Thursday, August 07, 2008
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Measure Your "Christian Age" in Dog Years
I called my Mom this morning to see how things were going in Puppydom, knowing she's been alone with our new dog, Gaelen. "I'm overwhelmed," she said. "He's chewing everything, doesn't listen to us, doesn't come when he's called. He's messed in the house twice and he's still biting! He eats the flowers outside and hates his crate... If I could give him back, I would!"
She wouldn't, but I still determined to finish my day early and head over to relieve her of the puppy for a while. When I called her a few hours later to tell her so, she was crying.
"He found Alec's kibble!"
"What? Alec's kibble?"
"Alec's kibble! Gaelen found Alec's kibble!"
Because it was raining, she had taken Gaelen into the basement to run around; there he found some stray pieces of our former dog's food. When Mom pried what the pup was chomping on from his mouth and recognized the food, she broke down into sobs. Confused the poor puppy entirely...he sat down at her feet and just stared at her, put his huge paw on her knee even.
By my third call, Mom was okay and didn't need me to come over. But I was thinking about it as I worked the end of my route. Often baby Christians are compared to children, but with all this going on at my parent's house, I see we're a lot like puppies.
In our enthusiasm to share our excitement with those around us, we inadvertently hurt them with our biting tongues. We try to do something for God, but our timing is off and we make a mess in the wrong place. Because we're young, we don't quite know God's voice...so we don't hear him when he tells us to do something and can't seem to differentiate the word "no" with our own names. We spend some of our time consuming the wrong things and the rest doing things for ourselves.
This is acceptable in babies, be they puppies or young believers. Yet we've all met the 4-year old, 90-pound dog that jumps, humps, bites, barks, and messes-in-the-house. That isn't acceptable in our society, and we look at the dog's owners as though they're idiots. But in the same way do non-believers look at some Christians.
I think a Christian can grow in religious-wisdom but not necessarily Jesus-wisdom. As this Christian grows older, it would make sense that their bigger teeth would do more damage, their doings would make bigger messes, and their propensity for self-absorbtion leave vacant that place in the world Jesus would have them fill.
Each Christian has a responsibility to grow up. We ought to listen to Christian mentors, study the Bible, and learn to discern the voice of the Holy Spirit. We ought to realize that living a juvenile life does hurt those around us, just as a biting puppy needs to learn that his teeth hurt.
Thankfully, Jesus is patient with us; I'm sure he gets frustrated as he cleans up the mess we didn't know we made, or patches the wounds we didn't know we inflicted. But unlike Gaelen, we have free will, and can submit to his discipline or not.
How are you different now than when you first became a Christian or learned about the Christian faith?
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Comments (12)
I always try to grow in myself and in my beliefs.
One thing I've noticed in new believers (and I recall it in myself immediately post-conversion) is the 'reckless' way in which they broadcast their faith. There are two terms in the last sentence which I chose intentionally: reckless and broadcast. An individual who has seen their depravity for what it is and has experienced the merciful grace of Jesus Christ blasting through that depravity to transform their life is all about perpetuating that 'news'. Often they broadcast it like one broadcasting lawn seed or fertilizer, simply spreading it everywhere, giving no heed to who's listening or not (which approach reminds me of a certain teaching of Jesus himself). Not only do they 'broadcast' this new found experience, but they broadcast it recklessly. A person who has, for the first time in their life, experienced grace cares not whom they call 'sinner' or how politically correct or incorrect it may be. They simply pay no attention to the possibility of negative ramifications. Their life has been radically altered and they know that every other life can be also.
However, as we mature in our faith, we learn that even Jesus passed through some areas saying not a word because he knew they wouldn't receive it. The same teacher who said, 'Go into all the world...preaching' said, 'don't cast your jewels to the pigs'. Somewhere along the line we begin to mature. In the midst of all that 'maturing' I'm afraid stoicism sets in, though. THAT frightens me. As I look over my Christian experience in the last 7 1/2 years, I'm afraid I excuse that lukewarm, laziness as maturity, when in reality it's simply my own unwillingness to be 'ready in and out of season'.
Great post, very well written, IMO!
@brother_barabbas@xanga - I know what you mean about stoicism/laziness under the guise of "maturity". When I first became a Christian, I shared with all my little friends (I was quite young at the time) out of my joy and concern. I even wanted to be a missionary.
I no longer desire to be a missionary in the traditional sense of the word. I only want to write for Him, which He has called me to do. But because I have refused opportunities to share Him with others at various times in my life, I think He has largely removed nonChristians from my immediate circles (other than family) until I can go about spreading the Word relationally and in wisdom. I'm on my way, and I am beginning friendships I otherwise wouldn't--not purely for the sake of evangelizing, but to invest in lives, which God sees as valuable.
Another area where I am different now as a Christian is that I have started, just barely started, to gain Christ's perspective on people--how to love them for real, how to see them with His eyes. I don't make knee-jerk judgments nearly as often and I've lost at least a little of my arrogance in thinking I could peg everybody with a label. Often, there's a lot more going on under the surface.
I guess I'm learning to be discerning. Heh.
~V
@brother_barabbas@xanga -
Hey, call me.
I have grown up a lot, and learned so much about Jesus Christ in the almost-30 years that I've known hiom as Saviour. Even after that time, he still fnds ways to totally amaze me and leave me speechless....
I always compare my age as a Christian (and those around me) with what humans do at that age. Like, now my Christian age is 18, so I think I should be coming into my own like an 18 year old. I made it through the baby, toddler, teenager years. Now, maybe I'm growing up!
People who think they are mature in their beliefs are usually not. There is SO much learning that can be done and SO many experiences that can happen. Don't be stagnated--grow as much as you can.
Click here: It's like a dose for the Christian soul.
I think that I'm more open to everything. This world is not a very good one, though it has its good points. We can't overlook the bad influence, but rather have to grow in a way to incorporate that badness as a fact of life, while not giving in to it.
I'm posting a comment that has nothing to do with what you asked.
I have a year old, 75 pound chocolate Labrador. But...when she was a puppy, I thought I was going to lose it. She did all those things Gaelen (great name) did and then some, to the point that I wanted to get rid of her.
Tell your mom...hang in there. It's worth it. And seriously, take this little guy to puppy training classes. 6 to 8 weeks worth. It's sooo worth every single penny - and will help your mom manage Gaelen and her stress with puppyisms better.
When I first gave myself to the Most High I only knew about law. Grace had not yet begun to sink into my skull. I'm also a very systems-oriented thinker. So I went about putting everything and everyone into categories and judging the hell out of all of them. That is, until a friend read me the riot act and the Holy Spirit gave his, "Yeah!" to each indictment.
So for a while I shut my trap and tried to learn how to love. Unfortunately, I was still loving out of my own concept of love and out of my own strength. This, too, injured many.
Fortunately, over the years many with much more wisdom and understanding than me spoke in my hearing, taking me through multiple paradigm shifts where I would trash everything I thought I knew and start from the beginning again.
At this point I no longer corner people with the Four Spiritual Laws, nor try to convince them through logic and statistics into the Kingdom. I've made the Lover of Our Souls so odious through those attempts - and it only took me about 10 years to figure this out!
Anyway, I now seek only to find ways to let His love in stronger and deeper into my dark, hidden and wounded areas in my innermost being, trusting that all that needs to happen will transpire naturally from the changes only His loving, healing touches can bring. I try to see people and situations through His eyes instead of trusting my own, and it pays off every time I succeed in doing so.
I think bittersunday is absolutely correct when she says, "People who think they are mature in their beliefs are usually not. There is SO much learning that can be done and SO many experiences that can happen. Don't be stagnated--grow as much as you can." And so I press "further up and further in" as that famous beloved and despised author wrote in "The Final Battle."
Most Christians I've encountered (especially the very passionate ones) seem to be "puppies". It's not just that they're overly exuberant in wanting to spread their message and they don't get that not everyone wants to be slobbered on. It's also that they haven't really questioned anything and may not even know that much about their own religion... and yet they get morally and spiritually righteous when talking with others who may not share their beliefs.