Devotion #4: In Between - The O.C. Supertones

The O.C. Supertones started their music career in 1997 with the album Adventures of the O.C. Supertones. Take a few minutes to check out "In Between" off their 1999 album Chase the Sun.

In the song In Between, the Supertones sing about our fallen condition. Some of the lyrics are below.

Please allow me to introduce me.
Half of me slave, the other half free.
Righteous and sinful,
Both at the same time.
Iniquity and purity
Fill up the same mind.
And out of the same mouth,
The holy and profane.
I curse all my brothers,
Then I bless Christ's name.
I hang in the balance,
But still I'm secure.
I'm leaning towards evil,
But striving to be pure
I stand between the saint and the
Sinner, chasing after holiness, close
Enough to grasp, but still it's just
Beyond my reach.
Who I am is in between,
What I want to be and what I am.

Can you relate to the lyrics in this song? I know I can. It reminds me of what Paul wrote about in Romans 7.  Starting in verse 15, he writes, "I do not understand what I do. For what I want to do I do not do, but what I hate I do. And if I do what I do not want to do, I agree that the law is good. As it is, it is no longer I myself who do it, but it is sin living in me. For I know that good itself does not dwell in me, that is, in my sinful nature. For I have the desire to do what is good, but I cannot carry it out. For I do not do the good I want to do, but the evil I do not want to do—this I keep on doing. Now if I do what I do not want to do, it is no longer I who do it, but it is sin living in me that does it."

I do not do what I want to do. I want to live a sinless life. A life that honors God. Yet it's not uncommon for Christians to struggle in areas. Greed, envy, lust, and deceitfulness all vie for my attention. And it takes deliberate mindfulness and help from the Holy Spirit to avoid the trap. Is it comforting to know that even the Apostle Paul struggled with his sinful nature?

So what is the solution? How do we live obedient lives? First, it starts with the Holy Spirit. If you've accepted Christ as your personal lord and savior, you have the Holy Spirit living inside of you. Paul writes in Galatians 5:16-18, " So I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh. For the flesh desires what is contrary to the Spirit, and the Spirit what is contrary to the flesh. They are in conflict with each other, so that you are not to do whatever you want. But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the law." Keeping in step with the Holy Spirit means yielding to those promptings in our heart guiding us away from sin and prompting us to do good. It's still not easy to do though, because the drive for sin can be strong at times and also subtle. We may not realize we've sinned until it's too late. Still, if you have Christ, our sin is forgiven past, present, and future. And it's not because of anything we've done, but all because of Christ's sacrifice on the cross. And so, God's love is clear and loud. His love for us is a beautiful song that is being played throughout our lives. We're wooed by God and His love for us. And our response is gratitude and the desire to live lives pleasing to Him. We still sin. But we sin less because of our love for Him and through the help of His Holy Spirit living inside of us. Can you remember a time that was clearly the Holy Spirit prompting your heart/speaking to you?

Summary questions:

• Can you relate to the lyrics in this song?
•  Is it comforting to know that even the Apostle Paul struggled with his sinful nature?
• Can you remember a time that was clearly the Holy Spirit prompting your heart/speaking to you?

Devotion #3: Something More - Switchfoot

Take a few minutes to listen to Something More (St. Augustine's Confession) by Switchfoot.

Switchfoot came on the music scene in 1996 with the album The Legend of Chin. I remember seeing Switchfoot in concert in 1997 at a church in Fargo, North Dakota. It was just two brothers and a drummer at that time, but they kept at it and hit it big in the early 2000s with Meant to Live and Dare You to Move. Before that came Something More off of the album New Way to Be Human. It was a 1999 release and resonated with me deeply. I too felt there had to be something more to life than the life I was living. Living for myself was empty and destructive. When I gave my life to Christ in November of 1996, I knew God had a plan for my life. A better plan. When did you first begin to follow Christ? 

According to a Wikipedia article on St. Augustine of Hippo, at the age of 11.... Augustine "remembers he stole the fruit, not because he was hungry, but because 'it was not permitted.' His very nature, he says, was flawed. 'It was foul, and I loved it. I loved my own error—not that for which I erred, but the error itself.' From this incident he concluded the human person is naturally inclined to sin, and in need of the grace of Christ." Has there been a time in your childhood where you first remember sinning? I remember stealing raspberries from Mrs. Hauge's raspberry bushes when I was about 7 years old. I got caught but she was so sweet about it. I knew it was wrong, but clearly chose to do it anyway. 

Why do we choose to do what is wrong? Why do we choose evil? The Bible says "For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God (Romans 3:23). And the sad thing is, I still choose to sin today. Most of the time I'm doing the right thing, but occasionally I'll have a momentary lapse of reason and just sin anyway. Is it because I know God will forgive me? Is it because I am not walking as close to God as I should? Both may be true. The good news is that we can have victory because the Holy Spirit lives inside us. He will change us from the inside out, if we let Him. When we do, the fruit of the spirit will become evident in our lives (see Galatians 5). The first step is to ask God to guide you through His Holy Spirit, and then keep in step with the Spirit has He guides you towards holiness and away from sin. Then find a bible-believing church and a friend in Christ to encourage you in your walk.

Summary Questions:

• When did you first begin to follow Christ?
• Has there been a time in your childhood where you first remember sinning?
• Why do you think you sin when you know it's not what God wants?
• Do you have a church and a friend in Christ who can encourage you in your Christian walk?

Prayer:

God, thank you for your forgiveness, even when I deliberately choose to sin. Guide me with your Holy Spirit and help me yield to the Holy Spirit's nudging. I thank you for making my life worth living, for showing me I have a reason for being here. Help me to live for you and be used by you in this world.

Devotion #2: Eleven Regrets - Manic Drive

Take a few minutes to listen to Eleven Regrets by Manic Drive. 

How far can you run? If I told you to take off and run until you couldn't run anymore, how far would you get? Five miles? Ten miles? 26.2 miles? What if you "ran away" from God? You turned your back on all you've learned about Him. You blocked out the numerous ways He has reached out to you throughout your life and chose to run away. Would He let you have your way? Would He intervene with an amazing love that can't be measured? When I hear Eleven Regrets, I think of times in my life when I ran. Full of shame and strong-willed to do things my way, I ran, no matter what the consequences might be. 

God is a God of second chances. When asked by Peter (in Matthew 18), “Lord, how many times shall I forgive my brother or sister who sins against me? Up to seven times?”, Jesus says, "“I tell you, not seven times, but seventy-seven times." He's essentially telling him to forgive without end, just like God forgives because Jesus was the perfect sacrifice. He took our spot on the cross and paid the price for our sins through His death on the cross. I know I'm so thankful for the waterfall of grace that's constantly pouring over me. I'm so thankful for God's unending forgiveness because of Christ. When have you had to forgive someone over and over again?

So, when does God intervene in our lives? I would argue He intervenes daily. Yet, He still lets us make our own mistakes, knowing that when we live our lives apart from Him, it leads to emptiness. There's nothing in this world that can fill us, satisfy us, except God. When has God clearly intervened to save you from yourself or from something? It's good to take time periodically to reflect on our relationship with God and thank Him for saving us and helping us. See Isaiah 41:10.

Summary Questions

• If you took off and ran until you could run no more, how far would you get?
• Was there a time when you spiritually ran away from God?
• When have you had to forgive someone over and over again?
• When had God clearly intervened to save you from yourself or from something?

Prayer:

God, I'm sorry for being strong-willed and bent towards sin. Help me to be led by you and your love for me. I ask that you intervene in my life if I'm headed towards disaster, destruction. Please keep my close to you and help me to love you with all of my being. I'm so thankful for your love in my life. Help me to love others with that same love.

Devotion #1: Everywhere I Go - Five Iron Frenzy

When I was in college in the mid 90's, new popular bands were Green Day, Weezer, and The Offspring. By the time I dedicated my life to Christ in November of 1996, I found the Christian music scene offered it's own flavor of unique music. Bands like Five Iron Frenzy, The O.C. Supertones, Relient K, and Switchfoot were all just getting started. I believe it was the popularity of DC Talk's Jesus Freak that led the way to an investment in Christian music within the industry.

On Five Iron Frenzy's 1996 album, Upbeats and Beatdowns, they have a song called Everywhere I Go. Take a few minutes to listen to it now.

In this song Reese Roper sings, "Everywhere I go I see your face in the crowd. Everywhere I go I hear your voice clear and loud. Everywhere I go you are the light that I seek. Everywhere I go you have found me." Do you see God's face in the crowd? Do you see Him at work all around you? I know when I first found God, I made a drastic change in my life. I dedicated my life to Christ. I prayed, "Lord, do with me as you wish. I'm yours." And as I did that, I found myself having a constant conversation with my maker. It's like He was there with me all the time. Do you see God all around you? Do you see Him in others? Do others see Him in you? I know when I'm able to keep distractions at a minimum, I hear Him the best. What distractions do you have that might keep you from hearing God?

He goes on later to sing, "Where could my heart go, where you wouldn't be? Where you wouldn't go to find me?" God is all around us. He loves us with an unconditional love. In Psalm 139, David writes: 

7 Where can I go from your Spirit? Where can I flee from your presence? 8 If I go up to the heavens, you are there; if I make my bed in the depths, you are there.

God is all-knowing and always present. He knows everything about us, even our deepest thoughts. And even if we wanted to get away from Him, He's still with us. He loves us so much that he'll never leave us. And the love of God for us comes out in the lyric of the song, "where wouldn't you go to find me?" God values us so much and Jesus spoke about His value for us in Matthew 18. Jesus tells the parable of the lost sheep and says:

12 “What do you think? If a man owns a hundred sheep, and one of them wanders away, will he not leave the ninety-nine on the hills and go to look for the one that wandered off? 13 And if he finds it, truly I tell you, he is happier about that one sheep than about the ninety-nine that did not wander off. 14 In the same way your Father in heaven is not willing that any of these little ones should perish.

We are loved immensely by God. He made us to have a relationship with Him. It's like he sent us an invitation to become part of His family forever. Have you responded to His invitation? If not, follow the link here for more information. It's the best decision you can make.

Summary Questions:

• Do you see God at work all around you?
• Do you have a constant conversation with God (this is not easy to do!)? Or, how often to you pray?
• What distractions do you have that might keep you from hearing God?
• How would you describe God's love for us to an non-Christian?
• Have you responded to His invitation?  

Prayer:

God, thank you that you are always with me. Thank you for your amazing love for me and your patience with me. Help me to pray continually and to see you at work all around me. Everywhere I go you are there with me and I'm so thankful for that. May I be pleasing to you in all that I do as I love you back with how I live my life. Yours forever.