Small Spiritual Nation

Small Spiritual Nation

6/30/14

What actually defines a country as being a small spiritual nation?  It has nothing to do with the population of that country or region but it deals with the true spiritual reality of the state of said nation or region.  A region or country can have millions upon millions of physical inhabitants yet be so spiritually poor and diluted that their spiritual identity and growth is basically unrecognizable even up to the state of death.  The human spirit is the communication lifeline with God and it is the job of our enemy to severe this lifeline and for all spiritual direction is lost, and from the looks of it his success in this task is going quite well, and when this lifeline is cut so goes our spiritual potency.

I know most of you are not avid sports fans but there is a huge sporting event currently taking place in Brazil.  The World Cup is held in a different country once in every four years.  It is a tough competition and the qualifying stages to reach this tournament can be somewhat brutal.  A country’s team has to be united and in top shape to endure the grueling schedule of qualifications and then the tournament itself. While on paper it may seem like some of the countries that are represented in this event should not be there, but there is a specific reason that they are; they fought hard and did their best.

If someone watches this sport on a continual basis they will recognize a few countries that have outstanding teams.  Germany, Italy, Portugal, Spain and France are some of the countries that always field excellent and tough teams, no matter what the playing circumstances are for that particular match.  As I have stated above the physical population of a country does not matter in this sport since the sport is based upon individual talents instead of the entire population of the specific country.  The United States has one of the larger populations in the world yet its team, in theory, could easily beat India or China who has far more of a population base.  It is this characteristic that brings Italy, Germany, England, Brazil, France and other nations whose population is smaller yet field better quality of teams to the world stage.  So goes for the spiritual aspect of the countries as well.

A few years back France found itself on top of the world concerning the football world.  It had recently won the World Cup and within a few years earlier and later won other major tournaments including the European Championships and the Confederations Cup tournament. The French Football Team was number one in the world and with their current lineup being so young; it looked as if no other country would be able to seriously challenge them for the top spot for at least a few more years.  It was good to see another team stand on the championship stages and dethrone the more consistent and unlikable countries.  The French team was unbeatable and every time one watched its matches it seemed like they knew exactly what to do to outwit and outplay their opponent.

While France was rolling along as the number one football team a few cracks began to appear within their armor.  No one really paid much attention to these flaws but they became more evident as time went along.  World Cup (WC) qualifying came calling once again and this process was easy to France and they breezed through this stage with hardly a scratch at all.  After qualifying for the WC had finished, France began to play a few matches as tune ups for the big tournament.  It was during these match ups that the teams that they were playing began to expose these issues concerning the French team.  It was quickly noticed by all of the other teams that had qualified for the WC and each one of them took careful notes.  In other words, their opponents had sharp enough skills to understand these issues and knew exactly how to pursue better results for their own agendas.

These gaps or issues were addressed to the French Football Federation but this “governmental” and organizational body continued to ignore these questions and problems saying that all is ok and that they had complete faith in their leader and players.  With anyone who understood the game and followed the French National Team knew that these issues were huge in stature and could possibly bring down the French team during any match.  The denial continued and eventually some animosity, rumors and a couple of refusals to play certain matches brought these issues further into light.  Yet, as any good diplomatic situation goes, ignorance and denial raged completely through the ranks and business as usual was the norm as far as the public was concerned.  However, it would not be too much longer before the visible truth would be in motion.

The time was at hand and the big show had commenced.  The WC was in full swing and France’s opportunity to shine was next in line. The teams that France was grouped with had studied their playing methods well and were prepared to fight hard against the mighty French.  The settings and conditions of the tournament were perfect and one could not ask for a better atmosphere.  France play their first game it was obvious from the start that their opponent knew their flaws and were determined to exploit it as soon as possible.  As the final whistle blew France had been defeated and the shock of the result began to filter throughout the French and world communities.  The next match followed suit and with the third match just hours away the French team was in total disarray. 

After the third match was completed, France had been totally obliterated and outplayed throughout the entire match.  While the third match was their toughest one in the group, the French should have beaten this team.  Senegal, Denmark and Uruguay took full control of France’s weaknesses and flaunted them in the faces of France and the world and eliminating the French Football Nation from the tournament without even scoring a single goal.  What had just occurred?  The country of France was in total shock over the embarrassment that they had witnessed and it seemed like there were no solid answers for this debacle.

A few years later another WC tournament was played and France managed to do well in that tournament yet disappointed with their overall play.  The next four years passed and once again France found themselves in the WC settings but still floundering within their playing ranks.  Their play was viewed as consistently atrocious and once again bowed out of the group stages without making any good headlines for themselves.  Their actions and rebellion within the tournament, both on and off the pitch, led one of their star players to say that they had fallen to the level of a small football nation.  This statement was not an insult to the smaller nations who may never come close to being in the WC tournament, but as a wakeup call to his country of their current playing and surrounding conditions.  While the holes and gaps were of a different nature, the French team was once again exploited for these flaws and brutally raked over the media coals after their portion of the tournament was over.

Thousands of questions hounded the team and the leadership that represented them at press conferences.  All of the talk was about how far France had fallen and one journalist even wrote that a non football playing nation might field a better team than what France could. France’s reputation and expertise in the sport had come crashing down and with their attitudes towards each other and how they approached their practice sessions gave them little of no community or world respect.  France was now at the bottom of their totem pole and had only one direction to go.

I have no idea how far France will go in the current WC tournament but for their sake I hope they show their country’s abilities once again.  In one recent interview from a player it was said that it took a lot of hard work to re-establish the top playing form of the team.  It was not just the physical that he was referring to but the mental side of training as well.  All aspects had to be addressed and overcome and it took many long years to repair the damage that had been deliberately ignored for over a decade.  It is funny to me that God will bring back to my mind of a human event or problem in order to illustrate another current condition concerning His people.  While a football problem seems very unlikely to be compared with a spiritual concept and principle the fact that humans use different methods of relating to things, this example will prove that God can and will use the simplest variations to get His point across to those who are not listening or just plain ignoring.

It has long been known that this country and the other western societies have had a rich religion and Christian background and root system.  There is no question what-so-ever that this region of the world has had ample opportunity to understand and to know God and His ways.  Yet, as history tells us humans have continually messed things up when it comes to the relationship that God has with them and how this relationship actually works.  Our enemy has quite successfully blinded our spiritual ears and eyes enough that we have deteriorated enough to make us look foolish and stupid on numerous levels, including the Church.

When we read about Church history and human history that is associated with the Church we can get a sense of urgency within these times.  These urgencies may not always reflect the intentions of God but they are there and at some point the human will feel compelled to submit to these urgencies.  The thought of being a warrior for God is a glorious idea and one that could lead to fame and fortune throughout the Christian world.  This process is the first step in that person or group’s spiritual downfall and at that point should be recognized as such.  It was never the Church’s responsibility to tear down families in the name of God nor was it the Church’s belief that she could correspond with the world and its ways.  All of which the Church has done for centuries and has eventually formed a relationship with the world that is currently stronger and closer than with God.

I recently wrote about how an idea eventually becomes a law if the idea lasts long enough within people’s lives.  This law can be unwritten or written and in either case decisions and choices are made through this set of conditions.  This collective group of “laws” has been present in our minds and hearts ever since mankind made the choice to go against the one true law that God set in place in the Garden of Eden.  The progression has since commenced in a circular motion and we can easily read about this in almost any book of the Bible or any book or article concerning human history.  What is fascinating to me is that humans continue to try and justify their current actions on personal feelings and beliefs as if they were different from any other person, society or culture.  How is it that we continue to ignore what others in our past have done and that we believe that somehow if we do things the same as they did that things will turn out differently?

The Bible records numerous instances of individuals, groups and nations that have been remarkably blessed by the hand of god yet at some point in their history thumbed their noses at God and went on their separate ways without His adhering guidance to protect them.  God allows this choice but eventually the human has to be reeled in through a holy manner simply because they have diminished so much spiritually that God cannot even recognize His own creation through His own communication lines.  Even though those nations may have been considered the strongest and the brightest in the land, they are soundly defeated by God and by other human nations.  It is not mentioned too much but after these devastating losses the people of Israel must have wondered why God allowed them to lose such in great number or how could they lose to a much smaller nation?  It must be remembered that God cannot change His ways or laws, so this means that it is the personal choice of an individual, group or nation to change their ways of believing.

The key to these instances is the fact that while their physical numbers might have looked good on paper, their spiritual numbers drew a blank with the one being that mattered most.  God created everything so that means that He has the capability and the ability to take appropriate actions if He deems necessary.  Were there no voices to be heard where God was concerned during those times?  Of course they were, but they were ignored by the masses for more superficial and gratifying freedoms of the flesh.  Some of these voices were even cast out from the populous or thrown into wells to shut them up; and God allowed this to occur, even though they were on course for destruction.  Along these settings the list of good deeds from the people grew short and gifts and offerings to God became nil, all to which pointed to the direction that their spirits had taken.  A point to make here is this: this process did not occur overnight; it followed an idea and then grew on its own until the idea became a law. 

If one takes a nonbiased look at our current beliefs we will find that our existence is remarkably similar to that of those nations that I just finished referring to.  For a long period of time our nation and those nations of the western culture gave countless millions of dollars to those in need, performed special trips to underdeveloped countries and showed friendship towards those that sought to harm us.  That belief and culture has now been replaced with the “me” syndrome or the “I don’t care” attitude or the more infamous “I am better than you” status. These identities have infiltrated our thinking enough that they are no longer willing to acknowledge any other belief or difference of opinion. This idea and concept has grown and is now becoming law within these western countries.  The progression is on course and it is steadily rising at an alarming rate.  It is also defining what our country’s inhabitants are and what they believe which is providing a look of despair and spiritual blindness.  This too God will allow but know that one day He will have to say enough is enough and give us a reminder of who actually is in control of this life.

With Thierry Henri’s comment of “we have become a small football nation” I am making the statement that we as a nation and as the western cultural concept have become a small spiritual nation.  It breaks my heart to say this and to publicly declare it but it is the truth.  I find it amazing that we have turned so much away from foundations and from God that we fail to recognize this fact and in response forbid to hear God’s warnings of our current state of being.  We have voluntarily cut the spiritual lines of communication with God and thus chosen to accept the ways of the world instead.

It is well known that the western civilization was built around the concept of church.  As long as our cultural beliefs have been presented to the public, the Church has played a role.  I do have to admit that not every role that the Church has been a part of was a good thing or even from God, but the presence of the Church has been a constant.  Now, we have denominations that cannot fill pastoral roles for many of their church buildings, nor do the churches have the influential role that they once played within a community or city.  These activities and choices that we have made have proven that the Church has not effectively fulfilled the mission that Jesus told us to do and by our lack of interest have allowed the world to fervently pursue the masses and push God out of all areas of our lives.  The Church has lost the respect of the community that she is located within, even after she has tried to shake hands with the devil by accepting worldly standards within her walls.

We as a Christian community proudly built new churches within other nations so that the Word of God could be spread as quickly as possible.  Also we boldly sent missionaries out across the continents so that those who did not know about God could receive the message that God loves you and that there is a way for true and eternal life.  It is difficult to go to the majority of the youth services now-a-days and find a group that is on fire for God and that lives out His ways at all times.  No longer do the Bible colleges have to turn away people because of their desire to reach the lost simply because the campuses are too full.  All of these conditions deal directly with the truth that our country and the culture of the West, loudly proclaims to God that we have adopted the concept of a small spiritual nation.  And of course we cannot forget the fact that other countries now send missionaries to our own shores.  This is a pure example of the loss of a spiritual status in favor of a selfish lifestyle in the world.

God will continue to allow us to believe that we can live with the world and accommodate His beliefs at the same time.  This is part of the true freedom of choice that God gives us.  Our freedom of choice is solely based upon our spiritual communication with God and that is how God sees our relationship with Him.  When this communication line is almost gone or severed, God has to respond in order to restore that communication with His creation.  He has no option but to do this.  Now, there will come a time that mankind shall choose another being as their final king and when this choice is made the entire ballgame changes.  But until that time arrives, we need to understand that the further we move away from God and His ways the more we cut that spiritual tie with Him and our direct link becomes thinner and thinner with each step we take.  God does not base His laws upon worldly standards, on the spiritual standard that He established for our lives.  He knows and understands that we alone can never live up to this standard but He is loving and kind enough to provide us with a choice to follow His ways instead of the world’s.

This action of worldly goods is the stepping motion that creates and builds a weak or small spiritual nation.  The two kingdoms that are vying for your eternal life cannot mix in any way, shape or form and if we allow the worldly kingdom to infiltrate our lives we the Church automatically become less effective than before.  If we continue this trend and allow further intrusions into our lives our spiritual effectiveness and strength decreases significantly and automatically.  Furthermore, since our foundations have been made on the knowledge of God, our claiming of worldly settlements greatly increases our chances of spiritual separation; just on the basis that we already know the truth concerning the difference between worldly and spiritual things yet accepts otherwise into our lives.  Boy, the legal groundwork we give our enemy through this action.

It is complicated for our human minds to understand what a collective spiritual concept might entail, but it is one where the unity of the human being through each individual spirit that has been given to us by God, communicates to God, or does not communicate to God. This concept brings into light the importance of our choices and how we really need to understand every detail of every issue that is placed before us.  We may be making a decision that right at the moment may not affect us but could at some point down the road.  It is this concept that God will use in order to grab our attention.  Warning signs from God are just that, a warning.  If we ignore these warning signs then God will have to go about another route in order to wake us up.  But because mankind believes that he / she knows more than God, it will take a huge catastrophe, maybe even a total collapse of our world in order for us to understand.  The further we include our lives to worldly standards the further our spiritual lifeline shall become.  It is no longer a question that we have already voluntarily deemed ourselves to be a small spiritual nation, the only question remains is just how long will God allow our actions to continue before He has to really grab our attention?

Repent and let God restore, Church!  It is the only way that life as we know it will be able to survive in an adequate manner.  It is only a matter of time and if we do not change our ways God will shake our world enough in order for us to understand just who is in the light and who represents the darkness.  By allowing God to restore the Church He guarantees that our spiritual status will once again become great and be a huge influence upon the world.  If we do not then our status will continue to dive into the depths of the mud and it will not be too much longer until the pigs will take charge over our existence.

DLB