War

In the midst of the tumultuous news that seems to be never-ending, we may be maxed out on the topic of war. Fear not, because while it’s within my capabilities to research for hours and really deep dive into the Iranian regimes to give you my take on having our troops in the Middle East, I don’t think I could do the situation justice. I have an opinion, of course, but it was once said that those are like buttcheeks and we all have them (no offence intended if you are missing a buttcheek). No, I’m here to talk more about the war that is somewhat spiritual but mainly cause and effect. More specifically, how Jesus taught things that war with what the world teaches or what our minds tell us to do if we want certain outcomes. It’s almost contradictory what we think we should do sometimes versus what we are actually called to do. AKA, the thing that is better for us.

One main thing that I’ve been wrestling with is the idea that our control over something may be what is keeping us in bondage to that thing. Think about it. The second we let go of our control (or our perceived control) over something, it’s like a weight is lifted off our shoulders. We see an example of this in the story of Mary and Martha. Jesus went to their house with His disciples, and while Mary was listening to Him, Martha was stressing out about being a good hostess. She felt she had to control the room and even wanted to control her sister, who wasn’t helping. “‘Martha, Martha,’ the Lord answered, ‘you are worried and upset about many things,’” – Mark 10:41. He basically is telling her to take a chill pill. I sit here and laugh because I have been a Martha many times and probably will be many more. Jesus knows and planned how things are going to work out for us. Therefore, instead of trying to control outcomes, we should trust that His will be done.

Another example of our common sense and the truth at war is that we have to die daily to live eternally. I mean, yes, of course, we are slowly dying physically, but stay with me here. In order to receive the Kingdom of Heaven, we can’t be a Joe Shmoe off the street who has never desired a relationship with or the likeness of Jesus. We need to be crucified with Christ through baptism as one example. “Do you not know that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? We were buried therefore with him by baptism into death, in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might walk in newness of life.” – Romans 6:3-4.We have to die to ourselves daily to live by Jesus’ standards. In other words: “Then Jesus told his disciples, ‘If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me.’” – Matthew 16:24.

Here is where things are slightly dicey in my brain, and I have to think about this almost cyclical concept repeatedly. The Bible says that faith without works is dead. “So also faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead.” – James 2:17. It also says: “For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God,” – Ephesians 2:8. My understanding here is that if you don’t have faith, you won’t, in theory, be doing God’s work according to His will, and with His intentions behind it. You could be helping people begrudgingly or tithing with your church as your own personal ticket into Heaven. However, your reliance on what you do instead of WHO you do it for will ultimately kill you.

I’d lastly like to state how we are called to be like Jesus: “whoever says he abides in him ought to walk in the same way in which he walked.” – 1 John 2:6, but Jesus was perfect. Part of our walk with Him is understanding that we will never be good enough, “for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,” – Romans 3:23. I believe this so that our constant striving for perfection keeps us at the feet of Jesus. If I’m walking exactly how He did and can do everything He did, then what would I need Him for anymore? Like Paul talks about, “So to keep me from becoming conceited because of the surpassing greatness of the revelations, a thorn was given me in the flesh, a messenger of Satan to harass me, to keep me from becoming conceited.” – 2 Corinthians 12:7. If not for me falling short over and over again, I would grow prideful and probably not pray as much or start thinking I don’t need to read the Bible. Basically, I would stop pursuing my relationship with Jesus so deeply. Thankfully, we are so loved that God gives us weaknesses and allows us to fail because He knows that is what we need to be closer to Him.

If anything, I hope this was a nice break from the current anxious news cycle. Hopefully, you have a balance between being informed and being fully invested. Similarly to how we think about control or producing good works, our human brains can react to politics and the news in ways that are the opposite of what will actually work out for us in the long run. We may think that if we consume more information, things will start to get better. We probably all could work on reading and sharing about the Good News instead of the headlines.