Saturday, April 23, 2011

Not everyone alive is living

ok, so i know you probably read this title and instantly thought "ya, i can agree with that". This is exactly why i've decided to write a blog about this topic.

we hear in pop culture all the time from every one; actor interviews, movie themes and pop songs are all obliged to put this idea out there, but i'm curious as to what message exactly they are putting out. See, secular world views like to say that most people who are alive are not living "the life." this is usually in referance to the money and fame, or in some cases the promescuity of being able to "have" (for lack of a better term) any person that one might desire whether that be romantically, sexually, or for any onther exploitation. see this view holds simply that being fully alive and living the life all consist of finding the utmost comfort, excitement or extravagence in the world. Now i know, self-righteously, we'd all like to say "thats not me. wow, those people are horrible", but don't we all do this on some level or another? i mean, growing up in our consumer driven, self-gratifying North American culture, we are simply conditioned from a very young age to seek what it is that we want to be happy. I'll be the first to say that i struggled with this for a long time and in the process hurt many people who didn't deserve it. there was a time in my life that i would have done just about anything to get famous in music. Thankfully, i never got the opportunity to start down that road because i think that i would have ended up a worse mess than i did. Money, fame and sex will be fun for a season, but cannot fullfill which is exactly why we see so many "has-beens" in culture end up in rehab, VH1 and several other life-wreck collection plates.
From a Christian perspective, it is a much brighter long term picture. This is due to the completely different basis for understanding happiness. Happiness is a passing emotion that is great, however not sustaining and can not compare to joy which is a lasting, sustaining life theme. Love in this sense is not the fleeting sex scandals, nor the over-romanticised excursions between a lead actor and his supporting lady who end up divorced in a month. it is real, raw love that is so un-bridled, it calls for sacrafice and hurt and grinding out the problems issues and mess until the end. it goes without saying that i still believe in the institution of marriage though most of our culture seems to given up on that idea. Christianity speaks to that longing for money and fame, but responds with two things: 1. Jehovah Jirah and 2. humility. as far as money goes, we are called to rely on God to be our provider. now THAT is a rush if i've ever had one: wondering how we're gonna make this month's bills happen and then getting to the end of the month and seeing that you have a little left over. God will always provide for his children. and then humility as a calling card for the christian life. this doesn't seek to glorify self, but to lift up others in community. God blesses that, because it is imitation of his son, Jesus. Christ calls us to live life abundantly, but this doesn't mean getting caught in the ebb and flow of pop culture's mission for comfort. this means being truely counter-culture and seeking the joy of living in humility and life in God's perfect will where he is your provider. we are called to love God and love his creation, specifically, people. If you really want fullfillment and lasting comfort, than be a dare devil, live on the edge and be radically different from pop culture by living the christian life.

peace,
the dread