Bear with me here...this is long.

I received this book in the mail yesterday from a dear friend for my birthday. I started reading it today and already love it. I am only on the first chapter and I expect that there will be many more entries as I continue to read but this one really struck me today. It's long...but great.

Chapter 1: Yawning Angels

CAGED CHRISTIANS

"I love the church. I bleed the church. And I'm not saying that the way the church cages people is intentional. In fact, it may be well intentioned. But too often we take people out of their natural habitat and try to tame them in the name of Christ. We try to remove the risk. We try to remove the danger. We try to remove the struggle. And what we end up with is a caged Christian.

Deep down inside, all of us long for more. Sure, the tamed part of us grows accustomed to the safety of the cage. But the untamed part longs for some danger, some challenge, some adventure. And at some point in our spiritual journey, the cage no longer satisfies. We have a primal longing to be uncaged. And the cage opens when we recognize that Jesus died to make us dangerous.

Praying for protection is fine. I pray for a hedge of protection around my three children all the time. You probably pray that kind of prayer too. But when was the last time you asked God to make you dangerous?

I would like to think that when I pronounce the benediction at the end of our church services, I am sending dangerous people back into their natural habitat to wreak havoc on the Enemy.

LIVING DANGEROUSLY

Every once in a while, I have random thoughts that seem to come out of nowhere. Here's a thought that fired across my synapses not long ago: Do angels yawn?

I know it seems like an inane theological question, but I seriously wonder if angels have the capacity to get bored. More important, I wonder if some of us are living such safe lives that not only are we bored, but so are our guardian angels. If they could, would our guardian angels coax us out of our cage and beg us to give them something to do?

I think of Ana Luisa, who used her award mile to fly to India and sacrificially serve some of the poorest of the poor at a medical clinic. I think of Mike, who started a dangerous ministry in a dangerous place-a porn show in Las Vegas. I think of Adam, whose sensitivity to the Wild Goose resulted in a life-changing encounter on a mission trip half a world away. And I think of Becky, who made a conscious decision to endanger her own life by becoming part of the crusade against human trafficking.

Since when did it become safe to follow Christ? Maybe it's time to come out of the cage and live dangerously for the cause of Christ."



This was a challenging passage for me today as I have struggled with stepping out of my cage and living dangerously for the cause of Christ. Most of us are so comfortable living in our nice houses, wearing our nice clothes, reading our Bible every day, saying our prayers, titheing the correct amount to our Church. Is this really getting out of our cage and living dangerously for God?

I urge you to step out of the cage today. I'm not saying everyone has the gift of being missional and needs to sell all of their posessions and move to Africa to do mission work. We all have different gifts. Are you using yours? Take in a foster child. Adopt a child that has no home. Lead a small group. Feed the homeless. Cook dinner for someone in need. Help someone pay a bill. Grab a coffee with someone who probably doesn't have anyone in their life wanting to get coffee with them. Give away clothes. Visit a homeless shelter and love on those people. Take Easter treats to a Retirement Center close by and give them away to the residents. Sponsor a child from Compassion International. Write them letters, send them care packages and love them because Jesus loves you.

I think God asks us to step out of our comfort zones and actually DO something to glorify Him.

How are you stepping out of your cage today? I know I have a lot to think about as I don't step out of mine near enough!