I was listening to a sermon the other day by Tim Keller, pastor of Redeemer Presbyterian in NYC. He was talking about how people do not like Christianity because it restricts their freedom. Jesus calls us to give up our lives to him and not live for ourselves. Lets be honest, on our own, we want to follow our desires and ideas of what is best. Keller brings in the verse where Jesus says, "The truth shall set you free!" Now Christians believe that that truth is Jesus-He is the way, the truth, and the life! So how does this truth, then, bring freedom? Doesn't Christianity call us to do certain things and not do others? Well yes on one hand. Keller makes the point on how truth with conditions brings a deeper and truer freedom than we would have known. For example, he mentions fish. A fish is restricted to the water. But thats not fair, a fish should have the freedom to go wherever it wants to. Well, a fish can go wherever it wants to but if it goes out of the water, it eventually dies. Hmm...I think the fish will stick to its restriction so that it can enjoy the full freedom of the waters.
I've thought about this principle specifically with discipline. Many of us cringe at the word discipline...it seems restrictive and spoils our fun, right? Well, thats what it feels like but I've found a truly disciplined life brings a deeper, truer freedom and joy than living otherwise. A couple of examples from my own life: I come home a couple of days ago from visiting family upstate. My roommates were still in MI since we are on Spring Break. One of my roommates had cleaned the kitchen before we left but the rest of the apartment was a dump....seriously. Immediately, I start to feel myself getting stressed out. "I can't relax in this mess!" So, the next day I spent several hours (literally) cleaning. Now, wouldn't it be nice to never have to clean and have the discipline of having a clean home? Um, I'm learning the answer to that is...not possible! You have to be disciplined to clean because guess what, I feel more relaxed when I do! I would rather be disciplined in cleaning (hopefully doing it more often so that I don't have to spend several hours on it) so that I can be relaxed and not stressed out.
How about being disciplined about eating healthy and exercising? Now, I'm a normal person, I enjoy food and sweets, hello! But do I need to eat junk and sit all day long? Please no. Sounds nice until I feel sick, gross, and depressed. No, I would rather exercise regularly and indulge in the occasional treat so that I feel energized, refreshed, and enjoying life!
These are simple exampes to say that living according to the conditions that Jesus gave us brings us a deeper, truer freedom and joy than we could have prescribed for ourselves.
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2 comments:
good points ruth! now i've got to clean a huge mess in the kitchen... i thank God for my ipod so i can listen to something interesting while i clean.
I love this Ruth....it is so true. It's so easy to get caught up in us and what we want for ourselves. We will never get past those desires, but there's much to be said for the ppl who consciously strive to live and behave in the ways that Jesus expects of us. Love you girl!!
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