Playing God

Many years ago, as I began to center on pastoral/chaplain ministry, I enrolled in a class called, 'Addictions and Grace.' Those two words - Addiction & Grace - they didn't seem to go together in my mind, but I quickly learned that they did.
They still do - more than the average Christian realizes.

In this class, part of the requirements were to attend addiction meetings such as Alcoholics Anonymous. Every person in the class had to go to an AA meeting; but we also had to go to another type of addiction recovery support group that was similar to AA.
In seminary, you don't run into too many people who are members of AA, so this was a new experience for most of the students, including me.

The AA meeting was held in a basement of a local church; it was small and included people from various walks of life - you could tell by the way they dressed.
As they went around the room, I watched the people stand and state their name, followed by the declarative statement, 'I'm an alcoholic.'
When it finally got to me, I didn't know what to say - I didn't want to tell these people in recovery I was just there to observe; I knew it might shut them down. So, when it came to me, I stood and said, "Hi, I'm Jack, and I'm an ALCOHOLIC." 

The response - "Hi, Jack."

The Christian exists in a time period that lies between the Cross and Resurrection to Eternal Life. As such, we live in a state of decay with the promise of hope to perfection.
For those in AA, the first thing that they must learn is that that they need to stop playing God, trying to repair and restore their lives - the Christian would do well to learn the same.
Only God can restore a human life and repair it towards the hope He promises.

Yet, this desire towards the hope of the resurrection and eternal life with Him isn't something we can see; but it is something we know is true by faith and by the witness of the Holy Spirit.
Throughout our lives, we have been given 'helps' to our faith, pulling us closer to God and pointing to His truth through His Son.

Commander Richard Byrd, during an expedition to the South Pole, once lived without any sunlight for four months. He was quoted as saying: 
"I find I crave light as a thirsting man craves water."

When it comes to faith, as we mature, the Christian should crave the Light of God more than anything else. Sometimes it is an intentional seeking after the Lord and sometimes, especially as one matures in the faith, they begin to seek after God intentionally, naturally, even without thinking.
And this Light we are given, it comes from the hand of God and comes through various avenues.

For example, in my life, I wonder where my faith would be without the writings of John Calvin or C.S. Lewis; or where would it be without the adoration of Charles Wesley's hymns or the musical contributions of Beethoven and the classic composers. 

I'm not sure I can answer that because I was introduced to these early in my faith - to me it seems as if Augustine is an old father who waited for me to come to his books and some of the music was waiting to be heard.
I can say these shots of reflection in my life only served to make the true Light shine even greater for their writings and their music was evidence of the true essence of God - beauty, love and truth.

And what I have learned from these men of the past, and some women, is that faith isn't something you settle into and it isn't something you can learn like learning to swim. 
Faith is a skill that every Christian must learn to master as a second nature, just as we have learned to breath as an involuntary action in our first nature.
We master this skill in triumphs and defeats; tragedy, trial, turmoil and victory - each of these has their place when one is dependent on God for the true joy of life by faith.

As a Christian, I realize that the main priority in my life is to seek to please God.
The old confession teaches that our chief end is to 'glorify God and enjoy Him forever.'
This can only be done by seeking to please God.

When a man seeks to please God, there is a freedom that enters his life; it is a freedom from the worries of the world.
A person going through the motions of grace will soon find that the motions without the reality of grace only hardens the heart.
But when a person lives for God, you might stroke my ego or chew me out but either way I am going back to the cross under any circumstance because Christ is my chief end.

In the end, my faith is a constant transformation in my life; as it is for every person. 
This transformation continues throughout our lives, but it does not come from an act of will; rather, it comes from an act of grace by faith in the Lord.

We can only ask for it and then, keep asking.

Until next time, win one for the good guys.