Choices

Choices.

Life is a series of choices.

And our previous choices can limit our future ones.

We make choices every day from the mundane to the life-changing.

I chose to put my shoes on before my socks just as much as I chose to give my life to Christ.

Choices.

I’ve heard it argued that our choices define us.

I chose to believe in Christ, therefore I am a Christian.

I chose to play soccer; therefore I am a soccer player.

I chose to go to college; therefore I am a college student.

Choices.

The choices we make today affect tomorrow. I believe that with all of my heart.

So why do we make stupid choices?

Why do we choose to do stuff that can hurt us or put us in danger?

Why do we choose to take actions that can damage our witness and the way in which others view us?

Choices.

I know the luckiest girl in the world. She chose to sneak out of her parent’s house one night and go joyriding with a friend. She’s and her friend are both 13. Her friend was driving but lost control of the vehicle because she wasn’t trained in how to properly drive a car. The car crashed and the girl I know was thrown from the car. She got a concussion, two broken ribs, six broken vertebrae, a punctured lung, and she lost a part of one of her kidneys.

I say she’s lucky because today she can walk.

But she made a stupid choice.

Choices.
For the rest of her life she will have scars.

For the rest of her life she will not be able to play any sport that has contact.

For the rest of her life she will be missing a piece of one of her organs.

Choices.

The choices you make today affect your future.

Don’t make choices today that can hurt your future.

You may not be so lucky.

Choices.

The Problem of Evil

“The Problem of Evil

“We have seen that the existence of an all-powerful, all-knowing, and all-good being seems to be incompatible with the existence of evil. If god possessed only two of these three attributes, however, there would be no problem. For example, if God were all-knowing and all-good but not all-powerful, we could account for the existence of evil by claiming that God is powerless to prevent it. If God were all-powerful and all-good but not all-knowing, we could account for the existence of evil by claiming God is ignorant of its existence. If God were all-powerful and all-knowing but not all-good, we could account for the existence of evil by claming that God isn’t opposed to it. To many, however, a being that is limited in any of these ways would not be God. So unless a solution to this problem can be found, the traditional conception of God must be revised.”

That is straight out of my philosophy book.

I have real issues with what it is saying though.

I believe that God is all-powerful. He created the world. He spoke and brought forth light. He shaped me and made me.

I believe that God is all-knowing. He knew me before he formed me. He knows what is past, what is present, and what is to come.

I believe that God is all-good. God loves us and would never do anything to harm us. He even sent his only son here as a sacrifice for our sins so that we may spend our eternity with him and not have to pay the price for our actions.

Yet I also believe there is evil in the world. There is a devil. Bad stuff really does happen.

So according to this book I can either believe that God is all-knowing, all-powerful, and all-good; therefore, there is no evil. Or I can believe that there is evil in the world; therefore, God is not all-knowing, all-powerful, and all-good.

But I see a flaw in the basic assumptions this book uses to reach those conclusions.

I have the ability to yell. That doesn’t mean that I will yell every time I talk just because I can. I have and arm and a fist. That doesn’t mean that I will punch everyone I meet just because I can.

So why is there evil in a world where God is in control then? Because he loves us and he doesn’t make us do anything. We as a people have decided that we like evil. We have decided that we like to lie. We like to kill. We like to covet. We like to worship things other than him. And because he loves us, he respects us, and allows us to continue on this downward spiral into nothingness.

God is all-powerful.

God is all-knowing.

God is all-good.

God is all-love.

Light

Light.

What is light really?

Light has no mass. Light has no smell. Light has no taste.

There is one thing light has though... energy.

Here's another thing about light. Light is the antithesis of dark. Whereever light is dark, by definition, cannot exist. Light pure and simply repells dark.

So are we doing our part as light?

In Matt 5:13-16 Jesus tells us we are the "salt of the earth" (refer to previous post) then he goes on to call us the "light of the world".

Light fundamentally represents good (God) and dark represents evil (Devil). You know how you can always tell who the villain will be in a western movie... he always has a black hat on.

Are we doing our best to represent our God and dispell the devil or are we just going through the motions?

Are we repelling the dark around us or are we putting a shade over our light to fit in with everyone else?

Let's be lights in the dark. Let's shine.

Salt

Salt. It really is an amazing substance. All salt is is sodium and chlorine. Two substances when digested alone can be fatal, but when mixed have some amazing properties.

Salt was one of the world's first preservatives. As a preservative it was more valuable than gold. There were salt trade routes into Africa, which at the time had the richest civilizations due to the salt deposits there.

Salt is also a spice that we use even today in large amount in our food.

The chemical make-up of salt is such that it can change the physical properties of a substance when salt is added. If you add salt to water you not only raise it's boiling point but you also lower it's freezing point.

Salt.

You know, Jesus called us to be the Salt of the Earth (Matt 5:13-16). As Christians we are different from the rest of the world. We are dead to our old ways, the ways of the world, and are called to walk in a new way, the way of Christ.

Jesus didn't just use the term salt at random. We are to be like salt in that we are valuable and that we should change everything around us.

We are valuable not only to God, but to other Christians. We need to stick together to get the job done. We can't go about it alone, and no one is expendable. We all have worth whether it's leading the service on Sunday or it's simply sitting in the pew. We all have a place and our worth is priceless.

We are also like salt in that we should change our environment. Just as when salt is added to whether it can change the properties of that water, we as Christians, when sent into the world, should change the way in which that world thinks and behaves. Now me as a single salt crystal cannot achieve tons of change, but but I can achieve some change. Imagine what it would be like if the whole Church decided to be salty every day. Imagine the changes we could create in even a short amount of time.

This is my call to my fellow Christians to become salty. Stand out and make that change that is necessary.

Be bold. Be salty.