“…you have to set yourself on fire”
this morning i was listening to some music and mainly the music i was listening to was Derek Webb. ever hear of him? if not, go look him up and listen to his music all the time. I guarantee he will wake up your soul and capture just how awful we are at lovers of God.
moving on, as i was listening to his music, a few songs popped out in my head: “wedding dress” and “t-shirts” being two i just kept focusing on.
the lyrics of these songs really strike to the core of who i am. i am an awful person. i fail every single day. not to say that this is bad, but i just cannot BELIEVE that Jesus loves me, especially when i was his enemy. when i hated him. when i was completely opposite of him.
that’s love.
then, i began to think about the fact that Christians are the #1 reason for atheism. now, i don’t know about you, but when i heard that i was rather ashamed of it. but at the same time, i began to get very full of pride and thought, ‘well that’s just about THOSE Christians.’ and in the same breath i began to realize that i was being JUST LIKE those Christians.
from this thought, the words from “T-shirts” really resonate in my sinful heart:
they’ll know us by the t-shirts that we wear
they’ll know us by the way we point and stare
at anyone whose sin looks worse than ours
who cannot hide the scars of this curse that we all bare
they’ll know us by our picket lines and signs
they’ll know us by the pride we hide behind
like anyone on earth is living right
and isn’t that why Jesus died
not to make us think we’re right
chorus
when love, love, love
is what we should be known for
love, love, love
it’s the how and it’s the why
we live and breathe and we die
they’ll know us by reasons we divide
and how we can’t seem to unify
because we’ve gotta sing songs a certain style
or we’ll walk right down that aisle
and just leave ‘em all behind
they’ll know us by the billboards that we make
just turning God’s words to cheap clichés
says “what part of murder don’t you understand?”
but we hate our fellow man
and point a finger at his grave
chorus
they’ll know us by the t-shirts that we wear
they’ll know us by the way we point and stare
telling ‘em their sins are worse than ours
thinking we can hide our scars
beneath these t-shirts that we wear
anyone else feel like we are missing it?? for me, BOTH HANDS ARE RAISED. how did we get this far? how have we completely missed what we were put on this beautiful creation called earth for?? God created us for HIM. to GLORIFY him. he didn’t need us, but rather he WANTED us. he wanted us to show HIS LOVE to the nations, to the ends of the earth. But, what are we doing? we are doing nothing but hating others. being selfish. not giving to the poor. even if we are the poor, we should still be giving. we aren’t having prayer lives. we aren’t spending our time with the Lord like we should. I am saying WE because i am completely included in this hypocracy.
the Lord has given us ETERNAL LIFE if we have declared that He is our Lord and Savior. and what have we done with it?? we’ve hoarded it for ourselves, and then, showed everyone who isn’t a Christian, or EVEN TO OUR OWN BROTHERS AND SISTERS IN CHRIST, that we just don’t have time for them. we are disgusted by them. their sin is worse than ours.
i am ashamed.
we were made for radical love. radical lives FOR Jesus. radical compassion. and radical obedience. but we aren’t doing anything of the sort.
another bit of lyrics that struck home were those from “Wedding Dress”:
I am a whore i do confess
but i put you on just like a wedding dress
and i run down the aisle
i’m a prodigal with no way home
but i put you on just like a ring of gold
and i run down the aisle to you
So could you love this bastard child
though i don’t trust you to provide
with one hand in a pot of gold
and with the other in your side
i am so easily satisfied
by the call of lovers less wild
that i would take a little cash
over your very flesh and blood
the Lord loves me SO MUCH, and yet i run to ‘other lovers’ instead of Him. how awful His love is more radiant and extravagant than any other person’s love for me could ever be, even the love for myself. I don’t fully trust the Lord with every aspect of my life, and yet, HE created my life. and HE knows what’s going to happen.
i can’t help but feel that i am not getting it. i try and try and try, and i am just not living my life full out for Christ.
i read ‘Crazy Love’ this summer, and throughout the book, Francis Chan speaks of hypocracy and radical love and how different the two are. He said that we went back and read the Gospels all the way through as if he had never read them before. The reason: to see what it was really all about. And, he came up with one crucial point… God wants all or nothing.
and i am NOT giving Him all. so that means i am giving Him something that is as good as nothing.
i just need change..