Having burned out my brain on the epic post from yesterday, my thoughts turned to simpler things today.
The Godblogosphere seethes with unhealthy anger. I suspect I foment more than my share of it here and in some of the comments I leave elsewhere. I aim to be as level-headed as I can be, but sometimes the passions run amok.
Still, unchecked fury doesn’t get any of us closer to the image of Christ.
So I was thinking, what if we consider a better response the next time we want to drop explosive missives just to teach some minor heretic bloggers a point or two about a divisive issue (that hasn’t been resolved in 2,000 of Church history by holier people than us). Instead of leaving a steaming, radioactive crater in their comment sections, we could e-mail them and request three specific needs in their lives we could pray for.
I suspect that if we all did this for four months, not only would the Godblogosphere be a much healthier place, our own souls might grow as well. Who knows what precious truth might come out of the experience?
What three needs do you have, brother?
Michael,
Thanks for asking. Are you mad at me? {{Kidding!}}
1. That my writing biz would pick up. It’s been very slow. Plus, I’ve been writing short stories and finding few venues that will take them. I need that to change.
2. That God would provide solutions to some of the intractable issues my family has faced in the last five years. And that those solutions would be pleasant rather than painful.
3. That the pace of life would slow somewhat. That we can put off the things that bind us. That we could simplify and make a haven of rest in our lives that centers on Christ rather than on the next thing on the to-do list.
Amen Dan,
I confess that, I too once had a tendency to be ‘passionate’ about God’s truth.
But, the one thing I couldn’t get out of my mind was the fact that my view of what I believed to be the ‘truth’ kept getting narrower and narrower.
Then, First Corinthians 13 became a very convicting to me.
“Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.
Love never fails. But where there are prophecies, they will cease; where there are tongues, they will be stilled; where there is knowledge, it will pass away. For we know in part and we prophesy in part, but when perfection comes, the imperfect disappears. When I was a child, I talked like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I put childish ways behind me. Now we see but a poor reflection as in a mirror; then we shall see face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I am fully known.
And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love.”
I would like to just say that, Cerulean Sanctum has been an influence in my personal decision to take a more ecumenical approach to my faith and theology. I’ve done this because, I believe that Love is more important then knowledge and that it’s not about being perfect. We are broken vessels and the church has been ‘imperfect’ ever since the beginning in the first century.
We are all created differently and we all are effected by sin differently, let us remember this and embrace each other in brotherly love and remember to be patient, kind, loving and forgiving towards each other. Let us spur each other on in truth and spirit in a loving and patient way.
Thank you Dan for your willing heart to accept peoples weaknesses and wrongful attitudes and thoughts and to continue to love them and administer to them in love through the gospel of Jesus Christ.
Y.B.I.C,
Dave.
Dave,
This passage from 2nd Peter has had a profound effect on me lately:
What is the culmination of discipleship? Love. Higher than knowledge. Higher than godliness. Yet we get stuck at those points on the ladder! We will never fail if we lead with love.
Can we love perfectly in this life? The passage you quoted points out to a more foundational issue: faith. And faith is not positive thinking. Faith is not believing that something will come to pass just because we think hard enough. So, question to all: do we trust Jesus Christ supremely over all things? That is the point.
Francisco,
Jesus said no greater love exists than a man lay down his life for his friends. Yes, he may have been referring to Himself, but I think that any person who lays down his or her life for others must be considered a prime candidate for expressing perfect love.
What do you think?
I also think John would not lay out the truth of perfect love casting out fear unless it were possible this side of heaven.
One thing that I think we often overlook is that God commands us to love God first, with the second commandment being “like unto it”: Love others as we love ourselves. If we love God with our entire being as we are called to do, then what is left? Only God loving others through us, which is perfect love. Where we err is in “trying” to love others, or “trying” to be holy, or good, or perfect, when, by our own strength, such attempts are useless. We do not lay down our life for others, because we have already laid our life down for God. Christ in us has died for all. Perfect love lives in us. Perfect love dies for all; friends and enemies. At the point we have truly died to ourselves, we are able to love perfectly, because it is not us who loves others, but Christ in us.
I don’t know about this. It almost sounds like the fellowship of believers, rather than a self-serving desire to be heard. Do you think it will fly in something as narcissistic as the internet?
BTW-How are you?
Dave,
Your sarcasm is showing. 😉
How am I? Thanks for asking! Been fighting terrible sinus headaches, not something I usually get in midwinter. Hit the hay early a couple times this week.
You can also read my response to Michael Rew above.
Been using the Bible study plan I outlined last month and have been in Galatians. Really getting a great feel for it that I never grasped before.
Blessings!
Again, an excellent post, Dan! Your writing continues to inspire me!
Blessings!
~Heather
Awesome! I suspect I am not completely aware of all of the underlying stuff in this post, but nonetheless I agree. Keep up the good work! God Bless.
Dire Dan: The Godblogosphere seethes with unhealthy anger.
That’s mostly the reason why I avoid it altogether. Cerulean Sanctum is one of the very, very few exceptions.
It is my view that, generally speaking, most blogging is at best silly, most of the time pointless and unconstructive, and at worst downright destructive and even vicious.
This is one reason why I decided to take an extended vacation from Lunar Skeletons, which I’ve always regarded as being a deranged hobby of mine. It was taking up too much time and draining my energies away.
Your suggestion that we actually take time to inquire as to the heart and soul of a brother or sister in Christ assumes a commitment to a fellowship and community that is difficult to foster in the blogosphere. That is why, I believe, that we see a propensity of harsh and caustic missives instead of a sustained effort at understanding and mutual ministry. It’s difficult, but not impossible. And what you suggest would go a long way to accomplish this end. Good post and thanks for your observations. 🙂 lgp