Ah...The Trap

I constantly have to remind myself of who I am and of who I want to be. If I don't, I continually come close to falling into the trap that has been set. You know, the trap that has the goal to make everyone carbon copies of everyone else. The trap that wants us all to just strut around through life aimlessly without taking any notice of what's around us. Maybe I'm getting deep here. (This would be specifically acting against the trap) The trap is interested in surfaces and nothing more.

I've been known to fall into that trap. We all have. We're all guilty of walking under the stars, night in and night out, without looking up. The thing that is just so terrible to me about getting my pant legs caught in the teeth of that trap is that it takes me away from me. It takes me away from who I am and who I want to be.

 I haven't quite figured out the anti-trap repellant yet, but I constantly am trying to be aware of what's around me. It is my constant prayer that my eyes will see what they are intended to see, because I long to acknowledge all the daily beauty that the trap would just slap a "mundane" label on. There is so much out there and I constantly miss it. It is the most devastating thing to me.

So what do I do?

I pray for the eyes....

...and I look around.  

What If?

Life is too short to hold back. You have to take the risk. Don't hold back. If you expect to release later... When is that? Later is now. It has always been now. I mean, if all else fails, crashes, and burns, wouldn't it be worth the few moments of the "what if?"

I love the "what if" moments. Exploring the "what ifs" is navigating through a better freer world. A lot of people think it's a waste of time. They think exploring the "what ifs" can only create disappointment. I completely disagree.

At least I do now.

Embracing and imagining the "what ifs" is amazing. It can put you in a perfect world, and it can fashion new ones. It is liberating. Some may say it is living in a fantasy, but I like to think of it as living in your hopes and desires.

Let your imagination take you to the kinds of places you can only dream of.

Why?

...How else can you accomplish the seemingly impossible unless you embrace the seemingly impossible "what ifs?"

What Am I Allowed To Do?

I feel like I hear predominant questions about Christianity frequently and they always have to do with what the individual is "allowed" to do. I'm sure if we're all honest, we can all attest to asking these kinds of questions too. They always seem to sound like some of the following... Am I allowed to (fill in the blank)? Can I (fill in the blank)? What does the Bible say about (fill in the blank)? Will God be mad if I (fill in the blank)? How far can I go with (fill in the blank)? Can I drink (fill in the blank)? You get the point. 


Whenever I'm asked what God's "take" is on any of those kinds of questions, I always lick the tip of my finger and hit the Bible pages looking for the clear cut yes/no answer. The problem with that is, a lot of the time there are no clear cut answers, and most people, myself included, will take the liberty of assuming its ok to do "whatever" as long as the Bible doesn't give a black and white answer against it. Or if  we find the answer is "grey", we'll justify it to ourselves somehow, usually by saying, "Hey it's a grey area." 


This is why I love Paul. 


Please take a moment to read Romans 14:14-21 (I would type it all out but then no one would read this because it's already too long) 


Now, you can substitute "food" in that passage with a (fill in the blank). 


Basically Paul is saying, Ok we believe that some of the things we do are ok and we are justified in doing them. But some other people may think those things are wrong. So, don't let what you do get in the way of someone's potential relationship with Jesus Christ because... you see, Christ suffered a pretty agonizing death with nails ripping through his flesh to a tree for that person. So, don't ruin God's plan over the things you do, whether you think your'e right in your own eyes or not, or even if you "interpreted" scripture to justify your actions. It is just better to abstain from the questionable things if those things may cause someone else to stumble. 


This way of thinking makes following Jesus a bit more radical in terms of what we're "allowed" to do. Hmm... Jesus was kind of radical too... wasn't He?