All or Nothing (#651)
"Does every area of your life honor Jesus?" That question came from a listener and opened the door to an interesting discussion as to why our religious rhetoric is so often couched in extreme measures. Is your all on the altar? Do you completely trust God in every area of your life? I surrender all. You must love God with all your heart, soul, mind, and strength. Certainly the aspiration to those realities is the ongoing cry of our hearts, but to leave it there often overwhelms people with expectations they can never meet by their own efforts. By focusing on the end product, some lose sight of the process of transformation and God's presence in it. Our hearts may cry for all or nothing, but the daily reality of our lives is to live in the light and freedom we have each day, which allows us to grow in our love, trust, and dependence on him.
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Only one life, twill soon be past,
Only what’s done for Christ will last.
CT Studd
The above quote was one that was commonly used when I was younger. I only recognized recently that the source of some of my prior anxieties came from this particular quote’s message.
While at initial glance it sounds spiritual, statements like the one above creates a paranoia and fear of simply living. It can be used as a tool of manipulation by others, and a source of comparison between believers. As seen through my own personal filters, this also implied that simple living, family life and personal hobbies were not things that are done for Christ, and that “kingdom” work, spiritual disciplines and “church” work were the only things that God was pleased with.
Michael Yaconelli’s book Messy Spirituality really helped me to begin moving away from this line of thinking.
Great podcast on a great subject. Thanks.
“We shouldn’t have musicians writing our theology!”
Oh yeah… I totally agree with the angst that this statement brings on. It is the reason I don’t sing when I “go to church”. It is also one of the big reasons I don’t like being in the building anymore… but I still go with my Mom to events where people sing … and I don’t sing. I would feel very robotic if I went back to that place where I could sing songs someone wrote 500 years ago in their alone time with God. I also feel very awkward at times knowing that some of the songs I have written are being sung at my sister’s church by people that are just singing them because they are up on the view screen. Those songs don’t necessarily mean anything to them in the moment they are singing them, like they did to me when I wrote them. I don’t doubt that the hymn writers had amazing encounters with God when they wrote their songs… But I wonder about the generations that have sung those songs for hundreds of years after. I know, because I used to be one of those people. That being said… there are songs that have moved my heart in a moment, but I can’t say that moment was repeated on a regular basis. I wish I could have a peaceful conclusion , but I don’t…. I’ll just stick with my awkwardness and won’t sing. If anyone wants to know why I ‘m not singing… I just might tell them.
Ruby from Calmar Alberta Canada
Wow. Very enlightening to hear this podcast. Thank you to the person who asked the questions and thanks for discussing them! As for faking kneeling or hand raising or so many other things? Guilt is one motivator. The inner voice says, “Look at that person. Why don’t you care about God enough to . . .?” Worship leaders, at least in charismatic churches, never show apathy or lack of motivation. They are always passionate. It’s a job requirement. “Don’t show up if you can’t at least fake passion.” It’s got to be tough.
Hi guys!
I am part from a church which can be considered institutionalized. I’ve been to the church since i was little boy. I live in London for four years. I am part of the roumanian community from here. I was to a conference this sunday and i felt verry dissappointed. I use to preach in the church even sometimes i feel i am doing just a speach and i don’t deliver God’s message. The reason of dissapointment it was that i felt verry lonley. I wasen’t on the stage, others where there and i was just a spectator of the show. I tried to speake with some of the people which i knew but it seems everybody had just a nice smile and they diden’t liked my presence. Then i realized what most of the people from my church feels when they attend to sunday services: lonley and isolated. I was thinking if this is God intention with the church. How do they connect with eachother. If they go sunday morning or evening with expectations and go back with dissapointments what we are doing there. What God says about what the pastors and preachers are doing. The price is too big: human souls. There is so many questions without answers……
Being a chrestian it is a journey and how we find the real body of Christ and espeacially when…..i don’t know. I feel the need of a real connection but i am afraid of being wounde if i open my heart.
If Paul can say “Not that I have already become perfect…[Philippians 3:12]” then I can be free to live loved, on the path to seeing Christ more completely.
Boy you guys were in rare form this week 🙂 It’s 2 am and my husband thinks I’m listening to the comedy hour on podcast. Good stuff you two! LOVE YA
Amen Lila! I needed to remember that verse.
This was SO funny to listen to! Thanks for the smiles and good laughs! Loved it!
You both have encouraged what the Holy Spirit has led us on our journey…and in this journey I continue to find peace and contentment in knowing His complete delight and acceptance in me and not shocked or shaming of my imperfections but simply an overjoyment of me as the whole package…and makes sense He created me and loves me so much He made a planet full of life to enjoy…many say “why does God choose me I’m just a worm etc or whatever”…but we are made a little lower than angels and crowned with His glory and given dominion over the earth…let’s just instead of wondering if we are surrendering all or giving it all simply enjoy that HE alone is it ALL and we get to enjoy His creation, enjoy Him and love each other with His Love…it’s exciting, and keeping our eyes and delight in Him…just enjoy and the fruit of His presence will bear fruit through us…
His Spirit leads us to love…we don’t have to be fearful that we aren’t doing His will…we can enjoy freedom and excitement of enjoying Life with Him and a natural overflow of that will be beautiful fruit of loving others…
There is a twisted definition of sovereignty prevalent in Christianity….that sovereignty allows horrible things to happen as if it was part of His plan…yet being King doesn’t mean everything that happens in life is the Kings plan….especially from a loving King that created with love people with free will and is the fruits of the Spirit not a harsh dictator. Not to mention other factors of the evil one and fallen world.
I like the last line shared by Wayne…something to the fact of that even if God didn’t get his way, He has plans B,C, D etc to continue to move His ways ahead.
Lots of good stuff to think of here. Thanks. As for singing songs with a theology that doesn’t match at times…yes, that use to bother me too even though I still liked the tune. But when I switch off Christian Radio and switch on Country Western I find I do the same there….sing along with songs whose words definitely do not represent me but I really like the tune. Sometimes I sing hymns with a theology that I don’t aspire to but the tune brings back memories of my dad singing it many years ago. So I feel like I’m honoring his memory more than the words of that particular hymn. Maybe it’s like that for more of us than we realize.