“Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace among those with whom he is pleased!” (Luke 2:14) 

Bah!  Humbug!

Of course, you recognize those “grump lines” … and their famous author, Ebenezer Scrooge.  Old Scrooge couldn’t stand the merriment.  For his sour old nature, the bottom line was profit, money, dollar$!

I’ve been called “Scrooge,” too.  Oh, not to my face and not in so many words.  Let me explain.

I, too, enjoy the Christmas “season.”  I’m a grandpa and I delight in the simple expectancy of little children, their joys, their delights.  And I enjoy silent, still nights, ground covered in snow at minus 40 degrees when the silence is extra silent and the snow crunches beneath your feet.

But I tire of the schizophrenic season of Christmas currently celebrated by too many Christians.  On the one hand, we celebrate Jesus, born of a virgin, laid in a feeding trough in a small village in Israel.  We celebrate, along with the angels, the shepherds, and the magi the announcement of a King.  We rejoice with Isaiah at the Wonderful Counselor, the Mighty God, the Everlasting Father, and the Prince of Peace … now tiny and wrapped in swaddling clothes.

But we also tend to preach a kind of peace not intended that first Christmas.  We “believe in” a quiet, snow-filled, silent night with kids in their pajamas and hot cocoa in hand.  We want to believe, if even for one brief night, that all the world is at rest and peace.

Not so.  Friends of mine just buried their twenty-two year old daughter last Sunday.  A dear family within our care will lay to rest their beloved husband, father and grandfather before they celebrate Christmas.  Do the homeless enjoy the “warmth” of Christmas?  How about the millions of orphans around the world?  December 25 brings no change, no warmth, no one to want them.

Do nations stop threatening one another?  Do thieves stop stealing toys from children?  Will Congress … no, I’m not going there.  Have you even heard of the over 600 dead and thousands homeless in the Philippines from a tropical storm a few days ago?

Now, do you see the “Scrooge” nature in me?  I read in the Gospel that Jesus stepped into this world because it was broken, because it needed a Savior, because sin has its powerful grip on humankind, and because the prince of this world is desperately at work.

You see, if the world is that chocolate-filled, snow-covered, happy-happy place we pretend at Christmas, we wouldn’t need a Savior.  But we need him more than ever.  And he offers himself again to us, to this world.

Okay, so what can I / we do?  First, just take a simple attitude check.  Do I have any compassion for the broken that Jesus cares about?  He sees them as lost sheep without a shepherd.  Do I?

Second, is my treasure where my heart is … or is my heart where my treasure is?  Do I invest throughout the year in opportunities to care for those in need … sponsoring a child, giving during times of disaster, helping those in need?

Finally, perhaps I could just take some time by myself or with my family at Christmas to at least acknowledge those who are broken or broken-hearted.  We could pray for them, recognizing Jesus’ attention to them and foster compassion.

So enjoy the fire, cocoa in hand, and (hopefully) the falling snow outside.  Thank God for his wonderful gifts and Gift.  And thank him for his compassion on us all, at Christmas and always.

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“ … you shall call his name Jesus, …” (Matthew 1:21)

“ … they shall call his name Immanuel.” (Matthew 1:23) 

Matthew’s birth narrative assigns two names to Bethlehem’s latest new-born, “Jesus” and “Immanuel”.  A first name and a middle name?  A given name and a ‘nick-name’?  A proper name and a name added for parental use when the little fellow was in trouble?

“Jesus” was a Hebrew name meaning “salvation”, the New Testament equivalent of the Old Testament Joshua or Yeshua.  In Jesus’ case, it described his earthly mission for he came not to liberate Israel from Rome but to liberate every human being from slavery and imprisonment to sin, a far worse taskmaster than Rome.

“Immanuel” was also a Hebrew term meaning “God with us.”  “Immanuel” is found in only three places in the Scriptures, first in Isaiah 7:14 in which the virgin conception of Jesus is forecast.  In Isaiah 8:8, God promises punishment upon his people Israel for their lack of faith.  The dreaded Assyrians would sweep down upon Israel like a flood “and its outspread wings will fill the breadth of your land, O Immanuel.”  The third occurrence is in Matthew 1:23, the historic fulfillment of Isaiah 7:14.

The flood-punishment scene in Isaiah 8, however, takes a significant turn.  Though foreigners would invade Israel, neither their words (threats) nor their actions would stand “because God is with us,” because the land is God’s land and the people are God’s people.  Verses 8 and 10 end the same way: “immanu-El”.

I cherish the name “Jesus” for I have personally received God’s gracious gift of forgiveness of my sins through Jesus.  He is my sin-bearer, my savior, my Yeshua.

I cherish the name “Immanuel” for God is with me, with his people.  David described that presence differently.  “Where can I go from your Spirit?  Or where shall I flee from your presence?  If I ascend to heaven, YOU!  If I make my bed in Sheol, behold, YOU!  If I take the wings of the morning and dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea, even there your hand shall lead me, and your right hand shall hold me.” (Psalm 139:7-10)

To those who do not know God through Jesus, this every-where, always-there presence of God is frightening, as in the ancient verses of “The Hound of Heaven.”  To the child of God, there is no better feeling or place to be but in his VERY PRESENCE!

God is transcendent … out there, supreme, sovereign, independent, holy, infinite, immutable.  At Bethlehem, God became immanent … near, personal, human, sympathetic, here.  But God is both, out there and right here, transcendent and immanent, holy and wholly without sin, yet the sin-bearer of many.

Only one response is adequate, worthy, or necessary: “We/I have come to worship him!”

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President Abraham Lincoln’s Thanksgiving Day proclamation (in part): 

 It has seemed to me fit and proper that they should be solemnly, reverently and gratefully acknowledged as with one heart and one voice by the whole American People. I do therefore invite my fellow citizens in every part of the United States, and also those who are at sea and those who are sojourning in foreign lands, to set apart and observe the last Thursday of November next, as a day of Thanksgiving and Praise to our beneficent Father who dwelleth in the Heavens. And I recommend to them that while offering up the ascriptions justly due to Him for such singular deliverances and blessings, they do also, with humble penitence for our national perverseness and disobedience, commend to His tender care all those who have become widows, orphans, mourners or sufferers in the lamentable civil strife in which we are unavoidably engaged, and fervently implore the interposition of the Almighty Hand to heal the wounds of the nation and to restore it as soon as may be consistent with the Divine purposes to the full enjoyment of peace, harmony, tranquility and Union.

In testimony whereof, I have hereunto set my hand and caused the Seal of the United States to be affixed.

Done at the City of Washington, this Third day of October, in the year of our Lord one thousand eight hundred and sixty-three, and of the Independence of the Unites States the Eighty-eighth.

By the President: Abraham Lincoln

William H. Seward,
Secretary of State

God’s Thanksgiving proclamation (in part): 

Oh give thanks to the LORD, for he is good,

for his steadfast love endures forever!

Psalm 107:1

Paul’s Thanksgiving proclamation (in part): 

Give thanks in all circumstances;

for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.

1 Thessalonians 5:18

The End (in part):

“We give thanks to you, Lord God Almighty,

who is and who was,

for you have taken your great power and begun to reign.”

Revelation 11:17

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Remember your leaders, those who spoke to you the word of God.

Consider the outcome of their way of life, and imitate their faith. (Heb 13:7 ESV) 

A couple of weeks ago, we ran into an old friend and his wife while visiting my mother at the Care Centre where both his parents and my mother are residents.

Our hugs then turned to conversation as we reminisced about influential people who had changed our lives.  Many of them were now gone; some were residents, along with our parents, in this very Care Centre.

Most were from our small Bible church in that same town.  Their influence ranged from pastors to teachers to family friends to employers to those who simply prayed for us (and we took up a lot of prayer time, I’m sure!)

The writer of Hebrews urged us to remember our leaders.  “Leaders” in this verse may refer specifically to someone in a specific capacity of leadership as an Elder, pastor, shepherd, etc.  But it may also refer to someone of significant spiritual influence.  So a proper rendering of this verse may be, “Remember those who influenced you in your faith.”

By inviting us to consider the outcome of their way of life, the writer recommends a life-long process.  In other words, we don’t just become enamored with the latest Christian speaker that “wows” us.  We observe a life, a whole life, the outcome of their chosen path of life.  And, when that outcome is considered worthy, we imitate their faith and not their life.

Next week is Thanksgiving.  I can think of no better time than this to list those influencers of our life of faith.  Go ahead.  Do it.  Pick up your pen.  Start a file.  Begin now.  Let the tears flow if necessary.  What a tribute!

Being thankful for all the “stuff” that surrounds us … can wait.  Begin with the people without which you would not be able to begin at all.

“Thank you, Father, for Dad, for Mom, for Pastor Jim, for Lowell, for Rosi, for Dr. Burkholder, for Dr. Grounds, for Bryan, for …”

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“I have stored up your Word in my heart,

that I might not sin against you.” (Psalm 119:11)

If you’ve read your Bible recently, you’re probably biblical … right?  If I memorize a Bible verse, chapter or book, isn’t that being biblical?  Are you, am I, biblical?  Just what does it mean to be biblical?

First of all, you might have wondered why I capitalized Bible above, but not biblical.  Well, Bible is a noun, a proper name referring to the Word of God.  It should always be capitalized.  Biblical, on the other hand, is an adjective and does not require capitalization (unless at the beginning of this sentence!).

Or you might speak of biblical names, discuss the topic of biblical theology, or enroll in a course entitled Biblical Theology.

But I’m really more interested in whether you are or I am genuinely biblical.  Does reading the Bible make me biblical?  Not necessarily.  Does obedience to the commands of the Bible make me biblical?  Well, yes and no.  I may be doing biblical things, obeying biblical commands, or even following the Bible in necessary steps of action.

For instance, I may read the Scriptures every morning.  Am I being biblical?  Perhaps.  Reading the Scriptures every morning certainly follows a biblical pattern.

Here’s what I’m getting at.  I may be getting into the Bible, but am I allowing the Bible to get into me?  That’s being biblical.

I may read the Bible every morning, whole chapters, whole books!  I may “hide God’s Word in my heart”, i.e. memorize.  But I am not biblical in the truest sense unless what God says in his Word invades my thought life and my actions.

I may follow the biblical instruction to feed the hungry or care for the orphan but go away filled with pride at my own station in life.  Then I’m not being biblical.

I may follow the biblical instruction to worship with fellow believers (“don’t forsake getting together as some do” – Hebr. 10:25), but deliberately shun a fellow believer.  Then I’m not being biblical.

I may follow biblical instructions to the letter of the law in resolving a dispute, but still harbor hatred (alright, dislike) towards that person.  Then I’m not being biblical.

I may attend church with my slaves, singing the old gospel hymns right there beside them, but beat them and abuse them back home, demonstrated again and again in American (church) history.  Then I’m not being biblical.

In fact, I may even preach the Word, Sunday after Sunday, faithfully expositing and expounding that Word.  But if I’m not obeying that Word or letting it guide my attitudes and actions, I am not being biblical.

The Bible is more than a book full of instructions.  As the revealed will of God, it contains more than instruction on what to do in this or that situation.  It addresses the attitudes we demonstrate and the motives we harbor deep down inside where no one sees (see Colossians 3:5, 12-13).

And that ultimately defines whether I am being genuinely biblical in the truest sense of the Word.

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“You keep him in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on you,

because he trusts in you.” (Isaiah 26:3)

Terrorism on the increase.  Fear.  Panic.  What if …

“You keep him in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on you.”

Financial ruin, chaos.  National, if not international, financial meltdown.  Retirement down the tubes.

“You keep him in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on you.”

Political infighting … again.  Empty promises.  Accusations.  Blind partisanship.  Lack of leadership.

“You keep him in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on you.”

Jobless.  Bankbook near empty.  Medical bills.  Auto bills.  Education bills.  Bills.  Bills.

“You keep him in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on you.”

Personal attacks.  Accusations.  The sting.  The pain.  The tears.

“You keep him in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on you.”

Failing health.  Constant pain.  Doctor visits, medications, little relief.

“You keep him in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on you.”

A friend, perhaps an author, directed my attention to this passage the other day, an incredible promise in an age of almost unparalleled, nearly universal fear.

But God’s Word and his promises are also universal, reaching across all time and every culture.  The mind that is stayed – focused – on God will be kept in perfect peace.  “Because he trusts in you” merely rephrases “whose mind is stayed on you.”

Perfect peace (Hebrew – wholeness, soundness) is ours when we trust.  We can trust because God is wholly trustworthy … “for the Lord God is an everlasting rock!” (26:4)

“To experience the security of God’s city one thing is required: a fixed disposition of trust” (Oswalt, NICOT Isaiah [1986], p. 472).

Everlasting rock vs. terrorism.  Everlasting rock vs. financial meltdown.  Everlasting rock vs. vain politics.  Everlasting rock vs. joblessness.  Everlasting rock vs. personal attack.  Everlasting rock vs. failing health.  You be the judge.

And trust him … forever!

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There’s a string of passages in God’s Word that I find heartwarming, comforting, satisfying.

• 2 Samuel 22:7 In my distress I called upon the LORD; to my God I called. From his temple he heard my voice, and my cry came to his ears.
• Psalm 18:6 In my distress I called upon the LORD; to my God I cried for help. From his temple he heard my voice, and my cry to him reached his ears.
• Psalm 118:5 Out of my distress I called on the LORD; the LORD answered me and set me free.
• Psalm 120:1 A Song of Ascents. In my distress I called to the LORD, and he answered me.
• Psalm 138:3 On the day I called, you answered me; my strength of soul you increased.
• Lamentations 3:55-57 I called on your name, O LORD, from the depths of the pit; you heard my plea, “Do not close your ear to my cry for help!” You came near when I called on you; you said, “Do not fear!”
• Jonah 2:2 saying, “I called out to the LORD, out of my distress, and he answered me; out of the belly of Sheol I cried, and you heard my voice.”

I called; He answered!  I cried out; He heard!

Did you ever call upon a friend who, for whatever reason, did not call back, did not hear, did not come to your aid?  How important, how comforting, how reassuring the answer of a friend in time of crisis, in time of need, in time of desperation.

The biblical writers reassure us that God hears, that his ears are directed toward us, that he listen for our voice.  Though we may not get the precise answer we think we need, he always hears, always listens, always comes near.

Fatigued beyond your ability to care?  God knows.  Despondent because of life’s setbacks?  God hears.  Rejected by a friend?  God hasn’t rejected you.  Mourning loss?  God is there beside you.  Growing old and feeling forgotten?  God hasn’t forgotten you.

Apart from this string of “I called … He answered” passages, there’s another, a parallel string.  And the table is turned.

• Isaiah 66:4 I also will choose harsh treatment for them and bring their fears upon them, because when I called, no one answered, when I spoke, they did not listen; but they did what was evil in my eyes and chose that in which I did not delight.
• Jeremiah 7:13 “And now, because you have done all these things,” declares the LORD, “and when I spoke to you persistently you did not listen, and when I called you, you did not answer.” 
• Zechariah 7:13 “As I called, and they would not hear, so they called, and I would not hear,” says the LORD of hosts.

Isn’t that a sad string?  “He called them; they did not listen.  He spoke to me; I did not hear.”  I can hear the pathos in God’s voice.  We expect him to answer our every whim, to be available at our every crisis … and He is!  But when He calls, when his still small voice reaches out to us, we’re too busy, we’re enjoying that sin too much to turn away, we’re too angry to acknowledge, we’re too tied up in the self of this moment to care about the cares of his heart.

Try this prayer: “Lord, thank you for listening, for hearing my voice … and for knowing that it is my voice calling.  Now, forgive me for neglecting your voice.  Help me to hear you, to respond, to care.”

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Green, red, silver, orange, yellow … no, not the colors of the rainbow, but colors of the combines.  On the road over the last several days, we’ve observed the harvest throughout northeast and eastern Nebraska, western Iowa, and western Missouri, eighteen combines in just one afternoon.

These modern marvels were air conditioned from the massive amounts of dust that engulfed them and computer controlled for cab comfort and accuracy and ease of harvest.  Their massive heads floated over fields of beans and corn, cutting the stalks from the ground, stripping them of their rich harvest of tiny round beans or golden corn, emitting shredded stalks back to the ground behind them.

Someone once planted these tiny seeds with a vision of a harvest. 

As a little boy, I went into Dad’s garden and, when no one was looking, pulled a tiny seedling from the ground, a corn plant, just to see what was going on.  To my disappointment, the tiny seed was nothing but mush, rotten, dead.  So why was this green shoot still attached?

Someone once gambled big time by putting seeds into the ground to rot and die … and produce from that death a living stalk upon which many seeds would grow.

“I tell you the truth, unless a kernel of wheat is planted in the soil and dies, it remains alone. But its death will produce many new kernels -- a plentiful harvest of new lives.” (John 12:24 NLT)

Someone once decided it was time to fertilize, to cultivate, to water. 

“Therefore, go and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit.  Teach these new disciples to obey all the commands I have given you. And be sure of this: I am with you always, even to the end of the age." (Mat 28:19 NLT)

Then someone decided it was time to harvest.

“These were his [Jesus’] instructions to them: ‘The harvest is great, but the workers are few. So pray to the Lord who is in charge of the harvest; ask him to send more workers into his fields.’” (Luke 10:2 NLT)

SomeOne has also decided that his harvest is now ready. 

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And just as it is appointed for man to die once, and after that comes judgment,

Hebrews 9:27

The road to my childhood home, about three hours northwest of Omaha, is etched in my mind. Having first driven it forty years ago to attend college, I could almost drive it blindfolded.  In recent years, I’ve traversed that road to visit my parents and in more recent months, to attend to their increasing health needs.

All along that road (highways 275, 81, 13, 20, and 14!) lie fields, brown with patches of white and barren through the cold winter months.  As the ground warms with the coming of spring, green rows begin to push up through the barren ground.  Soon the fields are lush green with fresh stalks of sprouting beans or corn.  As summer wears on, the green grows higher from fresh rains or sprinkler heads mounted on aluminum pipes suspended above the plants.

Fall approaches and the green turns, in time, to brown again as the stalks grow old and die.  Soon the combines crisscross each field, disgorging tiny brown beans or golden kernels of corn into waiting trucks and wagons.  Soon the plows or discs converge on the fields, scatter the gathered, feasting deer, and the fields wait for their new coating of fresh white snow.

Repeat.  I’ve observed this cycle over and over and over and …

Plant, disc, harvest, plow.  Spring, summer, fall, winter.  Day – night, day – night.  Seven days - one week.  Thirty days (or thirty-one, or twenty-eight, or twenty-nine) – one month.  Fifty-two weeks - one year.

If by observing nature, I were to determine my destiny, I could quickly become a Buddhist, Hindu, or Sikh, for life appears, on the surface, to be cyclical.  Reincarnation.

Seasons … days and nights … weeks … months … years.  The earth rotates on its “axis”.  The planets orbit around the sun, with striking regularity.  Our universe in our galaxy … timely rotation with few planets crashing into each other.  Regularity.  Wonderful monotony.

In spite of what we see on the surface with predictable regularity, life is not cyclical.  Life is linear.  The writer of Hebrews affirmed that each of us will face our appointment with death … once!  After that, judgment.  We will not return in another form on another planet in another galaxy.  We will die – once.  We will meet our Maker – once.  We will face judgment – once.  Once-for-all our destiny will be determined based on what we do with God’s Son, Jesus, here, now, in this life.  And once-for-all this earth, this universe will experience a great melt-down (2 Peter 3:12).

Could I ever be convinced of reincarnation, of an infinitely cyclical existence?  Not on your life.  And not on mine.  If I am wrong, having formed my worldview in light of the Scriptures, then I suppose I could happily return as a Beagle … often.  If the reincarnationists are wrong … how terrible that judgment.

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For now we see in a mirror dimly, but then face to face.

Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I have been fully known.

1 Corinthians 13:12

The screen saver in front of me displays a breathtaking, peaceful picture (and from my own camera!) of tiny Sylvan Lake in South Dakota’s Black Hills, just east of Custer.  The water and sky are separated by a wall of rock, perfect for climbing.

I’ve paddled around most of that little lake, I’ve climbed most of the rock.  I’ve hiked down, down deep behind this scene, beside the hundred waterfalls, between giant columns of granite, alongside the trickling stream on the forest path smelling of Scotch pine.

In my picture, the granite rocks and evergreens growing up out of them are perfectly distinct.  But the reflection of those rocks and trees in the water are shimmering, dreamlike, a bit less clear because they are … a reflection.

To me, this picture is a portrait of peace.  I relax a bit more just staring at my screen.  But I’d rather, much rather be in this picture, hiking, paddling, interacting with God’s handiwork.

My highest theological thought is at best a shimmering reflection.  My knowledge of God’s handiwork falls far short of the mind of the Creator.  My understanding of the complexity of human nature is but a glistening imitation.

So, was this preceding paragraph an admission of my inferiority as a student of Scripture, of nature, or of the human predicament?  I hope not.  I mean, I’ve always been a pretty good student of theology and of theological anthropology, as measured by grades.

So, how could my understanding of these things be made clearer, more accurate reflections of reality?  By studying harder?  No.  By dying!

The Apostle Paul had just addressed the wonder of Christian love, higher and more profitable than our selfish ways.  He had just waxed eloquent on our childishness vs. that perfect knowledge and understanding and the way of love.

Then he humbly acknowledged that our very best understanding of the ways of God and man here compare with looking through a darkened, muddied glass.

Someday, that glass will be removed.  There, in the very presence of God – face to face – we’ll understand everything perfectly, we’ll see everything clearly, we’ll enjoy knowledge as flawless and seamless as is possible in the divine presence.

Like I said, I don’t mind the picture on my computer.  It’s the best I can do for now.  But I long, rather, to be in that spot, enjoying firsthand the beauty of God’s creation.  Now, I’m in no hurry to die, but I’m satisfied knowing that my imperfect understanding will be immediately and finally swept away in his presence and I shall then know fully, even as he has fully known me.

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“I therefore … urge you to walk in a manner worthy of the calling

to which you have been called.” (Ephesians 4:1)

“If then [therefore] you have been raised with Christ, seek the things that are above,

where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God.” (Colossians 3:1)

Just recently I made an amazing discovery about myself … yeah, I know … slow learner.  (And hearing of this discovery, you might think I’m a little bit sick, imbalanced.)

I just discovered that one of my favorite words (yes word, not verse) in the Bible is the word “therefore!”

Several years ago, while standing in the registrar’s office, signing up for my classes for the semester, I found myself registered for the required course “Logic 101”.  As I stood there bemoaning the fact, an upper classman looked down at me (or down on me) and said, “Don, that is going to be the most important class you will ever take at this school.”

And so, perhaps, it was.  Logical thinking is so important these days and we seem to see so little of it.  (I could mention Washington, D.C. and politics here, but I won’t.)  Logic says “if this … then this.”  “If I drive recklessly, I will end up in an accident.”  “If I smile, I might make someone’s day.”  “If I choose this, I will end up with these consequences.”

But consequences and implications aren’t always so clear to the short-sighted.

However, the authors of Scripture linked truths with implications, actions with consequences.

The above examples from Paul mark major intersections in two of his books.  In both books, Paul divides his thoughts into two sections.  The first sections (Ephesians 1-3 and Colossians 1-2) speak of God’s actions in Christ to make us his children.  “This is what God in Christ has done for you.”

The second sections (Ephesians 4-6 and Colossians 3-4) speak of the anticipated actions of a believer in light of what God had already accomplished in Christ.  “If or since God did this for you, therefore, this is the anticipated life you will live.”

The first halves of these books are theological in nature.  The second halves are ethical.  Theology and ethics are logically connected with “therefore.”

On the one hand, theology initiates ethics and serves as its foundation.

On the other hand, ethics exposes theology and serves as its window.

Christ-centered theology breeds Christ-centered ethics.

Again, logic is so important and we seem to see so little of it, especially, and most importantly, among believers.  There seems a wide chasm of disconnect between what we believe and how we live.  And while we struggle to ask “why,” perhaps this little connector – therefore (a little three-letter word in the Greek language) – can provide an answer.

This “therefore,” this logical consistency, makes a great difference in my life when facing a decision or temptation.  Since Christ did this for me, since this is my standing before God in Christ, how should I decide in this situation, what should I do in this temptation?

When Jesus demands that we love him with heart, soul, and mind, somewhere among those three is found my volition, my will.  Coming to Christ, maturing in Christ demands a total and complete transformation of my will.  I will learn to make Christ-like decisions based on what Christ has accomplished for me.  I need to learn and act on the significance of “therefore.”

So give it some thought; perhaps you, too, will soon learn that all those logical “therefores” have become your favorite, too.

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“If with Christ you have died …” (Colossians 2:20)

“If then you have been raised with Christ …” (Colossians 3:1)

I love the paradoxes of the Scriptures, including (or especially!) the one printed above.  I love the fact that God is too big, too great to characterize too simply.  Catch-phrases won’t do.  God is full of love, full of justice … all at the same time, not bouncing willy-nilly from one to the other, jerked by this emotion or that one.

A few weeks ago I read an article from Christianity Today online magazine, essentially about paradoxes, but entitled, instead, “A Both/And Path to Truth”.  Christianity Today gives me permission to print this article and hand it out (free of charge, of course), but NOT to copy it online.

Today, my secretary gave me a way to share it with you … an online link.  (This gives all the credit to Christianity Today and to the author, Carolyn Arends.  So here’s the link to Carolyn’s article.

http://www.christianitytoday.com/ct/2011/august/bothpathtruth.html?start=1

A Both/And Path to Truth

Why the narrow way to faith is also expansive.

Carolyn Arends | posted 8/15/2011 09:56AM

I hope you can read it and enjoy, though I understand that some black-and-white minds cannot, or will not.  While we’re so often forced into yes or no propositions, let’s stick to those truth propositions clearly stated in Scripture (I am NOT suggesting all truth is relative!).  And let’s bask in the sweet knowledge that our God is too big, too great, too infinite, and too holy to be bound by our finite “camps” (is God a Calvinist, an Armenian, a Cal-menian, or simply the great Revealer of Truth too vast for us to grasp?!).

My prayer, my hope is that this article further opens our eyes to these wonderful, sweet paradoxes from Scripture, declaring the whole truth of the whole nature of our amazing God.

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My heart is struck down like grass and has withered;

I forget to eat my bread.

^ESV Psalm 102:4 

Psalm 102 was not written by a growing young man in Junior High!  I forgot to eat … ?  What Jr. High boy has ever forgotten to eat?

Psalm 102 is, in part, a lament, a righteous – and soul-weary – complaint.  The first two verses voice this heart-rending cry.

Hear my prayer, O LORD; let my cry come to you!

Do not hide your face from me in the day of my distress!

Incline your ear to me; answer me speedily in the day when I call!

I may have even caught you this morning in the mood for a good lament.  Bone-weary and broken-hearted, you feel like your heart, too, is “struck down like grass and has withered.”  You’ve been cheated, lied to, betrayed, fired, or given bad news.  It’s the proverbial last straw (and it doesn’t feel very proverbial!).

I’ve got a question for the Psalmist.  Does he feel so poorly so that he forgot to eat his bread (KJV & NKJV) or does he feel so poorly because he forgot to eat his bread?

When asked if I am a dichotomist (body and soul) or a trichotomist (body, soul, and spirit), I side, instead, with the ancient Hebrews who saw the person as a singular unit.  See if you agree.  When your body aches, don’t you feel “down” both spiritually and emotionally?  When you’ve been kicked in the gut (not literally) by a “friend”, don’t you feel pain spiritually and physically?  When a spiritual pain overwhelms you, don’t you feel that emotionally and physically?  Being one unit, I hurt everywhere!

So when the Psalmist felt like God had abandoned him, he couldn’t or wouldn’t eat.  He was physically sick (“my bones burn like a furnace” vs. 3).  The problem, it seems, comes from several places.  His enemies taunted him, either to cause this problem or, perhaps, because of this problem.  Even God’s indignation and anger seems to have “thrown me down” (vs. 10).

“But you, O Lord …”

Now there’s a major shift, a changed perspective of major proportions, a new mindset.  What brought all this about?  How can I reach that point in my pain and self-pity?  How can I pull myself up out of the quagmire and cesspool of despondency?  Believe me, it’s not easy.

That answer is found in part in verse 12: “You are remembered…”  With great intentionality, I remember God … who he is in his greatness and character, what he has done in his kindness and power.

Psalm 73 is also a Psalm with a profound change of perspective halfway through (vs. 17 … read it!).  I love these Psalms because they are so bedrock, so relevant, so appropriate and necessary when I, too, need that sudden change of perspective.

Verses 23 and 24 give me a headache … problematic to say the least.

He has broken my strength in midcourse; he has shortened my days.

"O my God," I say, "take me not away in the midst of my days-

you whose years endure throughout all generations!"

The verses that follow provide great solace, acknowledging God’s greatness as Creator and Sustainer of the entire universe and contrasting “my days” with “your years!”  He alone rules the universe, the world, my life, my years, the children that follow after me.

Centuries later, the writer of Hebrews put these words into the mouth of God, when God spoke to his Son to provide convincing proof of the Deity of his Son, Jesus Christ.  God, speaking to and about Jesus, said:

Of old you laid the foundation of the earth,

and the heavens are the work of your hands.

They will perish, but you will remain; they will all wear out like a garment.

You will change them like a robe, and they will pass away,

but you are the same, and your years have no end.

Psalm 102:25-27; Hebrews 1:10-12

That makes this Psalm 102 “Messianic”.  In other words, the psalmist, in writing about his pain, his despair, his deep problem, is actually ascribing these pains, these thoughts to God’s chosen, the Messiah, Jesus Christ.  That’s not new to the Psalms.  “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” are the words of the Psalmist in a very real and difficult journey, yet express the very experience of Jesus from the cross.

Point, please!  Okay, you and I have our pains, our problems, our despair, days when we just can’t eat we’re so sick with deep heart-wounds.  The remedy: Remember God, focus on him, reflect on his greatness.  And remember that his Son, Jesus, also suffered, the just for the unjust that “he might bring us to God” (1 Peter 3:18).

Suffering always has its purpose, seldom know to us even in our lifetime.  But sometimes that suffering comes just to cause us to reflect on our Suffering Servant and Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ.  And that, ultimately, is worth the price of the pain.

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Dear brothers and sisters, if another Christian is overcome by some sin,

you who are godly should gently and humbly help that person back onto the right path.

And be careful not to fall into the same temptation yourself.

Galatians 6:1

C-A-N-C-E-R!  Insidious, frightening word!  World-shattering!  Confidence-crushing!

Twice I’ve listened as my doctor said to me … “You’ve got cancer.”  In fact, about every three to six months I visit the doctor to have “pre-cancerous” spots frozen off my face and my scalp.  I hear the word all the time.

I know the punch-in-the-gut feeling that comes with the diagnoses.  I know the discouragement.  I know the confidence that kicks in and says, “We’ll conquer this.”  And I know the pain of surgery, the slow steps of recovery, and the insidious threat that constantly looms.

What is cancer?  While there are many different kinds of cancers that attack all different parts of our bodies, cancer is simply, in layman’s terms, healthy cells run amuck … “in a frenzy to do violence or kill” (Am. Heritage Dict).

When certain cells begin to grow and prosper and feed off of other healthy cells and generally steal away the health of the body, the doctor calls it cancer.  And it’s a painful diagnosis.

The treatment … freeze it, poison it, radiate it, burn it, cut it out.  Doesn’t the treatment hurt?  Every time the doctor does cryosurgery on my scalp, the application of liquid nitrogen to destroy my actinic keratoses, it feels like 10 ice-cream-brain-freezes all at one time!  I wince!  And that’s nothing like that robot with his 4 “hands” inside me cutting out another cancer (though I slept through that one).

If you’re astute and with me at this moment, you can guess where I’m going with all this.  Cancers – in the body of Christ – are just as real and infinitely more painful!

The cancer of individualism … one or a few profiting at the expense of the health of the whole body.  The cancer of bitterness … eating away at the unity of the body, at the fellowship of kindred minds, at the inner peace and beauty of Christ-in-us.  The cancer of malice … we’d never call it hatred (Jesus labeled that “murder”!), just can’t stand him or her, spite, meanness.

What to do with cancer in the Body?  Well, I’d much rather have the Divine Surgeon remove that cancer, speak to the heart, change it from within, like the divine miraculous removal of a nasty form of cancer without surgery, without poisons.  Just gone!

But sometimes the Chief Surgeon asks us as Under-Surgeons (like the Chief Shepherd and his under-shepherds) to do the cancer removal.  Hopefully, that can be done by gently, prayerfully, seriously confronting the sin/cancer as Paul described in Galatians 6:1 (“You who are spiritual restore him in a spirit of gentleness”).

But not all cancers react with such grace.  Confronted, we usually blame or bolt.  We put the fault at someone else’s feet or we run, hoping to find another church environment that will cater to our selfish needs.

This morning, I ran a “string search” on my computer Bible for the words “cut off”.  Dozens and dozens of entries popped up from the Old Testament.  Whenever someone sinned so as to be such an offense in the eyes of God, he / she was to be “cut off” from their people.  That is, that cancer of self-imposed worship was to be completely cut away from God’s people lest that insidious sin-disease run rampant and unhindered throughout the “camp” of Israel.  Even if they used God’s divine recipe for incense as a perfume for themselves … “cut off!”

I have experienced cancer, in my own body and in the Body of Christ.  Both are ugly and painful and loathsome.  Both threaten health and life.  Both have brought tears to my eyes and many painful, sleep-deprived nights.

I do not believe in “church discipline.”  I believe in spiritual restoration.  For too long, I’ve put spiritual restoration as a sub-category of church discipline.  In fact, the Bible has it the other way around.  Spiritual restoration is our main goal; church discipline follows when repeated attempts to restore have failed.  Spiritual restoration is our goal; but cancer-removal may ultimately be our only – or necessary – course of action.

“O Great Physician, cut out the cancers from my heart, from your Body.  Miraculously remove that dreadful disease quietly, with a comforting, convicting touch of your hand.  And if not, grant us grace to deal with it as you would deal with it, graciously, decisively, wholly-humble before You.”

And have mercy on those who doubt;

save others by snatching them out of the fire;

to others show mercy with fear,

hating even the garment stained by the flesh.

Jude 22-23

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Mark 9:50 -  be at peace with one another.

John - 13:34  love one another.

Romans 12:10 - Outdo one another in showing honor.

Romans 12:16 - Live in harmony with one another.

Romans - 15:7  welcome one another.

2 Corinthians 13:11 - comfort one another, agree with one another.

Galatians 5:13 - through love serve one another.

Ephesians 4:2 - bear with one another in love.

Ephesians 4:32 - Be kind to one another … forgiving one another.

Ephesians 5:21 - submitting to one another.

1 Thessalonians 4:18 - encourage one another.

James 5:16 - confess your sins to one another … pray for one another.

Any child can tell you that every plastic Lego® has several “bumps”, small round, raised circles that connect one Lego® to another.  By connecting these Lego® pieces, one can create little people and animals, cars and boats, ships and space ships, houses and castles, garages and skyscrapers, limited only by one’s imagination.

The smallest Lego® piece has only one “bump” or connector.  Some have two, others have four or six or eight, perhaps sixteen.  Flat foundation pieces have dozens of connectors.  The more connectors, the more Lego® pieces one can connect to that piece.  And, of course, the pieces come in all shapes, sizes, and colors.  Oh to be a kid again with Lego® sets (I grew up on Lincoln Logs!).

Someone once likened people to Lego® pieces.  We come in all shapes, sizes, and colors (and temperments!).  But we all have only so many “connectors” or capacities for relationships.  Quiet or shy people have only a few connectors.  Some have capacity for a few more and are loyal to those connections.  Others are like the flat foundation pieces, with dozens of connectors … the life of the party, perhaps, though not into deep relationships.

But when one’s connectors are full, they’re full!  Whether two, four, eight or sixteen, when our capacity for relationships is full, we won’t pursue more.  Each of those connectors requires time and energy and we have only so much of each.

(Please understand, we’re talking about legitimate capacities, limits, and boundaries, not offering excuses to avoid legitimate relationships that cost something.)

Now, think with me about these “connectors” in our lives and the verses above.  These “one anothers” of the Bible (and this list is not exhaustive) define the parameters and encourage the connections of our relationships.

We are, for example, to bear with others in love, to comfort and encourage others, to love and serve each other, to submit and confess sins to one another as we have opportunity.  That’s just plain biblical instruction.

Solomon (Proverbs 18:24) wrote, “A man who has friends must himself be friendly, But there is a friend who sticks closer than a brother.” A different translation states, “A man of many companions may come to ruin, but there is a friend who sticks closer than a brother.”

Hebrews is a difficult language to master and sometimes leaves us with two legitimate options, as here.  Solomon is essentially writing about connectors.  Each one of us must be friendly, but too many connectors may undo us.  A true friend is for confidences and you can’t keep confidences with too many friends (especially if they are all on facebook!  :)  ).

We cannot force someone with two connectors to have six close relationships.  But he or she will be incredibly loyal to and confidential with those few friends.  Nor can we expect one with eight connectors to be satisfied on a deserted island.

Does my life seem too full, more connectors than I am built for?  Or is my life empty because I’m not connecting to my full capacity?  But, hey, it’s not about me!!  It’s about serving others.  God didn’t build me with connectors just for my own navel-gazing.  Time to take stock.  Time to see my connectors as opportunities.  Time to develop relationships and remain loyal to them.

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Now as they went on their way, Jesus entered a village.

And a woman named Martha welcomed him into her house.

And she had a sister called Mary,

who sat at the Lord's feet and listened to his teaching.

But Martha was distracted with much serving.

And she went up to him and said,

"Lord, do you not care that my sister has left me to serve alone?

Tell her then to help me."

But the Lord answered her,

"Martha, Martha, you are anxious and troubled about many things,

but one thing is necessary. Mary has chosen the good portion,

which will not be taken away from her."

Luke 10:38-42

Jesus, by his very presence, once graced a little village where two sisters and a brother lived.  (The brother, Lazarus, is not in this story … from another story, we know of his presence.)  Invited to the home of Mary and Martha, Jesus honors their request. 

Such an invitation, however, required a great deal of work … washing the dust from your guest’s feet, offering him a meal, etc., etc..  Which Martha did.

But Martha not only served; she was distracted by her worry.  Her mind should have been on Jesus, even in her busy preparations.  But she was preoccupied with “I wonder how he likes his bread and goat meat?” and “How hot should I get this earth-oven fire?” and “Oh my, the Carpenter!  Does he see that dust on our end-table?”

Martha justified her worry; serving would go smoother if Mary helped.  “Lord, is it no concern to you that Mary has abandoned me to just sit there and listen to you?  Tell her to help me!”  (I wonder, did Martha just blurt this out in Mary’s presence or did she call Jesus aside and shout it in his ear?)

On another occasion, when Mary and Martha’s brother died, Martha said to Jesus, “If you had been here, he wouldn’t have died.”  Twice, then, Martha accused Jesus of not caring … enough.  But, then, this accusation leaps from the lips of one who sees caring as busybody work and wholesome anxiety!

“Martha, Martha, you are anxious and troubled about many things.”  “Martha, Martha” - Jesus spoke calmly, warmly, demonstrating love, appreciation, and just a dash of rebuke.  We find this word “anxious” 19 times in the NT, 12 of them by Jesus, admonishing his followers to choose against anxiety.  He does so here privately, face-to-face.

“Troubled” means to be emotionally upset by a concern or anxiety.  A related word is used for crowd control (Mark 5:39; Acts 20:10).  “Martha, you’re troubled and emotionally upset.  Chill!”

Then Jesus says something like, “There are really only a few small, seemingly insignificant things in life that are really necessary.  And Mary has chosen one of them, a good thing, the good thing.  And no, I’ll not take that one thing away from her.”

What had Mary chosen?  To sit quietly in the presence of Jesus, not talking, but listening, not telling, but taking in, not asking, but admiring.  Mary had taken the initiative; she sat herself beside him!

But isn’t serving a good thing?  Yup!  “Serve the Lord with gladness” (Psalm 100:2).  So … if I can’t serve with gladness … I shouldn’t serve?  Or, perhaps, change the outlook to gladness.  Jesus didn’t tell us what Martha chose to do.  Did she storm back into the kitchen and burn the goat?  Did she, in disgust, sit down (hard) beside Mary to listen, too?  Did she seek forgiveness for her “busy” attitude?  Did she apologize to her sister?

We all have some of Mary and some of Martha within.  Sometimes our sitting and taking in is worship; sometimes just laziness.  Sometimes our service is done in humility; sometimes in spite.  I doubt I’ll ever get it right, balanced, perfectly blended.  Longing to just sit and bask in the presence of Jesus.  Longing to serve him in the humble task of serving others.

What I want is balance.  But Jesus didn’t say that.  Don’t take away that good thing, that sitting and learning and basking in my presence.  Life has really few necessary things.  This is one of them!

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“Through love, serve one another.”

Galatians 5:13

“For even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve,

and to give his life as a ransom for many."

Mark 10:45

Where have all the servants gone?  Find me one.  Show me one.  Demonstrate to me the art, the ability, the compassion, the humility of being a servant.

Can you find me a servant in Washington, D.C., that power-city where our “public servants” gather?  Is that where servanthood is found, how service is defined?  Many politicians defend their decisions with that darling catch-phrase “for the American people”.  They appear, however, to decide issues based on party lines, re-election, or pressure from lobbyists.

Can you find me a servant in Hollywood, U.S.A.?  Cameras do funny things to people.  They make people seem larger than life (to themselves).  The Hollywood elite have a not-too-distinguished record of fidelity in marriage.  It’s hard to serve someone else when you’re so full of yourself.

What about the sports world?  Can you find me a servant in those halls of fame?  The college football season barely “kicks-off” when we begin to hear about potential Heisman trophy winners, Individuals, not teams.  Professional athletes whine about switching to a team with the greatest potential for winning it all, rather than to help make it happen with the team they’re on.

Now, thankfully, though rarely, there are pockets of service even within the halls of Congress, behind the Hollywood cameras, and on sports teams.  A few still serve.

What does it take to be a servant?  One, attitude.  Two, opportunity.

The Apostle Paul declared that our attitude must resemble that of Jesus Christ, who left the glories of heaven, the accolades of divine-ness, to become a lowly servant-being (Phil. 2:5-11).  Jesus’ own claim was that he came not to be served, but to serve (Mark 10:45); ultimately to give his own life, the greatest act of servanthood (John 15:13).

Dietrich Bonhoeffer, a German pastor ultimately executed by Hitler, portrayed Christian community in his book Life Together.  In describing that leadership and authority in that community, he wrote:

“Every cult of personality that emphasizes the distinguished qualities, virtues, and talents of another person, even though these be of an altogether spiritual nature, is worldly and has no place in the Christian community; indeed, it poisons the Christian community. The desire we so often hear expressed today for … ‘authoritative personalities,’ springs frequently enough from a spiritually sick need for the admiration of men, for the establishment of visible human authority, because the genuine authority of service appears to be so unimpressive” (p. 108, italics mine).

The genuine authority of service … what a paradox!

Remember, one – attitude, two – opportunity.  Quit praying for opportunities (if that is your inclination) and begin praying for eyes to see the opportunities all around you: lonely people, frightened people, defeated people, helpless people.  Perhaps this song-prayer can help you begin.

Make me a servant; Humble and meek

LORD let me lift up those who are weak

And may the prayer of my heart Always be

Make me a servant, Make me a servant,

Make me a servant ... today.

by Kelly Willard, 1982

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But let justice roll down like waters,

and righteousness like an ever-flowing stream.

Amos 5:24

The big headline-maker of the day: Did Casey kill Caylee?  Headlines like “Jury Had Sympathy?”, “Verdict Brings Tears, Shock, Outrage”, “Casey Anthony’s Future: Freedom, Book Deal?”, and “How Casey Can Make Millions” today fill papers, screens, tabloids, gossip columns, and talk-radio.

Reaction seems pretty well (and predictably) split.  The populace seems fairly united that justice was not forthcoming.  I think anger pretty well describes the feelings of many.

On the other hand, lawyers, legal analysts, and judicial experts seem to think that this was the jury’s only right decision.  There was just not enough hard evidence besides circumstantial and innuendo.  Or perhaps the prosecuting attorneys blew their case.

The whole courtroom drama followed an increasingly common pattern nowadays … the (alleged) perpetrator is presented as the victim.  The real victim, the little girl, is almost an aside.

Still the question remains: did Casey kill her little daughter?  Only two know for sure: Casey and her (ultimate) Judge.  Was justice meted out?  One thing is for certain: justice will be meted out if Caylee was, in fact, murdered.

In our day, we observe many events or judgments or decisions which seem to be a breach of justice … the real victims losing life, limb, status or property because someone with more power or money took advantage of them.

But this is not just a contemporary phenomenon.  Israel’s ancient and somewhat unfamiliar prophet Amos had the difficult assignment of conveying the message of God’s somewhat familiar wrath against Israel.  A brief synopsis of God’s word to Israel in the fourth chapter of Amos might go something like this:

• “Seek the LORD and live, lest he break out like fire in the house of Joseph…” (v. 6)
• “They hate him who reproves in the gate, and they abhor him who speaks the truth.” (v. 10)
• “I hate, I despise your feasts, and I take no delight in your solemn assemblies.  Even though you offer me your burnt offerings and grain offerings, I will not accept them … I will not look upon them.  Take away from me the noise of your songs; to the melody of your harps I will not listen.” (vs. 21-23) 
• “But let justice roll down like waters, and righteousness like an ever-flowing stream.” (v. 24)

God turned his head away from Israel’s ritual celebrations and religious feasts.  He could not look on a nation playing with theological fire.  He would not be pleased with meaningless offerings while injustice ruled the land.

But what a beautiful expression of God’s will for society!  “Let justice roll down like waters, and righteousness like an ever-flowing stream.”  We see the flood waters.  We experience the swift streams that no one can prevent, even when flowing within their banks.

And that’s precisely the picture God intends for society … justice and righteousness so forceful, so powerful, so natural, so “in-character” that everything in its path gets swept up in it.  No breach of justice.  No murder in the streets.  No unpunished evil.  Justice!

“May your kingdom come.  May your will [justice] be done on earth, as it is in heaven!”

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During those many days the king of Egypt died,

and the people of Israel groaned because of their slavery and cried out for help.

Their cry for rescue from slavery came up to God.  And God heard their groaning,

and God remembered his covenant with Abraham, with Isaac, and with Jacob.

God saw the people of Israel - and God knew.

Exodus 2:23-25

Today, several young people and their leaders from our church leave for about two weeks of missions experience in Trinidad.

My first overseas mission’s experience wasn’t as a youth but while serving as a youth pastor in Ohio.  Our pastor had connections with a Haitian national so we made the arrangements and were off to Haiti, poorest country in this hemisphere.

Any first foreign missions experience is somewhat of a shock, especially for anyone from sheltered, rural Nebraska.  But an even greater shock … this was Haiti!

We flew from West Palm Beach, Florida with Missionary Flights International (MFI).  Flying refurbished DC3’s, the workhorse of WWII military flight, they ferried missionaries and groups like ours back and forth across the Caribbean.  Flying low, we watched the porpoises below us.

Stepping off the plane in Port au Prince was unforgettable … stifling heat, suffocating humidity, the aroma of charcoal fires and the stench of open sewage.  I nearly turned around and re-boarded.

But we were Jesus’ mercenaries, anxious to labor for him.  Landing on Thursday, we begged to start our work on Friday.  Instead, we sat through several lectures that day.  Anxious to begin our work on Saturday, instead we toured the tiny nation full of swarms of people.  On Sunday we visited a Haitian church before walking for miles through the streets with hardly a word between us, taking in the sights, the smells, the beautiful faces of the Haitians, especially the children.

Our hosts, a national pastor and a missionary, lamented that many come to Haiti, do their thing, and leave, without ever hearing the Haitian’s story, without learning of the island and the people, former slaves who had endured - and who now endure - so much.

We laughed at little geckos sticking to the walls and screamed at huge tarantulas.  Beautiful flowers grew everywhere.  A tiny stream ran down nearly every street or alley … a stream used by animals, then by mammas washing their babies, before being gathered for drinking or cooking.  Little children were everywhere, orange hair and bloated bellies, signs of malnutrition in an island nation that should have been producing nutritious fruit and other food.

By Monday we began our work, painting classrooms, building bonks (benches, desks), and some general maintenance at a school.  We poked fun at the lengthy noon-time Haitian siestas.  By Friday, we could barely move, exhausted from our work, the heat, and our inability to adapt to the Haitian culture to hide from the suffocating mid-day heat.

We learned to barter.  I turned the youth lose in Port au Prince’s large “Iron Market,” a few city blocks literally surrounded by an iron gate, in which hundreds of merchants sold their goods.  A tall black Haitian called to me to inspect his goods, just as I remembered that I had forgotten to announce a rendezvous point and time to our youth.  As I began running after them, the tall black man put his hand on my shoulder, spun me around and demanded, “Talk to me.  I am human too!”

Another man in the market pointed down at his wares and said, “Give me price.”  I looked down to see a very beautiful but very frightened young lady.  Another shock … I think I mumbled something like, “I already have one.”

On our last Sunday in Haiti, I preached to an over-flow crowd of nearly a thousand Haitians, our small group of about a dozen being the only white faces in the crowd.  They didn’t crowd the church because they knew I was coming but because they were Haitian Christians who had little else but their faith and their wonderful worship experience with fellow believers.

Opening the book of Exodus, I read to these former slaves that God told Moses he had seen the Israelites in their distress, had heard their cry, had compassion on them, and was about to send help.  When I heard my interpreter pronounce in Creole – konpasyon (compassion), the audience audibly groaned together.  God knows about us!  God sees us!  God cares for us!

When it came time to board the plane for our return trip, I could hardly bring myself to board.  I would miss the wonderful sights and smells of Haiti ... and of Haitians.  That trip changed my life, my view of the world, my view of God’s view of the world.

Short-term missions, a few weeks or a few years, is rapidly expanding.  Much work overseas is being done by “short-termers.”  The down-side may be fewer commitments for the long-haul.  The up-side is the life-changing experience and the potential for what God will do in and through the life of a “short-termer.”

This Trinidad trip will last for only a few short weeks (parents, they’re coming back!).  Pray that God will bring lasting change into the lives of these precious young people.

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“Why do the nations rage and the peoples plot in vain?

The kings of the earth set themselves, and the rulers take counsel together,

against the Lord and against his Anointed…”

Psalm 21-2

World Magazine reporter Angela Lu recently wrote (June 13) concerning Secretary of State Clinton’s recent trip to some African nations.  At a news conference in Zambia, Clinton took the opportunity to scold China on its policies of exploiting African resources.  “We saw that during colonial times, it is easy to come in, take out natural resources, pay off leaders and leave.”

Lu then reported that some African leaders are scolding the U.S.A. for a different kind of colonialism … sex-ploitation.  It seems that U.S. officials recently pressured some African leaders into endorsing Western-backed ideas and practices of homosexuality.  Stephen Langa reported these abuses from Uganda (Langa is a key leader in the African DNA movement, Discipling Nations Alliance … EBC missionary Gary Brumbelow, who works with DNA, recently sent me this link to World Magazine).

“In Uganda, Langa said incidents of homosexuality among students were few until five years ago. That’s when Western governments and international organizations such as UNICEF entered schools to promote homosexuality among teens. Langa noted the teachings completely disregarded Ugandan laws and cultural practices that prohibit such behavior.”

As interesting as Lu’s article was, I found a subsequent comment to World Magazine even more interesting.  “So ridiculous.  We’re giving this country free money, and we can’t give them some guidelines?  Unbelievable.  If this doesn’t make you guys hypocrites, I don’t know what does.”

Is that it?  Aid to other nations gives us the right to set their standards of morality?  Colonialism?  Exploitation?  Sexploitation?

But what about the African leaders caving to U.S. pressure?  Seems they, too, have been taught that money matters.  Though perhaps for them, it’s a matter of simple survival … they need those U.S. dollars to survive.

But the plot thickens.  Another reader suggested to World Magazine that, rather than pressuring Uganda to accept western standards of morality, the U.S. “pressure” was to prevent Uganda from extreme methods of punishment, locking up homosexuals for life or the death penalty for “aggravated homosexuality.”

God’s Word speaks clearly against homosexual behavior and clearly for love for the homosexual person.  And God’s Word speaks clearly against harsh or abusive punishment.  And God’s Word speaks clearly to the role of government in society.

Langa draws a sobering parallel.  The country that once sent several thousand missionaries to Africa is now sending its eroding morality, via financial pressure.  Perhaps the Church should get back to sending missionaries to Africa … and sending not a few to Washington, D.C.

Now therefore, O kings, be wise; be warned, O rulers of the earth.

Serve the LORD with fear, and rejoice with trembling.

Kiss the Son, lest he be angry, and you perish in the way,

for his wrath is quickly kindled.  Blessed are all who take refuge in him.

Psalm 2:10-12 

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