do you want to get well?

Dad and I were talking about balance.
As a consciencious Christian, he wants to give time and energy to people who desperately need help, love and encouragement, but doesn't want to become so drained by this that he becomes ineffective in daily life.
I related with his sentiment: we don't want to be so burned out that we have nothing left to give to our family and close friends.

Dad said he could relate to the words of Jesus, who in John 5:6 asks the man he is about to heal,
"Do you want to get well?"

If I was the paralyzed man lying on the ground I would have gotten a bit irate at that moment!

Do I want to get well! Who do you think you are, Mr. Miracle-man?!

But Jesus' question is valid. It is so easy to use our disabilities as excuses. Especially when people expect nothing from us because of our inefficiencies.
It's true Mr. Paralytic couldn't play soccer, but he also didn't have to work, pay taxes, or do community service because of his deficiency.

What Jesus was saying was, If I heal you, and you know it was by God's power and not by anything that you could have done for yourself, then you will have no choice but to follow me!

So take your time, think about it. Do you want to get well?

I am reminded of that great cultural mouthpiece, the film Spiderman.
"With great power comes great responsibility."
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IKmQW7JTb6s

Sometimes small acts of kindness are their own reward. But if a situation requires a large emotional investment, it might be best to help them decide whether they truly want the responsibility that comes with being well.

Sometimes, people are not yet ready to grow. And it's up to us to allow them to get to the point when we can help.

to whom shall we go?

I was chatting with my friend Phil about what it's like to have been raised in the church your entire life. We agreed that while there is often difficulty in relating to our parents' generation in how they have chosen to live out the words of Jesus, we admitted that even in our confusion it is very difficult to walk away from Jesus' words altogether. 
As Simon Peter says in John 6:68:
"Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life."

What is it about the words of Jesus that make it nearly impossible to forget our upbringing?

I live in a region that prizes the love of Jesus, if only on the surface. It is very popular to attend church. In this way the words of Jesus, which admonish us to love each other, find a very natural place. 

But this can be misleading, because many of Jesus' words aren't that lovely! This is because they are about True Christian love, the kind that often requires us to give up our comfort for the sake of someone else.
This love, while uncomfortable in the moment, has greater rewards than those that come when people simply think we're "good people."

You can't forget your roots. And in this case, for me, that's a good thing.

good stuff coming

I have been hearing a lot lately that writers need to promote themselves through a website. Though I don't think I am ready for that step yet, I thought a blog would be a good place to begin presenting some ideas and getting some feedback.

Coming up I will be talking about what it is like to live consciously in the South.
What are our myths?
What is it about this land that makes it such a lovable place to live?

Stay tuned!