RSTs -- Purpose?

Hey, Y'all,

It's been a while since we revisited our reason for being--I know there're several new folks who've come aboard recently. So what's the purpose of these Random Spiritual Thoughts?

Most days they're just quick reminders that there's more to life than what Madison Avenue (or the vast majority of society for that matter) says there is; that that vague sense of dissatisfaction, that feeling that there's something missing or incomplete, and that things should be better, that sense that things are not as they ought to be...it's for real.

It's an interesting quandary we post-modern people find ourselves in--we know we're being marketed to constantly, we understand that most of what we see and hear is at best a spin- or sales-job, and yet there remains this inexplicable deep yearning to believe that there's more...that's what RSTs are supposed to remind you of.

Yeah, most days they're of the warm and fuzzy, reassuring variety, nothing wrong with that...unless I do you the disservice of not pointing out that God wants much more for you than just that sense of "I'm OK"---which can easily morph into "I'm OK where I am so I think I'll just stay [stagnate] here." He wants you to open your eyes and see that there's much more than just getting by, He wants you to grow, to flourish, and to become a better human being, more mature and patient and kind (see Galatians 5:22&23 for the specifics)--that's the proof that there's a God and that He's a life-changing and powerful and benevolent God.

So it's true, He accepts us and loves us profoundly, wherever we are and whatever state we're in (check out the story of the Prodigal Son in Luke 15:11-32 for more details). BUT...it's equally true that He loves us entirely too much to leave us where He found us. He did accept both the woman caught in adultery ("I don't condemn you") and the paralytic at the pool of Bethesda ("Do you want to be healed?") exactly as they were, but it's also interesting to note that He told them to move onward and upward from that point and to not keep spinning their wheels (to the woman, "now leave your life of sin," and to the paralytic, "get up, pick up your mat, and walk" --- and interestingly He meets the paralytic again later and tells him directly to change his life and "sin no more"---the complete stories are found in John 8:3-11 and John 5:1-15).

So there you have it: why RSTs? 'Cause there's more, much more, for us, but we tend to forget...So whenever I run across something that reminds me of that fact, I pass it on. But remember, God isn't just about getting you to feel better about yourself--He's about you growing and actually being a better person, more like what we were created to be: reflections of Him--literally "created in His image."

Teach me to do your will, for you are my God.
May your gracious Spirit lead me forward on a firm footing.
Psalm 143:10

You've been prayed for today...