A Dying Art

A rolling of the eyes, a sigh of disgust, a disengagement of interest; these are a few responses that will often be received when the passion of his/her faith amongst his/her friends. When questions that entail deep thought are asked, quick and short answers are given so that the conversation may continue in a more "interesting" and "exciting" manner. A sad truth is that these are not given only by non-Christians, but they are far too often given by fellow brothers and sisters in Christ. Too many Christians look down upon these men and women for attempting to hold an edifying and important conversation. They are regarded as, "annoying" and/or "boring".

Christians claim to be seeking God, and yet turn the other way when serious contemplation is involved. They believe that to seek God is easy or at least something that doesn't involve one's intellect. If "seeks God" by trying not to mess up as best as possible so he/she can get to Heaven, then he/she has the wrong perspective. If he has a sincere passion to be intimate with God, he will desire to emulate Christ in all he does. What does intimacy with God mean? Intimacy means to be close, dear or personal. When one is Intimate with God, he desires to know God by being personal, dear, and personal with Him. This is not an easy feat; for no one can fully understand God. If the anchient philosophers must wrestle with their knowledge of God and admit that they know a mere handful of who He is, then how can a generation that detests understanding ever hope to be Intimate with Him. Our culture is content to remain where it is.

One must understand that his passion to learn of God is born when he asks God to set his heart to seek after Him. With this passion, he will gradually see the joy in understanding; for with it, one may learn a bit of who God is. He is given a new perspective on creation, for he now sees it as a beautiful creation reflecting the majesty and loving care of our Heavenly Father.

May the Lord find favor in those who truly seek Him. May He set ablaze those who are no longer content to remain a tiny flicker of flame for His name. May the Lord turn these fading cinders into a raging fire to impact the world for Christ! Ah, as we continue our journey in this dying art of contemplation and the seeking of goodness, truth, and beauty, may the Lord make our desire to fill even our minute capacity for the understanding of God be truly passionate and may it ever increase. May the Lord inspire our desires of our stomach to develop the intelligence of our minds with a true heart to submit ourselves to the majesty of the true king of all things! Amen!

-Brian