Lately I have been having some pretty awesome and heated debates/discussions with some people at REI about Christianity, the Bible, and ethics. I love debating and I love it more when I find someone who I can help to better understand Christianity and its beliefs. I continue to find more and more people who have so many misconceptions about Christianity...the big one being that being a Christian means being "good enough" and doing "good things" in order to get into Heaven. One particular area of concentration that a co-worker and I discussed was God's intention for us in this life. She made the comment that "God just wants us to be happy, so if I am happy being gay and in my relationship, then that is all that matters." I about fell over when she said this and asked her to tell me where in Scripture it says that "God just wants us to be happy." I tried to explain to her that first and foremost God calls us to be obedient to Him and if happiness is a by-product of our obedience then that is great. But, there are times where we must be obedient and follow His will and that does not make us "feel" happy. I have been thinking a lot about this lately...the difference between being in God's will and having a deep sense of joy, or just being happy regardless if I am in God's will. I guess the question comes down to...is my main priority to be obedient to God or to be happy? My head tells me that the right answer is to be obedient to Him and to seek His will for my life and try to follow it accordingly. But, sadly, all too often my heart/feelings/emotions tell me that I should simply strive for happiness...just live to eliminate the suffering and the pain of this life. This leads me to ask myself if I am being obedient to God and following His will regardless if it makes me happy?
Another part of the conversation that struck me was a discussion about serving the Lord. This co-worker seemed to think that because I am working at REI and Famous Daves that I am not in the Lord's will and serving Him but rather I am working at these two places for selfish reasons. She thinks that in order for me to serve the Lord I must be working at a church or for a ministry. I explained to her that I do believe the Lord has called me to both of these jobs for this period of my life and that I can serve Him anywhere. But, this got me asking myself, do I? Do I serve the Lord while working at REI and Famous Daves or am I there for selfish reasons, such as benefits, people, money, etc.? This has lead me to re-think my motive for working at both places and ask myself how I can better serve Him while at REI and Famous Daves.
Also, given the intense conversations I have been having with co-workers, a verse has been continually brought to my mind over the past few days. Matthew 10:16 reads, "I am sending you out like sheep among wolves. Therefore, be as shrewd as snakes and innocent as doves." This verse just reminds me that in every interaction and conversation I have, I need to be wise as serpents and innocent as doves. There is a time and a place for everything and there are certain things that do not need to be said, which leads me into reminding myself to keep my mouth shut most of the time...LOL!
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment