It may come as a shock to family members, or close friends of mine, but for most of my life I have battled with nearsightedness. They have never seen me wearing glasses, or heard me talking about my contact lenses. It just so happens that my nearsightedness doesn't require anything of the sort.
This nearsightedness is not my physical eye's failure to see objects in the distance, but rather my hearts inability to make present decisions based upon distant realities. I speak specifically of my failure to live out Colossians 3:1-4. What is described in that passage is what I call an eternal perspective. I believe that it is my failure to live with eternity in view which actually leads to what James describes as the "Desires that battle within you" (James 4:1).
In the end I find that my nearsightedness causes me to go the quick fix route, instead of getting to the heart of issues and seeking out real life altering change. Correcting nearsightedness is not a simple act of the will or a moment of passion and realization, but rather it is a long road of discipline. On this road we must receive the consequences for mistakes previously made, consequences which we thought we had evaded. Long lasting joy and satisfaction hang in the balance.
Saturday, July 12, 2008
Tuesday, July 8, 2008
Waiting
Waiting: that time where a person is caught in limbo, desiring something future, hoping for it's arrival, yet unable to presently obtain that which is desired.
Waiting tends to require patience, not a staple quality of the modern human. In an immediately focused society, patience often finds itself being tossed off as an unacceptable option. So as hard as this can be for me, I find myself forcibly accepting this unacceptable option.
Why?
Because of hope! All motivation seems to be driven by some measure of hope. Even inside of this banner title of hope, there may be two entirely different kinds of hope: the effect of hope, and the act of hope.
The effect of hope is a reason to believe a certain result will come to pass. for example, when stranded on a desert island you have hope of survival when you see a ship nearby or you catch a fish for food.
The act of hope is when you choose to pursue something that you wish would come to pass. Again on the island one would say "I hope someone sees this smoke signal".
As I find myself in a state of waiting I hope for an end that if I am honest with myself does not produce "the effect of hope". Still I act hopefully towards it, I pursue that end in as much as I can. I don't do this as someone who cannot deal with their present reality and must escape to a fantasy world they create to comfort themselves, but I do it as one who is so captured by the value of that which I hope for that he cannot but strive for it with all his might until he either has it or it is completely out of his reach. Still I can confidently say "it" is worth the wait.
Waiting tends to require patience, not a staple quality of the modern human. In an immediately focused society, patience often finds itself being tossed off as an unacceptable option. So as hard as this can be for me, I find myself forcibly accepting this unacceptable option.
Why?
Because of hope! All motivation seems to be driven by some measure of hope. Even inside of this banner title of hope, there may be two entirely different kinds of hope: the effect of hope, and the act of hope.
The effect of hope is a reason to believe a certain result will come to pass. for example, when stranded on a desert island you have hope of survival when you see a ship nearby or you catch a fish for food.
The act of hope is when you choose to pursue something that you wish would come to pass. Again on the island one would say "I hope someone sees this smoke signal".
As I find myself in a state of waiting I hope for an end that if I am honest with myself does not produce "the effect of hope". Still I act hopefully towards it, I pursue that end in as much as I can. I don't do this as someone who cannot deal with their present reality and must escape to a fantasy world they create to comfort themselves, but I do it as one who is so captured by the value of that which I hope for that he cannot but strive for it with all his might until he either has it or it is completely out of his reach. Still I can confidently say "it" is worth the wait.
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