Theory Vs. Practice

My husband, right now, is 2,387 miles away, give or take. He's sitting in the warm embrace of friends and loved ones back in our home state, eating foods we haven't been able to get in almost a year, and watching TV in English!

I, on the other hand, am, um -- well, to be honest, I'm in my PJs at 9:00 a.m., sipping Guatemalan coffee and sitting in bed, so I guess I can't really make it seem like I'm suffering by comparison, or anything. But still... we're apart, and that's no fun.

But, his trip does signal another victory in the daily battle between Theory and Practice.

See, I think this is one of the challenges Christians (or, even anyone with strong principles or convictions) face in life. My husband feels like there's a chance he's being called to travel and preach in the future, which kind of interferes with the bone-deep, knee-knocking fear of flying he's had in the past. What's a guy to do? Should he let the theory of *someday* stepping out in faith to explore that calling God whispered into his heart be enough, or should he put it into practice?

(I'm so awfully proud of him for choosing the latter.)

Right now he's on the other side of Mexico (and on the other side of fears and trepidation) preparing to go to a church conference, attend meetings to speak to people about our ministry, and take classes to keep up his professional licenses back in the States. But, more than that, he's also kickin' heiney and takin' names when it comes to proving he's willing to follow through with the ways God is leading Him, and not just let his life be a series of theories.

We almost did that.

We almost let the idea of missions be something we supported in theory, but didn't put into practice because we didn't want to inconvenience ourselves or our loved ones too much. We almost decided the mere theory of trusting God with our time, our finances, our family, and everything else was good enough for us. We almost decided it was impractical to put into practice the theory we said we believed about God really and truly being Lord over every part of our lives.

But, it's more than that.

Every day we have this choice to make. Will we walk out the admonition to love our neighbor as ourselves (Gal. 5:14)? To discipline our thought life and take every thought captive to Christ (2 Cor. 10:5)? To guard our mouths and speak only what is helpful for building others up (Eph. 4:29)? To pray without ceasing  (1 Thes. 5:17), and stand in faith when we pray in the name of Jesus (Mark 11:24)? To love the Lord our God with all of heart, soul, strength, and mind (Mt. 22:37)?  To heal the sick, raise the dead, cast out demons (Mt. 10:8), and make disciples of all nations (Mt. 28:19)?

Will we choose to deceive ourselves into thinking that merely being hearers of God's Word and understanding it in theory are enough (James 1:22), or will we put into practice what we know to be true, and thereby choose the blessed (albeit more challenging) route instead (John 13:17)?

Yes, this challenge comes into play in big things (like moving your family thousands of miles to serve as missionaries or facing down deeply-held fears), but it also comes into play each and every moment of each and every day, when we must decide whether Christian theory is good enough, or if we're going to be the ones to put God's Word and Christ's example into practice.

The decision is easy to make, but not always easy to follow through with. Are you going to live out the reality and practice of a living and powerful God who's so much more than just theory? The choice is up to you...