I'm only Human

Have you ever heard someone say "I'm only human"? Why is this always a negative response? 

It usually means this....  

• make a mistake... ‘I’m only human’.
• can’t achieve something... “I’m only human”.
• lose control... “I’m only human”.

I believe that as a Christian when I say "I'm only Human". In a condescending way I say "Well... what do you expect, I'm not God". 

As if being God is the most common expectation that people have for you. Like God himself is waiting for you to do his job.

Regardless of your thoughts on humanity we all fall into this mindset. It can feel therapeutic to excuse yourself from high expectations.

I'm not talking about the time you told your wife she gained weight before actually thinking about how she would interpret that. I'm talking about the stuff you know you shouldn't do and therefor play the proverbial "get out of jail free card". I'm only human.  

This phrase is starting to make less sense to me then ever before. There is a difference between sin and humanity. They can be separated. They have been separated. I believe that Jesus came to teach us and display this very fact in his life, death, and resurrection. When it comes to sin why does our humanity get all the blame? Sometimes we can tire of being human. If you're like me you get tired of making mistakes. You get even more exhausted when keep repeating the same mistakes over... and over... and over again.   

It's hard to be human... especially when you don't have a good understanding of what it means to be human. Being human is not an excuse to be sinful. It's a blessing of life that is extremely good! God created it that way and Jesus came to teach us through his humanity, his teachings, and his sacrifice, that being human is not the problem. It's actually the solution.

A new way to be human

Jesus' prayer in the garden shows me that being human means to make sacrifices even when they hurt.

“Abba, Father,” he cried out, “everything is possible for you. Please take this cup of suffering away from me."

Jesus' relationship with God the Father shows me that being human means to trust God and live a life of obedience.

"Yet I want your will to be done, not mine.” 

Jesus giving the Apostles the power to heal people teaches me that being human means to tap into God's immeasurable amount of power and strength.

"For I can do everything through Christ, who gives me strength."

Jesus sitting on the throne in Heaven means that God places a crown on his perfect relationship with humanity. A relationship only possible by the death and resurrection of his Son, Jesus Christ.

"And the one sitting on the throne said, “Look, I am making everything new!” And then he said to me, “Write this down, for what I tell you is trustworthy and true.” And he also said, “It is finished! I am the Alpha and the Omega—the Beginning and the End. To all who are thirsty I will give freely from the springs of the water of life. All who are victorious will inherit all these blessings, and I will be their God, and they will be my children."

If you find yourself in that place where you think "I'm only human" try exploring the humanity of Jesus Christ. He will show you a road of sacrifice taken by choice. A reality only possible by faith in God. A door that's never closed but full of possibilities. My challenge is that you explore a new way to be human.

Is beauty sleeping?

Beauty is one of those things that everyone has a perspective on but nobody sees it the same way. 


Trying to define beauty can be like trying to put words to a painting. At one level we can ponder a painting and say "wow this painting makes so much sense, the colors and the shading represent a dark or light mood. Look at how unique the tree looks, that has to be because it's not rooted in the right place". Then you think more about it and you wonder if you even came close to what the artist was trying to communicate. In a way you don't mind wondering because it may change the beauty you see in the painting to know the artists perspective.


Beauty always catches the eye but everyone see's it differently.


A simple example of this could be found throughout the history of Greek and Japanese culture.


"Greeks were obsessed with the aesthetics and held beauty above all". Plato was among the philosophers that believed beautiful objects incorporated proportion, harmony, and unity among their parts. 


There is a little bit of Greek in all of us. Maybe you obsess with how your office, car, or house looks. I have a friend that couldn't keep a relationship for more than a few months because they got bothered by one ear being bigger than the other. Why do you think Apple is so popular? We love clean and proportioned aesthetics. Apple owners love that Apple is concerned with being user friendly, and creating a harmonious relationship between all of their products. We love the appearance, the harmony and unity in our beautiful Apple products. The Ancient Greeks would be big Apple supporters.


Beauty catches the eye of the Japanese in a different way than the Greeks. Wabi-Sabi is a term the Japanese use for what they believe is truly beautiful. Wabi-sabi is a very unique characteristic of what the Japanese define as beautiful because it involves roughness and irregularity. According to Wabi-sabi nothing lasts, nothing is finished, and nothing is perfect. This hits home for me when I see a married couple in their 70's barely able to walk looking at each other and admiring the beauty of their lover. This thought reminds me of a Proverb, "Let your wife be a fountain of blessing for you. Rejoice in the wife of your youth." It's foreign to us but we all want to see it this way.


Wabi-sabi is on to something here. There is some truth to the "nothing lasts, nothing is finished, and nothing is perfect" philosophy. I understand this more everyday. I just got married and I will see my wife almost everyday for the rest of my life. I know that her physical looks will change overtime, but I have a hard time believing that her beauty will die with her anatomy.  


The most interesting part about this philosophy is that "nothing is finished".


There is more to life that we can see. What we see around us is a temporary state of what is supposed to be. I also believe that Jesus has come to restore the beauty of creation. He has come to reclaim the blueprint of our existence. You see it in his relationships, experiences, and his beliefs. He know's it's not finished, there is still work to be done. He has a way of looking at the ugly and seeing the beauty despite it's roughness and irregularity.


All things have beauty and in this life all things are not finished. When we can see beauty we can see the originality of creation and how mind blowing it's uniqueness and goodness is.


How do you see beauty in your day to day life? What makes the things around you so attractive?