echoes of redemption

I met a guy the other day who identified himself an inventor.

I was instantly intrigued. “Wow, what have you invented?”

“Well, nothing…” he said, “not yet.”

So he is an inventor who has not invented anything.

Which made me think, I would tell people I’m a church planter and if they asked what I had planted, I would have to answer, “Well, nothing… not yet.”

So I’m a church planter that hasn’t planted any churches.

And then I realized that a lot of people I know would identify themselves as redeemed by Jesus, but many of us still live in some very shattered rhythms of life. And we find ourselves thinking and resounding in very un-redeemed ways sometimes.

So we are redeemed people who aren’t all the way redeemed.

And this is how the Kingdom of God works.

Because sometimes it’s better to identify yourself as what you are growing into instead of by what you are growing out of.

Sometimes it’s what keeps you on the path. Keeps you focused. Keeps you living forward into what God has for you.

So, while the inventor has not invented anything, his mind is always going, always looking for new ideas and always solving problems. So he is an inventor. And while I have not started a church, my dreams, plans and energy are all working toward creating a community of people striving to live like Jesus in this world. So I am a church planter.

And while we may stumble, struggle and make mistakes in this world, we are a people fully redeemed by the blood of Jesus.

We are already, while we are also not yet.

For most of my life I have seen things as right and wrong.

Which is fine for things like math problems, but causes problems when it comes to spirituality.

I used to view spiritual things as right and wrong, but I’m learning to view them differently. Because if all spiritual things are right and wrong, when I learn something new, I have to look at what I used to know as wrong. And all the people who still think that way as wrong. And all the churches who operate around those principles as wrong.

And there is no room for journey in that. No room for grace. No room for growth.

It’s also built on pride. Because when I declare everyone else wrong and myself correct, I become the judge.

So now I see things more as a journey.

And where I used to believe certain things about God, or about how his followers operate on earth – now my journey with his Son may have taken me somewhere different. And the implications of that may change how I view the way things work, or how I live, or the kinds of things I feel like I should do in response.

So it’s a new way of living. And in this way of living I find myself judging less. Beating myself up for the past less. Growing more. Getting along with more people. And enjoying the experiences of grace and growth.

The empire is driven by results – primarily because it is the only way to track good.

But sometimes the best things can’t be recorded on paper. They aren’t lines moving upward on graphs. They don’t involve more people than the last time.

Jesus seemed to relate with people, not for the sake of results, but for the sake of the person.

The two tax collectors Jesus met with didn’t see results that equaled more money (because now they knew how to tithe, so God could bless them more). In fact, after meeting Jesus, both men felt they needed less. That they could live less for themselves and more for others.

The woman who poured expensive perfume on Jesus, anointing him before his death, didn’t net results from a long talk on stewardship, wisdom and rewards of knowing God. Even though that’s exactly what his disciples wanted. Jesus just celebrated her sacrifice.

The empire says, “results = success.” The Kingdom doesn’t work that way.

The Kingdom views all things differently.

Things like sacrifices that draw deeply from us when we give – not because the amount is important, but because the beauty is in the act.

Like relationships we give ourselves to – not to see someone change, but because giving ourselves in love is the point.

Or the cry of our heart in prayer – not because we pray X minutes a day, which is X minutes more than last year, but because we genuinely connect with God when we pray.

Sometimes we will grow, sometimes we will lose, sometimes we will just be. The point is that we are with God. And being with God is more valuable than anythings else in the Kingdom.

How can we shift from results driven spirituality to just being?