Unequal Yoke Part IV.

'A bit of subject changing, but it’s necessary. Do you know what is the main purpose of religion? 

Frame. 

Yes-yes. 

Okay. 

The main purpose of religion is to help to 'avoid' the meeting with God. It gives a series of activities which if I do properly then I had the catharsis, I can happily nod, everything is amazing, Mr Mike has spoken with God, and he told what God has said to him, and because of that I don’t have to speak with HIM. 

This is the thing, that to open our hearts could be dangerous, therefore to go to God, ask from him something,  is holding within itself the risk that HE will answer. We can ruin it, in double ways. In one hand we can ruin it by telling HIM that this and that is happening and then running away, not waiting to HIS answer. The other way is when HE IS saying unpleasant things and I say that ’the device’ wasn’t working properly and I heard it incorrectly. It’s a huge failure and a great loss, but Paul is saying „(I am talking as to my children), let your hearts be wide open to me.” And don’t be in unequal yoke with unbelievers that’s how it continues. So from the aspect of the tense it’s not saying to ’not be with’, instead ’to not get into’ unequal yoke with unbeliever. That’s the correct translation. Therefore before that, you had the yoke which gave you ’inner rest, peace, stability’. Don’t get in something which removes you from it, okay? That’s the important thing.

I declare the following thing, coming back to marriages. You can live in unequal yoke if you are, as a believer, married to another believer. It’s easily possible to be in unequal yoke within a believer – unbeliever marriage, but the unequal yoke is inside the heart of the believer. Exact question, real situation. Someone is saying that ’she has got a very good relationship with her husband’, ’they love each other’ and ’everything is cool’ but he cannot stand the Christians. Yes, yes, yes! From one hand „They think it strange that you don’t plunge with them.” But if, he loves his wife, then I’m sure that he loves all of her soul, including that part which is in relationship with God. No, the problem is not there! The problem is with, from my own experience it happens a thousand times, when accidentally he  - the poor guy - goes to a church, and then he is surrounded by six hundred people who’s asking that ’Oh, you are not converted, right?’ and well ’It would be better if you would be a believer, because that way the children could grow up in unity.’. And I don’t know what else. They cover you with all of this, I call it ’saint-sauce’, from that I would run out from church as well. Right?

And I can tell you where is the unequal yoke. Within the believers heart there’s a commitment towards God. But there’s a compulsion for conformity within the church. Good night to everyone! We should decide it, okay, obviously it’s important to be the part of The Body of Christ, to fit in, but in the Heaven they won’t ask you about ’Miss Maggie’s opinion about your marriage from the last row. Forgive me, but God is not interested in ’Miss Maggie’s opinion. The fellowship is very interested in her opinion, because ’Miss Maggie’ has got a loud voice and she speaks a lot. But, but, can you understand the meaning of it?! So the conclusion of the story is that don’t give up THAT inner peace, stability, calmness, yoke that you have taken up, just because what they are thinking about you. That’s true in your workplace, within the church, in your ministration with other Christians and with your relatives.

The problem is when you start to do these kind of compromises in your life, then to undo them or turn back from there will be very-very difficult. For example, if once in your working place either in your family you denied Christ like that, so you didn’t admit Him, you left Him out. I can always imagine this as the following, that the Lord is there, but the only one who can see Him, is you, not the others, so then when you do it, it is like saying that He is not there, inside you. So just once you pushed Jesus to the background, then there is a problem and to return from that point is a long period. It could be months, in terms of credibility and in terms of your own inner peace. Start it, if it takes long, doesn’t matter, because it’s worth to do! Start to admit Christ in your life, in your personal life, in your family and in your working place. If you once admit it, then it will be much more easier to admit Him in another time, in another situation.'

From A to B

         Deep Inside

Dissatisfied, because you want to do something. When you do something, you feel that it's not enough at all, that you should do more. Not good enough. Not high quality. Not enough at all. You walk up and down, you want more. You want to move forward. And when it happens you do not appreciate the things you have achieved, you start to concentrate again on your future. 'I wish I could be there, where I want to be!' You longing for it. Your life is filled with this longing. When you don't have a relationship, you desire to have one. When you are in a relationship, after a while, you long for more. You want to quit. You want something new. You hope that the new will be better. You are longing for adrenalin which comes with the new. You are longing for that new taste in your mouth. You are longing for a fulfillment, but instead you feel like you are not moving at all.

Impatient, want to get everything right away. You don't appreciate what you  already have. You act like a kid who goes crazy for a toy in the next two minutes and then throws it away, because you have had enough of it. You are bored. You really want to do something interesting and unique. You want some adventure, some pleasure. You miss something and can't figure out what it is exactly. Always, when you get something, you are disappointed, because you realize that it's not what you have been longing for. You cannot explain yourself, you don't know what  you are longing for. You start to work on this, on that, but you never finish with any of them. Because you get bored very quickly. You aren't really a persistent person. You want to be recognized.  You aren't willing to do any work, which doesn't produce a quick and spectacular result. You are more than happy to work for others as long as it helps you to move forward. When you succeed, you can't let yourself to be happy because you don't feel like it was your success. You don't like to take the lead. If you do take the lead, then you try to escape from the problems, and you rather quit.

Wistfulness. Something incomprehensible and unfathomable keeps yawning in your soul. You are unable to fill it up. You feel like the more you do, the emptier you become. Constant hunger. Rumbling spiritual-starving, uncomfortable feeling. You don't know how to fill it up. You just pass by the entity. You just eat some instant food, but you don't like it at all. You don't have patience and time to make a quality food and then to eat it with a delight. You are dissatisfied with your situation. You are indignant, because you feel like that everyone else lives better though they don't deserve it, but you.

Your character of your religion is filled with yearning prayers. Pretentious, few thanksgiving, a lot of requests. You don't accept what God gives to you. You long for other things, what you didn't get and you feel like God didn't listen to your prayers. You are crying. You don't understand what is wrong.

With difficulty you realize, that you should remain silent for a bit. To listen without expectations. Dwell on the stories. To enjoy the taste of a delicious food. To rejoice in the sunshine and the stars. Indulge yourself into Bible reading. For a while not to do something, just to listen and feel. To mourn yourself. To clear yourself and to see those who are longing for a hug. With difficulty but you realize, that you can be satisfied, because you will get it. That you can be patient, because you will receive it. And you can be inactive, because you are not alone in the service. You can be just yourself.