Poison of Complaining

Complaint, complaint, complaint…Words screaming from youth and even adults. “That’s stupid”, “Why are we doing that”, “Oh my, what a moron”, “That’s so dumb”, “Why can’t we do it like this”. Complaint, complaint, complaint.

When will this poison stop killing the church as it is today. It has already suffered so much, and the poison keeps spreading.
I used to be among the top complainers of my day. However last year I was notified of this sin in my own life and drastic changes had to be made. Do I still complain? I am no where near perfection. However, by the grace of God, my complaining is a lot more rare to catch. I like how C.J. Mahaney put it, complaining is saying God, I don’t trust you. I know your way is not best. However, Lord…I have a solution! My way oh Lord is better…
I hope you see how sick, twisted, and perverted this is. How dare we as created beings talk back to God and say we don’t trust a sovereign God who works everything for good!

Now, some of you may be wondering what the poison is in reference to. We are going to dissect how complaining has effects on the complainer and the ones who hear the complainer.

Phil 2:14 says, “Do all things without
grumbling or questioning”

We may ask “Why”

God replies in the following verse,
“that you may be blameless and innocent, children of God”

So even God warns us against complaining. As I said earlier, when you complain you are telling God you don’t trust in Him and His sovereign will is meaningless. So what does it say to others? The exact same thing.

Complaining is very catching. Say we are in a group and something doesn’t go my way. And I speak loudly and complain about it. What is that going to do to the others in the group? Will my speech point them back to God? Scratch that idea. You will be taking them down with you in sin.
Complaining can also hurt others and may shun them from every speaking up. The picture of my youth group comes to mind. Say a close friend gives input about an upcoming idea and I say, “That was the dumbest idea yet…”
That comment could hurt my friend but it is a lot more deadly then that. A more quiet person is never go to speak up because you caused them to be afraid and need your approval.
If you are the complainer you are not helping out at all. You are a vessel being used to spread this deadly poison. You are not only corrupting the group or friends you are with, but you are also corrupting your very being.
The world is not going to want to join the church if all we ever do is complain. Are we as believers showing Christ and acting like little Christ’s if we are complaining? Since when has complaining ever achieved anything for the good? When has someone come to the Lord because of a complainer?

This poison has got to stop corrupting the church today. When will it stop?

Here is my solution: I am going to echo what I’ve heard from a conference by C.J. Mahaney.

1. Take one bit of scripture.
-In this instance, memorize and or meditate on Phil. 2:14. “Do all things without grumbling or questioning”

2. What is the truth in this verse?
-Answer, do not complain.

3. Within the next following days, evaluate yourself after each night. When you feel the need to complain, remember the Scriptures, it’s your only cure!

(I also urge accountability, confess your sins to one another; James 5:16.)

Will you be the cure or will you just contribute to the poison?


In Prayers,


-AgapeTheologian

Batman and Halo 3...


Some friends have said, "You didn't like Batman but you play Halo 3?"

That statement hit me and make me think. So, I thank you all for challenging me. Here is my response.

You may say Halo 3 is violent, just like Batman.

Halo is indeed violent. Don't get me wrong. However, I see a huge difference. I hope after I am done writing this short essay, you will see the difference. You may not agree with my stance on Batman, but I hope you see the difference between the two.

What is the point of Halo? The point of all the Halo's is to save earth from domination of Aliens. With that said, Halo is a military game and the point of the violence is for the better. The evil in the game is portrayed as evil and not as good.

That is Halo's campaign which I don't play a whole lot. I prefer multilayer. I think it is more fun.

Now, why do I play multiplayer? First off, obviously it is fun to me and others whom I play with. Now, isn't it kind of violent and bloody? The reason it is violent is because you are using weapons and destroy the others. To be completely honest, you are not even human. You are a machine. There is some blood however.

According to John Eldredge, people have told me that God has put inside a male's body a want for dominance and to be the best. This could be one reason why many males are more competitive than females. I do like to compete in Halo. I do want to honor God. A good friend of mine, Bennett Sweat once said, "I do believe I can play Halo to the glory of God, I just want to make sure I am doing it." So, my good friend points out there are ways that we have played that are not glorifying God.

Batman on the other hand was a totally different kind of violence. Evil looked so good. Killing innocent women was portrayed as fun and that you would have joy in the process. (Read post before for more details) Batman was dark, no one should ever say Lord of the Rings is dark.

The way people were killed was just evil. Halo on the other hand is not evil. Master Chief in Halo is a hero. He is the character you play as in campaign. He is courageous, he is a protector, he rescues humans from the aliens, he is strong, he brings boldness and confidence in the fights to the marines.

When Batman shows up, fear from the civilians arise. No one likes him.

The violence and evil in Batman is not compared to Halo. The two are portrayed completely different.

Halo is shooting to save humans. Or in multiplayer, shooting to get map control and to dominate in the game. Not mere killing for killings sake, or as in Batman's case, murder's case.

If you have any questions, please let me know.

I also do hope you see my heart in this. I do not want to come across as self righteous. I just want you to see a difference between the two. You could even compare the Bourne series to Batman and see the differences.

Like I said in a previous post, if you can watch Batman for the glory of God, by all means watch it. However, I can not watch Dark Knight for the glory of God.

In Prayers,


-AgapeTheologian

Batman: Dark Knight, Friend or Foe (Updated 07-23-08)


Last night I went to go see the new Batman. It was very interesting. Camera work was out of this world. Acting was phenomenal. Make up was great, but a little too disturbing at times (Two-face).

Now with all this said, how in the world did Batman get a PG-13 rating? Now, I've only seen two Rated R movies, Brave Heart and the Passion of the Christ. Now, Batman is most definitely a R rated movie if I've ever seen one.

Note: What I am going to write is personal preference, if you can watch this movie to the glory of God-by all means watch it.

There is way to much killing of innocent people to justify the movie for me personally. The killings weren't just a gun shot. It was a knife. A pencil through a guys head. The Joker is happy to blowup a hospital (Everyone escaped though). The movie makes killing look joyful.

The one thing that I really did like in the movie was when two ships were out on water. One ship had criminal men on it. The other ship had innocent men, women, and children on it. The Joker set each boat up with explosives and gave the other boat the detonator. They had to decide by 12am what boat would die, if no boat blew up then they'd both blow up. Near the end of the scene, one big tough criminal went up to a National Guard and said something along the lines of, "You don't know how to get your hands dirty. Give me the remote and I'll do something you should have done a while ago." You anticipate him on blowing up the innocent people, yet instead he throws the remote out the window into the water so they can't kill the innocent people.

A little over halfway, a really good buy turns bad. Two Face arises. His lover has died. He now wants vengeance on everyone. Now, this truth is true but the way the communicate it wasn't very good. They said everyone who is good still has evil inside. (What I mean by this is that our hearts are desperately wicked, who can know it?-Jer. 17:9)

This was the darkest movie I have ever seen. I thought Two Face was actually going to pull the trigger of a gun at point blank range to a little sweet kid in front of the father so he would know what it was like to comfort somebody when they would die just like Two Face's sweetheart.

Batman sadly had references to Jesus. Although, Batman is treated like a criminal-in fact he kind of is. He was our protector, etc... Batman did crimes to protect the innocent in a sense. Batman had one rule and almost broke it-not to kill anyone. And the movie portrayed Joker as having no rules and it was much more fun that way.

Throughout the movie, you will laugh at times. However, after you endure through the Joker and his "making someone smile" by using his knife to cut their mouth and then kill them (Thankfully they don't show too much of it), however you hear brutal stories about it, if you are like me and others you will feel sick.

After the movie, I came and had to take a shower at 1am to feel clean. It was that bad for me. I then had to read an up lifting book.

This is my preference of the movie, but I would urge you to check out plugged in at http://www.pluggedinonline.com/movies/movies/a0004153.cfm.

Bad looked real fun in the movie...Plugged in did a great job reviewing this movie. Please check it out.


-Agape

P.S. I'm a 19 year old teen who doesn't like this movie...in fact, I should have walked out of the theater and will not watch this movie again.

But again, if you can glorify God while watching it, please go ahead!

"Do Hard Things" and Halo 3



I’ve finished “Do Hard Things” by Alex and Brett Harris. It’s a great challenge to all teens and adults alike. God has been doing a work in my heart with my addiction to Halo. I’ve been freed from it now, but there still is an urge inside of that would like to pursue a career in Halo 3. But how silly is this? A life playing video games? Sure, I like it playing video games and watching the pros go at it. But I am not called to this. Here’s a brief history:

I’ve always has a natural skill playing video games, especially the shooter genres. I could beat some Halo CE pros, and then God fried my Xbox. So, I stopped playing. A friend game me his Xbox and he would fix my broken one, God made the Xbox not read any games. You think I would get the memo. However, I received an Xbox 360 as a gift. I quickly got connected online and I started playing Halo 2 heavily. I teamed up with a friend playing 4-5 hours a day. I knew spawn points, when items would spawn. I knew strategies for different situations, and different glitches that would help you play better.

This previous school year, I quickly had a reputation of a good Halo player-so did another guy. He had his partner, I had mine. So, we planned a match. A lot of the school knew we had a match set up and I was told me that I would lose big time. We showed up, and as being an underdog, we won by a lot. It was a shock to everyone, but our pride boosted up.

I was pursuing a professional career in Halo 3 now. I quickly became in the top 10% of halo players at the time. Getting together a Pro Team. But now my school grades were suffering. Halo 3, Basketball, School, and a lot of other priorities that should have been above Halo 3. So, I didn’t play Halo 3 at all during the week. However, I was now playing about 6 hours every Saturday and about 4 hours every Sunday.

Now, you may be wondering what Halo has to do with “Do Hard Things”. There is a small portion in the book that talks about Noah, and he had a nHalo addiction. I just broke the Halo addiction, and reading this is the book was still convicting me. And Noah seemed to be me, Justin M. Davito.

My friendships weren’t as close as they used to be. Why? Because every time I would have someone over we would be playing Halo 3. I would try to deceive myself saying, “This is how guys fellowship…Sure, we don’t talk much unless it’s about the game but we grow closer together.”-That’s a bunch of crap! We are growing in friendship to the MasterChief and that’s about it.

Now, Noah sold his Xbox 360. I was debating doing the same. After praying about it-I decided that I am going to keep it. If I start playing Halo for numerous hours again-I’ll move it out of my room and possibly cancel my online membership. Halo 3 is still fun and I enjoy playing it with friends. It appears as God has picked me up and said, Justin, you are pursuing to be a Theologian. You used to read about Me. Now, you are dedicated to Halo 3. You get upset when you lose or do something dumb on a dumb game. What about all those good books you used to read. Don’t just read 1 a month. Read more! Halo is not for you. Am I all satisfying for you or is it the MasterChief(Main Character in Halo)? Come back to me.

It was weird, after I hosted a LAN party of Halo CE, 2, and 3 I had no urge to play ever again. Some friends and I play pick up games here and there. But no more 4 hours a day.

It’s still a struggle when people talk about how good they are at Halo, because I would like to challenge them. But I am going to have to agree with my old Halo partner who doesn’t play anymore either, Bennett Sweat, “I believe there is a way to play Halo to the glory of God…I just want to make sure I am doing it.”

As both of us are called to the ministry, we don’t want to waste our lives playing video games. They are fun, don’t get me wrong. But they are not the ultimate destination.


-Justin M. Davito


P.S. I would recommend Alex and Brett Harris’ book to all teenager, “Do Hard Things” will challenge you to do HARD things for the glory of God. Don’t waste any of your teenage years, do things for God!

Written by Justin M. Davito (www.agapetheologian.blogspot.com and Pastor Timothy Durey (www.xarispt2.blogspot.com)

God is selfish! Wait a second! Does that mean God is a sinner because you know God says we shouldn’t be selfish?

Of course not! James 1:13 says God does not sin. So, what then?

Let me ask you a question first. What is God’s chief end? Answer: To make much of Him. Or in other words, to magnify Himself above all things. If you agree with that, then God is selfish.

Let me explain here before you put up a red flag and hate my guts and this view on God.

The only thing worthy of selfishness is something totally satisfied in itself.
I think we can now give a full solution to the problem of selfishness. Since we are finite, it makes no sense to be selfish because we don’t have all the answers, and even if we did, we couldn’t solve all or any problem in an all-satisfying way. In other words, we cannot fully satisfy anyone’s needs. I’d like to think that my wife has found great joy in being my friend, but even she can tell you that I can be a pretty pathetic loser at times (she’d be more gracious in her words about meJ).

Humankind is finite. God is infinite. Question: What is going to be more satisfying, God or man? If you said “man” you are absolutely wrong. But, if you try again, you could say “God” and you’d be absolutely right. The reason why God is ultimately satisfying is because He is infinite in all His being. Nothing is higher than He is and nothing makes Him be what He is. He’s only dependent on Himself. How do I know this? He is satisfied completely in Himself. In other words, He is selfish. You might squirm at this, but think a little more about this. The only thing worthy of you fully adoring is something that can fully adore itself. If that things can fully adore itself then it must be worthy of your adoration. No human being, no animal, no amount of money, no fame and not even finding life on another planet is worthy of adoration because all of these things are dependent on something else (meaning: None of these things are fully satisfied in themselves alone. They need something else). But, God does not need anything else. He’s dependent only on Himself. He alone is glorious and beautiful and majestic. He is fully just, right, loving and gracious. He can do whatever He pleases. And, because He is God, He will never fail and He will always enjoy what He does.

God is the end of everything. Everything points to Him. If everything points to Him, then He must be worthy of our adoration. And, if He is worthy of our adoration then He alone will give you the ultimate joy in life.

Would God be loving if He was selfish? My answer must be a big fat “Yes”! This is why He is loving-because He is selfish. God is the only source that is all satisfying. He is the ultimate joy. So, by loving the finite, God is allowing us humans to enjoy Him. So, if God being selfish here? Yes in one sense and no in the other.

If God in His “selfishness” sends people to hell, isn’t that to the detriment of others?
While we do not understand God’s plan, we can be assured that while He doesn’t save everyone, He is still saddened when the wicked go to Hell (Ezek. 18:23, 33:11; 2 Pet. 3:9). Also, we have to remember that the reason we go to Hell is because we are sinners. The blame never goes to God. God does send people to Hell, but He does so to display His justice – which comes into play because of our sin.

If we have a problem with God being into Himself-which brings Him the most glory then we must rethink our theology.

1 Corinthians 1:31 says in the ESV, “ So, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God.”

For whose glory? God’s!?! Man, that sounds kinda selfish to me.

I believe this selfishness of God is a good thing. In fact, it’s the most loving thing a Creator can do and does. Will you join me and praise God for His selfishness to man kind?

In the Psalms alone, God’s glory is mentioned in over 50 verses. That must mean glory is something God desires and wills for all men to give to Him!

Isaiah writes “ I am the LORD; that is my name; my glory I give to no other”

So, God will give no other to what? His glory is the number one desire that He wants. And if we glorify Him, we as humans will be blessed and be enjoying God forever! You will be satisfied.

Let’s look at a few other verses…

Ps. 13:1 says, “Will you forget me forever? How long will you hide your face from me?”

Who is the Psalmists questioning we hide our face from? God’s face! When shall we return to seek the face of Christ? If the psalmists is questioning when we shall return to God, then God must desire that we seek Him.

Rom 9:17 says, “For the Scripture says to Pharaoh, "For this very purpose I have raised you up, that I might show my power in you, and that my name might be proclaimed in all the earth.””

God’s power is what God desires in us so that His name may be magnified in all the earth.

“Rom 1:22 Claiming to be wise, they became fools,
Rom 1:23 and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images resembling mortal man and birds and animals and creeping things.”

God condemns us to attempt to glorify or magnify anything else or anyone else’s name. God cares about Him glory-He shall give no other!

Other references for deeper research:
(Ps. 22:33; Is. 42:12; 1 Chr. 16:29; Ps. 99:9; Rev 15:4; Ps. 115:1; Matt 15:31; Is. 25:3; Rev 14:7; Acts 11:18; 2 Cor 9:13; John 17:4; 1 Pet 4:11; Ps. 50:23; 1 Pet 4:16; Acts 19:17; 2 Thess 1:12; Ps. 86:9; Is. 60:21; Is:61:3; Matt 5:16; Rom. 3:23; Rom. 1:21;Rev 4:11; Ps. 57:5; Rom 11:36)
Does this enlighten you to a different aspect of God’s character?

How does it make you feel?

Will this doctrine help you live differently?

What was your initial response to this? Has it changed in any way?

Quotes by Doctor John Piper:

“…love is that which enthralls the beloved with what will eternally your soul. Love labors and suffers to enthrall us with what is eternally satisfying.” ~ John Piper

“God’s passion for his glory is essence of his love to us.”-Piper

“O how we need to help people see that Christ, not comfort, is their all-satisfying and everlasting treasure. So I conclude that magnifying the supremacy of God in all things…”-Piper

NEW ATTITUDE


The official update blog for my group will be located at www.xarispt2.blogspot.com.

We've made it hear safely and now just relaxing until we will be indoctrinated tonight for the first session!

If any rebelutionaries would like to meet, email PM me unless you've already been contacted by David or Mark.


In Prayers,


-AgapeTheologian

Homesexuality-is it ok?

"

We often assume that the real issue is what kind of people homosexuals would have to be in order to hear our message and receive its truth. While this is an important consideration, I am convinced that the more urgent challenge for the church is to clarify our own self-identity and our understanding of the gospel. What kind of people must we be, if we are to address the challenge of homosexual marriage with faithfulness and Christian love?

(an excerpt from work by Dr. Al Mohler)"

Go to www.newattitude.org for more information

Are Youth Groups Un-biblical?

I was on one of my favorite websites, www.therebelution.com And a thread came up regaurding youth groups. Here is what I wrote:

Quote:

1Ti 4:12 Let no one despise you for your youth, but set the believers an example in speech, in conduct, in love, in faith, in purity.

(1) Are you in a youth group, and if so, why, and if not, why not? (Be honest with yourself)

Yes, I am currently in a youth group. My youth group is basically a community of believers seeking to glorify God in everything we do. So, I am a part of this community to glorify God. However, this group that I am in consists of 9th-12th grade.

Youth group's focus should not be what I can get out of this, but rather what can I give to others.


(2) Do you agree with Dr. Baucham's assessment of the church's current situation and its failing youth "ministry?"

I didn't listen to his sermon, but I read the notes. And I don't think he uses scripture to say youth groups are bad. But rather that youth groups shouldn't take the Father's role in each teens family.

It was mentioned that teens in the church leave the church after high school. This is sad, but true. So, who's fault is this? Why would you blame youth ministries? If youth ministries are to help support parents (To assist them), not take their role over. So, first we must reevaluate what role youth ministries are taking. Then, we must look at the parents. We must see how the leadership of the youth ministry and the parents function. You can't just blame one. Both could have fallacies in them.

So, I've seen "bad" youth ministries, and I am thankful I am a part of a "good" youth ministry. So what then, do we just give up on the ministry? No, be a part of it and be the change! Don't forsake it because it's not going very well. Change it around.



(3) From a Biblical standpoint, has his emphasis on the centrality of the home and parents' responsibility to teach their children caused you to view youth groups in a different light? Are you going to do anything about it?

Like I said earlier, the parents are still the main one in charge. Parents should let their kids, even encourage their kids to go to youth group and let God's grace rain down to them so that the kids can learn and give what they know so others can learn. If the group is not unified, then no one will learn-or at least not as much.



So, I think Youth Groups can be biblical; in fact I would encourage them! However, they do need to line up with scripture. Everything we do needs to glorify God, since that is the chief end of our life!


If you have any comments or questions directed towards me post, please feel free to ask me on this thread, or PM me. I'd be more than happy to answer it!


-Justin

The Three Legged Stool


When I was out to eat with Tyler. He brought something up that caught my attention. The Three Legged Stool. This represented the Christian foundation. Meaning, if you don't have this in your life, God will not move in your life.

1. Prayer
-Prayer is a necessity in your life. If you don't pray, God will not move

2.God's Word
-Meditation on the Bible, reading it is vital! If you do not do this, you lose fellowship with him and a calamity is about to happen.

3. Fellowship with believers.
-If you don't talk with other believers about what God is doing in your life and about life in general, pride will cultivate in your life. You will not be able to tell others your problems and or God.

Each point listed above represents a leg of the stool. If one necessity is missing, the stool or your life will fall! These three things must be in your life or something drastic needs to change.


In Prayers,


-AgapeTheologian

During this past Saturday I had a chance to talk with a friend who I am not very close to. Tyler is his name. It was great going out to eat with him just to talk. We started talking about some spiritual matters and you could feel God's presence. I've never talked about spiritual stuff with him before, and it felt so nice to have a friendship with him. God is so good.

It's so nice to be able to start building a friendship with him. That is one thing I regret not doing, building deep friendships with those around me. I hope you do not do the same.

God and my school!


It's been really neat being able to see God work in my school! God's presence is seen and felt clearly. Students who were not walking with God are now walking with Him. Seeking His face. What passion they have! What grace!

God's starting a revival in my school. It's so cool to be apart of! What grace He has shown us!

Proverbs 16:18 says, "Pride goes before destruction"


I recently witnessed this past weekend. I was part of a 3 on 3 basketball tournament this past Saturday. My team was clearly stacked. We had Tyler, a big man who can get rebounds like no one else and score like crazy. Luke, his stretchy arms ready to block anybody and has a nice shot. Kellen, super fast and with a killer shot. Myself, along the 3 point arc ready to fire. We were clearly stacked. We didn't practice, nothing. We were way overconfident. I stayed up late thinking, "Tomorrow will be no problem." The following day went by, we lost twice in the "season" to a team we clearly should not have. We made it to the championship against the team we lost to twice. I went in thinking, there is no possible way we are going to lose three times in one day...we got this. We lost the third game. Lost out prize. Pride was shrinking.

The team that beat us did not have as much skill as we did, but beat us and deserved the victory. Pride comes before the fall.


In Prayers,


-AgapeTheologian

Benny Hinn and the gospel???


In my class, there are have been multiple comments regarding Benny Hinn. Some may he is legit, some say he is not.

My question is, why would someone who is doing the work of the LIVING GOD, tell people to pay him(Benny) and then he(Benny) will heal you. This goes against the gospel of Jesus Christ!

I hope you enjoy this video...

Passion!



What is passion? Who are you passionate for? Is your life characterized by passion or by discontent? Is your life characterized by joy or by being lukewarm? Are you passionate for Christ or are you apathetic?


Do you see Christ as all satisfying?


-AgapeTheologian

A new pastor?


Today was a "happy-sad" day as my former pastor used to say. Pastor Mark Vroegop has stepped down from my church's leadership to pursue another pastor position in Indiana.

It's exciting to see how God is going to use his ministry and how God will impact the lives of others using Pastor Mark.

Although it's also sad. Our Pastor has taught myself and others in the church so much! "Will you be content with the grace of God?" "God will give you buckets of grace." Pastor Mark has blessed me as an individual, my church, and my family in spectacular ways. Throughout tribulations, his living example of, Christ is enough was so, IS SO, evident in the godly man of Pastor Mark Vroegop!

I will miss him!


In Prayers,


-AgapeTheologian

New Attitude part 3


Why New Attitude?

In this video the speakers from the New Attitude Conference explain "Why New Attitude" and their reasoning for coming back each year to speak.





This second video is the promo from last year, but it is by far my favorite video. The video gets me excited for the conference every time I watch it!

New Attitude Conference 08!

I had an awesome opportunity last year go to the New Attitude conference which God had taught me so much! It was such a blessing and an encouragement for me and others who have gone to NA. For more information, please visit http://newattitude.org/conference.

Here is the 2008 promo video.