Christian Karma?
7Do not be deceived: God is not mocked, for whatever one sows, that will he also reap. 8For the one who sows to his own flesh will from the flesh reap corruption, but the one who sows to the Spirit will from the Spirit reap eternal life. 9And let us not grow weary of doing good, for in due season we will reap, if we do not give up. 10So then, as we have opportunity, let us do good to everyone, and especially to those who are of the household of faith. Galatians 6:7-10 (English Standard Version)
Sounds a bit like Karma to me. Let’s take a look at the definition of Karma as defined by Wikipedia:
‘Karma’ is an Indian religious concept in contradistinction to ‘faith’ espoused by Abrahamic religions (Judaism, Christianity, and Islam), which view all human dramas as the will of God as opposed to present – and past – life actions. In theistic schools of Hinduism, humans have free will to choose good or evil and suffer the consequences, which require the will of God to implement karma’s consequences, unlike Buddhism or Jainism which do not accord any role to a supreme God or gods.
Although the first part of the definition is not a match, it’s not surprising there’s a hybrid belief that follows in which God’s (or a god’s) sovreignty is factored into the equation. My purpose in this writing is not to equate the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob to a god of another belief. However, I don’t believe any of God’s words or precepts are wasted.
It would not be a stretch for me to believe God’s creation (us) would create belief systems that incorporate universal truth. After all, “Do unto others as you would have them do to you” is a common principle in a variety of religions. He’s much bigger than we make Him out to be.
The first part of the verse cited above speaks directly to our spiritual reward of eternal life after “sowing to the Spirit”. The latter part of the passage specifically mentions reaping from doing good to others, especially believers. I’m assuming the “especially believers” part would really make an impact on a non-believer.
Here’s another favorite that speaks to the same principle:
Cast your bread upon the waters, for you will find it after many days. Ecclesiastes 11:1 (English Standard Version)
I’m positive that motivations factor in there somewhere but it sure causes me to think. The book of James says the following:
17So also faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead. James 2:17 (English Standard Version)
God’s theology seems to contain this principle. Do we have room in ours even if it is spoken of in another belief system?
How Bright is Bright?
The Bible talks a lot about light and darkness.
You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden; nor does anyone light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on the lampstand, and it gives light to all who are in the house. Let your light shine before men in such a way that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father who is in heaven. Matthew 5:15-17 (NASV)
All things came into being through Him, and apart from Him nothing came into being that has come into being. In Him was life, and the life was the Light of men. The Light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not comprehend it. John 1:3-5 (NASV)
The latter scripture reference indicates the source of Light. The capital letter also indicates he was/is Light Himself. It would follow that once we’ve received “Light”, we are no longer dark. Interesting fact: There is no measure for darkness. It is simply the abscence of light. Once darkness has been exposed to light, darkness ceases to exist. The light may fade but it will never go out.
But, how do we distinguish one light from another?
If we all have the Light, shouldn’t there be a way to tell which one’s brightest?
These questions, although asinine, are the source of a plague in our Christian sub-culture. Note: The fact that I just used the word sub-culture to describe Christianity means we’re off track. Our focus is no longer on going into “all the world” and injecting the darkness with light. It has become more about retreating to our already “exposed” areas and practicing outshining one another with the added bonus of exposing any flicker in another’s radiance. We’ve (unintentionally) become ingrown and fearful instead of regenerated and joyful.
Many people believe miracles as experienced in Biblical times don’t currently happen. Jesus provided us the secret to one of his best tricks and we seldom take advantage. We have the ability to give sight. This is one of my favorite lines from Amazing Grace:
I once was lost but now I’m found, was blind but now I see
Rather than handing out and taking away merit badges for the quality of our light, wouldn’t it be better to expend whatever portion we currently possess on darkness knowing it will yield the same result? Any amount of light is blinding to someone who’s never experienced vision.
More Than Words
There has been a lot of dialogue in the past decade or so on the pros and cons of traditional and contemporary worship. At times, it seems to be as heated as the recent health care issue finally come to fruition last night in the House. When the topic first started bubbling to the surface, I was barely out of high school and remember hearing “Songs from the Loft” for the first time. It was a collection of modern hymns focused in a more vertical direction and although I had heard some inklings earlier, it sparked the worship revolution in my mind.
I have to admit. I loved the new music and sound. It was as if I had heard “praise and worship” for the first time. The lyrics sank into my soul, causing me to contemplate the eternal and return the awe that followed back to the One whom it was due. My mind became engaged and my heart followed suit.
I love quotes and I ran across this one in regard to tradition:
“Tradition is an explanation for acting without thinking” – Gracie McGarvie
I’m not familiar with this person and I didn’t take the time to search her name because the quote rings true regardless of who first spoke the words. I have to say I agree with the quote in part. I think it more accurately could have been penned, “Tradition CAN be an explanation for acting without thinking”. We all have the tendency to run on autopilot.
For me, it stems out of comfort and laziness. However, once my mind is actively involved, I always seem to glean something from what I’m doing at the time. It’s been interesting what’s happened since the birth of a new genre of worship. I’ve noticed a resurgence of the old hymns in the last 10 years.
Why?
Here’s my take.
My generation and those surrounding fell in love with the new music and how it spoke to us. It was a “new song” of praise to God and engaged us in eternal things. Once focused, we were able to open our hearts and minds and recognize the content of the more traditional music and appreciate it for what it was to past generations. In turn, we were able to speak and sing it with meaning and purpose. It has become more than a style and more than words from an old book.
The reverse is true for those adapting to contemporary hymns. The music they grew up with had become comfortable and familiar. As with all things, change brings about discomfort and the need to re-engage. It’s a difficult thing to do as you get older. Youth accommodates and embraces change with more ease and greater agility. However, for those who have grabbed hold of the concept and drive behind the style; an even greater appreciation has been developed for things that may have become stagnant.
Our generation is now in danger of repeating history. We need to re-think our worship and make sure we’re actively engaging our minds and hearts. Cliche is a disservice to a Creator. Let’s sing a “new song” and make it meaningful!
I’d love to hear your thoughts!
Creation and Innovation
I watched my wife with awe today. She really surprises me at times. She’s had the desire and lacked the monetary resources to decorate the room for our new baby, Scarlett. I don’t know as if she would have ever considered herself to be a creative or “crafty” person. She would cringe if you were to call her artistic. However, necessity is the mother of invention or at least a great catalyst for action. She went out and “borrowed” some ideas from the internet, bought the supplies and sat right in front of me and fashioned some impressive work.
Faith was a cheerleader in high school and college and was required to create the poster board pieces for football and basketball games. I had always noticed how proficient she was at calligrapy when she was working as assistant cheerleading coach for Warner University. However, I had never seen her draw something freehanded and with such ease.
It really got me thinking and I ran across this quote:
Innovation is the creation of the new or the re-arranging of the old in a new way. – Michael Vance
People spend a lot of time trying to be completely original. I’m not sure it’s possible. I think in order to be completely original you’d have to be deity. Although not a popular source, here’s another interesting quote:
If you want to make an apple pie from scratch, you must first create the universe. – Carl Sagan
It seems to me all the things we “create” are made from borrowed items. I spend a lot of time and thought working on the craft of songwriting. Even though I may be using a combination of notes and lyrics having never been organized in the exact same way, I didn’t create the idea of music or song.
There is nothing new except what has been forgotten. – Marie Antoinette
I think the best we may be able to accomplish is shedding light on something not currently being done or thought. People use the term “thinking outside the box” often. The box seems to be the status quo. Faith took the initiative to place herself outside the status quo and rather than buy an item, created it herself. She would be hesitant to call herself an innovator or creator but as far as I can tell, she’s accomplished as much as anyone else without crossing over to the divine.
What do you think?
Go Ahead. Take Advantage!
As I was looking into the mirror and brushing my teeth this morning, a thought crossed my mind. Taking advantage of someone in any way, shape or form must be preceded by an overwhelming sense of security. First, I need to preface the earlier statement by providing some background from the past weekend/week.
My mother-in-law came into town this past Friday and had a horrible experience with traffic, causing her to be delayed by two to three hours. However, the joy she experienced when my oldest daughter greeted her at the door with a resounding, “GRAMMY!” was enough to wipe away some of the anguish she encountered earlier. The day following was meant to celebrate my oldest daughter’s fourth birthday. We packed everyone up and were heading out the door to Nashville for some good eats and birthday present shopping.
Just prior to leaving the house, Faith (my wife of ten years) turned to me and even though her face had already spoken, she confirmed the fact she wasn’t feeling well with words. She’s pregnant with our third, so a lot of the typical remedies for nausea weren’t an option. I searched my mind and the web for home solutions that would give some level of comfort so she could enjoy the day with her mother, her little girls and myself. Peppermint and ginger ale were the only things we could muster. Braving the conditions, we pressed forward.
As the day progressed, she felt better and then worse and then would start the cycle all over again. If charted, the cycles would form a pretty steep 45 degree angle when measured by time vs. discomfort. She made it through the day, but by the time we got home she was confined to her bed for the rest of that day and the following with some pretty nasty symptoms.
It was actually easy for me to act as her caregiver for a time. I watched the girls with Grammy’s assistance, cooked, cleaned and got her a movie so she wasn’t bored. I love her so there’s a fairly large cushion of patience before it’s worn down to the frame. I think in my mind (because of past personal experience with illness) I had a timeline constructed for her path to wellness. It ended on Monday morning.
In the meantime, my oldest had acquired a moderate case of pink-eye. As a result, everyone stayed home from school and any other activity on Monday. It seemed the wise thing to do. Despite the saying, company doesn’t want any part of that kind of misery. I received a call around noon from Faith telling me she was headed to the doctor.
I have to take a second and rationalize my frustration. I worked in the medical industry for a while, so I understand the inner workings of the business a bit too well. If a doctor is asked if their patient should come in or not, their answer 99.9 percent of the time is going to be yes. If the patient stays at home:
1. They are liable if anything is to happen.
2. They don’t make any money if the patient is at home.
That being said, I did understand that her pregnancy wasn’t something to play around with so I was alright with the decision. She ended up being admitted to the hospital due to dehydration and to monitor the baby for good measure.
Finances have been tight and I’m self-employed. Therefore, insurance isn’t a privilege, it’s a burden. Faith’s having the baby this year, so our deductible was well on the way to being met prior to this incident. However, I’m one of those people who always have a schedule in their head. This wasn’t on the schedule and there was still the 20 percent to be paid out-of-pocket regardless.
We were allowed to leave that evening and returned home with prescription nausea medication. They had given her some non-drowsy meds before we left in her IV and gave her instruction to use the drowsy version if she needed to get some sleep. As instructed, she took the meds and went to sleep.
I left the following morning and Faith was still in the bed. My patience had already run out, my worries were beginning to take over concerning the financial end of things and day-to-day tasks around the house were having to be picked up by Grammy and myself. When I came home the that afternoon and saw her still laying on the couch, I had had enough.
I’m a Christ-follower, so I try my best to ask for help when I need it and rely on the Word hidden my heart. The best I could do at this point was to clam up and not say anything. This still didn’t erase the look of utter disappointment and disapproval from my face. My knack for expression is both a gift and a curse.
The fact is, whether I approved or not, she needed me and I shut myself off to her emotionally. At that point I became uncaring, unsympathetic and continued in that mode through Wednesday. It wasn’t anything overtly ugly but noticable enough of a difference to be evident to Faith and hurt her feelings.
So when I stood there looking in the mirror this morning, I was rolling the scenario through my head and wondering what made me so confident while acting that way to her. If I was desperately seeking the approval of someone, I would never conduct myself in that manner. I would put my best face on and bend over backwards to make certain they understood they were valuable to me for fear I would lose the relationship.
Contrastingly, if I didn’t desire to know someone more deeply, it would be easy to emotionally disengage. I knew the latter wasn’t the case because it took me a long time and a lot of psychological gymnastics to get to that place with Faith. However, there came a point where I felt comfortable enough to make our relationship vulnerable to hurt. Then it hit me. I KNOW she loves me.
In philosophy, you learn love isn’t tangible and can’t be quantified. It can’t. Not in the way you would measure flour or find the length of a 2×4 wall stud. Although, anyone in true relationship knows if they’re loved unconditionally or not. You can easily notice the person that doesn’t feel that way. They get run over all the time and never stand up for themselves and they still desire to meet every need and want of the other person. It’s kind of ugly to see something that out of balance but it happens all the time and people do notice. They may not be able to define it into words, but they notice.
I think the beauty in relationship comes when you recognize you have the ability to take advantage of someone and get away with it but you don’t. It shows deep concern and care for the other party involved and probably is the greatest example of love that can be expressed. The greatest relationship offered in life is taken advantage of all the time by those who claim to love Him most. It shows a lot of love in itself to be on the receiving end of that and still hang in there. I’m praying I’m a bit more cautious the next time the opportunity is presented for me to show that kind of love.
So, go ahead. Take advantage!
