What have I done lately for someone that actually put me out in some significant way? Nothing. I like to think of myself as a servant. I mean my chief responsibility is serving college students right? Yes, it is; and I'm fairly sure that there are several that are benefiting from my influence in their life. But when was the last time I really had to sacrifice to make a difference? Those times are rare. My life is pretty much amazing. I face almost no conflict or adversity. Hmmmmmm. (Read that like Yoda says it. Go ahead go back and try it. No, not the whole paragraph, just that last word before this nearly pointless parenthetical derailment.) For a group of people who rally behind the sacrifice of someone (Jesus) as a historical, miraculous, cosmically, and eternally influential event; we do precious little sacrificing of our own. Going to church is not a sacrifice, no matter how boring your pastor is, that's not what I'm talking about. When is the last time following after Christ actually cost you something? Apathy, ignorance, and indifference are the norms today because we are a generation of spoiled and lazy infants who expect people to fight our battles, pay our way, and make us feel good about it; while we moan about how terrible everything is from the safety of our smartphone. I'm convinced that Christianity was meant to be different than this. I feel as though we have sorely missed the mark, and are now so confused about where the mark is that we have traded the pursuit of truth for the calloused whispers of the devil's deceptive mirage.
Writing this has cost me nothing. My prayer tonight is that our hearts would become fertile ground for the seeds of selfless sacrifice to take root--that the Church of Jesus Christ would again become selfless. That I would be both willing and able to love bigger, and try harder to shine the Light of Christ on those who need it most, even if it costs me everything.
He is no fool, who gives what he cannot keep to gain that which he cannot lose. - Jim Elliot