In Eugene Peterson's chapter entitled "The Last Word on Witness" in the book Reversed Thunder, I read the following:
"If ordinary, daily Christian conversation is not to congeal into a sodden mush of platitude and cliche', it needs to be in touch with the rich, vibrant reality of the supernatural, the invisible vitalities of God who, Psalm 18 tells us, "rode on a cherub."
I don't want a "sodden mush"...do you? Aren't you tired of all the banalities? Doesn't your soul long to talk about more than the latest book, movie or celebrity gossip? Don't you thirst to talk about things that matter?
I do...and odds are, so do you.
If you really analyze most of our media...whether texting, Facebook, Twitter, print, internet or television...isn't most of it a "sodden mush". Believe me, I am just as guilty as anyone else! And so much of this carries over into the majority of our conversations...even among Christians. My conversation so easily degenerates into things that don't matter...who said what, who did what, what I did, what I said or where any one of us went. Don't believe me? Just take a few minutes to run through your Facebook homepage and ask God for His perspective about what really matters. See what I mean?
So why, if we call ourselves Jesus followers, do we not talk of the things that matter...which of course, are the things of God? My experience has been that a lot of us just don't want to hear it. I've even been told I used Holy Spirit or God too much in my conversation. Hmmmm? Interesting isn't it.
But thankfully, the Holy Spirit (sorry...gotta give credit where it is due!) has brought a few ladies into my life that do love to discuss the things of God. These ladies love Him first and foremost and it is not only evident in their speech...but also in their lives!
Sure, we talk about healthy eating, our kids, our home school curriculum, our churches, our needs, our fears and our doubts...but lurking (for lack of a better word) always in the background or mentioned right out in the open is the reference and deference to the God who gave us all, loves us most, knows us best and longs to draw us closer. What an amazing gift I have a few times a month to sit down and chat with these ladies! And there are a few that don't have the time to sit down with me regularly...that's okay too. I seek out the opportunity to chat with them at home school co-op or other places, even if it's only for a few minutes.
I realized yesterday just how quickly my own conversation degenerates away from the things of God yesterday. I was tired, it had been a rough morning in the nursery at co-op and someone was annoying me. I said something judgmental to someone sitting next to me and Holy Spirit brought me up short. I spoke up to the person I'd made the comment to and said something like, "It really is none of my business is it? It really has nothing to do with me?" Thankfully, she was honest and said, "You're right, it's not." Right there in that moment, God wasn't even mentioned and she affirmed to my heart the things of God that matter.
And overall, Peterson's point is that witness is simple "truth telling". But it's a Truth that unfortunately the world doesn't want to hear. "The witness may be a hero to Christians, but in the world the witness is solitary, suspect, ignored, and occasionally abused." Peterson's observations sometimes extend to inside the church as well.
I make no claims of being a bold witness and my mostly good-natured intentions have sometimes been misconstrued as being pretentious instead. There have been many miscommunications on my part and misunderstandings on the behalf of others. There have also been times when I thought no one but God could possibly understand my heart. I've survived the storms that have come and as only He can do He has helped me even thrive. So on this day...in this season of my life, I'm ever so thankful for the five ladies with whom He has intersected my path. Our conversations may sometimes be sporadic as we play hit or miss with our schedules, but when we do have opportunity to share, the conversations are 'rich, vibrant, real' and full of the "invisible vitalities of God".
Amen!
"If ordinary, daily Christian conversation is not to congeal into a sodden mush of platitude and cliche', it needs to be in touch with the rich, vibrant reality of the supernatural, the invisible vitalities of God who, Psalm 18 tells us, "rode on a cherub."
I don't want a "sodden mush"...do you? Aren't you tired of all the banalities? Doesn't your soul long to talk about more than the latest book, movie or celebrity gossip? Don't you thirst to talk about things that matter?
I do...and odds are, so do you.
If you really analyze most of our media...whether texting, Facebook, Twitter, print, internet or television...isn't most of it a "sodden mush". Believe me, I am just as guilty as anyone else! And so much of this carries over into the majority of our conversations...even among Christians. My conversation so easily degenerates into things that don't matter...who said what, who did what, what I did, what I said or where any one of us went. Don't believe me? Just take a few minutes to run through your Facebook homepage and ask God for His perspective about what really matters. See what I mean?
So why, if we call ourselves Jesus followers, do we not talk of the things that matter...which of course, are the things of God? My experience has been that a lot of us just don't want to hear it. I've even been told I used Holy Spirit or God too much in my conversation. Hmmmm? Interesting isn't it.
But thankfully, the Holy Spirit (sorry...gotta give credit where it is due!) has brought a few ladies into my life that do love to discuss the things of God. These ladies love Him first and foremost and it is not only evident in their speech...but also in their lives!
Sure, we talk about healthy eating, our kids, our home school curriculum, our churches, our needs, our fears and our doubts...but lurking (for lack of a better word) always in the background or mentioned right out in the open is the reference and deference to the God who gave us all, loves us most, knows us best and longs to draw us closer. What an amazing gift I have a few times a month to sit down and chat with these ladies! And there are a few that don't have the time to sit down with me regularly...that's okay too. I seek out the opportunity to chat with them at home school co-op or other places, even if it's only for a few minutes.
I realized yesterday just how quickly my own conversation degenerates away from the things of God yesterday. I was tired, it had been a rough morning in the nursery at co-op and someone was annoying me. I said something judgmental to someone sitting next to me and Holy Spirit brought me up short. I spoke up to the person I'd made the comment to and said something like, "It really is none of my business is it? It really has nothing to do with me?" Thankfully, she was honest and said, "You're right, it's not." Right there in that moment, God wasn't even mentioned and she affirmed to my heart the things of God that matter.
And overall, Peterson's point is that witness is simple "truth telling". But it's a Truth that unfortunately the world doesn't want to hear. "The witness may be a hero to Christians, but in the world the witness is solitary, suspect, ignored, and occasionally abused." Peterson's observations sometimes extend to inside the church as well.
I make no claims of being a bold witness and my mostly good-natured intentions have sometimes been misconstrued as being pretentious instead. There have been many miscommunications on my part and misunderstandings on the behalf of others. There have also been times when I thought no one but God could possibly understand my heart. I've survived the storms that have come and as only He can do He has helped me even thrive. So on this day...in this season of my life, I'm ever so thankful for the five ladies with whom He has intersected my path. Our conversations may sometimes be sporadic as we play hit or miss with our schedules, but when we do have opportunity to share, the conversations are 'rich, vibrant, real' and full of the "invisible vitalities of God".
Amen!
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