like a snake in the garden

This past weekend I got to visit both sets of my grandparents for Mother's Day

My Grandpa Lynn and Granny Alice have, over the past several years, transformed their backyard into a Secret Garden-esque tropical rainforest paradise. There are flowering plants of all kinds, fruits and vegetables galore, and enough shade to make wandering through the rows bearable.

Their property backs to the Davy Crockett National Forest so it's easy to get lost in the natural and cultivated beauty.

My little cousin, Bella, and I took a walk along one of the neighborhood trails and found a field full of wildflowers, humming with bees and butterflies.

The sun shone warmly.

Birds flew in and out among the many feeders, giving us glimpses of colorful wings.

After our traipse in the garden, Bella and I returned to the house to treat our mosquito bites and join the rest of our family.

Later, the rest of the grandkids went outside for a game of soccer

(Bella and I had had enough mosquitoes though, thank you!) 

The game came to a screeching halt when, as my uncle retrieved the ball from the garden, he found a 5 foot long snake caught in the garden netting. 

Thankfully the snake was caught tight enough in the netting where it could not get out, and my uncle was able to kill it quickly.

(Taylor is insane. And super cool)

I'm not a snake expert, but I was told that this snake was a water moccasin (also known as a cottonmouth). It is a species of viper and its venom can be fatal. 

While I am so grateful that no one was hurt and that this guy is no longer with us,

it made me much more aware of the surroundings that I had carelessly skipped through earlier in the day. Enamored with the beauty of the flowers and sky, I neglected to put my guard up. Who knows how long Mr Fangs was hanging out in the garden? Perhaps he was there while I was leaning in for the perfect shot of the berries. 

I don't know about y'all, but one of the biggest ways that God speaks to me is through situations. Something happens (oh, like finding a snake in the garden) and then BAM- spiritual revelation, and God speaks wisdom through these scenarios. 

This reminded me of another snake in another garden. You see, a lot of times this is how I find my spiritual life. I'm oblivious to evil. But as Christians, it is important for us to be alert! 

^"Stay alert! Watch out for your great enemy, the devil. He prowls around like a roaring lion, looking for someone to devour. Stand firm against him, and be strong in your faith. "

1 Peter 5:8-9a

In my own power, I could never defend myself from the devil, just as with my bare hands I would never handle that snake. Instead, the armor of God protects me and gives me weapons to not only defend myself but to fight offensively!

 ^"Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. ¹¹ Put on the full armor of God so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes. ¹² For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. ¹³ Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. ¹⁴ Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, ¹⁵ and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. ¹⁶ In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. ¹⁷ Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. ¹⁸ And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests."

Galatians 6:10-18

This is not to say that we should never enjoy our life or that we should be paranoid

But when we let our guard down, we are more likely to 

give into lies

refuse forgiveness and harbor bitterness

and

miss glorious opportunities to love

So, I urge you, through the beautiful grace of God

put on the belt of truth and guard your integrity

put on the breastplate of righteousness and protect your heart

put on the shoes of the gospel and carry that life-defining story with you wherever you go

take up the shield of faith 

put on the helmet of salvation, telling yourself daily the story of God's love for us

and bear the sword of the Spirit, utilizing the power of the Bible and the Holy Spirit

and remember that you're not alone. 

"I have told you these things that you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world." 

John 16:33

have a blessed weekend, y'all

A Discerning Spirit

I've had no less than thirty friends on Facebook post this video this past week. 

It definitely has some poetic and legitimate points about God's grace 
and being an authentic Christ follower.

But the theology is a bit off, and without a discerning spirit, it's very easy to let some beautiful truths mingle with half truths, misleading phrases and blatant lies. 

We watched it and discussed this video in Sunday School this week because I wanted to be sure that my students were thinking for themselves. I want them to listen to a sermon, a study, or a video claiming truth about Jesus and be able to test it against the scripture they know in their hearts. 

My biggest concerns with this particular video were 

1) the claim that Jesus came to abolish religion and hated religion, and 

2) the inappropriate use of "It is finished" at the end of the video. 

First, the poem's thesis is that Jesus and religion are two 

completely separate and opposing entities. 

Now, it is a matter of semantics, depending on your perception of the word religion.

And I really think that what Bethke means is self righteousness, or legalism. 
But that's not what religion means, although there may be negative connotations associated with the word religion itself. Depending on the dictionary you use, religion means something like: an organized set of beliefs concerning a higher power, or organized worship. 


"Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophet; I did not come to abolish but to fulfill." Matthew 5:17


Christianity is a religion, one that is centered on Jesus.  
So I don't think He hates that 
(although people who follow Christ still sin, and He does hate sin.)


In fact, James 1:27 says "Pure and undefiled religion in the sight of our God and Father is this: to visit orphans and widows in their distress, and to keep oneself unstained by the world. "


And as much as it's easy to call out the church on everywhere it screws up, the church is there when natural disasters strike to help feed, clothe and rebuild communities; the church has helped raise awareness and crazy amounts of money to end human trafficking; the church has begun a nationwide trend in adoption that is NOT a last resort for families who can't have children, but rather an outpouring of love for children who need families. 


That is pure, undefiled religion.


As far as the ending, the final verse of the poem says,
"So for religion, no I hate it. In fact I literally resent it.
Because when Jesus said, "It is finished" I believe that He meant it.


Now if we refer to the fact that Bethke probably means legalism or self righteousness in place of that word religion, that line is understood. However, when he quotes Jesus, it can be misleading to the reader. It makes it sound like Jesus was saying that religion is finished, when in fact it was Jesus' sacrifice. It was the power of sin that was finished. It was God's separation from man, and salvation through keeping the law that was finished.  And using that quote out of context to serve the purpose of the poem is just not good, y'all.

I definitely appreciate the passion behind Jefferson Bethke's poem. 
His words aim to call a culture of church goers to be Christ followers
I know that a lot of older, wiser, more educated people have put in their two cents on the theology of this poem/video, but I thought that it was important to emphasize that we need to be examining whatever we put in our minds carefully. 


And because we are to represent Jesus in everything we do (Col 3:17), let's make sure that we know who Jesus is so that we can represent the true Christ, and not what we want Him to be or what's trendy in the young Christian subculture.  


I'd love to hear your thoughts if you've seen the video
or if you're so over this discussion already,
how are you careful to distinguish the true Christ
from what's trendy at the time?