Traps

There are two types of traps that Christians can fall into;

1. Assimilation

2. Withdrawal


Assimilation is living as if being a Christian makes no difference in our lives. These people follow the world in attitude, dress, behaviour. There is nothing about them to testify that they are living a life that follows Christ.


Withdrawal is living a life that is so separate from the world that you can not make an impact for Christ. These people live in a little Christian bubble - very legalistic, only interacting with other Christians who exactly follow their ideas about how to follow Christ and quick to judge those who do not live the way they do.


Of course these are extreme examples but we can easily have part in each way of living. Both can be a hindrance to sharing Gods love with people.


Do you watch TV shows or movies without thinking about whether it is healthy to let those images into your mind (I don't just mean inappropriate things, but also violence, or attitudes such as materialism, self importance that are glorified by the themes in the movie/show)? Being out of the loop around friends might not be fun, but there are better things for our minds to think about.

Do you worry about having enough money to get a house, have a large savings account, have the latest gadget? In our society materialism creeps in so easily without us knowing.

Do you buy clothes because they are in fashion or they make you look good without considering if they are appropriate, modest, honouring to the Spirit of God that lives in us?

Do you talk about other people behind their back - pretending to be sharing and showing concern but really gossipping?

All these and more are small ways that we can start to assimilate to the fallen world.



Do you spend most of your time with other like minded Christians (Your life consists of only people at church, close Christian friends, go to a christian school/home school) and have nothing to do with non-Christians? Jesus spent so much time with ordinary non-religious people. How are we going to build relationships with people to share with them the gospel if we only interact with Christians?

Do you immediately shout down anyone who says something against Christianity? The Bible says to tell the truth in love, if you don't present the gospel gently are you scaring people away from finding out more about God?

Do you secretly judge Christians who do not live as you do?

Is the way you dress and the way you live out your life so alien to the people around you that people stare and avoid you?


These and more are some ways you can be withdrawing.



(I struggle with things from both assimilating and withdrawing and I don't want people to feel judged in anyway, it's just something to think about.)

(photo courtesy of Ayla87 at stock.xchng)

I have made a decision. No more romantic movies for me. They are meant to be harmless fun to relax with on a Saturday night, but really I just end up feeling awful and depressed and angry at God because I want a family of my own so badly.

And it's not about what I want, it's about God's perfect timing and will for my life. And being willing to accept that whatever he has planned.
So for me, it's easier to just stay out of temptations way.

Stuff

Dear Sister

I am a mix of contradictions. I'm a hoarder but I hate having stuff around. I like collecting things, but I also feel a great sense of achievement when I throw out/give away a whole lot of junk that I don't need.
A while ago a friend of mine wrote about simplifying her family's unit. Paul reminds us "Godliness with contentment is great gain. For we brought nothing into the world, and we can take nothing out of it. But if we have food and clothing, we will be content with that. People who want to get rich fall into temptation and a trap and into many foolish and harmful desires that plunge men into ruin and destruction." (1 Timothy 6:6-9)

In our western culture it's so easy to get caught up in needing stuff. Life is about relationships, not accumulating things. The amount of time I have spent using my stuff when I could have been building godly relationships with people makes me cringe. How I long to have 'food and clothing' and be content. Of course having possessions in itself isn't wrong, it's the importance we put on it. Today I spent a few hours getting rid of things I don't need, I still have a awful amount of things in my room but it felt good anyway.

I'll keep working on it, and hopefully be more cautious when I'm about to bring my stuff into my room, deciding if I'd be better off without it.

It's all about Perspective

Dear Sister

My bed room is on the second floor, and because one of my windows face west I get full on sun into my room in the afternoon. To stop this I pull my blind down, just leaving a gap that's big enough to let a little light in but not blind me.
If I'm outside and look up to my window I can see a small sliver of my room. A few centimeters of the back of my computer, a few candles, but not much more. But when I go to the door of my room I can see everything. I see my bed, desk, book, computer, wardrobe, craft stuff and more books.
I guess it's kind of like how much we can see of our life. We only see the small amount that is visible at the time, just like when I'm outside and looking into my room. Not all the bits join together to make sense. But God is in the room. He can see everything - and he knows what it's all about.

We'd do so much better to just relax and trust God has everything in our life worked out and it will all make sense, one day. He's got the big picture, we don't. Might as well accept that and go on living with what he's shown us so far. for He said "I know the plans I have for, plans to proper you and not to harm you" (Jeremiah 29:11)

get out of bed

Dear Sister

With an essay out of the way, and a night to myself things are looking good. It's nice to have a few hours every now and then to yourself, just to take a breath and get ready for the next day.

I went through a rough time last year when getting out of bed was often a major achievement. During that time I learnt a few things that help to get you up and ready to face the day.

1. Take a shower. It is amazing how much better you feel after a shower.
2. Brush your teeth. For some reason having that minty taste in your mouth makes it easier to face the day.
3. Get dressed. Even if it's just a new pair of track pants, put on something clean and crisp.
4. Plan something for the day. whether it's going for a walk around the block or cleaning out your wardrobe, plan something you will accomplish.
5. If I was one of those super-doper Christians I'd say have a quiet time. And yes, if you, can do that. But some days facing pages of tiny script was just too much. So instead I'd put on a favourite, uplifting worship CD. Good music can help lift your mood and praise music helps turn your thoughts to HIM.