Does Your Life Need Deconstruction?

I'm becoming more and more convinced that "deconstruction" is a major part of God's plan for each of us. I don't mean God is out to wreck our lives, but I do believe God is very serious about deconstructing or tearing down the unhealthy things that are at the core of our lives so that He can reconstruct us into the person He wants us to be. Let me begin by saying I'm not necessarily talking about the "big sins" such as: sexual immorality, addictions, etc. I'm talking about the very core of how we think, act, talk, and view life.

I believe this deconstruction first happens as someone nears the initial point of surrendering to Christ. In those moments/days/weeks, God begins to change one's perspective on life. They start seeing things in ways they've never seen them before. It's really a beautiful thing. It's a freeing thing.

However, my concern is that for many Christians, this deconstruction never happens again as they move forward. After the initial point of surrender, we forget that when Jesus said "Follow me" He also said things such as...

"Take up your cross"
"Count the cost"
"Lose your life"

I believe we all too often simply take new Christians and teach them church culture rather than teaching them what it means to truly follow Christ. Therefore, instead of allowing God's Spirit to mold and shape us, we slowly become religious people who do religious things toward a religious being. Following Christ becomes a one-time response rather than a life-long commitment.

Over the past few weeks, I've sensed God deconstructing my view on life, the church, and my commitment to Him. I've realized that perhaps the greatest hindrance to properly following Christ is ourselves. As a pastor, I believe I'm in a position where I'm extremely vulnerable to this trap. Within the church world, we often only measure the obvious things rather than the things that happen with time. We value attendance on Sunday more than we do service to the community and the change that will bring. We talk about offerings, systems, and strategies more than we do making disciples. We ignore the danger of thinking that "if I build it they will come." We believe the pitfall that says more programs and bigger, more creative things will lead to more disciples.

In all honesty, we're all susceptible to this trap. You see, this trap causes us to think more about "the church we attend" than His Church, His Kingdom, and His plans. It's the feeling that we can somehow please God or earn His favor through our routines, rituals, and religion. Our lives become more about compartmentalizing our faith into certain pockets of life instead of incarnating our faith into all that we do. A great disconnect begins to show between what we claim to believe and what we actually do with our actions. Before long, the things we spend the most time doing are more about what we want to do than they are about what He's called us to do. We easily find ourselves bound by how we perceive things to be instead of how God has already made things to be.

So, what do we do from here? For me, this deconstruction is causing me to wrestle through some things that have been in my for years. It hurts. It's frustrating. I've had to repent, but at the same time rejoice at what God is doing.

For you, I'd encourage you to begin praying that God would transform you into His image. Pray that He would remove the Americanized-church culture lenses by which you may view your faith and ask Him to restore to you the vision you need so you can see life according to His Word! Then, in the power of Christ, begin to act differently and make the needed changes!