The Stuff We Own

We must work very hard to form our thinking rightly in regards to the physical world and our possessions. Physical things are not just things to possess and use for pleasure. We must see all things as tools by which we can advance the kingdom of God and our own sanctification. If our use of anything does not accomplish this, then we must let it go. For it has then only become a great weight upon us that is hindering our growth in Christ. Thus Christ's warning about gaining the whole world but losing our souls. One other point to consider in this regard is judging others. We will fine it very easy to criticize others by thinking that they are guilty of mis-using things. But really, only they can truly answer that question.

Holy Mother Russia

Unfortunately, many people still have the image of communism in mind when they think of Russia. But really, the fall into communism that Russia suffered was really a tiny blip in their massive history. In 1988, Russia celebrated 1000 years as a Christian nation. That's nearly five times the length of the hotly debated "is the USA really a Christian nation" question.

The current near-conflict that is currently underway in the Crimean peninsula is a result of the foundational difference of culture between east and west. Up until just recently, the Ukraine was an eastern country, centered on Slavic thinking. But (and unfortunately I must add) western thinking has begun infiltrating the Ukraine.  The Russians know from experience just how dangerous and destructive western thought is. Prior to the Bolshevik revolution and the communist takeover, the French possessed an immense influence on Russian culture, even to the point of Russians no longer teaching their children the Russian language but French instead. This western influx directly led to the fall of Russian, ultimately to communism.

So now we have the same western thinking coming into the Ukraine and Putin won't stand for it. This is what is motivating Russia in their attempts to regain Crimea. They are striving to save their people.  On that note all I can say is, "America and the EU need to stay out of Russia's business." If some people in the Ukraine want to live a western life, then they can move to a western country. In my opinion (for what its worth), a truly Russian worldview is superior to a western one, based simply on the controlling influence of 1000 years of Christian history.

Does this mean Russia is faultless?  Of course not, but we need to construct our lives around the Christian faith. At this point in history, Russia is far ahead of the USA. Forty years of legalized abortion, gay marriage, instant gratification via technology and a Hollywood culture reveal an extremely depraved America, in fact, the exact opposite of what we should be.

Tools for holiness

     Asceticism is not the goal but the means to a goal.  Our souls are so polluted and dark and our minds are so faulty in their processing that we must make use of the tools that the Church provides for us.  This is our only hope for making progress in our sanctification.  This should remind us of Philippians 2:12.

Articulating Whats Important

Everyone has things that they believe are important. As far as we are involved, it is not for us to judge the validity of their position. First and foremost, we need to understand them and love them regardless.

Secondly, we need to be able to recognize their position for what it is, see the logical outcome of it and then turn upon ourselves and perform the same action. We need to be honest when we are critical of our own worldview. To be able to see our own fallacies is nothing short of a gift. When we see then we can make corrections or at least seek help in doing so.

Obviously, things are not simply “important” or “not important”. Everything is on a scale. Context and time frame need to be taken into account but ultimately one needs to be able to see fallacies in our own thinking and honestly deal with them. Understanding our own thinking in light of the way our thinking has been formed by family environment, education, culture and life choices over the long term will be key to moving further into self-understanding and action.

Those things that are important will ultimately be formed by who we truly are, not who we think we are or even who we desire to be.

Those things that are important to us reveal who we truly are.

Defining Mediocrity

When we say something is mediocre, the message being communicated is that something is less than excellent. If we give it much thought, we ought to acknowledge that this sort of definition is built upon unspoken presuppositions. The things that people consider important will drive and underlie those things that they define as excellent or mediocre.

The thing that stimulated this thought path was considerations on children's education. If someone believes that a large salary and a padded retirement fund are extremely important, then much effort will go into education: high culture schooling, top notch university, and probably a doctorate.

Whereas if concern for the soul is ultimately important, then learning to pray, to repent, to confess sins, to forgive others and to love will be the focus of ones attention.

The next thing that I will hear will probably be something along the lines of, "these things are not mutually exclusive, someone can have both". But Scripture says otherwise. "Where ones heart is, there is his treasure." And, "you cannot serve both God and money." We must answer these statements, they do mean something.

So when we label something as mediocre, we had better be sure we truly understand the worldview that is behind that action.

But ultimately, we must ask ourselves what goal we are training our children to reach, big money or godliness?  Spiritual mediocrity or worldly mediocrity?

Modesty

This question has been plaguing me for a long time, possibly years, that is, how do we define modesty?  Not in the abstract, intellectual sense, but in the everyday, living it out sense. When we purchase clothing, when we get dressed in the morning, when we get dressed to "go out", what motivates our choices and what fences do we recognize that control our actions?

I am guessing that most people don't give this a whole lot of thought but instead merely go with the flow. It could be that the flow is okay (not likely) but shouldn't we at least have thought through the idea and be able to articulate why we do what we do?

So, what motivates/drives our fashion choices and who are we allowing to influence our ideas?  What does it even mean to be modest?  How is that word defined?  Where does the responsibility lie?  If the way we dress tempts someone else, should we do it that way?  Or is it simply "their problem".  If the way we dress tempts someone to sin, we should consider why we dress that particular way. What does the amount of time, money and energy we spend on our appearance and clothing say about our priorities?

I am going to make a few suggestions on possible ways to approach this. First, modesty is more than simply covering up certain portions of the body. Modesty has to do with excess as well. One can be perfectly covered up but immodest because of the extravagance of ones attire. 1st Peter 3 speaks of this. Second, modesty is in part defined by the culture in which we live. When we dress in a way that the culture around us has defined in a certain way (and it doesn't matter how accurate that definition is.  Perception has relevance), we are communicating a message. That message should be well thought out. Within the culture we live, our attire says something. We cannot argue that we are being modest according to first century standards, because we don't live in the first century. To dress in a way that WE say is okay when that manner of dress is offensive to some, is only selfishness. Again, this comes down to who gets to make the definitions. Do we listen to the world?  Do we listen to our own imagination? Do we listen to the church?

The way we dress should push no boundaries, should incite no passions in others and should draw no attention to ourselves. At the very least our attire out to communicate that our souls are more important than earthly concerns.

One closing thought. Ultimately, why does our appearance matter?  Other peoples thoughts about us are only important insofar as it appropriately reflects the image of Jesus Christ. Are we clean, well kempt, and discreet, not drawing attention to ourselves?  If we can answer "yes" to these, then we are probably safe. Much of this depends on the motivations behind our actions as shown in our appearance.