"We rarely ever think on what's eternal, those are the only things that matter at all."
- Ross King

Like I said in the previous blog this one has some type of order and seriousness to it. Since this is a type of online journal I thought it only fitting to say what's on my mind and how God has been working things out in my head. if anything, this would be titled "eternal significance". Recently I was talking to people at small group and I said that God has been calling me to be radically different. Actually I think He calls not just me but every true follower of Him to be radically different. But since I can only control myself I took this as a personal conviction. Now being radically different has a lot to do with eternal significance because in order to apprciate eternal significance you have to not only be different from the world but radically different. James 4:4 says, "You adulterous people, don't you know that friendship with the world is hatred toward God? Anyone who chooses to be a friend of the world becomes an enemy of God." The word friend (yes everybody I looked up the word friend) in Greek means, oh my gosh, friend but it also means he who associates familiarly with one. I found that to be particularly convicting in my life where I associate myself a lot with the world. Also look up Rom. 12:2 and Phil. 4:8 for more insight on what it means to live different from the world. What's so cool about the Bible is there isn't a lot of room for error. I mean either your an enemy of God or not. Of course God's grace is there and He has already forgiven us for our sins. Take a look at Phil. 3:7-8. If everything is crap save Christ then what the heck are we doing? So what? What's my big deal? Going back to school for me is going back "in to the world". So in order to live like God wants me to I have to be on gaurd. Satan, I think, doesn't care if you sin blatantly as long as your focus is off of what's important. This is where eternal significance comes into play. By thinking on heavenly things that means not thinking or listening to, or watching or wearing or saying or joking what this world listens, watches, wears, says or jokes about. Of course I fail on this almost certainly everyday. There are some obvious things (like swearing, watching porno movies, etc.) that everybody knows are wrong and I don't have a big problem with those. But it's humor, gossip, music, complacency (yes I think that stems from focusing on the world not God), etc. that pervade the church today. This is from my experience to anyone thinking that I don't struggle with these things you can get that out of your mind right now. Oh, I forgot one (at least one), stealing, i.e. pirating music, video games. Of course I'm not perfect in this either, I have priated software on my computer right now, and of course I rationalize it. The church in America is in a little bit of trouble. Of course I'm not Bible scholar or professor in socialogy in the American Evanglical church but 1st Tim. says that us young'ns have the right to speak up. Of course what makes up the church is indviduals. We have to turn things around. Now don't get me wrong, the church (specifically local churches) are doing a lot of things right. I love Harvest and I think that we as a body truly are searching for the will of God in our lives and church. But as individuals we have to distinguish ourselves as completlely and utterly unattracted to the things of this world compared to the Cross of Christ and what it means for us. (at this point I would like to interject a suggestion to read Don't Waste Your Life by John Piper) We not only need to be different than the world (what I like to call, "I don't really sin!" syndrome) to being radically different. What I'm not doing is saying that we shouldn't have any non-christian friends, watch no tv and only listen to Christian music but we (especially myself) need to take an introspective look at ourselves and then do something about it. We need to stop trying to live mere excellence and strive for obdience. Excellence is a term that is a relative term but obedience to God is something that is absolute, once again, either we don't obey or we do. Of course somethings are harder to know if we are doing the right thing but most everyday issues we know whether they glorify God or not. For me, I know what I'm doing, I just choose to rationalize it or put it out of my mind. We need to change our lives sometimes dramatically, in order to be different. That may mean not watching or listening to somethings, perhaps we should even delete those pirated songs (egads did I just say that, but i don't want too!) but are we trying to please ourselves or the Lord, are we striving for excellence (which it may be perfectly fine by other standards to pirate software or cds) or obedience? John 14:23 says that to show God that we love Him we must obey Him. Just take a look at 1 Pt. 1:14 that says "As obedient children, do not conform to the evil desires you had when you lived in ignorance." Just think! What would happen if I deleted my software, or we deleted all but the songs that we had bought, or that we said we wouldn't watch that, or didn't laugh when a friend told a nasty joke or left when gossip was being told! What an extreem way of living! Of course, I'm not saying that it will be easy or that more people will like us (we should do these things with love and not in a judgemental or haughty way, but that's another post). I think that sometimes we think that the Christian life is made to be easy, to have a good time and to have lots of friends but I just can't see that either Biblically or historically. Christians have always had it hard. Like I said at the beginning, since I can only control myself, this is a personal conviciton and that it's my thoughts. It's not my intention to make people upset, mad or guilty but eternal things are significant because they are the only things that last! I hope that this has in someway encouraged you, and/or challanged you. If anyone wants to alk about how we can live radically different lives talk to me, I don't got it all figured out. If you made it through this entirely too long, completely preachy blog, I salute thee. And give you ten points. And a cookie. If not, you suck, just kidding! But you would have never read that anyway so I'm not kidding you suck! And with that I'm out, later.