Kids are some of the best teachers!

"Adults are just outdated children" Dr. Seuss

  Okay, I’ll confess. I’m a “kid’s guy.” There’s something about working with kids that I find so fulfilling. Fortunately, I married a “kid’s gal.” My wife, Jane, loves working with kids, too. You’ll rarely see either of us so animated and full of energy than when we’re working with kids. Kids have taught me so many lessons over the years, lessons I hope I never forget.

  Stephen. I think that was his name. I’m not sure but I can still see him in my mind’s eye some forty years later. He was about eight. It was the summer of 1977. I was a counselor at a Camp in New York, in the Tri-State area where New York, New Jersey and Pennsylvania come together. The Camp was called, (no, I’m not making this up) Camp Robin Hood. It focused on ministering to kids from the New York City area. Many of whom had no church background and had never been in the great outdoors.  

  The camp was very rustic. It was built during the presidency of Teddy Roosevelt. None of the cabins had electricity or plumbing. The bathroom was up a fairly steep hill, some two hundred feet away from the cabins. Camp lasted for twelve days, so you really got to know your campers. Each cabin had seven or eight kids per counselor and Stephen was horrible. Whatever I asked him to do, he did the opposite. If I was sharing devotions, he was horsing around. If I told the kids to go one place, he started heading the other. I was one of the lifeguards. Yet, even around the water, Stephen didn’t listen and it really scared me. I was only seventeen. It was my first ministry and my first camp experience – and I yelled, all the time. I found myself yelling and yelling at Stephen but it didn’t do any good. I was walking by the Camp Director’s cabin one night. I’d just been yelling at Stephen again and Tim, the Camp Director, gave me some of the best advice I’ve ever heard for working with kids. He gently told me, “Scott, these kids tuned out yelling when they were about two years old. They’re always being yelled at. They’ve been yelled at so much, they don’t hear it anymore.” Right there, I stopped yelling. It’s rare for me to raise my voice. In a loud world, a quiet approach goes a lot further, especially with kids.

  Leroy. Leroy taught me about how bad a bad family can be on a child. Leroy was also in that first group of boys I had in my cabin. He was nearly angelic. I never had a problem with him. He was quiet, non-assuming, though he always looked just a little sad. Until about the last day or so before the kids were to go home, Leroy was nearly perfect but then he became one of my worst campers. I couldn’t believe it. I finally asked him what was going on and he said, “I don’t want to go home.” Later, I found out Leroy had four or five siblings, all with a different Dad. Home life was so horrible that he’d rather stay at a camp with “camp food,” no electricity or indoor plumbing than go “home.”

  Hanna and Joey. Those two taught me how resilient kids are. This was back when many church’s had bus routes and would go out to pick up kids, and bring them to Sunday School. Our church bus picked them up every week. In the winter, their coats were threadbare and Mom sent them out in a t-shirt or with a light dress. It was her chance to sleep in from a night of partying. Lots of different men moved in and out of their apartment in the two years I was in charge of having them picked up on my bus. Looking back, it must have been pretty horrible, yet they were two of the sweetest kids. Mom shoved them out the door and went back to bed. They probably were abused, yet other than the signs of poverty, you never would have known it. In spite of all that was wrong, they both loved their Mom. 

  Marty Wright. I’ll never forget Marty and probably neither will any of the other kids in his youth group. Yet, I really didn’t know Marty. We were on a winter retreat, playing Capture the Flag in the snow and thirteen year-old Marty had a heart attack and died. My first real encounter with Marty was bending over him in the snow, trying to remember how to give CPR. There had been no heart history. It just happened and Marty was gone. It took me a long time to get over it. There’s something about someone’s life, particularly someone so young, seeping out right in front of you. Marty taught me the unforgettable lesson about the fragility of life.

  Lisa, Jeff, Tammy, Tina, Paul, Camille, Darlene and Diane. There were others in that youth group in Detroit, those eight though, will always stick out in my mind. They taught me a powerful lesson – never underestimate teenagers. We worked through the book of Philippians. I was about as green as freshly mowed grass. But they dug in. They wanted to grow. They loved the Lord and wanted to really know Him. Amazingly, over three decades later, though their lives haven’t been a cake walk, though some of them have gone through some very deep waters, seven of them today are still seeking to serve the Lord. They still love Him and want to do the right thing. Tina though had another appointment, one Thanksgiving weekend. None of us saw it coming. Her car slid out of control on an icy road, and that young mother of four went Home to be with Jesus. She was so vibrant, full of life, truly one of a kind, faithful to Christ. We still dearly miss her.

  There have been so many others. Many of them right here at Grace. I love to hear that they still love Jesus, that they’re still growing in grace. It’s exciting to watch them become parents, even grandparents.

  But there’s one more that was like an adopted son to Jane and I, Rick. This young man lived with his Mom and two sisters. He didn’t have a Dad in his life or really any masculine influence. Those of you who know how unhandy I am will probably find this funny. Because even with my limited resources, I taught Rick how to mow a lawn and how to fish. The reality of being a positive influence is that you don’t have to know a lot, you just maybe have to know a little more than the person you’re mentoring. Thirty years later, the kid who should have been a statistic is now a man who loves Jesus and is still serving Him. They love him at his church in Danville. It’s so fulfilling for Jane and I to see how God is using Rick all these years later.

  I don’t know about you but I’m a kid person. There’s just something about shaping a life for the Lord, working with wet cement. Many of you are doing the same. For some, it’s your children. For others, it’s your grandchildren. For many, it’s just because you care about young lives and see ministering to them as your way to honor the Lord! Only eternity will fully reveal the difference you’ve made and all of the lives you’ve touched! “Jesus said, ‘Let the little children come to me and do not hinder them, for to such belongs the kingdom of heaven’” (Matthew 19:14).

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Burnout is normal!?!

 “Burnout is nature’s way of telling you, you've been going through the motions your soul has departed; you're a zombie, a member of the walking dead, a sleepwalker. False optimism is like administrating stimulants to an exhausted nervous system.”   Sam Keen

 

Currently, Jane and I are on vacation in Tennessee. It’s our third year at a wonderful cabin in an out of the way place called Muddy Pond. With a name like that, you know it’s a bit off the beaten path. So it’s some two weeks of being basically unplugged and technology free in natural quietness. Our neighbors are the bullfrogs who serenade us each night, a blue heron who periodically drops in, and more catfish than I can count. I buy a big bag of dog food and feed them. It’s like having underwater pets.

  But there’s one hurdle I’ll struggle with nearly every day. Unfortunately, it’s not just when I’m on vacation. Like many of you, I wrestle with this monster nearly every day, particularly on a day off. His name is GUILT.

  The work of a pastor, like that of a farmer (maybe that’s why the Bible calls us shepherds) or the mother of young children, is never done. There’s always one more person you should call, one more letter you should write, one more sermon to prepare. Where’s the line? When is enough time spent in prayer or Bible study? What about evangelism or encouragement? Papers to file start piling up, books that should be read, another meeting to attend. Somehow you’re supposed to be a good husband, available parent, friendly neighbor, keep up with house chores, yard work and car repairs. Many of you feel the same pressure. In our day of economic cutbacks where employers are seeking to stay competitive, they continually ask less people to produce more and more.

  Often I find myself waking up in the middle of the night, remembering things I need to do or some forgotten detail that I overlooked. Then, as much as I try, sleep seems to allude me.

  Busyness, burn out, fatigue are so much a part of our lives that tragically, we’ve accepted them as normative. It’s why many fall asleep in front of the TV or looking at a screen. It’s why we don’t read. The quietness of stopping, just sitting down is difficult for us. And when we do, we fall asleep, so we give up. It’s why too many of us are on the brink of burn out.

  What are some of the signs of burnout? A biblical example of burn out is the Old Testament prophet, Elijah. I’d encourage you to take time to read his story this week. You’ll find the account of Elijah on the verge of a major breakdown in 1 Kings 19. As a high fever can be a sign of serious illness, these are some of the symptoms of burn out.  

  We depreciate our life and worth. Your life is filled with negative self-talk. Dark tapes play over and over in your mind like a broken record: “I’m a nobody. My life doesn’t matter. I don’t count. I have no value.” We compare ourselves with others and their accomplishments: “I’m not doing enough.” We compare our problems with the seemingly easy life others have. We compare our talents or gifts, and think how meager they are compared to the super star quality of the person next door or in the next office. But the worst thing we do is when we compare our expectations with the way life has really turned out. Failures then become final. When we begin to look at the way life turned out compared to the way we expected it would, we set ourselves up for anger, bitterness and burnout.

  We take on responsibility that’s not legitimately ours. You can’t make your kids do the right thing. A preacher can’t get people to respond in the right way to God’s Word. You can’t make an addict quit. But we still try, we up the ante on our inner control freak. Then, we blame ourselves for things we can’t control and that aren’t our fault. We develop a superhero syndrome, attempting to be general manager of the universe.

  We exaggerate what’s wrong and our problems. We overemphasize all that’s wrong in our lives, yet overlook God’s blessings. We consistently focus on the negative whether it’s in our life or in the world around us. We become critical, negaholics…and it often shows on our faces. When you’re drained, fatigued or exhausted, you have difficulty seeing life accurately.

  We pay too much attention to our feelings. Ours is an emotionally driven world. When we focus on how we feel instead of what’s true, it discourages us. Our emotions continually deceive us. Just because you feel a certain way doesn’t mean it’s real. Ask any professional athlete and he’ll tell how discouraged he can feel after a great performance. He’s drained emotionally, so it’s easy to distort reality. He may have done a great job, but that’s not the message he hears from his emotions. Sometimes we must ignore our feelings. Feelings are highly unreliable. So what’s the cure?

  Rest, both physically and spiritually. When we feel overwhelmed, most cut back on the one area that helps us deal with being overwhelmed – rest. We need to go to bed at a decent time. Sometimes taking a ten minute nap helps us recharge in the middle of the day. God understands your body better than you do. Psalm 127:2 (Living Bible) “God wants His loved ones to get their proper rest.” Sometimes in life the most spiritual thing you can do is go to bed. When you’re tired, you can’t handle a whole lot. Often a good night’s rest will radically change your perspective, literally overnight.

  If you’ve set aside (or never started) the habit of spending time in God’s Word and prayer, restart. Physical exercise is helpful; spiritual exercise is the best. Resist the tyranny of the urgent. Instead, renew a fresh awareness of God’s power and presence in your life. Learn to pray for others, too.

  Grow in gratitude. I’ve found that if I’ll take the time to write notes of gratitude, it lifts up my spirit and recharges me. We must learn to thank God for even the “little” blessings and work at turning our focus from the negative to the positive. It’s easy to let negative things dominate our time and thoughts. When we stop letting them control us, when we start spending more time with positive/grateful people, our emotional state dramatically improves. Serving others does the same thing, getting our mind off ourselves. There’s something very powerful about serving others. It’s regenerating. Depressed individuals are self-absorbed, yet serving others is medicine to our souls. 

  Learn to have fun. There’s a world of difference between taking life seriously and taking myself too seriously. Most of us need to learn to lighten up, to laugh more, to do something unplanned, even spontaneous. When we do, we find ourselves rejoicing in the Lord more.

  Remember the famous entertainer, Frank Sinatra? He was known for his song, I Did It My Way. Sadly, his last words before he died were, “I’m losing it.” Even Frank Sinatra didn’t have power over life and death. He wasn’t God and couldn’t control the timing of his own death. If you’re a believer, God is your Father and He has it all under control. We can trust Him. As we do, we learn to rest in Him more and more. 

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Repentance: Without it "Christian" is just a nice meaningless word

True repentance starts with the recognition of the holiness of our God. We cannot rightly perceive the greatness of His goodness without apprehending the puniness of our own. Such a realization causes us to fall down in humility before God.”   Bryan Chappell

One of the great tragedies that a pastor periodically must deal with is spouse abuse. Can you imagine a man coming to his pastor for counseling because he periodically smacks his wife around? In their conversation, his pastor asks him, “How often does this happen?” The husband shamefacedly replies, “Every Friday night. I get home from a long week of work. I’m beginning to decompress, yet I look for something to pick a fight about. Before the night is over, I’ve lost my temper and smacked her around.” And the pastor responds, “Well, it’s obvious that this has become a habit. Everyone knows habits are hard to break. Why don’t you work at cutting back and only smack her around once a month?”

  Or a woman is committing adultery. Her lover is her neighbor and every day, as soon as her husband is off to work, her neighbor comes over and they have sex. She begins to feel guilty and goes to see a Christian counselor about it. And her therapist counsel her, “Well, it’s obvious that this has become a habit. Everyone knows habits are hard to break. Why don’t you work at cutting back and only commit adultery once a week?”

  By now (hopefully) you’re thinking that’s nuts! It’s repugnant that survey after survey reveal that there is little difference in the moral and ethical behavior between those who profess to know Christ and those who don’t. So what’s the problem? Repentance. We have bought into a Satanic and pernicious lie that someone can come to Christ and simply add Christ to his/her life, but not subtract sin. It is a change in belief without a change in behavior. Yet, the Bible is clear, that if there is salvation, if there is new life in Christ, there is repentance.

  So what is repentance?  According to renowned theologian, Dr. J. I. Packer, “The New Testament word for repentance means changing one’s mind so that one’s views, values, goals and ways are changed and one’s whole life is lived differently. The change is radical, both inwardly and outwardly; mind and judgment, will and affections, behavior and life style, motives and purposes, are all involved. Repenting means starting to live a new life.” Though the Bible continually commands repentance, as Acts 3:19 says, “Repent therefore, and turn back, that your sins may be blotted out.” Repentance is not optional, it’s an indispensable part of salvation. Yet, the vital word of repentance is one of the least used words in the Church today. Add to that, ours is a world that won’t tolerate the mention of sin. Even in churches sin is frequently defined only in psychological or sociological terms. As a result, the biblical teaching on repentance has inevitably been ignored. Yet, as Spurgeon wisely stated, “We shall not adjust our Bible to the age, but the age to the Bible.”

  Knowing what repentance is, and actually repenting, are essential to true Christianity. Jesus Christ Himself said that if we do not repent, we will perish! It’s vital for us to know and study what the Bible has to say about repentance. Our salvation and eternal destiny hangs in the balance. We risk being wrong about repentance at the cost of our eternal souls.

  As we study Scripture, we discover that in true Biblical repentance, there will be three spiritual actions that occur as repentance takes place and God does a work of grace in the sinner’s heart.

  Conviction. We admit our sin. Each lost person must see themselves as a lost, ruined, guilty, desperately wicked sinner without hope or help, in danger of eternal hell. In repentance, a lost sinner not only sees himself as a sinner, but recognizes the fact that he has sinned against a righteous and holy God. The message that Paul preached was: “repentance toward God, and faith in our Lord Jesus Christ” (Acts 20:21). In repentance, there will always be confession of sin to God (Psa. 32:5; 51:1-4).

  Contrition. Our sin is looked upon with disgust, even hatred. When we see ourselves as we appear before God, we’re brought to a place where there is godly sorrow for our sin and we despise it. “I confess my iniquity; I am sorry for my sin” (Psalm 38:18); “For godly grief produces a repentance that leads to salvation without regret…” (2 Corinthians 7:10).

  We must hate sin if we are going to love God. Can you imagine someone saying, “I’m Nazi who’s pro-Israel.” It’s one or the other. When there is true repentance, there’s not only the desire to escape the consequences of sin, but to be rid of sin itself as a thing displeasing to God. It’s detested like a foul bandage filled with disease.

  Conversion. When repentance takes place sin is abandoned. It’s like someone who has been committing adultery. For the marriage to be restored, there must be the abandoning of the partner in adultery and committing to one’s spouse anew. As Isaiah 55:7 says, “Let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts; let him return to the Lord, that He may have compassion on him, and to our God, for He will abundantly pardon.” Repentance is not only a heart broken for sin, but also from sin. We must forsake what we want God to forgive. But it’s not enough just to turn away from sin; we must also turn to God for salvation. “To open their eyes, so that they may turn from darkness to light and from the power of Satan to God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins…that they should repent and turn to God…” (Acts 26:18 & 20).

  When there is true repentance, there is conviction, contrition, and conversion as one turns from sin to the Jesus Christ for salvation. Salvation is deliverance from our sin, not merely from a sinful environment.

  Wabush, a town in a remote portion of Labrador, Canada, that was completely isolated for some time. Recently a road was cut through the wilderness to reach it. So Wabush now has one road leading into it, and thus, only on one road leading out. If someone would travel the unpaved road for six to eight hours to get into Wabush, there is only way he or she could leave—by completely turning around. Each of us, by birth, arrives in a town called Sin. As in Wabush, there is only one way out—a road built by God himself. But in order to take that road, one must first turn around. That complete about face is what the Bible calls repentance, and without it, there's no way out of town and there is no salvation.  

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The flag is not the problem!

"Racism isn't a bad habit; it's a sin. The answer is not sociology, it's theology." Tony Evans

 

  There’s a huge public outcry to remove the Confederate flag from the State House in South Carolina. Removing the flag isn’t going to cure the disease of racism. Our culture loves to focus on external and symbolic change, rather than the heart and true change. Eradicating all symbols of the Confederacy won’t end racism in our country any more than taking the label off a bottle of poison makes it non-toxic.

  Racism isn’t new. It goes back to Genesis and the Fall. It’s not an American problem, or even a white versus black problem. A basic study of history and contemporary culture reveals that this horrible sin crosses borders and time. All of us are familiar with the white Aryanism that Adolph Hitler and the Nazis were obsessed with. Pol Pot and the Khmer Rouge, though Asian, persecuted ethnic Chinese.

  There is only one race—the human race. Caucasians, Africans, Asians, Indians, Arabs and Jews aren’t different races. Rather, they’re different ethnicities of the human race. All human beings have the same physical characteristics (with minor variations, of course). More importantly, for a Bible believer, all human beings are equally created in the image and likeness of God (Genesis 1:26-27). God loved the world so much that He sent His Son, Jesus, to lay down His life for us (John 3:16). The “world” includes all people groups.

  God doesn’t show partiality or favoritism and neither must we. James 2:4 describes those who discriminate as “judges with evil thoughts.” The Bible instead commands us to love our neighbors as ourselves, making no distinction of ethnicity or people groups. Racism finds its roots in the diabolical sin of pride. All forms of racism, prejudice, and discrimination, whether ethnic, economic, educational, gender-based or intelligence-based are an affront to the sacrifice of Christ on the cross for all people.

  Anyone who is racist, prejudiced or discriminatory need to repent. It’s a sin. There’s no rationalization or justification for it. Jesus commands us to love one another as He loves us (John 13:34). If God is impartial and loves us with impartiality, we must love others with that same high standard. When we treat an individual or people-group with contempt, we’re mistreating image-bearers of God. Even if it’s only in our heart, we’re abusing someone whom God loves and for whom Jesus died.

  Racism, in varying forms and to various degrees, has been a plague on humanity since the beginning. As a racist needs to repent, the Bible commands those who are victims of racism, prejudice or discrimination to forgive. Ephesians 4:32 clearly commands us, “Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you.” Racists may not deserve forgiveness, yet each of us deserved God’s forgiveness far less.

  Since we’re all of one race, the human race or what Scripture calls Adam’s race, we all share Adam’s story. This includes the broken condition into which Adam and Eve fell when they rebelled against God. When our first parents rebelled, it was attributed to us – in a real sense, we rebelled along with them. Original sin means Adam’s sin brought on us both guilt and a fallen nature. Adam brought us guilt in that he represented us. When he sinned and died spiritually, we died in him. Because Adam is our ancient biological father, we inherit his sinful nature.

  The good news and our only hope is that God has addressed the issue of sin — including racism — in the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Jesus succeeded where Adam failed; Jesus succeeds where we fail. By faith, we place confidence in Jesus as our true and final representative and have peace with both God and our fellow human beings. Because of salvation we can overcome sin and death through Christ. Someday we will be free of both.

  Scripture teaches very clearly that the Gospel brings an end to interracial squabbling. Our common humanity supersedes our national and ethnic distinctions. Delusions of cultural superiority have absolutely no place in Christ’s kingdom. At salvation we become one Body, one Church, one entity in Jesus Christ. But because of our natural condition, which the Bible calls sinful, we still experience racial strife, even within the Church. This is an enslavement from which the Gospel sets us free but we must choose by God’s grace to live in the liberty that was purchased for us on the cross. One day the Church, which supersedes all ethnic lines and cultural barriers, will meet before God in eternity and worship Him together in one glorious voice forever. It’s already happening right this very minute.

  The problem with someone who is a racist is not fundamentally that they are racist. The core issue is that racists and racist comments only reveal the spiritual deadness of ungodly spiritual heart and the need for God through Christ and by His Spirit to resurrect and transform one’s spiritual heart from the dead. When someone is perceived to be guilty of racism, there’s usually an outcry for them to be banished from the public square. Somehow we foolishly believe that solves the evil problem of racism. It doesn’t and never will. Instead, racism only hides or goes covert.

  As Bible-believers, we must understand and share that there is only one hope, there is only one solution to racism – the Gospel! If a racist trusts in and follows Jesus Christ by faith, the One who died on the cross and was resurrected from the dead for all types of sins and for all types, races, and kinds of sinners, then and only then can he/she truly be liberated from racism. If a racist chooses to become a Christian, the Gospel promises that he/she will go to heaven, a place filled with many sinful Christ-followers—even liberated racist Christ-followers.

  Do you struggle with racism? Are you partial to your own group? If we’re honest, we have to admit that most of us are. Sadly, that’s because we’re foolish enough to rank people by standards the all-wise God of creation does not. Imagine for a second what it might look like to fully recognize that we stand before God utterly by grace, when wrath is in fact deserved. Would you and I still show preference to persons who share our skin color?

  Often Christians, depending on their political persuasion, simply read from the culture's favorite scripts. But shouldn't those who have been born-again sound different from those who are lost? Shouldn't we be reading from a different script, one based on a biblical worldview, rather than an unregenerate world one? Peter calls black, white, Asian, Hispanic Christians together a “chosen race” (1 Pet. 2:9). Shouldn’t this reality affect the look and feel of our church? Our attitude toward those who are “different”? Even how we feel about ourselves?  

  In the church alone we can simultaneously affirm two points: God created people as both different and good. Those differences hold absolutely no weight in our standing or rank relative to one another, since our worthiness depends on something outside of us—on the worthiness of Jesus Christ. So here’s a radical, real world idea – let’s “outdo one another in showing honor,” as Paul puts it (Rom. 12:10). Ask God for wisdom and grace on how you can personally, in very practical ways, outdo members of other ethnic groups in showing them honor and grace, as you have been shown honor and grace by our gracious God!
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A few good (but not perfect) men...

"A father is a man who expects his son to be as good a man as he meant to be." Frank A. Clark 

  More times than I like to think about, I’ve felt that my “Daddy Permit” ought to be revoked. Any Dad who’s honest, I believe, probably feels the same way. What an encouragement the Bible is when it comes to fathers. God’s Word challenges us with Dads in real time, yet paints them as they truly were. It doesn’t sanitize them, creating some unrealistic, idealistic Super Dad, but as real Dads who loved their children, loved God yet still struggled with their own sin nature and shortcomings. It drives me back to the Cross and the Gospel, and the only Father who is perfect.

  One of my favorite quotes that gives me so much hope for my children is from Thomas Fuller, an English churchman and historian. Thomas Fuller was a prolific author, as well as the chaplain to Oliver Cromwell. His powerful insight encourages my heart, that my children will walk closer to the Lord and be more faithful to Him than I have been. He wrote: “Lord, I find the genealogy of my Savior strangely checkered with four remarkable changes in four immediate generations. (1) Rehoboam begat Abijah; that is, a bad father begat a bad son. (2) Abijah begat Asa; that is, a bad father begat a good son. (3) Asa begat Jehoshaphat; that is, a good father a good son. (4) Jehoshaphat begat Joram; that is, a good father a bad son. I see, Lord, from hence that my father's piety cannot be entailed; that is bad news for me. But I see also that actual impiety is not always hereditary; that is good news for my son.”

  Perusing the pages of Scripture, I find some wonderful models of godly fatherhood. Caleb, was a Dad with a vision for the next generation. When nearly everyone else doubted God and were shaking in their sandals, Caleb joined Joshua, in that wonderful do it – “we can do it, we can do it!” Many men are great, yet fail in encouraging greatness in the next generation. Toward the end of his life, Caleb is still claiming new territory and challenging others to do the same, to take great risks and step out on faith. His daughter follows in his steps, claiming unconquered ground in the Promised Land for the glory of God. Too often, we seek to protect our children, essentially handing them their future on a silver platter rather than challenging them to trust God and step out on faith on their own.

  While David was such a disappointment in so many ways, yet when God turned down his holy desire to build a great house for God, David did the next best thing. Though he wasn’t going to be allowed to build a house for the Lord, he prepared the way for his son, Solomon, to honor God. Later when, with all the political intrigue and coups of a Games of Thrones court, a plan was hatched to circumvent Solomon from assuming Israel’s throne after David’s death, David immediately vacated the throne, having Solomon anointed king. He also cleaned up his own messes so that a young Solomon wouldn’t have to deal with the debris from his failures. While we must not fight our children’s battles, we should seek to remove needless impediments out of their way that might dissuade them from following God’s will, and guide them in ways that encourage them to trust Him. 

  Sacrifice, particularly for one’s children seemingly grows rarer among today’s Dads. Weekends are theirs for their hobbies. After work is for “me time.” Though it might put at risk their children’s future, rarely will they slow down their career climb, even if longer hours or a relocation will potentially be a detriment to their child’s spiritual health. Often pastors are the worst violators of this, snatching children out of schools and away from friends who encourage them spiritually, just so that they can take a bigger ministry. Scripture only gives us the briefest glances of Joseph, Jesus’ adopted father. The little that we know of him causes me to admire him. As soon as he knew Jesus was in danger, he doesn’t just get out of town, he leaves the country. He left a new business and friends in the middle of the night for what must have been an unpleasant trek down into Egypt. Even when he returns, rather than going back where it might be easier to start over, he chooses the less ideal town of Nazareth to re-establish himself. A Dad who sacrifices, particularly economically, because it’s in the best interest of his children, is far too rare even in the Church.

  Probably, this one is closer to my heart than others, the Apostle Paul was a man who looked outside of his own blood descendants to make a difference in someone else’s life. Though busy with ministry, Paul invested in the young man, Timothy, adopting him as his own son in the faith. Think how much richer the Church is because of Paul’s love for the Lord that he poured out into Timothy. Many godly men, particularly after their own children are grown, shut their eyes in our fatherless and poor fathering world to have a godly influence on a young man. Yet, such an investment can pay off in huge spiritual dividends. We know too that Paul was single and may have never been married. Yet, this single, very busy man poured his life into a young life for the glory of God. May there be many more in our churches who will follow his example!

  Abraham struggled with fear most of his life, yet was called the “friend of God.” His spiritual priorities challenge me. He wouldn’t even let his long awaited and promised son, Isaac, to come between him and the Lord. He obeyed God, even if meant the sacrifice of his own son. That staggers me. I have to wonder, “Would I do that?” I hope so. I hope that I wouldn’t even let those that I love the most in this world, that I would gladly give my life for, that I wouldn’t even let them come between me and my God. Yet, many a man has become bitter and turned his back on God because he felt God had asked too much when God asked him to “have no other idols before God,” particularly when that idol was his own family. What we think is too great of a sacrifice costs too much when we choose to not trust and obey God. Too often what we think we can’t afford to lose, we lose in a greater way – we lose spiritually, losing that intimate relationship with the Father and our faith, just because we don’t understand God’s plan. 

  No, the Dads in Scripture aren’t perfect and neither are we. Many of them have left a righteous path for us to follow as they followed their Heavenly Father and sought to please Him. They were fathers who were examples for us and we would do well to follow their steps. 

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Honest Questions in a LGBT World

“A rejection of the Bible’s authority on an issue such as homosexuality is a theological problem – not merely a moral controversy. No church can remain divided on this question, and no faithful believer should remain in a church that refuses to be bound to God’s Word.” Albert Mohler

  There aren’t many times that I hesitate to address a subject, either in preaching or in writing. Yet, when it comes to the bi-sexual, transgender, homosexual issue – I find that I walk with great trepidation. Primarily, because those who reject Scripture’s authority and God’s standards of righteousness, often caricature those who dare to say that any sexual sin is wrong as phobic, a bigot, a Neanderthal – and those are some of the kinder terms. If you engage those who don’t understand biblical Christianity and for whom Scripture either has no authority or is culturally fluid, you must follow the sage advice of King Solomon, “A soft answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger” (Proverbs 15:1), and the words of the Lord Jesus, “be wise as serpents and innocent as doves” (Matthew 10:16).

  We’re commanded to “speak the truth in love” to a lost world. It’s unloving to stay silent as human beings—image bearers of God—languish in their sin. Telling the truth means telling those that outside the Church that God has absolute moral standards. Speaking the truth in love though means speaking in love not via juvenile online jabs but over a meal or the phone, not through clenched teeth, but with sad eyes and a broken heart.

  As parents and grandparents, you’re the best one to have a conversation with your children and grandchildren about biblical morality. Rather than pontificating or dogmatizing, instead asking questions that require thinking are a wiser approach. Because there has been a cultural brainwashing that started as a trickle in 1969 with the Stonewall Uprising, yet has become a tsunami today, there are great many myths and misconceptions. Let me suggest several questions to ask (they’re not in any particular order).

  What’s the percentage of gay individuals in America? The first is a simple numbers game. You might start this dialogue with other questions like: “Name one show or movie that does NOT have a gay character?” “When was the last time you watched a newscast or read a newspaper or magazine without at least one story (usually more) about something related to a homosexual issue?” On the percentage question, you’ll usually receive answers of anywhere from 15% to 30%. The real numbers are less than 5% and probably less than 3%. In contrast, how many evangelical Christians are there in America? Gallup says 39%. Wikipedia says 13%. Can you think of even one TV show that has an evangelical Christian character? When was the last time you saw or read a story that painted an evangelical in a positive light? With tongue in cheek, maybe we should ask, “Why isn’t there an annual evangelical parade or evangelical fest in our major cities?”

  “Why is ‘born this way’ a valid argument when it comes to sexuality, yet an invalid argument when it comes to virtually any other sphere of life?” Billions of dollars have been spent to find an alcoholic gene without any success. Would someone who says, “I can’t help it. I’m born a liar…or thief…or rapist” get a pass? If someone is “born this way,” isn’t it cruel of God to say that their inborn design is morally wrong? Can you imagine the angst and backlash there would be if someone in our health obsessed world rationalized, “Well, I was born a smoker” or “I’m obese because I was born with a Big Mac Attack addiction”?

  Usually, those who believe in a “gay gene,” (though any scientific evidence is very sketchy) also believe in evolution. One of the foundational premises of evolutionary theory is “survival of the fittest.” A gay gene is thus impossible. There would be no reproduction and thus, no survival. If there is a gay gene and evolution was true, then the gay gene would go extinct in one generation. So do people have same sex attraction? Do some have a predisposition toward homosexuality? I believe so. I’m more inclined to believe that it’s a matter of nurture, rather than nature. As a heterosexual, I have a predisposition to sexual sin and have to continually guard my eyes and heart…just like everyone else.  

  “Did you know that biblical Christianity demands radical morality?”  Those outside the Church think our position on homosexuality is radical. Yet, a biblical standard of morality is much more radical. As Christians, we believe that a teenage guy and girl who have sex in the backseat of a pick-up are sinning. The unmarried heterosexual couple living down the street is sinning. In fact, any sexual activity that takes place outside of the marriage covenant between a husband and wife is sinful. What’s more, Jesus takes this sexual ethic a step further and goes to the heart of the matter. That means that any time we even lust after someone else, we’re sinning. Jesus’ radical view of sexuality shows all of us up as guilty, sexual sinners. Jesus doesn’t just condemn adultery, as does one of the Ten Commandments. Jesus condemns even the mental lust that leads to adultery, all with the purpose of offering us transformed hearts that begin beating in step with His radical demands.

    “Did you know that a holy God offers us a solution with His radical love, mercy and grace?” Jesus’ teaching on sexuality shows us that there’s something wrong with all of us, something that can only be fixed by what Jesus did for us on the Cross when He died for all of our sins and in His resurrection. Christianity teaches that all people are born with a bent toward sin. And professing Christians who mistreat those have succumbed to sexual sin are sinning. It’s wrong for anyone anywhere to mock, taunt, or bully another human being made in God’s image.

  That said, we must make one thing clear in regard to civil discourse: To differ is not to hate. The silly notion that disagreeing with homosexual behavior necessarily results in harm to gay people is designed to shut down dialogue and immediately rule one point of view (in this case, the Christian one) out of bounds. As Christians, we’re to love our neighbors and seek their good, even when we disagree with them or their choices. The radical example of Jesus dying for His enemies necessarily affects the way I think and behave about this and other issues.

  The end message is that God loves every sinner, as hard as that may be for us to comprehend. It doesn't mean He overlooks evil or pretends it’s not serious. My sin, your sin, their sin is so serious that only one remedy could be found to wipe it away: the blood of God’s own Son. Jesus was absolutely pure, but on the cross all of our sins were placed on Him. Jesus took the horrible penalty we deserved. It’s why the Bible says, “the blood of Jesus, His Son, purifies us from all sin” (1 John 1:7). God’s grace can change even the worst person. He radically changed the most evil person I know – Me! The good news for a gay person is the same good news for a straight person. Homosexuality isn't the chief sin; unbelief is. Jesus loves us so much that died for every type of sin and for all types of sinners. And we must reach out to gay people with the love of God, just as we in our wicked state were reached with that same radical love by a gracious God.

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Peanuts, Popcorn...NOT for the Pulpit!

“May I beg you carefully to judge every preacher, not by his gifts, not by his elocutionary powers, not by his status in society, not by the respectability of his congregation, not by the prettiness of his church, but by this – does he preach the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation?”   C.H. Spurgeon

  Sadly, for the most part, the contemporary Church is spiritually emaciated. You often sense it as you walk in the door. There’s a lack of seriousness, fervency, or even a heart for God. May that not be true of us!

  There are many reasons for this sad situation. A primary one is that we’ve jettisoned what Scripture teaches is to be a priority – the preaching and teaching of God’s Word. Recently, I was told that we use the Bible too much at Grace to be a successful church. The typical church measures success by numbers of attendees and size of the budget. Churches are constantly looking for that next “thing” that will bring in crowds and cash. The end result is that we’re pragmatically driven, rather than biblically motivated. But having a big crowd doesn’t mean we’re making disciples or are successful in God’s eyes.

  From a human perspective, one of the dumbest things we do is put a man behind a pulpit and have him deliver a monologue. Adding to the tedium, he uses an ancient book written two millennia ago in an ancient language as his primary resource. Could anything be more passé? Yet, amazingly, the Bible commands us to “preach” God’s Word and even warns us that preaching will be considered stupid, “For since, in the wisdom of God, the world did not know God through wisdom, it pleased God through the folly of what we preach to save those who believe… but we preach Christ crucified, a stumbling block to Jews and folly to Gentiles…For the foolishness of God is wiser than men, and the weakness of God is stronger than men” (1 Cor. 1:21-25). But because we’re this world success driven, we use cheap substitutes for preaching like…

  Entertainment. In many churches, you’re not sure if you’re in a worship service or a circus. The music, light show, drama, video and dance routine drive the service. Preaching is a sidebar. Church gurus tell us we need these things so we don’t bore people. While there are boring preachers, the Bible is anything but boring. Martin Lloyd Jones said, “Preaching is theology coming through a man who is on fire. A man who can speak about these things dispassionately has no right whatsoever to be in a pulpit and should never be allowed to enter one.” God’s eternal Word needs to grip the heart of the preacher and the congregation by the power of the Holy Spirit.

  Sharing. A pastor will say something like, “There are some things I just want to share with you today…” Since when is the man of God some Dr. Phil and Oprah combo? God called the preacher to preach His message. Because it reveals the human heart, because we’re naked before a Holy God, it’s often uncomfortable…even offensive. We dare not remove the offense from the Gospel: I’m a mess, you’re a mess, this world’s a mess and there is no cure except Jesus Christ and His cross. Either you run to Christ as Savior or you’ll face Him as Judge. There is no in between.

  Sermonettes. Anyone want a discount open heart surgery? Half the price, half the time. When we preach God’s Word, we’re doing soul surgery. You can’t do that in 20 minutes. It takes time. Truth must be explained clearly. It needs personal application. We also naturally resist it, so resistance must be broken down. It’s impossible to do meaningful life change in a hurry.

  How can I listen to a sermon so that I get as much as I can out of it? Even those of us who believe God’s plan and command is the preaching of His Word have often given little thought on how to listen to a sermon. Yet, shouldn’t we be highly motivated to learn how to develop the spiritual discipline of listening to a sermon? If for nothing else, just the practical, utilitarian reason of not wasting time. If you’re an adult who’s been in church for several years, you’ve spent hundreds of hours sitting through sermons. Just the sheer amount of time we spend listening to sermons should spark some curiosity in us on how to listen to a sermon effectively.

  And there’s a far greater motivation for a believer to want to listen to a sermon well: Scripture teaches that preaching is God’s design and His great gift to us (1 Cor. 1:20-25, Eph. 4:7-16 & 2 Tim. 4:1-5). In our ADHD world, listening to a sermon is a learned discipline that can be developed. If we know preaching is God’s plan and we’re going to spend lots of hours doing it, shouldn’t we want to get good at it? Learning to listen well to a sermon will change your life and maximize the effect of the preaching of God’s Word upon your life. Here are some basic pointers:

  It’s requires effort. With our growing increase of technology, we’re probably the most distracted generation in history. That means you’re going to struggle to concentrate to listen to a monologue for forty minutes. That doesn’t mean something is wrong with you. Yet, like anything worthwhile, it’s going to demand that you put forth some real effort.

  It means pre-planning. It’s the same advice your parents gave you when you were a child. Go to bed early. Have your clothes and other items ready before you go to bed. Get up at a decent time so you don’t have to rush. Leave home with enough time so you can relax. Plan for the rest of the day beforehand. If you have to think about Sunday afternoon – What you’re going to eat? Who you’re spending time with? What time is the game on? – You’ll have difficulty focusing during the preaching.  

  It demands thinking. Since at Grace, we preach through books of the Bible, most Sundays, you know in advance what passage is going to be preached on. Why not take a few moments during the week to read the text, familiarize yourself with it, and begin thinking through it so you aren’t starting from scratch when the sermon starts? Perhaps do a little research and work through some background information on the passage.

  Please pray. Pray in advance for the sermon time. Preaching is a very spiritual phenomenon: God revealed through Christ revealed through the Scriptures revealing a particular message through His appointed, earthly messenger to a particular audience on a particular Sunday. If you fail to approach it spiritually, you won’t experience its full impact on your life. Pray for the Holy Spirit to give the preacher His message and to help him deliver it. Pray for our church family and yourself to hear and understand it. That all requires the work of the Spirit working in us.

  It means knowing how you’re wired. Know your learning style and prepare for the sermon time accordingly. If you’re easily distracted by people around you, sit in the front and center of the room. Take extra notes. Engage the material, asking questions. Taking notes usually forces us to concentrate more and keeps our minds focused on the message. 
  God’s Word is a priceless treasure. Let’s determine to value the time invested listening to Scripture being taught!

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