The fruit of the spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. Against these things there is no law. (Galatians 5:22-23)
How did it feel to be joyful all day? I hope you are responding well to the challenge of living out the Fruit of the Spirit. Remember, it’s not a competition, and no one is perfect. This should not be easy for anyone, but it should definitely be rewarding (“fruitful”). Hang in there and know that there are a lot of people praying for you.
Wednesday is Day 3 – PEACE
This doesn’t mean you should walk around all day acting like a hippy; wearing tie-died shirts and waving peace signs to everyone, and no one expects you to set up an anti-war booth, but think of realistic ways that you can be an example of the peace that only God can give, and then try to help someone else feel that same peace. There’s an inner peace that some people feel as a result of knowing that they have a Savior in Jesus Christ who died on a cross for you, so that no matter how hard things get for you on earth, you will one day leave this earth and go to a place more perfect than you can even imagine – heaven. A place where peace is a reality…not just a dream.
May the peace of Christ, which passes all understanding, be with you today and always. Amen.
The fruit of the spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. Against these things there is no law. (Galatians 5:22-23)
How did the first day go? I have a feeling you were a great example of God’s love at school, home, work, and everywhere else you spent time on Monday. As you were thinking of ways to show love to others, perhaps you already thought of this, but something obvious that I should have suggested is to tell the people who are most important to you how much you love them. Even if you’re reading this on Tuesday, perhaps you still want to make a point to do that?
Tuesday is Day 2 – JOY
In case you forgot, that means from the time you wake up on Tuesday morning until you go to bed Tuesday night, you are going to be an example of joy.
To be filled with joy or be “joyful” means to be happy, excited, and filled with a positive spirit. A joyful person is fun to hang out with and it’s hard not to stop their happiness from rubbing off on you.
Joy is also something that often fills us up when we worship God.
Shout with joy to God, all the earth! Sing the glory of his name; make his praise glorious! (Psalm 66:1-2)
Jesus talked about the joy he felt in his life because of his closeness with God, and he wanted to share that joy with us.
Jesus said, “If you obey my commands, you will remain in my love, just as I have obeyed my Father’s commands and remain in his love. I have told you this so that my joy may be in you and that your joy may be complete.” (John 15:10-11)
The apostle Paul wrote a lot about joy in his letters to Christians in cities where he helped start churches. The book of Romans is an example of one of these letters. Here’s are a few verses from Romans about joy…
Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer. Share with God’s people who are in need. Practice hospitality. (Romans 12:12-13)
Here’s a verse from Romans that works well as a blessing blessing as we begin Day 2:
May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit. (Romans 15:13)
Have a joyful and joy-filled day. Here’s a quick prayer to go with you…
Dear God, fill us with the joy that comes from you, and help us share some of it with others. Amen.
The fruit of the spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. Against these things there is no law. (Galatians 5:22-23)
Monday is Day 1 – LOVE
From the time you wake up on Monday until you go to bed on Monday night, concentrate on being an example of God’s love in everything you do. That’s right…EVERYTHING!
Did you know that the Bible uses the word “love” almost 700 times? Now I know it’s a big book, but 700 times, but if the Bible uses the word that many times then it must be important that we be loving people, don’t you think?
Be imitators of God, therefore, as dearly loved children and live a life of love, just as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us as a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God. (Ephesians 5:1-2)
Everyone has the ability to love, not just Christians. But Christianity is the only religion that has seen what God’s love looks like.
For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. (John 3:16)
We saw God’s love when Jesus died on the cross for our sins, but Jesus’ entire life was an example of God’s love. Just look at some of his teachings.
Jesus said, “My command is this: Love each other as I have loved you. Greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends.” (John 15:12-13)
Who does the Bible say is our source of love?
Dear friends, let us love one another, for love comes from God. Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God. Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love. This is how God showed his love among us: He sent his one and only Son into the world that we might live through him. This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins. Dear friends, since God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. No one has ever seen God; but if we love one another, God lives in us and his love is made complete in us. (1 John 4:7-12)
What does the Bible say love looks like?
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. Love never fails. (1 Corinthians 13:4-8a)
Here’s a simple prayer to send us out into the first day…
Dear God, help us be examples of your love in all we do today. Amen.
The fruit of the spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. Against these things there is no law. (Galatians 5:22-23)
Tonight at Journey we talked about some of the opposing/competing forces in our world. The series we have been in the last two weeks is called Geek Squad, and keeping with that theme, we’ve been discussing the digital/computer world that is at the center of most of our realities. Recognizing that we’re at a historical crossroads in terms of electronic competence, we considered the differences between generations…pointing out that people either get it (digital natives) or have no idea (digital immigrants). Among both categories of today’s digital inhabitants, we looked at the aggressive marketing between the two most common platforms of computers: macs & pcs.
Shifting from tech-talk to faith-talk, we picked up where we left off the week before (Ephesians 5). We spent a lot of the time in Paul’s letter to the Galatians, chapter 5 in particular, which is where Paul writes about two opposing forces at work in all our lives: sinful nature & the spirit (of the Holy Spirit variety). Discussing our lives as people who are “free” (to do what we want, including the freedom to sin), Paul lists things like hatred, jealousy and selfishness, among others, as attitudes/behaviors that we have the ability and freedom to live out…quickly pointing out that they will all keep us from experiencing the life God intends for us.
It’s the end of Galatians 5 that deserves our focus. This is where Paul introduces his famous list of virtues known as the “Fruit of the Spirit” (Galatians 5:22-23, see above). If you’re up for the challenge, these “fruit” will be our guide for the next week and a half, as we do our best to live them out (one at a time) over the next 9 days…starting with “Love” tomorrow (Monday).
Many of you already signed up to receive the daily devotional/guides for this experience by email, but if not, it’s really easy:
Near the top-right of this page (just below the calendar), click “[+] Subscribe to emails.” (To avoid being taken away from this page, right-click the link and select “Open Link in New Tab.”)
Enter your email address in the new window that opens.
Check your email to activate your subscription. (That’s it. Now you’ll receive the daily emails.)
I will post the devotional/guides each night and they will always be for the next day. If you signed up for the emails, it’s set up to send them each night (I’m not sure what time), so the plan is that you will either read the guides at night (for the next day) or first thing in the morning (for that day).
Make sense? Sorry there was so much explanation, but I wanted to make sure everyone starts at the same point.
Anyone can read the entries on anewdoxology.com, and can start the f.o.t.s. challenge/experience whenever they want, but to receive the emails that accompany this you will need to subscribe in the next few days (note: I am posting this on January 11, 2009). If you know others who might want to be part of this, please send them the info they need.
For those of you who were not at Journey tonight, you can listen to the message (“PC vs. Mac”) below.
Just imagine what the world would be like if people were not only living “purpose-driven” lives, but were also living Spirit-Led Lives.
Here we go…are you ready to live by the spirit? (Click the link below)
I doubt anyone is aware of this (I didn’t even realize it until today), but on November 4, 2008, anewdoxology.com turned one-year-old! Since there was no birthday party (and I’m sure most of you forgot to get a gift), this is your opportunity to share your belated thoughts on year number one and perhaps even offer some well wishes for health (and existence!) in the years to come. To sign the online birthday card, just leave a comment. (Even if you’ve never left a comment on a blog before, just give it a try. I promise it’s even easier than it looks…plus it will mean so much to this young and still somewhat self-conscious blog. Maybe you could even comment on how mature anewdoxology.com is for its age, or something complimentary like that.)
As I wrote in the very first post on this site just over a year ago, the word doxology means “words to glorify,” and through the thoughts, links, videos and images shared here, I am seeking to find new words to glorify God. Words that are relevant in today’s world…for today’s people.
God is still active in the world, and today more than ever I believe that the music, movies, reality tv shows, books, magazines, art and other expressions of popular culture are windows into the lives (and faith) of the younger generations. People like me, and perhaps people like you as well. This is why I started anewdoxology: I wanted a place to share some of my thoughts on how I saw God’s activity intersecting with my life. Not in forced ways that were restricted to moments when I was in a church or reading the Bible, but even when I was doing regular/everyday/normal stuff like watching tv or listening to music. Because if we really believe that God is active in the world, then we must acknowledge that God is somehow (mysteriously?) present in many – if not all – of the various expressions of art, life and faith in our culture (even, or perhaps especially, those considered “secular”).
I appreciate all the support and encouragement everyone has shared toward what I’ve been doing the last year. It’s been cool to witness all the random and unexpected ways God has used these “reflections of faith in an MTV world” to connect people with the love, grace and hope of God as revealed in Jesus (something that’s even more transforming than a really great movie and more life-changing than a soldout concert).
If it’s not too much to ask, I’m hoping you, the readers of anewdoxology.com, might be willing to answer a few quick questions about how you discovered this little corner of the world wide web and how you think things are going so far.
Thanks again for making this a great first year!
Clumsily following Christ,
Andy
P.S. If you’d like to give the perfect gift, I’d appreciate nothing more than if you told someone about anewdoxology.com!
I’m not sure why I don’t read Psalm 46 every day – or even every hour of every day – since every time I read it I am led to take a couple deep breaths, relax my body, slow my thoughts and remember that I’m not in control of everything…or anything. And I never was. In case it’s been a while since you’ve read it, or maybe if you aren’t sure which one number forty-six is, I’ll post it below. Read it out loud if you’re in a place where that’s socially acceptable. Let the words speak to you and don’t forget to just…be…still.
God is our refuge and strength,
an ever-present help in trouble.
Therefore we will not fear, though the earth give way
and the mountains fall into the heart of the sea,
though its waters roar and foam
and the mountains quake with their surging.
There is a river whose streams make glad the city of God,
the holy place where the Most High dwells.
God is within her, she will not fall;
God will help her at break of day.
Nations are in uproar, kingdoms fall;
he lifts his voice, the earth melts.
The LORD Almighty is with us;
the God of Jacob is our fortress.
Come and see the works of the LORD,
the desolations he has brought on the earth.
He makes wars cease to the ends of the earth;
he breaks the bow and shatters the spear,
he burns the shields with fire.
“Be still, and know that I am God;
I will be exalted among the nations,
I will be exalted in the earth.”
The LORD Almighty is with us;
the God of Jacob is our fortress.
I spoke at Journey again tonight. This time about living generously and sacrificially. We’re in the last few weeks of a church-wide series called 40 Days of Community, and for the last six weeks we have been discovering how much better we are together (through small groups, service projects, community events and worship). It has been a great fall, and tonight’s theme offered us thoughts, inspiration and a challenge to respond to God’s love and Jesus’ sacrifice for us by living generously, as individuals and as a community, with God’s love as our guide.
I will include portions of the message text below, but the reason I’m writing about it here is because much of the message was delivered through select scenes of a documentary that I want people to know about. It’s called The Shadows of Virtue, and it was made a Minnesotan named Chad Amour. Released a few years ago now, the film takes a close look at how God’s love compels us to respond to issues in the world and to the needs of God’s people.
“Living Generously” by Andy Jolivette | Journey, 11/2/08
What does it mean to be sacrificial?
What does it mean to be generous with our lives?
We can’t be sacrificial all the time, can we?
What do we have to give?
What can we give up?
Does God want us to be sacrificial and generous?
Absolutely, but how much?
These are all very relevant questions, but they all come from the same route questions, “what do I have to do?” and “how much is enough?” They also severely miss the point of what we read in the Gospel of Matthew last week.
In Matthew 22, Jesus talks about one of the greatest commandments being to “love our neighbor as ourself,” and it’s probably safe to assume that this kind of love toward others includes being generous, and at times even sacrificing a bit of ourselves and what we have, for others.
So while the questions “what does it mean to live sacrificially?” and “how generous should we be?” are very honest questions, they are also very difficult to answer. (The honest ones usually are.) But seriously, can anyone tell us when our generosity is generous enough? or when we’ve sacrificed an acceptable amount?
The short answer to these difficult questions is this: there’s no way of knowing, so it doesn’t even make sense to respond with specifics, but we can trust that every day we will be faced with opportunities to be generous, greedy or something in between, and all we can do is try to be as generous as possible – as often as possible.
Many will point to Jesus as the example or standard, but we all know that is not really fair. Sure, we want to “be like,” “give like” and “love like” Jesus, but who of us is capable of living up to this standard? I’m not saying don’t try (if “WWJD” bracelets works for you, keep wearing them the rest of your life!), but we also need to be realistic.
Remember that even Jesus only gave his life for us once – it’s not something he did everyday – on other days he went for long walks, met new people and listened to their problems, went on fishing trips, and just hung out with his friends. At times he even separated himself from others because apparently even Jesus needed to be alone and get away from other people sometime.
Not to minimize Christ’s life and ministry, but if we’re truly going to look to the Gospel’s revelation of Jesus as our guide for living generously and sacrificially, we need to look at the whole story and recognize that even Jesus’ life included days when he wasn’t so obviously “sacrificial” or “generous” (at least not in ways that would inspire people to write worship songs about him) – but overall, no one could deny that Jesus was a generous man whose life was sacrificially given for others, for you and for me, for all of us.
I contend to you that Christ’s example for us is not just that we be blindly, or even constantly sacrificial, but that we become more consistently and even strategically generous and sacrificial.
In short, we need to live on purpose…with a purpose. We need to live out Jesus’ words in Matthew 25: Loving God with all our hearts, minds and souls; and loving our neighbors as ourselves.
That might mean freely giving away our time, our skills, our possessions or our money, or it could just mean not buying so many clothes and lattes so we can afford to be more generous in other ways. It could even mean calling a friend who we know needs to talk, but who drains our energy every time we talk to them. Regardless of how we choose to live generously and what we choose to sacrifice, we can be assured of one thing…living like this will always require living in opposition of our own desires to do what is best/easiest for us.
Living generously and sacrificially will always require love, not just any love, but the love of Christ – God’s perfect and unfailing love that has been given to us as a free gift – the love we’ve been called to share with the world. Love is a difficult thing to understand no matter how you look at it, and it’s an even more difficult thing to accept and share with others.
So here’s the challenge for all of us…
Take time this week (more than 10 minutes) to think about how you could sacrifice a bit of what you have (time and energy, not just money) and be generous in a way that will truly benefit others.
Make a plan for how you can make it happen (be strategic, purposeful).
Do it (don’t just talk about it, be about it…the longer you wait, the less likely you are to actually do it).
Don’t tell anyone what you did. (This is probably the hardest step, but remember it’s not about looking good to others, or even feeling good about yourself, it’s about loving someone else for no other reason than to remind them that they have “unsurpassable worth”).
I went out for dinner with a friend tonight, and as we were enjoying our burritos and some good conversation, a familiar song came on the radio. Hearing the song led me to think about a seminary class I took last year, since it was for an assignment in the class that I listened to this song at least 100 times in the span of only a few days. You see, we were asked to make a video for the class and in my video I had decided to use a song from a CD I had recently bought. The album was by Lifehouse, and the song was “Broken” (the same song that was playing when I was eating at Qdoba tonight). I became completely consumed with the creation of the video, and I shared all it’s versions here back in February. Looking back through anewdoxology’s now nearly one year existence, the only post(s) that brought more visitors to this site were my confused thoughts during the food crisis/riots in Haiti back in April (found here and here). The video went on to be used in worship at a few churches during Lent, and was also featured on a popular Christian men’s website. All of which surprised me, since it started as an assignment for one of my classes.
Here is the video (watch it again if you’ve already seen it):
As it turns out, “Broken” is the current single from Lifehouse’s latest album (Who We Are), and the song has been receiving quite a bit of airplay on radio and TV lately (reaching #8 on Billboard’s Adult Top 40 chart). I obviously realize my video had nothing to do with the song’s success, but regardless of how high it makes it on the charts, it has a very significant meaning to me. The song reminds me that even though I am broken, God enters into my life (and especially my suffering), and offers me hope and restoration…and based on the comments people have left on this site and youtube in response to the video – along with the emails I received from people who were impacted by the video’s images and message – I like to think there are some people in the world who are reminded that God is with them, helping them through their brokenness and offering them hope and healing, whenever they hear the song on the radio. And to me at least, that’s a beautiful thought.
If you know someone going through a time of brokenness, please forward them this video, because as one of the quotes in the video says so well, “Real caring is the willingness to help each other in making our brokenness into the gateway to joy” (Henri Nouwen).
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It should also be noted that Lifehouse is considered by many to be a pseudo-”Christian band” … whatever that means.
The latest issue of ESPN The Magazine includes an interesting article about team chaplains in professional sports. The Mag talked to Anthony Johnson, former NFL player and current chaplain for the Jacksonville Jaguars, about what it’s like being a pastoral figure to millionaire athletes. Here is a bit of what he shared.
On his theological approach to the job,
“My focus is biblical, but I make it inclusive. No matter what a player’s faith, I’ll talk to him. And I’m not afraid to engage with players who are atheist or agnostic. Those can be great talks, too.”
On what it takes to get the job,
“Each team has a chaplain. A degree, but not seminary, is required to land the job.”
On what he actually does,
“We hold chapel during camp and the night before a game; as many as 35 players attend. We’re also available for pastoral care—baptisms, wedding preparations, deaths—and we lead a variety of Bible studies.”
On counseling players through tough life stuff,
“A lot of what I do is one-on-one counseling. Most questions are about juggling life as a Christian and as a player, but we talk about anything. One guy recently asked about how to resolve conflicts in his marriage. I wouldn’t say infidelity comes up a lot, but enough. These young men may wind up in situations deemed illegal or inappropriate. I try to help them understand how that would affect them and their loved ones.”
On whether God cares about wins and losses,
“I don’t discourage players from praying for wins. But I do stress that if God doesn’t answer that prayer, it doesn’t say anything about His purpose for the guy.”
There’s a new documentary that came out in theaters recently (Oct. 3) called Religulous (“religion” + “ridiculous”). Bill Maher stars as the film’s “host,” guiding viewers on an exploration of organized religion in our world today – offering plenty of his opinions along the way – and it was directed by Larry Charles, who also directed Borat … so you probably already know enough to determine whether this documentary will be wildly, or simply mildly offensive to you.
Apparently aware of the film’s potent potential for offense, the front page of the official website offers visitors two options; the typical “enter site” link (which happens to be on the left side of the page) and the unusual “enter kosher site” link (which just happens to be on the right). I’m not Jewish, so I entered the regular site and watched the trailer. For what it’s worth, the website does boast that it’s “one of the funniest and most offensive documentaries ever made.” At least they’re honest, right?
Let me be clear on a few things: I’m serious about my faith and I consider myself part of a religion. Maybe it’s because I try not to take myself too seriously, but this film looks really funny. If I end up seeing it, I’m guessing I will find myself nodding in agreement with a lot of the jokes being made on religions and religious people…even the ones about Christianity (and it’s not all a spoof on Christianity by the way, Maher takes shots at other religions as well).
Going beyond a just an awareness of his irreverance, Maher seems to take pride in his atheistic/anti-religion stance. While I can’t speak for other religions or Christianity as a whole, if Maher’s goal was simply to expose that uncertainty must be involved for any system of faith or belief to work (or make sense), then I would agree completely with him, but I haven’t seen the movie yet to know if that’s one of the points that he is trying to make. (I have seen this clip of Maher on Larry King talking about religion, this new movie, and even Rick Warren.)
Although Religulous probably fits best in the documentary genre of “look how stupid those [fill in the blank] people are,” from what I have seen and read so far it seems much more Bowling for Columbine and much less Jesus Camp. I mean, sure, Maher pokes fun at religious fanatics (like the guy who plays Jesus at the “Holy Land” theme park in Florida) and if the movie poster is any indication, I’m guesing they mock a few examples of light-hearted religious ridiculousness (like the stories in the news a few years ago about a man who burnt a fish stick and thought it looked like Jesus or the woman who reportedly sold a grilled-cheese sandwich on eBay that bore the image of the Virgin Mary…final bid: $28,000), but clearly, the film is about much more than just making fun of sacred sandwiches and Christian theme parks (since religious folks wouldn’t be offended by a movie that only makes fun of fanatics and others who have found ways to pimp religion to make a few dollars).
If nothing else, Religulous offers a slap in the face to religious leaders and people of faith – whatever flavor of belief they prefer. The film provides humor as a way of helping people realize that it might be a good idea to be capable of responding to basic questions about their faith and, although it’s not necessarily a requirement to “validate” their faith (depending on the religion), we should all possess enough understanding to express what we believe in a way that doesn’t make us sound like the butt of a joke. I’m definitely not saying people need to act like they have it all figured out – since I don’t believe that is possible – but at least take some time to think things through, being honest with yourself and others about what you think and believe so that when/if the questions are too big or your understanding is too limited, you have the marbles to say “I don’t know.” Because let’s be honest, that’s where faith comes in…not as an excuse for not knowing things, but as a way of admitting the limits of our understanding and the vasness of God’s. It also forces us to put trust and faith in a God who reveals himself to us in ways that are often mysterious at best, since the reality of life and faith seems to be that sometimes, we’re simply left wondering in awe at the mystery of God, but even this confusion is an expression of faith and worship. Having doubts is okay. Not having all the answers doesn’t mean we don’t believe, or even that we believe less. Doubts and confusion simply remind us of our need for faith…our need for God.
So what is the point of Religulous? Why did Bill Maher decide to point out that religious people don’t have things figured out any more than other people? I’m not sure yet, but I think he’s probably right in a lot of ways, he just doesn’t happen to be a person who can get over the fact that believing doesn’t always mean knowing (and he’s a guy who likes to know stuff).
