The Anatomy of the Crush: Field Notes on Covenant, Unprovoked Fire, and the Death of Self-Striving Chapter 1: The Trap of the Self-Made Saint We live under a pervasive, legalistic lie that has poisoned the hearts of believers for generations: the idea that God’s favor is a transaction earned through human effort, flawless moral performance, and religious striving. We tend to read the Bible through the lens of a moralistic meritocracy—believing that the "good people" get rescued, the "bad people" get destroyed, and our daily job is to hustle hard enough to stay on God’s good side. If you want to shatter that lie once and for all, you have to look at the story of Lot, the nephew of Abraham. The rescue of Lot from the ashes of Sodom is one of the most scandalously uncomfortable narratives in all of Holy Scripture. It is not a feel-good story about a good man who made a few bad choices. It is a terrifying mirror held up to human depravity, and a breathtakin...
I'm learning to repent a lot faster—at least I think I am. When something happens in the natural realm that sucks, or someone wrongs me, or I mess up, or whatever fleshy thing occurs... I'm learning to just take the L. Which is hilarious, because nobody wants to take the L these days. It's considered shameful in today's society to take an L... but with Jesus, it seems that losing to God is actually how you secure the W in the end. Like, “OH MY GOD, GOD—you DON'T want me to be right all the time??? You don't want me to prove things to people, even if You are behind it??? You don't want me to correct the ever-living crap out of people when I know I'm right??? You want me to look bad, bear a grin, and just take it???” Yeah... somewhat, because there is something beneath the surface if you continue to fix your eyes on Jesus and wait for Him to actually take the wheel. It's learning to get over yourself, your life, and your image. Just readjust you...