They can Choose to:
believe
act
forgive
obey
Jesus
Wouldn't it be nice if life were really that simple? I guess it really can be. When in our decision making if we were to think about these 5 things i wonder if we would have a revolution on our hands. The only choice I see lacking is the choice to give. But I guess when choosing the choice Jesus, He encompasses all those things together and more.
I have to admit, I don't always make the right choice. There are times when I am even convinced I am making the right choice, and I really don't. I mean, I have a HUGE list of those. But I am thankful for the choice to forgive, because I need to not only forgive others, but my myself as well. I am my own worst critic and I am always beating myself up for "that"thing I said or did.
So..back to choices (I'm really tired!). I am amazed at how well these kids grasp the simplicity. In the beginning of summer I was questioning the real usefulness of VBS. For our community , it is used more as a cheap day camp and I was wondering, how many kids do we really touch.
But through this week I have re-learned that I need to choose to believe- believe that God works in all things, in all circumstances and in all attitudes....even in something as simple as VBS.
The kids have shown me that......and seeing their faces light up every day, I can see that they really are trying to choose Jesus.
Posts
3 comments:
I like the idea of choice in concept, but in practice it doesn't feel that simple (yes, I know you said that too!). I do feel I can choose to forgive, to give, to love. But I have a much more difficult time with the foundational necessities of basic belief.
A basic premise of behavior change is to make a choice and the feelings will follow. What happens when feelings don't follow? Where does one go when the choices don't feel congruent with the internal deeper self? That is a tough one.
Thanks for the post. :)
Diane-
That is a tough one and I appreciate the conversation. I think one of our problems as a society is we rely too heavily upon emotion. Yes, we are created to be feeling people, and I don't mean to miscount it at all. But belief is a choice, and Jesus necessarily didn't say believe and then you will feel. He just asks us to believe. I know its hard when those feeling don't follow. One would hope they would, but I don't align myself with the idea that you have to feel anything to have basic belief.
Now, when they don't align with the internal deeper self, that's a tough one.....especially when it seems belief can be so much easier for some.
Thanks for sharing Diane- I appreciate your honesty and the conversation to go deeper.
I appreciate this dialogue as well.
As with Diane, for me there is an internal struggle between the act of choosing, and having the feelings follow. However, I think it boils down to trust. An internal struggle is a sign of one's inability rely on foundational truths.
For instance, children are naturally trusting. When they make choices, they innocently believe that the feelings will follow, and, in a self-fulfilling prophecy sort-of-way, the feelings do follow.
However when tragedies somehow interrupts their innocence, when their trust is violated in any way, their natural ability to develop confident expectations is wrought to the core.
Having endured much turmoil throughout my life, I constantly scrutinize my ability to make choices. I chose to trust loved ones, and they hurt me. This conflict set in motion an internal struggle undermining the natural flow of trust and choices.
If I choose to love, will it be reciprocated?
If i choose to give, will it be received?
If I choose to forgive, will I get hurt again?
Post a Comment