Belief, Trust and Service

How these things are carried out -- what they look like -- is my primary struggle. Without some way to model myself after a good example, I'm left perplexed. This is not a new thing, is it? Parenting is largely an exercise of providing a living example to the children. Hopefully it's a good example, one that helps the child grow up and survive in the world. We go through life looking to others to help us understand how we might ourselves behave. One of the problems we have in today's world is that our notion of "role model" is so corrupted. My point here is that looking for examples is part of how we live, and it's very difficult to "get something right" if we try to figure it out completely on our own.

In my last post, what I was trying to get at was this:

• Belief -- belief not only in the existence of God, but also belief in some of the key attributes of God ... his goodness, his mercy, his greatness, his care for us individually.
• Trust -- trust that when all is said and done, God interest is in my best interest. That may not mean I have properity or comfort on earth, or even that I live long on earth. What I'm getting at here is something very personal, something that keeps the mind at peace when strife surrounds us. This is what Psalm 23 is all about.
• Service -- striving to life our lives so that all that we do is pleasing to God.

I won't pretend to fully comprehend any or all of those. I also won't claim to possess any of them in any measure that I would prefer.

Note: No, I don't think being a priest (or pastor, or whatever) is the highest form of service. That's not to say it's a bad service, just that it's not the ultimate form of service. Caring for the sick and dying in a hospice surely must be as high a service as being a minister.

I struggle with the picture I see in the world. I struggle when I see "Christians" being bitter and condemning, even though I'm the same way. I struggle when I'm told that I must raise my hands during worship, or act in a certain way to be a "true Christian." I struggle when I see arrogance and boastfulness in the name of Jesus.

I know I'm being horribly unfair. I can't know these people's hearts. But still, there's something just not right about external behavior that seems to run counter to the teachings of Jesus. And what I'm getting at is how much I yearn to see a good example of a believer in Christ, and to draw example and learning from that person.

They're probably all around me. But I'm too blind a person to see them.