I believe...

There's a T-shirt I've seen that says: "Everyone believes in something." Then in smaller print below: "I believe I'll have another cookie." Good for a chuckle...but loaded with truth.

Take, for instance, the first line. Although I doubt the writer had Fr. Martin in mind, it's vintage Luther...reminding us that everyone believes in some thing or some one. Everyone has a god or gods...that force, concept or reality in which they trust. Even atheists have gods. (If you trust yourself above all else, then you are your own god...as disturbing as that might be!) So the T-shirt speaks the truth: everyone believes in something.

The second sentence also has something interesting to teach, i.e. that belief is always connected to action. To believe something implies more than just intellectual assent. To believe something requires that we act accordingly...that our lives reflect in some measure the grounding principals that we claim.

That's where things get sticky for a lot of Christian "believers." Our words may be right, but our actions often tell a different tale. The priorities reflected in our daily choices don't always match our stated intentions. Folks who are not Christian notice these things, and quite rightfully point out the hypocrisy of our lives.

It's an old, old problem, of course...goes all the way back to a man, a woman, a serpent and an apple. Ever since that fateful day in Paradise, we've been trying to reconcile belief in God with what we'd like to do on our own. Some days we shine. Most days we fail. At best, our performance is uneven. And if that were the end of the story, we'd surely be in sorry shape. There are few options for us when our cookies (or our false gods) crumble. Take your pick: denial or despair.

Christians profess, however, that there is some one beyond us...one who has made the decision to forgive and redeem us...one who remains faithful as our God even when we're off chasing our own tails. That one is Christ Jesus whose death put an end to our shame and whose resurrection opens a new life of opportunity. We don't need to live as though there were no God or, worse yet, as though we were gods. We are set free to believe and live with Christ as God, with mercy as motivation, and with hope as our way forward.

A bit of T-shrit wisdom: Everyone believes in something. I believe I'll give today another chance under the lordship of Christ. And when I do, how will my choices, my priorities, my values be different?