Starting today, I’m beginning a week long media fast. For a whole week, there will be no:
Facebook. Twitter. Blogs. Cable News. Internet News. Talk Radio. Internet Radio. Music. NPR. Myspace. Books. Movies. Television.
With the exception of the Bible, and a Bible study I’m currently committed to, the rest is off limits.
My goal is to remove some of the clutter from my mind. I want to refocus on what is important. I want to read God’s word like I’ve never seen it before. I want to hear what He says, not what I’ve been taught.
Now that you think I’ve lost my mind, here’s the backstory . . .
This week, at a denominational convention, I sat in the audience and listened to two different young men as they poured out their hearts from the podium. What they shared confirmed so much of what I’ve thought, felt, and observed about the modern Christian experience. I commented on these ideas over a year ago in my Church is Broken post.
The first man has a deep love of the scriptures and the God they reveal. With power and energy, he exuberantly declared several psalms from memory leading us all in praise. He has traveled the world serving others and loving people of all creeds. He is working to heal a wounded church left heartbroken in the wake of failed leadership. He is truly a man of God. But in the midst of all of this he asks, “Do I really believe this book? Not — do I believe it’s inerrant? Not — do I believe it’s accurate? But do I really believe its true?”
He isn’t questioning the reality of God or the sufficiency of Christ, he is questioning his own heart. Questioning his own desire to follow. Me too.
The second talked about his love for the church, God’s body on earth. He talked about the disillusionment he experienced as he lead a ‘thriving’ congregation and the frustration he felt when his successful church didn’t resemble the biblical accounts in Acts. He talked about leaving the church he founded because he was so troubled by the desparity between his successful church and the Bible. After serious introspection, he returned to the church he founded with a new commitment to follow the example we see in Acts. He is now following Christ by loving people in radical way.
A common thread became clear. Each man is seeking after God. They don’t want rules or religion. They don’t want formalities and programs. They want to know and follow God. And not just as individuals, but in unity and communion with other people.
I have been deeply challenged. As I look at my own life and as I look at my relationship with others both inside and outside the church, I know things aren’t as they should be. But what troubles me most, is that I’ve known this for some time and have done nothing. I’ve filled my head with so much information, that I have no room left to focus seriously on the only place where the answer can be found, God’s word. Today, I’ve decided to do something.
In Jeremiah 29:13, God says:
For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the LORD, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. Then you will call upon me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you. You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart. (emphasis mine)
Today, I am taking You at Your word. I am seeking.
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2 Comments
I saw a dvd of very sermon this past week in Sunday School and was just as affected by it as you were. It really opened my eyes about the way I see my church life and my faith. I was especially stunned when he talked of giving up his life insurance because he knew he could depend on his church family to be like the one we read about in Acts.
Yes, that is one of the the messages I was speaking of. The other is David Platt.
You can watch the video of both of their sermon’s here:
http://www.keithsewell.net/?p=121
I still have not recovered!