Grace-period

I have quit smoking, again. "Again" is the main word in that sentence.  I had not smoked in years, but I picked up again when I lost my job.  Then I quit for a couple days before my new job seemed to push me to an emotional cliff.  Then I quit again a month or so later for a couple of weeks before a bad night at work when I ripped my patch off and bummed a smoke from a client.  Talk about insanity. So, once again, I begin this journey, seeking freedom.  For those of you who know me well, I researched whether God would really have a problem with me smoking, whether it was indeed a sin.  My husband, both annoyed with the nasty habit and my lack of perseverance, is convinced it is a sin.  Here is the heart of the issue: my heart. Watching Lord of the Rings today, I am confronted with this.  Gollum, the dreadful beast that covets the Ring, "my precious," was a very typical silly, fun-loving hobbit until the Ring happened upon his fishing buddy....

Oneness cannot be achieved just between God and self;  rather oneness involves God, self and others and the world around us.  -Scot McKnight It is easy to think that worship is about me and God.  It is easy to rationalize that my sin is between me and God.  It is easy to say that I can pray anywhere, so I don't need church.  It is easy to want to believe all that, but none of it is true. Sure, that "personal" relationship with Jesus is important, but He never intended it to stay between the two of us.  In fact, Jesus is the person who insists that his followers "GO!" and teach others what they have come to understand about God.  Today, belief is private..and with that sentiment so, it would seem, is our worship, prayer, confession, even God.  It doesn't seem like participating in a community is all that important. But I am coming around to the idea that not only is it biblical, it is necessary. As iron sharpens iron, so one ...