Review of the book: Choosing Forgiveness by June Hunt

Forgiveness has been a major challenge in my life as a Christian.  While commanded to ‘forgive as God forgives’ (Eph 4:32), how is this done?  What is forgiveness and what does it mean when I say, “I forgive you”? How can I forgive when I have been terribly wronged by someone?

I was recently offered a free copy of the book (in exchange for my views): “Choosing Forgiveness” by June Hunt from Hope for the Heart Ministries. I was hopeful that there would be answers to these questions.  However, I was concerned that the information would be more “pop psychology” than solid theology.  That concern was unwarranted as the aspects of forgiveness are explored from a strong Biblical perspective.

Using the story of Corrie Ten Boom, World War II concentration camp survivor and a chance meeting after the war with one of the camp’s abusive guards who asks her forgiveness, the book takes the reader on an exploratory journey through the meaning and application of biblical forgiveness.  The material is an easy read yet causes one to contemplate how God wants us to respond to the challenge to forgive.

Those struggling with forgiveness will find this book useful, but it is also beneficial for obtaining a deeper understanding of the love and mercy and forgiveness offered by God, and how this can impact our daily life. The structure of the book seems like it would work well for both individual or group study on the subject.

5 Years of Learning.

Five years ago was my last posting on this blog because it was not going in a direction that I had wanted and because time was needed for more urgent matters in my life.

I believe the Lord has shown me much in these last five years and has grown me in wisdom and love and the desire to truly express His grace to this world.  How we respond to that grace is more important than how we respond to the ideas of the world.  To Him we are to give our utmost attention, not to the daily issues of life.

In those five years perhaps the most important thing that the Lord has taught me is that I am not here to impose Him onto others.  This means that I should be more surprised when sinners don't sin then when they do.  I should expect sin.  I should expect people to be unloving, unkind, selfish, and centered on what is best for them.  I should expect people to act out of that selfishness even in doing good.  It goes to motivation.  It goes to doing based on feeling rather than on obedience or command.

My motivation is the love and grace of Christ.  At least that is what I hope is my motivation.  The great definition of God's love in 1 Corinthians 13 describes the ultimate attributes of what it means to be loving.

1 Corinthians 13:4-7 (ESV)
⁴  Love is patient and kind; love does not envy or boast; it is not arrogant ⁵  or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; ⁶  it does not rejoice at wrongdoing, but rejoices with the truth. ⁷  Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. 

As CS Lewis so aptly stated:   Love is not affectionate feeling, but a steady wish for the loved person's ultimate good as far as it can be obtained.

In other words, the truly loving act is doing that which is best for another, and it is motivated by one's desire for the other person to have that which is best for them.  

My hope for the remaining years of my life is to show that love to others as best as I am able. 

Rotting Fish Syndrome

One of the more interesting parts of the end of the year is the “lists” that come out that are compilations of subjects. These include the list of those who died in the last year, the most important news stories, the best weddings, etc.

I came across one on the Fox News website that listed “crazy diseases”. These are illnesses that have some odd or strange symptoms. Most are not really funny or “crazy” and those afflicted with them suffer in one way or another.

Most I had never heard about before, but one I did because, when I was a social worker, I actually had a client who suffered with this condition. It is Trimethylaminuria, fish malodor syndrome. The client always smelled of terrible body odor no matter how much deodorant or showers he would take.

The poor guy was “banned” from many public areas such as the local library and a number of stores and restaurants. He lived in a group home but would spend most of his time alone in his room or walk around the neighborhood, even in the coldest weather, for most of the day.

Despite having a mental illness and was mildly developmentally disabled, he was keenly aware of his problem so he would spend most of his time alone, embarrassed by his problem. It was very sad because he was a very likeable guy.

This article, and remembering this client, made me think about how our sin must make us smell to God. We, like someone suffering from this malady, seeping the odor of sin from our very breath. (Rom 3:13 NLT)

And it is a stench in the nostrils of God, so offensive that we cannot be in His presence.

The problem is that we get used to our sin like we do with an odor. The client never smelled himself. I worked in a blast furnace and after a short while the pungent odor of sulfur and brine disappears and we don’t notice the smell anymore. We get used to our sin and it no longer seems a problem.

If you believe that Christ is Lord and Savior, though, and are saved from the results of your sin (eternal separation), the odor returns and we are pungently aware of our sin and know that only Christ can wash us clean before God. He removes the odor so that, through Him, we are no longer have the stench but instead are a pleasing aroma to God.

Repent and smell better to God.

Read more: http://www.foxnews.com/health/2010/06/30/crazy-diseases/#ixzz19swVzs9u

Health Care

Well, for the time being, the US has reformed health care. It remains to be seen whether this is a good thing or a bad thing depending on your politics, tax bracket, and ideology/philosophy.

As one who is trying to view life through the lens of Scripture, I struggled a bit on this one. On the one hand we are to help those who are less fortunate, but on the other is it fair to require someone else to involuntarily pay for it?

I have read numerous articles on this subject and a "Biblical" case can be made for both sides. At times in the Old Testament there was required dispersing of property and goods, such as the tithe. In th New Testament Christ turns the focus from law to grace, so pretty much giving becomes an example of conscience.

The more I think about it, this issue could have been avoided had the church been doing part of its calling and helping others. Instead we have relegated this to government to care for the widows, orphans, and poor.

Getting back to what should be our response to the health care debate is to give more of the gifts from God to others, as we rely on the Lord more than relying on government, employers, family, friends or even ourselves.

Discouragement

“Never let us be discouraged with ourselves; it is not when we are conscious of our faults that we are the most wicked: on the contrary, we are less so. We see by a brighter light. And let us remember, for our consolation, that we never perceive our sins till He begin to cure them.” Francois Fenelon (1651-1715)

We are not a race of people happy to have our faults shown to us. It seems to be one of the primary elements of our sin nature. We don't enjoy being wrong. We don't enjoy having faults and I know of very few people who enjoy having someone else point this out.

It was this way from the start. In the first recorded conversation between God and Adam in Genesis 3:8-12, Adam's reaction to God's question if he had about what he had done (eaten from the forbidden tree) was to blame Even and even imply it was God's fault (this woman you gave me).

This is what is often called a "natural" reaction to being confronted with doing wrong. When my kids were little I often wondered when we had adopted those two orphan children named "Aidunno" and "Knotme" were the ones responsible for any broken toy, marks on the walls, dirt on the rug or mess not cleaned up.

But this Christian life calls for us to fess up. Part of our salvation experience is predicated on our open awareness and admission of our sinfulness to the point we could not save ourselves. This is not just a "well no one is perfect" attitude, but one of acute awareness that we are an eternity away from coming even close to meeting the standard that is Christ. If we could, we would not need a Savior.

A Christian Response to a sin being pointed out is not one of blame-shifting or argument or even avoidance, but one of humble acknowledgement, repentance, and asking God, relying upon God, to help you turn from this sin.

Our sins should not be a source of discouragement but one of encouragement because we are see the work of the Father in our lives. This is a source of joy, knowing that our Father, through Christ, is molding us back into that image of Him he originally created us to be.

January 22 - a tough day for me

This is a difficult day for me.

It is the anniversary of the Supreme Court ruling giving the right of a mother to kill her child in her womb without cause.

It is difficult because I have experienced abortion in my life and have to face the reality that I was a passive participant in the murder of a child by standing idly by while their mother allowed a physician to go in and remove their baby.

This is much to my shame and remorse and every year on January 22 I remember my lost children and weep for them.

Even though this happened a number of years ago before I received Christ as Lord and Savior and experienced His forgiveness for my sins, it does not excuse nor justify the doing of this.

The circumstances were not desparation but inconvenience, and in one instance involved deceit, but I have to face the fact that I was still a coward for these children. I was unwilling to stand up for an innocent child who happened to come along at a "bad time" to be born (bad time based on our own selfish desires).

I wrote a song about this right after recieving Christ as Lord and Savior. On this day, I honor them who should have been, with these words:

SIMPLY KISS YOU GOOD NIGHT

This is for you, the one not at home,

Taken from life before you were known

And I won’t see you, out on the playground

And I won’t see you, going down the big slide

And I won’t see you, to push on the high swing

Or to simply kiss you good night

This is for you, the one far away

Who never will feel the warmth of the day

And I won’t see you, laughing and smiling

And I won’t see you, with tears in your eyes

And I won’t see you, caught in a deep thought

Or to simply kiss you good night

This is for you, the one with no choice

In the name of convenience I silenced your voice

And I won’t see you, as you’re held in my arms

And I won’t see you, to show you the way

And I won’t see you, to tell fo the Father

Or to simply kiss you good night

The log and the splinter

Perhaps one of the most mis-used verses in the Bible is found in Matthew 7. It is primarily brought up when a Christian says something that is critical or (allegedly) judgmental about a person's action, word or deeds. The conversation goes something like this: Christian: you did this action and I think it was a wrong thing to do Person: you don't have a right to tell me what to do! Doesn't the Bible say to take the log out of your own eye before taking the splinter out of mine? You hypocrite. What is really happening is that the Person is not trying to help the Christian see the error of their way, which is the Christian's purpose, but the Person is trying to defer from having to deal with the rightness or wrongness of their own action. If they really read the verse and understood the context they would not use this verse as a defense. Here it is in full context: Matthew 7:1-5 (ESV) 1 "Judge not, that you be not judged. 2 For with the judgment you pronounce you will be judged, and with the measure you use it will be measured to you. 3 Why do you see the speck that is in your brother's eye, but do not notice the log that is in your own eye? 4 Or how can you say to your brother, 'Let me take the speck out of your eye,' when there is the log in your own eye? 5 You hypocrite, first take the log out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to take the speck out of your brother's eye. In verse 1, "Judge" here means to assess the state of a person based on an action, not to point out an error (that is a rebuke). This does not mean we cannot assess the right or wrong, properness or improperness of a behavior. It means we should not find a person as worthless because of an action they did. That is why, in verse 2, the warning is that if you judge others, you will be judged by by God with the same standard you judged others. The reality is that most people are hypocrites. They do violate their own standards at some point in their lives. Verse 3 & 4, probably the most popular, seems to indicate that we should not ever say anything to anyone until we are perfect. The "log" concept is often thrown out there in response to a criticism. But look closely at the context and it just a reinforcement of verse 2. If we are going to rebuke, we need to be very careful about how we do this. We need to examine ourselves as well. I recently come to the understanding that what Christ is saying here is that when we see others sin, our first response should be to look at the sin in our own lives. Here is the part that is most ignored - the "splinter". Christ does not tell us to ignore the splinter. A splinter left in can be a constant irritant, it can become infected and kill the person. It is not something to just let go, so regardless of the size of our log, the splinter that remains in the eye of the other person needs to be removed. But think about this, how is a splinter removed, especially from such a vulnerable areas as the eye? We don't go for the pliers but go for the tweezers. We don't first go for a knife, but use a needle. We don't yank and jerk at it, but try to slowly retract it. Our effort is to ease the pain not create worse suffering. We want to remove a splinter with the least amount of damage to the area.

This is how we should rebuke. To point out an error in such a way that we do the least amount of damage to the other person. This means we need to think about our tone, the words we use, our motives. Our goal, as Christians, is not to hurt but to help because we are no better than the other person. We are called to do this in love, with the other person's best interest in mind.

When a person does wrong, they often know it already. Our rebuke should be to help them turn from their sin. If they don't know it is wrong, then how we tell them will help them realize it. Never should our intent be to bring about more sin.

There is great risk in a rebuke. Most people don't like their sins to be shown and go to great lengths to hide or justify them. They look for loopholes and ways to divert the heat from their own searing conscience. But an unrepentant sinner is a doomed individual. We would try and stop someone from walking into the path of an on-coming semi, so why wouldn't we want to help someone whose actions are condemning them?

So, while we need to look for our "logs" and be aware of them, let us not be deterred from helping others with their "splinters", and do that not as one in authority, but one in the same station.

Thinking Inward

I have had some recent events in my life that remind me just how humble we need to be to others as I grow in my personal relationship with God and become stronger in my faith Christ. It is much easier to point outward than to consider inward.

Acts 17 tells of Paul and Silas going to Berea, a city in Macedonia, and found the Jews there "received the word with all eagerness, examining the Scriptures daily to see if these things [what Paul was preaching] were so." Acts 17:11 (ESV) The lesson here being that we need to compare what we are told by others with what Scripture tells us.

We tend to view this from a theological or doctrinal point - is what we are being told hold up as true or correct under the light of what the Bible says.

However, there is also another aspect to this. Are what WE doing meet what Scripture tells us to do.

It is easy to point out errors of others. It is much harder to see one's owns faults - or at least admit them. That is why before we start pulling out the specks in the eyes of others, we need to remove the logs from our own eyes (Matthew 7:3). This verse does not tell us to ignore the specks of others, verse 5 tells us to remove the speck but only after we have removed the log. (the use of a speck and log is to remind us that we need to see our sins as greater than the sins of others because we call Christ Lord and Savior yet our sins are a betrayal to those very words!)

The point here is that we are to be humble when it comes to others sins because we are no better. The purpose of pointing out sin should be to help another person, not condemn them (though they may initially feel that way), and it should have the same purpose in our own self-examination.

Now, getting back to me.

I have lived two lives.

My life before Christ and after Christ. I have a "BC" and an "AD", so to speak.

Before Christ I was hopelessly lost in my sin. There was not a commandment that I had not broken on purpose. My desire was not to be obedient to God but to feed my own lusts and flesh. My promise meant nothing. My mouth spoke a lie before truth (especially if it got me out of hot water). There was nothing that was personally moral to me - it was ok for me to violate my wedding vows, to ignore my obligations, to do what I wanted to do without regard for the consequences on others. I had so much pride in myself that I thought I could manipulate, finagle, lie, or ignore my way out of any problem.

Outwardly, I looked pretty good, until caught, but inwardly I was of poor, desperate, character.

After Christ, He dwellt in me and overtook me. My desire for Christ and Him Crucified became greater (usually) than the desires of self. I still have a long way to go to even dare to call myself even marginally righteous and I still battle my sin desires, but my succumbing to those desires lessens as I view myself more through Christ. Every breath is grace.

But here is where we Christians run into problems. We preach the Gospel with our lives but our lives have not always lived the Gospel and we tend to want to hide that in the dark corners of our lives, sometimes doing as the world does and pretending to be good people, and even relishing when others see us that way. Forgive me for hiding my past and wanting to look good. I was not good, ever, and any goodness I showed was because God was working in me.

Sometimes I think "pride" is the only sin, and all the other "sins" are just manifestations of that. It is our view of self that stands in the way of our view of God.

Our response to sin is to humble ourselves in its face. We are no better than ones without Christ and in many ways worse because it was God who gave us Grace and not our own righteousness that allows us to call Him Father. Let us always remember this both outwardly and inwardly.

For His Glory,

Tom

There are some days when stoicism looks good to me. Our age seems to be more wrapped up in how we 'feel' than about what is right or wrong.

Back in the late 60's there was a saying that pretty much reflected the sentiment of the times: "If it feels good, do it". Today that sentiment seems to have evolved to: "If it feels good it is good and no one should tell me otherwise". 'Feeling' has become the primary means of assessing the world. It is almost, it seems for many, a worldview, an ideology. It is the demise of objectivity and the rise of subjectivity both personally and publically.

This is manifesting itself in law. For example, simply expressing an opinion can now lead to losing a job if what is stated 'offends' another person, often regardless of the validity of that statement. The measure is fast becoming not real damage but percieved damage to the individual.

All over the media it is all about 'feelings'. All over the workplace it is about 'feelings'. The world is becoming saturated with 'feelings'. Even the Church, which is based on law and grace has embraced the "feeling" culture of our times.

And I am tired about worrying about 'feelings' - mine and someone elses. I am tired of reading that the cause of all problems is someone's 'poor self-esteem' when Scripture tells us in James 4 that it is the "passions at war within" us. Focusing on 'feelings' allows us to make up our rules as we move along.

The problem with this is that there are rules - both physical and Spiritual. Physical rules tell me that I cannot walk through a wall without doing some damage regardless about how I 'feel' about going through that wall. Spiritual rules tell me that there is a penalty to pay for disobedience to God.

We don't want to believe that subjectively, but reality has this way of negating false beliefs with true knowledge.

As Christians, we need to guard ourselves form embracing the current fads in thinking and finding ourselves more like the world than like Christ. Our rules are not made up as we stumble along. Our 'rules' are spoken to us from God to Scripture to our eyes and ears. We have a Lord. It is Him whom we need to obey, and not the whims of the moment.

Christian Stoicism is following Christ even when we are 'feeling' like otherwise. It is glorifying God above our 'self', not living for our 'self'. It is finding joy in something other than your 'feeling'.

FHG,
Tom

There Are Days

As a Christian perhaps one of the toughest things we do (or in this case don't do) is to get too wrapped up in this world.

We are reminded in John 18:3 that our home, our Kingdom, is not of this world, and are warned in Romans 12:2 not to conform to this world. Simply put, as the adopted children of God this world is not our home and, in fact, it will one day end and there will be a new Earth (Revelation 21:1).

Yet, we are existing now in this time and place and there are days when it seems to be spinning in a maddening fashion. From global issues such as climate change to personal issues like who took the garbage out last to the animals fighting and struggling to instinctively survive, this world is not a place at peace. It is a place of beauty, but not a place of peace.

So on those days when a "there are days" moment occurs, when this world just seems so overwhelming, it is time to go to God in Word and prayer and put your mind on Him and remember His "things above" (Colossians 3:2). Worship Him and this world fades away.

For His Glory,
Tom

12

Recently, I attended a "training" on suicide. It was an overview of how our culture looks at suicide and was very interesting, sad, disturbing, and convicting all at once.

One of the most disturbing was a statistical figure.

12 suicides have been attributed to the death of Michael Jackson.

Now statistics are just a gathering of numbers. Most often they are without context, sometimes they are wrong or in error, sometimes they speak for themselves. This statistic speaks volumes.

That someone would consider their life over because a singer died is hard for me to comprehend.

I can understand why someone would want to kill themselves when a close loved one dies, or a catastrophic event or getting in deep into a quagmire. They lose hope. But to pin one's life, one's hope on a guy who can sing and dance well, who does not even know you exist, who cares about you only in the broadest of terms...well, that is very sad but also gives us some insight into how we are different from animals.

If you are an evolutionist and believe that humans are just a higher order species (not unique as Christians believe) then consider this - man is the only animal that contemplates suicide. We are also the only "animal" that does a lot of things like not wait for nature to adapt us physically for the environment, build various types of shelters, have written and readable languages, create various tools, goes to war over ideas, etc.

The reality is that man has the image of God placed in him and so we seek God to see our own image. The problem is that sometimes we find a god that is not the real god and think we have found our own image.

12 people did that recently.

My hope is that you are not placing your hope in the wrong god. To find out more go to Need God.

The World Around Us

I took some time off from writing as it had become more of a burden than a joy. I wanted to breathe deeply for a while and enjoy the world around us. The world God has created.

It culminated last weekend with a trip to Mackinac Island where automobiles and trucks are basically banned and access is by a ferry boat. Sitting on a street in town all one hears is the low drone of people talking, the whirring of the bicycle wheels going by and the clopping of horse hoofs.

The views are so peaceful, both the natural beauty and historical buildings abound (they claim to be the most historical spot in Michigan). It was both refreshing and relaxing, though I missed having all the family there.

Then we came home, and the world hadn't changed much. There is still that problem neighbor and the bills to pay and the issues at work and the politics in Washington and the cultural, economic strife and death, destruction, mayhem and chaos of both the man-made and natural world around us.

It makes me want to hop back on the boat and move to Mackinac Island to one of those mansions on the bluff overlooking the lighthouse. This world makes me want to call Mackinac Island home, not the slowly dying city of Saginaw.

Scripture reminds us, though, that the world around us is not home (John 15:19). The book of Revelations points out that this world will once day cease to exist, and that humans are eternal beings who will dwell forever in one of two places. Those who reject God will dwell away from Him in Hell. Those of uswho profess Christ as Lord and Savior, who have recognized our sins and turned from them (though we may desire to do them), who have recieved Jesus' gift of salvation will live in a place called Heaven. Hell will not be a place one should want to reside (you think your current circumstances are unpleasant, Hell is indescribably worse). Heaven is a place described as having no more tears (Rev 7:17) or pain (Rev 21:4). It is a place so much better than the world around us or even Mackinac Island.

This world around us is only a moment in time. It is the waiting in line on the dock for the ferry boat to take us to the Island. We need to remember that when we get all wrapped up in the political, social, economic, emotional, cultural, entertainment times. This is not our world. This is not our true home. We are just visiting and we are just visitors, and I find great comfort in that thought, but it would be nice to hear the clip-clopping of a horse or any whirr of a bicycle wheel over the rev of an engine just one more time.

For His Glory,
Tom

What I Learn From My Personal Trials

I am in a "down" season.  

It is hard to put my finger on it, but there is a lot of things in my life that are askew right now, things I would rather not put out there for the public.  It is a time of some personal disappointments, some questioning, some reflection.

These are times when we lean heavily on our faith.  

God led me to John Piper's book "Future Grace" - full of wisdom about relying not on today but on what is coming, and that is what God reminds me through the trials of today.  This life is all temporary.  A few hundred years and very little will still be here.  Even the mountains erode and the continents are moving.

I can find peace in this or fear.  I choose peace.  Peace that it is God's hand that moves everything for His Will...His Good and Perfect Will.

I may experience tragedy, I may witness catastrophe, I may be swept away in a disaster, but it is really all about Him and every time I get into a "down" season, I am reminded just how much I am not God and He is.

For His Glory,

Tom

Entitled To What?

I got some feedback that my posting about the economic state, crime and general malaise in the city where I live, was a little "down" for them (like they needed to be reminded of this).

What I was attempting, albeit not very well, was to express how quickly we are to run to God when times are troubled but, basically, ignore Him when life is well. 

I also talked about it being time for America to bless God and should have made it clear that I was not talking about individual people, but referring to our nation as a whole. There are many people who are striving and giving up themselves for Christ, but as a nation, as a government, as a people, we are turning from God while still expecting Him to give us something. In fact, I have joined up to fast for the President once a month (you can too at Fast for the President)

There has grown in this country a mentality that we are 'owed' or 'entitled' to being blessed. I think of this as having the view of God as a grandpa than as a Father. That when something 'bad' happens it is God's fault, when something 'good' it was because we 'earned it'.

When I was in high school (yes, they had them back then) I had a girlfriend. We had been going 'steady' for two years when she suddenly, unceremoniously, broke off our relationship (and broke my heart). I was broken hearted. We had already planned our lives together and now we were not going to be together.

Well, I blamed God. How could He do this to me?  If He was so loving how could He allow me to be hurt so much? What had I done to Him for Him to do this to me? (the answer was nothing...I had done nothing for God. He was pretty irrelevant in my life and His commandments were a joke to me) OK, I was pretty convoluted at 17 but I saw the world as spinning around me.

One Sunday I had the privilege of teaching to the High School group at church.  The subject was "Giving", so I asked them to tell me what they had "given" to (done for) God that past week - in what way had they honored our Lord?

It was interesting to see the looks on their faces as they pondered this question. As I went around the room to hear their responses, a few honest ones actually said that they had not done a thing. Some answered they did things by what I would call "commission" (I prayed to God) and others by "omission" (I didn't beat up my brother), but mostly I think this was the first time they had looked at their world form God's perspective, and it was eye-opening (at least for some who told me that).

Of course, as usually happens to me when I am teaching, I had to confront this lack of giving to God in my life as well. How often do I fail to see my world through the eyes of our Lord? More often than I would care to admit, how about you?

Tom

nsf 7-20-02

What I Was, What I Am, What I Will Be

It is very difficult to summarize one's life, since people are in a constant state of flux - changing phsycially, mentally, emotionally, and even spiritually.

Sunday at Church, there was an ordination ceremony for our associate pastor.  I have never been to one before and it was encouraging to see this young man and his family being committed before the Lord.

When the charge was given to the pastor, the speaker used 2 Timothy as the Scripture to base the charge.  This is Paul's encouraging letter to his protege Timothy.

During the course of the charge, the speaker referred to the meaning of verse 7 - "I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith." - as Paul looking back and having no regrets about his walk with Christ.

So I started thinking about my past and I have more regrets than I care to list or think about, but I also have the knowledge that I am not the man I was yesterday nor will I be the man I am now, tomorrow.

Recently, I have been under attack by someone whom I hold dear.  They are angry with me about actions done many years ago, some before my salvation, some during the years since. 

When I first tasted salvation, I did not immediately cease being the old man, who was liar and deciever and manipulator of others.  God is growing me in such a way that He is developing my character.  I am less the liar and decieve and manipulator, but only because it is the Lord doing this and not my own effort.

I have been forgiven by God of these sins and can now, because of Christ, kneel in His presence, and strive, through Him, to cease the evil that I too often find myself desiring to do.  I am redeemed but not yet fully sanctified.  I am at war with my sin, my flesh, and, sadly, sometimes it prevails in the battle, though it has failed in the conquest of me.

Unfortunately, this does not absolve me of the fact that I did sin and that I do sin and that I will sin.  This means that I still weep over my failings, how I have hurt others, how I have wronged mostly those whom I love and have loved me, how I have misused the gifts given to me.

I go on sinning not because it is my desire to do so, but because I have not yet given myself fully over to Him!  

This is a tough reality, but it makes sense of what I was, what I am, and what I will be.

God is working at His pace to shape me back into the image He intended when He created me, and He becomes more (and I less) I am humbled that He would even want to work in a scoundrel such as me, that He would call me His child when I have been such a disobedient brat, that He would call me friend when I have been such an enemy of His!

Christians are not void of sin, but we are free from the deciet of sin.  True Christians know what they were, what they are, and what they will be and they know that they are in the hands of God and not their own hands.

In this, I have no regrets - that God has saved me from my self, and my hope is in Him.

Difficult years

This is becoming another difficult year in the city where I live.  

Another major employer just layed off another 250 employees and there are rumors of more lay-offs and business failures.

The city itself is facing some serious budget shortfalls and there is talk of seeking a tax increase.

Over the last few years there has been a rash of gang killings which has sent a chill over even traveling in certain parts of the town. City officals are often quoted or heard in news stories as asking us to pray for the city. There have even been a number of prayer vigils and gatherings of religious leaders.

 

It is a sad commentary that we only seek God to bless us in times of trouble.  Maybe that is one of the answers to the ever asked question of why God allows bad things to happen - perhaps it is because He is sought in the 'bad' times.  

In the stores the red, white & blue is out in a flourish. It seems like every other car has a sticker that says "God Bless America", but America continues to refuse to bless God, to honor Him, to thank Him. Now I am not advocating creating a 'Christian' nation. I am not sure what that would even look like (though I would think heaven would be such a nation, one nation, under God as we bow before His Majesty).  

What I am advocating is that we believers need to recognize that God is more important than patriotism or ideology or philosophy. That our purpose is to give God another conduit to show His glory, and how much more glorious is He, then when a sinner is saved through His blood!

We need to focus less on our 401K and more on how we are to show Him, glorified through us, no matter what the situation.

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Accepting Others

¹  We who are strong have an obligation to bear with the failings of the weak, and not to please ourselves. ²  Let each of us please his neighbor for his good, to build him up. ³ For Christ did not please himself, but as it is written, "The reproaches of those who reproached you fell on me." ⁴ For whatever was written in former days was written for our instruction, that through endurance and through the encouragement of the Scriptures we might have hope. ⁵ May the God of endurance and encouragement grant you to live in such harmony with one another, in accord with Christ Jesus, ⁶ that together you may with one voice glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. ⁷ Therefore welcome one another as Christ has welcomed you, for the glory of God.

Romans 15:1-7 (ESV)

Romans 15:7 tells us to accept others just as Christ accepted you.

Acceptance can be a tough act to engage in and we need to be clear what acceptance involves.  It used to mean that we can “agree to disagree”, but now the meaning seems to be “ we are both right and I cannot tell you that you are wrong”.

As a Christian, I cannot accept that as the concept. We believe there is only one Truth, and Scripture consistently points this out as true, that the only way to salvation is through Christ and in Christ and because of Christ.

Given that, though, we are also to love each person where they are currently at.  We need to remember that we all have a long way to go to attain the righteousness and glorification of God.  No one is beyond Christ, though not all will come to Christ, but it is not our duty or our role to make that choice.  We are called to be ambassadors.

A few years ago a couple moved into the house next door. They were not married and very young They generally lived a lifestyle far from that one that honors God and God was clearly not important in their lives.

As our new neighbors though, we accepted them where they were. I helped them work some on their house, Jill sent over cookies and food. We fed their dog when they went on vacation. These were small things to show Christ's love for them.

After a few years, they got married, then had a baby, and then another.  We have shared some of their struggles.  For a while they were going to church, but this soon ebbed.

Despite this,  we continue to pray for them and ask God working in their lives.

I have had some opportunities to talk about Christ to them, though nothing deep, and we strive to continue to show them the Lord.

Will this bear fruit?   Will they come to Christ through our efforts?

I cannot answer that, but I know that we are called to continue, to not give up.

Our call is to be faithful to Christ in loving others, even those who do not know Him, to accept them where they, and to continue to hope and pray and trust God that He will work in their lives to His glory.

That is the great joy and sorrow of being a missionary - to wait on God to change the life of someone you have come to love.   Even the neighborhood missionary…or the employee missionary…or even the bowling team missionary.

We must remember to have a passion for those around us to whom only we are Christ.

For His Glory, Tom Peck

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That Which The Lord Hates Part 7

(Proverbs 6:16-19) There are six things that the LORD hates, seven that are an abomination to him: haughty eyes, a lying tongue, and hands that shed innocent blood, a heart that devises wicked plans, feet that make haste to run to evil, a false witness who breathes out lies, and one who sows discord among brothers.

Lets look at the 5th thing which God hates - "feet that make haste to run to evil".

I like how that is phrased.  

It could have been stated simply - a desire to sin, but instead it is feet running to evil.  This is not just conceptualizing sin and then doing sin, it is a rush to sin, not just a crawl, a walk, a stroll, but a "haste to run" to evil.  It is a condemnation of all men of what is found in our heart - that we do not, at the innermost, desire for God to be glorified but for us to be glorified, for us to be on the seat of the King.

We lunge to sin when given the opportunity.  We thrust at it when temptation calls.  It is who and what we are.

We don't like to admit it.  We don't like to face it as a reality.  We want to believe otherwise, but deep inside we know that we are good despite the evidence of our lives.

But the facts speak otherwise - who has not sinned?  Who has not taken God's moral perfection and twisted and distorted it into our own image?  Who has not done that which they believe to be wrong?

Sin is our common denominator.  It is where we are all shown to be equal.  It is the true state of our heart.

Yet, here is God, who despises our rush to rebellion and His response is to sacrifice Himself in our place, opening the way for our redemption by simply realizing who we are and what we need - Christ our Salvation, our Redeemer, our Savior, our Lord.

The year Christmas Lost the "Magic"

This year Christmas lost the "magic" at our house.

Now some will say this is a bad thing.  I find it quite good since for so many years Christmas has been more about the dream of the gathering of family and the perfect gift and the warm memories than about the significance of the event.

What caused this change from a "magical", romantic, wonderful Christmas?

First, our youngest turned 10 and Santa became who he is to her - a secular symbol.  It is not that she quit "believing" in him, it is that the fantasy of him no longer had a meaning and she became more focused on her part in "Christmas" such as participating in decorating, making items, shopping for gifts for others, and paying a little more attention in church to the significance of the birth of Christ.  It was noticeable that this year was less about her and more about others.

Second, we were pounded by so much winter weather that the "magic" of a "white" Christmas turned into the reality of the temperature being too cold, the conditions too unsafe, and the shoveling too tedious.  When you have to shovel your drive for the umpteenth time and are running out of places to put throw the stuff, the ho-ho-ho becomes bah-humbug rather quickly and you are ready to throttle the next "little child" who you find out is praying for more snow!

Third, the "magical" gathering of family wasn't.  It was better.  

Our families are getting older.  They have jobs and relationships and lifestyles and live in locations that are spreading out.  It is just darn near impossible for all of them to get together at the same time in the same place. 

In order to "see" everyone Christmas moves from one huge gathering to a number of small ones.  Some are momentary to exchange a gift and a hug,  a lunchtime meeting that lasts a couple of hours,  to the all day party. 

In some ways it is sad not to see everyone at one time, but this spreads out the time and allows for a little more enjoyment of each other.  There is less of that "oh, I didn't get to talk with..." regrets.

I have always strived to consider each gathering as if it were our last.  I know that seems a little morbid but it also increases the specialness.  One day it will be our last, so let us relish in the moment now. 

Finally, church services were a little flatter.  Our regular church is not real big on the holidays.  It is their tradition to downplay the "holidays" and the Christmas eve service is very low key.  My wife, however, comes from a background where Christmas at the church was a major celebration with numerous Advent and Christmas services filled with litergy and ritual, trumpets and tympanies, choirs and circumstance.  

this year, our church cancelled the Christmas Eve service in advance of expected bad weather and the pastors being out of town.  Instead we went to my wife's old church, with her childhood experiences as an expectation.  We went to the "contemporary" service and got a rock band (that could have used a better mix) playing some souped up carols ("with a new twist" is how the pastor introduced them), a touch of litergy, a "nice" sermon, and  then the evening ended with a very slow, almost depressed, version of Silent Night.  

It was not the celebration we had anticipated, but to me it was reminder that the first Christmas had very little "magic" in it.

There was this little baby born in mundane circumstances, far from family and friends, with a minimal celebration.  Yes, there were angels telling some shepherds, which puts a little "magic" to it, but that is about it. Life did not immediately change for most of the people at the Inn nor in Bethlehem nor in the rest of the world.  Life went on.  

This Christmas changed me.  It is the loss of a dream, a fanatsy, a romantic vision of what Christmas should be with the reality of what it is - a time we stop and think about someone other than our self, or at least try to do that.

As Christians, though, this is a daily task, not just one set aside at Christmas or Easter or any "special" day.   Christ never instituted holidays or celebrations of Himself and I find that very interesting since the Jews had a ton of them.  It is because God moved from being out there somewhere at a distance to inside me close to my heart and soul.  Every day is a celebration of His birth, His death, His resurrection.  Every hour is the moment before Christmas.  Every minute His gift to me.

So the "magic" of Christmas left but was replaced by the reality of Christ.  A much better thing, I would say.

For His Glory,

Tom

Don't Pray to Congress for Help

I cannot say if this Fox News article accurately portrays what happened at this "Worship Service", but it left the impression on the writer that the prayers were to Congress to help out the automaker.

Now, this in itself is not an inappropriate prayer, but the aticle starts out:

DETROIT —  With auto workers in the pews and sport-utility vehicles at the altar, one of Detroit's largest churches on Sunday offered up prayers for Congress to bail out the struggling auto industry, Reuters reported.

This sure reads like the prayers were to Congress and not God.

Now I went to the church web site and their statement of faith (what we believe) is solidly centered on the Word and on Christ.  There was an announcement inviting auto workers to a special "Service" for prayer and annointing.

This in itself is not wrong.  Many churches some 47 years ago had special services after Pearl Harbor to pray for the dead and our nation.  Same with other events, tragedies, and circumstances.

The workers in the US auto industry and related employers are nervous.  The structure is trembling and at risk of falling putting hundreds of thousands, maybe millions of people out of work and threatens our basic economic well-being.  

It is more than apt to pray about this situation, but our prayers should be for God to be glorified and for a solution to this problem to come forth.  

We don't know if the loans will work.  They seem like a panic reaction to me, but putting that to one side, the danger, and in this case it came true, is that it leaves the impression the prayers were to Congress, not for Congress.  

It sounds like they believe the solution is the loan (or bail out), and that is their prayer, and in doing so left the impression that they were praying to Congress - at least to the writer of the article.

Our response in difficulties is to rely on God.  Our hope is in Christ alone, and we need to be very careful about leaving an impression otherwise.  

I am hoping that this church, which appears to do some great ministry to the people of Detroit, did not do as the article stated,  and, instead, truly gave some real "good news" to the autoworkers, that their true salvation is not in their employers, not in their government, not even in their churches, but in Christ alone.