Sparked by comments on Bakers Blog.  Link

I can only speak for myself and my faith so this is the only disclaimer I’m making.

There seems to be some scoffing among unbelievers as to “how” a Christian should act, talk, what opinions we should hold, and our general demeanor.

I find it highly comical the very people who reject Christ as Lord, consider themselves authorities on how Christians should behave.  That is armchair quarterbacking taken to new heights.

Do I believe Jesus Christ is God?  Was born of a virgin?  Led a sinless life?  Was hung on the cross at Calvary in payment for my sins?  Died, and rose again?  Then ascended to heaven and sits at the right hand of the Father?  YES.  And I really don’t care to debate it because that’s not what the article is about.

Once coming to Christ, no matter how old you are, or what you “think” you already know about the faith, or how many times you’ve read the Bible, you are a baby, an amateur, a fresh faced kindergartener.

Liken it to football.  Say I read the play book exactly fifty times but never played the game.  I can tell anyone who will listen how the game should be played.  I can scoff at amateurs decisions while watching safely from the stands because even “never having played the game I know that much.”

Now imagine you are looking at that play book again.  Only this time you have the wisdom of every great football coach in history whispering in your ear.  They don’t just know the plays of the game, they know every piece of turf and how it’s mowed across the country.  They know the weather, the fans, the best made pig skins and why one is better than another at different temperatures.  They know the names of the guys who chalk the fields.  They know every player that was or will ever be.  In short, they know everything.

In the case of the Christian, this is the Holy Spirit.

And all this information is at our disposal.  The only thing is, you are deaf in one ear (sin) and the vacuum cleaner (life) is always yammering in your other one.

As I began my journey with Christ I likened it to getting new glasses.  Things I considered “normal” my whole life were suddenly obviously wrong.  And everyday I spent in the Word, asking God to help me understand His will, I saw more and more of these things.  I didn’t want to see them and each time I did, it was a hot knife to the soft butter of my soul.  And the inevitable question “How could I do that?”

For example, one of the things that just went away and I didn’t even notice was cussing.  One day I was talking with my girl friend on the phone and she said, “Wow T.  We’ve talked for an hour and I haven’t heard you cuss one time.”

I was as shocked as she.  It wasn’t something I read in scripture and then said, “Oh heck.  I should try not to do it anymore.”  Nope.  I didn’t even know I had a problem with it, and certainly hadn’t studied it yet.  God just took it from me.  Meaning I flat out didn’t do it anymore.  It was just gone.

I was thankful but in all honesty I was more interested in why God would take my cussing and leave my anger.

I journeyed over the next five months with Him.  That means I read some scripture everyday, tried to start my day with it.  Then spent time in prayer, and listening.  Then as I went about my day, I tried to apply and bring to mind what I learned that morning.  I carried a continual conversation with God in my head and sometimes out loud.

Sometimes I journeyed successfully, more times not.  I was fine with thinking about the plays, but once in the heat of the game, I'd either forget or decide at the last minute my way was better.  It was at least more comfortable.

While an unbeliever can quote the play book, they don’t get the guidance of the coach.

Why is this important?  Because the coach saw I needed to work on my “off field” game before I could ever tackle the on field plays.  While an unbeliever could point out all my on field error, they didn’t know the coaches priorities.  I continued in most of my on field shenanigans while we worked together in private on something bigger.

I did need to get rid of my anger.  But it was so big and so deep I didn’t know where to begin.  The coach showed me.  Basically He started me with baby steps.  Like, why do you think everything should go your way?

I won’t take you down the list of things brought to my attention.  Some of them He showed me and then removed as soon as I recognized it for what it was.  Some of them He allowed me to work on, struggle with, and finally have a victory.  And some He let me lose and continue to struggle with even now.

One thing about God in my experience, He doesn’t ever waste pain.  Whether I bring it on myself, or someone else offers it up for me to eat, He has something there for me.  It is always there, even if I don’t hear it because I’m focused on the vacuum, or the pain, and not His voice.  It’s there if I choose to listen.

After five months I awoke one morning and my anger was gone.  I don’t mean it faded.  I mean an anger that was so hot it burned people daily, was no more.  I literally felt years younger and pounds lighter.

So what does this have to do with how unbelievers think Christians should act?

It’s simple really.  Believing something does not necessarily mean perfect obedience. 

I may think the speed limit a very wise thing or else anarchy may result on the highway and potentially loss of life.  Does that mean I obey it every time I drive?  Does it mean I will never speed again in my life?  I can certainly try, and the coach is always nearby to remind me when my foot gets heavy…but sometimes I have the radio up, or my mind is somewhere else and I speed.  And sometimes I do it because ~gasp~ I want too.

Every Christian is at a different place in their walk.  Some just are looking at the play book for the very first time with the coach whispering in their ears.  Some have the play book open but are sleeping.  Some have it memorized but can’t seem to make any of the plays work.  Some are listening off and on.  When the game starts to go bad, they listen.  When it’s good, they tune out the wisdom.

I’m not making excuses.  When I fail to listen for whatever reason, it is mine.  The fumble, the lost game, it’s totally my fault.  When I am disobedient to what I know is the truth, again, it is mine.  And what’s worse, I have to know the world is calling the wisdom of the coach into question because of my behavior.

But when unbelievers bunch all Christians together like we are born again into the same mature, well read, perfect adult Jesus…well that’s scary.  While my anger was a priority to God, someone else may need to work on adultery, greed, whatever.  That usually means everything else takes a back seat until that stone is removed from the path.

And honestly I think there is a cut off point which unbelievers and believers can discuss the play book.  If the coach is whispering in your ear to punt when all today’s knowledge says it’s a definite runner, there will be no more discussion.  It can’t be explained fully by one side, or understood by the other.

Each Christian is unique in our walk, in our gifts, in our growth.  God fashioned each of us different so we can serve in every imaginable way.  Couple that with WHERE each person is on the journey and you can see how various reactions, actions, comments come into play.

I am learning as I go.  I have not mastered the course.  Sometimes I change direction after running headlong down the wrong path.

I am not perfect.

(And if you think I’m bad now, you should have seen my plays before I started reading the book and seeking the coach's counsel!)