A line from yesterday's sermon has been rolling around in my mind (well, actually several lines, but I'll share just one) and I wanted to get your thoughts on it. The jist of it is... Americans won't die for anything anymore.
This has got me to thinking. So what do you think? What are Americans willing to die for? I know, I know some in our military are willing to die for our country and freedoms, but what about the general populace. What are we/they willing to die for?
Monday, November 17, 2008
Your thoughts?
Posted by Anonymous at 7:57 AM
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6 comments:
Lori,
I think this goes along with the conversation that you and I and Jim were having the other day about our motivation (as Americans) always being comfort- we are always looking for a way to make ourselves more comfortable. Dying for something is miles away from comfortable... I am still pondering where I fit in this spectrum...
Danielle
I"m with Danielle...pondering where I fit...it's such an uncommon thought in the American mind that's it's almost hard to consider. We don't have to think about dying, so we don't. We don't have to think about whether we will eat today, whether we will be warm tonight. What would it be like to have to worry about those things? Would it be better if I did live that way? How do I REALLY teach my kids that we are so blessed and others aren't?
How's that for an answer-another question!
Kat
What preceded this line in the sermon was the story of Iwo Jima where the troops had to storm onto the shores knowing they would be mowed down with Japanese bullets. So many willingly laid down their lives and eventually, the USA got a foothold and later the entire island. But, no gains were made without sacrifice. That was paralleled with missionary work. As soon as persecution starts, we run rather than willingly lay down our lives. Our brothers and sisters are dying all over the world and we pull our missionaries off the field as soon as the hint of trouble comes. Is this cowardiss? Of course, you don't look for death, don't be foolish. But don't run out of fear for your own life. If it's to protect others or your heart tells you to run, run. But if your heart tells you to stay...stay. These are things Jim and I embracing as we look forward to going into missions within the next few years. Are we willing to die for the gospel?
We had to deal with question at orientation also. If you look at the Book of Acts, you see examples of people's lives being threatened for the Gospel...sometimes they ran, other times, they stayed and died. The key is to be Spirit-led. If you are walking with the Lord and servind Him, then if your life is called for, you will know if it's time or not. Also, we must remember what Paul told the Philippians in chapter 1-"For me to live is Christ and to die is gain." He also told the Ephesians elders in Acts 20:24-"However, I consider my life worth nothing to me, if only I may finish the race, and complete the task the Lord Jesus has given me-the task of tesifying to the gospel of God's grace." No, not all of us are called to die physically for a cause, but all of us are called to die to self-to consider our lives worth nothing. Then, if we've cultivated the "crucified with Christ" attitude and "taken up our crosses to follow Christ," if the time comes for us to lay down our lives, we will be ready.
Amen, Karla! So well put. And yes, as you are now on the mission field, this is very real for you, isn't it. I think for many of us it is still a "what if" kind of question, with no real visible threat. May Christ truly be better than life to us!
Americans as a whole are far more absorbed into our "rights" than our responsibilites. "I have the right to do what I want... and we don't want to die." I went off on a bit of rant on this topic myself on my blog a couple of years ago when I was writing about the 4th of July. At this time, I don't feel called to a mission field, nor am I in danger of being drafted into military service, so the thought of dying for a valiant cause is somewhat distant. But, I do think of the sacrifices we make for each other, and for our children. Maybe it is something simple like abandoning a childhood dream of skydiving, because the risk (death) is no longer balanced with the reward (rush of excitement) when you have little mouths to feed at home. Perhaps it is something a bit more practical even, like a parent laying down their desire for a fanciful vacation because a child needs braces. I guess in short, the only thing that comes to my mind that I know without a doubt that I would be willing to lay down my life for is my girls. I would like to say that I as bold as I am called to be when it comes to sharing my faith, especially at work. But as they say, the proof is in the pudding. It would be inaccurate for me to say that I step out any limbs or risk my professional reputation to enter into spiritual conversations at work. Mind you, I am not cussing it up and boozing with party crowd, and most know that which church that I go to... but I bet not many know of them knows what that means.
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