Tonight Mike and I met for dinner at Ted's. Yummy! We haven't found anything bad on the menu. And it's Mexican food. And they serve queso and salsa with chips and freshly made flour tortillas as appetizers. And they have a relish tray they'll bring if you want. We don't eat out much since I've stopped working, so when we do it really is a treat.
All of that to say that when we were driving home it was dark outside, not dusk, but dark. I think Jeanna turned the outside lights on this afternoon at 4:30 p.m. Really. If there's anything that 'bothers' us about Oklahoma it's how early it gets dark in late November, December, and January. It kind of creeps up on you and before long you're turning on the outside lights at 4:30. Craziness.
We are going through the book of 1 Peter on Sunday mornings. You know, the epistle written by that apostle who was always saying or doing something to get himself in trouble? Yeah, then he comes back and says in the first chapter, As obedient children, do not be conformed to the passions of your former ignorance, but as he who called you is holy, you also be holy in all your conduct, since it is written, "You shall be holy, for I am holy." And how exactly do you walk that out without being an obnoxious jerk??? Alas.
Peter gives us clues as he fleshes out his letter. The speaker Sunday said, "Our lives should be marked by private purity, and an exemplary pattern in public life, trusting that this will have an impact on the world around us." How do we have private purity? We throw off evil deeds, we allow Christ to take our thoughts captive, we flee youthful lusts, we confront evil with the truth of God's word, we put on the armor, we think on good things . . . the list could go on.
And we know all these things, and the closer we walk with the mind of Christ, the easier it is to become involved in the lives of others. Messy, I know. And when we think we're getting the hang of it - Wow, if we're not careful we might still really believe that sin is what it says it is . . . Whoa, hold up a minute -- I want to make sure you understand that last sentence. The speaker said Sunday, "Isn't it fascinating that we still really believe that sin is what it says it is?" Ponder that. It's important.
If we're not paying attention, the darkness kind of creeps up on us, and before we know it we're turning on the outside lights at 4:30. And that IS craziness.
