Failure

Failure or Success?

/ Chris / 5 Comments

“I think our entire culture suffers to hear, ‘I love you whether you succeed or not. Whether you’re productive or not. I just love you.’”

– Donald Miller

Success. We all want to be successful, right? Our brains are trained to think that unless we measure up to such-and-such a standard, we will not make it—we will have no value in the world. When a business man invests in a company, he expects good dividends in return. Why would it be any different for a human? When teachers invest time and energy, isn’t it expected that the pupil will grow up and give back to the teacher by benefiting society? If not, either the teacher or the student has failed. If what we invest in does not return benefits to us in any way, it is a failure and not worth our attention. We are Westerners we are born and bred to think this way.

So if Christians do not bear so-called “fruit” (whatever that may be), they are failures right?

Wrong!

“When you produce much fruit, you are my true disciples. This brings great glory to my Father” (John 15:8). This is a promise, not a command. If we are Christ’s disciples we WILL bear fruit.

We have a mindset that says if something is a “failure” [that which does not fulfill our human-defined measure of success] it is worthless. This mindset causes us to look for success in others and try to copy it and we are rarely able to do so. We work and work to try to “measure up” to the talents, abilities, or success of others but we can never do good enough. We constantly fail our expectations. Why? Because our standard is falsely based on other individuals’ success, instead of God’s truth.

God created each of us individually and set us on separate paths toward success. Yes, He desires and plans for us to be successful. But what is success? Success is doing what we are expected to do, fulfilling our purposes. If someone is a mail man and he carries mail from place to place, than he is fulfilling his purpose. He is successful.

God made us with a purpose. He originally planned and still plans for us to individually worship and commune with Him. That is what we see with Adam and Eve.

So we have a function—a purpose: God created us to individually worship and commune with Him. This is our goal. This is what we fix our lives on, to fulfill that purpose. Knowing this we no longer need to measure up to the external doings of other people. When we focus on worshiping God we no longer pursue being noticed, or having such-and-such grades, talents, or status. We only pursue Jesus.

So what is failure? It is not failing a test, not getting last place in a competition, not lacking knowledge or experience, not failing in evangelism, not lacking money, or not lacking talent musically, physically, or mentally. Failure is lacking a relationship with Jesus Christ the King of Kings, the Creator, the Lover, the Savior. Jesus said “Remain in me and I will remain in you, for a branch cannot produce fruit if it is severed from the vine, and you cannot be fruitful unless you remain in me“ (John 15:4). God does not measure our “success” by what we do, but rather by who we are.

Read this carefully:

God created you to worship and commune with Him. When you are a child of God, you are walking a path of worship and communion with God. Therefore if you are a child of God, you are a success in God’s eyes. And when you continue to pursue Him and walk with Him and open up your heart to Him, He finds you more and more successful. No amount of success is too little or too great in His mind, because He loves you and He LOVES when you are successful. It thrills His heart.

Success is not something you can emulate—copy. It is personal and individual and can only happen when you are in Christ.

“If you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved” (Romans 10:9). Salvation is extremely simple, but it is the continued walk that can be hard. Do not worry about what you look like to other people. Focus on God. Discipleship cannot be faked, so don’t try to fake it. Just surrender EVERYTHING you have and are to Jesus—and He will do the rest. This is success.

C.D.

This Is What I Call–Fail

/ Chris / 3 Comments

Is this really what we have come to? As I scroll down Facebook lane, the only meaning I see, now, is that it is the weekend…and weekend means party. The only thing I see during the week is longing for the weekend. Then we party, and then on Monday the course starts all over again. Are we this shallow? Are people really satisfied with this, this fakeness?

Am I really that weird to long for something deeper?

ALL WE HAVE TO LOOK FORWARD TO IS THE LATEST TOP, BOX OFFICE MOVIE!

I think I finally get it…I finally begin to see the devil’s trick.

Are we really going to accept defeat? Are we going to let Satan laugh and claim victory over our lame lives? WHY IS THERE NO MORE PASSION?

It breaks my heart that this is what we call, great. Success.

You wanna know what I call great? I call people like Bruce Olson (Aka, Bruchko), who went to South America to be a missionary when he was NINETEEN! I call the five heroes of 1956–who were speared to death for their passion–great.

I call people being saved by Jesus, success!

The devil would love to see us, especially young people, just partying our way through life. Satan’s whole scheme is to suck the very life out of us. And you can see it. He wants us to spend time on Facebook, rather than reading the Bible; he’d rather have us watch the latest, violence filled, immorality endorsing, time-wasting movie, over spending time with people.

Don’t tell me it doesn’t affect us!

We are the product, I am the product.

If our lives are this shallow, we must be doing SOMETHING wrong.

So what do you say, shall we accept this defeat? Shall I sleep in until lunchtime tomorrow? Shall I eat pop-corn and drink soda, and just say “Such is life”?! Please tell me this is not the way it must be. Please tell me there is something deeper. If all my security, my life, my all, depends upon the next party, then there is truly no meaning in life.

It DOESN’T have to be this way!

But it starts with us, with me, with YOU! Pull yourself out of the muck, and call yourself a man! Life doesn’t need to consist of such shallow wandering.

When I get through life, what will I look back on? Will I look back on a life of trying to desperately grasp what I could have easily held on to while growing up? Satan would love to see us go through life and accomplish nothing.

So, is the weekend all I have to look forward to? I think not.

C.D.

The Cross

“May I never boast except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ…” The cross is where true purpose lies.

Satan would love to see us go through life and accomplish nothing.

Go, and Sin No More

/ Chris / 2 Comments

*Haha, I just noticed that little flower beside the title!! Very ‘manly’ there. 😉 But that is okay cause I like the layout, and flowers are cool too. *

Just last night I read a very inspiring little story. One which condemned me, and also relieved me.

I am sure many of you are familiar with it. It takes place in John 8:1-11, which, in my Bible at least, it says that most ancient Greek manuscripts do not include this passage. (I have no clue what that is supposed to mean, but I would assume it means that there is doubt in its authenticity. But, like I said, I do not really have any idea what it means.)

In case you are not familiar with the passage, or need some refreshment of the memory, I will insert it below. If, by some rare chance, you have it memorized, or if you know it well enough, then feel free to skip the quote.

Jesus returned to the Mount of Olives, but early the next morning he was back again at the Temple. A crowd soon gathered, and he sat down and taught them. As he was speaking, the teachers of religious law and the Pharisees brought a woman who had been caught in the act of adultery. They put her in front of the crowd.“Teacher,” they said to Jesus, “this woman was caught in the act of adultery. The law of Moses says to stone her. What do you say?”

They were trying to trap him into saying something they could use against him, but Jesus stooped down and wrote in the dust with his finger. They kept demanding an answer, so he stood up again and said, “All right, but let the one who has never sinned throw the first stone!” Then he stooped down again and wrote in the dust.

When the accusers heard this, they slipped away one by one, beginning with the oldest, until only Jesus was left in the middle of the crowd with the woman. Then Jesus stood up again and said to the woman, “Where are your accusers? Didn’t even one of them condemn you?”

“No, Lord,” she said.

And Jesus said, “Neither do I. Go and sin no more.”

When I read this last phrase, it slapped me on the face. It made me perk right up. It registered in my brain. It hit me like an asteroid hitting a planet!

“Neither do I. Go and sin no more.” Is it really that simple?

Right away, I knew in my heart that it was God’s way of telling me, “Get up, keep going, it’s alright–go and sin no more!”

When I fail, and it seems like I do a lot, God can forgive me. When I do something wrong in God’s eyes, it is not the end of the world. I merely must repent, and he will tell me, “Go, sin no more!” It almost brings tears to my eyes to think about Jesus saying that to me.

It did not help that when I had first opened my Bible, it had opened right up to Proverbs 12, which starts out just splendidly, “To learn, you must love discipline; it is stupid to hate correction.” Oh, great! I am about to learn something here! Ook, well let us check it out–cautiously, of course.

“The Lord approves of those who are good, but he condemns those who plan wickedness.”

Oh, ouch.

“Wickedness never brings stability, but the godly have deep roots.”

Mmm, good advise.

“The plans of the godly are just; the advice of the wicked is treacherous.”

Ugh, stab.

“The words of the wicked are like a murderous ambush, but the words of the godly save lives.”

Huh, s’more good advice. “The wicked die and disappear, but the family of the godly stands firm.”

Where am I at, I wonder?

“A sensible person wins admiration, but a warped mind is despised.”

Okay, let’s be sensible.

“Better to be an ordinary person with a servant than to be self-important but have no food.”

Okay, sensible–but ordinary.

It would be rather long if I would put all the verses in here, so if you have an interest in reading them, see Proverbs 12

“The wicked are trapped by their own words, but the godly escape such trouble.”

“Wise words bring many benefits, and hard work brings rewards.”

“Fools think their own way is right, but the wise listen to others.”

Ooo, another correction. I shall take it.

“A fool is quick-tempered, but a wise person stays calm when insulted.”

OW!! Stop talking about me!

“An honest witness tells the truth; a false witness tells lies.”

“Deceit fills hearts that are plotting evil; joy fills hearts that are planning peace!”

Mmm…

“No harm comes to the godly, but the wicked have their fill of trouble.”

Talk about making me feel so warm and fuzzy!!!

“The way of the godly leads to life; that path does not lead to death.”

Whoever wrote this book was wise!! Good note to end on.

So now I am all down, feeling condemned, and needing to get back on the ‘way of the godly’.

Then I flip through my Bible some more, and it comes to the passage in John. And I am like, “Okay, looks interesting, I’ve read it before, let’s read it again.”

And then I read verses 10-11.

“Where are your accusers? Didn’t even one of them condemn you?”

“No, Lord,” she said.

And Jesus said, “Neither do I. Go and sin no more.”

My heart seriously skipped a bit. It was like, wowzers. God can really talk! He wisely let’s me read Proverbs, then brings me here. He breaks, and then repairs–correctly.

That little phrase is so powerful! -Neither do I condemn thee. Go, and sin no more- Precious words indeed.

“Neither do I condemn thee go and sin no more! Precious words divine…”

“Amazing Grace, how sweet the sound, that saved a wretch like me!”

Another lesson from the passage of John, is that of which the Pharisees received.

Who are we to judge? Are we not the same as the one we are judging?

“Let the one who has never sinned throw the first stone!”

I don’t know about you guys, but I should be the first to receive the stone! Nobody is perfect, none of us is worthy to throw the first stone. Only God is. And the ‘problem’ with Him, is that He forgives–even my enemies. Not only the sinners I am stoning, but my enemies.

I can just picture it.

I’ve raised my hand to throw the stone, and Jesus walks up, stops my arm as I begin to throw, and says, “Here, let me have that.” But then he takes the stone and tosses it away, turns and lifts the condemned to his feet and says, “Go and sin no more.“

C.D.