The Complexity of Your Life
Living life each day in ways that demonstrate a genuine faith in Jesus can be a frustrating and confusing disconnect between what Jesus teaches and the reality of your life. In this new series of blogs, LIVING YOUR FAITH IN EVERYDAY LIFE, I want to look at understanding the story of Jesus and the truth of Scripture as being relevant to all of life: Your home life, your job, your responsibilities, relationships with family, neighbors and the world around you. My hope is for you to see the Good news of Jesus with fresh eyes and to confidently live out your faith each day.
THE DAYS ARE GETTING MORE COMPLEX
We know this right? We feel it. And the more complex life gets, the more you need the wisdom of Jesus to bring order. It’s interesting how intricate, involved, convoluted and fragmented life can get. Let me give you a silly example of a larger issue.
Not long ago, while in the throws of winter cold season my wife and I would occasionally need to do a sinus rinse (TMI?) You would think that rinsing sinuses would be a fairly straightforward operation. Not so! Have you seen the instructions on sinus rinses? Who knew? Diagrams and instructions fill a 32-page manual with introductions and testimonials. You can read all about it—physicians and customers rave about rinsing their sinuses! You'll also find warnings of mishandling the device—really? What am I going to do, drink it? Pour it into my ear?
There was a full page of instructions for cleaning and disinfecting the unit, and four pages of answers to frequently asked questions about sinus rinses. Apparently I didn’t know if I should put it up my nose or make a pot of tea with it! The manual contained thousands of words (all in tiny print). My goodness! Was it a manual on launching an intercontinental ballistic missile or a nasal rinse!
The point is, life is getting more complex. There are a great number of competing opinions and worldviews in our world concerning what life is really about; how to make sense of it all; how to be happy; how to survive! And in the middle of that...how does God fit into it all?
INTRODUCING JESUS INTO THE COMPLEXITY
The Bible tells us that faith in Jesus is to impact every aspect of our lives. However, sometimes it’s difficult to see Jesus in the different circumstances we find ourselves in. Think about the past week. Recall some of the different places, activities, and situations you were in. Where did you see Jesus? Where did you sense his presence? Where did you not feel connected to him? If you sense that Jesus is uninvolved in your everyday life, it could be that the multifaceted dimensions of your day and the demands placed upon you are stealing your connection with him. Is it possible that Jesus has been relegated to just another thing you have to juggle? That would be contrary to the message of scripture. Some of the most powerful words ever written about Jesus comes from the writings of the Apostle Paul in Colossians 1:15-20…
" 15 Christ is the visible image of the invisible God. He existed before anything was created and is supreme over all creation, 16 for through him God created everything in the heavenly realms and on earth. He made the things we can see and the things we can’t see—such as thrones, kingdoms, rulers, and authorities in the unseen world. Everything was created through him and for him. 17 He existed before anything else, and he holds all creation together. 18 Christ is also the head of the church, which is his body. He is the beginning, supreme over all who rise from the dead. So he is first in everything. 19 For God in all his fullness was pleased to live in Christ, 20 and through him, God reconciled everything to himself. He made peace with everything in heaven and on earth by means of Christ’s blood on the cross."
Is the description of that Jesus an everyday reality in your life? Do you feel like Jesus has brought peace to your life even if life frustrating, complex, and confusing?
The reality of Jesus, from the creator, to his human life, death, and resurrection, is ground zero for understanding your everyday life. Jesus is the center attraction of all God has revealed to the world. And it’s only in him and through him that you can untangle and put into perspective the complexities of your life. It’s Jesus who helps you make sense of your day to day life. It’s Jesus who speaks into your marriage, parenting, family, job, finances, health, and leisure time—they’re all relevant to him!
Living out your faith in everyday life hinges on your desire to invite Jesus to rule and reign, order and lead, control and rule over all of the areas in your life each day. Think of it this way: If Jesus created everything in the heavenly realms and on earth; if Jesus made the things we can see and the things we can’t see; if Jesus is controlling thrones, and kingdoms, and rulers, and authorities in the seen and unseen world; if everything was created through him and for him and he existed before anything else, holding all creation together, the question is: Are you submitting to him to be all of that in your life each day?
COMPETING CULTURAL MESSAGES
The problem you face every day is the constant bombardment of competing cultural messages. It’s just flat out more difficult to integrate the stuff of life with a genuine faith in God—but not impossible! Your life in Christ can become more relevant to the whole of your life. Does it make sense that the only time you feel peace is in a Sunday morning worship service or cocooned in the sanctuary of your home? And yet, many Christ-followers, are functionally embracing a dualistic life—ignoring God’s desire to be the center of their life.
Do you find yourself just enduring and not flourishing as a follower of Jesus? If so, it's possible the message of our culture is winning over your mind and soul.
If you believe that some things matter to God, but most things don’t, that some things are sacred but most things are secular and the two never meet, you've swallowed the cultural lie. God is not only interested in Sunday, but your Monday through Saturday. There's no such thing as a sacred-secular divide. Every day is sacred as Jesus takes his throne in and through your life.
HERE'S THE TRUTH
Jesus wants to speak into and reign over every inch of your life: your marriage, family, job, politics, sex, leisure, economics, health and finances. Jesus wants to help you make sense of all of that. Look, either Jesus is Supreme King, Leader and Lord, or he’s just a comforting side-story to help pacify you in between fits of worry and anxiety . Jesus is so much more! Is Jesus the way, the truth and the life each day? Is he speaking into the complexities of your life? He says to you, "Come to me, all of you who are weary and carry heavy burdens, and I will give you rest." (Matt. 11:28). Jesus offers real peace. No one or thing can do that! No job, no amount of money or philosophy or political involvement or religion can bring real peace in the middle of your complexity. Jesus is the answer. “So he is first in everything” (Col. 1:18b)
NEXT STEPS
1. Commit to connecting Jesus to the reality of what you face each day. Is Jesus speaking into your marriage? Is Jesus bringing perspective to your finances, relationships, parenting, and moral choices? Give more thought to living your faith in Jesus Monday through Saturday and not just Sunday.
2. If you’re unsure what Jesus has to say about everyday matters, read one of the Gospels. I suggest the Gospel of Mark.
