Good to Feel Bad, Bad to Feel Good

Lord, this one is a challenge for me. I think I’ll go ahead and get the obvious out of the way. Whatever we do in life should make us feel good and be comfortable, right? If we listen and sing certain worship songs as long as there is an overall theme of “worship” and it makes us feel some kind of way, then it’s edifying to us, yes? Jesus says in John 16:33, "In the world you will have tribulation. But take heart; I have overcome the world". 2 Timothy 3:12 also says, "Indeed, all who desire to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted". That’s very interesting, it’s like contradicting the modern feel good-ism that we as Christians have found ourselves in. Certainly there are caveats to personalities and tastes where if someone is finding it difficult to do a Bible study on Job that has been a Christian for less than a week or an older gentleman trying to worship through song and trying to find some attachment to music so foreign to him, those kinds of things can be uncomfortable. And let’s face it, Lord, in America we have been so richly blessed to enjoy every freedom of man that comfort is now king over what calls us out for correction. If there is so much of a breath of disagreement now people will proclaim violence and vehement atrocities have been committed against them.

Just so I don’t chase a rabbit trail to wander into another point, I’ll end that particular thought with the persecution of American Christianity is more dangerous than I give it credit for. No, we’re not being slaughtered or arrested for proclaiming Your son, Jesus, but satan has so intertwined himself into society that discernment has taken a backseat to a watered down, effeminate, and hollow Gospel. Our persecution may be worse, we’re being led to hell through use of Your word and music associated with being under a certain brand while churches define themselves as havens for music that makes us feel good, preaching that trades absolute truths for abridged motivational speeches. Should we be surprised, though? Steve Turner's poem “Creed” really does draw into perspective of how the modern church views itself in part of its last thought, “We believe in the rejection of creeds and the flowering of individual thought. If chance be the Father of all flesh, disaster is his rainbow in the sky and when you hear “State of Emergency!” “Sniper Kills Ten!”, “Troops on Rampage!” “Whites go Looting!”, “Bomb Blasts School!” It is but the sound of man worshiping his maker.” 

I think one of the scariest phrases that I look back on, which is correctly in line with what we should be searching for, is to go where we are being fed. The difference is we put our desires in front of what Your desires are. Yes, we need to be fed, John 21:17, “A third time he asked him, “Simon son of John, do you love me?” Peter was hurt that Jesus asked the question a third time. He said, “Lord, you know everything. You know that I love you.” Jesus said, “Then feed my sheep.” and Matthew 4:4, “Jesus answered, “It is written: ‘Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.’” The problem is we’ve traded the porterhouse for slop. We’ve turned it into this amalgamation of incoherent doctrines and vapid beliefs becoming dangerously close to embracing EDI as god and glossing over the anagrammatical allusion of what that is actually doing to us. 

So should we seek out comfort? Should we allow ourselves to feel good with positive messages and uplifting music? The first thing You said to me after thinking that though is of course, You’re not a monster! But where we seek those things is crucial to our growth and relationship with You. 2 Corinthians 1:3, 4 "Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our affliction so that we will be able to comfort those who are in any affliction with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God". James 1:16-18, “16 Don’t be deceived, my dear brothers and sisters. 17 Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, who does not change like shifting shadows. 18 By his own choice, he gave us birth by the word of truth so that we would be a kind of firstfruits of his creatures.” We’ve become so passive to the world. So accepting of evil. You’ve certainly commanded us to love our neighbor, our enemy, and those who persecute us. Why? We WERE You’re enemy and every lost person bound for perdition is the same. You cannot be righteous and allow sin to be in Your presence. Your very nature is a consuming fire to it and there hasn’t been any sin throughout Your creation where You said You would give it a pass. From the lily white to the dark machinations, sin is sin and anyone trying to reduce Your word to twist what is sin deserves the price of sin. Isaiah 29 says, “The Lord said: These people approach me with their speeches to honor me with lip-service, And yet their hearts are far from me, and human rules direct their worship of me.” It’s akin to playing a game with children where the rules are discussed but changed depending on how the game is going.

We want a “safe space” instead of conviction and inclusivity instead of exclusive truth. Your patience for us, O Lord, we are utterly unworthy of it. Certainly we should feel safe, but You should be our refuge. Surely we should feel good, but our recognition of what good is should be discerned by what You have called good. “And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.” Whose purpose? Not mine, but Yours, the Supreme Majesty of the Cosmos, King of kings and Lord of lords, name above every other name, and if it’s not about You and Your word, it is not good. May I look to You for the good in my life because there is nowhere else to turn. May I focus my energy to find comfort in You rather than trying to make my life a comfortable cage keeping me away from Your truths, Amen.