FLYING IN THE FACE OF FEAR

“Fear is not real. The only place that fear can exist is in our thoughts of the future. It is a product of our imagination, causing us to fear things that do not at present and may not ever exist. That is near insanity. Do not misunderstand me, danger is very real, but fear is a choice…..” Cypher Raige(After Earth)

The thing that paralyses us the most from pursuing our goals is fear. We are afraid that we might fail; afraid that people would reject and ridicule us; sometimes we are even afraid that things may turn out bad if we succeed. These fears paralyze us and make us unwilling to take risks.

Some of our fears are highly irrational. Not the natural fear we experience in times of danger. I'm talking about the fear of the unknown; the fear of a possible future that may not happen. It is irrational to let that kind of thing get in our way of engaging in our god-given passions and pursuing relationships. I know many people who have shied away from potentially meaningful relationships out of fear that the friendship will deteriorate if things do not go well. Whenever you hear the voice of doubt telling you: “what if things don’t go well?” reply by saying, “what if it does?”

Moreover, If you want to do anything that will impact your life and that of those around you; if you wish to engage in activities and causes that will bring you satisfaction and make you happy, you must be ready to make mistakes. Rest assured that because you're not omniscient you’ll make the wrong moves sometimes and things won’t always work out as expected. The key is having the tenacity to keep trying and chasing you goals after one or several failures.

It’s interesting that most people who have achieved great things in this world have had great failures. Littering the backyards of the lives of great achievers are failed projects, unaccomplished hopes, and dashed dreams. Unlike most of us, they didn’t let these things hold them down. They learnt from their mistakes and adjusted their endeavors accordingly

One of the greatest things Jesus has delivered us from is fear. He conquered death in order to deliver us from the fear of death. He delivered us from failure by triumphing in every way and becoming a curse that we might be blessed. He also delivered us by making us who we are-accepted, loved, forgiven and resurrected regardless of whatever actions we do. This gives me freedom. It means I no longer have to define myself by what I do or what I have achieved. All that matters is Christ. He is my definition; “As he is so are we in this world” (John 4:17). As a result, I do not care how the outcome of my actions looks. I am free to take risks because my success or failure does not define my being. Neither does it define yours. So get up, get out, and do something. Do not let fear rob you of the joys of going for what you love dearly and potentially succeeding at it.

I’ve heard it said that courage is not the absence of fear, but carrying on in spite of our fear. I think that’s a very apt statement. We all have apprehensions; we all wonder if things will work out fine. But we can’t let that rule our lives; otherwise we might not get out of the bed in the morning. Let’s learn to fly in the face of our fears knowing that what we fear may never come to pass.

COSMOS REBORN BY JOHN CROWDER

If you are feeling worn out by your spiritual life, wondering whether or not God still loves you, tired of the constant struggle to keep all the rules and principles which you've been told must guide your life. Then i think you need a heavy dish of happy theology, and in "Cosmos Reborn" John Crowder serves it up really nice. This is theology that will make you leap and shout for joy. It will make you fall in love with God again as he explores how much God is in Love with you.

Now make no mistake, this is not some mamby pamby, lovey dovey, silly book. John Crowder unpacks a lot of concepts in simple easy-to-read form; this is Trinitarian theology for the regular guy. In Cosmos Reborn John writes about a wide range of topics; from the incarnation to good works to Hellfire and universalism. He explores them from an Incarnational Trinitarian perspective. This is heavy stuff. But he writes it in a fashion that the regular guy can understand. It's not simplistic and dumb, it's just simple

Needless to say, I thoroughly enjoyed this book. People have the idea that theology is just a bunch of abstract thoughts on religion by stuffy academicians who wish to make life more complicated for everybody. The truth is whether you like it or not or know it or not, your life is shaped by a bunch of theological concepts. Theology is nothing more than the logic of God; it's our thoughts on how and why God operates in our midst. The truth is we all have our ideas about how God thinks and the wrong theology will lead you to a life of misery, performance anxiety and constant guilt. The right theology is shaped by one simple fact; Jesus is the one and only template through which we can know God. He is God and there is no sinister GOD behind his back waiting to get us.

This is the crux of Trinitarian theology and it is the principle behind John Crowder's thoughts. The premise of the book is that through Jesus Christ, the recreation of the Universe took place, given the very biblical fact that the whole universe exists in Jesus Christ; the second person of the Trinity (Colossians 1:15-17). With that in mind, he begins to look at all aspects of Christian thought from that perspective. I would suggest you do the same too.  In case you don’t have the time nor the energy to do the same, (which most people don’t) I’d suggest you simply get yourself a copy of this great book. It is very disturbing to me that the word Trinitarian has become a bad word in modern evangelical circles. It’s almost as if to say you’re Trinitarian is to say you’re a heretic. At the same time, all these people pay lip service to the fact that they believe in the doctrine of the trinity. I wonder, are we supposed to say we believe in the Triune God but not allow it to shape our lives? I suspect that many people have not taken the time to really think about that concept and its implications on our spiritual life. This is due in part to the disdain for theology perpetuated by many leaders in charismatic and evangelical circles.

I don’t wish to spoil it for you by delving into any of the topics. I’ll just encourage you to get the book, read it and be happily surprised at just how good this good news is.

Disclosure of Material Connection:

Now I have to say this (seriously, I do): I received this book free of charge from the publisher and writer via the Speakeasy network, I'm not under any obligation to write a positive review and the views I have expressed are entirely my own. I'm writing this disclosure in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission's 16 CFR, Part 255

JUST DO IT

Remember that old Nike slogan, “JUST DO IT”. I feel like that’s my motto right now with this blog. Frank Viola has mentioned that there are two types of writers; the plodders and the crammers. The plodder keeps writing no matter how painful or uninspired he may feel, he just keeps plodding along on the keyboard and then edits it to suit his taste until it becomes gold. The crammer on the other hand waits- even if he’s got a deadline- until he gets a burst of inspiration and then crams all those words in within a shorter period of time.

I think of myself as a little bit of both. However, the side of me that wants to be hip and only do things when I feel like it has been taking center stage for the past couple of months. Alas, there hasn’t been enough inspiration; hence no blog posts of recent.  I must admit that there were little bursts of inspiration every now and then, but rather than take that as impetus and start writing, I would procrastinate until I completely lost that train of thought. Procrastination is indeed the thief of time.

A few days ago I came to a realization; I have to embrace the plodder in me and just write. No more waiting for the stars to align and for my circumstances to be favorable, everything will fall in line as I begin to just do what I want to do. For example, the three paragraphs you have just read came from the simple thought to “just do it”

I think this is something for you to consider too. We all have hopes and dreams. Things we want to do, places we want to go, hobbies and interests we wish to learn. Sometimes it’s best to just get off your butt and do what you want to do. Of course, it’s good to plan things out, especially if you're thinking of starting a business. Be wise, gather the capital and the knowledge you need to make it right. Just don’t spend the rest of your life at the drawing board. Take some calculated risks, put yourself out there, live a little, buy the form, go to the classes; just do it. As you do, more often than not you’ll find things beginning to make room for you to reach your goals.  Just do it

I feel inspired to write more along these lines- so I will. You might be wondering what this has to do with the Father’s love, it does and I intend to explore it later on. Suffice it to say that God’s love is what is exhibited in the things you love to do. You love those things because God loves them and he has placed that same love in your heart. So if theres something you love doing, know that God is on your side and “just do it”

"THE BILLIONAIRE'S GIFT" BY EDWARD IWATA

First of all, I would like to explain the reason for another long hiatus; I was extremely busy and suffering from serious writer’s block. Secondly, I haven’t really had access to the internet on my computer for a while now, which makes it kind of difficult for me to post anything.  As a matter of fact this review was supposed to have been posted weeks ago. So without further ado, here it goes.

“The Billionaire’s Gift” is a strange book. It’s strange to me because I don’t really know how I feel about it. The reason for that is partly because the majority of the book reads like one long introduction. He spends so much time introducing the characters; telling us their history, detailing life impacting moments in their past e.t.c while giving us bits and pieces of the story. This might be a style of writing other people enjoy, but I personally find it frustrating. That being said, the book tackles some important subject matter; the poisonous nature of greed and the vanity of pursuing the accumulation of wealth.

It tells the story of an old billionaire (of course) who reflects on his life and sees his whole life of chasing nothing but money as an absolute waste. He then tries to make the rest of his life mean something. It promised to be a good book, but I was sorely disappointed; partly because of the aforementioned long introduction and partly because I felt the story was too short. (This of course might have something to do with almost all the chapters of the book feeling like introductions!!)

This book is Edward Iwata’s first foray into non-fiction. I must admit I've read worse debuts. I wouldn't say it’s a bad book, it just whet my appetite for too long and became quite miserly on the main course in my opinion.

Disclosure of Material Connection:

Now I have to say this (seriously, I do): I received this book free of charge from the publisher and writer via the Speakeasy network, I'm not under any obligation to write a positive review and the views i have expressed are entirely my own. I'm writhing this disclosure in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission's 16 CFR, Part 255

Recommended Books

People always ask me what book and materials they should get in order know about this gracious God.and how to "walk it out". These are a bunch of books I believe will help you in your Grace walk. Check them out and have a great time with the Lord. they are by no means exhaustive and I will update them regularly

THINKING NAUGHTY THOUGHTS BY JOHAN VAN DER MERWE

If you are an intelligent man in the Church, you have definitely had naughty thoughts. Naughty thoughts are those thoughts you have about the weird and strange practices that you know do not really fit with the teaching of Jesus or are just counterproductive; the sacred Cows that are not supposed to be touched. The Church is filled with so many ideas and practices we have been conditioned to just accept, we are told that things are the way they are because that’s the way they’ve been. When people begin to poke holes and question these concepts, Scriptures are twisted and misconstrued to sustain them. The person questioning is branded a heretic and sometimes excommunicated from the fold

Johan Van Der Merwe is one of such people, he refused to just accept the status quo and started thinking deeply about the way we practice Church life. These thoughts have led him out of the institutional Church and into developing and living a more authentic, relational and communal life with fellow believers. In “Thinking Naughty Thoughts” he shares these thoughts with us and gives a few conclusions of his own. With chapters like “Do I really need to belong to a local Church?” “Why all the fuss about leadership when Jesus hardly ever spoke about it?” “Why does the pastor insist on 10% of my income when he drives a luxury car and I can hardly make it through each month?”   And my favourite; “Do you really expect me to believe that God lives there?”  You know that it’s an interesting read

However, Johan didn’t write this book to give you answers about the things that have been bothering you concerning the traditional way things are done. He writes this book to spark the discussions and the thought processes that will lead us to a more balanced and wholesome way of being the Church. He does lend his opinion about some topics and I don’t always agree with him. I think he can handle that. Johan doesn’t strike me as someone who will be have a good opinion of someone who swallows ideas hook, line and sinker. We are individuals whose lives have been shaped and conditioned in unique ways. It’s only right for us to not be on the same page on every single detail and that’s alright. And that should be especially alright in the church. As a matter of fact, here’s a quote from the book

“Why can’t we sit around the same fire or build meaningful and intimate relationships with people whom we generally like and get along with quite well but disagree with on some points of belief and doctrine? Why is belonging to the group you belong to with your set of beliefs a prerequisite for our friendship and fellowship?”

On this point, I agree with Johan 100%.  One of the points I disagree with him most strongly about is the attempt at trying to determine whether or not a Church is spending too much on its facilities instead of using it for charity. This is something common among people from the emergent and organic church “movement”. The argument that churches are wasting money because the amount that is being spent on equipment and managing the building could be spent on the poor and the needy. Now hold on, before you start yelling “Yes!!! The Church is being wasteful and you should know that too!!!”  Please hear me out. Who are we to determine how a person should spend his money. What is the prescribed ratio of spending on oneself to spending on the poor? Should I buy clothes for the poor and fund a homeless shelter rather than build a house for myself and my family? An honest answer to this will be “It depends on what God tells you” These are not things we can determine for individuals neither can we determine them for Churches. They are solely dependent on our relationship with the Holy Spirit. We cannot judge people on such issues, otherwise we become legalistic and whatever is being done by the Church for the downtrodden is never enough and whatever she does for herself to have a more conducive and fun meeting is too much.

In conclusion, the book is not about someone who has got it all figured out and is now teaching us how to do it. At best it is about someone who is still on the journey and is sharing some of the insight he has gathered along the way. The book is not too long (only about a hundred and ninety pages) and it’s an easy read. So if you have been thinking naughty thoughts, this book will encourage you and clarify some issues. If you haven’t been thinking naughty thoughts, open your eyes and smell the coffee. This book will also be helpful in that regard

You can purchase the book on amazon by clicking the link below

CONSIDERING THE WORK OF HIS HANDS

Not too long ago I celebrated my birthday. I have reached a milestone age in my life and it was worth celebrating. I didn’t have any party plans in mind so I just spent it praying and in the evening my siblings, my mother and my dear friend came over to celebrate with me, my wife and my son. It was a good day. People called me from far and wide, I received various congratulatory text messages and it all had the makings of a glorious day

But when you hit a landmark age in your life, you can’t help but reflect on the things that have happened. So I did, I started taking a critical look at my life and I must admit I was very disappointed. I wasn’t making as much money as I would want to and a few things that I expected to have happened were either not happening or they were happening contrary to my expectation. This frustrated me and it kind of numbed me to all the love I was receiving for the rest of the day. I wasn’t involved in what was going on around me any longer. Here I was surrounded by family, who were being entertained by my bright baby boy and all I could do was sulk internally and be aloof.

Of course my wife knows me better than anybody and she asked me what was up.  I proceeded to explain to her in few words the things bothering me and she tried her best to cheer me up and remind me that I was loved. I should stop focusing on the bad stuff, it will be there tomorrow. Instead I should focus on what was going on at that moment in time and enjoy the day. That sounds awfully similar to Jesus’ admonition that we should not worry about today, neither should we worry about tomorrow (Matthew 6: 25-34).

At first I found it hard to shake off the dark cloud over me. But then it became more and more obvious to me that the more important stuff in life were standing right there in front of me; good friends, a beautiful and loving wife, an awesome son and a loving family, divine health for me and for all that surround me. These things are priceless and eternal. The things I was worried about (it all boiled down to money anyway) are temporary, they do not have eternal value. They were just things that empty people hold on to in order to cover the loneliness in their hearts.

It is always important to focus on the good that God is doing in our lives instead of all the evil Satan and this fallen world confronts us with.

“EVERY GOOD AND PERFECT GIFT IS FROM ABOVE, and comes down from the Father of lights, with whom is no variableness, neither shadow of turning” James 1:17 KJV (emphasis mine)

All the good things in our lives is from God, whether we know it or not. He does not do evil and I found out that I only had to take a cursory look at my life to see those gifts. He that gave me these things of value will also take care of our other needs.

I know it can be hard to see these things sometimes. Life hits us hard, and sometimes we don’t have many people like I just said on our side. But I encourage you to take a long hard look at your life, you’ll find something good and that thing is from God. Focus on that, and let God see you through your challenges