A lesson in physical science...

When I was in high school, my physics teacher Mr. Ironsmith was known for two things (at least that I can remember): being a very hard teacher and telling great jokes. I remember one lesson where he was describing to us the concept of density. He put in front of him two bricks wrapped in construction paper. He passed one brick around so that everyone could feel how heavy it was, meanwhile explaining how density is based on mass and volume. The brick was pretty heavy. Once everyone had inspected the first brick, he took the second one, and with all his might, threw it at us. We cringed and jumped to get out of the way, but there wasn't a need. The brick fell to the ground without so much as a thud, because it was made out of nothing but construction paper and styrofoam. Even though they both looked heavy, on the inside one was much lighter than the other.

It works the same way with us when it comes to our actions. We seem preprogrammed to measure our progress towards being like Christ based on what we do--how many times we go to church, how much we drop in the offering plate, how many times we slip up and say things we shouldn't. And if we find ourselves not making the cut time after time again, we start to get this idea in our heads that says, "I'm just not cut out for this stuff. I'm not strong enough or good enough to be what I'm supposed to be." But the truth is, God isn't as much concerned with what we do as He is with where our hearts are. Regardless of whether we mess up once or a thousand times a day, we mess up. Nothing changes that. But what matters is our response to it. Is it repentance and dedication to get up and try again? Or is it to just sit and wallow in our defeat (or apathy) and not even bother trying next time?

C.S. Lewis in Mere Christianity talks about the attitudes that, little by little, turn our souls toward heaven or hell. He says that there can be just as much malice in an act of hatred that tells a falsehood about a friend as there is in one that causes the bloodshed of thousands. I would take it a step further. I would go so far as to say that a man who kills a thousand people, if he is truly repentant and tries to turn from his ways, whether he is successful or not, is closer to Christ than a church going deacon who lies about his brother and has no intention of changing his heart. In God's eyes, the actions mean nothing; only the heart that at least attempts to make things right matters.

My point is this--when I find myself failing God again and again, instead of wallowing in defeat for the evil that is in my heart, I should let go of what has happened, pick myself up, and try again. And even if I fall a million more times, so long as I am truly repentant and give it my best the next time around, then I am still just as much walking towards Christ as I ever have been. Like David said in his psalm, "the sacrifices God desires are a humble spirit--O God, a humble and repentant heart you will not reject" (Psalm 51:17).

So if the reason you see yourself as an outcast is because you feel less than the others around you and you think you're a "bad person," let me fill you in on a secret. We're all bad people; that's why we need Jesus. You're no worse off than anyone else. And to be the "good person" that you think you need to be, all you have to do is be repentant and try to do better. God's grace takes care of the rest.

Feel free to comment or ask questions. I'm always here.

Keep Soaring,

B