Friday, February 21, 2014

Striving for a Counter Cultural Mindset & Living Limited.


Let the lowly brother boast in his exaltation, and the rich in his humiliation, because like a flower of the grass he will pass away. For the sun rises with its scorching heat and withers the grass; its flower falls, and its beauty perishes. So also will the rich man fade away in the midst of his pursuits. James 1:9-11


Oh, America. Land of affluence. Many days, I wish I could escape from your cultural pressures and the ingrained materialism that I've known all my life. I've only been to one other country... Canada. How do I live counter cultural when I'm bombarded by my own culture?

The Bible portrays an upside down value system from the American dream. We are to glory in our humiliation as the wealthy in this world; the poor are to glory in their exaltation. God cares deeply for the widow and orphan, He hears the cries of the poor. If we are apathetic in our indulgences, we are not acting like God. We are ungodly, indeed. And feeling sorry for a brief moment is not love; we love when we do something about it. I pray that we'd Google "starvation" and learn what it looks like to literally be "starving to death." Thousands of children will die today.

This is my constant struggle. Can I go without my wants today in order to help those who do not have necessities for life and have no Bibles among them? Must I stop for another Starbucks drink when I have plenty of coffee to make at home? Do I care what my materialistic Christian friends and family think of me if I wear used clothing, eat simple foods, and resist spending money on entertainment?

Help me, Lord, to live counter-culturally in America. The love of money is at war with our love of God. They cannot coexist. Our trips to Disneyland have eternal insignificance when God hears the cries of people dying in death camps in North Korea because they will not deny His Son.

I pray that we can sense this judgment in our personal lives. Lord, help me to fight this battle with your power, your mindset, and your love for the lost world and the starving believers. I pray that more American Christians would live for your Kingdom, and not this world, and earn eternal rewards.

Enter by the narrow gate. For the gate is wide and the way is easy that leads to destruction, and those who enter by it are many. For the gate is narrow and the way is hard that leads to life, and those who find it are few. Matthew 7:13-14


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