Pooper Scooping

As the holidays are approaching, we will be handed a new set of challenges.  The people that we deal with daily will be put on hold.  For those of us who are lucky, we will be surrounded with family and friends that we don't see on an everyday basis.  For this reason I must remind myself of this lesson.  It is a rerun.  It was highly unpopular due to it's topic.  But honestly, it is what keeps Christians from being who they are meant to be in this world.  Yep...sin.  Dad always said that his least popular sermons were on sin.  Well, here it is again.

Dealing with sin is a lot like pooper scooping my back yard. It is a dirty reality of living with two big dogs.  If I don’t deal with it daily, it takes over and ends up in places I never intended.   As a Christian, rather than denying that I sin, I need to take the advice James gives on how to restrict sin’s grip on me.  Wouldn't it be wonderful if after becoming a Christ follower you were never again tempted with sin?  All you have to do is take a close look at any Christian in your life to know that is not how it is. Did I quit being a human when I became a Christian? Why should I expect to be perfect in my Christianity on this earth?

The book of James is full of practical advice for living out your day-to-day life and is written by James the brother of Jesus Christ.  James is not afraid to address the stuff we don’t like to deal with...like sin.  Sometimes flowery words, smiles and hugs are just nothing but fake and I need the truth, stripped down and simplified.  And what is more, James writes as one with experience with the same issues that trip me up everyday. 

When I was teaching, if I could understand how the mind of one of my students worked, I could better deal with them in my classroom. So let’s look at how sin works so we can better deal with it.  I found information on these verses in my inherited Broadman Bible Commentaries that was most beneficial. It said that James unfolded human sin from it’s conception to death in the following verses.

James 1:14-15 NIV

 [14] but each person is tempted when they are dragged away by their own evil desire and enticed. [15] Then, after desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, gives birth to death.

The way I understand it, sin originates in our minds as desire.  This would be something that we think would fill the hole in our soul and make us feel whole for a moment.  It is a kind of momentary high in the form of a thought. Next, we are lured, enticed, convinced or deceived by this thought.  Then comes the actual fleshing out of the sin.  In my case, it is usually words spoken in haste. Then, James points out in his usual abrupt way, that when this is full-grown, it gives way to death.

My reaction to this death part is “Well, that is harsh”!  When it is my sin, it is not that bad in my estimation.  I minimize the affects of my sin in my mind to soothe my conscience.  But in reality, my sin has caused death.  In the case of my usual sin, (words spoken that are hurtful), this blurted information causes death to a belief in the listener.  In some sins there is a more direct connection with death, for example texting and driving which is far too often a direct connection. Just like the wages of work is a paycheck, the wages of sin is death.

So what is James practical advice for this sin problem? 

James 1:19-22 NIV

[19] My dear brothers and sisters, take note of this: Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry, [20] because human anger does not produce the righteousness that God desires. [21] Therefore, get rid of all moral filth and the evil that is so prevalent and humbly accept the word planted in you, which can save you. [22] Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says.

He knows sin is going to happen because we are human.  However, we can follow his practical advice to limit sin’s grip on us. Here is a summary.

In verse 19 he tells us to slow down.

In verse 21 he tells us to get rid of the moral filth.  

In verse 22 he tells us to get busy doing good.

How many times would I have stopped sin in its tracks if I just slowed down, took a breath, and asked God to help me get a grip on my emotions? This slowing down takes prayer, patience and practice. I am working on this in baby steps and some days most of those steps seem backward.  To people with a temperament like mine, the struggle is real. 

And second, what about ridding myself of my sin?  Jesus worked that out for us a long time ago. Confess it to him.  Did I mention John?  Well, he has a thing or two to say on this subject. 

1 John 1:9 NIV

[9] If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.

That is it. Done and done.  Confess it and believe it.  Also while we are talking about ridding, what about taking steps to rid your life of the some of the things that trigger the sin? Gossipy negative friends, Twinkies, or social media may be a trigger.  If we really want to deal with our sin issue, we must be willing to take the difficult steps.  

And for the last piece of advice in James 1:22, when I am occupied with doing good, I do not have as many opportunities to start the sinning process which begins in my mind. Think about it. Doing good requires the mind, soul (attitude) and body of the doer.  I love what a dear friend and fellow educator tells her graduating students, “Go out there and do good.”  Doing good solves so many problems before they start. 

This, my friends, is pure gold right from the pen of the little brother of Christ. 

Martha, Martha, Martha!

One of my favorite scriptures is Luke 10:41-42 New International Version (NIV)

⁴¹ “Martha, Martha,” the Lord answered, “you are worried and upset about many things,⁴² but few things are needed—or indeed only one.^[a] Mary has chosen what is better, and it will not be taken away from her.”  

In my twisted sense of humor I always see Jesus saying, Martha, Martha, Martha! I imagine that he said it with the same exasperated tone of Jan Brady.  Stick with me here.  There is a point.

I love sermons.  I am a preacher's kid and I dearly loved my dad.  I guess that is why.  Some of my greatest 'ah-ha moments' were from sermons.  I had one last night when I was listening to my pastor preach on the above 'Martha' scripture where Martha was busy in the kitchen and frustrated with Mary who was ditching the kitchen duty to talk with Jesus.  My pastor said the point was not that we should do more, but that we should make better choices between the many good things in our lives because there is only 24 hours in a day and life is short.  So my pastor asked us to think about the things that are most important and essential in our life, the most important of the good things. You see, in the story in Luke 10, Martha made a good choice but Mary made the RIGHT CHOICE!  So much of managing this life is ditching the many good choices to make room for the right choice.  

This made me think of the best choice I have ever made in my life.  I chose to get up earlier every morning and spend a quiet time with God (and coffee😉).  This one choice was a game changer yet I didn't make that choice until I was in my mid 50's.  Before then, I spent time with God but at night or whenever it was convenient.  My relationship with Christ  was not a priority but an afterthought. The lack of priority was reflected in all the good things I chose to do.

Why didn't I to do this sooner in my life? I was a believer since I was 7 so I had certainly thought about this.  But here was my thought pattern:

1. I'm not a morning person. I'm just better at night.

2. I'm not a fanatic Christian.  That would scare people off of Christianity.  

3. And on and on...

What was I doing?  I was boxing myself and my relationship with Christ in with excuses.  Like those boxes inside of boxes, I was boxing myself into an even smaller box with every excuse.  I can imagine Jesus saying in the tone of Jan Brady, 'Susan, Susan, Susan!  Mary made the better choice and it will not be taken away from her.  Come on out of all those boxes and let's have a heart to heart conversation'.

The Voice

I needed the new dog harness that kept popping up on my Facebook screen.  Two clicks and it is no more neck pain for my pooches.  All I had to do was click, choose the color, size and give them my credit card information.  At first I waited.  Then I saw the postcard from vet clinic that said it was time to take my three-year-old black lab, India, for shots.  Memories from a year ago in the vets office flooded my mind. When it was India's turn to walk into the back for her shots she bolted out of her collar and hid behind a big guy with a brave little chihuahua.  I had to drag her 75 pound quivering body down with the help of the vet assistant. There was no way I was going into that office with that same collar!  

So, I bought it. Actually I bought two because I have two dogs. If I buy two I will save shipping cost later, right? It is a week until the appointment.  If I hurry and get it ordered, it will get here before then.  The small voice in the back of my mind, which sounds a lot like my husband, said, “What do you know about that dog collar company”?  I ignored it just like my actual husbands voice.  After all, I needed to order it fast or it wouldn’t get here in time.  The next morning I had fears and regrets.  I googled the ratings of the dog collar company.  There it was in glowing black and white, a Better Business Bureau rating of F.  Grrr.  I knew better.  What makes me do these things? When will I learn to listen to the common sense voice in my head? And how can I get it right next time?  

Analytically, breaking down the series of mistakes that preceded my bad decision, I now realize my first thought was embarrassment over my poorly behaved dog.  This was fear about what others will think. Second, I saw the pressure of hurry; I had to get the harness before the appointment.  How often do I rashly answer to a ticking clock?

I realize that in the big picture, the dog collar decision is not that big of a deal.  But everyday life decisions like words spoken that I can never take back are what IS important. I must recognize it when I do things because of fear and pressure of time. It was fear and pressure of time that pushed me to make the poor decision on the dog collars and it is often this same thing that makes me choose to ignore the most important voice of the Holy Spirit.  He whispers his guidance but the 'fears, wants and needs' of this world are in my face and I don’t listen.  I must invest time into learning to hear the voice of the Holy Spirit.  I must practice bringing my fears to God in prayer and slowing down to listen to his voice daily to get it right.  This is imperative.  The enemy wins a much bigger battle when I rush around.  

And yes, I do need to learn to listen to my husband's voice better too.😏

WWLD?

Lisa McCandless was perfection in my eyes.  Everyone in 4th grade loved her, even our quick-tempered teacher.  Everyone.  I was her not-so-popular classmate and soon decided to study Lisa to learn her tricks.  She had long straight hair that was always perfectly in place and wore fashionable clothes that never got wrinkled and her knees never had big scabs from the latest bike wipeout.  But more than that, I studied the way she interacted with my classmates. Then I discovered it.  She was quiet. She never expressed her thoughts to anyone. When, or if, she had a critical thought, it never crossed her lips.  Knowing this must be the key, I set out to be like Lisa.  I had a plan and I was determined.  I tried like I never tried before to keep my thoughts to myself until I thought I would explode!  It took about a week, but explode I did!  I gave up.  I could never be that person.  I had no self control and was thoroughly discouraged to the point of tears.  This was my first experience with self-help.  And all others since then have ended in much the same way.

One of the first scriptures to resonate with me was this one from the letter of Paul to the church at Rome:

Romans 7:15-20 (NIV) I do not understand what I do.  For what I want to do I do not do, but what I hate I do.  And if I do what I do not want to do, I agree that the law is good.  As it is, it is no longer I myself who do it, but it is sin living in me, that is, in my sinful nature.  For I have the desire to do good, but I cannot carry it out.  For I do not do the good I want to do, but the evil I do not want to do--this I keep on doing.  Now if I do what I do not want to do, it is no longer I who do it, but it is sin living in me that does it. 

And then in Romans 7:25b So then, I myself in my mind am a slave to God's Law, but in my sinful nature a slave to the law of sin.  

Fast forward 50 years: Last night I was reading a top-rated, very popular self-help book by a Christian author and was very disappointed that this was a point that the author glossed over.  She forgot that on our own, we can never win over our own impulses.  She made it sound like it was only a matter of grit, determination and a good counselor.  I have learned in my life that some may make it much further than I did with my Lisa imitation, but in time we all will fail at overcoming our chains.

What a downer! So are we hopeless?

The answer is a resounding NO!  Just keep reading where I left off in Romans.

Romans 8:2 (NIV) because through Christ Jesus the law of the Spirit who gives life has set you free from the law of sin and death.

That's right. God knew this and sent a solution to our life of slavery to the sin in ourselves.  Not only this but he sent help to live in us, guiding us and giving us power to conquer these chains.

Romans 8:5-6 (NIV) explains the gift he left for us like this:

Those who live according to the flesh have their minds set on what the flesh desires; but those who live in accordance with the Spirit have their minds set on what the Spirit desires.  The mind governed by the flesh is death, but the mind governed by the Spirit is life and peace.  

What a beautiful rescue.  What a beautiful God.  He loves us so much.  Am I able to control my thoughts and mouth now?  Well, only when I submit to the control and power of the Holy Spirit living in me.  Anyone who knows me will tell you it is not a way of life yet.  Continual living according to the Spirit is a goal.  Some moments I submit, some moments I grovel in my fleshly mindset, imitating the latest 'Lisa'.  It is a comfort to know that there is a source of victory over my selfish ways and I am a work in progress.

If you want to know more about this life of peace, just keep reading where I left off in Romans.

Susan