Trying to tell time with Dali's clocks.

So, I couldn't help but think we were a little over our heads today in conversation. Notice, I did not say that "I" was in over "my" head. We were trying to grasp the characteristics of God. The only time I think humanity could grasp the characteristics of God would be in the Garden of Eden. In class, we were told to think of three words to describe God. If it were a test, I probably would have failed. I only came up with one: indescribable. Since humanity is fallen, we have a skewed view of God compared to life before The Fall. The only two ways to decipher the true character of God is through Scripture and through revelations. Even through revelation, discernment needs to be made for whether or not God is truly revealing something or not. For example, if someone is being told "by God" to do something that directly goes against Scripture, they probably aren't being given revelation by God. Unless one of two of these is happening, then it is impossible to determine the characteristics of God. It is like trying to tell time with the clocks in the Salvador Dali painting I posted above. We have a distorted view of God, and it is not because God changes, but instead because our perspective is from a sinful state.

Commented on Tinsley's "Tommorow is fresh"

Tomorrow is fresh, with no mistakes in it :)

Today in honors, we briefly touched on what is actually possible to do in the Christian Faith, and what is impossible for us to do in this life, as we cannot gain perfection.  We specifically talked about this in regards to praying constantly, and this is a tricky subject for me.  After all, the Bible doesn't state this as a suggestion, it says to pray constantly.  In the same way, it says, "Be perfect, as I am perfect."  My human brain wants to obey the Lord; I want to be perfect, and I want to pray constantly.  Is it unfair for the Lord to set us a standard that we can't follow?  Or... can Christians actually be perfect?  Can we actually pray constantly?

I suppose I started thinking about this when I realized how often I make excuses, saying that God will work in me "If it's His will to do it."  I'm excusing my imperfections and inaction by giving myself the out of "God's will.".  It is God's will for us to be perfect. As Christians, we have been freed from the bondage of sin, and can therefore, apparently, pray constantly and be perfect.

However, whether or not we can actually be perfect and pray constantly is extremely debatable.  I'm just saying that because we've been freed from the bondage of sin, we have a choice. It might not be an impossibility.  Jesus gave us commands, and these are tough.  However, perhaps more than doing these exact things, these are the standards we're supposed to hold ourselves to, as they are the standards God holds us to.  He expects us to be perfect, as He is perfect.

I know I'm rambling about this, but I hope y'all can follow my thought train.  I guess the quote from Anne of Green Gables kind of sums it up: "Tomorrow is fresh, with no mistakes in it."  It has potential for perfection, can we "Go, and do likewise?"  At any rate, that's the standard we're being held to.

P.S. Commented on Rebekah Dye's :)

Perfectly Possible

The Cloud Author mentions another spiritual hierarchy similar to St. Bernard’s degrees of love and the Medieval Meditative Ascent to the Intangible, only his uses simpler terms that are relatable to modern Christians. The Common and Special stages both allow room for both a passionate pursuit of our Maker while living in the world without living like the world. The Solitary and Perfection stages require removal of all earthly evidence in our lives. Unlike Bernard, the Cloud Author firmly believes that Perfection can be achieved but that it is rare to reach this level of perfection and unity with God. The main difference between Bernard and the Cloud Author is that while Bernard maintains that this feat is humanly impossible, the Cloud Author recognizes that it will only be possible through God. It can only be achieved as long as we desire it with our entire being. Once our desire is evident, God steps in and guides us toward Him. Not because man has any divine authority or because we have the ability to live a pious, sinless life, but because God can take that tainted sinner and make him whole again and draw him  as close to his Creator as he can get while trapped in an earthly body. It’s not that this is impossible (because in God all things are possible) but that no person has ever achieved this. Monks have tried; Elijah and Enoch probably came closer than anyone if they didn't achieve it.

“Your whole life now must be one of longing, if you are to achieve perfection. And

this longing must be in the depths of your will, put there by God, with your consent.

But a word of warning: He is a jealous lover, and will brook no rival; He will not work

in your will if He has not sole charge; He does not ask for help, He asks for you.”

The trick is to surrender every aspect of your life to Him. Does this mean sell your iPhone, sleep in a cave, and starve yourself? No, it means allow God to enter into your life. Like your best friend, take Him with you wherever you go, consult Him before making decisions, and spend every spare second with Him. This is my take on “praying without ceasing”: to lift your thoughts toward Heaven at all times.  I heard it said this way: Don’t ever say Amen as an ending to your prayers. You can say it but don’t let that be the end of your prayer. Keep the lines of communication open all day. I think the reason I’ve always thought of it that way is because you and God are the only ones who will ever hear your unspoken thoughts, and what’s more intimate than that? Remembering that God hears every single thought helps keep me focused on Him when I’m discouraged. 

What does love for God look like?

Today in Honors there were some very serious questions proposed. They were extremely thought provoking and had my head spinning at times. The one that stuck out to me the most was the question of loving God, and why and how we do that.

Is it possible to love God? Although this seems like a silly question, one to which we would immediately say 'yes, of course' to, it can get a little deeper. In order to truly love, you must put aside yourself and think of others. As creatures of selfish nature, that is almost impossible to do. Especially in the case of loving Christ. How often do we only go to the Lord in bad times? The times when we need Him to do something big and miraculous for us?

If you go into a relationship thinking, 'what can I get from this person?' instead of, 'what can I GIVE to this person?' you have entered the relationship all wrong. It's not about getting anything from them, it's about giving back to them. Christ has already done the ultimate thing for us. We must now live everyday trying to give back. It should never be about getting things from Him, but we can do for Him now that He has DIED for us.

Can we reach that place? Can we get to the place where our love for God is completely selfless? Oh how much easier life would be, if we could.

I commented on Emily Laforce's blog, "Really Knowing"

Really knowing

The cloud of knowing was really thought provoking for me because it made me question what was right and wrong. Should we sit alone and think about how sinful we are and let ourselves be overwhelmed with sorrow? What is the purpose of this? is it to help you realize how much you need God or is it something the writer feels you have to do to get closer to God? I suppose everyone needs to come to the end of themselves but should one really punish oneself like that? When I first read the cloud of unknowing I wondered if making yourself miserable about your sin was selfish because it was saying that you have to do something for God to accept and love you. However, I'm not exactly sure what to think but I guess that's Honor's for you. I thought it was interesting that you have to put away all your senses and outside distractions to focus on God. Its a lot like meditation, but on God instead of yourself or an object or emotion. I really enjoyed this reading because it made my head hurt cause I thought about it so much. Those are the things that really change you. (P.s. commented on jamie's)

Poetry in theology

So much of the Medieval Christian writers seem to speak poetically. I think post- enlightenment we often think that the empirical search for knowable truth can't involve poetry. How beautiful that here it does! It appeals to truth which is deeper than mere ratio. Ratio with the arts, with beauty.

"you are wisdom, uncreated and eternal
the supreme First Cause, above all being,
sovereign Godhead, sovereign goodness,
watching unseen the God-inspired wisdom of Christian
People."


It's beauty, it's art. I love it. I wish I could get inside the minds of these Medieval theologians and try to understand how they connected Christ to art and beauty and truth. Any thoughts on this? Does anyone have any books/authors they can recommend on this holistic approach?

I commented on Rebekah Dye's Post

The Wise Turk

"I would rather be ruled by a wise Turk than a foolish Christian." These words are popularly attributed to Martin Luther, but he did not actually say them. The quote is (perhaps erroneously) thought to be a loose paraphrase of what he said in his "Open Letter to the Christian Nobility of the German Nation":

It is said that there is no better temporal rule anywhere than among the Turks, who have neither civil nor temporal law, but only their Koran; and we must confess that there is no more shameful rule among us, with our spiritual and temporal law, so that there is no estate which lives according to the law of nature, still less according to Holy Scripture. (1)

That is not to say Luther wanted Turkish rule--he certainly did not! (2) In context he was not praising the Turks but mocking the Roman papacy in his day. Even so, the apocryphal quote gives us food for thought. Who is more fit to rule: the wise Turk or the foolish Christian? The idolator with strong political acumen, or the saint with no skill in statesmanship?

In the Middle Ages, which would have been preferable: to be a Christian under Muslim conquerors who brought a primitive form of religious toleration, or a Muslim under Christians crusaders who scarcely tolerated their own? Even with the numerous restrictions and withholding of 1st, 2nd and 3rd amendment rights, it is arguable that Muslims afforded Christians better civil protection than Christians granted them in turn.

(1) Qtd. from Veith's Luther's "wise Turk" quote that he didn't say.
(2) In the same letter, Luther writes, "But as the pope is Antichrist, so the Turk is the very devil. The prayer of Christendom is against them both."

EDIT: Reworded post to sound better.