ok, this is nothing new...just something that's been on my mind lately.
everyone's got an opinion. subjective, fleeting, morphing, inconsistent, but an opinion nonetheless. and many feel the need to share these subjective, fleeting, morphing, inconsistent little 'gems' with the rest of us (oh, don't worry, I am identifying that in myself even as I am writing this - so back off, haha)
now, opinions are not inherently wrong or useless. actually, they are usually inevitable - if you think about something, you will form an opinion, as uneducated as it may be.
tweaking this a bit...think about your opinions - you know, those deep-seated 'feelings' about those things you enjoy/ appreciate/ and celebrate or loathe/ disagree with/ and attack. you talk about them over coffee. you write about them on your facebook or twitter.
politics...
religion...
sexuality...
morality...
art...
truth...
here's the question: what are you for?
which are the things that encapsulate your life? what do you identify with? what are your defining details? when people see you, what do they see?
- are they the things that you are for? or the things that you are against?
I know plenty of people, who could talk all day about what they are against. Their identity seems wrapped up in the 'anti-something'. Do you know these people? Lists and lists of things that they are not. "I hate this, I hate that..." And, there was a time that many "Christians" defined themselves by what they were not. "I don't do this, I don't do that, I'm not like him, I'm not like her."
How negative. How backward. How lacking.
What are you for? What do you celebrate? What do you define yourself by?
How different life would be if we identified ourselves by what we are for, rather than what we are against. Now, I know that it is exponentially easier to complain and pick on things that I'm not for, but it's a much higher calling to champion those things that I am for.
so, what are you for?
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7 comments:
TLiske...love this idea of being what we are "for" as apposed to what we are againts.
This resonated with my soul on a deeper level and my conviction is this is how I not only want to do ministry, but live my life.
Thanks for sharing broski
-TMACATTACK
Spot on Tyson, this is a topic I've been thinking about a lot lately. Good stuff. Thanks.
Great reminder. Oh how shamefully it is when I see churches still being displayed for what they are against.
Not that long ago I was setting up a new email address. It took me a long time to come up with just the right words that I would be happy to use; words that could define me. I came up with followandlead... Follow and Lead. That's what I want to define me; someone who is learning and teaching. Growing and passing it on. I hope that's something people can see in me.
Well put, Tyson. Thanks.
Good thoughts big man. I would like to add a few thoughts if I could. I think we should define ourselves by BOTH what we are for and what we are against (in the end I think they work out to be the same thing). I do understand your argument, and I agree with it. Maybe the point that I see differently is how one defines the word "opinion" and the attitude(s) with which we approach these "opinions". Opinion seems to have a very...non-important/wishy-washy... connotation. As though your opinion is your business and doesn't affect anybody else, and my opinion is mine and doesn't affect anybody else. But I think that opinions are far more important than this - we should take our opinions far more seriously. Everyone has an opinion for a reason - usually a response to the particular environment that we've experienced. And so, I think that every opinion is of utmost importance. In fact, every opinion has the potential to change things for better or worse. That said, we should be sure to be educated about our own opinions so that we can say what we REALLY think, not just what first comes to mind. And so with that in mind, I think that if we truly know what our opinions are, we should not hesitate to declare what we are against and to actively work against those things. I think that working against what we are against is actually working for what we are for (does that make sense?). If I am actively working against something I don't believe in (eg. racism) then I am really working for what I am for (eg. equality). So in reality, what I am against and what I am for works out to be the same thing when I act on it. However, the attitude we have might make us seem more against or more for something than we actually are. So I suppose attitude make all the difference. So, in summary, I guess I'm saying that if we aren't doing anything about what we are for, or against, then we shouldn't be spouting our opinions for or against anything. I understand your point, however, that nobody likes a complainer. Let's bemore concerned about what we are actually DOING, and what attitude(s) accompany our actions, than about any of our particular "opinions" about anything.
Bryan
Bryan, thank you for your words - very thought-provoking.
I think you summed it all up at the end of your response:
"Let's be more concerned about what we are actually DOING, and what attitude(s) accompany our actions, than about any of our particular "opinions" about anything."
Our accompanying attitudes are crucial to our approach to the things we are both for and against. These attitudes will directly affect what we are 'doing'.
Your submission that ultimately what we're for and what we're against are very similar is intriguing and probably right.
But most people do not seem to make that jump in thought. You, personally, are adept at seeing beyond the positive and negative responses, embracing the similarities between them.
My submission is if I err on one side, I hope it would be more for what I am for.
You are a wise man, Mr. Belous - beyond your years.
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