Discernment is vital, for believers and for those who are watching us.
It seems like the watchers are often the more discerning ones.
Or, as Brother Maynard says, "Live Your Faith. Share Your Life.”
It's just that we can do so much better than that. This is not a philosophical undertaking where we have to imagine and extrapolate and deduce across insurmountable cultural, linguistic & ethnic boundaries as well as centuries of history gone by.
Genuine faith in a Jesus who is present with us in the here-and-now results in lives that have integrity, even in the midst of struggles, tension & ambiguity.
I prefer to say, "Right Jesus. Here we are, in this together. What are WE going to do?"
I hope He hears the implication in my voice that I am really waiting on Him to do most of the responding! I hope in that as well, that I am really listening. And I can listen best if I am with Him, if His Words are with me and if I'm acutely aware of His Spirit in our midst.
Click on the Post title for real counterfeit, but cleverly done. It might say something about the watchers I referred to earlier. WWJD WWJD
It seems like the watchers are often the more discerning ones.
" . . . our only way to connect with people is providing an atmosphere of authenticity.
Our generation longs for something authentic. They are searching for the ‘real thing,’ even though they don’t really know what the ‘real thing’ is. Because this generation has endured so much ‘me-ism’ and letdown from those they were supposed to follow and trust, they want to see a genuine faith that works for less-than-perfect people before they are willing to trust.”
(Page 69-70) No Perfect People Allowed, by John Burke.
Or, as Brother Maynard says, "Live Your Faith. Share Your Life.”
When all is said and done, ‘the gospel’ for [some preachers], and others on the theological right is that Christ made the ‘arrangement’ that can get us into heaven. In the Gospels, by contrast, ‘the gospel’ is the good news of the presence and availability of life in the kingdom, now and forever, through reliance on Jesus the Anointed.Now I am not at all against the idea behind WWJD: What Would Jesus Do.
It's just that we can do so much better than that. This is not a philosophical undertaking where we have to imagine and extrapolate and deduce across insurmountable cultural, linguistic & ethnic boundaries as well as centuries of history gone by.
Genuine faith in a Jesus who is present with us in the here-and-now results in lives that have integrity, even in the midst of struggles, tension & ambiguity.
I prefer to say, "Right Jesus. Here we are, in this together. What are WE going to do?"
I hope He hears the implication in my voice that I am really waiting on Him to do most of the responding! I hope in that as well, that I am really listening. And I can listen best if I am with Him, if His Words are with me and if I'm acutely aware of His Spirit in our midst.
Click on the Post title for real counterfeit, but cleverly done. It might say something about the watchers I referred to earlier. WWJD WWJD
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