hopin'

There's something about newness, even if it's just the hope of something new, that's attractive to me.

If I can go to a store and buy something that will help me to be more organized, I just feel as though I'm suddenly more organized. I have a lot of things that, in theory, would help me to be more organized...most of them in boxes in my basement. I hate clutter and I live in clutter. (you can barely see the hypocrisy in which I live through all the unopened boxes and garage sale bargains)
The things is, I love shopping at office supply stores (and who doesn't really?) because of all of the hope that it brings me. The hope of a new, organized life. The hope of a desk that has neat little stacks, folders, and drawers smartly labeled with pertinent information. I love hope. I just hate putting stuff in files.

I also love infomercials. I get caught up in the hope of how this particular product can help me clean my gutters, lose my gut, clean my house, clean my teeth, save me time, enjoy my time... That's what they're peddling - hope. I've never actually ordered anything from an infomercial, but I still love them. There's just something about the hope of a fresh start. I can start over with my pots and pans. I can start over with how I organize my closets. It'll be a new way of living!

I think the sum collection of all my false starts and dead ends has lead to a sort of apathy towards hope. It's almost like the cynic in me no longer gets quite as excited about the newness of things. "That'll just break. That probably won't even work the way they say it will."

I know a lot of people who don't want to get all excited about the claims of following Jesus. "He probably will make me lose all my friends, stop having fun, kill a fattened calf, and wear a tie every Sunday" I guess part of following someone is submitting to their direction. That probably means that you won't always turn right in life when He wants you to turn left....that just makes sense....at least if does if you're following Him. So should we get wrapped up in the newness of being a "new creation"? Should I get excited about having my slate not only wiped clean, but busted completely apart?- (NO SLATE ANYMORE)

Or...

Should I get wrapped up in all the stuff that requires change? I'd love to have an organized desk, but I'm not really so excited about putting stuff in files. I'd love to start over in life, experience hope, joy, and peace...but I'd like to do it on my terms. Our church did a thing last week where people came out with cards that said things like, "I was contemplating suicide" or "I smoked 3 packs a day" and then flipped the cards over to say, "Now I have a hope in life and the thereafter" or "now I smoke 2 1/2 packs a day...filtered!" or something like that...I wasn't taking notes.
Anyhow, the point was that all these folks decided to change their lives by following Jesus. I'm sure that all Christians feel some degree of hope, joy, patience, impatience, bitterness, forgiveness, unforgiveness, anger, happiness. The thing is, we're just doing our best at following Jesus. We're not Him.

My prayer is that people would look to Him and not all of the screwball followers - who still have issues - who get wrapped up in stupid politics - who still can be jerks. WE'RE NOT THE MESSAGE - we're barely the messengers. I feel like American Christians deliver the message of Christ about the same way that Newman delivered the mail.

We're not mirror images - we're barely a faint whisper of a reflection of His glory...whatever that means...