The Word became Fresh

D.A. Carson:

Doubt may be fostered by sleep deprivation. If you keep burning the candle at both ends, sooner or later you will indulge in more and more mean cynicism—and the line between cynicism and doubt is a very thin one. Of course, different individuals require different numbers of hours of sleep: moreover, some cope with a bit of tiredness better than others. Nevertheless, if you are among those who become nasty, cynical, or even full of doubt when you are missing your sleep, you are morally obligated to try to get the sleep you need. We are whole, complicated beings; our physical existence is tied to our spiritual well-being, to our mental outlook, to our relationships with others, including our relationship with God. Sometimes the godliest thing you can do in the universe is get a good night’s sleep—not pray all night, but sleep. I’m certainly not denying that there may be a place for praying all night; I’m merely insisting that in the normal course of things, spiritual discipline obligates you get the sleep your body need. 

One can understand what play is only when one also knows what work is.

Karl Barth, Final Testimonies

CT:  What is the East African revival, and why has it lasted over forty years?

Bishop Festo Kivengere:  Can I explain?  This is a question I have been asked repeatedly for over twenty-five years, and all I have ever been able to do is to share what I have seen.  The only explanation I can give is that it is God’s work.  It is not a technique.  It is a movement that cannot be contained.  It is renewal within renewal.  It is an attitude toward the Lord, toward the Bible, toward the fellowship, and toward the Spirit.  It has always been open to a fresh touch.

CT:  What does this revival mean to the people involved in it?

FK:  It is when Christ becomes a living, risen Lord in the life of a believer.  For the non-believer, it is when he is brought into a confrontation with Christ and accepts him as Savior, thus completely changing his life morally and socially.  In other words, revival is when Christ becomes alive in a life, changing that life.  The person is born again, and if he has previously had that experience, then his life is changed in such a way that it affects all his relationships.

CT:  Is it visible to an outsider?

FK:  Absolutely!  Go back to a village a week after a man comes to the Lord in a meeting in the market.  The whole village knows something about it.  He has paid the debts he owes.  He has gone to people he hated and said, “I’m sorry. I’m a changed man.”  He has apologized or asked for forgiveness.  He’s now telling them what Christ means to him.  He has carried his new belief into his business practices.  In other words, it isn’t something he sits on as a comfortable experience.  If anything, it is terribly uncomfortable.

CT:  How has this differed from other revivals in history?

FK:  It may be the continued willingness of those who have been revived to be renewed by the Spirit of God.  At the Kabale convention last year, celebrating the fortieth year of the revival in that area, we heard up-to-date testimonies from people who were brought to Christ as early as 1930.  They had tremendous freshness; yet they had been winning souls for thirty-five or forty years.  They have remained open to what the Spirit may want to say to them in the present situation.  They learned that when they got into a rut God had to turn them out of it so that they could breathe again.  The tendency to get into certain patterns can stifle the work of the Spirit and create pockets of hardness.  Continued breaking and bringing new streams of life have been the means God has used.

“The Revival that was and is: an interview with Festo Kivengere,” Christianity Today, 21 May 1976, pages 10-11.

“I tell you, open your eyes and look at the fields! They are ripe for harvest.” John 4:35

“When we run out of things to ask for, we stop praying. If we would stay in God’s presence a little longer and listen, he would pour out his heart and mind to us. He would tell us invaluable insights into our circumstances. He would counsel us on some family problme or testy relationship at work. He would reveal whether we should say yes or no to a present opportunity. We need his guidance, and the good news is that he is more than willing to give it if we ask in faith”. - Jim Cymbala

“I discipline my body like an athlete, training it to do what it should. Otherwise, I fear that after preaching to others I myself might be disqualified.” - 1 Corinthians 9:27

Some preliminary thoughts

I know tumblr posts are generally supposed to be short one-shot deals, but this one is a doozy that if you read… could save your life… and make it fresh!

Recently, I’ve been making some changes physically to promote longer, healthier, and more active living. We are emotionally, physically, mentally and especially spiritually intertwined beings. So, physical disorder can lead to spiritual disorder, and vice-versa. However, I’ve concentrated so much on spiritual health, because it’s the most important, to the point where the physical, which is the most important as well, has been neglected (btw, I’m purposefully sounding contradictory, that is if you read what I said from a Western point of view. However from an Eastern point of view, this two things being “most” is totally understandable). After seeing what that neglect has had on my physical body: weight gain, love handles galore, higher blood pressure, sluggishness, moodiness, and the list goes on… I was led to make these changes. I’ve made two big changes which are making life so awesome that I just have to tell you about them and suggest that you think about making these changes too.

But before I get into the physical, I want to talk about the spiritual realities, which led to the physical changes. I know I just went on about how I made physical changes… but it was in actually a deeper understanding in spiritual realities that led to these changes. These are important. So important, that if you just skip these spiritual realities, the physical changes will only be temporary changes that leave you in the end, unsatisfied and possibly even emptier than before.

Living an empty healthy life vs. living a full physically healthy life

There is a spiritual reality that celebrates becoming physically healthy that is not often taught in evangelical theology. It is a spiritual reality that there is a battle going on. If you are a Christian, the Holy Spirit is in you, fighting against the desire to become physically healthy in order to reach some “social standard” or boost your ego (which is what the Bible calls walking in the flesh, check out Galatians). At the same time, the Holy Spirit is fighting in you to be healthy through the realities of the Spirit, which is that the God who made us and who we turned against, loved us so much as to set us free from condemnation by substituting his Son for us, to enjoy life fully and be physically able to bring that message to others (which is walking in the Spirit).

Did you get that? Aiming to be physically healthy can be just another way to be living a life that God did intend, but it can also be the way God intended it to be. It depends on what reality you live in and what you are fighting for: the reality of the nature opposed to God (flesh aka sinful nature [NOT flesh as in physical flesh, a nature or ego who thinks it can live without God]) or the reality the nature for God (Spirit).

Let me make some comparisons to help you see this flesh vs. spirit dichotomy:

We as human beings naturally try to get healthier to live long cuz we’re afraid of death (flesh - fear motivated) vs. the Spirit fighting for us, because Jesus loves us so much and puts his Spirit in those who trust in Him, moves us to supernaturally trying to get healthier to stay here longer to glorify God, live His message and share His message, walking as Jesus walked (Spirit - grace motivated). BTW, if death comes the Spirit rejoices too because we get ultimate satisfaction in being with Jesus!

Here is another comparison: We as human beings naturally try to get healthier so we can be more attractive so people will like or at least accept us, or so we can look down on fat people and feel better about ourselves (flesh - pride motivated) vs. the Spirit, because Jesus loved us and gave himself for us, even in our declaration of hatred of Him with our sin, moves us to supernaturally want to get healthier and fully enjoy the new life He gives u, being a testimony of not living a sluggishly-lazy and selfish life, but a full life of joy giving ourselves to others in love (spirit - grace motivated). I can give more examples, but do you see how we live in the flesh vs. the spirit? The flesh tries to be healthier either to look a certain way to cover up the ugliness that’s obviously inside and try to make itself look better or to stay alive because death is scary. The Spirit moves us to get healthier because we are so loved by Jesus, and Jesus loves people so much that He wants us the full life we were intended to enjoying Him, and also have the strength to love people and bring them His message of love.

And I say these things because really, I am pissed off how people get this wrong and go off talking about being more spiritual, when they are clearly flesh motivated. They show it by their envying hearts, condescending words, obsession with their looks, and their incredible fear of being too fat or too skinny. It pisses me off most of all though, because I am like that. This is a reminder to me just as much as anyone else.

One more thing, as a side note, we must be careful with this getting healthy thing remembering that it is not an ultimate thing. Loving people and God’s message are ultimate things. Remember, Paul said we become all things for all people in order to reach them for the Gospel, so there are times when let’s say, a parent cooks a nice dinner with meat for you. I should not be a jerk and reject their love offering to me because I’m on this new “diet” (that’s flesh motivated). Instead, I eat the meat because Jesus loved me and changed for me, and I love them that person too in the same way (that’s spirit motivated). The key thing is, don’t go around making life harder for people. If you’re going to make it harder for them, do what you can to make it easier for them in the process.

Anyway that’s the necessary spiritual bases to do this the right way. Now onto actually what I did.

The Changes

These changes I made recently and I hope they help you start thinking about making your own changes to become physically more healthy in the Spirit, in your own life, to live a full life.

Change #1. My homemade Standing desk.

Influence: http://www.nytimes.com/2011/04/17/magazine/mag-17sitting-t.html?_r=3&src=me&ref=homepage

Read this NY time article and see how sitting for long periods of time is incredibly unhealthy for you. Also, you can exercise all you want but if you’re sitting for long periods of time, you cannot shed that layer of fat around your waist. 

How it was done:

I first read this article to give me some ideas: http://smarterware.org/7102/how-and-why-i-switched-to-a-standing-desk

i was about to buy a standing desk, but I realized they’re at LEAST $150. I found some bricks in my house and old textbooks that no one would buy for more than 5 cents, and stacked them on the floor. Then I simply put my desk on top.

I brought the desk to where my arms are 90 degrees when typing/using my mouse.

I then stacked my monitors on books and journals to bring them to eye level. It was ugly but I thought it was not for looks but health. However! I looked next to my desk and saw this shelf that if I turned sideways, measured the SAME amount that made my monitors reach eye level. Awesome! 

It took me a few hours but wow has it been worth it!!

Benefits so far from the first week: 

- Having the monitor at eye level is amazing. It forces me to look straight and fix my back and neck posture.

- I am more active while working (burning calories).

- It’s strange but standing is also helping with my digestion. Whenever I stand at my desk with a straight posture, it’s not too long before I feel the need to go #2, if I haven’t gone yet. 

- If I listen to music while working, I find my whole body moving to the music. Some call this dancing. 

- I find it hard to stay up late wasting time on the computer because I’m standing. I’m forced to either go to sleep or really “work” to stay up.

Change #2. Plant-based, unprocessed, whole food diet.

Influence:

What a great documentary! I’ve done the research and I know, a lot of things in this movie are exaggerated and some other crucial facts are missing (all documentaries do this to some extent), but this is a movie that needs to be watched. 

We westerners suffer from a disease of affluence, making meat and sweets available like never before. I was eating meat everyday before this. Not good at all.

The premise of the movie is this. To cure cancer and heart disease, instead of using surgery (knives), how about take preventative measures with a better diet (forks). Hence the name “Forks over Knives”

How it’s being done:

I started by reading a few articles, but found this one to be most helpful: http://www.mindbodygreen.com/0-952/PlantBased-Diet-for-Beginners-How-to-Get-Started.html

I’m trying to eat meat as LITTLE as possible, not eliminating it completely (meaning about once a month). 

I get my protein from humus, high fiber/wheat breads, rice, etc… with gluten, nuts, beans, soy, etc…

Fish is good! But be careful, fish can contain mercury or be farmed (fed with corn). Go here to find out what fish is good and not so good. http://www.montereybayaquarium.org/cr/seafoodwatch.aspx

no eggs, dairy etc…

I’m still working on the “unprocessed food” part of this. For instance, I ate honey-nut cheerios for breakfast today. Soon I will find some better cereal at Trader Joes.

Benefits so far from the first week:

- I played basketball last night and I had energy like never before. I also felt way more nimble. 

- I get hungrier, but I get to eat more often (I’ll update on the effects this has on my weight).

- I feel like I have more energy in the mornings than before. 

- Because I’ve been cutting foods with high sugar content, I am less moody than before. 

- I haven’t cut coffee yet (I drink it black btw), but that’s because I love coffee and it’s good for you in the right way (loaded with anti-oxidants, increases metabolism, helps in work productivity, and prevents alzheimers)

- I’m actually saving money cuz you know what? Meat is expensive.

Concluding thoughts to keep you thinking

Eating meat every day is not only unnecessary, it is bad for you. 

Sitting is the new smoking.

This world is fallen.

God loves humanity whether we think it or not. Think “crucifixion.”

“We don’t need to be afraid of God’s grace. We don’t need to worry that God’s grace might get out of hand. We should worry that we might not experience how wonderful God’s grace is.”  - Ray Ortlund Jr.

“Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you.” - Matthew 18:19

That bold part of the great commission was always so confusing because I thought we just believe the Gospel and that’s it… after we believe we have our ticket to heaven.  

What I did not understand was that God wants us to start heaven the moment we believe. He wants us to start heaven the moment we are saved and finally have it consummated in its full effect when He returns. And thus, his law was never meant to be abolished but to be fulfilled by Him. He would give the full effect of the law, and it would become a life for us to live in its principles summed up in this: love God and love your neighbor. He did what he did and wants us to follow for His Joy and for our Joy.

As Michael Williams says about the great commission: “These wonderful goals of the law are in no way eliminated by Jesus’ redemptive work but rather finally made possible!”

How are the goals to obey EVERYTHING He commanded made possible? in the Gospel

1.) Seeing how impossible it is to accomplish those things apart from Jesus’ working in us and changing our heart from thinking He’s a cruel dictator to seeing him as He really is, a loving Savior who is willing to give everything for us (think about the cross, and think “Apart from me you can do NOTHING” - John 15)

2.) Seeing how obedience to Jesus is for our ultimate long term JOY in life (John 15).

3.) Seeing how obedience to Jesus provides the path for human flourishing and the joy of all peoples (John 3:17, John 15)

“The Torah, as Jesus describes it, was not intended to be a fence to keep out life, but rather a fence to keep out death. It was not intended to be an enemy of life, but rather a description of life. Jesus reinterprets the law of Moses by stripping off the layers of paint that had been applied to it by the religious leaders and revealing its original beauty and character underneath. When restored to its luster, the law emerges as a description of the deepest possible human experience of life with our Creator and with those who bear his image. Because Jesus reveals that kind of life perfectly, and because he is the one who makes that kind of life possible for us, he is the fulfillment and focus of the entire Old Testament. This is good news worth exploring and experiencing!” - Michael Williams

Williams, Michael (2012-01-17). How to Read the Bible through the Jesus Lens: A Guide to Christ-Focused Reading of Scripture (Kindle Locations 2470-2476). Zondervan. Kindle Edition. 

Far too many women are watching “The Notebook” or “Twilight” for indicators on what kind of man they should marry. Instead, you probably should watch “The Wolf Man.”

…

What you need is not a sinless man. You need a man deeply aware of his sin and of his potential for further sin. You need a man who can see just how capable he is of destroying himself and your family. And you need a man with the wisdom to, as Jesus put it, gouge out whatever is dragging him under to self-destruction.

Awesome article. 

http://www.russellmoore.com/2012/01/23/should-i-marry-a-man-with-pornography-struggles-my-response/