My Struggle
1 Corinthians 15:19 is a verse that is constantly in my mind. “If in Christ we have hope in this life only, we are of all people most to be pitied.” See, the way Paul lived his life is what we would call crazy, perhaps rightly so, Paul pulled no punches he lived all out for Christ. Reading through the New Testament you’ll come across many stories of Paul being beaten, stoned, shipwrecked, and imprisoned. This guy never seemed to catch a break, but what’s really amazing to me is that he never wanted one. Philippians 3:8 “I count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake I have suffered the loss of all things and count them as rubbish, in order that I may gain Christ.” He never stopped seeking after God, it didn’t matter that he was in prison or shipwrecked he continually sought after God. Paul’s focus was completely and wholly on Christ. Paul never was never slave to material possession because he relentlessly focused on “the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus”. This is a man who lost everything he had time and time again for the sake of the Gospel. Paul had staked his entire life on the hope of Christ. Paul was “all in” he held back nothing; he saw everything as rubbish next to what he stood to gain. What Paul is saying in 1Cor 15:19 is simply this- that if he’s wrong about Christ, he has lived a pathetic existence full of anguish, suffering and affliction for absolutely nothing; that of all the foolish, inept, hopeless people in the world he should receive more pity.
But most Christians today enjoy their safety and comfort, we cling to it. Hypothetically– If our hope in Christ was wrong, and today we were to die with what we had sacrificed the sake of Christ I don’t think many of us would be pitied at all. In FACT I think many of us would be envied for what we had, and what we held onto, for what we refused to give up for the sake of the Gospel.
In the following verse 1Cor 15:20 Paul states “But in fact Christ has been raised from the dead…” We know Paul’s really set up in Heaven (to put it bluntly); I can’t imagine the abounding joy he now experiences in his Savior, OUR Savior. He has a joy and a treasure that is free to all Christian who seek Christ. So what keeps us, what keeps our church from realizing “the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus”? Why is it such a difficult concept for believers to put into perspective?
This is my struggle.
Fuge Camp, Day 1- Monday
I started with the intention of writing every night of camp and posting for all to read, then was discouraged because I couldn’t ever get internet… sad day, but I took the time to write it so I figure I’ll post it even though its way way late.
The very long overnight bus ride was torturous; I was able to get a couple of hours of sleep in some rather uncomfortable positions. I’m sure it was even more fun for Donny and Rob who had to stay awake all night and drive the bus. We watched a few movies, battled pokemon, and told stories; all in all it was a good road trip. We made it safely with no incident, which makes the trip out here a huge success and answer to prayer.
Upon arriving at camp we had a short orientation before we were released for free time prior to dinner. The great news is that the oil hasn’t reached the beach yet. A few of the guys and me went for a swim and played some Frisbee. We headed back to the cabin prematurely, turns out we’re in the part of Florida not included in the time zone change (glad we learned that early on). But we still somehow managed to show up to dinner late. After filling up on spaghetti and meatballs we had the “Opening Celebration”. The opening was just rules, camp policies, etc. They showed a video introducing the rules, it was pretty funny. The video had one of the camp leaders walking around Nashville, TN on Broadway telling people the camp rules. He was reminding passersby to wear close-toed shoes to rec, not to chew gum in the meeting room, and many others. It was a pretty hilarious video.
Right after the opening the students were broken in to their small groups for a get to know each other time. The adults are all in one group (group 10) we stayed back and heard more about the rules and procedures (Whoo Hoo). After small groups we had our daily “Nightlife” gathering. Tonight’s theme was Christmas in June, there was a tree and everything. All of the churches were competing in some goofy chaotic game that I couldn’t even begin to describe. Then there was free time and the long overdue, much appreciated bedtime. End of Day 1
Some information about the retreat center- its small, nothing like staying on a college campus. There are about 6 or 7 buildings most are housing, then there’s the worship center and dining hall. The dining hall is old school, big screen windows and ceiling fans, no a/c, lunch and dinner will be pretty sweaty for sure. The best thing about the place by far is that the beach is only a 2 minute walk away (if you take your time). So I’ll trade a spacious college campus for a beach any day of the week. The rooms we’re staying in are like large dorm room, for 18 people. You don’t know close quarters until you sleep in 3-tier bunk beds, honestly I feel a little like I just joined the Navy. All things considered we’re cozy and comfortable.
Looking forward to a good day tomorrow full of worship, and 3 hours of free time in the ocean OH YEAH!!!
(yes mom I’ll be wearing lots of sunscreen)
Black & White 