Posted on by Abe Austin

A Pivotal Moment- An Opportunity

Two Different Reactions)

In my last post I mentioned diverging movements that we are seeing in America today. Over the last few years, the white, conservative male has decided to respond to the unfair treatment that he has received. For some that has meant going back to church and looking for a higher purpose, while for others it has meant abandoning society and treating their antagonists with deep resentment.

Many of those who turn to anger and resentment will do so because they are reacting to personal hurt. Perhaps they obediently submitted to the anti-masculine/anti-white messages they received, publicly emasculating themselves until they could bear it no longer, then turned hateful for having been led to shame themselves. But the truth is, they “simped” because they thought it would serve their own interests, and now their turn to harshness and cruelty is still in pursuit of their own interests. They are still obsessed with the self, and just playing the game that they think will benefit them best.

The better approach is to take oneself out of the game entirely. Turning to God and traditional religion, if done sincerely, is an act of faithful surrender. It is saying, “I don’t care what the rest of the world says anymore, or what benefit or harm society has in store for me, my focus will remain on something Higher.” In both reactions we have men recognizing that the current state of affairs just isn’t going to cut it, and renouncing the way things used to be, but one actually breaks free of the social merry-go-round while the other goes around for another turn.

Which of these sides will outweigh the other? Only time will tell.

Hanging in the Balance)

The future is unknown because the future is still subject to influence. I believe that there are many men currently hanging in the balance who could ultimately go either way. In this there is the danger of souls being pulled deeper into the abyss, but there is also the potential of souls landing at safe harbors.

What we need now, is lighthouses. We need many beacons of light. We need good examples and good teachers, people who can encourage the undecided young man in the right way to go and welcome him with open arms. We have the opportunity in this pivotal moment to really make a change for good, to make the world better than it might have been otherwise.

I am personally considering ways that I can help those who are looking for answers in this pivotal moment and invite you to do the same. Let us see this as our God-given opportunity to do something with our lives that really made a difference.

Posted on by Abe Austin

The Shackles We Choose

Something I have been noticing while doing my study of Exodus is that Israel hated their enslavement in Egypt…but they also preferred it to being free. Though initially euphoric when God destroyed their enemies in the Red Sea, they repeatedly afterwards claimed that things were better for them when they were in captivity than free in the wilderness.

It seemed a strange behavior, until I examined my own life and realized that the same is true for me. As much as I may not like feeling subject to my boss, I cannot fathom living without the security he provides me. I think of all the projects I wish devoted my spare time to, but I’m afraid to cut out the movies and video games that receive most of my spare hours instead. I see my cluttered house and want to set it in order, but focus instead on the mess of emails I’m subscribed to. I say that I’m ready to live a self-controlled and honorable life, then I obey the will of my temptations instead.

From my birth I was blessed with great opportunity and freedom, given to me by the goodness of God and the sacrifices of my ancestors. But I have taken that freedom and given it right back to other masters. There is no locked gate keeping me captive, most of the prisons I have checked myself into I could leave any time that I wanted, but I choose to bind myself to these places of my own volition. I remain a prisoner because I am not ready to be truly free.

My conscience urges me to forge out into the wild. My Savior freed my soul two millennia ago. My ancestors provided the security to let my ambitions soar. I pray I find the courage to live as free as I could, to have no Master but my God, the one who calls me into deeper waters.

Posted on by Abe Austin

Lost Opportunities

Every day comes only once.
Being distracted from our loved ones for today means giving up the only “this day” with them that we have.
And even a single day lost is a terrible cost. We have 40,000 days or less for our entire life. 7,000 days for our child’s entire childhood. 365 days for our child being at each particular age. These moments are dear, and when they are gone they are gone forever. They must not be given away cheaply.
Posted on by Abe Austin

The Epic Life- Jacob 4:14

But behold, the Jews were a stiffnecked people; and they despised the words of plainness, and killed the prophets, and sought for things that they could not understand. Wherefore, because of their blindness, which blindness came by looking beyond the mark, they must needs fall; for God hath taken away his plainness from them, and delivered unto them many things which they cannot understand, because they desired it. And because they desired it God hath done it, that they may stumble.

COMMENTARY

But behold, they despised the words of plainness, and sought for things that they could not understand. Their blindness came by looking beyond the mark.
I have already mentioned how we make the mistake of seeking greatness through worldly possessions and fame, usually because that path seems more accessible than the overcoming of self necessary for spiritual enlightenment. There is yet another way that our desire for greatness can become misaligned, though.
As we see in today’s verse, that way is to “look beyond the mark.” I have known those that were caught up trying to achieve some great and important thing, even a spiritual thing, all while leaving the fundamental things that mattered most undone. There was a funeral for a man whose church members came to attest what a volunteering and sacrificing person he had been, how he had always been willing to pitch in and help wherever another member of the congregation needed it. The family of the man responded by saying that was nice, but they had never known such a person in their own home. In their life he had been an entirely absent figure, too busy taking care of things that were “more important” than his own family.
We must be careful that we do not become so obsessed with finding greatness that we fail to see the opportunities for it right in front of us. Continuing with the example of one’s own family, it is all too easy to say “many people in this world have their family, so there isn’t anything particularly noteworthy about that.” Then we might take that sector of life for granted, and look for something more unique to satiate our desire for greatness, forgetting how rare a truly happy family is in this world, and how long-reaching an investment in the home is to the lives of those that were blessed there.
As each of us seeks our own personal greatness, we ought to pause several times to consider if there is any greatness already before us that we have been overlooking because of our vanity.

Posted on by Abe Austin

The Epic Life- Matthew 19:16-17, 20-22

And, behold, one came and said unto him, Good Master, what good thing shall I do, that I may have eternal life?
And he said unto him, Why callest thou me good? there is none good but one, that is, God: but if thou wilt enter into life, keep the commandments.
The young man saith unto him, All these things have I kept from my youth up: what lack I yet?
Jesus said unto him, If thou wilt be perfect, go and sell that thou hast, and give to the poor, and thou shalt have treasure in heaven: and come and follow me.
But when the young man heard that saying, he went away sorrowful: for he had great possessions.

COMMENTARY

And, behold, one came and said unto him, what shall I do, that I may have eternal life?
And he said unto him, if thou wilt enter into life, keep the commandments.
The young man saith unto him, All these things have I kept from my youth up: what lack I yet?
Here is a story of a young man who is on the cusp of entering into a great and epic life. He is seeking the greatest life of them all, in fact: eternal life. And he has apparently already been seeking it for years, given his statement of faithfully following all of the mosaic commandments. Yet for all this he feels that something is missing. He is basically good, but he is not extraordinary. He knows there is something better out there for him and he sincerely wants to find it.

Jesus said, If thou wilt be perfect, go and sell that thou hast, and give to the poor, and come and follow me.
But when the young man heard that saying, he went away sorrowful: for he had great possessions.
So Jesus details the one thing he has left to do: give up the last of the world and become a disciple. Both the end of his old life and the beginning of his new in the same moment. After all, how did he hope to have a new life while still holding onto the threads of the old one?
Sadly, this was a task that the ruler was not willing to face. And he went away sorrowful, still the same man as before, or perhaps even worse for having seen his greatness and turned from it.