Tuesday, May 1, 2012

I was driving back from Nakuru with a staff member of mine. At that point it hadn't rained for several months in Kenya and the rift valley floor was dry and dusty. When the rains cease it pushes the animals closer to the highway to graze, so we saw impala, gazelle, and zebras along the road side. It always amazes me how two different worlds can collide so easily in Africa. I guess it should be the same when I'm driving up I-30 through Arkansas in the early evening and see deer on the side of the road, but for some reason its different in Kenya. As we drove south back to Nairobi we talked about raising children, marriage, dating, the original sin of Adam and Eve, frustration with God, and other faith topics. I love getting time alone with our staff in moments like these. It reminds me the people that God has placed around us that are so deep in their faith. It makes me thank HIM for how he continues to bless ACO and reminds me that the bar might be set a little low sometimes. Maybe we need to trust Him with some bigger things in Kenya and East Africa. One thing stood out from the conversation that just floored me when I heard it and made me think....Are we thinking GOD sized? I was sharing about a couple Kerry and I had been helping wade through some issues and I gave him my uneducated concultion that all relationships hinge on communication. In fact 99% of all issues in marriages, dating relationships, shoot relationships of all kinds break because people won’t communicate. What followed my babble was one of the most thought provoking statements that I’ve ever heard on relationships, mind you from a guy that’s never been married and is not currently dating (or at least isn't owning up to it). “You started by being irresponsible and now you’re responsible”, he said. When you began dating your now wife/husband or soon to be whatever, you laid all responsibility to the side. Think about it, you blew money you didn’t have or time you should have been spending doing something else to be with that person. You might of stayed up all night on the phone because you didn’t want to say goodbye, talking about the silliest things, the following day suffering in misery from lack of sleep. You threw caution to the wind when it came to doing everything in your power to spend every second with the person you were in-love with. You were just plain irresponsible. Now that you’ve landed the love of you life, what do you do? All the sudden you’ve turned into a logical thinking adult. Sleep now proceeds the need for small talk before you go to sleep. Your finances and time now follow a structured plan that you’re sticking to as a couple. Seeing your mate is a priority mixed in with all the other priotities of your now complicated life. When he wasn’t yours, when you couldn’t get her off your mind you’d drop anything to spend a second or just a minute with them. But now, you are responsible. Its the very nature of the world around you that says you're in a very mature relationship based on a deep love that can only be described as BORING! Are our lives in Christ the same? I'm wondering if playing it the same and being responsible is God's way or resembles anything todo with the word Faith. Isn't Faith, believing in something that isn't seen, isn't heard, isn't really known? My old friend used to say, "faith isn't faith until its all you're holding onto". Am I a RESPONSIBLE CHRISTIAN? Yikes, thats not exciting, that's not life changing. Peter. Was Peter responsible? Saul, sorry Paul. Was he responsible? Jesus. Was Jesus responsible? I'm really asking, I really do need your input here. Were the those mentioned in Hebrews 11 irresponsible and thus men of Faith? I think I want to be an irresponsible Follower of Christ. I think I want to throw caution to the wind, step out of the boat and try and walk on water, feed 5,000 with a package of crackers and cheese whiz. Irreverent....NO. Irresponsible.....????