So I’ve realized I have an issue. There seems to be this epidemic that some pastors have and it kind of bothers me. It bothers me when I hear pastors stand up in front of people and preach on how streaming glory from heaven has changed their life. Now, I hope I don’t sound like some young ignoramous who has no clue as to what hes talking about, though most of the time thats the truth. The killer for me is when they say things like “I cant explain it” “I don’t know what happened” “I just prayed a prayer and Jesus changed my life”. It drives me nuts to hear these things. To be honest Im not sure if Im guilty of this or not but Lord if I am here my cry of repentance!
It bothers me number one because honestly no one cares about how Jesus changed your life, they just want to know why He’s not changing theirs… So why don’t you explain. Number two, no one believes you. Number three for the love of Christ don’t tell them to pray a prayer. Tell them to die to themselves and all of that bull in their souls from the pit of hell and make sure they understand the power and divinity of the Holy Spirit that lives within them.
Number four: If Jesus really did change your life why do you need to tell everyone? Usually when things change there is a difference. Something has noticeably changed in your life. Maybe not on the outside (like your not a shiny vampire like Edward Cullen) but if you actually took the time to build relationships with people, maybe they would see the difference. Deep down.
I’ve realized salvation is always dependent upon the relationships in which people carry on. So please stop talking to your friends and start walking with them. Stop telling them, and start teaching them.
And please remember that what Jesus has changed in your life doesn’t mean jack unless its changing the lives of others.
A while back, before my day… I heard of a miracle. It was about a bunch of “boys” college kids from across America who overcame all the odds, broke all the laws, and achieved what no one thought possible. These “boys” played the men of the USSR in what is now called the “Miracle on Ice” kudos to Al Michaels. A team: The USA who had not defeated the USSR in over 20 years and who had just lost to them 3 weeks before this Olympic semi-final ice hockey showdown by a score of 10-3, miraculously came out on top. A team whos average age was merely 20 years old, who had never before played hockey outside of school, ended a 54 game winning streak, beat a team who had scored 10+ goals in every Olympic game up to this point, locked up the well oiled machine.
From what I’ve heard this was more than a game… More than what I’ve seen on TV. The political implications went much deeper than the ice they played on and it seems as though it was much bigger then I’ll ever know it to be today. However I heard a quote from someone that lived through the day that said “those boys (team USA) were to young and to stupid to know what they’d done”
I feel as though this is what Jesus talks about when he mentions “faith like a child”. They had the faith to believe that the moment was their… and they captured it. Thats all they needed to know. Was that they could conquer the moment, the past, what others couldn’t. It didn’t matter how, or what had happened previously, this was now, this was today, and today was theirs. Miracles happen for those of us that are too stupid to believe that nothing is impossible. More importantly for those of us that are willing to hold true to the folly of the Cross. Because maybe the Cross is the Team USA of 1980. “Do you believe in miracles?!?! YES!!!”
My great grandmother is old, 93 years old and unhealthy. She came over this year for thanksgiving dinner and for the most part as absolutely no idea whats going on. Shes bound constantly to a chair or wheel chair because of fragile bones and a broken bones in her lower back. She sleeps about 20 hours a day and the four hours shes awake she eats. She cant remember anything for more than two minutes and she soiled her pants during dinner.
Now that I’ve ragged on a poor old woman that just really wants to die, I noticed one thing about her life. When someone is loving on her giving her a hug or a kiss I see life from her old bones. She becomes alive. She talks she smiles and all of a sudden her death doesn’t seem so imminent. Love always conquers death.
