Wanting Chic-Fil-A...on a Sunday

I know you're all too familiar with this feeling, right? Riding down the highway, hungry! Then that soft crispy yet juicy chicken comes to mind. You imagine it draped in a warm buttery bun or dipped in the Original sauce while shoving salty waffle fries down your throat. Immediately your heart races with excitement as you think about pulling over to the first Chick-Fil-A sign you see gloriously raised up high. But then a moment later, you are overcome with sadness as you remember, ...

TODAY IS SUNDAY!


From there you're forced to settle for whatever else because, well, nothing really beats the craving you just had for Chick-Fil-A. I get it, I've been there too many times and as a matter of fact, sometimes it seems I tend to want Chick-Fil-A only on Sundays (when I cannot have it). This is how I feel about trying (in my own strength) to please God. We end up frustrated and upset, only to find ourselves falling prey to our own sins.

In the same way many of my friends have pursued Entrepreneurship through these partnership start-up companies that encourage and promise personal success and financial freedom, I have begun a pursuit of my own. They are fueled and driven to be financially free therefore they exude this confidence and authentic passion revolving around autonomy and purpose. Their goals are set high and their future is in clear view. This motivates them to maximize their time and even practice resilience when presenting others with the same opportunities! I envy this passion, I desire to emulate these behaviors even, but my pursuit is predicated on a spiritual partnership with a desire to live in a different type of freedom. Yes, much like this Entrepreneurship movement that has taken my generation and social media by storm, I have had a craving to experience freedom from the nasty habits that rear themselves in my life from time to time.

Now, while I understand that my freedom has already been purchased by Jesus' death on the cross (1 Timothy 2:6, Galatians 5:1) which means I am free from the penalty (eternal punishment) of sin AND...that I won't be completely free from sin's presence until I cross over to eternal life with God, I do know that I can please God more (sanctification/living in freedom from sin's power) and sin less & less while He still breathes breath into my body. So I finished up my study of Elijah and Elisha (in 1st and 2nd Kings...which is full of amazing gems of timeless truths and life applicable stories, by the way) and was excited to start a new series of study. That key to spiritual freedom is found in Romans, so this has provoked my study of Romans 6-8 (our freedom from sin's control, our continuing struggle with sin and how we can have victory over sin).

So far, I've come to grip with 2 things:

1. I have to look at my sinful desires as if they're dead to me. So I thought about that. How do I think of 'dead' things? Well, I remember when my family dog died and even though I wasn't too connected to her, when I heard the news, I was taken-a-back and actually shed a few tears. But I didn't think too much about her after she was buried. I didn't try to feed her or let her out to play, because I knew she was no longer there. Then I thought about the passing of my father (in 2011) and how grieved I was to lose him. How every now and then, though I can hear his words he's spoken to me, be reminded of him when I smell a man who wears his same cologne and even sigh when someone tries to offer me banana pudding [because no one (I mean no one) made banana pudding like him], I'm no longer calling him to ask for advice, nor am I looking for him to check my oil and tire pressure. Both of these 'deaths' teach me that once something or someone was died, we change our behavior towards them. We treat them as if they can no longer do things for us...because they can't. That is exactly how our sin needs to be treated. As if it can no longer satisfy...because although it feels good, it isn't satisfaction (or else we wouldn't need to go back for it again). ~Romans 6

2.  Trying to follow laws (do's and don'ts) is NOT the way to please God. Let's go back to the Chick-Fil-A sign. That look on Snoop's face symbolizes the disdain and hurt we feel when we realize that heavenly place isn't even open on Sundays. Why the hurt? Because we realize we cannot have the very thing we want. The sign and the place aren't bad (God forbid if someone were to speak ill of Chick Fil A), and as a matter of fact their purpose of being closed on a Sunday is honorable! But the thought of it reveals the inability within us to not be able to satisfy our cravings. In the same way, God's law is good (the Old Testament ones, the Levitical laws, even the Ten Commandments and things Jesus cautions us against in the New Testament).

But those 'rules' only reveal within us the desires we have to break them! When someone tells a toddler not to touch an electrical socket, it only temporarily shows him that that is a 'no-no'. He will later go back and attempt it again, because his curiosity lures him back, yet this time he will look around because he knows its "wrong". God saying "do not..." does not stop us from our desire to do...much like God saying "do..." does not compel us to do. He isn't moved by our ability to keep his rules because He knows we're too frail to be consistent. At some point we will look at Him like Snoop is looking at Chick-Fil-A...frustrated and discouraged. Furthermore, doing all of His "do's" and NOT doing His "do nots" only confirm that we are trying to pave our way TO HIM! This takes the beauty and power out of what He did FOR US by sending Jesus to pave that way. So instead, I must depend on the work of Christ (through the Holy Spirit living in me) to obey. This way, love and gratitude motivates me! ~Romans 7

I remember holding down a temp job in college to pay for my books and small fees. I worked for an intercollegiate mail company. My job was to sort the incoming mail to prepare it for going out to the many places on campus. Well, my boss was a no-nonsense tyrant. Rude, loud, condescending and had  little to no people skills. Now i'm sure her "anger" and low tolerance was never really aimed intentionally at me, however it sure didn't feel that way. Each day was drudgery as I endured an easy job yet with the worst of conditions. Inside, it made me bitter, dull and with little desire to do my best over time. All of these behaviors were contrary to my personal work ethic and character. *Long story-short, I ended up praying against those feelings and attitudes, sharing the Gospel with her only to see her heart change right as my semester ended.

Recently, however, I've had the privilege of working alongside some women (of position) who have a sweet, God-loving spirit. Who value integrity, embody passion and are empathetic to those who serve under their leadership. The character and work ethic of these women fuel my own personal character and work ethic because they too believe in structure, excellence and servant-leadership. How much more have I found myself able to excel as an employee because of these women? How compelled to give my best, not because they require it of me, but because they require it of themselves and thus set an example for me! THIS is how we stay free from sin's grasp. Not by obeying a set of rules, but because of renewed minds and hearts that overflow with love for what Jesus did, can we live unresponsive (dead) to the sin that tempts us daily.