Lake Louise Church of the Nazarene

I am not interested in a timid life. I’m not interested in playing it safe or keeping the boat steady. I refuse to accept the belief that this world is the way it is and there is nothing I can do about it. I want to challenge the perceptions of what is okay and what isn’t. Injustice, selfishness, greed, pride, hatred and bitterness are part of life, but that doesn’t mean they are acceptable. They must be confronted and challenged and changed. If I am timid, I am pretty sure change will not occur.

Change will take courage. I do not want to die with more left to give because I was afraid of trying, of getting hurt, of losing. People tell me that I am not facing reality when I talk about the redemption of the world. The world is the way it is and we are just waiting for Jesus to come back and make everything right again. That kind of thinking makes it is easy to want to take care of myself and make sure my future is certain. It is easy to make not doing anything at all sound spiritual and right when all I am doing is hiding my fear. It is easy to want to play it safe and not try to make a difference. I want every moment of my life spent in the worthy pursuit of proclaiming the message of hope and redemption Christ offers. I do not want to spend it living in fear. I would rather fail in great ways than not try at all. I would rather be laughed at for trying than to sit on the sidelines wishing for the courage to try.

Change also requires a willingness to love sacrificially. To love people means to risk rejection and to be misunderstood. I do not want to be afraid of love just because it hurts when it’s lost. Believe me; trying to redeem this world will hurt. Your heart and mine will be broken a thousand times if we decide that the people of this world deserve better that what they are currently getting. I want to face the challenges of this life, and of this world, knowing that I will have my heart broken time and time again. In fact, I want to love so deeply that it feels like a truck has been dropped on my chest when I lose that love. Because that kind of sorrow is only found in the deepest, most intimate of relationships. If avoiding sorrow would cheat me of that kind of love, I will not do it.

Since loving risks so much I can be tempted to protect my heart; however, there is a dangerous door that is opened with an unbroken heart. While keeping my heart from breaking, I risk becoming less compassionate, less caring, and less human. When I avoid the suffering and sorrow of this life, I avoid the things that make me human. I am also unwittingly avoiding the things that make me more like Jesus. Every time I rationalize not going to the dark places of sorrow and despair because it is just so sad and hopeless, I cheat myself of meeting with Jesus. Every time I rationalize not going to these places, I cheat others of experiencing the proof of Jesus’ love. Protecting my heart makes me less human and the world a darker place.

When I die I want to know that there was nothing held back, nothing left to give, and no reserve. I want to know that I used every ounce of love, grace, and mercy Jesus empowered me with to change the world. I want to have given all I have to bringing the hope and love of the risen savior into a desperate world. I want to be totally spent in living my life to the fullest capacity God has given me. I do not want to stroll into heaven and run to meet Jesus. I want to be so tired that all I can do is drag my body toward that pearly gate, unable to stand for lack of strength. And, when my hope is realized in seeing Jesus, I want to hear him say, “You look tired. Well done!”

This entry was posted on Tuesday, June 17th, 2008 at 10:06 pm and is filed under Evangelism. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed.