There Is No Middle Ground

I’m a proud momma.

My 7-year-old daughter, Sara, qualified for State in gymnastics in her first meet of the season.  This is a big deal!  She had to have a combined score of 35 points on four different apparatuses to earn her a spot.

Now that she’s “in“… we can breathe a sigh of relief and just enjoy the next 5 meets.

But not Sara.

This is the beginning of her season and she still has to work at least 9 hours in the gym each week until the State meet.  If she slacks off and takes it easy… she will still earn a spot at State, but won’t see any podium time.

Even knowing the need for her continued focus and determination, she still commented to me that she wished she didn’t have to work so hard.  She said, “It would be easier to just have fun and not have to be so focused or put in the extra time and effort.”

“Yes it would,” I said, “but then you’d miss the chance for the prize at the end.”

I wonder… do you feel that way about your relationship with Jesus?

• You accepted Him as your Lord and Savior.
• You dedicated so much time to serving His children by volunteering where needed.
• You put in extra effort to learn more about Him through Bible studies and weekend services.

But now that your salvation is secure and the “newness” has worn off,  you’ve decided to take it easy.

Sure, you’ll still go to church and volunteer when you feel guilty.  You may even decide to give some money and read your Bible (when you can find it), but that drive and desire to really know God is gone.

“I know your deeds, that you are neither cold nor hot. I wish you were either one or the other!” Revelation 3:15

These words were in a letter addressed to the church of Laodicea who was wasting their chance to influence their city.  God referred to these Christians as “lukewarm” just like the water that flowed into the city… neither hot nor cold.

He doesn’t want us to be “lukewarm” Christians because it signifies that we are complacent, self-satisfied, and indifferent to our faith and our call to discipleship.  

How do you know if you are lukewarm?  According to the book Crazy Love by Francis Chan…

• Lukewarm people give money to charity and to the church as long as it doesn’t impinge on their standard of living.
• Lukewarm people care more about what people think of their actions (like church attendance and giving) than what God thinks of their hearts and lives.
• Lukewarm people don’t really want to be saved from their sin; they want only to be saved from the penalty of their sin.
• Lukewarm people say they love Jesus, and He is, indeed, a part of their lives, their money, and their thoughts, but he isn’t allowed to control their lives.
• Lukewarm people are moved by stories of people who do radical things for Christ, yet they do not act.
• Lukewarm people will serve God and others, but there are limits to how far they will go or how much time, money, and energy they are willing to give.

These examples are only a sampling of what Francis discusses in his book.

So… are you an “in-name-only” Christian, following Christ when (and if) it’s convenient?  Or are you a wholehearted follower who walks the walk and talks the talk?

I encouraged my daughter to continue to work hard and perfect her skills for the State meet.  I told her that at this level of her sport, she needed to either give up gymnastics altogether and do something else… or work as hard as she can.

There is no middle ground.

You know what… we’re still in training for our State meet, too.  It’s called Heaven.  We need to continue to put forth our best time and effort until we meet God for our eternity with Him.

This world needs us to step up and boldly share our faith through our words and our actions.

Listen friends… there is no middle ground.

©2010 careyscotttalks.com