So far I have “cherry picked” important ideas out of Pastor Kyle Idleman’s book AHA. I have written about how God is trying to communicate with us because He loves us. I believe He really does. He does not want us to move away from a relationship with Him. He wants us to be close.
I have commented on the distractions of fast-paced life and our inability to stop and listen to God. We are moving so fast that we don’t even realize that we are sinning. I have suggested that we are sometimes not very sensitive to the signs that we are about to sin. The activating event is about to happen and we ignore it and go ahead and sin.
Today I am going to write about what I call the billboard.
I have a friend who has not always had a “relationship” with God. She was always “religious” but did not understand that minimal commitment was not enough. She was going through one of those times in her life when she was experiencing quite a lot of pain; the sins were committed. You know what she was dealing with—the guilt.
Anyhow, she was in pastoral counseling and had many questions. She asked her pastor one day, “Why did I not see the signs, why did I not feel the feelings as I was going down the wrong path?” The pastor said “some people need a billboard.”
Pastor Idleman says as much in chapter two when he points to other people who are sinning. His book has so many good examples–the kids who are in the tv show Scared Straight, his daughter who wants to pet the rabid Dominican dogs.
Can’t we watch others and see how they are doing and that is our warning? As they exhibit bad behaviors and suffer, can’t we see that this could be us?
No, sometimes we say things like “I won’t fall into that trap” or “I am better than that.” Really?
Idleman makes a good point that we can see the man who has stolen money from his employer and is spending time in jail, the neighbor who has not been able to have that affair without the husband noticing and the student who has cheated her way through school and now is in over her head.
Wake up people. This will be you if you keep going down the wrong path!
These are the ones who have gone before us—the billboards. If you don’t think that what they are suffering is what you are going to suffer…really?????? You need to think again.
Pastor Idleman turns to the Cain and Abel episode in Genesis to explain what we normally feel when we sin.
Now before you go there, most of us don’t murder our brothers so don’t draw that parallel because the murder of Abel is just a “representative” sin. What did Cain do before he committed his sin? He ignored the warning.
Sin sensitivity is something that is in the arsenal of the “Christian in Practice”, a term I prefer to use instead of “righteous Christian.” Righteous Christian could be turned into self-righteous Christian too easily so I am uncomfortable using that term. The CIP is someone who is trying to live a better life; it may be obvious to others or it may not be. The CIP is not calling attention to their life choices; he or she is just living it. If they are making good choices and if others are paying attention to them, that’s cool. If others are not, that’s ok. They just plod on and experience that “peace that passes all understanding.”
We can have sensitivity to sin by looking at what triggers the sin. In Cain’s case it was the rejection of his 2nd rate offering to God. Then came jealously, upset and anger because Abel’s offering was blessed by God. Rejection is the first trigger. The negative feelings were the 2nd trigger and after these two experiences, Cain murdered Abel–the sin.
The triggers were the warnings which Pastor Idleman writes about when he has God saying “Now wait a minute, Cain. Push pause.” You know the end result. Pastor Idleman says Cain “sleepwalks” through all this and lures his brother out and murders him.
The question of the day: Do you sin on a regular basis? What are the triggers to your sin? Hint: smells, emotions, images, friendships……[this list is very long]. Is there anything you can to do increase your sensitivity? To stop sleepwalking and when God says “push pause”– you hit that button.
Over my years of teaching communication, one of the favorite subjects I taught was listening. I don’t know why. My wife tells me often that I am not very good at it. Guess why…I am always talking. She is a much better listener than I am. I admit it. What is required to be a good listener? Well there are many things, but one of the most basic is honest regard for the message of the other person and the ability to put one’s thoughts on hold. In short, shut up and let someone else talk, really making a mental effort to comprehend the message of another.
In the context of Pastor Idleman’s book AHA, he states that the Lord warns us about the problems we are about to have. Chronicles 36:15 is cited: “And the Lord God of their fathers sent warnings to them by His messengers, rising up early and sending them…” NKJV. God does not want us to fall. God does not want us to suffer. God wants the best for us.
Sometimes we just don’t accept His best.
We just don’t listen, especially to those early warning messages. Life is too hectic, we are all wrapped up in our own desires, we are too tempted and the list goes on and on……
One of the basic problems in listening is the booming buzzing environment we all live in. Our minds jump from one idea to another, from one stimuli to another and we don’t stop to listen. Life today is constant physical and mental movement.
Psalm 46:10 “Be still and know that I am God.” In the Book of Psalms we encounter this command that we all need to listen to, a message we need to have honest regard for. In Isaiah 55:3 we find another, “Incline your ear and come to Me. Listen that you may live.”
Why does God do this for us? Look at the end of Chronicles 36:15 …”because He had compassion for His people.”
Pastor Idleman uses so many attention-getting examples in his book from everyday life. Many of us have I phones and he talks about the different ring-tones and alarm tones than can be accessed to get your attention. He compares that to the warning signs that God gives us that we are going down a wrong path toward sin that will get us very much in trouble. He says the best sound that gets his attention is “Old Car Horn.” Many times we have been in the Distant Country so long that we are used to being away from God. We are not praying, we are not reading His word, we never even think about God. We are absorbed in whatever is taking us away. Are you totally absorbed in work? Do you have a technical diversion that is occupying all your time [computer game, facebook, etc] ? Is a group of friends number one on your list and you have little time for anything else?
These are pretty tame examples. Let’s get even more serious. Here is a list: gambling, alcohol, porn addiction, drug addiction and it goes on and on. All these things can take us into the “distant country” but what do we do when we hear the “Old Car Horn” and we know we must change. When does the horn sound? When the spouse tells you she is going to leave you? When you are in jail for a dui? When you wake up somewhere and you have no idea how you got there?
Some of you think the second list of examples is the worst but in my years of teaching I have seen a lot of problematic behavior. One time I knew a student in one of my classes who gave a speech on video game addiction. Turns out, I had a chance to listen to her confession. She had the addiction and to make matters worse, she was unmarried and the sole parent of an infant. She admitted that the child went hours without attention as she spent 6, 8 and 10 hours online playing with her gaming buddies.
Wow, do you think she needed a warning sign? Maybe you have not purchased Pastor Idleman’s book. Why do you think these warning signs happen? He tells us in Chapter two but if you do not have a book, venture a guess.
Ok, I promised in a church-wide email to St. John United Methodist Church, Hopkinsville, Ky.
Shorter posts and more frequent posts on this blog……
Before we get into Chapter 2, let me address a couple of things. 1. Have you ordered AHA by Kyle Idleman? Let me point out a few things to you. It is easy to read. The chapters are short and it can cost as little as $3.00 + shipping [used] on Amazon or you can have it in seconds for $3.00 as a e-book or on Kindle. The reviews are impressive. One reader says “This book will change your life.” Another says “If you spiritual life has been in a place of complacency, this book is for you.” Yet another says, “I can’t imagine a book like this that is so well-written. Kyle Idleman is the real deal… a must read.”
Commenting: In chapter 2, Idleman says we all need a few words from an honest friend to give us correction [ the Zack Morris reference from Saved by the Bell]. I went to church today and got those words. My wife had already told me but they really “stuck” when they came from a good honest friend (she will remain anonymous). She said you are not commenting because my posts are too long. Also the posts may be a little too wordy. [So far the blog has had 93 views and 0 comments]. The anonymous thing: you don’t have to write your name on a comment. I will respond to a post signed “T” or “W” or some made up name like “squiggy”.
I have a lot of my friends from St. John on Facebook and I read what you write about on Facebook from time to time–here is a sampling of the posts today; recipes, politics, basketball and with the recent terrorism in France, many of you have comments on the Muslim faith.
What can I do to get you to comment on how you feel about our Christian God via the study of Kyle Idleman?
Tomorrow, I promise: Chapter 2–shorter posts and more frequent posts on Chapter 2.
Wow, what a way to start the new year! When the TV is full of ads about losing weight, smoking cessation products, exercise equipment and people who are into making an effort to bring resolutions into reality, we start St. John Studies with a book like AHA.
Pastor Idleman comments on the obsession that our culture seems to have about change, especially “self-change.” I guess he is right that self-help literature is a 11 billion dollar business and we currently have 45,000 self-help books in print.
On the Rachel Ray show this morning, she said [as if she is an expert] that the number one resolution is starting an exercise program to lose weight and the number two resolution is getting organized. Reading the first pages of AHA sounds exciting. I know I need to exercise more, read more, learn Spanish and the list goes on and on. In short, I need to make changes, just like you probably need to. When are we ever in a perfected state????? Never.
Then Idleman drops the bomb: AHA is not a self help book. Rats, I was hoping for guidance about how to get my resolutions going. Not here he says. In fact on page 13, the author says “This journey begins with a rejection of your self’s offer to help.” What does he mean? What does sudden recognition or Awakening, Honest movement and lasting change or Action mean? To me, it means that we can’t institute real change ourselves… God has to do it.
I am not going to confess my sins on a blog but I have had an ongoing problem for many, many years and I have been at a loss to change it. I have tried so many things, so many times, all in the effort to change myself. Oh I hate to write this but within the last six months or so, I have had some success with change. Why? I have quit trying to change me.
Recently, I was so blessed to be in the presence of a man I greatly admire who has gone through miraculous changes in his life. He has told about the man he was. It seems unbelievable when I compare the man he is now to the man of his past that he describes. Yet he speaks of his past as the truth and his friends and family members vouch for him that he was the man he said he was. He has changed… but how? I remember his comments one day in a group setting when he said he got tired of trying to change himself and he just prayed to God “You know who I am; you made me. You know every flaw that I have. I know You don’t want me to be the way that I am because my behavior makes me distant from You. You made me God; You change me.” He said at that moment he felt his life begin to turn.
Maybe this is what Idleman means when he says “At just the right time, a person’s life collides with God’s Word and the power of the Holy Spirit, and everything changes.” [page 14]. Maybe that is what has happened to me this past six months. I quit trying to change myself.
Idleman speaks of the “distant country” and uses one of the most famous Bible stories known to man, the prodigal son story in Luke. Indeed the prodigal son went to a distant country which is Idleman’s way of saying that we can stray away from God our Father. Why do we do this? The list is so long for many of us: at times in my life I was disappointed in church so I quit going for 10 years! We suffer a tragedy in life and question why it had to happen. We have friends who lure us into doing things that conflict with who we really are but boy these things are fun! We worship the dollar, or a car or a home etc. You get the picture–we no longer worship God. We worship something else instead. Ask my wife about two of my major distractions over the years. I was obsessed with going to school and obsessed with work. God was not number one in my life. I was in a distant country.
Our author states for many people God seems so unreasonable; life is one big list of rules that are no fun. How many times have you heard a person who does not know God say that “God is no fun. If I begin to believe in Him, I have to quit _____, _______, and _______ and these things bring me so much happiness!” Really?
Idleman further says that some feel God is unpleasable. God’s standards are so high. How can I ever meet them? How can I ever feel like I am worthy? I will never be “good” enough.
Some feel God is unmerciful, that when we slip up, we need to be ready to be punished severely. God is a vindictive God and we are going to slip up and we are going to feel pain. Why would I want to believe in something like that?
Finally, Idleman states that some feel God is uncaring. There is no real relationship. God is not real at all and especially a God that really cares about you and me. If God does not care about me [and I know that He doesn’t] then why should I care about Him?
Here is where the author is leading us. God does care. God loves us. You know what pastors say: God loves you so much that He gave his Son that you can be saved [the paraphrase of John 3:16]. Not only does God care but God does not have an unreasonable list of rules. If you work to do what God expects, you will not be hampered by rules; you will experience a lightness of heart that is based on some freedom from sin. You know those expressions about a “clear conscience” and being able to sleep at night. That stuff is real. Yet we are not perfect and Idleman points that out. We all have that “sin nature” that stems from the fall that Adam and Eve experienced in the garden and that will always lead us to fall short. God knows that. He knows that standards are too high. Like my friend said, God made us and He knows our flaws. When we fall, he is not into harsh punishment. He wants us to admit our failure, pick ourselves up and keep moving forward. I do not believe God is happy with a Christian who admits defeat, wallows in it and stops growing. Every failure is an opportunity to learn. God wants the best for us. He wants us to live a good life here on earth. He has good plans for us. We get in the way of the good things He has in store for us but trying to fix things ourselves.
At the end of Chapter One, we are introduced to Justin who is at the end of his rope, a heroin addict. He tried to change over and over, ridding himself of this desperate need for a mind alteration. The drug had taken over his life and he did not know what to do until he did what God was wanting him to do all along–ask for help. Why is it so hard to admit that we can’t do it alone? Why is it so hard to admit that we depend of God? Why is it so hard to admit weakness? I don’t know the answer but I know that this last step to change is the one that many folks just don’t seem to be able to take and they keep spiraling downward in life. Their own self-change efforts are just too feeble to make real change happen. Justin turns to Pastor Idleman and says “I have no other place to turn and nowhere else to go. There is nothing I can do to help myself. Will you ask God to help me?” This is where the AHA journey begins. The admission that we are broken and we cannot fix ourselves. The humble admission that we need God to fix us.
Like the earthly father in the prodigal son story, I just imagine that God is saying at that moment that “this brother of yours was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found.” A mighty fine excuse to kill the fatted calf.
Please weigh in with your comments on my comments or your comments on Pastor Idleman’s Chapter One……
Question from Chapter 1… Why does Idleman say that AHA can’t be fully explained? AHA can be experienced but it can’t be fully explained. In fact, he says that AHA has to be experienced to be understood. Can you can explain that?
The first book St. John United Methodist Church will study on this blog is Kyle Idleman’s Aha: The God Moment that Changes Everything.
Posts will start January 5th. All comments are welcomed. If you just can’t get to church and come to a group study, it is my prayer that this format is for you. If you have a problem starting and sticking to a study, this blog will be available 24/7.
Welcome aboard. The best deal for the book is probably used through Amazon [$2.50 + shipping], but it is $8.90 new at Christianbook.com [+ shipping]. Also available on Kindle for $8.90. Locally in Hopkinsville Kentucky, it should be at Books on Main.
St. John Studies 