Theology With Shoes On

Theology with shoes on. That's what a professor in college called it. It’s practical Christian living; the art of practicing what you preach. It’s easy to know theoretically what you should do, but it becomes an all together different story when the rubber meets the road.

The succession of events goes something like this: 1. I recognize the issue. 2. I confess the issue and give it to the Lord. I feel great about the decision. 3. I envision in my mind how I will handle the situation next time it arises. It goes flawlessly in my mind. Then the situation comes and shifts from theoretical to practical and the next thing I know I’m kissing the ground one more time.

The Lord has been dealing with a growing root of bitterness, which He had brought to light about a month or so ago. As He has been dealing with me, I find the issue goes deeper than being bitter at someone or some particular situation, I’m ultimately fighting bitterness toward God. See, I become bitter at a person because I don’t get what I want. In truth I’m telling God that His way isn’t best because that’s not what I want. It’s not the people or the situation keeping me from what I want, but the Lord using the people and situations to keep me from what I want. Why? Because what I want is not best. Simple as that. So, I must rejoice.

It’s easy to think about the Lord being the sovereign God of the universe when it comes to things like sunsets and miraculous provisions. But what about when things go wrong? When they don’t go your way? When you are wronged by another person? Is He still sovereign then or do the people and/or circumstances of the moment dictate what is happening?

David Crowder, while I don’t particularly enjoy the book, does paint a good picture with “Praise Habit: Finding God In Sunsets And Sushi”. It’s easy to see and recognize God’s hand in the great and good things like sunsets. In May, Jared Kaessner and I camped out in Backbay. We went to the old ranger cabin at the far end of the park once you’ve crossed into False Cape. We sat in the old, rickety wood rocking chair and watched as the sun set over the bay. It was beautiful. The glowing ball of flames marking the center of our solar system plummeted below view past the body of water. During its descent, it produced countless shades of blues, reds, purples and yellows intermingled with golden beams of light spanning from the highest limits of the sky all the way to the ground. Just to add to the beauty of the heavens, the endless mixture of colors collided in the monstrous cumulonimbus cloud off in the southern skies. And to enrich the beauty of the earth, as the sun collided with the horizon, its light lit up the ripples of the water making it look as if the bay itself were engulfed in flames. And no great image is complete without a breathtaking musical score. The wind blowing through the trees is our orchestra and the birds singing in the trees form our choir. How can anyone not see the hand of God in this?

What about the mundane things in life? Where is sovereign control of God then? Is life all of a sudden during that moment, running of its own accord, without the divine control of God? What about when you are put in a position which causes your faith to be tested? Did that happen outside of God’s awareness? No, but He uses these things to try us and purify us, Zechariah 13:9: “And I will bring the third part through the fire, Refine them as silver is refined, And test them as gold is tested They will call on My name, And I will answer them; I will say, 'They are My people,' And they will say, 'The LORD is my God.'”

So, it’s easy to get this theoretically. Practically, we are facing a whole different monster. How it goes in your mind doesn’t really count. You can be the most victorious man or woman ever in your mind but an utter failure in reality. In your imagination you see yourself handling every trial and temptation masterfully, but as soon as it confronts you find yourself surrendering once again. Philippians 2:12: “So then, my beloved, just as you have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out (live out) your salvation with fear and trembling;” Romans 2:12-13: “For all who have sinned without the Law will also perish without the Law, and all who have sinned under the Law will be judged by the Law; for it is not the hearers of the Law who are just before God, but the doers of the Law will be justified.” James 1:22-25: “But prove yourselves doers of the word, and not merely hearers who delude themselves. For if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man who looks at his natural face in a mirror; for once he has looked at himself and gone away, he has immediately forgotten what kind of person he was. But one who looks intently at the perfect law, the law of liberty, and abides by it, not having become a forgetful hearer but an effectual doer, this man will be blessed in what he does.” It’s not enough to think about it. Righteousness must be lived out. What counts is where the rubber meets the road; your theology with shoes on.