Transcend: Judgment

“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.” (1 Corinthians 13:4-7)

These verses are often quoted as a reminder; a reminder of what love truly is. Sometimes they can be heard at a marriage ceremony, and other times in a sermon. Sometimes they are reduced to a checklist or a to-do list.

God showed me something today. He showed me that we are often too critical and judgmental of ourselves. We are habitually harder on ourselves than we are on anyone else. He showed me that I can be gentle towards myself, because He loves me unconditionally, and His love is not based on performance. It’s not based on what I do wrong and what I do right. I realized that I don’t love myself the same way. My self-love is often determined by my performance.

What would it look like to love ourselves the way these verses talk about?

What if we were more patient and kind with ourselves? What if we kept no record of our own wrongs?

The Word also teaches us to love our neighbor as ourselves. If we learned to be less judgmental toward ourselves, wouldn’t we also learn to love others in a more meaningful way?

I have heard it said that our outer world reflects our inner world. That can sound like a lot of pressure, but we can take it one day at a time. We can learn to be gentler with ourselves.

Inspire: Little faith

My natural inclination to have a secure life that needs little faith ends up being a life that needs very little God, either. That’s the deadly part of security and safety, we get used to living without God. There’s no need for God to show up. “All set, Lord,” becomes our silent, unconscious prayer.

Read the full article here: http://www.churchinchapelhill.com/a-confession/

RMOJ: Deer me!

Last night, I took the bike out to run a quick errand. No backpack, no hinderances, just me and the wind. Rode through some beautiful woods as the sun dipped low on the horizon... and ran into a deer - almost literally. Right in the middle of the city. And around the bend, a flight of jays and a robin. And on the way back, I got to see a whole family - mom coming up close to make sure I didn't try anything, dad making sure the kids were eating right.

You don't just see that stuff on a random trip in the city. I was blessed.

Imagine: Forgetting That You Are Famous

I don't normally quote on here, but I found this article from Stuff
Christians Like particularly amazing:

"The only time I've ever been recognized was not as weird as I thought
it would be. I guess in my head I envisioned my family and I would be
walking in the mall and some stranger would exclaim, "Jon Acuff? The
Jon Acuff? Wow, it is you!" Then I would blush and maybe shield my
kids behind me with my arm because this person's adoration would be so
intense. They'd say, "Oh, please, say something that is both sarcastic
and insightful at the same time. You're so wise and adequately
heighted." I'd correct them on the use of the word "heighted" which is
actually not a word, and then I'd say two or three off-the-cuff
sentences that would change their life and then maybe sign their arm
or a Bible if it were available. Seems like a pretty reasonable
expectation, right?

It didn't happen like that. A guy just walked up to me at church and
introduced himself. We talked for a few minutes about Stuff Christians
Like. The whole thing was over before I knew it and was pretty
uneventful. Which is probably exactly how God wanted it.

I tend to get ego drunk pretty quickly. When people compliment me,
outwardly I do the Christian courtesy of immediately rejecting the
kind words. Inwardly though, I'm often drinking in their kindness and
doing a little "look how awesome I am" dance. I'm patting myself on
the back with both arms and both legs at the same time, which is
difficult but not impossible since I've taken yoga twice. (Which may
or may not be "of the devil"–jury's still out on that one.)

Knowing that about myself, knowing I'm prone to massive "me parades,"
I am constantly wrestling with God over the unexpected growth of Stuff
Christians Like. There's a circle of famous Christians right now: big
pastors, authors who have written amazing books, speakers who stalk
conference stages like cougars. And I wanted to be inside it. I wanted
to become a famous Christian.

One night while jogging, I confessed that to God. As ugly and as
shallow as this sounds, I said to Him, "God, I want my story to give
me fame. I want fame. I want to be famous."

In a split second, I felt like God laughed. Not at me, but with me,
which is something I feel like He regularly does. In my heart, I heard:

"Ha! You want fame? The creator of the universe knows your name. The
Alpha and Omega knows who you are and what you care about. That's as
famous as you're ever going to be. Whose acknowledgment of you is
going to stand up next to mine?"

At that point, I started laughing too, because He was right. I'm
already famous. God knew me in the womb. He knows how many hairs are
on my head. He's my absolutely biggest fan and I'm famous in His eyes.
So are you. He's got a blog about you that is simply astounding. He
follows you on Twitter and started a fan group dedicated to you on
Facebook. He can't stop talking about you and pouring out love on you.

Is whatever you're doing right now in life going to make you famous?
Maybe it will, maybe it won't. But ultimately it doesn't matter. As
Christians, we've already peaked. We can stop worrying about trying to
become famous Christians. That's done.

We are all famous.

Original article at http://stufffchristianslike.blogspot.com/2009/05/537-forgetting-that-you-are-famous.html

Inspire: Klingon Wisdom

"Klingon schools are designed to be difficult. The physical and
mental hardships faced by the students are meant to build character
and strength. However, if you wish to face a greater challenge, you
may stay here with me. It will not be easy for either of us, but
perhaps we can face the challenge together."

Lt. Worf to his son, Alexander, after rescuing him from a fire (Star
Trek The Next Generation, ep. 210 "New Ground")

There's something inspiring about what Worf says here - something very
masculine, in the heart of a father who knows his son needs a man, in
the heart of a warrior who knows that without a vision, those he leads
will use their strength to serve their own selfish ends. This whole
episode should be watched in a study of masculinity - what it means to
be a man, a father, a warrior, a provider. Honor and truth and
mercy. That there is something beautiful about a strong man who is
willing to use that strength to protect those he loves.