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Attitudes of spiritual maturity are developed as God's people move out of the comfortable bubble of the church programme and live out their faith through the challenging (and often monotonous) experiences of daily life in the real world.
Hello everyone! I’m Johnny Bell and I am the Youth Worker at SRPC. Basically this means that I organise a lot of our youth organisations, meet up with & mentor young people and generally drink lots of coffee. I’m married to the lovely Andrea, with a two year old energetic lad called Jacob, a beautiful new girl called Amy and a mental Springer Spaniel called Alfie. If you find my vague musings interesting, challenging or controversial, feel free to leave a comment!
Let’s blow a commonly held myth out of the water.
I used to believe that you fell into one of two camps: you either doubted or had faith that there was a supreme, eternal being called God. I couldn’t comprehend how faith could exist in the presence of doubt. Surely the two were opposites. This is of course ok, until you try to live & think out your beliefs in the real world.
As Ortberg states, “many believers tend to think doubters are given over to meaninglessness, moral confusion and despair. Whilst many doubters assume believers are non-thinking, dogmatic, judgmental moralisers. But the reality is, we all have believing & doubting inside us. For we all have the same contradictory information to work with.”
Faith & doubt.
Religious people are often unwilling to sit quietly & wrestle with doubt. This is when bad things happen. Glib responses are given, bad answers are offered & enormous pain is added when ordinary people are convinced that God has not delivered because their faith was not strong enough.
Yet we must doubt. Because we want truth; we must sometimes doubt. We don’t want to be just one of those suckers who falls for every carnival sideshow delusion that comes along.
Faith & doubt.When my first son Jacob was born this year I found myself staring at him in amazement. I was simply incapable of believing that he was an accident; just a ball of cells resulting from an evolutionary fluke. I can’t hold him without being grateful to Someone greater than I.
And whilst the birth of every infant whispers of a loving God, I am only too aware that the death of every newborn calls His existence into question.
Faith & doubt.
Still not convinced? Take 5mins & read through Psalm 22 & 23; both attributed to David. The often quoted Psalm 23 is confident of God’s promise, protection & peace; whilst the preceding Psalm 22 contrasts glaringly & opens with the words of Jesus on the cross, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?”
Faith & doubt.
But in addition to believing & doubting there is choosing; I must decide which road to follow. I must place my bet somewhere.
The term “leap of faith” is overused & greatly misunderstood. It does not mean choosing to believe an impossible thing for no good reason; it is not an embrace of fantasy in which we ignore all evidence. The leap means to make a total commitment to an action in the midst of uncertainty (similar to marriage or having a child); where one must commit in spite of doubts & fears.
Faith, doubt & choice. My choice. Your choice.
And so for a chronic doubter, I’ve been liberated through reading some of the thoughts of John Ortberg on this subject. His latest book, “Faith & Doubt” is a must for all of us who long to live with certainty in the midst of unanswerable & often painful questions.
I’m going to integrate some of his ideas into my mental framework over the next week. Please join me on the journey & add your own thoughts.
“Doubt can motivate us to study & learn. It can purify false beliefs that have crept into our faith. It can humble our arrogance. It can give us patience & compassion with other doubters. It can remind us of how much truth matters.” John Ortberg
#7: We need to persevere
“For our struggle is not against flesh & blood, but against the ruler, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world & against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.” Ephesians 6:11-12
Ephesians 6 is a cracker wee Bible passage. It is often used in sermons on spiritual attack, but interestingly has more to say about spiritual resistance & standing firm.
Living a Christian life is no ice-cream topped adventure - it is a bloody & difficult fight with far too many casualties - and we must realise that some of our prayers go unanswered because there are spiritual forces of evil resisting them. This alone should be a wake up call to persevere, to not give up and keep our eyes heavenwards, while our knees are firmly rooted to the floor.
Yet sometimes it is God Himself who resists our prayers & it is to Him that we must continue in prayer. He opposes our prayers for very different reasons to the Evil One. Instead of the instant gratification of miracles on our every finger click, He calls us to persevere in prayer to deepen our character & nurture our faith.
In Luke chapter 18 Jesus teaches His disciples about persistence in prayer & not throwing in the towel too early. He tells the story of a determined widow’s unremitting demands for justice in the face of an obstinate, crooked judge. But even the unjust judge is eventually forced to give in to her constant nagging; so how much more will a loving Heavenly Father reward His children who earnestly persevere in prayer through faith & dogged determination.
Whether your prayers are being resisted by mysterious spiritual forces, by stubborn people or even by God Himself, just don’t give up.
I finish this series with a prayer that Greig records in “God on mute.” I hope you have enjoyed this series or found it at least slightly stimulating & helpful. Thanks for journeying with me.
Help me to stand
Lord, help me to stand today.
Temptations & trials abound.
When life hurts, I get confused, dishonest, suspicious & critical.
I put on the belt of truth.
When life hurts, mu relationships suffer – especially my relationship with You.
I put on the breastplate of righteousness.
When life hurts, I either get really lazy or I make myself really busy.
I put on the shoes of the Gospel.
When life hurts, I let down my guard & leave myself exposed.
I take up the shield of faith.
When life hurts, my thinking gets negative & I question everything.
I put on the helmet of salvation.
When life hurts I’m a coward.
I take hold of the sword of the Word.
Lord, it doesn’t feel very ‘finished’ down here.
I don’t feel very ‘finished.’
See me kneeling.
Help me stand.
Which type of church (faith community) do you belong to......
A) Community of Performance
People talk about grace, but communicate legalism.
Unbelievers can't imagine themselves as Christians.
Drive away broken people.
The world is seen as threatening and 'other.'
Conversion is superficial—people are called to respectable behavior.
People are secretly hurting.
People see faith and repentance as actions that took place at conversion.
The gospel is for unbelievers.
With all addictions, we need God’s strength to empower & change us. It’s about giving our best, taking each day at a time & being prepared to pick ourselves up when we fall. Here’s some advice from someone who’s struggled with porn:
Talk to God first: you’ll probably not want to do this, but the best first step is to confess what you’ve done, admit you have a problem & never feel too guilty to approach your loving & gracious Heavenly Father. Ask Him to heal your heart & mind from images that have polluted it.
Get accountable: admitting your problem to someone else is the most vital & dangerous step, but you simply cannot fight this battle on your own. Be brave. Tell your friend, wife/husband, pastor. They probably struggle with it too. Pray it through together.
Clean it up: now that your thinking is clear, here are some practical steps to avoid porn:
Cancel or lock out TV channels that cause you to struggle
Don’t go channel hopping after 9pm
Place your computer in a public place like the living room
Don’t log on late at night – when you’re tired, you’re more vulnerable
Get someone to check your internet history (don’t delete it for two weeks)
By recognising this issue & bringing it into the light, we can commit together to the long & difficult journey towards healing and freedom from the bonds of lust & pornography addiction.
For more information & help check out http://xxxchurch.com/
(Ideas in these blogs were adapted from YouthWork Magazine)