What I Don't Believe

I believe in Jesus. I believe in the Bible. I believe in God's mighty Church, spread across centuries and across continents. I believe in God's sovereignty. I believe in God's infinite love, even though I will never understand its depth or its breadth.

But I've been thinking lately about the things I don't believe:

• I don't believe in the self-sufficiency of any person to serve, worship, mature, or share the good news without a supporting family of faith alongside them.
• I don't believe in the avoidance of pain or discomfort as a goal of life.
• I don't believe in the American Dream.
• I don't believe that inauthentic relationships are worth any time or effort.
• I don't believe that we can know very much at all, and that's why everything we say, do, and believe has to be solidly grounded in the Bible.
• I don't believe that most people who claim the name of Christ actually have any kind of true relationship with him (in America, at least).
• I don't believe that God's Spirit moves only "in the moment" and is neutralized by planning ahead.
• I don't believe that government will ever solve any spiritual problems.
• I don't believe in cutting short the mission of the church to please the already-convinced.
• I don't believe that anyone is too busy unless they've chosen to be.
• I don't believe in worrying about high or low self-esteem, since Jesus calls us to die to ourselves.
• I don't believe that environmentalism is a large enough purpose to serve as the source of meaning and satisfaction in life.
• I don't believe any church will ever be perfect.
• I don't believe any concept of joining people together will ever be greater than the church.
• I don't believe that any force or power will ever kill, abolish, overcome, or squelch the local church.
• I don't believe in grounding my identity in anything other than who Jesus declares me to be.
• I don't believe that power must always be exercised selfishly.
• I don't believe that any time spent in prayer is wasted time.
• I don't believe that love will ever be eclipsed, that faith will ever be unnecessary, or that hope will ever die.
• I don't believe that the pursuit of power, pleasure, possessions, popularity, or prestige will ever lead to fulfillment.
• I don't believe that fairness means treating everyone the same.
• I don't believe that God accomplishes anything on earth without godly leadership in front.
• I don't believe an American political structure will ever work as an effective model for a church structure.
• I don't believe that authority equals worth or value.
• I don't believe that low standards that are easy to attain can ever produce excellence.
• I don't believe that God is honored by results over attitudes or motivations.

What about you? What don't you believe in? What do you want to challenge on my list? What needs to be added? Let me know! Click on the comments link below this post and add your thoughts!