Boldness and Sensibility

Before I really jump into this post I'm going to do some confession. My last post was, well, forever ago. Ben has been on the ball and pestering me, as he should, and I still pretty much just ignored the dLog, my reading, and my prayer time. It's amazing how well things can go when you're on track but as soon as you get off track, and then get more off track, it gets more and more difficult to get back on. And if that isn't just a microcosm of life. I realized recently that I've lost all kinds of enthusiasm and the only thing I can think of is that I'm completely out of the loop on any sort of spiritual discipline. It's all tied together. So, now I'm putting those driver side tires and easing back onto the shoulder with the hopes of getting this journey underway again. Thanks for the pestering, Ben. Next time, send Guido ;)

I read: 2 Timothy

I love the idea of spiritual gifts. I love the very idea that God gives us SG's, passions, and talents. He wants us to have hobbies, he wants us to have stuff we get fired up about and spend way more money than we should and get on message boards and in clubs where we talk about this stuff since all of our friends think we're crazy for wanting to talk to them about it. God is passionate about all sorts of things and as we go through our pale reflection lives of God, we need to demonstrate our passions for his creation, whatever those are. In healthy, moderated ways, of course :)

Anyways, in the 1st chapter of 2 Tim we hear Paul instructing Timothy this way: "God doesn't want us to be shy with his gifts, but bold and loving and sensible." Sensible. I don't think I've ever noticed that word there before. I hear Christians talking about acting boldly and acting with love. But I've always missed acting sensibly. Interesting.

What immediately springs to mind is our evangelism efforts. Back at Ohio State we had Brother Jed. Brother Jed would stand out in the middle of the Oval (our quad for you non-Buckeyes) and proclaim his gospel. I say "his gospel" because your spiritual well-being mainly had to do with how much of your bellybutton was exposed or what logo was on your hat. Everyday of fall and spring quarter Brother Jed would be out there yelling how each of us sinners was going to hell. That was his whole message. And, undoubtedly, there would be a posse of people, both listeners and confronters, encircling him either laughing or scoffing, but definitely not repenting. That's not to say that God couldn't use Brother Jed's message to touch someone, I mean, our God can do anything. But I think it's pretty safe to say that BJ's message had boldness, maybe even love, but hardly any sense.

The head of Samaritan's Feet came to our church a month or so ago and gave a message that included this statement: "You might be the only Jesus someone sees. You might be the only Bible someone reads." Whoever we are, whatever we're doing, we might be representing all of the Church, Christ, and God to someone who doesn't believe in all three. Brother Jed's heart might have been in the right place, but there are probably more than a few days where he has set back the cause of Christianity a few hundred years. Let's be bold Christians, let's be loving Christians above everything else, but let us also be sensitive (same root as sensible) to the fact that we're representing much more than ourselves in everything we do.