I learn a lot at youth group. Last night one of our elders, Josh Kelly was talking about Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount, and I realized, or maybe remembered something, about sin. Sin of all kinds interrupts the flow we need to live out Jesus. What does that mean? Christians have been implanted with the life of Jesus, and though it’s for our own good, it’s not just for our own good. We are the representation of Christ on the earth, we are here in his place. There are people to feed in Jesus’ place. There are babies to foster in Jesus’ name and in his place. Someone needs a place to sleep, and we are here in Jesus’ place to share a place to sleep, a hot meal, a backpack of food to help for the weekend.
Sin is the thing that stops the flow.
At youth group a long time ago, we took about 10 drinking straws and connected them end to end. We had a few kids compete against each other, trying to drink apple sauce from a small bowl through their 10 straw gizmo. It was really hard. We may have had to get rid of some of the straws to make it possible. It gave me the same kind of headache that blowing up a too tight balloon gives me. Each straw was like an area of sin, limiting the flow of applesauce. As Josh talked last night I saw that anger, murder, contempt, name-calling, adultery, lust, divorce, controlling oaths, and revenge are like the straws that limited the flow. I want to flow like Jesus, with Jesus. I want to have the wind of the Spirit move me here and there, not knowing where it came from or where it is heading, but light enough to flow.
