V

GENUINE MOTIV TION

Sept. 2 0 1 0 YOUNG CHRISTIAN MAN

YOU HAVE A FRIEND REQUEST:

BUT IS IT SINCERE?
GOD’S GRACE :
BETTER THAN THE
M O N K E Y ’ S PAW

DEBT VS. SAVINGS :

Which One To Tackle First?

THE RECAP ON Imaginary Jesus

YOUNG
CHRISTIAN
MAN
04 Feature Article: Our Father
THE MERRY MONK

06 On The Couch: The Illusion of Control

RANDY KOSLOSKI

08 Can You Relate: You Have a Friend Request

THOM MOLLOHAN

10 Faith & Finance: Debt vs. Savings

MATT FRASER

12 Cornered By Grace: Drop the Banana

ROB BEAMES

14 Press On: Praying His Will Be Done

WILL DOLE

16 The Recap: Book Review: Imaginary Jesus

JEFFREY BRIDGMAN
 A PUBLICATION OF ON MY OWN NOW MINISTRIES WWW.ONMYOWNNOW.COM
VISIT OUR ARCHIVES TO VIEW PAST ISSUES OF GENUINE MOTIVATION

SEPTEMBER2010
EDITOR IN CHIEF / ROB BEAMES
ART + CREATIVE DIRECTOR / MICHAEL MURO

B Y T H E M E R RY M O N K
5
I sat alone in a dark hospital room waiting for news. It had
been a long day filled with intense emotion, but time was
about to stop. The door slowly opened and a silhouette
filled the bright doorway. I anxiously stood up as a smiling
nurse approached me. Then she whispered, “Hello, Daddy.”
My daughter was born less than an hour earlier and my wife
was recovering from a C-section down the hall. I took a deep
breath and reached out my arms to hold my firstborn child
for the first time. She was so small, so light and delicate. I
tenderly cradled pure beauty wrapped in soft blankets as I
welcomed her into the world.
I don’t know how long we were left alone in that hospital
room. I was lost in the moment, overwhelmed by love as I
gazed at my little girl. All at once it struck me; this is what
it’s like to be a father.
GM : 04
Our Father
Jesus’ disciples asked Him to teach them how to pray. He
instructed them to begin with,“Our Father….” Despite this
clear teaching, I spent most of my Christian life praying to
Jesus instead. I guess Jesus seemed more approachable
to me than the Father. I probably would have sooner prayed
to the Spirit than the Father—even He didn’t seem as scary.
When you think about it, my fear of the Father wasn’t an
altogether illogical conclusion. The Father seems pretty
intense in the Bible. Before we finish reading the first book,
He’s kicked people out of paradise, flooded the world,
destroyed cities with fire and brimstone, and even ordered
His chosen people to cut the skin off of their…well…you get
the idea. The last book of the Bible is even more fearful,
especially if you’re not on the winning side. Despite this
threat of extreme retribution, we still manage to give the
Father plenty of reason to punish us—but He doesn’t.
PHOTO COURTESY OF CHANCEFORBACON.COM
We are great sinners and He is holy, but the Son is a greater “Yet, God the Son loved His enemies
Savior than we are sinners. The close relationship we have
with Jesus is natural, in a way. As our older brother, Jesus so much that He laid down His life
readily stepped in to take the whoopin’ that was rightfully
ours. We tend to want to be around someone who does
so that they could join Him in calling
that for us. God Father.”
Now, I also believed there’s only one God and that He
I think I would take a bullet for my son, and maybe even
doesn’t have Multiple Personality Disorder. Perhaps, that’s
for a friend, but I don’t think I would take a bullet for an
why I didn’t think twice about dodging the Father—or even
enemy. Yet, God the Son loved His enemies so much that
notice I was avoiding Him. I had also learned from a popular
He laid down His life so that they could join Him in calling
radio broadcaster, Steve Brown, that there’s no jealousy
God “Father.” This imagery is amazing when we think about
within the Trinity and that the important thing about prayer
it. While I might take a bullet for a friend, I certainly wouldn’t
is that we do it. So, I continued to pray…to Jesus.
sacrifice my son’s life for anyone. It’s absolutely absurd to
think that I’d let my son die to save the life of an enemy—
Then one night I had dinner with a good friend and afterward
even if he was willing to do it, as Jesus was. Yet, that’s what
we began talking about prayer. He said that I should be
the Father did. He suffered the loss of His beloved Son for
praying to the Father. At first, I wrote him off as being
the love of His enemies, so that we could be transformed
“uptight,” and thought the best resolution was to quit having
into many sons and daughters joining with Him in glory for
dinner with him. But then, he reminded me of Matthew 6:9
the rest of eternity (Hebrews 2:10). As Paul encourages
and Luke 11:2 where Jesus taught us to pray saying, “When
us again, “What then shall we say to these things? If God
you pray, say: ‘Father…’” For days I couldn’t get the words
is for us, who can be against us? He who did not spare
out of my head.
His own Son but gave Him up for us all, how will He not
also with Him graciously give us all things? Who shall bring
Later, it seemed the apostle Paul joined my friend in
any charge against God’s elect? It is God who justifies”
disrupting my prayer life. In Romans 8:15 Paul wrote, “For
(Romans 8:31-33).
you did not receive the spirit of slavery to fall back into fear,
but you have received the spirit of adoption as sons, by
It’s madness to question the approachability or love of our
whom we cry, ‘Abba! Father!’” He doesn’t say that we cry
Father. How could I have thought that my sin was so dark
“Lord,” “Master” or “Jesus,” but instead, he says we cry,
that the great light of our Father’s love couldn’t consume it?
“Father.” Paul also tells us that the spirit of God the Son
All of His intensity in the Bible from Genesis to Revelation
himself, is within us crying, “Abba, Father” (Galatians 4:6).
has the purpose of making our union with Him possible.
This is the same way that Jesus addressed God in the
Leviticus 26:12 expresses the Father’s heart for us, “I will
Garden of Gethsemane (Mark 14:36). Paul is telling us that
walk among you and will be your God, and you shall be my
we are called into the same intimate relationship with God
people.” O. Palmer Robertson appropriately calls this the
which Jesus has always enjoyed!
“Immanuel Principle” of God’s covenants.
So, taking the advice of my friend, Jesus, Paul and the
Now that I understand this concept more fully, I often pray
Holy Spirit, I tried it. I started addressing God as Father.
saying, “Thank you, Father, that you’re not who I thought
Although, at first, my sin made me really uncomfortable, I
you were.” Although God is pleased for us to use any of
kept at it. This simple change—combined with becoming
the many ways He has revealed Himself to us when we
a father myself—has revolutionized and deepened my
address Him, if we fail to understand our relationship with
relationship with God.
Him as our Father, we’re seriously missing out. All we need
to do is to open ourselves to His Spirit in prayer. When the
The love and bond I have with my three children is
Spirit possesses us, He unites us with the body of God the
overwhelmingly intense. However, it’s only the fallen,
Son and gently brings us to the point when we cry, “Abba!”
creaturely shadow of what the Father, Son and Holy
Spirit have always passionately enjoyed. The Trinity is the
archetype of all relationship and diversity. Father, Son and
Holy Spirit exist in perpetual intimate communion, in need Erik Guzman is The Merry Monk of Love...a whiskey mystic, a silly
of nothing and overflowing with blessedness. They have son of God, a sword saint and a divine DJ. Visit TheMerryMonk.
experienced this from eternity, except for the period of time com for some messy monkery. Erik is also Executive Producer at
when the Father turned His back on the Son as the Son Key Life Network. He can be heard on the nationally syndicated
became sin and died for His enemies. This unimaginable talk show Steve Brown Etc. and as announcer for Key Life. He has
event reveals something of the love of God that Jesus’ self- a wife, three children, a BA in Mass Communication and an MBA.
sacrifice does not, and it’s best understood through the He’s also a drummer, 3rd degree black belt in Aikido, and Master
eyes of a father. of Theology student at Reformed Theological Seminary.

GM : 05
on
the
couch
THE ILLUSION OF CONTROL
by Randy Kosloski
The Gospel of John is the most inspiring book of the Bible
for me. I sometimes imagine the author of that piercing,
poetic Gospel as some intense early Christian beatnik wearng
a goatee and a beaded hat. I look forward to meeting the
Apostle John in eternity. His opening verses are soulful ones.
One verse says, “In Him was life and that life was the light of
men” (John 1:4). I may understand only a morsel of the full
meaning of that text—but it’s a tasty morsel.
One thing John tells us is that God is intimately connected
with us and the world. It is impossible to separate the good
“light” of people and God for they are synonymous. In our
world today people love to divide things. People tend to
compartmentalize work and home, family and friends, or
colleagues and clients. Perhaps, we separate things in an
attempt to make our life roles more manageable. These
categories are actually human inventions though. In reality
there is only life—and one chance to live it. A friend named
Pat taught me this.
I met Pat as he was preparing to leave home for college. Even
though Pat was committed to continuing his education and
looking forward to college, he was pretty sure his family would
fall apart once he left home. The guilt he was experiencing
was causing his emotional and mental health to suffer.
In mental health and social work fields there is term for people
like Pat: parentified. This refers to a child, usually a first born,
who has taken on a strong parental role in the family. Most
of us have some degree of parentification, but those who are
truly parentified become full-time parents to their siblings
and even to their own parents. Parentified kids are usually
outstanding individuals. They tend to be self-sacrificing, hard-
working, considerate and mature—like any good parent should
be. And just like Pat, parentified kids usually lack self care and
the ability to find their own potential outside of their assumed
parentified role. Parentified kids often find it difficult to pursue
their own interests and live a typical teenager’s life—which is
why Pat found it difficult to attend the college of his choice.
Since Pat’s parents were in what he considered to be a
loveless marriage, he was confident they would separate once
he left for school. In order to keep the family functioning, he
became the primary line of communication for his parents.
Additionally, he described his older brother as a self-absorbed,
inconsiderate, occasionally violent, ego maniac. Pat acted
as a social buffer for him. Without his constant intervention,
he believed his brother would offend everyone with whom
he came into contact. Pat was a peace keeper and his world
revolved around keeping his family operating successfully.
Also, Pat was a gifted artist and had been accepted to a
prestigious architectural school. Once Pat started pursuing
this calling, he quickly became excited about the prospects an
education promised. Having the freedom to pursue his goals
was attractive to him, but still he felt guilty. As his departure
for school approached, Pat became increasingly afraid of
leaving his family and fearful of what it might do to them.
However, God had something else in mind for Pat.
William Barclay’s, The New Dailey Study Bible: The Gospel
of John, explains how John’s gospel is trying to create a
unified understanding of Jesus for both the Hebrew and
Greek. Barclay points out that John explicates Jesus as the
personification of God’s Logos, or reason. He goes on to
explain this reason as the rationale of God being poured into
our world when it was created, and then later encapsulated
in Jesus. God’s world is a rational one full of natural
consequences—ordained by God and evidence of His control.
Pat mistakenly believed that he was in control of his life, and
that his family’s success or failings were his responsibility.
The illusion of control had a grip on Pat, and he considered
himself the god of his own family. Pat needed to learn that
sometimes the best help you can offer love ones is to offer
no help at all. Sometimes, we all need to experience the
aftermath of our choices. Pat needed to allow God, who is
God over everything, to inspire change in his family through
His natural consequences.
“GOD’S WORLD IS A RATIONAL ONE FULL
OF NATURAL CONSEQUENCES.”
Together, Pat and I worked through a plan to let his family
members realize the cost of their choices without his
protection. We wrestled through the idea that this strategy
was the best help he could ever offer his family, although he
didn’t feel entirely comfortable with it. He began to see that
seeking his potential would be the best encouragement for
his family members to seek their own potentials. Pat moved
along with this plan mostly because he knew he had to find
peace with the decision to leave for college. He eventually
understood that living out his values would teach his family
how to live out theirs—Abram is a good example of this.
God had big plans for him and prepared him in advance,
starting by renaming him Abraham, “father of many nations,”
while he was yet a childless old man. I wonder if he might
have had to introduce himself with this title even when it was
just him and his old wife. Perhaps the reason Abraham was so
successful was because he trusted his God and not his fears.
Because of that his witness is eternally etched in the tablet of
time. This should tell us that God wants this for us, too. We
should passionately follow the path God lays out for us rather
than attempt to control our own destinies, or the lives of those
around us.
Pat needed to demonstrate his trust in God in order to show
his family how to choose wisely. When Pat and I parted ways,
he was still in turmoil over, what was for him, a monumental
decision. Despite all our discussions, he was still not at peace
with leaving for college, although he knew it was what he
should do. Pat’s situation reminded me that sometimes we
must painstakingly overcome our fear in order to follow our
God-given passion. By His grace, God will write well-crafted
stories with our lives, not only because He loves us, but also
so others may learn from them.
GM : 07
 You Have A
Friend Request

Can You Relate

By Thom Mollohan

Got a lot of friends on Facebook?

In time, I imagine that we will see profound changes in the way Technology, like cell phones and the Internet and specifically
that we define friendship. I expect that research will indicate social applications like Facebook, is revolutionizing the way
dramatic decreases in fulfillment in friendships even as people people interact and connect. As the changes unfold before us,
reach out wider and wider for meaningful connections with others. there are certain implications we would do well to consider.

GM : 08
 Consider the fact that the word “friend” is becoming intricately
laced with the Internet experience. Not only has the number
of “friends” on Facebook become a status symbol, but one
can score “friends” without even knowing who the “friends”
are, therefore rendering moot any previous notion of what it
means to be a “friend” and diluting what it means to have a
true friend.
As the careless and casual ways of using the word “friend”
become more and more integrated into our thinking, the word
“friend” itself will likely lose power and significance, possibly
obscuring the importance of the kind of relationship that we
need and deeply crave.
Heidegger, a German philosopher, who may have had Nazi
sympathies, once observed that, “Man acts as though he were
the shaper and master of language, while in fact language
remains the master of man.” While his dubious associations
and non-theistic world view may cast dispersions on his
general perspective, the fact that language shapes thought
is undeniable. Thus, an increasing level of vagueness for
the word “friend” will leave us in a quandary when we try to
define what it means to truly connect with peers, have trusted
confidantes and faithful companions in the journey of life.
The words for “friend” in the Bible, however, have similar
linguistic challenges. The Hebrew word “rēa” and the Greek
“philos” mean friend in just about all the ways that our English
word means it, ranging from “colleague” to “bosom buddy.”
Nevertheless, the Scriptures talk about a type of friend that
epitomizes what friendship is and what it does for us.
“ The word ‘friend’ itself will likely lose
power and significance, possibly obscuring
the importance of the kind of relationship
that we need and deeply crave. ”
* First, there is an aspect of acceptance about friendship—much
deeper than being added as a friend on Facebook. Proverbs
17:17 says, “A friend loves at all times.” Genuine friendship is
not fickle. Likely, we all have had experiences with fair weather
friends who enjoyed our resources when there was much to be
shared, but faded from view when need and sorrow came. We
therefore should deeply esteem the treasure of those who love
us unconditionally and faithfully, and also strive, ourselves, to
be faithful to our friends in times of plenty and in need and hurt.
* Second, a friend is one who both says and does what we
need, and not merely pays lip service to us. Proverbs 27:6
says, “Words from a friend can be trusted, but an enemy
multiplies kisses.” Enemies rarely come to us with flaming
swords and obvious hatred, but often approach with friendly
If a friend’s words have hurt you, stop for a moment and
compare those words with the truth of God’s Word. If they
don’t measure up, then we discard them and guard our hearts
for the next encounter. But if in them, we see God’s truth
reflected, however painful, then we should try to swallow our
pride and ask God to help us to make the adjustments which
He sent this true fiend to reveal as necessary.
“One of the highest virtues quickly
identified with true friendship is
personal sacrifice on behalf of
another, even to the point of death.”
* Third, friends have staying power. “A man of many
companions may come to ruin, but there is a friend who sticks
closer than a brother” (Proverbs 18:24). We should seek out
and treasure true friends. At the same time, we should desire
to become a true friend to those whose hearts have been
knit together with ours by God. “Do not forsake your friend
and the friend of your father, and do not go to your brother’s
house when disaster strikes you—better a friend nearby than
a brother far away” (Proverbs 27:10).
One of the highest virtues quickly identified with true friendship
is personal sacrifice on behalf of another, even to the point
of death. Of course, Jesus is the very essence of perfect
friendship and is the very best friend we can have. Jesus
said, “Greater love has no man than this, that He lay down
His life for His friends” (John 15:13). For Christ, this meant
being beaten and crucified for our sake. How marvelous is the
friendship that God has offered to us through Jesus Christ! He
laid down His sinless life for us although we were consumed
with sin, guilty and stained!
True friendship has reached down from heaven looking past
our selfish motives and troubled lives. He has offered us hope
and healing by releasing us from the power of fear, and the
clinging weight of sin. We are placed on a path of fellowship
with God Himself. There is no greater friend than Jesus, and
no greater calling for us today than to become true friends
with Him in obedience as we allow His friendship to flow
through us into the lives of those around us who are not only
lonely and hapless, but also lost and hopeless. We can trust
our perfect Friend to lead us today to become a true friend to
someone in need.
Not friends with Jesus yet? Why not add Him today!
GM : 09
DEBT VS. SAVINGS FA I T H&
FINANC
E

by Matt Fraser

Recently a friend posed a question concerning debt and savings. Is it better to pay
extra on debt or put more in savings? This is a great question because it gets us
thinking about these two very good activities. Unfortunately the answer is a little more
complicated than a simple either/or. The answer largely depends on how much debt
we have and what our goals are. ears-ready-to-scratch, fun-in-the-sun buddy is gone!

First, understand that debt is not necessarily a bad thing. It’s a neutral thing—like a
banana or a shirt. Like other things, debt can be bought, sold, marketed, misused,
abused, and can also be used wisely. But unlike most bananas and shirts, debt can
profoundly affect our lives in the long term.

Debt can be used to our advantage, enabling us to purchase things that would otherwise
be out of our financial reach, such as a house or a car. It provides businesses with a
way to leverage their production as they expand. And yet the downside of debt can
be severe. Debt comes with a cost—it’s called interest—and by the time we pay off a
large debt and the associated interest, we may have paid much more than the actual
value of the item purchased. When we leverage ourselves with debt, we have to count
on our income stream remaining steady in order to make our payments. If our income
diminishes significantly, we’re in trouble. It’s easy to take on debt hastily and end up
at the bottom of a huge financial hole with seemingly no way to get out. In the final
analysis, debt should be used like a ladder to help us reach our goals—not a shovel to
dig our own pit.

Besides the obvious financial aspects, debt can have a spiritual effect on us, as well. It
can cause us to become too dependent on material things and limit our opportunities.
(Many mission organizations require their missionaries to be debt-free.) Debt can make
it so easy to accumulate things that we lose our focus on God and become greedy—
always wanting more.

GM : 10
The parable of the seeds in Matthew 13:22 applies
well here. “The one who received the seed that fell
among the thorns is the man who hears the word, but
the worries of this life and the deceitfulness of wealth
choke it, making it unfruitful.” If we aren’t careful, debt
can suck vitality from our lives as it binds us to worldly
institutions, focuses our eyes on the next payment,
and gives us a taste of the cake before we discover
what we actually must swallow.
OK, so what about savings? Saving for saving’s sake
alone can be just as spiritually dangerous as being in
debt; however, saving that is guided by appropriate
planning and an open heart can be a very good thing.
It’s helpful to divide our savings into four types of funds:
short-term, mid-term, long-term and emergency.
Short-term savings should be kept to cover expenses
anticipated in the next year or two. Mid-term funds
should be set aside considering the next five years,
like automobile purchases or big trips, and long-term
savings should be used in planning for as far ahead
into the future as we dare—kids’ college funds, maybe?
Arguably the important of these is an emergency fund.
If at all possible, we should set aside enough to cover
expenses for six months and keep enough available for
those unexpected expenses that sometimes catch us
by surprise, like a blown transmission. Here’s a good
way to create an emergency fund: each month for
six successive months, buy a six-month CD at a local
bank. If successful in this endeavor, when the seventh
month rolls around, we will have funds available, if
needed. If the funds are not needed, we can let the
CD renew automatically. This way the money is not
burning a hole in our pockets, but one of the CDs will
be maturing each month in case we do really need it.
We all struggle with the discipline of saving. Sometimes,
I feel like a miser who would die atop a pile of gold
dressed in a worn-out shirt and old pants worried that
something might happen to my treasure. But, God
asks us to be open with His money—it is all His money,
by the way. In the context of savings, we should be
more inclined to forgo saving in order to meet the
need of another. Like they say, we can’t take it with us,
but we can send it on ahead.
Finally, in answer to the original question: If we don’t
have an emergency fund then building one should
be a high priority for us. Having extra cash on hand
when emergencies occur can keep us from falling
back on high interest debt, such as credit cards, often
the first step into a dangerous debt spiral. After this
is established, we can evaluate where our priorities
are. If we really want to become debt-free, we should
attack our debt with a firm plan and a defined budget.
We can easily get discouraged in the process if we
haven’t fully thought out our goals.
On the flip side, if we’re comfortable with our payments,
and we have cash in hand with no immediate purpose,
we can start growing our savings, while remaining
sensitive to the leading of the Holy Spirit to give to
those in need. However, we should avoid making this
type of decision based on how we feel at the moment.
It is wise to plan for giving within our budget, and
then be busy praying about how God wants us to use
it. This minimizes the emotion factor and enables us to
make sound decisions based on God’s leading.
Sometimes, trying to keep tabs on our finances can
feel like wrestling an alligator, but we don’t need to
get pulled under by it. God has promised to take care
of our needs (Matthew 6:25-34). At the same time,
He wants us to be responsible with what He’s given
us (Matthew 25:14-30). As we start to think about our
goals and what we’ve done in the past. We may find
that we haven’t done so well, and we need to change
a few things and reprioritize. Or, we may find that
we’re in better shape than we thought. The important
thing is to go through the process of making goals and
structuring a plan. Simply letting these things happen
is a greater risk than having lots of debt or no savings
at all.
GM : 11
CORNERED BY GRACE // BY ROB BEAMES

DROP
TH E
BaNanA

I don’t want to rush Christmas, but considering the heat wave that is hovering over most of the nation,
perhaps it’s not a bad idea to imagine Santa Clause sweeping through a deep, cold Christmas snow. Who
knows, it might even be a bit therapeutic. Santa makes me think of a modern remake of the popular Christmas
movie “Miracle on 34th Street,” in which an attorney tries to prove that Santa exists by citing the words
written on a dollar bill: “In God We Trust.” He concluded that if the United States government can put its faith
in an entity without providing any proof of its existence, then by the collaborative belief of the citizens of New
York City, the judge should accept that Santa Claus exists in the person of Kris Kringle. In the movie’s climax,
the judge is persuaded and the entire city breaks out in a joyous celebration.

GM : 12
In reality, you and I certainly aren’t wrestling with
whether Santa exists, and most of us take for granted
that God exists too. Rather, the issue we wrestle with
is the manner in which God exists in our lives. We
might readily believe, by faith, that God’s presence
in our life is constant and benevolent toward us. Yet,
as we go about our daily lives we may distrust this
truth more than we know. Given our past experience,
it’s easy to pervert God’s role in our lives to match
the flawed authority figures we known, such as a
power-hungry police officer, an overbearing parent,
a humiliating boss, a cruel landlord, etc. All of these
flawed relationships have subtly formed a backdrop
for our thoughts about God, even though we may not
realize it.
A well known English short story writer of the 1930s,
W. W. Jacobs, wrote a story that burned an intense
imprint on my mind from the first time I read it.
As the story goes, a couple find themselves in the
possession of a monkey paw, which promises to
grant them three wishes. As many of us might do,
they spend their first wish asking for a ton of money.
The enchanted appendage immediately produces,
but only through the death of their beloved, albeit
heavily insured, son in a vicious car wreck. After they
discover the source of their newly found wealth, the
mother hastily wishes her son back home alive. Soon,
there is an eerie knock at their front door by the hand
of a scarred, partially decomposed, walking zombie!
Too afraid to look at their son’s now repugnant
existence, the father mercifully uses the last wish to
return their son to the grave from which he came.
It may be imperceptible to us, but too often, we act
as if God deals with us like the wicked monkey paw
in the story dealt with that couple—like He’s out to
make us the butt of cruel ironies. However, this isn’t
the way Jesus described God’s nature:
“Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will
find; knock and the door will be opened to you. For
everyone who asks receives; He who seeks finds; and
to him who knocks, the door will be opened. Which of
you fathers, if your son asks for a fish, will give him
a ta scorpion? If you then, though you are evil, know
how to give good gifts to your children, how much
more will your Father in heaven give the Holy Spirit to
those who ask Him!” (Luke 11:9-13)
Sadly, we often don’t “ask” God, because we fear
we will get what we want only at a grave price. We
are sometimes afraid to “seek,” because we don’t
know if we’ll want what we “find.” At times, we are
hesitant to “knock” for fear the “door will be opened”
by a hideous creature. Yet, this scripture, as well as
many like it, clearly and gently rebuke this counterfeit
concept of God.
In our sinful state we too readily believe lies about
who God is. Since we know we actually deserve a
snake, it’s difficult to believe this is not the way God
treats His precious children. We may conceive our
reward to be a poisonous scorpion, so we don’t want
to accept our Father’s loving response to His prized
possessions. Ultimately, we can be sure of this fact:
God “knows how to give good gifts” to us. He not
only knows how to do so, but He continually gives to
us in the person and presence of the Holy Spirit. At
one time or another we have all wanted God to be like
Santa and unload a big, red bag of toys, but He gives
us much more than that. He gives us Himself! Only
in His faultless wisdom, can He know that this is the
best, most treasured gift He could possibly give to us.
This truth is difficult to believe at times, especially
when we experience pain, loss or brokenness. What
we experience at the hand of our loving Father
doesn’t always seem to match what He’s revealed
about His incredible loving nature toward us. But we
can be certain He experiences every minute of what
we experience alongside of us. He paid an incredible
price for the right to do just that!
It’s been said that all one has to do to catch a
monkey is to put a piece of fruit in a tree trunk with
a hole only big enough for the monkey’s hand to fit.
Supposedly, once the monkey has the fruit in his
hand, he will refuse to loosen his clinched fist, even
to free himself. We can have this kind of absurd
tenacity when it comes to holding on to false images
of God. Sometimes it’s difficult to let go, even if it
means our freedom.
Given what Jesus has revealed about God’s character,
we should no longer believe that God would try to
“set us up,” like some control-hungry villain. No, we
can trust in His constant goodness toward us—even
if it doesn’t always seem good to us. It’s alright to
drop the banana—that one held tightly in the fist of
the monkey’s paw. That false, monkey-paw concept
of God can go, too. We are now free to grab onto the
truth that He’s revealed about Himself—and bask in
it! (I believe He wanted me to remind you of this.)
GM : 13
P R AY I N G
HIS
WILL
B E D O N E
PRESS ON BY WILL DOLE

Most of us have read or recited numerous times the words taken from
the Lord’s Prayer, “Your will be done,” but how often have we truly
pondered what that means? What is the significance of requesting
that God’s will be done?

GM : 14 PHOTO COURTESY OF DILLA AWALUDDIN

When we pray, we are approaching God as a child does
a loving father. It’s sometimes difficult to associate the
fact—especially since we can’t see Him—that God isn’t
some faceless, nameless force in the sky. Neither is He the
flawed, violent, condescending, harsh, neglectful, cruel,
uncaring, mean, or otherwise sinful father we may have in
this world. No, He is the perfect Father to us all, especially
to the fatherless. Regardless of the type of relationship
we have had with our dad here on earth—if we had one
at all—we can trust that God will consistently treat us in a
loving and caring way.
Nevertheless, when we make requests to Him, we should
keep in mind that He is sovereign. This means He is all-
powerful over all that He has made, and that He has a
perfect plan which will be carried out. That may not sound
comforting, because it means we are not in control. Yet,
because He knows us and has entered intoa relationship
with us, His control is the best thing for us.
“ We should also keep in mind that
GOD DEEPLY LOVES US,
AND FROM THIS LOVE
“
HE CARRIES OUT HIS PLANS FOR OUR LIVES.
We also should keep in mind that God deeply loves us,
and from this love He carries out His plan for our lives.
This being true, after a while we may start to wonder if
we need to pray. We might think that if God is all powerful
and is going to execute His plan anyway, there is no point
in praying. Why should we take our cares to God who
already knows them? That’s a good question.
Part of the answer lies in the question itself. We should take
our cares to God because He already knows them. When
we put these two truths together and understand them—
the fact that He is both all-knowing and all-powerful—we
can truly pray “Your will be done.” Since God will see His
perfect will done in the end, we should ask for it, too. It
helps us align our heart with His.
“God cares more about the loving
relationship He offers us, than about our
comfort, success or even our earthly life.”
This is how Jesus prayed in the garden of Gethsemane,
“Father, if You are willing, take this cup from Me; yet not
My will, but Yours be done” (Luke 22:42). It’s amazing
to think that Jesus Christ, God incarnate, the second
member of the Trinity, humbled Himself to join us in our
human plight. This prayer is lifted up just before Jesus
is betrayed by Judas and turned over to be crucified, so
He’s pretty desperate. But that’s just part of it. No doubt
His greater anguish stems from knowing that something
is about to happen for the first and only time in all of
history, written and unwritten: the separation of Jesus
Christ from God the Father. The excruciating physical pain
of the crucifixion is surely secondary to the emotional and
spiritual affliction Jesus is about to undergo.
So in His moment of extreme distress, what does Jesus
do? He prays. Jesus goes to the One who holds the entire
world in the palm of His hand, and humbly makes His
requests. He acknowledges His pain, His anxiety, and His
sorrow. He admits that He would much rather not bear
this pain, and if He could take another route, He would.
But most importantly He submits to the will of the Father.
And after He had done so, God sent an angel to give Him
strength. Did God change the path for Jesus? No, but
He did provide the means to endure it. God cares more
about the loving relationship He offers us, than about our
comfort, success or even our earthly life.
When we recognize that we have a loving Father who not
only created us, but intensely loves us, we can trust that
He will always act in our best interest. Sometimes this trust
comes by faith alone, because it’s difficult to understand
or experience at the time. But, when we ponder God’s
true character, we can sincerely pray “Your will be done.”
Coming to this place of humility will radically transform our
prayer life. It takes God out of the box where our minds so
often confine Him, and restores Him to His rightful place
on the throne of our lives.
GM : 15
 THE RECAP
BOOK REVIEW: Imaginary Jesus
by JEFFREY BRIDGMAN
Imaginary Jesus by Matt Mikalatos is an excellent book
with both serious and funny material. As a depiction of the
author’s journey to discover the real Jesus, it confronts
some of the darkest questions of the Christian faith. At
the same time it is a comedy of bizarre characters, such
as a talking donkey, and strange events, such as an inner
tube race down a ski slope with a philosophical intent—
reminiscent of Calvin and Hobbes. It also contains some
exaggerated, fast-paced action, like getting smashed in
the face by a metal bar in a fight between two imaginary
saviors. The reader can’t help but laugh when the two are
subsequently healed by a televangelist also named Jesus—
Mikalatos must have drawn on his years of clerking in a
comic book store for that one. In any case, this book is
never boring and it leaves the reader wanting more at the
end of each chapter.
The story begins with Matt and a foot-bouncin’, iPod listenin’
Jesus hanging out at a cafe in Portland. Matt’s life takes
a turn for the bizarre when a stranger, who we find out is
actually the Apostle Peter, walks in and punches Jesus in
the face. This helps Matt to realize that the man he was
hanging out with was an imaginary, powerless Jesus, who
is not capable of saving him from getting a parking ticket.
(Although, I think mine may have totally saved me from
getting a parking ticket last week.) The story continues
with Matt embarking on a wild chase to hunt down and
“deal with” this impostor, hoping to uncover the real Jesus.
But, you still may be wondering, what in the world is an
“imaginary Jesus”?
The book does a good job articulating this, so below are
some quotes that should help explain what the author
means by this term.
“They’re constructs that tell you what Jesus will say or do,
how he feels, what he thinks, without ever having to get to
know him.”
“People invent a Jesus for one specific reason and then
discard him when they don’t need him anymore.... The real
Jesus is inconvenient. He doesn’t show up when you call. He
asks for unreasonable things. He frightens people. He can
be immensely frustrating.”
At one point Matt’s own Imaginary Jesus explains: “You say
you want to get rid of me, but every time you send me
away you call me back. The first problem you face, the first
time you pray and don’t get an immediate answer, you call
me back, and extrapolate answers to your own questions.
You’re praying to yourself Matt.... But time after time you
keep returning to me because deep down you prefer me to
the real thing.”
Essentially, the author is describing lies we tell ourselves,
and others have told us, about who Jesus is—lies that lead
us away from Christ.
One of the goals of this book is to point out the concept of
error realization. We can’t correct something until we know
it’s wrong. If we don’t know that our concept of Jesus is
false, we won’t know to “punch him in the face,” and search
for the real thing.
Matt recounts a time when his wife’s wrists were hurting. He
prayed for her and within minutes the pain went away. Then
he questioned, “What had just happened? As strange as this
may sound, this obvious answer to our prayer frightened
me. This was an unexpected and slightly terrifying Jesus....
How do you deal with a God who breaks all the rules such
as the one which says, ‘God doesn’t do miracles today,’
that your confident, well-meaning friends have told you he will
follow?”
Matt eventually concludes he can’t control Jesus, and is
frightened by this fact. But this seemingly good, albeit scary,
event later becomes the root of Matt’s doubt and causes him
to invent yet another imaginary Jesus. It happens during
another situation when they need a miracle, and this time
God doesn’t act. Matt explains: “Sometimes seeing miracles
makes the later lack of them that much harder.”
Anyone who reads this book is likely to discover they have
created their own false concept of Jesus. I certainly did.
In the course of my walk with Jesus, I have to admit I’ve
turned my back on Him at times because, “I didn’t want to
serve a God like that.” Now I understand that these times of
turning away often stemmed from an imaginary Jesus who I
created, but was tired of serving.
I’ve definitely met Legalist Jesus. He’s the one that speaks
lies like, “I don’t know why you expect God to show up. You
haven’t been good enough,”or “God doesn’t love you when
you disobey Him.” I’ve also met Bargain Jesus—the one
that will answer our prayers only if we keep our side of the
deal. Both of these gods were so unattractive they almost
made me turn away from Christ entirely. But in reality, I
was missing the real Jesus, which is why it’s so important to
realize we often have these false images hanging around.
There are probably more of these false concepts of Jesus in
my life that I’ve yet to uncover, but this book helped open
my eyes to this critical issue. Following the sound advice
of this book, we should seek out these false ideas of Jesus,
and send them packing with “a swift punch to their faces
and a good kick in their shins.” Don’t worry, the real Jesus
will approve.
GM : 16