Trusting God

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Posted by Mike Davis on 2000-04-04
Patrick Herring  was inspired to say
>Michael J Davis wrote:
>> 
>> Patrick Herring  was inspired to say
>> >Michael J Davis wrote:
>...
>> >> I thought that it was more a matter of letting the divine in. "You must
>> >> be Holy as your Father is holy."
>> >
>> >Yes, I'd agree with that. The apparent New Age view, which it is possible I 
>am
>> >thought to have some sympathy with, that becoming divine is something one 
>can
>> >buy a book on and achieve in the comfort of one's own sitting room, as long 
>as
>> >it has been correctly feng shuied, etc, is most certainly not what I 
>believe.
>> >Having said that it's becoming increasingly clear to me that there are 
>things
>> >you can deliberately do, which help on the way towards heaven, and things 
>one
>> >can't do.
>> 
>> Like trusting in God's love, rather than trying to get there by DIY
>> means? 
>
>Well, OK. But you present a rather black-and-white, me-or-God,
>passive-or-active picture; I believe the reality is much more mixed, and
>if the result is to be "me in heaven" rather than "me dressed up as
>someone else in heaven" then all of me must be involved. In order to let
>the divine in there are obstacles that must be overcome. To allow God
>past these obstacles involves us being able to drop them, and that
>requires conscious effort, often repeatedly. Surely faith is needed not
>just for the bits we can't do but also for believing which of the bits
>we can do are those we should be doing. Going to church of my own free
>will looks rather like a DIY effort, don't you think? I don't think God
>can get anywhere with someone who just sits there trusting away.

Isn't it funny, that when I say "trust in God" it is assumed (not just
by you, Patrick) that there is something passive in it. If you've read
that wonderful book - the Stature of Waiting = then that is a point of
view. 

However to me, the sense of trusting God is rather like trusting the
bungee in a bungee jump. You do what has to be done and take risks.
Little ones like risking being a fool in front of friends to - as a
friend of mine is doing - believing that God wants her to go to Hong
Kong to work with drug addicts. That's stepping out in faith with a big
PH.

No, Patrick, as we grow in faith and allow God to grow in us, we become
more integrated - made whole - if you prefer, so there isn't ever a "me
dressed up as..." there's just me - naked before God. If that conjures
up an insalubrious image, let me assure you that I haven't made it yet.
I still look even more foolish by my own efforts! 

Oh yes, and on topic, one excellent definition of sin comes from Western
Theology about which I've raved before. Whereas in settler theology sin
is breaking the town's rules, in pioneer theology sin is 
"Wanting to turn back".

OTOH, I think sin is "Looking at oneself instead of looking at God".