Polluted

Kayaking is one of my favorite leisure activities. The quiet, peaceful beauty of nature is one of the reasons I love kayaking. On our paddling adventures, we've enjoyed seeing sunning turtles, hunting herons, bathing ducks and a whole host of other wildlife. A few summers ago, we even startled a couple of wading deer. We've paddled rivers. We've paddled lakes. We've paddled close to home. We've paddled hundreds of miles from home.

There's one thing we occasionally see that drives me absolutely crazy. It makes me downright angry. The "it" is trash. Cans. Bottles. Tires. Oh yes, even an occasional appliance. They are the  result of careless, thoughtless, selfish behavior of humans polluting the otherwise unspoiled landscape. We can be miles downstream in a river, in an extremely remote location and suddenly we spot trash. Garbage. People's throwaway crap. Cluttering a pure, otherwise crystal clear stream.

I've been pondering pollution lately. A different kind of pollution. I call it Christian pollution, or maybe better yet, religious pollution. Mine is a simple faith. You see, Jesus told us we need to repent, believe and follow him. He is the way, the truth, the LIFE. He is the reason I live and move and have my being. Seems pretty simple, right? Well, it should be. Unfortunately, we tend to get hung up in traditions, sacraments, and rituals. We have rules regarding worship. Some Christians like to give big, flowery, intellectual speeches regarding being, or becoming followers of Jesus. I want to scream out, "It's NOT that difficult!"

This pollution is nothing new. Goodness, it has happened since Bible times. In Paul's letter to the Colossians, he wrote extensively about the subject.  I love his words in Chapter One out of The Message, from selected verses:

"Watch out for people who try to dazzle you with big words and intellectual double-talk. They want to drag you off into endless arguments that never amount to anything. ...You don't need a telescope, a microscope, or a horoscope to realize the fullness of Christ, and the emptiness of the universe without him. When you come to him, that fullness comes together for you, too. His power extends over everything.

Entering into this fullness is not something you figure out or achieve...but rather through what Christ has already gone through for you, destroying the power of sin. ...God brought you alive-right along with Christ! Think about it! All sins forgiven, the slate wiped clean, that old arrest warrant canceled and nailed to Christ's Cross."

So that's it. Repent. Believe. Follow. Don't question the simplicity. Keep the river of life pure. Don't let the world's words and ways pollute the water of life. Keep it simple.