I was JUST listening to the radio after I got back home and heard a refreshing sermon:
Idolatry is much broader than just a guy sitting with a pig figurine juxtaposed to candles and such... Idolatry begins when we first try to postulate anything about God that is not God. When we seek God in something that is untrue, we are committing idolatry. The most advanced stage of idolatry leads to the formation of a new god of our liking.
God's supremacy, nature, and attributes are revealed in only one place. The Bible. However, it's impossible to understand his nature... to know what He is like. Thus, the only way of understanding some of Him is by seeing what He is NOT like. Most of our descriptions about God include a negative. What I mean is, or what the guy that was talking on the radio means, is that that we cannot say God is holy without referring to the only thing we DO know... sin - we know that God is NOT sin. In the same manner, when we say that God is love, we automatically refer to the love we know here on Earth. So when people say "God doesn't love me" they are saying that the love they know is the supreme, perfect and the ultimate design and form of love in the universe. Hmm...
The same way that we say God is omnipresent, people have come up with pretty good questions: For example, if God is really omnipresent, doesn't that mean that He is tainted... that He is impure, because that would mean everything on Earth, including all of the atrocities of human beings is within God. Doesn't his omnipresence also mean that when the Bible says "and He was far from them" or ... He was near them... it's placing a flaw in God's attribute? The man on the radio said this: We have to think of God in 2 ways: Both essence, and relation. God is everywhere in essence, but He may be indeed be farther or closer to some in RELATION. One thing is for sure... there cannot be the RELATION part without the ESSENCE part being omnipresent in the first place. Lastly, God is not affected by/changed by the impurities of this world. He is everywhere in essence, but He does not mingle with impurity.
Lastly... God as an infinite being. Holy smokes... This one got me. I'll let you think about this one :)
One day at school, I receive a call from someone a lot older than me. I met the man in one of my classes last semester (can you guess which one? lol) and he wanted to get lunch. He's a very nice guy. Has a girlfriend. Studies hard. It's obvious that he prefers speaking Korean over English. I decide I'm going to buy some Wolfgang Puck and he chooses to eat the same thing as well. Then, he says he's going to pay for my food.
I reacted with a frantic "what?!" and I suppose I startled the guy. To be honest, I don't really know him TOO well and I thought it was asking too much for him to buy me food, even if he was older than me. In Korean, he tells me not to be so suspicious of him. I apologize and we just laugh it off. A bit awkward, even for me ^^:
As we're eating, however, he tells me that he has been lonely. Apparently, he doesn't have too many friends, since they all graduated already, and is constantly just studying. Though he goes to church regularly, and has, I bet, an awesome girlfriend, he was still lonely. At the moment, I didn't quite know how to react. I mean... how many people come to you and say that they're lonely? Of course, we went into a discussion about his faith and his silent study habits, and we finished the conversation by me offering prayer and giving him resources where he might find satisfaction and joy learning about God. But at the same time, I learned that loneliness is an issue that most of us keep to ourselves. Hence, I was very thankful that this man came with such a humble heart and in need of companionship because if he hadn't, who knows what he or the other person he asked to lunch might have done.
A few weeks have passed and I now find myself in a similar situation as him. Suddenly, I find myself guilty of not following my own advice and hence am a hypocrite. Always was. But this made it oh so clear...
There is definitely a very human and tangible side to all of this... loneliness. In the midst of trying to find a way to vent and express my thoughts, I realized that there is no one to listen. Not only that, even if there are a few people online on AIM, who wants to bother them right? It's one of the difficulties I face when I get too caught up with school, work, and just.. the daily routine. Hence.. I've concluded that I need to meet people. That I am at my best when I am in front of another human being. Reason being... I come out of myself. We all do, when we are in the presence of another human being. Perhaps it explains my great joy when I am able to help someone out - it gives me that sense of accomplishment, but also, it reminds me that the very act of communicating is crucial. I don't know if you've seen the "Clerk Expression Compassion for Robber"video that was on the news, but it serves to emphasize the importance of communication. I'm starting to feel better already :) Check out the first minute of the vid.
Now this doesn't change the fact that I need to change the way I do things when it comes to loneliness. Yes, there is the very human communication aspect and we should make sure we're communicating with others often, but this is another place where God's glory can also shine brightly. It's actually quite simple. Humans are social beings, and God is wanting and willing to talk to us/with us. If you see things in such a perspective, there's a magic that happens here... suddenly, loneliness becomes a joy, when we imagine the loneliness that God faces in a world that is lost. Our Christ on the cross must have been so lonely... despite the many people there that were weeping for him. To understand, even a fraction of this loneliness and His suffering, all of it becomes a priviledge and an amazing opportunity to further understand His love for us, which is so amazing, so compassionate, and so inclusive. It makes me close my eyes, breathe deep, and think about the possibility that what I feel now, might have purpose too! That God is teaching me, growing in me, even during a time when things appear dry, cold, and devoid of human presence. God hasn't forgotten my prayer during the good old elementary school days that I may one day become a great man, and He continues to refine me, even during the quiet times at night, when you and I are alone.
Let's not forget to truly love our neighboors. Sometimes, the person in need is hiding right around the corner. Human communication is a gift and we should do our very best to do it in a way that is pleasing to the Lord. In that regard, let's not forget about the constant communication that is always happening between Him and us; the all powerful, and ...well.. lonely little us.
Tonight, I'd like to begin by writing about something I wasn't originally intending on writing. My apologies if you have to reread a few sentences ^^;
I would like to begin tonight by saying that for the first time, I told someone that FAIL = MY LIFE. I said this because I experienced a series of unfortunate events after having enjoyed a great Saturday. My friend and I laughed this statement off at first, but I later realized that this "equation" is a really good summary/description of what a lot of people feel - That because they are.. for example, not smart enough in school to get A's in his/her exams like in organic chemistry, not good looking enough to face the camera with confidence when someone says "PICTURE TIME!", and not physically fit/adept enough to want to go out for church/school ministry fellowship, that their life at that moment is, in short, a fail.
When I undergo such trains of thought, I realized that I seriously have to question my motive. Reason being....
Failure is relative. We might indeed fail to carry out our duties to our family and friends, fail to study early enough for an exam, and ultimately, fail to do our best or what is expected of us from society. If someone is indeed seeking a life of failure, their lives will be ... a fail, in the sense that his/her relationship with people have become detrimental, not just disappointing or frustrating, to the point where he/she is a social outcast - nobody wants to be near you. That means jail. Oof....
In the discussion of failure in life, however, I did not mention once about eternal failure after this life on earth. Eternity was left out entirely. This is where I need to ... well, look sharp - 정신 차려 - snap out of it - w/e way works best for you, and realize that the equation FAIL = MY LIFE is the wrong equation/mentality to have. In short, the real equation that matters is JESUS + MY LIFE = WIN, because that's the only equation that will earn you and I the A+ that we want so much in the field that actually matters. We as believers should always have an eternal perspective in mind. With such an eternal perspective, our outlook and motive of our life should completely be transformed. Failures now have meaning. Failures now become opportunities for transformation of our habits and life styles. Failure is now no longer our fear. Our focus becomes pleasing Him. Eternal consequences. Such a mentality should give us a sense of urgency to what matters most! Life in Heaven. Suddenly, my goal is now to bring as many people to Heaven with me. To save, by the grace of God. Suddenly, my life has meaning. I win not just in life, now I win eternal victory.
If you think I'm telling you that your life on earth doesn't matter, you need to look sharp - 정신 차려 - snap out of it - etc. :)
