violence

No, this is not a rant against television violence, even though that does have a time and place of its own. :-)

This is about the call of God to His people, to just a few of His people, to be violent in seizing His kingdom. Matthew 11:12 says, "From the days of John the Baptist until now the kingdom of heaven suffers violence, and violent men take it by force."  Here Jesus is talking to his disciples, the twelve that are nearest to Him. Right in the middle of a tribute to John the Baptist, his cousin and forerunner, He makes this comment and then ends it with "He who has ears, let him hear." Then he goes into a critique of "this generation," one which mirrors this current generation well.

But what does this "violence" entail? A desperate, zealous setting one's self apart for the work of the Lord. A voracious drive and determination to become more like the Savior. A desire to draw nearer to the God who so loved us all that He sent His Son to shed His blood to save us from the clutches of hell.

I have had a sense of spiritual change coming in my life for about a month now. I always get these "premonitions," if you will, that God is going to mix things up in my life, or ask me to do something that I would rather, in my own flesh, not do. I was listening to Banning Liebscher preach last week at BBF via livefeed, and he made an offhand comment that God may ask from you what He may never ask from your friends. I have often thought that about my family. Some of the things that He asked us to do that made absolutely NO sense from a human perspective. And when He asked it, He never clarified or told us why or how to explain our lifestyle or beliefs. He just said to obey Him.

And so, I feel strongly that He asked me to give up most of my leisure television time, shows that I have loved and watched for years, and to tighten the spiritual  belt of the movies that I watch. So I  am going to endeavor to spent this extra time (even though it was mostly late-evening and weekend time) cooking for the love of it, reading books that will help me counsel and teacher my kids better, re-learning the tricks of gardening, and exercising to get in better health. I ask the Lord to give my kids, in exchange, more victory over sin, more healing to their souls, and for myself, a closer and more Spirit-filled life that pleases Him!