When the red flags go up

Have you ever done something that, after the fact, made you think about where you are at and where you are headed? This just happened to me. After completely (and illegally) abusing a particular drink with friends who I know are not walking with Christ, feeling absolutely terrible the next day and having to leave work because of it, I wonder what happened. How did I come to this? How can I claim to be a follower of my Savior, while going against His word in front of people who don't know Him?


Needless to say, some things need to change. I am desperately needing more time with Him and His word and less time spent with facebook, movies, crappy music, sleeping, etc... What really blows my mind is that I left my Bible in my friend's van over 3 weeks ago - and it is still there! What glaring evidence of my lack of seeking Him. Not to say the past few weeks have been completely dry - but they certainly demonstrated some serious downfalls on my part. I listened to a sermon from Josh Harris on the drive home last week. It was on this passage in Jeremiah 29:11-13:

10 "For thus says the LORD: When seventy years are completed for Babylon, I will visit you, and I will fulfill to you my promise and bring you back to this place. 11 For I know the plans I have for you, declares the LORD, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope. 12 Then you will call upon me and come and pray to me, and I will hear you. 13 You will seek me and find me, when you seek me with all your heart. 14 I will be found by you, declares the LORD, and I will restore your fortunes and gather you from all the nations and all the places where I have driven you, declares the LORD, and I will bring you back to the place from which I sent you into exile.

The biggest thing I got from his message on this passage was this: God's good plan starts right where we are. So many times I find myself thinking "oh, once I am settled with a family and a job and a house, that is when I can really serve God and others around me." Somehow I think that I need to be in a certain place with certain things around me to be effective and useful. But what about right now? God doesn't call us to wait around until things are "perfectly set in place" for us to serve. He doesn't need us to wait until we get to Africa or Mexico or Europe to witness, serve, build relationships, and see amazing things happen. All of that can and should be happening right here, right now, where I am. There are over 25,000 other people around my age in this area right now. Could you ask for a better set-up?! Why am I getting drunk with these people instead of reaching out to them? This is so convicting, but why is it so acceptable? There are too many Christians who, including myself, shrug off this behavior and make up lame justifications for it. My good friend Norm challenged me with this scripture today:

Romans 12:1-2 1 I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship. 2 Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.

I don't think that Paul was telling us to just go with the flow and blend in with everyone around us here. I think he was reminding us to be radical, or radically changed. This just scratches the surface of what is running through my head right now, there is so much more that God has convicted me about! I am incredibly thankful for people He has brought into my life to challenge me, inspire me, and encourage me.