A Christ-follower with a limp: February 2022

Sunday, February 27, 2022

Close Your Window!

“The Bible was not given to increase our knowledge but to change our lives.” D.L. Moody

Earlier this month a Massachusetts man left the sunroof on his family’s minivan open in 63-degree weather only to return to the vehicle two days later to find it filled with about nine inches of snow. Steve Maguire of Scituate said he and his family took a ride in his wife’s minivan on a Saturday with the windows down to enjoy the record-high temperatures in New England.

“Saturday was so beautiful I'm like, ‘I’ve got to get some of the kids out of the house,” he told a local TV station. “It was 63 degrees here.” But Maguire said he didn’t realize until returning to the vehicle that he’d left the sunroof open, allowing about nine inches of snow to accumulate inside.

“When I opened the van, I’m thinking it's Valentine's Day. It’s my wife’s car. This is not going to end well. I came in and said, ‘I hope you're in a good mood because there are about nine inches of snow in the van.’”

Maguire said the situation could have been much worse. “This could only happen in New England. I’m grateful it wasn’t rain, and it was super easy to clean up because it was so light and fluffy.”

Here’s the kicker! Maguire admitted he should have known better. “I’m a high school teacher and one of the electives I teach is meteorology. So if anyone knows the weather, I should know the weather.”

That’s my problem. It’s probably your problem too – I know better than I do. I know that I shouldn’t say what I say, but the words are out of my mouth faster than a bass spitting out a hook. I know that I shouldn’t get irritated at that person talking on their phone at the next table in the restaurant but the heat is up in my heart faster than a microwave. I know I shouldn’t look down on that homeless person asking for handouts but “King Scott” who has it all together is ascending the throne of my soul.

I’m so grateful that my Heavenly Father is gracious, as I come to Him again and again because even though I knew better, I didn’t do better. I’m a “spiritual loser,” yet He still loved me and gave His Son to pay for my sin…and He always forgives me (1 John 1:9).

This is a reality of all of life in a sin-contaminated world. Knowing something, knowing the truth too often doesn’t break down into transformed behavior. As James warns us, “Be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves” (James 1:22).

But you must know the truth before you can apply the truth. The Bible is the source of truth. It’s the absolute standard. Maguire knew the truth of meteorology, yet failed to live up to what he knew. We do the same thing.

There are two spiritual disciplines that are vital for a healthy, growing Christian life – reading God’s Word and prayer. When I open my Bible, God speaks to me. When I pray, I speak to God. Yet, there is no excuse for a Christian in America to not regularly spend time in the Word. We will never do the right things as believers if we’re not letting God’s Word soak through our souls.

Please understand, I’m not suggesting some kind of spiritual Olympics. Five or ten minutes consistently in the Word is a great place to start. Start with one of the four Gospels or the Epistles. It’s much better to read some Scripture consistently than to read none and stay spiritually ignorant.

Truth without application is foolish. James continues with, “For if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man who looks intently at his natural face in a mirror. For he looks at himself and goes away and at once forgets what he was like. But the one who looks into the perfect law, the law of liberty, and perseveres, being no hearer who forgets but a doer who acts, he will be blessed in his doing” (James 1:23-25). The purpose of looking at yourself in a mirror is to make change as necessary. That’s true of God’s Word, too.

The purpose of reading God’s Word is not for education or information. It’s for life-change, spiritual transformation. The same is true of listening to a sermon or participating in a small group. As John Stott said, “We must allow the Word of God to confront us, to disturb our security, to undermine our complacency and to overthrow our patterns of thought and behavior.”

Reading my Bible is a waste of time if it’s not being applied to my life if I’m not becoming more and more like Jesus. It’s spiritual work. The Holy Spirit must empower me and work in my life to bring about that change. Yet, if I don’t know God’s truth, He doesn’t have material to work with.

In America, it’s polite to say “good sermon” to the preacher as we exit. BUT it’s not a good sermon if it’s not applied to our lives. It was just a nice talk. The purpose of God’s truth whether read or listened to is to make you and me more like the Savior (Romans 12:2).

Faithful application begins on the inside. James 1:19, “Know this, my beloved brothers: let every person be quick to hear, slow to speak, slow to anger.” James’s initial focus isn’t external, it’s internal. God is much more concerned about my heart and character than He is about my behavior. The fruit of the Spirit (love, joy, peace, gentleness, kindness, peace, patience, self-control, etc.) begins in my soul and will then be evidenced in my life.

Too many Christians erroneously believe Christianity is evidenced by externalism, i.e., the way you dress, the things you do or don’t do. It’s not! That was the focus of the men who crucified Jesus, the Pharisees. It’s why a lost world is often repulsed by professing Christians.

It’s increasingly common today to see online or in our churches “Christians” claiming to defend the gospel who fail to demonstrate attitudes and character in line with that same gospel. They’re arrogant, mean, and sometimes even hateful.

The most wonderful thing that can be said of us was said of those early disciples, “And they recognized that they had been with Jesus” (Acts 4:13). That happens as we spend time in God’s Word and sit under Bible teaching – and apply it to our lives. To know the truth but fail to apply it is as foolish as leaving your sunroof window open in the middle of January.

Can we help you spiritually? Can we help you know Jesus better? Please check out more resources on our church's web page, Gracechurchwi.org. Or, call us at 262.763.3021. If you'd like to know more about how Jesus can change your life, I'd love to mail you a copy of how Jesus changed my life in "My Story." E-mail me at Carson@gracechurchwi.org to request a free copy. Please include your mailing address.

Sunday, February 20, 2022

Suicide: When the Unthinkable Becomes Real

“Some people suffer in silence,

pain in the hearts but smiles on their faces.” Isha Barlas

On January 30, 2022, Cheslie Kryst, committed suicide by jumping to her death from The Orion, the 60-story high-rise apartment building in Manhattan, where she lived. Her mother, April Simpkins released a statement, stating that Cheslie suffered from “high functioning depression.” Cheslie was 30 years old.

From a human perspective, Cheslie had everything going for her, everything that many long for and believe will bring them happiness and satisfaction. She was a model and a beauty pageant titleholder who was crowned Miss USA in May of 2019. She went on to finish in the top 10 of the Miss Universe 2019 competition. That same year, she and three other women became the first group of Black women in pageant history to hold all four major titles in a single year. Cheslie was also an attorney and had served as a correspondent for Extra from October 2019 until her death. For her work on Extra, she was nominated for two Daytime Emmy Awards. At the time of her death her net worth was estimated to be $5 million dollars.

Following her death, the Extra correspondent’s family remembered her for inspiring others “around the world with her beauty and strength…Cheslie embodied love and served others, whether through her work as an attorney fighting for social justice, as Miss USA and as a host on Extra. But most importantly, as a daughter, sister, friend, mentor and colleague – we know her impact will live on.”

Suicide is the 10^th leading cause of death in the United States. In 2019, there were an estimated 3.5 million people who planned a suicide, 1.4 million suicide attempts, and 47,511 suicide deaths. There were more than twice as many deaths by suicide than by homicide. Mental health problems and substance use are the most significant risk factors for suicidal behaviors. Stressful life events increase the risk of suicide.

Suicide is the apex of hopelessness. Even in the Bible, there are at least six individuals who chose to end their own lives. Abimelech in Judges 9 asked his armor-bearer to kill him with a sword so people could not say a woman killed him. King Saul threw himself on his sword and his armor-bearer followed him in death after his sons died and he lost a battle against the Philistines. King David’s advisor, Ahithophel, chose suicide after his counsel to rebelling Absalom, David’s oldest son was rejected. The last suicide in the Old Testament was that of Zimri, a King of Israel. He’d only reigned one week before a military coup, so Zimri set himself and his palace ablaze. The only suicide in the New Testament is that of Judas.

Many others Bible characters, including Moses, Elijah, King David, and the Apostle Paul expressed a desire to die. Many heroes in Christian History have struggled with deep depression, including Richard Baxter, Charles Spurgeon, and Dr. D. Martyn Lloyd Jones, to name a few.

Many believers, weary of struggling, depression or dealing with the trials of life long for a premature death. Spurgeon struggled with physical pain and depression. I love his transparency and hope: “I find myself frequently depressed - perhaps more so than any other person here. And I find no better cure for that depression than to trust in the Lord with all my heart, and seek to realize afresh the power of the peace-speaking blood of Jesus, and His infinite love in dying upon the cross to put away all my transgressions.” On another occasion, observing the struggle of other Christians, Spurgeon insightfully said, “I note that some whom I greatly love and esteem, who are, in my judgment, among the very choicest of God’s people, nevertheless, travel most of the way to heaven by night.” I know that I have had my own bouts of “travelling to heaven by night.”

While I truly appreciate those who encourage or post on social media that anyone who is having suicidal thoughts should reach out to them or call the suicide hotline, many though never will. So what can we do to help?

As much as possible, build bridges, touch lives, be a sharer of hope. Personally, I don’t believe in accidental meetings but look at encounters as divine appointments. Wise are the words of the great Scottish preacher, John Watson, “Be kind, for everyone you meet is fighting a hard battle.” If anyone should be kind and known for kindness, it should be the people of God. Kindness doesn’t live in a test tube. It’s best shared in day-to-day life.

Pray and then pray some more. When you know of a friend or acquaintance struggling, when you don’t know what else to do, pray for them. Pray for hope and healing. Ask the Lord to comfort and give your friend guidance. Invite your friend to share their heart with you and sit back and listen, and let them reveal their truth to God. Encourage them to speak about the specific things that may be hurting them. Encourage them to share a list of reasons they’re grateful. Be quiet as they answer.

Make sure that they’re safe. If someone confides in you that they’re feeling suicidal, take it seriously. The very first step is to make sure they’re safe. Do not take what they say lightly in hopes that they won’t go through with it. Are they alone at home? Go over and sit with them. Are they threatening to harm themselves or others? Don’t hesitate to call for help from law enforcement. Call their family, roommate, or someone else you trust so that you can have extra hands on deck. While they might be angry at first, you can’t help a friend who is struggling that has ended their life.

Help them find help. When someone is at such a low point that they’re having thoughts of death, it’s important that they get help. Some people are apprehensive to ask for help because they’re scared, feel they can handle it themselves or think they’re unworthy of assistance. Your willingness to aid them may be the only thing that nudges them to move forward. Gently ask and encourage them to get some help and have options of how they can. You might even offer to help by finding good therapists in the area. To someone with depression, these first steps can seem insurmountable.

For the Christian, there will come a time when depression and anxiety will be fully and finally gone. When Christ returns, tears will be dried, brokenness healed, and mental illness banished, never to return. Until that day, we can rest in the simple, wonderful truths that God has declared over us: we are loved, we are held, we will be sustained until the end…and we’re all going to get Home before dark!

Sunday, February 13, 2022

Character Still Matters

“Character may be manifested in the great moments,

but it is made in the small ones.” Phillips Brooks

I wonder if A. Bartlett Giamatti is spinning in his grave. Giamatti, one time Commissioner of Major League Baseball, will be forever remembered as the man who banned baseball legend, Pete Rose for life after it was discovered Rose was gambling on baseball games, including those of his own team, the Cincinnati Reds. A chapter in the book of the baseball writings of Giamatti, A Great and Glorious Game, unpacks the intense struggle Giamatti had before determining Rose should be banned for life.

What a contrast to another former commissioner of baseball, Faye Vincent, who recently stated that “character” should be removed as an issue for the election of individuals to the hall of fame. In other words, in an argument that we’ve heard ad nauseam in recent decades, character doesn’t matter. But in our heart we all know that it does. While Vincent was willing to give PED users a pass, at least he held the line that Rose should be permanently banned.

When it comes to American politics, particularly presidential politics, character issues have continually entered into the national debate, whether it was Bill Clinton in the 1990s or Donald Trump in the present. When Trump was running for president and his debauchery was well-known, even some Christians sought to rationalize it away with “I’m voting for a president, not a pastor” (not that most of the other choices were individuals of sterling character).

In spite of our blusters we all know that character matters…and in our day to day lives, we live that way. For example, if you knew that your financial consultant had been convicted of embezzling, would character matter? If you learned that your cardiologist had lost several malpractice lawsuits, would character matter? Or, if you learned that your favorite restaurant had continual health code violations, would character matter?

Currently, the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom is in the hot seat with his political future in jeopardy. Recently, Boris Johnson addressed Parliament to defend his continuation as Prime Minister because of a report with 500 pages of evidence and more than 300 photographs of Johnson and his staff flouting his own COVID lockdown rules. He required, with police power, the citizens of the U.K. to obey those rules, while he and his own staff flaunted those very same rules. Sadly, the flouting of rules by the rule makers is an all too common occurrence during this pandemic.

Please understand, character is NOT sinlessness. The only person to live a sinless life was the Lord Jesus. Though Christians will struggle with their sin nature until they get to heaven and receive their perfected and glorified bodies, by God’s grace, we must strive to sin less. We must seek to be individuals of godly character because God is all about character.

What is character? Evangelist D.L Moody had this to say about character: “Character is what you are in the dark” and “True character is what we are when nobody’s looking, in the secret chambers of the heart.”

Character is more than talk. Anyone can say they have integrity but their behavior is the true indicator. James 2:18, “But someone will say, ‘You have faith, and I have works.’ Show me your faith without your works, and I will show you my faith by my works.” One of the first places character flaws show up is in our language patterns. When we are “in integrity,” we speak from a place of honesty and wholeness. Words match actions. As Dr. Seuss put it, “We say what we mean and we mean what we say.” When we break from this pattern and say things we don’t really mean, we jettison godly character, moving out of integrity. “Your walk talks and your talk talks but your walk talks louder than your talk talks.”

Talent is a gift, character is a choice. There are many things in our life that we have no control over. We don’t get to pick our parents, our upbringing, our talents, our IQ, but each of us can choose our character. We create character every time we make choices.

Maybe that’s part of our attraction to superheroes. These very talented individuals are so unlike what we commonly think of as celebrities. They really are the good guys.

It’s certainly why a Tim Tebow is loved and admired. Despite all of the mocking and Tebowing memes, no one seriously questions his character. At one point he had the world watching him, waiting for him to crack under the pressure of being a self-proclaimed role model. To his credit he never did. The only thing that Tebow has devoted his life to more than football, is helping others. He’s gone to Africa countless times as a missionary and has helped countless children through his “Tim Tebow Foundation.” He isn’t just a great athlete to look up to, Tebow is a great person of character to aspire to be.

A lack of character carries a high price. Other than the most avid sports fans, once an athlete’s abilities wane, if they’re not a person of character and because of it were admired outside the game, the memory of them soon drops into the dustbin of history. Even in our personal lives the teachers, neighbors or former bosses we remember were often men and women of character. Character is what made them stand out and adhere to the pages of our memory. They went the extra mile to do the right thing and often did the right thing when others did not or when it was unpopular.

God’s intent is that each of us develop character throughout our lives as Jesus did, “Jesus increased in wisdom and stature, and in favor with God and man” (Luke 2:52). God values character and so must we. Too often in our homes and churches we focus on the passing standards of a dying world and place character on a backburner. Yet, it is godly character that pleases God and wears well when talent and other abilities are long gone.

A man took his daughter to the carnival, and she immediately ran over to a booth and asked for cotton candy. As the attendant handed her a huge ball of it, her Dad asked, “Sweetheart, are you sure you can eat all of that?” “Don’t worry,” she answered, “I’m a lot bigger on the inside than on the outside.” That’s what real character is – being bigger on the inside.

As an old German Proverb says: “When wealth is lost, nothing is lost; when health is lost, something is lost; when character is lost, all is lost.”

Sunday, February 6, 2022

Revenge or Forgiveness?

“It is more honor to bury an injury than to revenge it.”
Thomas Watson

During the Korean War, two American soldiers were stationed a long distance from the conflict and were allowed to rent an apartment off base. They hired a local Korean boy to do their housekeeping, and were immediately impressed with his positive, joyful spirit…so they began playing pranks on him. They nailed his shoes to the floor, put water buckets over doorways, smeared grease on stove knobs. And the boy would smile and pull out the nails, dry himself off, clean off the stove, with never a word of complaint. Finally, they became ashamed of themselves and told him they would stop their pranks. He said, “You mean, no more nail shoes to floor?” “No more.” “No more water over door? No more grease on stove?” “No more.” He smiled again and said, “Okay, then, me no more spit in soup.”

That story came to mind recently as I read about the social media war between Bette Midler and West Virginia Governor Jim Justice. Revenge is enticing. It’s hard to be a person of peace.

In December, Midler had tweeted that West Virginians were “poor, illiterate and strung out” in response to West Virginia Sen. Joe Manchin’s opposition to President Joe Biden's Build Back Better plan. To her credit, she later apologized, though she should never have said it. But that didn’t keep West Virginia Governor Jim Justice from taking a shot a Midler during his State of the State address. At the end of his speech he lifted up his family’s bulldog, Babydog, showing off her derriere, while saying, “Babydog tells Bette Midler and all of those out there, ‘kiss her hiney’.” Of course, Midler had to respond by shooting another tweet back.

It’s embarrassing when leaders and celebrities behave like childish junior-highers. No one is surprised when a junior higher has a potty mouth – they’re an adolescent. Governor Justice is seventy years old and has been elected governor twice. Bette Midler is seventy-six and is a world-renowned singer and actress. Isn’t it time for these two to grow up?

Tragically, crudeness, childishness are too often the normal fare of those in the limelight when someone disagrees with them. None of this is new but it does seem to be growing worse. Consider though what might have happened, if instead of taking a potshot at Bette Midler, the Governor had thanked her for her apology and invited her to visit West Virginia to use her influence to assist the State in combatting their poverty and drug crisis?

As believers, we cannot keep a lost world from wading in the mud but we are to be different. While it’s socially acceptable for pagans to use slurs, insults, and slander – it must not be true of the people of God. We are not to fight fire with fire. Perhaps in the day in which we live one of the most powerful and challenging passages in Scripture is Romans 12:14, 17-21:

“Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse them. Repay no one evil for evil, but give thought to do what is honorable in the sight of all. If possible, so far as it depends on you, live peaceably with all. Beloved, never avenge yourselves, but leave it to the wrath of God, for it is written, ‘Vengeance is mine, I will repay, says the Lord.’ To the contrary, ‘if your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him something to drink; for by so doing you will heap burning coals on his head.’ Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.”

Frederick Buechner wisely defined anger: “Of the seven deadly sins, anger is possibly the most fun. To lick your wounds, to smack your lips over grievances long past, to roll over your tongue the prospect of bitter confrontations still to come, to savor to the last toothsome morsel both the pain you are given and the pain you are giving back—in many ways it is a feast fit for a king. The chief drawback is that what you are wolfing down is yourself. The skeleton at the feast is you.”

Please understand, I’m not suggesting that we are to be Christian doormats, but we are to be the people of grace. We are to be the ones who turn the other cheek, who don’t have to respond to every slam or insult.

Why? We have something that they don’t have. We can tell Daddy what they’ve said and done. The best way to handle our critics and opponents is to “Tell our Father” and leave it all with Him. Let God be their judge, while you offer longsuffering kindness. But you can’t do this alone, you must ask the Spirit to help you. Let Him miraculously work through you.

Corrie ten Boom, the famous Holocaust survivor and committed Christian experienced this miracle. Here’s her story in her own words.

“It was at a church service in Munich, Germany, that I saw him, the former S. S. man who had stood guard at the shower room door in the processing center at Ravensbruck. He was the first of our actual jailers that I had seen since that time. And suddenly it was all there—the roomful of mocking men, the heaps of clothing, my sister’s pain-blanched face. As the church was emptying, he came up to me. ‘How grateful I am for your message, Fraulein. To think that, as you say, [God] has washed my sins away!’ “His hand was thrust out to shake mine. And I, who had preached so often the need to forgive, kept my hand at my side. Even as the angry, vengeful thoughts boiled through me, I saw the sin of them. Jesus Christ had died for this man; was I going to ask for more? ‘Lord Jesus,’ I prayed, ‘forgive me, and help me to forgive him.’ I tried to smile, I struggled to raise my hand. I could not. I felt nothing, not the slightest spark of warmth or charity. And so again I breathed a silent prayer: ‘Jesus, I cannot forgive him. Give me your forgiveness.’ As I took the man’s hand, the most incredible thing happened. From my shoulder along my arm and through my hand a current seemed to pass from me to him, while into my heart sprang a love for this stranger that almost overwhelmed me. And so I discovered that it is not on our forgiveness any more than on our goodness that the world’s healing hinges, but on God’s. When God tells us to love our enemies, He gives, along with the command, the love itself.”

Christians are the forgiven ones. We have experienced grace! We must be the ones who share His grace and forgiveness just as we have received it!