50 shades of God

when people say god is for you, what do they think that means? that god is always on their side? clearly god can't be on everyones side. what they really mean is god wants the best for everyone. but what does that look like? that can all too often lead to conclusions of a theology that supports the notion that god makes people go through hardships to make them better. cause like some parents, they think god will do what is best even if it hurts the child at the time. cause after all, the ends justify the means when it comes to god apparently. but when it comes to humans we call them tyrannical dictators. it seems silly to suggest that humans need to hold god accountable. he is god after all right? what he says and does goes. even if what it looks like god is doing is wrong and evil, but he gets a free pass; a god pass. and of course god isn't a naughty little troublemaker behind the scenes, hoping he won't get caught red handed by his friends. but we sometimes seem to 'think' god does or says something out of character. instead of dig deeper and question god, we give him a free pass. we add the new out-of-character trait that we seemed to have just witnessed and assume it was god. 

all throughout the bible, god's closest friends were the ones that held him accountable. they were the ones that got upset when it seemed like he was out of line, out of touch, and out of character. they were/are the prophets. 

but god is never out of line. not because he is god though. but because he never breaks character. what makes god so amazing is not how powerful and divine he is, it is just the opposite. god is not wonderful because he is a god. god is perfect because of who he is not because of what he is. he is willing to let his reputation and name get trashed and dragged through the mud by his supposed best friends. sometimes in order to love us and have a relationship with humans he was to associate with us. just like when people gave jesus crap for hanging out with homeless hookers and pot-heads. god also gets crap for things he is believed to have said and done, which in reality is far from it. there is nothing worse than when someone you don't know drops your name and associates you with things that have nothing to do with you. saying things about you and telling people what you are for and what you believe in. but when that person isn't getting the information directly from you, but rather from an article they read about you, or some else's experience, it can be a little more than frustrating. it can be hurtful. 

god gets hurt a lot. and he has to live with that. he has to live with the fact that the creatures that are suppose to reflect him on earth are both murders as well as lovers. only something so beautiful and sacred as a human could cause so much joy and so much pain. why doesn't god just end it all and scream atop the mountains who he is and what he's all about? cause that would be breaking character. sure god can be dramatic and neurotic sometimes, but he's not self obsessed. and he isn't one for easy answers and picking sides. he is nonviolent and subversive in nature. he is slow to anger, and values mercy over sacrifice. even if we believe differently because of what we think we found in the bible. just like when you are having a conversation over text messaging and something gets lost in translation, so also meaning behind scripture is lost.

 you and your friend get in a fight because they completely missed the point of what you were trying to say and thought you meant one thing, when in reality you said something else. it is better to take a step back and look at the character of someone before you rush to a silly conclusion that they have split-personality disorder or were lying the whole time. 

don't assume you have god figured out, he is more complex than a cop or superman. he isn't black and white, more like 50 shades of gray. he isn't just a really good guy that is always right. and he isn't an egotistical narcissist that only loves you cause you are wearing his sons name-brand. whatever your concept of god is, i guarantee you he is so much better than that.

Maturity

I find that people have a false perception of what actual maturity entails. 

We are taught to believe that at some point all people stop being children and become adults, and the defining quality of an adult being maturity. In traditional american thinking we hold the following definitions as evidence of that maturity: 

- responsibility

- accountability  

- integrity

- loyalty

- honesty

- leadership

- a career

- success

- power

- social status

- active member of a social group

As long as you have a stable job, handle your finances well, obey the authorities, have a healthy family life, stay up-to-date on politics and news around the world, and believe in a higher power, you are considered to live a healthy and mature life.

I propose a different definition of what it means to truly be mature. To be truly mature, is to be fully human.

I suggest that throughout the narrative of the bible, from Genesis to Jesus, god is trying to show humans how to be fully human. In the poem that starts out genesis, god is extremely intimate with the first humans. God walked and talked in the garden with these humans, teaching them what life was, what death was. God wanted to teach them about evil, and about love. Humans are the most beautiful and incredible creature in the entire universe; the apex of all creation. Humans bear the image of the living god. But humans were infantile in their existence. Humans did not know how to channel there thoughts and desires. They needed guidance. Humans needed a mentor. And just as a ten year old with access to a million dollar trust-fund, we abused our gifts. To quote the poet of Song of Songs: 'don't awaken love before it so desires'. Humanity opened up pandoras box before they were fully ready; they ate the forbidden fruit before they learned how to maturely handle the truth. With great knowledge comes great responsibility, and humanity was not in a place were it was able to be mature yet. Humans didn't want to wait for god to show them the truths about the tree of good and evil, they wanted instant gratification. Given enough time, it is reasonable to assume that god would one day explain this so called tree, but not before they were ready to handle it. 

From the beginning, god has continually been trying to bring us back to the metaphor of the garden. Not to a state of perfection, but to a state of human maturity. A relationship where god is the mentor and humans are the student. God tries again later with Abraham. God realized that maybe if one people group were set apart from the rest, that through them the whole world could then be reconciled and find their way back to their human roots, the roots of relationship. God's intention was that through the nation of israel, all humanity would learn how to be human again. But when god finally gets to a place where that is possible, his people reject him. God brings his people out of Egypt, out of the systems and empires of this world, and into a fresh beginning; the wilderness. But when Moses comes down from the mountain with the amazing news that this god wants to have no mediator, no middle man, no priest, just the people and god, the people get scared. The people reject direct relationship with their god, and turn to human rule instead. They ask if Moses can speak on behalf of god, out of fear that god will destroy them.

This pattern is recycled over and over throughout the entire bible, and again with Jesus. This time god resides his spirit in a human. The spirit of god become flesh to bring humans back to the true meaning of their humanity. Jesus was the first fully mature human. Through Jesus we see what true maturity as a human was meant to look like all along.  

- love

- compassion

- forgiveness

- grace

- empathy

- freedom from oppression

- social justice

- separation from the ways and systems of this world

The american view of maturity has stunted the christian adult. Sometime after high school and college, adults stop asking the existential questions. Who am I? Why am I here? What is the meaning of life? What does it mean to be human?

They become content and comfortable. They choose the superficial way to maturity, instead of the hard way. They are responsible and have a good career and are respected in their community and church, but they don't really know who they are or what they want from life. They fall back on recycled generic answers such as: I am a child of christ! I am here to love and be loved! I am here to do god's will for my life!

But that is only scratching the surface of true identity. They stop asking questions, so they stop growing. 

What good is it to be deemed responsible and mature by society, if you don't even know who you are?

Maturity modeled after Jesus is often thought of as foolish by the systems of this world, often even by the church. It values humility over self-affirmation. Grace over justice. Weakness over power. 

Maturity is found in the ability to give a voice to the voiceless. When you stand up for the oppressed and fight the powers that subject them to a life of dehumanization, you find true maturity. When your life echoes selflessness over selfishness, you are on your way to becoming fully human. True maturity is found in humility. A life of sacrificial love always trumps the standards of living that the world has to offer.

Spiritual Stories and the Deconstruction of Historical Myths Suspicious of the Powers

Everyday Thoughts: Finding God in David's Stories of Violence: