SermonIndex Audio Sermons
SermonIndex - Promoting Revival to this Generation
Give To SermonIndex
Discussion Forum : General Topics : Coming out of brokenness

Print Thread (PDF)

Goto page ( Previous Page 1 | 2 )
PosterThread
Spitfire
Member



Joined: 2004/8/3
Posts: 633


 Re:

Quote:
but they only exist as a cyberperson.


I suppose this is true for some, but I hope it isn't true of me. I'm striving to be as real right here as I am with my friends who are present with me. And I'm praying for some of you as if you are "real". I hope it's real. If it isn't, why am I wasting my time? Paul, are you real there in Netherlands? Mike, are you real there in California? Chanin, I know you are real. And I'm really praying for you, too. I suppose we are under a handicap of not really being able to hold one another accountable and break bread together and such...you know, share lives. Like you said, my life, to you, is just these words I'm typing onto a screen...makes me wonder if my time would be better spent elsewhere.

 2005/1/29 19:16Profile
moreofHim
Member



Joined: 2003/10/15
Posts: 1632


 Re: being real

Dian,

as far as it goes with me, I hope and pray I am all about being real too. No needless pious words or pretending to be something I'm not. I fear that. Actually if I do that in any way, I get convicted right away. (and yes, I've had to repent) My "pet peeves" are spiritual pride, pious talk with nothing to back it up, phariseeical(?) behavior. I think I will be one of the first ones to admit right along with you that i don't have all the answers and If i tell you I do- then I am lying. :-)

As followers of Christ, i believe we are to make ourselves vulnerable and available, to wear our hearts on our sleeve. We are to become approachable- at least that is what I want to do.

I can usually tell after a very short time, if people are being real or if they are putting up a religious front. I think it is our responsibility as "real" ones to make it easier for other to become real too :-P

Just like Paul said on his journal:

"I don't want to present you theology...I just want to share my life.
I don't want to share nice Biblical stories...I want to show you Jesus.
I don't want to speak out of myself...I need Jesus to give me words.

The letter (read: words only) kills, but the Spirit gives life!

Christianity isn't Church...it's Christ
Christianity isn't theology...it's [b]reality!"[/b]
(bold emphasis mine- hope you don't mind me putting this on here, Paul :)


This is reality folks. Jesus is reality. He is our reality. This is not a game or a play we can act out. We are called to be real and to hurt and love and weep and rejoice with others- as an example of Christ-likeness.

In His love, Chanin


_________________
Chanin

 2005/1/29 21:49Profile
DezCall
Member



Joined: 2004/7/9
Posts: 315
The Netherlands

 Re:

Quote:
Paul, are you real there in Netherlands?




Well Dian...that's [b]the[/b] question I need to ask myself so many times. If I'm not being honest, if I'm sharing things here at SI which contradict my life, if it's only headknowledge and not heartknowledge...then I'm in fact, how harsh it may seem, an instrument of satan, a stumbling block to God, a Pharisee:

"Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! [b]You shut the kingdom of heaven in men's faces[/b], you yourselves do not enter, nor will you let those enter who are trying to" (Matthew 23:13)

Many years of my life I have been a hypocrite, even so bad...that I myself didn't realise that I was one. Though I knew I didn't know Jesus really, I thought to be some sort of a by-my-parents-raised-up-christian and when I had to tell folks about that, I did. I had times of "spiritual enlightment" when I had gone to some sort of Biblecamp. But it didn't impact my life...I did not surrender all to Him. I was a vain talker..and that's the biggest problem. This is the worst enemy of the true Gospel: religion.

Jesus didn't come to give people headknowledge, He came and showed them the Father. He didn't spoke vain words. "The words I have spoken to you are spirit and they are life" (John 6:63).

The true mark of a relationship is vulnerability/honesty. Many times I found (find) myself reading the Bible and discovering things and thinking: "Yes, this really says all about the state of my Church" and "Wow, this is a strong message, I think I could share it with people". But God isn't speaking about my church in the first place. He's speaking to me, about my life and about the things that need to change in my life.

"So being affectionately desirous of you, we were willing to have imparted unto you, not the gospel of God only, [b]but also our own souls (or: life), because ye were dear unto us"[/b] (1 Tes 2:8).

God wants us to be real, because Jesus wants to give reality. If we're faking our lives, we're stopping Jesus for touching the lives of others. We will ruin our lives with Jesus as well. When I try to present myself as someone who I am not, it's (as Art Katz said) "ipso facto evedince already" that Jesus is not Lord of my life. I want the honor. I want the fame. I want the applause...But God says..."My glory will I not give to another, neither my praise to graven images" (Isaiah 42:8). It must be more of Him and less of me. I (we) must be willing to be a failure in the eyes of men...and I want to be that failure, if necessary.

Not being real, does not only have to do with sharing truth from the Bible that does not match with my life. I'm also not being real when I only share all the wonderful things God is doing: "well, that day I went to my room, opened my Bible and God really filled me with the Spirit and now I have so much joy"...without admitting that I go through times of dryness, emptiness and confusion (in which the emphasis has to be on God, rather than "poor little me"...pfjoe..that's tough).

Together with my parents I listened to a sermon this morning, and the subject was: "Cross and triumpf". Many Christians (and non-Christians) desire Jesus as the King who entered Jerusalem on a donkey: "Hosanna, Hosanna". But this is not Jesus. Jesus went to the Cross...and died. I think the Cross in our lives will keep us real and honest, if we are willing to accept it.

Though I've never met one single person on SI outside _Disciple_ (William), I experience how God really pours out His love in our hearts through the Holy Spirit. And well...then we come to the core of being real...and that's: JESUS. When we have this relationship, we cannot but be honest and share with eachother what He is doing in our lives. Why? Because [b]it cannot be explained in any other way![/b] I can't explain the fact why some of you are so close to me, as if we were dear friends. I can't explain the ways God really works in react to prayer. I can't explain how it is possible that God gives me a chance to witness for 1,5 hour to classmates. I can't explain it except: "Christ who lives in me"!

Giving Christ the time to deal with your life will keep you real and realistic (=not I but Christ). I experience how this is not a one-time-delivery event. Over and over again I need to be brought to the place where I need to confess: "Jesus, forgive my unbelief...I thought I needed to do something, while you wanted to do it". This week I experienced this once again. Where I thought for a moment that it really was "no longer I, but Christ", at one moment I thought I needed to help God a little: "When I don't act now, this may go wrong". Yes, my heart was honest and real. It came from a good heart, but I settled for "the good", where I needed to wait on God to tell me what's "His perfect".

Let's pray that the nails will keep us on the Cross. For we have nothing to boast in outside our Lord! And that's not "well said"...that's the plain reality!

"I long to see you so that I may impart to you some spiritual gift to make you strong - that is, that you and I may be mutually encouraged by each other's faith" (Romans 1:11-12)

In Christ...our LIFE,
Paul


_________________
Paul

 2005/1/30 8:59Profile
rocklife
Member



Joined: 2004/4/1
Posts: 323
usa

 Re:

Be encouraged by the words of our Lord Jesus Christ: "'The stone the builders rejected has become the capstone' Everyone who falls on that stone will be broken to pieces, but he on whom it falls will be crushed." Luke 20:17,18


_________________
Jina

 2005/1/30 12:49Profile
crsschk
Member



Joined: 2003/6/11
Posts: 9192
Santa Clara, CA

 Re:

Oh my!

I found my 'vocabulary'! You guy's...
Praise God

Dian, you bet we are real, flesh and blood, gut level, heart knitted lovers of Truth and The Truth, our Lord.

Zeke:

Quote:
I know you can pick up the spirit of a person by the way they write etc. but they only exist as a cyberperson. I know this may go against the many utterances to the great fellowship we have on here, but it is only a small part of our lives. I think that is one of the things I am aware of, is that I can appear to be someone I am not, because all people have to go on is the words on their screen. I also realize that you are only as open as you want to be, which is also great.



Well it does go against the many utterances as I think you managed to bring out in the responses that followed. And though I get your drift in a sense I don't think it is just a small part of lives, [b]it is our lives[/b] being lived out hopefully more and more in the imagine of Him as we share and learn and grow.

Can say that with full appreciation coming off the last couple of days of face to face fellowship with Greg who I 'knew' only through our 'correspondence' here, but it goes way beyond that. And with Josh who I didn't 'know' as well. Have rambled on enough elsewhere, but it wasn't a surprise at all, no awkwardness that you might normally expect in meeting 'strangers' for they/we are not strangers at all, even in cyberspace, even with thousands and thousands of miles between us.

Col 2:1 For I want you to know how much I struggle for you, for those in Laodicea, and for all who have never seen me face to face.
Col 2:2 Because they are united in love, I pray that their hearts may be encouraged by all the riches that come from a complete understanding of the full knowledge of Christ, who is the secret of God.

Granted that not all are as open as others, some more reflective others more vocal. Some of us do wear our hearts on our sleeves as was mentioned and have always been more of that I guess because it just seems that life here is too short to be keeping things to myself and not risking being 'embarrassed', I am embarrassed everyday practically around here and still feel a sense of needing to 'reel it in a bit'

Paul (DezCall), what a verse!

1Th 2:8 We cared so deeply for you that we were determined to share with you not only the gospel of God but our very lives. That is how dear you were to us.

And it goes on...

1Th 2:9 You remember, brothers, our labor and toil. We worked night and day so that we would not become a burden to any of you while we proclaimed the gospel of God to you.

1Th 2:10 You and God are witnesses of how pure, honest, and blameless our conduct was among you who believe.

Haven't even gotten around to a couple of others that we met up with that have been through here, quoting bit's of sermons that have touched their lives... So I would disagree with them only existing as a 'cyberperson' and also realize the limitations of just what we can do here. So maybe this might encourage yourself to share more, hopefully not less, we may not know as much about the real Zeke from want of detail, but what we do know is enough, that you are not just some 'dude' out there. You are blessing to us brother.

Besides ultimately this isn't about 'us' anyway.

It's Jesus.


_________________
Mike Balog

 2005/1/31 0:45Profile
uno
Member



Joined: 2005/1/24
Posts: 2


 Re: Coming out of brokenness

It hurts, it hurts alot, but it's ALL WORTH IT.
To gain Christ

 2005/1/31 12:24Profile
IRONMAN
Member



Joined: 2004/6/15
Posts: 1924
IN HEAVENLY PLACES WITH JESUS

 Re: Coming out of brokenness

Girl let me tell you...
This past weekend I felt brokenness for the 1st time, it's not pleaseant at all. The first thing was being shown how I really look before God.what I saw was this brilliant light around me and then this dark spot (which was me) and I realized that I was more of a sinner than I cared or dared to imagine. The second thing was being shown the faithfullness, love and mercy of God and the increase in my life contrasted with my faithlessness, selfishness, rebellion of my own life. The third thing was being shown the work that God has for me and how overwhelming it is and also how I have not done a thing to earn it and knowing that in truth I know nothing of how God operates. The good news with the last bit is that we needn't understand God or His was, jus follow them. His ways are not ours so they are alien to us but by submission to His will, we can truly be about our father's business.


_________________
Farai Bamu

 2005/1/31 12:36Profile
phebebird
Member



Joined: 2004/11/23
Posts: 91
San Pedro, California

 Re:

I think SI has been good for me because, like it has been said, it is sometimes easier to be "real" when you are not face-to-face. Of course, this in no way lessens our need to be "real" with certain people when we are face-to-face. Writing thoughts out makes them concrete in one's own mind. Some of the best friends I have have been friends mostly by correspondence. There is something "safe" about non-face-to-face "talking".

That said, I have found out on SI how little I know about doctrine and how much I differ with others on the little I do know. :) I love you guys, but sometimes the thread just soars right over my head and I move on to something else.

Phebe


_________________
Phebe

 2005/1/31 12:43Profile
uno
Member



Joined: 2005/1/24
Posts: 2


 Re:

...No it is not pleasant at All.

Quote:
The first thing was being shown how I really look before God. What I saw was this brilliant light around me and then this dark spot (which was me) and I realized that I was more of a sinner than I cared or dared to imagine.

Oh, how I can relate to this. How wonderful it is to know that in him, all things are made new. That in him, you are able to start over, that in him there is life, everlasting life, that in him all of your sins are forgive, as far as the east is from the west.



 2005/1/31 16:10Profile
IRONMAN
Member



Joined: 2004/6/15
Posts: 1924
IN HEAVENLY PLACES WITH JESUS

 Re:

Quote:
Oh, how I can relate to this. How wonderful it is to know that in him, all things are made new. That in him, you are able to start over, that in him there is life, everlasting life, that in him all of your sins are forgive, as far as the east is from the west.



AMEN AMEN AMEN!!!


_________________
Farai Bamu

 2005/1/31 17:24Profile





©2002-2024 SermonIndex.net
Promoting Revival to this Generation.
Privacy Policy