Making a Splash!

Well, I have been off the scene for a couple of weeks and all for a very good reason. As a family we have just been to Disneyworld and enjoyed the company of Mickey and friends. I have to say that I love the parks and had great fun taking the kids on all the big rides. I discovered that my kids are fearless when it comes to these scary adventures. My five year old daughter came off the Tower of Terror with a huge smile on her face pleading for us to go a second time. However, we had an appointment with Beauty and the Beast and time didn't permit. In hindsight I wished we had done the ride again instead of enduring the horror of singing clocks, teapots and candlesticks!
We went to Disneyworld a while back and the ride that scared me the most then was the same ride that scared me the most this time. That was Splash Mountain. You go into the ride knowing what to expect because you go past the fifty foot log flume drop with screaming people travelling at forty miles an hour in a plastic log. The ride lasts about ten minutes and for nine and a half minutes all I am thinking about is the fifty foot drop that is approaching. All is well until you go into a pitch black area and you climb slowly up the mountain, inside. Then you are lured into a false sense of security as you suddenly go down a smaller drop in the pitch black. And then you know there is no turning back as you approach - the drop. I can't remember if I screamed, shouted or anything! I do know that my eyes were closed because we have the photo to prove it. It was exhilerating, but scary enough that when we came back to the park a few days later I chose to opt out of the ride when everyone else decided to go again. I know my limits!

Are you a thrill-seeker? Do you like to take risks or step out of your comfort zone? To me faith is a bit like a theme park. Most of the rides I know I can do without fear. They are clearly tame and safe. You do them and it is just nice. But there is no buzz afterwards. You don't talk about it in depth and you don't tend to describe your emotions about how you felt before, during and after the ride. There is a lot of things that I do as a child of God that is very safe and tame. I can very easily go through the motions. I can do many things that requires no fear, no risk and no emotional battle. And afterwards I can say: "That was nice!", but then feel like I haven't really grown much through the experience. It is when I am confronted with challenges that require an emotional battle that takes me into a different realm. It is those moments where I have to engage more trust in God to get me through the situation. Everytime I have gone to do a Treasure Hunt have I had to overcome fear, discomfort and other emotions. Even when I am out on the street having to approach people that I have words of knowledge for, does more fear and nausea kick in. It is the same kind of emotions I have before a scary ride. I don't want to do this. But I know it will be fine. But what if it all goes wrong? But hey what is the worst that could happen? And it will all be over quickly! And then you step out and go for it and actually it is okay. The person was actually really friendly. He actually wanted to be prayed for. Okay let's do the next ride! And afterwards you just want to tell everyone what happened and you feel like you have grown in your faith.

How will I grow as a Christian if I stick to just the 'nursery' rides? I need to take more risks in my faith if I am going to grow as his son. If David hadn't killed the bear and the lion to protect his sheep, he wouldn't have been able to fight Goliath to protect Israel! He had to grow in his understanding that God was on his side and would work with him in every area. How much do you want to see happen in the kingdom of God by you being used by Him in ever increasing exploits? It is time to get off the Winnie the Pooh and Dumbo rides that just go round and round and get onto some Splash Mountains and Tower of Terrors. (This is figuratively speaking!) Religious activity is dull and predictable and gets you nowhere. Taking risks for God is often scary and tense but when you look back are exciting, exhilerating and unpredictable. So who wants to make a SPLASH!!?

Which side of the cross are you on?

I have just finished writing my sermon for Easter Sunday. It is about the two sides of the cross. On one side we still see Jesus on the cross and that we can live our lives as if His death wasn't enough to free us from our sin. We end up living under legalism and religious activity. We can live as if God doesn't accept us because we so often mess up and fail to live according to His 'law'. So we do things as penance so that God might have us back! We read more of the bible, we pray for a longer period, we go to more meetings and we try and help out more at church. Basically we live as slaves to a false gospel that says that by our own efforts we can become acceptable to God. Yeah, Jesus died for us, but was it really enough? If it was then why do we resort to religious acts and legalistic actions? As if by them we can get anywhere? This is the wrong side of the cross. This is not living in freedom of the cross and what was accomplished on it by Jesus' perfect sacrifice.

The right side of the cross is the empty side. Not only is Jesus not on the cross still, but He is no longer in the grave! He is ALIVE!!! Do you know what this means? It means that His sacrifice was totally accepted by His Father in heaven. His blood was enough to totally free us from the power of sin and death. When He breathed His last breath the temple curtain that separated men from the Most Holy place was torn from top to bottom. This gave all of us access into God's very presence. He tore it! He did it so that we didn't have to. Because we couldn't do it.

Living on the right side of the cross means freedom. It means living as His children, where His full attention is on us. It means being a co-heir with Christ. It means that we have been made perfect forever as we have been set aside and dedicated to our Glorious Dad in heaven for eternity. It is impossible for us to do any more to make us more acceptable to God. It has all been done for us! Glory, glory, glory!!!

Which side of the cross do you want to live your life? I have chosen my side. Will you join me? Have an amazing Easter this year and remember that we actually celebrate it daily. All blessings on you. Neil