Fence Sitting

I have lately been describing myself as a "moderate." I know that I don't want to be lumped in with the far right conservatives and I definitely can't buy into the liberal side of what is happening in our world. Maybe I'm just looking for a position that keeps me out of the fray so I can just "live and let live." Well, once again, the Bible has caused me to rethink my moderate position, or at least the motives behind it.

1 Kings 18:21 (NIV) ²¹Elijah went before the people and said, “How long will you waver between two opinions? If the LORD is God, follow him; but if Baal is God, follow him.” But the people said nothing. The word "falter" is rendered "hesitate" or "waver" in other translations. The Message says, "How long are you going to sit on the fence?" It could be translated, "How long will you claim an exemption concerning this decision?"

There are some decisions you just can't sit on the fence about. Sooner or later a decision is going to be made by somebody. If we were sitting on the fence, completely aware that a decision making process was happening in front of us, and we decided to claim our exemption, and subsequently let someone else decide...we shouldn't complain about it after the fact. We should be more engaged in a lot of discussion and decision making going on in the world around us.

This guy I know was periodically complaining to me about his church and his pastor. I put up with it for longer than I should have in the name being a friend and a good sounding board. One day I just told him to either stop complaining or just leave his church. He stayed at the church and I thankfully haven't heard another negative word. If you're going to complain, don't just talk. Do something constructive or productive or stop talking. I would rather listen to a rabid liberal or an extreme conservative than some complainer who just talks and never does anything.

Sometimes being "moderate" means we reserve the right to change our position so that we are "in style" or "not rocking the boat." I was watching the news about a current issue and every night it seemed like the polls showed a different result. Polls are fickle that way. What caused it to swing in such a wide range? It was all the "moderates" who really had not decided what they believe. Even more treacherous, our legislators swing back and forth on serious matters.

I could address a lot of hot button issues in this context, but the issue of who you follow is the contextual topic. Are you going to follow God or not? I'm watching a lot of people trying to stay "in style" and not "rock the boat" and it looks like they are trying to go in two directions at once. When it comes to the eternal God my timeless decision must be to follow Him. There is no neutral or moderate on this decision. If that makes me a "bigot" or "narrow-minded" in our contemporary culture at least I have made a decision and live by it. This decision of faith and following is too important for me to sit on the fence until someone else makes the decision for me.

Once God somehow is able to pry you off the fence when it comes to Him, you might just find yourself examining other areas of your life.