from ridiculous to regular to revolutionary

“Pray for me. I had a checkup 2day. I tested positive 4 sexy. I'm allergic to haters. My blood type is ballin, my pulse is pimpin and the Dr. says this is why I'm hot.”

I heard this today as I listened to a sermon on Song of Solomon. The pastor was describing how a personal trainer at his church was training a rather out of shape woman. Now, this woman had the trainers number and after some training... (she was still out of shape, but had gotten to know & like this trainer).. she had decided to come in one day & claim that she just had a triple-decker, cheese/bacon burger. Now since she had just eaten this monstrous burger, she knew that there was a “chance” something bad could happen after her workout. ON this day, she decided to use that opportunity to fake a blackout in order to see the trainers reactionary care for her.

I use this moment to remind you of what can happen when a woman starts pursuing a man & reversing the natural order of leadership that God intended for relationships. I mean, according to the Bible.. a man is supposed to be the one to lead & initiate a relationship. Why, you ask? When they don't... this is the kind of crazy/stalker/stupid stuff that can happen. You get women eating way too much (or too little) & passing out for attention... (or drinking lots for attention, or popping pills for attention, or having sex before marriage for attention).

Back to the crazy woman story though...

Now this same woman quit the training soon after that (since she was obviously in it & motivated by the wrong reasons in the first place). Could we have ever seen that coming, really? You laugh.. Some of us will quit on God because of the same type deal. We “train” with him because of what we think we can get out of him.. but when he's not interested in taking our bribes and cheap swindling offers.. we decide we've had enough of “the game”. WE give up.

(I should probably stop preaching long enough to finish the story.. for real)

Anyways, this woman... not working out with the trainer anymore.. decided that she was going to start sending awkward/lewd/weird/amazingly annoying/stupid text messages to her former trainer. The quote from the beginning of this article is from one of her text to the trainer. Just in case the craziness of “said text” hasn't set in with you, I will quote it again:

“Pray for me. I had a checkup 2day. I tested positive 4 sexy. I'm allergic to haters. My blood type is ballin, my pulse is pimpin and the Dr. says this is why I'm hot.”

How do we stop this madness? HOW? REALLY HOW????

Here's my proposed solution. WE start with Romans 8. WE read Romans 8 and then we realize that we don't have the proper context on that even until we real Romans 7. IN this we see the battle of “spirit vs. flesh” & the battle of doing what God wants vs. doing what we want. Now, Romans 7 & 8 would remind me of a need to read Colossians to further magnify what this is all about. It's about my identity.
If I am IN CHRIST, then I no longer care so much for backwards, self-seeking things of the world. IF I am IN CHRIST, then I no longer even want to speak in such a way as to please men, but to please God instead. IF I am in Christ I will want to focus on the heavenly things. We see this “IF I AM IN CHRIST” further brought out in Colossians chapter 3. Don't take my word for it, read it and see!

But this isn't where it ends, no! What does this then remind me of? After I read Colossians I am reminded of the “world vs Christ” scenario yet again.. this leads me to read the book of 1st John & in 1st John I am quickly reminded that the one who claims to be in & of Christ should walk the same way that Jesus walked. I am also reminded that the world & flesh & all of its passions & lusts are passing away. I am reminded what love is & what it looks like & how it operates when it is truly perfected! This then brings me to a further focus on love & it reminds me of Ephesians 5 & how Christ loved the church. This then reminds me of 1st Corinthians 12, 13, 14 (to fully contextualize) & shows me that the great function of the church is to love & that love is the most important thing. It shows me that I can technically even be a minster for a church & have many great spiritual gifts but not have love!

That last statement scares me.. because.. we have so many growing people & churches in America. We have so many people growing in knowledge (be it secular or spiritual) but I would wonder if they truly have love. WE have people who are so good at so many things.. but the scripture says that I can be good at even speaking on Christ behalf & still not have love!!!! Is this why so many backwards relationships are happening? Are we good at doing & saying “love” but not BEING “love”? The scriptures testify that God is love... holy.. and righteous.. and pure.. and full of life.

What is our love? Is our love holy? Is our love righteous? IS our love pure? Is our love full of life to the full? This is what Jesus came to bring.. he says in the book of John that he came so that we might have life & have it to the FULL!!!!! How do we maximize that?

I really think it is only by dwelling on the scriptures repeatedly & often... even many times daily. See, I prompted you & myself with a question earlier in this article & then I attempted to answer it somewhat. There was no quick way for me to answer it. AS soon as I mentioned one scripture on it, I began to think of another that interconnected with that one in order to shed deeper insight unto the issue. This is how God works. He uses all of scripture to collectively edify & teach us. WE can't get stuck on one passage or one issue.. all of it can teach us through the spirit of Christ. However, this can only happen if we are seeking to have the mind of Christ.

When we do this, we begin to be fully transformed in word & thought, in mind & heart, in deed, in spirit & truth. What can this lead us to do regarding such controversial things as relationships? Here's what it helps me to do & say. I can't speak for everyone, but I can speak as to what & how the LORD has dealt & is dealing with my own heart.. & he will search it even further & see if there is any hurtful way in me & purge it & bring that part of me to light as well.. because that is my prayer.

1)“Dating” isn't dating. The world & Christ have differing views on how to love & respect & hold & cherish a woman... as a bride or even potential bride. It doesn't matter if we use different terms for dating than the world if we end up doing the same thing in action.

2)How can I set up boundaries? What do those boundaries look like? Is it okay for me to even kiss her? Would kissing her now be opening something that would lead me to cherish future intimacy with her less ?

3)How will I react when others question the contrary approach of loving her the way Christ wants me to instead of the way the world thinks I should? How will I handle this in a public manner? How will I handle this in a private manner? How will I show myself to be a leader in this & take initiative so that she doesn't feel alone & ostracized because of loving/living purely as Christ would have her live?

4)How will we truly keep Christ first.. even in our daily talking & commotion? It is not enough to cut off worldly elements of a relationship if we are not going to substitute those worldly elements with Godly elements.

5)How will I keep a list of thoughts such as this from merely being a list of things that I plan to put into action? How can I make this stuff practical?

6)How will I remind her that she is a jewel & a crown to me.. despite the fact that her boss & others might treat her like garbage on a semi-daily basis?

7)How will I keep pursuing her even once I have her?... because true love.. Christ' love.. keeps pursing you even once it has you.. like the Psalmist says in the Hebrew.. it is like a hunter almost.. you can even hide from it & it still pursues.. it is that form of goodness.. the kind that just keeps hunting you all of your days.. “Surely goodness will pursue me in the house of God forever!” How can I make my love like that goodness to her? How can I really make it like Christ love so that she wants to experience it with the all of the senses? Taste it.. feel it.. smell it..hear it.. drink it.. know it.. utterly & completely & totally.

8)How can I be so overwhelmed & influenced & filled with the things of Christ that she sees Christ every time she looks at me.. or talks to me.. or shares a moment with me? (this one is almost like a summary of number 7.. because number 7 is THAT IMPORTANT)


You see, I don't have it all together.. even with Christ! I mean, did you not just see how many questions I've posed in this list of things Christ either has dealt or is dealing with me on? See, I did it AGAIN!!!!... Another question, lol. The point is not to eliminate unknowns, but to stand on what I do know, Christ! Everything else is a chance to be embraced as an opportunity for faith. I say that because faith can be a verb.. we can “faith” something. English grammar doesn't seem to agree with that, but in the original Greek there is a word for faith as a verb. I suggest we live out our faith that way.. as a verb. It is only when we live out our faith & love & hope as a verb that we can begin to see how Christ really wants our relationships to be anyway. This doesn't only apply to “dating”. This applies to every kind of possible relationship... even yours with God! When we only see these things as nouns.. they are merely like ideas & names. They may even be like adjectives that describe something.. but they don't bring it to life & show it to us. Only verbs can show it to us! Only verbs can bring us to life! This is why love IS a verb & faith IS a verb & hope IS a verb!!! Forget the limitations of man made grammar. (After all, most of us don't stick to grammar in real life anyway..) Grammar is weak. We are weak, but God is not. Only through him can we ever overcome these fallacies. And here's what he reminds me of over & over..

Words carry an inherent weakness and strength. Words carry in themselves a life & a death. Words carry in themselves both a sword & a flag or mercy. However, it is up to us to choose which of these things to release from words! How then may we release anything to make these words more than words except by actions? The answer then is plain & simple: WE must act! WE must go! WE must do! WE must decide!

So, what is your decision?