Rediscovering Wonder — Rob Bell
Life has a way of beating that wonder and awe out of us doesn't it?
I don't believe this is what God intends for us.
Jesus invites us into this taste to experience the new thing that God is doing in this world.
We must become like a child.
It's one thing to talk about it, it's another thing to taste.
It's one thing to be right, it's another thing to be overwhelmed.
He calls us and confronts us with this invitation to leave behind all these reasons we have to be jaded, bitter, cynical, for folding our arms over our chest and become one more spectator.
Our real desire is wonder and awe and that is what Jesus is inviting us into.
I can only imagine how fun it was to hang around Jesus. He couldn't have been some boring law abiding rabbi. The gentiles and the poor and the thousands wouldn't have followed some boring lawyer. They would have followed a man, a God, the God, filled with wonder and awe every where He went. Jesus had to be the most attractive thing those people will ever see. To have the words "follow me" spoken to you from Jesus' lips, I can only imagine, would cause your heart to leap like John in Elizabeth's womb.
Jesus offers us life and life to the fullest but not in the next life but right here right now...Today.
Thy Kingdom come on Earth as it is in Heaven...now, Today.
Jesus doesn't want us settling for Television shows, for reality t.v. for fast food, for pills, for phones, for e-mails, for distance.
Jesus wants us to have life. To live this gift that has been given to us.
He wants us to live an interesting story not sit on the couch and watch a fake one.
He wants us to taste the fruits of our labor not drive thru and eat chemicals.
He wants us to be free from additions, not put our faith in medication and drugs.
He wants us to hug and see our friends, not listen through a plastic pocket box.
He wants us to live in real community, not sit at home alone sending messages to images of our friends.
Why do we settle? Why do we become spectators? sure life hurts but with the bad also comes the good.
Pain hurts but why focus on that? Why not rather say that along with the risk also comes the opportunity for unlimited joy.
Why settle for a savings account and a nice nest when we could experience the joy of giving everything away and the beautiful mess that is community?
Without risk there is no pain.
But without risk there is no joy.
Shame tells us we are bad.
Brené Brown: Listening to shame
But Jesus tells us we are beautifully and wonderfully made.
Satan says:
Never good enough
who do you think you are?
Jesus says:
I choose you, I want you, you are enough.
You are a child of God.
Shame speaks to each gender differently;
Women: Do it all, do it perfectly, and never let them see you sweat
Men: Do not be perceived as weak.
Shame is an epidemic in our culture to get out from underneath it to find out way back to each other Brown says we have to understand how it affects us. But I believe in order to break free from the chains of shame, fear, and addiction we need to hear our savior speak to our hearts and softly say you are good enough, I want you.
shame needs secrecy silence and judgement in order to grow
shame can't survive with empathy. So Jesus teaches us to love our enemies as friends and love our friends as ourselves. Jesus spoke this same finding 2,000 years ago. He knows the hearts of humans and He knows Satan can't touch us if we have empathy.
The two most powerful words when we're in struggle: Me too.
That's exactly why Jesus put on human flesh and came to Earth. So we could look us in the eyes in the midst of our brokenness in the midst of our shame, in the midst of our failure and honestly be able to say, "me too."
Vulnerability is the path to a life filled with wonder and awe.
We sit back from the arena as spectators and think I'll jump in when I'm bullet proof and perfect...but that day will never come.
If you tarry till you’re better,
You will never come at all.
-Joseph Hart
You will spend your life on the couch arms crossed, bitter, jaded, and cynical.
But that isn't what any of us want. We want wonder and awe and we need to know that when we fail, and we will fail, that there is a savior waiting to pick us up and dust us off. We have a Savior who can say to us I've been there before. We want a community who isn't filled with cynicism waiting for us to fail. We want a community who is filled with love and empathy encouraging us to get in the arena and when we fail, and we will fail, they will be there to help us dare. To help us be vulnerable just as Jesus was vulnerable.
Jesus wants us to have life and have it to the fullest.
The Kingdom of God is a safe place. It's a garden where we can walk around naked and feel no shame. It's an arena packed with friends encouraging us to express ourselves. It's a place of love and empathy, patience and gentleness.
It's a place where we run around with our hearts and blue shovel in hand.
Life has a way of beating that wonder and awe out of us doesn't it?
I don't believe this is what God intends for us.
Jesus invites us into this taste to experience the new thing that God is doing in this world.
We must become like a child.
It's one thing to talk about it, it's another thing to taste.
It's one thing to be right, it's another thing to be overwhelmed.
He calls us and confronts us with this invitation to leave behind all these reasons we have to be jaded, bitter, cynical, for folding our arms over our chest and become one more spectator.
Our real desire is wonder and awe and that is what Jesus is inviting us into.
I can only imagine how fun it was to hang around Jesus. He couldn't have been some boring law abiding rabbi. The gentiles and the poor and the thousands wouldn't have followed some boring lawyer. They would have followed a man, a God, the God, filled with wonder and awe every where He went. Jesus had to be the most attractive thing those people will ever see. To have the words "follow me" spoken to you from Jesus' lips, I can only imagine, would cause your heart to leap like John in Elizabeth's womb.
Jesus offers us life and life to the fullest but not in the next life but right here right now...Today.
Thy Kingdom come on Earth as it is in Heaven...now, Today.
Jesus doesn't want us settling for Television shows, for reality t.v. for fast food, for pills, for phones, for e-mails, for distance.
Jesus wants us to have life. To live this gift that has been given to us.
He wants us to live an interesting story not sit on the couch and watch a fake one.
He wants us to taste the fruits of our labor not drive thru and eat chemicals.
He wants us to be free from additions, not put our faith in medication and drugs.
He wants us to hug and see our friends, not listen through a plastic pocket box.
He wants us to live in real community, not sit at home alone sending messages to images of our friends.
Why do we settle? Why do we become spectators? sure life hurts but with the bad also comes the good.
Pain hurts but why focus on that? Why not rather say that along with the risk also comes the opportunity for unlimited joy.
Why settle for a savings account and a nice nest when we could experience the joy of giving everything away and the beautiful mess that is community?
Without risk there is no pain.
But without risk there is no joy.
Shame tells us we are bad.
Brené Brown: Listening to shame
But Jesus tells us we are beautifully and wonderfully made.
Satan says:
Never good enough
who do you think you are?
Jesus says:
I choose you, I want you, you are enough.
You are a child of God.
Shame speaks to each gender differently;
Women: Do it all, do it perfectly, and never let them see you sweat
Men: Do not be perceived as weak.
Shame is an epidemic in our culture to get out from underneath it to find out way back to each other Brown says we have to understand how it affects us. But I believe in order to break free from the chains of shame, fear, and addiction we need to hear our savior speak to our hearts and softly say you are good enough, I want you.
shame needs secrecy silence and judgement in order to grow
shame can't survive with empathy. So Jesus teaches us to love our enemies as friends and love our friends as ourselves. Jesus spoke this same finding 2,000 years ago. He knows the hearts of humans and He knows Satan can't touch us if we have empathy.
The two most powerful words when we're in struggle: Me too.
That's exactly why Jesus put on human flesh and came to Earth. So we could look us in the eyes in the midst of our brokenness in the midst of our shame, in the midst of our failure and honestly be able to say, "me too."
Vulnerability is the path to a life filled with wonder and awe.
We sit back from the arena as spectators and think I'll jump in when I'm bullet proof and perfect...but that day will never come.
If you tarry till you’re better,
You will never come at all.
-Joseph Hart
You will spend your life on the couch arms crossed, bitter, jaded, and cynical.
But that isn't what any of us want. We want wonder and awe and we need to know that when we fail, and we will fail, that there is a savior waiting to pick us up and dust us off. We have a Savior who can say to us I've been there before. We want a community who isn't filled with cynicism waiting for us to fail. We want a community who is filled with love and empathy encouraging us to get in the arena and when we fail, and we will fail, they will be there to help us dare. To help us be vulnerable just as Jesus was vulnerable.
Jesus wants us to have life and have it to the fullest.
The Kingdom of God is a safe place. It's a garden where we can walk around naked and feel no shame. It's an arena packed with friends encouraging us to express ourselves. It's a place of love and empathy, patience and gentleness.
It's a place where we run around with our hearts and blue shovel in hand.