Walking Worthy of His Calling

We just finished our pre-playoff season of team handball. God blessed our team with a 9-0 record. It has been a ton of fun, and I've had a few opportunities to mention things of the Lord. I was planning on playing at the Staple Center tonight, but God used my pastor to inform me that things at NBA games are not really all fun and games (no pun intended). The whole atmosphere is really not a wholesome environment with the immodesty of the cheer leaders and all. While I think going to such things can be okay if one's focus remains on the Lord and there are people there to keep you accountable, but it's just not an ideal place to put yourself in (especially as a guy). For this reason, I decided that it would be best for me to not take part in this event. Yes, it would have been fun to play in front of 15,000 people, but really, that doesn't matter. I am trying out for the Olympics next Saturday fully expecting to not play in the Olympics or attend the training camps even if they do graciously choose to accept me. My mom was researching some random things, and we found out that the president of the team handball Olympic committee is really quite corrupt, and I will not play under his leadership. Yes, it is that bad! So, if God wants to do something with this, He has His work cut out for Him. :) I will go tryout and do my best and then see what God does. If He does nothing, that is completely fine, and I will be thankful for the experience.

I think I have blogged about this before, but both in Awana and in our evening devotions, we have been studying Ephesians. Really, you can never get too much of the Word, so I know that I am not wasting my time if this is the second time I've posted about this passage. Frankly, I think there will be things that I've posted about five or more times, and it will still be beneficial. His Word will always accomplish what it was sent to do (Isaiah 55:11). I read Ephesians 4 today and was thinking specifically about verses 1-3.

Therefore I, the prisoner of the Lord, implore you to walk in a manner worthy of the calling with which you have been called, with all humility and gentleness, with patience, showing tolerance for one another in love, being diligent to preserve the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.

First of all, it is amazing to me that Paul... being a prisoner (not exactly the most fun thing in the world) sees himself as a prisoner of the Lord. His focus is on the fact that if God had not placed him there in prison, he would not be there. The whole idea of walking worthy of His calling is a lifetime challenge for me. I will never be worthy of His calling. He doesn't need me, but He wants me. What a privilege it is to serve Him! He sets out some nice guidelines to help us walk worthy of His calling... being humble, gentle, patient, being tolerant in love, being diligent to preserve unity and peace. Tolerance is a word I hate. I hate it because it is used in such a worldly way. It is used to push Christians out of revealing the truth. We are not to tolerate sin! The tolerance Paul is speaking of I think goes more along the lines of long-suffering and patience. The fact is that we all don't agree on everything... we have our differences, but we are to preserve the unity of the Spirit. We are the body of Christ, and the body must work together in order to function well. That was more or less a side note. The point is that we need to live in such a way that we are worthy of His calling. Yes, I realize it is impossible to stand up to His standard of perfection, but we can put every ounce of strength into living for Him, and He is pleased by this. :)