Comfortable Christian

What does it mean to be comfortable? Comfortable is defined on Dictionary.com as: 1. producing or affording physical comfort, support, or ease 2. being in a state of physical or mental comfort; contended and undisturbed 3. more than adequate or sufficient. To be comfortable, I always think of surrounding myself with things that are familiar to me. I try not to introduce anything new or put myself in a situation where I might not fit the status quo.

What does it then mean to be a Comfortable Christian? In reading Francis Chan's book, Crazy Love: Overwhelmed by a Relentless God, a Comfortable Christian could be described as a Lukewarm Christian. A Lukewarm Christian or Comfortable Christian praises God, reads their Bible, and goes to church in ways that have become halfhearted. As a Comfortable Christian, you surround yourself or only take part in things that are familiar to you. Put yourself in situations that you know are not going to ruffle feathers or put a strain on your already hectic schedule.

When thinking of the word comfortable, I was reminded of a story a friend at work told me once. It was a cold day in Minnesota, which already zaps you of any energy you may have. It had been a long day at work, and my friend was both physically and mentally exhausted. When my friend got on the bus, he went and sat in his favorite spot. In the winter, it was the back seat where the engine warms the seat and adds the extra bit of warmth that the struggling heaters cannot produce. His ride was only a forty-five minute ride, so he put his feet up on the seat in front of him, laid his head back, and got as comfortable and cozy as he could in his favorite spot. After a while, my friend stirred from his sleep and took a quick look around. To his surprise, he had been so comfortable and resting so well, he had missed his stop. When he woke up, he was not over twelve miles away from his stop and still headed in the wrong direction. He had missed out on his opportunity to be at home, and now had to wait until the bus made its way back towards his bus stop.

I was reminded of this story as I contemplated the word Comfortable. I realized that I have moved from a God thirsty and stoked Christian in the past few years to a Comfortable Christian. I used to seek out ways to learn the History, Context, and Historical People surrounding the Word of God. I used to get excited to sit down and imagine talking with Jesus Christ in prayer. Feeling his hands placed on my shoulders as I confessed my faith, sins, and temptations to God and His son. I evolved into surrounding myself with familiarity to the point that things that were new and fresh ended up being comfortable. I stopped reading the Word of God as aggressively, because I already was moved and new enough to be a Christian, I had become comfortable with where I was in my faith. My faith in the past few years can be reflected in my friend's story. I now seek out only those things that are not going to stress me, and only do what I think is enough.

To have this transparency in my faith laid out before me today scares me. As a loving witness to what God can do and as an active disciple of Jesus Christ, I have become a Comfortable Christian in thinking that I already know more than the next person, so I will be ok. It scares me that if I continue to stay to be a Comfortable Christian, like my friend on the bus, I might miss the most important stop of my life. It is time as a Christian that I become less comfortable, otherwise I might fall asleep and miss out on the opportunity to get off at the right spot. Unlike my friend that had the benefit of taking the bus until it came back around to his bus stop, as a Christian, I have only one opportunity and one chance to get off where I need to...Heaven with God and His son Jesus Christ.

Dear Heavenly Father, Help me to become less comfortable as a Christian. Inspire your word in me and help me to get off my earthly pedestal and look to you for guidance in my faith. I humble myself in front of your feet, and ask you to speak through my heart once again.

Through thought, word, and deed, I will be You God and Your son Jesus Christ...AMEN

Crazy Love is Back...

I have been living my life in a pretty predictable way the past few years. I picked up doing a blog about my Bible Journey around the time I found out that my wife was pregnant with my son Oliver. That was over 2 years ago. Since then, much has happened. By living predictable, I do not mean that I lost my faith in Christ, but that my actions as a Christians were very predictable in nature. I attended a group called Theology on Tap. I went to church...most Sundays. I prayed every day. As the two years moved forward, I noticed that my faith in Christ never wavered, but my passion for him did. Now, that doesn't mean if you struck up a conversation with me about my faith or Christianity as a whole, I wouldn't be passionate in my response to you, but I was becoming less passionate in my actual relationship with God. Although I was praying, my prayers became less and less. Although I was attending church, my want to be with other Christians became less and less.
My wife, Oliver, and I have since moved to a new church, closer to home, called Freshwater. We wanted to become active and participate right away, so we ended up signing up for a book study with other church members, on the book Crazy Love: Overwhelmed by a Relentless God by Francis Chan. Now, my bible journey is not about talking about my Christian church life, but in my journey through the bible. So, I will not go on and on about how great Freshwater is and about how much I love talking with our new friends, I'll just leave these comments to sum up my love for where our family has landed.
When I first picked up this book, and cannot say it stirred any feelings in me to start picking up my passion for the word of God right off the bat. There are many times I find myself reading books on other Christians theories and not being converted to a passion to pick up the book of God. I was walking up the stairs to work this morning, reading my book, yes, I walk up the stair and read my book at the same time. I figure, if I am reading about God while walking, he will protect me from harm ;) I made it to a part in the book that stirred something within me to start blogging about the word of God again. In Chapter 5, serving leftovers to a holy God, I read the following excerpts:

"..., I quoted several commentators who agreed with my point of view. But we all know that you can find quotes to support any view you want to take. You can even tweak word studies to help you in your effort. I'm not against scholarship, but I do believe there are times when we come to more accurate conclusions through simple reading."
"Pray. Then read the Gospels for yourself. Put this book down and pick up your Bible. My prayer for you is that you'll understand the Scriptures not as I see them, but as God intends them."

Where have I been, and what have I been doing? The time when I had the most passion for Christ was when I started this Bible Journey. I was not just listening to Dogma, Theology, church leaders, books, etc. I was listening to the voice of God. I was reading his word like I was reading it for the first time. Faith should be seen as through the eyes of a child.

I am here to start my journey again. To share it and walk with those that want to do it with me. Take a look at what I did in the past. Participate with me if you would like. Here starts the second journey of my time through the Bible with God.

God's peace love and understanding to all of you. Amen