As believers in Him who passionately loves the world, we are on our knees asking that the Father would bring you salvation. We lift you up in our prayers, so that you will have an immediate and definite contact with the Holy Spirit. We have consecrated you to Him. You are now marked and set apart, as we await further instructions from our Father.
There is no happiness, no real satisfaction apart from Him. Just stop trying, you are getting nowhere. The pain and guilt are real, aren’t they? There is in you a deep sadness–a grief. But the Lord sees it, and absorbs it for you. He sets you free, not for you to duplicate the sin, but to set you free from it. His action on your life is meant to liberate you.
Dear one, you struggle so intensely and have so many issues. We know this, but we have prayed, and we gathered you up to Him. (You are now a real target, thanks to us.) All of the issues you face from now on, have been initiated by God, and us who pray. I hope they won’t be too many. That you’ll respond to them, and turn to Him.
You are welcome to join us, we are indeed waiting just for you.
So enter into the grim arena. Already we have stepped into its ugly locales. You can meet us there. We know that there is no one who can keep us from His Spirit. You will find us standing against gladiator, and lion and sin. You are welcome to join us, we are indeed waiting just for you.
“And I am certain that God, who began the good work within you, will continue his work until it is finally finished on the day when Christ Jesus returns.”
“Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave you.”
Eph. 4:32
“It’s unfortunate and I really wish I wouldn’t have to say this, but I really like human beings who have suffered. They are kinder.”
Emma Thompson
She has nailed down a thought here. It is only a starting point, a beginning that one should work-out, over and over. We begin at this realization that there can be a definite link between suffering and kindness. It’s like two wheels of a bicycle.
I’m in love with kind people. All the people I have met who were truly wonderful, had very kind hearts. Kindness set them apart.
Historically, kindness was regarded as one of the “Knightly Virtues” of medieval times. Having it was to be a mark of chivalry. In theology, it was one of seven virtues, that mirrored the “Seven Deadly Sins.” It seems to me that believers who practice kindness are to be regarded as part of a spiritual nobility.
This connection between suffering and kindness isn’t so much as a “cause and effect,” but rather a ‘fruit’ which has to ripen, or mature. Pain is not always this productive in our lives. It can bring bitterness and loss as easily as it can bring kindness and gentleness. And many of us who struggle with mental illness or substance abuse understand this all to well.
The apostle Paul was right to link his sufferings to spiritual growth. If you can do this you are moving in the right direction. It will not lift you out of the pain; you will still have the sense of being overwhelmed, but you will see through it with the eagle eye of faith.
Why is it that so many who have suffered, will go on to become kind people?
It may have to do with two dynamic principles. The first metaphor would have to be the smelter/the potter. These are significant because they illustrate how believers are always in process. We are in flux, either moving under the hand or under the heat.
The second metaphor is the grape vine dresser/bread maker. These strike me as harsh, although it may not always feel that way. But both are definite “hands-on” from a supervisory source–the Holy Spirit.
Suffering is a lot like learning another language. Some days it will just click, and then other days you can’t remember your previous lesson. But if you are really patient you will learn to speak the dialect of suffering. Learning languages can open up the world to you. If you learn to speak “suffering” you will be able to touch the hearts of millions.
But there needs to be patience. You must wait for “kindness.” Transformation will never be smooth or easy. There are no switches for God to flip to make you Christlike. You will not wake up tomorrow morning with the character of Jesus–his mercy, love, wisdom and kindness. I’m sorry. (Choose to dispute this, and I will let you.)
“I prefer you to make mistakes in kindness than work miracles in unkindness.”
Mother Teresa’s counsel
“God has chosen you and made you his holy people. He loves you. So you should always clothe yourselves with mercy, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience.”
1. believing that people are motivated by self-interest; distrustful of human sincerity or integrity. Contemptuous; mocking. “her cynical attitude” “he gave a cynical laugh”
2. concerned only with one’s own interests and typically disregarding accepted or appropriate standards in order to achieve them.
Dictionary.com
I want to speak from my heart. I woke up this morning intensely cynical about the world. I hate to think I’m becoming critical or judgmental, but whatever it is I must take it in prayer to Jesus. I feel like I’ve been bit by a snake– a venomous one at that.
When I think of our Lord’s example, it helps a great deal. He who knows every man’s heart and motives and that didn’t discourage him. He knew when he came what each of us had done, and was capable of doing.
There was this incident at the Temple:
23 Now while he was in Jerusalem at the Passover Festival, many people saw the signs he was performing and believed in his name.24 But Jesus would not entrust himself to them, for he knew all people.25He did not need any testimonyabout mankind, for he knew what was in each person.
John 2:23-25, NIV
People can’t be trusted. Our motives and our desires, although hidden from men, are clear to God. And yet He loves us deeply. And love, “keeps no record of wrongs” (1 Cor. 13:5.) In his humanity, Jesus was tempted in every way. Discouragement and despair over the sin of men was resisted.
We can become cynical and jaded over the wrongs of others– it’s easy to do. There can become a ‘coarsening’ and a hardness of heart. That is dangerous. It requires a touch from Jesus. It means its time we get on our knees.
When Jesus sent out his disciples he encouraged them, ““Behold, I send you out as sheep in the midst of wolves. Therefore be wise as serpents and harmless as doves.” (Matt. 10:16.) He knew the hostile human heart had its own agendas– people would be like wolves. But though they would see first-hand the deceitfulness of many, they were to be wise, and be completely harmless.
The Holy Spirit will keep us close as we seek his victory in this matter. We will be transformed into the likeness of Christ. Exchange your attitude with His. He will strengthen you. We can renounce the spirit of judgmentalism that is so pervasive. We will love the way he loves.
I know there is much more to say about this. But now the Spirit is prompting me to pray through this issue myself.
“Messy Spirituality:” A Book Excerpt by Mike Yaconelli
“For as long as I can remember, I have wanted to be a godly person. Yet when I look at the yesterdays of my life, what I see, mostly, is a broken, irregular path littered with mistakes and failure. I have had temporary successes and isolated moments of closeness to God, but I long for the continuing presence of Jesus.
Most of the moments of my life seem hopelessly tangled in a web of obligations and distractions. I want to be a good person. I don’t want to fail. I want to learn from my mistakes, rid myself of distractions, and run into the arms of Jesus. Most of the time, however, I feel like I am running away from Jesus into the arms of my own clutteredness. I want desperately to know God better. I want to be consistent. Right now the only consistency in my life is my inconsistency. Who I want to be and who I am are not very close together. I am not doing well at the ‘living-a-consistent-life’ thing.
I don’t want to be St. John of the Cross or Billy Graham. I just want to be remembered as a person who loved God, who served others more than he served himself, who was trying to grow in maturity and stability. I want to have more victories than defeats, yet here I am, almost 60, and I fail on a regular basis.
If I were to die today, I would be nervous about what people would say at my funeral. I would be happy if they said things like “He was a nice guy” or “He was occasionally decent” or “Mike wasn’t as bad as a lot of people. ”Unfortunately, eulogies are delivered by people who know the deceased. I know what the consensus would be.“Mike was a mess.”
You might say Christianity has a tradition of messy spirituality. Messy prophets, messy kings, messy disciples, messy apostles. From God’s people getting in one mess after another in the Old Testament to most of the New Testament’s being written to straighten out messes in the church, the Bible presents a glorious story of a very messy faith. Sounds like you and I are in good company.
A few years ago, I was introduced to a group of uncouth Christians who call themselves “the Notorious Sinners.” These are men from all walks of life who meet once a year to openly share their messy spirituality with each other. The title ‘Notorious Sinners’ refers to the scandalous category of forgiven sinners whose reputations and ongoing flaws didn’t seem to keep Jesus away.
In fact, Jesus had a habit of collecting disreputables; he called them disciples. He still does. I like people who openly admit their ‘notoriousness’—people who unabashedly confess they are hopelessly flawed and hopelessly forgiven. Graciously, these men invited me to be a part of their group. The ‘Notorious Sinners’ meet yearly at spiritual-retreat centers, where from the moment we arrive, we find ourselves in trouble with the centers’ leadership.
We don’t act like most contemplatives who come to spiritual-retreat centers— reserved, quiet, silently seeking the voice of God. We’re a different kind of contemplative— earthy, boisterous, noisy, and rowdy, tromping around our souls, seeking God, hanging out with a rambunctious Jesus who is looking for a good time in our hearts.
A number of us smoke cigars, about half are recovering alcoholics, and a couple of the men could embarrass a sailor with their language. Two of the ‘Notorious Sinners’ show up on their Harleys, complete with leather pants and leather jackets. I admit I run with a rough crowd—Christians whose discipleship is blatantly real and carelessly passionate, characterized by a brazen godliness. Unafraid to admit their flaws, unintimidated by Christians who deny their own messiness, these guys sometimes look like pagans and other times look like Jesus.
They are spiritual troublemakers, really, which is why they look like Jesus (who was always causing trouble himself ). They are full of mischief, laughter, and boisterous behavior, which is why they look like pagans. Truly messy disciples. The ‘Notorious Sinners’ are definitely a bizarre mix of the good, the bad, and the ugly, living a spirituality which defies simple definitions.
Oh, and they are some of the most spiritual men I know.”
___________________________
Messy Spirituality [Book] by Michael Yaconelli, Karla Yaconelli in Books
By Michael Yaconelli, Mike Yaconelli, Karla Yaconelli – Zondervan (2007) – Paperback -192 pages-ISBN 0310277302
I Guess I’m Not a Very Good Christian . . . Do you feel like: I don’t pray enough I don’t read my Bible enough I don’t share my faith enough I don’t love God enough I’m not committed enough I’m not spiritual enough Then this book is for you.
Messy Spirituality was written for the silent majority of us who have been convinced that we just don’t do Christianity right. We spend most of our lives worried about what we don’t do instead of what we have done, focused on our imperfections instead of God’s fondness for the imperfect. Why?
Because we’ve been bombarded with books, tapes, talks, seminars, and movies convincing us that real Christianity is all about perfection. Michael Yaconelli dares to suggest that imperfection, infiniteness, and messiness are, in fact, the earmarks of true Christianity; that real Christianity is messy, erratic, lopsided . . . and gloriously liberating.
What if genuine faith begins with admitting we will never have our act completely together? Maybe messy disciples are exactly the kind of imperfect people Jesus came to earth for and whose company he actually enjoyed–and still enjoys.
If you want to find Jesus today, look for him in the midst of burned-out believers, moral misfits, religious incompetents . . . men and women whose lives are, well, messy.
Messy Spirituality is a strong antidote for the spiritual perfectionism in us all. Here are truths that can cut you loose from the tyranny of ought-to’s and open your eyes to the deep spirituality of being loved, shortcomings and all, by the God who meets you and transforms you in the midst of a messy and unpredictable life.
Broken Believers 