Growth

Praisers of Piety

I recently completed a survey on Christianity. The survey was intended for people who were disgruntled or otherwise disillusioned with the present-day practice of the faith, and although I was a little concerned that I was chosen as a possible candidate, I took the survey anyway. One of the questions was in regards to how I felt modern day Christians integrate their faith with their intelligence. I wish I could remember the exact wording of the question, but basically the researcher wanted to know whether I believed that Christians checked their brains at the door.

As I’ve written in this space previously, this is not a question that is unfamiliar to me. After all, I believe a lot of people who were raised in the church, choose to abandon the practice because they thought that there was something intellectually remiss. Whether or not this perception was reality, I couldn’t say, but its one of those cases where perceptions count for everything. Many individuals can not intellectually defend their faith so they either chuck it or choose to hold it dispassionately.

There are, however, people who are at the other end of the spectrum. These individuals give intellectual accedence to their faith, but never let it impact their heart. They believe that God is real, but don’t have a relationship with Him. Their minds say that there must be a power greater than themselves but they refuse to conform their will to that of the Other. Maybe their condition can be best summed up by the man who cried “Lord I believe, Help my unbelief”.

And this problem isn’t a new one. In 1728 William Law gave the following explanation for why some people seem never to progress in their faith. ” Now the reason of it is this: it is because religion lives only in their head, but something else has possession of their heart; and therefore they continue from year to year mere admirers and praisers of piety, without ever coming up to the reality and perfection of its precepts.” Being a praisers of piety, an advocate for what’s right is good. Being a practicer of these precepts is even better.

May we never settle for merely being an advocate of good things. May we be ambassadors for the only One deserves to be called good.

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Relationships

The Multitude of Loneliness

I think it’s a feeling that we’ve all had. You’re surrounded by people and yet you feel utterly alone. The logic of it is inexplicable. In fact, it defies all sound explanation. People are everywhere and yet you feel like no one is around. Numerous individuals cloud the stage and you’re imagining yourself at the third grade talent show staring back at the hundreds of faces that return your gaze. It’s a solo performance and you’re abandoned in a sea of humanity. Despite the multitude there is no solace.

I have yet to figure out what causes the feeling. It’s not the people you’re with or the environment one finds oneself in because I’ve had radically divergent feelings in comparable situations. Nor is the feeling solely emanating from an internal war, as evident by the fact that similar feelings can create different results. Best I can tell, at least from my experience, there is no one reason that causes this feeling to occur. But when it does, it can be terrifying.

I think it’s because we all want to believe that there’s something to depend on. Even in the midst of life’s struggles we want to know that someone will be there that can support us and help guide us on our way. We want to believe that facing the world alone is not required, because quite frankly, the world can be an utterly scary place. Soldiers are some of the toughest, and most independent people I know, but they are also the ones that tend to value their relationships most profoundly. They know the value of having someone else with them in the foxhole. Feeling of loneliness aren’t scary because you are actually physically alone; their terror comes from the feeling that everything is reliant on you. You are the cause and solution and nothing you can do can change that.

It might be for this reason that Jesus reminded us so many times that we are not alone. Before Joshua went into battle, before Jesus departed the Earth, reminders were given that God would be with His followers wherever they went. Not only is the comforting because it’s a good thing to know God’s on your side, but it’s also a reminder that the execution of His work is not dependent on you. The Cause and the Solution of every situation is with you each step of the way. You are not alone, the Impetus of All Things is right there with you.

Sometimes its hard to remember this before you’re scheduled to sing in front of the crowd. Sometimes feeling alone is a hard feeling to shake. Thank goodness God keeps His promise regardless of our feelings. And thank goodness that feelings change.

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