Standing Up When Wrong Goes Down

Michael and I entered the apartment complex to meet up with the girls, but the windows were down, and we could hear him screaming. Twice her size, he was hovering over her with his body and voice. It all made us turn away from our destination and drive slowly until he went to grab her shoulders. So we sped up and came to a halt, catching them in our headlights.

"HEY!"

You can only scream anything to stop something from happening; even if it is only "Hey!"

We both leapt out and told him he needed to leave now, and we would not be leaving until we saw him drive away. 

She stayed small for her own good, and he began to shrink a bit as well until he disappeared with his tail lights. 

Standing up FOR someone else is easier WITH someone else. Also, not really thinking about it through helps.

Natural can't be wrong?

"For the flesh sets its desire against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh; for these are in opposition to one another, so that you may not do the things that you please." -Galatians 5:17

There is a common reflection and understanding in our culture that if something feels or seems natural, it must be right.

A few problems arise here. First, some things only feel natural when they are not, in fact, natural. Some of these things might be unnatural and we want to believe they are. So we disregard what really might be true. Other things we have to realize disorders for what they really are. Our brains and hearts can be very deceptive.

On another hand, just because something may be natural does not make it okay or even best for us. I crave a lot of things that are not good for me, but my cravings are natural reactions in me for pleasurable things.

But finally, there is the understanding that our flesh, which is our natural state, is at war within us against the Spirit. Living my life lead by the Spirit is going to oppose all the natural cravings within me. When compared to the pursuit of the Holy Spirit life, we come realize why and how everything else is so much LESSER.

Those natural things inside us oppose the Spirit within us, and moment by moment we choose which to do. Those cravings are more powerful than we give credit. When we disregard how powerful those cravings are, we will likely begin following them naturally, and in so doing, have already begun opposing the Spirit within us. Those are the moments we get discouraged and wonder why or how we have come to do things we do not want to do.

Our cravings are strong, and they may even be natural, but they oppose the Spirit in us. We have to want the Spirit more than what feels natural.

* yes that is a donut burger up there

When I forgot all the wrong I have ever done

"To whom shall I turn for the gift of your coming into my heart so that I may forget all the wrong I have done, and embrace you alone, my only good?" - Augustine Where SHOULD I go; what should I do to really forget all the wrong I have done? Augustine poses a very piercing question. How do I embrace God alone? I have dedicated a lot of my life toward embracing God, but I have a horrible time with consistency. I say "a lot of my life" because of the many pockets of inconsistency. I only wish I really knew how to hold fast to God, to embrace him enough to forget all the wrong i have done.

Seriously! I am sitting here wondering what it would be like to actually forget all the wrong I have done, and frankly, it seems unimaginable. I cannot imagine that kind of freedom. What would it look like; what would it feel like to forget all the wrong you have done and to fully embrace God, my only good? That sort of freedom would mean that my past would never come back to kick me where it counts. That means I would not linger when I HAVE done wrong; I would be quick to my only good. That means I would only run forward in life without cease.