Crazy Love .2 of 3
Part One: Stress and Anxiety
Often times we think of living on this earth as just passing time before we go to heaven. Christians are notorious for holding up signs telling people to turn to Jesus or they were burn in eternal hell. I’m not saying this isn’t true, but it is certainly NOT the way to go about sharing the Good News of Jesus Christ. I think a large majority of Christians simply do what they need to do to justify going to heaven. We live with the mindset of, all that matters about Christianity is getting to heaven. When we stop sinning we don’t do it because we are hurting our relationship to Christ, we do so because we still want to go to heaven. Too often eternity is the goal we have in mind for our lives. I don’t think living for heaven and living for Jesus need to be separate, but when we focus on heaven as much as we do, we separate them. I wonder what a generation of Christians who desire first to love Christ with their lives, would look like?
Francis Chan says that our question quickly becomes:
“Can I go to heaven without truly and faithfully loving Jesus?”
I love the way John Piper puts all this into perspective…
“The critical question for our generation-and for every generation-is this: If you could have heaven, with no sickness, and with all the friends you ever had on earth, and all the food you ever liked, and all the leisure activities you ever enjoyed, and all the natural beauties you ever saw, all the physical pleasures you ever tasted, and no human conflict or any natural disasters, could you be satisfied with heaven, if Christ was not there?“
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Tyler Braun.
I think for me its more often that I would just simply like to be able to look Jesus directly in the eyes. Knowing the power he has holds the weight of that request.
it is interesting how we often think of our surroundings to define heaven…and yet the glorious place is so much more. i think it’s easy to get tangled in the idea that we’ll be satisfied w/ just jesus, oh, but wait, will my loved ones be there too? as a human it is a difficult straddle, and yet, we must come to a place where HE is all we need here on earth to be able to honestly answer that question.
Interesting thread. These comments refer to several of your posts recently. While the thought of heaven is great, I can not in any way, imagine my life HERE without Christ. I spent way too long not being with Him here.
My deepest desire is to have others know that peace here on earth. I literally cry when I think about all the wonderful people I have come to know that don’t know Him. I name them all in my prayers.
Please don’t misunderstand, while I am thankful I am going to heaven, I don’t care much about it. I try to remain focused just on what He is calling me to do here and now.
I recently made the decision to step down from management at Starbucks. Things had gotten way too stressful and my husband wasn’t happy with how exhausted I was. I started working a lot less hours and have contemplated getting another job for more money. I was even asked to put in my application at our church for an admin position. That would have solved the money issue and the health insurance issue. But, the more I pray about it, I realize that I have to keep working at Starbucks. Because that is where God has called me to work. I knew that when I applied at Starbucks.
Why?
I have met so many wonderful people who are far from God and had real God conversations with them. They drop in to see me, ask if I will take my break and talk with them, ask me to hang out after work. These are mostly young, tattooed, pierced, lost, disenfranchised people who seem drawn to me (lol), a fluffy grandmother.
For me, this is way more important that having God conversations with Christians.
At church, I am called to the creative design team. Very specifically to keep us culturally relevant for our community and I design to entice the skeptic.
I work on other things (like our website design). 1. Because it really stinks and I would never intentionally send any of my skeptic friends there and 2. it is something I like to do. But, I would drop that in a heartbeat, if I felt that it was interfering in what God has called me to do.
And if I had to give it all up except one thing, I’m sure that God would want me to be in the world.
Taylor, I hear you when you feel you are called to be a pastor. That is awesome. We need bright men like you. But, what specifically as a pastor, is God calling you to do? Is it leading a church? Preaching? Leading worship? Yes, there is a lot of administrative work involved in being a pastor. But, one of the most important jobs I feel for a pastor, is empowering others to works in their gifts.
Take this vacation and really take the time off. Don’t answer phone calls, even stop blogging unless it’s what you really want to do (though I will miss you :^). Take the time to be with God and your family.
Btw, I don’t feel that stress and anxiety are sins, I think that they are indicators we are focusing on the wrong things. Darn it, I just smacked myself between the eyes (over a whole different subject entirely)…
Love is not only crazy, but also blind. Fiuh…… so hard
Ash- Yeah that is a tough one to balance. I wonder if God thinks we are disobedient when we think more about the “things” of heaven instead of the God of heaven.
I don’t think that’s the case. I think God understands us more than we could ever imagine that he does. He knows our humanity, he knows our hearts and that is what is most important.
[...] Here was the specific Question that got me started. even though this questions doesn’t seem to have anything to do with my thought at all. “Could you be satisfied with heaven, if Christ was not there?” [...]