We want to be saints, but we also want to feel every sensation experienced by sinners; we want to be innocent and pure, but we also want to be experienced and taste all of life; we want to serve the poor and have a simple lifestyle, but we also want all the comforts of the rich; we want to have the depth afforded by solitude, but we also do not want to miss anything; we want to pray, but we also want to watch television, read, talk to friends, and go out. --Ronald Rolheiser
Rolheiser's words capture the struggle of humanity so clearly and concisely. We are spiritual beings imprisoned by flesh. Our spirits within us hunger for more than what the world offers us, but our flesh foolishly continues to chase after the world. We want some of everything, but we can't worship God and the world at the same time (Mattew 6:24).
I have personally said, "I don't want to miss anything" in reference to the very active social life I had 4 years ago. The irony is that when I fill my time with the lessor things of the world, I am missing the better, more fulfilling things of God. I am choosing the world's imitation of life over God's offer of abudant life (John 10:10). And so are so many other Christians.
This is not to say that we should not enjoy the gifts God has given us, including socializing with our friends. We have to live among the world so that we can be a light in the darkness, but we have to be careful not to choose the things of the world over God or our lights will dim. As humans, we must live in the world, but as Christians we cannot live for the world.
We are weak, divided creatures who daily struggle in the battle between spirit and flesh that Rolheiser describes. We love the Lord, but we live in a society of such material abundance that it's easy for us to choose the quick fix promises of the world over the long road of Christian life. The world offers many different paths for our flesh to take, but God designed our spirits so that, ultimately, we will not be fulfilled apart from Him.
Posted by Kim at March 19, 2007 07:14 AM