January 05 - Reconciliation

Today, I successfully played 80 minutes of full court basketball with some of my students. Tomorrow and Friday are exam days, so we figured we would use today for what it was worth.  For those of you who haven't been following, the idea behind 12thirty is to exercise both physically and spiritually. Through this blog, I am trying to train myself to spend more time every day exercising physically and more time in the word exercising spiritually. How it works:

Week 1= 1 push-up, 1 sit-up, 1 minute run.
Week 2= 2 push-ups, 2 sit-ups, 2 minute run...
Week 53= 53 push-ups, 53 sit-ups, 53 minute run.

So far it has been fairly easy, but I know these easy days will end. I have decided to take Sunday's off in order to let my body recover, especially in the fall and winter months to come.

Instructions on Christian living are found in a variety of books in the Bible. Colossians 3:12-14 explains it to us very clearly on how we should present ourselves to our friends, family, co-workers, and even the people that we just don't like to be around.

12 Therefore, as God's chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience. 13 Bear with each other and forgive whatever grievances you may have against one another. Forgive as the Lord forgave you. 14 And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity.

The very first thing I noticed in this passage is that as Christians, or God's chosen people, we are loved. This isn't a new concept for me, but to be reminded in such simple words as those, I reflect on how many ways I am blessed everyday. I also recognize how truly blessed I am to be able to profess that I am a Christian and that my salvation is only valid through the blood that Christ shed on the cross. We are loved...

Secondly, we are to clothe ourselves. Adam and Eve were to put on clothes in the Garden of Eden. This, however, isn't talking about a shirt made by Compassion and some trousers by Gentleness and Patience. We are to drench our spirit in these characteristics so that others may see them in our lives.

Imagine you are at dinner at a nice restaurant and halfway through your meal you notice a family walking in. This looks like a normal, average family, except there is one thing that is different about them. The boy is wearing aluminum foil. Shirt, pants, shoes, everything...aluminum foil. The girl is wearing floaties and garbage bags. The parents, well, they have really dressed up tonight. They are wearing newspapers all over their bodies. Now, maybe they can't afford actual clothes, or maybe they are trying to start a trend by wearing their kitchen out in public. The fact is though, you noticed what they were wearing. The people you are around everyday and even in short durations notice characteristics like compassion, kindness, gentleness, and patience. It is not a front. We shouldn't 'act' in these manners, but we should live in these manners.

In verse 13, we see that we are to bear and forgive whatever grievances we may have with one another. Why though? Someone has done me wrong. I mean this person took my heart and smashed it. They smashed it, spat on it, stabbed it, and then they turned their back on me. They made fun of me and took advantage of me. Then, that person decided one day that they were wrong and apologized and asked for forgiveness. Why shouldn't I harbor resentment and hatred for that person? Why should I forgive that person?

Good question. As humans, we want to return the favor/hurt. We want the person that wronged us to feel this pain magnified by 1000, but Paul instructs us to forgive as the Lord forgave us. Yes, I've broken God's heart. I do it everyday. I took Christ's heart and smashed it. I spat on Him. I turned my back on Him. At the end of the day I realize that I screw up, but so how, Christ is waiting on me with His arms wide open. My sins nailed him on the cross, but yet he took it for me. Dirty. Filthy. Disgusting. Ugly. Me.

Now, we hurt each other and there is no denying that. What makes us bigger than God? What makes us better than Christ? Nothing. We aren't. So then, how can we assume that we have the right to hold something over someone's head for the rest of their lives? We can't live the way Christ wants us to live by holding onto grudges and sticking their nose in their mistakes everyday. How can you not forgive someone, yet show them kindness, gentleness, humility, and compassion? I am so thankful that Christ didn't have a mentality of "I will show these sinners that they messed with the wrong guy. I'll teach them a lesson for beating me down and busting my back wide open. They are gonna have to burn for messing with me". NO WAY. Christ is so loving and kind that he humbly took the cross for me. He is gentle and patient with me, even though I continue to mess up, because he knows that I am human. He never says, "you owe me". My sins have been settled and the fight is over. Thanks be to God!

Finally, we are to put on love. When we love, we bind all the spiritual attributes together (in perfect unity). Forgive as God forgives. Love as Christ loves.