A Daily Challenge

I love Jesus, that is no surprise to anyone reading this. I believe that the Bible is the inerrant Word of God and that the only way to make it to Heaven is to accept God's gift of salvation, to believe the Scripture as recorded in the 66 books of the Holy Bible.

Yet, do my daily choices reflect those beliefs? Am I doing everything I can to live a life worthy of calling myself a Christian? Am I showing the Lord my gratitude through my actions?

Those should be questions that we ask ourselves each day. Each day we need to feel challenged to live the Christian life in a way that not only shows the world where our faith is, but shows God where out heart lies. Because our actions are somewhat dictated by our hearts. If I REALLY love God and REALLY want to serve Him, than I'll do what is necessary to overcome the flesh, the sinful side of my nature and I'll tap into the Holy Spirit's guidance and I'll do what is right, but it is a daily, even minute by minute challenge.

There are areas of life where I really struggle and I know that I'm living in the gray area and a big part of me quite frankly enjoys the gray. The gray is where the fun (for the flesh) happens. Living life when everything is black and white is not always "fun". It isn't fun to say no to certain activities, at least not in the short term.

While we life for today and realize that God hasn't promised us tomorrow, we also shouldn't live just in the short term. Our focus shouldn't be "Does this bring me joy now, does it satisfy me now?" Our focus should be "Does this choice help me please God and protect my future joy?"

For example, sex is a big issue in society. God created sex for many reasons. God created it as a means of procreation. God created sex as a means of gaining deep intimacy. God created sex to burn calories, for fun, for creativity, for excitement. God also created sex as a way for 2 humans to see on a limited scale just how close the Holy Trinity is. Just as in sex 2 people become 1, the Trinity is always 1.

In the right context sex is great and holy and should be enjoyed to its fullest. Go forth and do it! But in the wrong context, sex is a sin. Sex was designed for marriage. A man and a woman get married and then sex is a GO--but not for anyone else. That man or woman can have sex only with their spouse.

But here is where it gets to the gray area and where a lot of Christians have very deep held beliefs as do non Christians. What constitutes sex? No really. When the Bible talks about sex is the Bible just talking about penile to vaginal intercourse? Or does it include all forms: fellatio, cunnilingus, sodomy, etc.?

A lot of conservatives will say that it is ANYTHING sexual, even beyond what I mentioned---things like petting and french kissing are included in the sex act of marriage. On the other hand, the more liberal people will say that Biblical sex is when the penis enters the vagina, that is what should be saved for marriage (and the conservatives will come back with "those people are just trying to justify their behaviors").

Sex, which some may consider a black and white issue becomes a gray area issue. Just what do you consider sex (I know, you feel like we are back in the Clinton era)? This is just an example of how complicated life can get and why it is such a daily struggle to live a Christ honoring life.

I think part of the solution is to learn to not see life as what we can get away with, but what can we do to glorify Christ? Another way to look at it: it isn't about how close can we get to the electrified fence without feeling a buzz, but what can enjoy within the confines of this great big yard called Biblical living? God calls us to a life of higher standards, but He doesn't call us to a life of boredom.

The Christian life should be the better, the more freeing choice. Yes, it is a daily challenge to get there and see just how much freedom we have in Christ, but it is worth it. Oh boy is it worth it! And, yes even the heroes of the faith struggled with sin. It isn't about achieving perfection, but it is about the striving for perfection, the journey and the want. Like they say "Aim for the moon, and when you miss you will land among the stars"