The Real part 2
Ogres are like onions, right? Because they have layers. What you see is not always what you get. There's something unseen under the surface. And you have to dig a little deeper to see it. You have to look INTO people instead of just looking AT people. You have to stop judging by appearance and judge righteous judgment. Let the deep call out to the deep. Let the Jesus--the LOVE--in my connect to the Jesus--the LOVE--in you. Because that's what's real. I can't tell you how sick and tired I am of conversations like this: "How are you?" "Fine." And that's it. I'm actually pretty well convinced that the word "fine" used to mean something else but now it means, "I'm hurting, but I'm going to pretend I'm not because I'm afraid to be vulnerable." And that's such a shame to me. Because I know that in some ways, to some degree, everybody is going through stuff. That's called life. We go through stuff. A lot of it is surface stuff. Stuff that we MAKE important, by magnifying it, that really isn't that important. My litmus test is pretty simple. Would I jump a fence for it? Not a TON of effort is required to jump a fence, but more effort than staying still. So, if I would, then ok. If it's worth physically doing something about... then it's real. But if I wouldn't... then I should probably just let it go and not worry about it. But man, oh man, do we like to make mountains out of molehills. We'll take the smallest thing and blow it way out of proportion. Wreck our whole day because someone slighted us. (When, in truth, they were probably so wrapped up in themselves that they didn't even mean to do what they did in the first place.) What am I saying? There's the real... and there's everything else. But we're so focused on everything else that we MISS the real. I like this verse, Colossians 3:2, because it's short and sweet and to the point. "Set your affection on things above, not on things on the earth." Focus on the real. Look at the unseen, because it's eternal. What you magnify is what manifests. Instead of fighting the dark, just let the light shine and watch the darkness flee. Instead of trying to fix everything (and inevitably making it worse) trust that Daddy's in control. Trust that there's a big picture, and your situation is only a small part of it. Remember that it came to pass, not to stay. And remember that love never fails. The real thing. Agape love. Sacrificial love. Laying your life down for your friends love. So no matter what... you can help people. You can dig a little deeper. You don't have to accept fake, and you don't have to try to change the situation (or the person). You can just love. I always end my sermons by saying, "I love you and there's nothing you can do about it." And I truly believe that. Accept my love, reject my love, whatever. You're not going to CHANGE my love. Because it's real. It's eternal. Jesus said, "Heaven and earth shall pass away, but my words shall not pass away" (Matthew 24:35). His Word is love. And when all else fails... love wins. Nothing can stop it. Nothing can contain it. It's deep, and it's wide. It's eternal, and everlasting, and abundant. It's... real.