Legacies

We often hear questions like these: "What do you want to be remembered for?  What is your legacy?"  When we read the news, we hear about people who have passed away, leaving their marks on their occupations or industries.  Perhaps they will never be forgotten by the world of film, or literature, or athletics, but here is the question: what does it matter?  For sports, players aspire to part of their sport's histories, by winning championships and, ultimately, becoming a member of the Hall of Fame, where they can be enshrined with the other legends of their game.  Film and literature, and all other such things, have their legends as well.  With all they've done, and the great effects they've had on their industries, have they really done anything important?  How truly valuable were the impacts we remember them for?

Humans often live for their legacy.  They live to create the life that history will remember.  Yet, I do not believe this to be our purpose.  I've often had this thought: I don't need or want a legacy.  I don't need to be remembered when I'm gone.  I'm not living today for someone else's memories.  Here's what I do want: to live my life for the glory of God, for the good of His kingdom.  It doesn't matter if I'm remembered; all that matters is what I do today, and the difference it makes in the lives (and eternities) of others.  I'm fine with being forgotten tomorrow, as long as I make a difference today.

Of course, there are people in the history of our faith that we remember, as we should.  We read about men and women in the Bible - Abraham, David, Ruth, and Paul, and so on, and we should look to their stories for instruction, learning both from their successes and their failures.  There are other people we should not easily forget, such as Billy Graham.  I'm certainly not saying to forget those people who have left their mark on the world and on our faith.  What I'm saying is this: don't worry about how you'll be remembered.  Let tomorrow's histories worry about that.  We need only think on the life that God has given us, for His will is what we ought to be following.  A great reputation is worth nothing if the man behind it has done nothing.  Jesus Christ is in Heaven, waiting for the day of His return, and the time we have left must be spent furthering his kingdom, not furthering our own legacies.

The Lost

I've been feeling something coming up from the depths of my soul.  It's a passion that longs to be put into action, though I don't yet know how.  I've been praying that God will lead me in the right direction.

The world is a mess.  I look out and see turmoil, and sin, and pain, and suffering.  Everywhere we go, there are people who need a savior.  I see people who long for love and purpose, yet there is no shoulder to cry on, no one to bring them comfort.  Perhaps they are now clinging to something they think will bring them salvation.  They all have great holes in their lives, and there is only one thing that will fix what is broken.  Nothing in this world will satisfy all their needs.  There is only one power that will heal them and bring them life, and he is not of this world, nor is he limited by what this world has to offer.  His name is Jesus.  The only remedy in this broken world comes from the one who made us, the one who breathed life into us, and the one who died on a cross for us.  All else will crack and break, and leave them lost.

Each of us was born into the same world, and sin afflicts us all, holding each of us back from what we should have been.  Instead of oneness with God, we have disharmony.  Instead of eternal joy, we have all been sentenced to eternal death and everlasting separation from our creator.  We are each responsible for our own damnation, for it was our sin that tore us from Heaven's grasp.

Yet, not all is lost.  Though our sin puts us into a great debt, one we could never pay, we find ourselves no longer hopeless, no longer condemned.  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.  There is no great task or challenge to complete for one to be saved from an eternity of death.  All we must do is accept who we are and what we have done: we are sinners, and we have separated ourselves from our loving creator.  He knows it, and we know it.  We must simply acknowledge it, believing in our heart that the blood of Jesus was spilled for us.

The good news of Christ Jesus is simple, and yet there are innumerable souls in the world in danger of ending their lives without it.  What else could possibly matter in such a life?  Those who leave this world without knowing Jesus will never see light again, thus making their Earthly lives a failure, both on their part, and on the part of those of us who failed to reach them.

I feel as though my life has a purpose in reaching the lost.  Several years ago, I was stopped by a man at a local county fair who had noticed the t-shirt I was wearing, which had a cross on it.  He said I had the gift of evangelism.  I've often wondered if that was a message from God, and if it was, what exactly it meant for my life.  I'm still not sure.  I pray that God will use me for His kingdom.

I am your tool, Father; strengthen me and make me anew, and use me according to your will.  The mind of God is great, while the mind of man is weak, and your plans, oh God, are above anything that I can even imagine.

This Will Change Your Life

Are you bald?  Then try our hair restoration product and change your life!  Perhaps your issue is grey hair, or a big belly, or marks or scars on your skin.  Or perhaps you no longer like your wardrobe, or your shoes, or your car, or your house, or your spouse.  Why keep things as they are, when changing even one small thing can change your life?  You'll feel infinitely better and your life will never be the same!

Except that nothing will really change.

Today's society is seeking change, for everyone has a gaping hole in their life, one they know needs to be filled with something.  Businesses know this need, and they look to profit from our own inadequacies by selling us something we think will change our lives.  They make us feel bad and shameful for what they call physical and lifestyle imperfections, willingly exploiting our insecurities.

We look to add true meaning to our lives, as we should, and yet we look in the wrong places.  If you're lacking hair on the top of your head, there's certainly nothing wrong with doing things to add or regrow hair, but does that really change your life?  Does changing any of the things mentioned in the first paragraph really make any meaningful difference?  Or are we simply making ourselves feel better, pretending to add great value to things whose value is minimal?  Is the difference real, or artificial?

The truth is, that while none of these things (or other such things) are bad in and of themselves, they should not be looked at as the gateway to a better life.  We should not attempt to find fulfillment or happiness in such things, for ultimately, they are temporary and superfluous.  Our happiness and confidence should not come from how we look, for merely physical attributes should not be the driving force behind our contentment in life.  Relying upon our physical bodies will ultimately lead to disappointment, for these bodies are not meant for long term dependability.  They will all fail one day, and then it depends on our heart and mind to determine our happiness.  For only a mind that has placed its reliance on God will be truly content.

So, do not conform to the ways of the world, for it will keep you wanting more, and yet will never fulfill those promises.  Only God will not let you down, and only God will bring you happiness in this life, and the life to come.  True contentment is nothing something that can be acquired through this world, but only through the man that came from Heaven to die for our sins. 

That gaping hole inside each of us can only be filled by one thing, and He's not sold in stores.

The Most Wonderful of the Terrible Days

There was once a time when there was no blemish upon the hearts of men, not even a hint of shame or weakness. Humans lived in perfection, not straying from the God that had created them, not seeking the ways of darkness. Yet then came a day, a day when a temptation arose before them, and in a moment of foolishness, they gave in. They lost their innocence, their perfection, and instead gained a lifetime of toiling against the world and its evil ways. They turned their back on God, choosing their own wisdom instead of His, and from that day forward, the race of men has fought against their own weaknesses. Days come and go, and the battle rages on, and each day, the humans fall, unable to stand. It is their weakness, their foolishness, their distrust in everything but themselves. It is their lust for the pleasures of today, and their apathy and ignorance concerning the truths of tomorrow. They run from true and perfect love, instead taking shelter in the arms of the world, the very arms that will crush and suffocate them, not letting them go.

For thousands of years, this battle has raged. There is not a man alive today that can boast of righteousness, for even the purest of human hearts cannot completely resist the allure of the shadows. God stands upon the edge of Heaven and peers down upon his creations, seeking those to welcome into His home, His kingdom, allowing them to live among Him for the endless ages to come. Yet His search has found no results, for there is no man worthy of it. The hearts of men have been filled with evil, and such an evil will never enter the kingdom of Heaven, for it is a place of wonder, undisturbed by the world and its ways.

Yet should all of humanity be separated from God? Should they all perish for what they have done? God knew the truth, that each of them deserved death, and judgment, and to be separated from Him. It was what they had deserved; it was what they had earned. They each owed a debt too great to pay; only an eternity away from Him and His kingdom would suffice as payment. It was the fate each man deserved.

Yet then there came something that could not be believed, for God sent a part of his own being down to the Earth, and God Himself walked among the men and talked with them, teaching and preaching and healing. He lived as a man, yet did not give in to the weaknesses of the flesh, instead living perfectly and flawlessly, without even a single defect. No other man had ever walked upon the Earth in such a way, unswayed by the darkness of the world. He did not come simply to live, for God had a greater and grander plan, for there came a day when this man, God Himself, was captured by men, beaten, bloodied, and humiliated, and finally, hung from a cross for all to see. There his death was witness by the very people He came to love, and yet by His death, by the shedding of His blood, the ultimate price was paid for those who believed. For God held such a true and deep and perfect love for His world, that He came down from Heaven and walked among us, for He did not desire for us to perish. He offered himself as a sacrifice, completely and ultimately paying all debts, and all we must do is choose to accept it. The gift is given freely to those who believe, those who allow God to forgive the things they themselves could never erase. It is love that brought God to make this sacrifice, and it is love that brings us to choose to accept that sacrifice.

Thank you, God. I cannot repay what I have received, and I know I am utterly and unquestionably unworthy. Yet I run to you, burying myself in your love, and there I will remain, eternally yours.

Logic

I've heard atheists say before that no rational person would believe in a God. They say theists believe in a higher power because they want to believe there is more to life than this Earth. They say that only the unwise would truly think there is a great being in the sky watching over us. They say Christians are illogical and unintelligent, for how else could they believe such foolishness? They call them delusional, senseless people.

I know I live in a world where some people look down on me for what I believe, but I don't really care. I don't believe what I believe because it makes me look a certain way to the world, nor do I believe it because it makes me feel a certain way. I don't believe it due to a desire for peace or contentment. While an atheist may read this and still think I'm delusional, I believe in a God due to something they believe Christians to be incapable of: logic. For even if I had not had "God moments" throughout my life, where God made his reality obvious to me, there would still be the underlying fact that I find the idea of this universe having no God to be completely illogical. It makes no sense.

The theory that this universe created itself is illogical. No matter how many millions and billions of years you go back, there has to be an ultimate origin. We could talk specifics of the Big Bang, evolution, and other scientific theories. Yet such things are mere details, for if this universe is merely physical, then it must have a beginning. If it has a beginning, there must have been a time when there was no universe. If there is no universe at all, there is no matter, there is nothing in existence to take its progression to the next step. It is illogical to think that the universe sprouted from nothingness into something. There must be something more, something higher, something eternal. I do not believe this because I want to or because I feel like it should be true, I believe it because logic forces me to do so.

I do not know all the details of how God created the universe. There are debates on the literal Genesis creation story and theistic evolution, and while such debates are interesting and of some value, the truth remains that, however the universe came to be, that it was God doing the creating and not merely the physical universe. If we evolved from single-celled organisms, then it was God that authored and guided that process, it did not simply happen of its own accord. Whether God created the universe in six days or gradually over billions of years, the end result is the same: the universe is God's creation.

In short, I believe what I believe because of logic, not despite logic. I know atheists will still call me foolish, but I will not change what I believe simply to fit in to the world.

My Own Worst Critic

In September 2007, I took a new job as a web programmer. It was an exciting position, one full of opportunities to grow as a computer professional. It also came with a good increase in salary. I felt as though God had opened this door to me, and that he was molding my future. Three and a half months went by, and I felt as though things were going well. The people were all very nice, and I was learning new things and taking on more responsibilities. Yet it was not to be, for on the day after Christmas (four years ago exactly from the day of this entry, oddly enough), my employment there was terminated, effective immediately. I was given severence pay for the rest of the year (less than a week), told that I wasn't the right fit for the position, and sent on my way. I packed up my desk and went out to my car, and then did something I had not done for a good five years: I cried. It was not due to a fear of our financial situation. It was not due to a fear of a long, fruitless job search. No, it was due to something else entirely, something incalculable. It was a sense of failure. I had somehow not lived up to the company's expectations. God had granted me an opportunity, and I had blown it.

I am my own worst critic. I hate it when I fail or make mistakes. It's usually not about what I lost by failing (like the job), but it's the fact that I failed. The truth is the same whether an occupation, a task, a game, or anything else in life. I hold myself up to a high standard, and when I fail that standard, I hate myself for it.

The same is true concerning sin, for sin is simply missing the mark. It is falling short of the standard that God placed on our lives. It is failing Him. Sin is not always out of an evil heart, but out of a weak one. We try to be perfect, and yet we are merely human, and perfection is unobtainable. Sin is before us, and we can live our lives in such a way as to avoid it on many occasions, but not on every occasion. Sometimes, we trip and fall, for we lack the strength to endure at every moment.

I have many failures in my past, many times where I gave into sin, though I should have known better. Times when sin was before me, and I knew the wiser path, yet I chose to follow the foolish route. I looked into the eyes of sin, knowing the truth of it. I took the apple from the tree, knowing it to be forbidden, yet I sunk my teeth into it anyway. My eyes saw things it should not see, and I knew I could turn away, yet I chose to look on. I am a fool, and nothing more, and that will not change until the day I die.

This is a truth of the human existence. Yet I must remind myself of another, greater truth: God is not a critic. God will not condemn you for your failures, if you accept His love and His sacrifice. The love of God is eternal and knows not sin, for your sin is gone, washed away by the blood of Christ on the cross. God sees you for what you are: his child, his love, his beautiful creation. Your failures are gone. You may fail this day and the next, and every day onward, yet these things are not what God sees in you. You are loved, and no amount of failures can stop the unconditional, incomprehensible love of an unfathomable God. Do not hold on to your shortcomings, for God has already forgotten them, and when eternity comes, the mountains of failures will be lost, and Heaven will welcome you then as God already sees you now: a perfect, faultless, beautiful child of God.

The One About Sex

We all have different preferences in this life. I dislike fruit, spinning amusement park rides, slow drivers and the Yankees. These are things I have opinions on for personal reasons, yet there is no moral ground for such preferences. Such things make up our individual personalities and can be defined according to our choosing, and no one can judge us for those choices, as they are for us to decide. God does not care if my favorite color is green or black, nor does he care which of the Lord of the Rings movie is my favorite. Preferences make for interesting debates, but in the end, there is no wrong and no right.

Yet there are certain things I believe in, not because I necessarily prefer them, but because I truly believe it to be absolute, unquestionable truth. These are not preferences, but principles. I have made such decisions because God has decreed that certain behaviors are immoral, and certain lifestyles are sinful. These are decisions I have made based on truth and principle, not on preference.

The main example of this is sexual purity. In a world where people are becoming sexually experienced at younger and younger ages, God still wants us to remain pure. I decided quite young in life that I wanted to follow God’s teaching and not the world’s teasing. During my maturing years, when many of my classmates were likely losing their virginity, it was never even an option in my mind, for the choice had been made many years prior. This was due to principle, not due to preference, because while I know that God wants us to remain pure, I can guarantee you that my physical body did not have the same opinion. I can guarantee you that, if I had not made that decision years earlier, I would have lost my virginity at a much younger age. Instead, I started dating a girl when I was twenty years old, and we were married six days after my twenty-fourth birthday. It was made clear very early in our dating relationship that sex was not an option for us until marriage, and we stayed true to that. Once again, this was due to principle and not to preference. Now that we have been married over five years, I know it was one of the best decisions I’ve ever made. For I turned sex into a matter of principle and not preference, for God desires each of us to be pure.

Now that I have made it to marriage with my sexual purity intact, step two is to keep myself devoted to my wife. The same is true now as it was in my earlier life: it is my principles that keep me from straying. I love my wife more than she could know, and I would never do anything to hurt her or our relationship. God has made marriage a sacred bond that should never be desecrated with adultery. Yet I know that men and women cheat on their spouses every day. It seems almost commonplace, for most people know of someone whose marriage has fallen apart due to unfaithfulness. Hollywood marriages implode constantly due to such affairs. Why do we make such lifelong commitments, only to choose to break them? It is because, in today’s world, marriage is simply a current status and not a commitment, and staying in a marriage is seen as a preference. I choose to love you today, but tomorrow, I may choose to love someone else. This is not what God wants for our marriages. While it is certainly my preference to be with my wife and to stay faithful, the main driving force in that faithfulness is the principle of Godly marriage. It has never and will never be an option to break our marriage covenant, because the decision was made long ago to stay true to one another in our marriage, and to always love one another, even if we don’t always like one another. Adultery is the preference of the world, while marital faithfulness is the principle of God and his people.

The same can be true of sexual impurity of other kinds, as almost all of us, and likely all of us, are guilty of committing adultery in our hearts. I have never been to any sort of strip club, nor will I ever. (I admittedly went to a Hooters once in college, but that was for the purpose of getting free food, and I tried my very best to stare intently at the chicken wings the entire time.) When I have been asked in the past about strip clubs, and I have said that I had never been to one, people have asked it if it was because I was homosexual, as though that would be the only possible explanation for such a thing. Instead, it is due to principles that I have never gone to such a place. For, as a very heterosexual man, it is not due to a lack of desire to see naked woman that I do not go to strip clubs. No, it is due to the principle that God has placed within me. I have made a covenant with my eyes not to look upon a woman lustfully, as I wish to follow God’s principles and not the world’s preferences. While I have faltered on this covenant before, and more often than I would like to admit, with roaming eyes and struggles with pornography in my younger years, it is the principles of God that keep me from becoming just like the worldly man. I will have eyes only for my wife, because this is what God has decreed to be righteous.

We each have decisions to make in our lives, yet the question is this: what do we make those decisions based on? Do we decide things based on what we want? Are our choices driven by our preferences? Or are we making decisions based on the absolute truth of God? Are we living the way God wants us to live, or the way we want to live? If we live solely based on our own desires, we will go down dark paths that lead only to death. Instead, let us live our lives based on the principles of God’s word, for His wisdom far outshines our own. Let him guide you in this life, for there is no greater way to live than with God to light your path.