Goals vs Contentment

The Tension between wanting more and having enough

content

As we approach Thanksgiving this week, I had one thought that I wanted to share. One tension that I often experience and realize that living in one extreme or the other is not a healthy way to resolve the tension we feel.

Goals vs Contentment.

If you really break down the true essence of a “goal” – you could just say “more”. Goals are our way of saying we want more. We believe more is available. We think if we can achieve more, that it will result in a future outcome that we think is better than our current reality.

The positive side of GOALS is a driven person who accomplishes great things.

The negative side of GOALS is that is can mask our insatiable envy and greed for more.

If you really break down the true essence of “containment” – you could just say “enough”. Contentment at its root is an attitude of having enough. I have enough money. I have enough joy in my family. I have enough success in my job. Enough is often associated with having peace.

The positive side of CONTENTMENT is a true peace no matter where we happen to be in life.

The negative side of CONTENTMENT is that people use it as an excuse to settle and give up on what God might have for their future.

Secular or Spiritual? This Question is Stupid!

This a TENSION that doesn't need to exist!

I stated in an earlier blog post that there are NO stupid questions. I found one.

There is a tension that people (churched people) often feel when trying to decide whether something is “spiritual or secular”. Let me just start off this blog with the bottom line of my opinion. This question is stupid! There’s a MUCH better way to view our lives! This tension doesn’t have to exist!

For those that have no idea what I’m talking about – the main idea is that there are things in this life that matter to God, but other things that are more physical (or less spiritual) and these don’t matter to God all that much.

pray partyThis means that prayer, going to church, reading your bible, sharing your faith, teaching the bible to your family, and listening to Christian music in the car is all that matters to God. Which in turn says that God only cares about 10% of what you do in any given week. That work, socializing, social media, eating, and everything else you do 90% of your weeks matters to God little or is not honoring to him at all.

I was raised in a church culture that believed rock and roll was “secular.” Didn’t God CREATE music? It was modeled that working full time in ministry was more honorable to God than other jobs.  Are some jobs less honorable to God than others? (Maybe only a few that border on facilitating of immoral acts) Is engaging on social media something that is NEUTRAL to God – it doesn’t really HONOR Him so it’s “secular”.

New Podcast – The Tension is Real Episode 4 – Comparison Culture

Discussing the Tension between life and faith

Welcome to The Tension is Real Podcast. A podcast dedicated to real discussion about the TENSION that exists between Life and Faith and how to embrace it so we can live with purpose and freedom.

Today’s Topic – The Tension of a Comparison Culture
1. Subscribe in iTunes (Search “The Tension is Real” or plug in this URL – http://mattdawsontv.libsyn.com/rss).
2. RATE and REVIEW the Podcast in iTunes to help us promote MattDawson.TV.
3. Listen to Podcast on this page.
4. Download MP3

“The Best Day Ever” – the essential attitude of LIFE!

BestDayEver_Photo copy

I am a father of two.  A 7 year old little girl and a 4 year old boy.  For the past 2 years I have heard a phrase repeated several times in my house, or in the car, or at bed time that I’ve commented about, smiled at, and laughed out lout at.  The phrase… “This is the best day ever!”

What a simple set of words that describe a profound attitude.  Was it really the best day?  Probably not to us…  Did we do something so spectacular to deserve such a proud praise? Probably not….  So why the big deal?  Why the exaggeration?  Why the praise!

The answer lies in attitude. 

Freedom vs. Grave-Tending

9TzrLLjTEStrange title?  Maybe…  or maybe not!

I was reading in a small men’s (men of all sizes actually) S.O.A.P bible study this morning Romans 8: 1-17.  I recently purchased this amazing parallel bible that gives me the NIV on the left hand and the message paraphrase on the right of the same verses.

I have always loved this passage because of the freedom in the spirit of Christ that it reveals.  However, some new words and thoughts occurred to me this morning as we read it together.

The first part is a great contrast between choosing to “live in” the Spirit or “live in” the desires of the flesh.  It then quickly sets us free that we are not “controlled by” by the flesh if we have the Spirit within us.  However verses 12 – 15 jumped out at me today as I looked at both the NIV version and the Message paraphrase.