Man in the Mirror - Chapter 2

MAN IN THE MIRROR





I am now reading Patrick Morley's book The Man in the Mirror. This is a study for Christian men designed to help us examine whether we are living according to our true priorities. Each chapter has questions for reflection and I will try to journal my responses here.


CHAPTER TWO - LEADING AN UNEXAMINED LIFE

Two Life Views

There are two predominant life views in America today. One view, the secular life view, believes that man is the central figure in shaping events. The second view, the Christian life view, believes God is sovereign and active in everyday life.

We have moved away from traditional Judeo-Christian values toward a life view that lets us self-select values based on whether they serve our self-interests. Like a child loose in a candy store, we determine our own fate, we captain our own ship.

The choice between a Christian life view and a secular life view is a choice between God's race and the rat race.


Christian in Captivity

"See to it that no one takes you captive through hollow and deceptive philosophy, which depends on human tradition and the basic principles of this world rather than on Christ."

If we are going to live by the Christian life view we must recognize, first, that ours is a minority view; and, second, that we are responsible for our own lives. Christ aches for us to turn to Him and follow His plan. But we are the ones who must decide to do it. The first step to knowing God's plan for our lives is the commitment to see ourselves as we really are.

To see ourselves as we really are, we must acknowledge our inability to do so without God's help.


Question

Of the two life views, the Christian life view and the secular life view, what percentage of each are you?

I think that I am probably 50/50 between the two. Although I believe in Christ and desire to surrender to Him, my actions do not reflect that at all times. I tend to set myself up as the judge of what values I am willing to accept and what goals I want to pursue. I tend to think of my time as my own and to believe that I am doing ok morally if I am not hurting others. I don't stop to ask myself if I am doing things as God would have me do them.