cymbal from 1 Cor 13.
In private, I shout at the mountains and ask God for faith and ask him to reveal any unforgiveness in me.
Wayne, i loved what you said about in the midst of poverty there being more joy than you wind in our suburban neighborhoods. I couldn’t agree more. My 9spiritual0 father, Solomon, who is from Africa once asked me a acquisition i could not answer. He said, “George, what do you mean by the word depression? We do not know this in my country. I do not understand?!”
I tried to explain about my ‘depression’ and he could not relate. he just could not understand no being joyful or thankful?! “Perhaps, Solomon said, ‘this is a consequence of your lifestyle.”
i have thought about that a lot over the years. I have also observed that in many very impoverished i truly find more laughter and not many poor me’s.
Who says having lots of stuff brings joy?!
First, I very much enjoy your podcasts. I find myself either encouraged, confirmed, or challenged in my own heart and thinking, depending on the specific topic. You deal with many critical issues to “the church” and individuals. Within that context, I’m personally not helped that much when you launch into one of these issues and then one of you will insert a sarcastic comment and laughter. I believe there is great error in globalizing prophecies that may be (as you observe) personal. But, starting the subject with a laugh off statement, “Do you have your 2011 Prophecies for us” (laughter).
However, I truly do appreciate your work.
Started listening to you guys about a year ago after reading So You Don’t Want To Go To Church Anymore. I plug in after I finish my run during my “cool down” each morning. I had to stop listening to you while I ran because inevitably something that you would say would force me to stop running and sometimes even stop and weep as your conversation would ignite release from my inaccurate assumptions about what it means to trust, to live loved, and most recently to develop righteousness by simply nurturing trust instead of achieving performance based activities.
I still love and look forward to attending church each week (in the traditional, programmed, formal meeting based, theatrical sense… see I am listening:) but I have also discovered that church happens in the briefest encounters every day and I’m learning to be more present when I enter these divine intersections. Divine Intersections….There’s your next podcast title! Thanks guys,
Kate
Victoria, Canada
Divine intersections, yeah I agree that could make for an awesome podcast. What about it guys?
During a recent road trip, we were discussing our three particular concerns. On the way back, we listened to this podcast and were shocked and pleasantly surprised to discover that you guys were discussing the same 3 things.
1) We were wondering if we should apologize because we shared a teaching, but later found out that it missed the mark. You talked about the woman who shared the “Lukewarm” teaching and regretted it. You suggested that “an apology goes a long way”. So we apologized, but the people already knew we had been off, yet graciously waited for us to find out.
2) We were wondering how to respond to a friend who shared a New Year prophecy from a national prophet. You gave a wise reply: some things are for certain people, and we need to be discerning to see if it applies.
3) We were wondering how to deal with a betrayal. You helped bring closure to something that’s been bothering us.
Bless you guys for being real. You truly have an “ever expanding conversation” because you brought clarity to our discussions.
Otto & Hannah