"The three commandments, 'love [thy] neighbour as thyself,' 'thou shalt keep the Sabbath holy,' and 'thou shalt eat thy potatoes with thy fork,' impress themselves with equal vividness upon the aborigines and are likely to be seen by them to be means of grace of co-ordinate value."
- Vilhjalmur Stefansson
(My Life With the Eskimos, pg. 25.)
("co-ordinate value" = equal in importance)

This is a quote that I came across while researching for a paper recently. It was written by an Arctic ethnologist (someone who studies human culture and origin and whatnot) and explorer who observed how native peoples had troubles distinguishing between what they were taught about Christianity and grace and what they were taught about "civilization," as there were a lot of missionaries who had the goal not only of bringing the message of God's grace to people but also of "civilizing" them and teaching them how to dress and eat and live.
I was really struck by this quote. It makes me think about the pharasees, who were pretty caught up in rules. With all the rules they enforced, I can see how it would be very easy to forget what grace actually is, thinking that a whole bunch of rules, (eating potatoes with a fork... well, maybe not that one,) is the means by which one is saved.
I also got thinking about my own life. I found myself wondering if there is anything I do in my day to day life that others might perceive as foundational to my faith by the way I get so caught up in it, when in reality it is only an extra, or even a hurdle hindering my faith in God. (For example: the "commandment" that 'thou shalt be involved with every good activity and be so busy that you have no time to read your Bible except for a half verse in bed before you fall asleep and no time to ever stop at the natural food store to buy ginger chews'. No good.)
I want to live a life that provides a clear example of what living under grace is like. I want to be clear on what are simply extras, and what the Lord actually asks of me. I do not want to start thinking that anything I do contributes to whether or not I will be saved, thinking that God will approve more of me if I am involved in His work or if I'm just plum good. That stuff is good, but I, (and anyone who reads this) need to understand anything I do does not change the way He sees and loves me and that my number one priority needs to be a focus on building my relationship with God, everything else without Him is useless.
I do not want to preach with my lifestyle that useless things matter. I want my lifestyle to point to Christ as being most important in my life. I need to make sure it is clear that He is the most important.


"What is more, I consider everything a loss compared to the surpassing greatness of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whose sake I have lost all things. I consider them rubbish, that I may gain Christ and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ - the righteousness that comes from God and is by faith."
Philippians 3:8-9


p.s. I do not support the idea that ministry is bad and that we should have not commitments or anything, I just personally want to make sure I am using every aspect of my life, including the things to which I am committed, to point to Christ.

p.p.s. I hope this makes some sense, I haven't really slept for a while and my mind is heavy after just finishing a paper. I probably shouldn't be posting this until I have a clear mind again. I hope it makes sense in a couple days when I have clarity of mind to read it.