Discipling the Undisciplined no. 19

“And whenever you fast, do not look dismal, like the hypocrites, for they disfigure their faces so as to show others that they are fasting. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward. But when you fast, put oil on your head and wash your face, so that your fasting may be seen not by others but by your Father who is in secret; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you” (Matthew 6:16-18). Motivation is important. And examining our own motivations is truly important. Why am I doing this? I ask myself that question a lot as a middle school teacher. Why am I doing this? I hope that answer is always that I am doing these things out of love. BUT often that was not the case in my life. I was really afraid not too long ago and I still get afraid now and then. 

Four years ago, the fear of government lockdowns and supply chain problems put fear into my heart. I was truly worried about feeding my family. Here I was talking about freedom and liberty and personal responsibility and I was a hypocrite. I was afraid because I wasn’t free or responsible. I had failed to get liberated. And that enslavement to the world led to fear of what the world had in store for me. So, that fear put me into fight mode and I was going to fix my hypocrisy. I was going to do something about it. 

In retrospect, that was God disrupting me. I needed a disruption. I had become complacent. I was living the life of a Pharisee. I was looking down my nose at other folks while my life was no more secure, free, or responsible than anyone else. And God smacked me right upside the life with the realization that I was full of shit. And it takes some humility to get yourself loaded on with that kind of reality. It’s heavy. BUT I had to come to terms with the reality. What was I doing? Well, I was not going to keep doing the same thing and expect different results. I needed to take that chance and make the change.

Motivation is the key. Sometimes we are motivated out of fear into greater things. Sometimes we are motivated out of love to do wonderful things. BUT we need our status quo disrupted. And Jesus came into the world and disrupted everything. He left the world a different place than when He arrived. He left us with love. He left us with faith. He left us with hope. Talk about a life motivated to answer the question correctly.

So, why am I doing this every morning? Why do I wake up and read and study the Bible? Why do I choose to fast and pray? Why do I choose personal responsibility and corporate accountability? Why do I choose to be part of His Church? What is my motivation for any of these things? Well, it is no longer fear. I am not afraid of what today will bring because I know God has got me. And I do not know much for certain BUT I do know that it is comforting to realize that God cares enough to get actively involved in my life. So, I care enough to get actively involved in His project.

Grace and Shalom to your home. 

#DisciplingTheUndisciplined #ThinkBetter #BeBetter #NoKingButChrist #EmbraceTheWithin #SeekFirstTheKingdom #ServeOneAnotherInLove #NotMyWayYHWH

Discipling the Undisciplined no. 18

“And whenever you pray, do not be like the hypocrites; for they love to stand and pray in the synagogues and at the street corners, so that they may be seen by others. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward. But whenever you pray, go into your room and shut the door and pray to your Father who is in secret; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you. When you are praying, do not heap up empty phrases as the Gentiles do; for they think that they will be heard because of their many words. Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask him. Pray then in this way: Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name. Your kingdom come. Your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. And do not bring us to the time of trial, but rescue us from the evil one. For if you forgive others their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you; but if you do not forgive others, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses” (Matthew 6:5-15). The church is full of hypocrites BUT we can always fit a couple more. And that is what I want to talk about with these verses today, hypocrisy. I like to talk about hypocrisy because I have been a hypocrite. I know a lot about the topic. I spent a lot of time living a life that did not align with what I thought my beliefs were. I said one thing and practiced another. The more I was confronted with the hypocrisy around me, I was forced to deal with my own hypocrisy. And that led to the change four years ago when I finally got tired of living the life of a Pharisee and I worked on recovery. I would like to tell you that hypocrisy and Pharisee are something that I overcame BUT I haven’t overcome anything. God has got me.

There is a huge temptation, for me at least, to rely on my own way. I relied on my own way for decades to get me out. When I started this journey it was all on my own way of doing things. And then, fortunately, I made the error of letting God take over and that ended my being in control anymore. And that was an error if I was going to keep doing things my way and not His Way. To me now, it is all gain. And it was not easy to give God control. And it is still a struggle to let God get me. BUT hypocrisy is something that never truly dies. It gnaws away behind the scenes. It wants to take credit for everything that I have and everything that I do. It wants to do things my own way. It wants to be its own god rather than enthrone Him. And hypocrisy is everywhere. Hypocrisy is in churches, in schools, in government, in business, in sports, in entertainment, in leisure, everywhere there are people, hypocrisy is there. And I have to fight the urge to give up on other hypocrites when I won’t give up my own hypocrisy. I have to embrace those hypocritical and Pharisee thoughts that elevate me above other sinners because I am a sinner too. 

I know that hypocrisy led me away from the church. Hypocrisy led me to struggle with religion and church folks. Hypocrisy has led me to see the hypocrisy all around. Hypocrisy has led me back to Him. Hypocrisy has taught me that relationship with Him humbles hypocrisy. Gratitude in prayer that is centered on what God wants, “Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name. Your kingdom come. Your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.” Gratitude for all I get in life, “Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. And do not bring us to the time of trial, but rescue us from the evil one.”  And forgiveness for hypocritical thoughts, “For if you forgive others their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you; but if you do not forgive others, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses.” 

Gratitude, forgiveness, and love go a long way to help the heart of a hypocrite. I strive daily to remember to, “Hear, O Israel: the Lord our God, the Lord is one; you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind, and with all your strength. You shall love your neighbor as yourself” (Mark 12:29-31).

Grace and Shalom to your home. 

#DisciplingTheUndisciplined #ThinkBetter #BeBetter #NoKingButChrist #EmbraceTheWithin #SeekFirstTheKingdom #ServeOneAnotherInLove #NotMyWayYHWH