sean's musings

I just finished a book called “Searching for God Knows What” by Donald Miller. I recommend it. He is the same author that wrote “Blue Like Jazz”, which I also recommend. I was reflecting back on the book, as well as a passage from Luke which I don’t think I ever recalled reading while trying to fall asleep tonight and interestingly the two correlated. So here goes, and I apologize if it isn’t quite coherent as I’m a bit sleepy.

In “Searching For God Knows What”, Miller presents what he calls the “Lifeboat Theory” which makes sense when you think about it. It revolves around the thought that you are in a lifeboat with, say, 10 other people, but for the boat to stay afloat, 4 have to go overboard…who goes? Depending on who is on the boat, many thoughts entail, but most of which would include assigning some sort of value of worth to people; he has 3 kids, she’s a doctor, he’s a pastor, thus eliminating the whole “all men are equal” thought. So right away we would be trying to validate our existence and right to stay on the boat.

So Miller says that basically, we’re all in a lifeboat called, well life. And we run around in our day to day lives trying to justify our existence and place in the lifeboat. The reason being, because of the Fall of Man, our relationship with the only one who can really validate our place in the boat has been fractured. We all know of course, that we can solve that issue by accepting His salvation and grace. The point being, though, that it seems to be ingrained in our human nature, to constantly seek approval from others(rather than just know and rely on the fact that we are redeemed).

So, to justify our place in the boat, we strive for the things that might set us apart and put us one step above someone else. You see people doing everything they can to get more money, look better, become smarter, etc. If you think about it, even playing sports we are sometimes trying to say “I’m better at X than Y”. Of course, that may not be intentional, but subconsciously, that could be going on. Now I’m not saying all of these things are done for the wrong reasons (knowledge, and wealth can be used for His glory)…but it makes sense sometimes if you think about it, that this is going on. We are always comparing ourselves to other people. You are friends with people that reaffirm you and your place in the boat. Ever stop to think about the people you aren’t friends with, or have a hard time getting along with? Thinking about it, I know for me, it’s people that don’t affirm me, or have a different viewpoint than I do, thus making me feel less important. When someone cuts you off in traffic, you get angry. Will the 2 seconds they took from you really matter? No, it’s the thought that someone thinks their time is more valuable than yours. I had never really thought of these things in this way.

So where does that leave us? Well, for one, we shouldn’t be worried about comparing ourselves to anyone, or justifying our place in the lifeboat to any human. We should be more focused on serving, pleasing, and loving God, since ultimately He’s the one to keep us in or throw us overboard, so to speak. I think it’s a cool thing to acknowledge, that yeah, we are perhaps in running around in a lifeboat, but we can have, if we choose, Jesus right there along side us.

In fact, Jesus says that instead of trying to compare, or place ourselves above others, we are to humble ourselves….which is where the verse from Luke comes in.

Luke 14:8-11 :
When someone invites you to a wedding feast, do not take the place of honor, for a person more distinguished than you may have been invited. If so, the host who invited both of you will come and say to you, ‘Give this man your seat.’ Then, humiliated, you will have to take the least important place. But when you are invited, take the lowest place, so that when your host comes, he will say to you, ‘Friend, move up to a better place.’ Then you will be honored in the presence of all your fellow guests. For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted.”

I love that last line: “Everyone who exalts himself will be humbled and he who humbles himself will be exalted.”

Sorta like Jesus saying (to use the same analogy):”It’s better to be treading water with one hand on the boat and let me bring you in, than to be sitting inside and have to be thrown overboard”

Thanks for sticking with me. It’s probably rambling, maybe doesn’t make sense, or maybe there’s something you might not agree with. Leave me a comment, I’d love to hear what your thoughts are.

Hypocrite.. That’s one of the words most associated with Christians by non-believers. If you ask non-Christians why they don’t like Christianity or Christians in general, one of the answers you are likely to hear is “They are a bunch of hypocrites”. The sad part? To a certain degree they are true (although I’m sure those same people could be accused of hypocrisy as well). At some point or another we are all hypocrites. I suppose that can be attributed of our fallen nature, I mean we all sin and fall short of His glory. But that isn’t something we should just accept as part of being human…we need to shed that image.

We preach compassion, yet we don’t feed the homeless; we preach purity, yet so many fall into the world in that area; we preach not having a sharp tongue, yet it is very discouraging how many Christians think it is perfectly acceptable to swear(i’m not talking I stubbed my toe so it slipped out of my mouth swear, but everyday conversations); preaching the power He has to help us flee from sin, yet still wallowing in it.

I’m as guilty as anyone, but we really need to start shedding that image that Christians are hypocrites, and that starts with us looking in the mirror and examining the areas of our lives that we are struggling with, and diligently work towards removing those. In order to let Christ shine through us and into the world, we need to be living out 100% what we are telling people.