"My Managerial Skills"
Shia LaBeouf said this My opinion about God before my world had crumbled was art, love, and God.
Season 6, Episode 44 · "My Managerial Skills"
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The story behind the idea
Notice I'm not saying God and Christ and the Word and church become utterly unimportant. I'm saying like the seed that couldn't grow in the garden because the thorns were growing at the same rate and taking up space all around it.
What stands out
I'll read it all the way through, and then we'll use most of the rest of the episode dissecting some of it. Shia LaBeouf said this My opinion about God before my world had crumbled was art, love, and God.
Why it matters
While they may not be literally such, in our lives, in terms of practicality, that's exactly what can happen. My life is made up of some combination of art, activity, expression, engagement, some measure of people, love, relationship, support, and some measure of God, worship, maybe, Bible study, maybe, and prayer. The idea of them being synonymous is I just utilize them in whatever way I need to put things together for my benefit. Here's this kid of the world who went down a ridiculously dark path saying, that's where that path started.
A faithful way forward
I think for us, when we let the world's ways become our ways, it hits us even harder because we know his value and his worthiness. What LeBoef said at the end from observing other people is that there were those who'd done even worse things who should have felt even worse than him, but the gospel had freed them. The truth about Jesus had brought hope into their lives. They had to learn surrender, which I think is a really interesting word and needs to be taught more often.
Put it into practice
Then you need to hear a message of grace that God isn't asking you to build it. You can still have art and you can still have love, but it's not art, love, and God. It's God now, fully, completely, all the time and absolutely, and his will and his presence and his ability will permeate all that you do, art, love, and otherwise. Here at the end, I just have to be straight with you.
Take the idea with you.
- 01What idea from this study most needs my attention right now?
- 02Where does this challenge the way I am currently thinking or living?
- 03What is one faithful step I can take this week?
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