Life in the Middle

Do you struggle with your faith? Maybe you want to quit but having tasted the truth can no longer revert back to a sinful life in peace. Yet you know that you will never be a "Super-Christian" and experience a life that transcends the mire. You are stuck.


Greg Koukl from Stand to Reason tells the story of a conversation he had with a woman in a similar situation:


She had a deeply discouraging sense of being "in between." She said, "I'm a Christian, so I can't go back and enjoy it [I call that the "Christian curse," by the way]. But I can't reach the level of spirituality I think is required of me, so I can't enjoy my Christian life either."


Are you looking for an answer to that dilemma? Koukl has put together some points that will help you. It's pretty long but you can read his response here.

Stand Up, Stand Up for Jesus, Ye Soldiers of the Cross!

Young Amir and Baba

Another big theme in The Kite Runner has to do with the courage to do what's right. Amir's father, Baba, is an activist that will stand up for others even at the cost of his life. Ironically Amir proves himself to be the complete opposite, shying away from challenges, with self-preservation as his main concern.

I could identify with Amir, as I recognize how tough it can be to stand up for what I believe. The world we live in can be a difficult place for God's children. To believe in the morality set by God is considered backward and outdated, even hateful.

So justice is driven back, and righteousness stands at a distance; truth has stumbled in the streets, honesty cannot enter. Truth is nowhere to be found, and whoever shuns evil becomes a prey. The LORD looked and was displeased that there was no justice.

As appropriate as the last paragraph is for our times, the interesting thing is that it comes from Isaiah 59:14-15, written over 2500 years ago! How did God respond back then?

Isaiah 59:16 He saw that there was no one, he was appalled that there was no one to intervene; so his own arm worked salvation for him, and his own righteousness sustained him.

God saw that his people were helpless and hopeless and came down and took care of business himself! I believe the same principle applies today. Even though sometimes the enemy seems too strong, when the time is right, God will make everything all right.

But until that time, we as Christ-followers should strive to live as God would have us, despite the cost to us personally. Let us rise up to the challenges set before us as we serve our God with our best!

24Then Jesus said to his disciples, "If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. 25For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me will find it. 26What good will it be for a man if he gains the whole world, yet forfeits his soul? Or what can a man give in exchange for his soul? 27For the Son of Man is going to come in his Father's glory with his angels, and then he will reward each person according to what he has done. Matthew 16:24-27

Is It You, or Just a Brilliant Disguise?

I have been having an online discussion about political and spiritual matters with a friend. One of his recurring arguments against Christianity is the hypocrisy of Christians. Basically we don't practice what we preach.

Because the standard set by God for us is perfection, no Christian will, this side of heaven, live in a way that is absolutely consistent with his or her belief all the time, every time. Does that mean that all Christians have no choice but to be hypocrites then?

Merriam-Webster defines hypocrisy this way: 1: a feigning to be what one is not or to believe what one does not ; especially : the false assumption of an appearance of virtue or religion

2: an act or instance of hypocrisy

Believing in a standard but failing to live up to it does not automatically constitute hypocrisy. Otherwise the only people on earth, Christian or otherwise, who are not hypocrites are those who have no standards.

The key word is "feigning." Hypocrisy is pretending to be something you are not, or acting like you believe something that you really don't. Assuming that you are genuinely trying, failing to live up to a standard is just that - failure, not hypocrisy. Hiding the fact that you are a sinner is hypocrisy.

In order to overcome the hypocrisy label, Christians must do two things: 1. live as consistently with the standards of belief as possible 2. be honest about the difficulties and failures trying to live that life. Maybe then the fallacy of having to be "good" before setting foot in a church would fall as well.

What Now?

President-elect Barack Obama

Now that the dust has settled and the election is over, some might say that any hope that Christians may have had about turning our country's moral compass back to God seems to be fading fast. If you think that, you'd be wrong.

Maybe new laws will be enacted and liberal judges might be selected, thus taking our country farther away from God's idea of morality than we feel comfortable with. Maybe it's past that point already for you. But I would challenge you to rise up child of God, as the ball is now in your court.

Even if _______ (insert unGodly law here) was here to stay, but hypothetically speaking, if everyone in this nation were to live according to God's ways, the "rights" we have under our federal and state law would be moot.

What that means is this: now more than ever you must live in a manner worthy of your calling. You need to shine God's light and love in the darkness on an individual level. You need to be praying for people and sharing the Gospel! You can no longer hide behind your "conservative" candidate to do God's work on a national level for you.

And if at times you get really hopeless always remember this: Even the worst of governments and rulers (and I'm not saying ours falls into that category) could do nothing to stop God from accomplishing his will.