So What about it?I would not call myself a pessimist. My husband is a realist and I, more often than not, find myself on the side of the optimist. I grew up a Disney kid and still have trouble telling myself what my husband is so keen to remind me of--that my life is not about pursuing my dreams. So it may come to surprise you that when people use the words “whimsical” and “Christianity” in the same sentence, it makes me “triggered.” In other words, it makes me very angry. Now, I must admit that the words in and of themselves are not bad. However, when used to characterize our outlook on life, we walk the dangerous line of misplacing our hope, misplacing our priorities, and misplacing our trust. We even run the risk of being a bad example of Christ to the world. From one dreamer/feeler to another, here are three things you should consider before selling out to becoming a “whimsical” Christian. #1. In life, the bad is not always out-weighed by the good."What a cheap, short contentment we would have if all we had to cling to were our broken dreams that will never really come true in this life. " In Disney narratives, someone is discontent with life and somehow finds a way to overcome the obstacles keeping them from being happy--whether that be from finding true love to finding acceptance. Sometimes it is finding relief to the unfortunate circumstances the characters have been subjected to. The problem with this narrative is that it assumes that one day, pain ends. But what about the day that it does not? What do we say then to cancer and death? Lifelong suffering and poverty? Never escaping that bully at school or the ridicule for looking or thinking differently than everyone around you? The Apostle Paul knew a lot about great suffering. People had attempted to murder him several times (Acts 9:29); he was stoned and left for dead (Acts 14); he was beaten with rods as people uttered death threats to him, telling him he did not deserve to live (Acts 16-22); he received 39 lashes on five separate occasions (2 Corinthians 11:24), and he was imprisoned for preaching the good news that Jesus came to save sinners (2 Timothy 2:9). Before his likely decapitation by the Romans, he says these words: “For I am already being poured out as a drink offering, and the time of my departure has come. I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. Henceforth there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, will award to me on that Day, and not only to me but also to all who have loved his appearing.” (2 Timothy 4:6-8) The diction Paul uses to describe his life-at-a-glance is not compatible with the choices of words many Christians use to describe their lives as Christians. He uses the phrase “poured out as a drink offering,” a metaphor often found in Scripture in reference to sacrifice. He describes his life as a “fight,” and a “race” with phrases like “kept the faith.” In these words we find a sense of enduring through great struggle. While it is unlikely that these “whimsical” Christians would use words such as these to describe their lives, maybe you’ve heard a few speak to verses like this one. However, many times their solution to this level of suffering is simply to draw attention to the good things in life--as if the good is promised to out-weigh the bad. But how “good” is defined here is key. What “good” things keep their heads up? Simply saying that the “good” outweighs the bad is not exactly anti-Biblical, but what is deemed “good” here is the difference between sound and false teaching. A standard rule of thumb to use when discerning false teaching from Biblical teaching in these areas is to ask yourself the question: am I being challenged to find my contentment in the world or in God? The Apostle Paul gives us the inspired example for how a Christian is to endure suffering and the disappointments of this life we live. Even while he led an agonizing existence (as mentioned above), we see him exhorting other Christians to think of life in these ways: “For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory that is to be revealed to us.” (Romans 8:18) “For this light momentary affliction is preparing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison.” (2 Corinthians 4:17) “For as we share abundantly in Christ's sufferings, so through Christ we share abundantly in comfort too.” (2 Corinthians 1:5) In all of the experiences of Paul, he points us to Jesus, reminding us that all of the suffering we endure on this earth will pass away when we pass into eternity. That when we die and are resurrected, if we are in Christ, we will find a reward for fighting the good fight of faith. According to Paul, the answer to my aforementioned question of “where am I being challenged to find my contentment?” is in the hope set before us through the finished work of Jesus Christ on the Cross. Because Jesus suffered, our suffering is temporary if we accept his gift of salvation for us! What a cheap, short contentment we would have if all we had to cling to were our broken dreams that will never really come true in this life. At the end of the day, Paul is a testament to the falsehood of living our Christian life in a “whimsical” fantasyland. Which leads me to my next point. #2. We cannot live our lives from emotional high to emotional high."Life is not about adventure." When I first was engaged, my now-husband and I had a huge argument over the fact that I thought he was boring sometimes. I had these illusions of grandeur that our lives would be characterized by “adventuring” and “fun.” I had just spent the summer traveling Europe and living the dream and I guess that I had not fully allowed reality to set in. I know what I am about to say may burst someone’s bubble, but it is better that you hear it from me now than hear it from someone else far too late: Life is not about adventure. “Whimsical” folk will tell you that anything can become an adventure if you just keep a light-hearted attitude. While I agree that your attitude about things can make situations more or less tolerable, some situations are just not going to be light-hearted. The Bible is clear that there is a healthy way to grieve and lament: “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me? Why are you so far from saving me, from the words of my groaning? O my God, I cry by day, but you do not answer, and by night, but I find no rest. Yet you are holy, enthroned on the praises of Israel. In you our fathers trusted; they trusted, and you delivered them. To you they cried and were rescued; in you they trusted and were not put to shame.” (An excerpt from Psalm 22) This Psalm was even quoted by Jesus himself as he was dying on the bloody Cross, taking on the wrath of God in our place, though he himself was innocent. Christians have a reason for the hope that is within them (1 Peter 3:15), but if we constantly use our social medias and our language to boast about how fun Christianity can be, we are giving a false reason for our hope, and therefore can offer the world nothing. Part of the appeal of Christianity is that we are realistic about life’s struggles. We call out this fake idea that we can jump from emotional high to emotional high to keep us afloat. And we give the world REAL. HOPE. Not the promise of a fun life with Jesus as our captain on the S.S. LAUGHTER. While I look forward to the day that we can laugh and never fall ill, I know that that day is not today. #3. Christian authors and speakers sometimes sound more like motivational speakers than sound teachers."We love the sensation we feel when we’ve just had our ears scratched like dogs--and we don’t even care how we get it scratched or who is doing the scratching." It’s a “tale as old as time,” some might say! Godly people have always struggled to keep their eyes on the truth and away from the shiny toy dangled right in front of their wandering noses. The Bible says it this way: “For the time is coming when people will not endure sound teaching, but having itching ears they will accumulate for themselves teachers to suit their own passions,” (2 Timothy 4:3). We even sing about it in church when we call ourselves out on being “prone to wander, Lord I feel it, prone to leave the God I love!” But we love it. We love the sensation we feel when we’ve just had our ears scratched like dogs--and we don’t even care how we get it scratched or who is doing the scratching. But as Christians, we always have to stay on guard to these kinds of teachings. I just recently watched a video of a woman speaking at an event at Bethel’s “church” in Redding, CA. I say “church” loosely because they do not teach what the Bible teaches. During the video, I noticed that this trendy woman speaking knew exactly what to say to get the crowd of women to make their ooh’s and ah’s. Her delivery was impeccable and her timing was spot-on. The problem, however, was that she was spewing nonsense. Her words were barely cohesive! But she had a way about her that gave her listeners a feeling or a sensation. When they walked away from that talk, boy did they feel something. At Bethel, they call this the Holy Spirit. In the Bible, that’s called a deceptive tongue. Now I know that Bethel may be an extreme example to some of you, but there are even people in evangelical circles who use their charismatic talents and likeability to gain followers! I have stewed over this for a long time after reading Love Does by Bob Goff. Now, I am not saying anything about Bob Goff’s personal character, however, I am saying that he has a certain likeability about him that makes him the perfect instrument to distract Christians from what the Bible really says. Oftentimes, he takes certain points about “loving” people like Jesus loves people, but what draws people to follow him is not his Christology. If that were the case, people would read their Bibles more often. No, his following comes from his story-telling and his lifestyle of “whimsy.” A professor at Moody once wisely told our class that many Christian authors are popular, not because people want their teaching, but because people want what they have. And Bob Goff is no exception. He tells stories of spending grandiose amounts of time on an island in Disneyland, and planning grand proposals for strangers with his wealth. What person wouldn’t want to live that kind of life?! I met a man driving across the country in a banana vehicle he built himself, but I would not necessarily follow him for advice on Bible interpretation and Christian living! But this is the danger of personality-cults today! There are a lot of people who can play our heartstrings well, who can make us laugh with glee, who can inspire us to pursue our dreams and wish on falling stars. But is that the life that God asks us to live? A life of searching for fun stories to tell at parties, or snapshots that liven up our instagrams? No, friends. It’s not. And while we can dress it up with a few verses here and there, the truth is that doing what Jesus says in loving people won’t always make for a funny little story. For a lot of people, Paul included, it meant harsh persecution and intense suffering. So let’s turn off the laughing gas, guys. It’s making us lose our sense of sound judgment. Now, what I am not saying is that Christians can’t have any fun or that there are no joyous times of celebration. In the Christian life, there can be a bit of whimsy! For as serious of a guy my husband is, even he will take a break from studying to dance me around the kitchen to Jack Johnson while I’m doing the dishes. But our lives are not characterized by it. I’ve learned a lot from him on how not to idolize fun and adventure. And it has opened my eyes up to the theology of suffering found all throughout the Bible. Lots of crazy things can happen in life, and having a positive outlook on life more often is a great step if you think that you grumble too much. But, our anchor should always be the hope we have in Jesus and not a desire to find satisfaction or some emotional high from doing fun activities and acting goofy. Being whimsical for whimsy’s sake is not pleasing to God. It’s distracting. PS: I have been working on a musical project that deals with mental illness and the lies I used to believe about life as a Christian. I am excited to get those songs up online as soon as I possibly can, but for now, I thought that this chorus I wrote summed up what I have learned about this topic and what Paul says about it in Romans:
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