Ichabod Community Church

"Like peas, music should not be canned."

                                                                                      ~ Unknown

Years ago I found the above quote; I like it because it demonstrates a need for the human soul to interact in worship - not with a radio or CD or iPod, but with a live musician worshiping as they play.
As God created music, through music we worship our Creator.

The same is true for life; as God has created life and given us life - our lives should endeavor with equal purpose to worship Him in our actions and words.
Anything less could be considered an act of treason against Heaven's High King and blasphemy against His Holy Son.
Yet, God will not make those who say they love Him embrace His values, mercy or compassion; He has given humanity free will and after pleading with us, wooing us and even shouting - if we refuse, God will let us have our way regardless of how bad it might hurt us in the end.

Our Creator will seldom impose Himself upon us; He will not force love nor obedience.
Maybe that is how we imagine a relationship with God is supposed to be; but in the economy of New Testament grace, it does not work that way. 
When things, people or issues attract us and dominate our time, finances and service more than the Lord; God will often withdraw, honoring our freedom to ignore Him.

Yet, you nor I can escape God; nor can a Body of Believers escape His person, even when we don't behave honorably or act like He would have us act for His glory.

As wineskins retain a smell of wine and Creation retains the touch of God's hand, so does the

individual Christian and the Church - regardless of where we are or what we may do.
The question for us is if we are honoring the Lord in our lives and Churches or are we giving people outside our walls a reason to stay away from Christ?

This question takes on even more importance in the modern era than at any other time. The reason is because of the modern miracle we know as 'the internet.'
The internet is a wonderful tool, but it can also provide keen insight to our post-modern world through its suggestions in our search engines.

For example, I just typed the following phrase in a search engine: 'Why are Christians..."
While there were various negative suggestions, it is the first phrase suggested which tells me that the Church is in serious trouble with the next generation.
The search engine suggested: 'Why are Christians so MEAN?"

I believe the answer to this question is not found in something, but rather in what we don't have.
Many Christians have lost their spiritual sight and hearing; if they ever gained it at all.

My father passed away several years ago, but one thing I can honestly say is that I have never met a person who is as quiet in the woods as he was. 
But not only could he move quietly and discretely; he could also hear things and see things that I couldn't - fox dens, yellow jacket nests in the ground, squirrels barking and from which tree, etc.

These things I couldn't do as easily as he; I was a child and he had been a hunter and outdoorsman for most of his life - I had neither the years nor the experience.

As I grew older, my eyesight and hearing in Creation improved; as did my spiritual sight and hearing.
But what many Christians fail to understand, a person can lose their 'expertise' in spiritual things if they are not exercised for the glory of the Lord.

Years ago, after I had gained the ability to move in nature decently, seeing and hearing more than most could, I found myself transplanted in Louisville, KY. 
There wasn't a lot of ways I could exercise my acquired abilities in the steel, glass and concrete of what we affectionately called 'Kentuckiana.'
Pursuing a Seminary degree and serving on the Police Department soon caused me to go deaf and blind; not literally of course, but figuratively in my outdoor ability.

Yet, I did not realize this fact until I returned to my home state, in a rural, small town and was awakened one morning by the sound of robins singing outside my window.
I had grown deaf to natural sounds; at that moment I knew Louisville had made me deaf and wondered what else I had become deaf to since I lived in a city.
And I knew, if I was blind and deaf to these things in the natural realm, chances were I had also become deaf and blind to things in the spiritual realm as well.
I was right.

The word "Ichabod" means 'the glory has departed;' as Christians grow deaf and blind to the needs of people around us in life, the evidence of the Lord's glory departing from us is astonishing.

Sadly, in our time, many Christians could rightly say that they worship in Ichabod Community Church because the Lord's glory in their lives and in their churches departed long ago as God honors the free will decision to reject Him and His way.

In the Southern Baptist Convention, it has been reported that an estimated 70% of all churches have stagnated or are currently in decline. 
Many are up in arms over this negative number, including one Baptist leader who stated that by 2030, he believed half of all churches would permanently close their doors.
Given the 'mega-church' model which is loved by thousands of Christians who aspire to that level, the idea that a church may go through a season of decline does not set well.
Personally, I cannot fathom why anyone in the ministry would attempt to 'pastor' a 5,000 to 10,000 member church. 
Even the thought is ridiculous.

But many layman in leadership are attracted by the flash and numbers; and it puts many ministers at odds with those within their own churches.
It is at this juncture where numbers on the roles become more important than the souls and spiritual condition of the people who remain in the pews.
If the concern of any church's leadership is of numerical value, no real or meaningful ministry for the Lord can take place; the glory, therefore, will depart.

In rural areas, the tendency is to place the vast majority of ministry responsibility on the Pastor; this is to be expected.
Yet, all Christians should minister to one another in various ways; if they do not, people quickly get hurt and the Church body suffers.

For example, I know a person who recently lost a sibling in their family. Though they were grown adults, this person was hurting.
They received condolences from friends, other family members, acquaintances through work and hobbies, and their minister - but no one else from their church.
That truly hurt them - for if that minister had not reached out to them in love, no one in the Church would have done the Lord's work at all.
In this situation - the Lord's glory has departed from the lay leadership.

People will sit back and criticize ministers who can't do everything every person desires.
Maybe we ought to be thankful for those faithful men who attempt to do all they can for the Lord and the Body of Christ - even when they are deathly sick.
These are the ones who are truly called; serving to bring glory to God.

It probably won't comes as much of a surprise that in the United States, Americans spend more money on beauty products than on our education system.
And it shows.

To put it in perspective, while the rest of the world copes with hunger and trying to fight basic diseases, we spend billions of dollars on cosmetic surgery and weight loss programs.

The bottom line of these facts - American Christians tend to be shallow.
When this shallowness bleeds into our churches and is demonstrated through our opinions of others because of what they own or don't own, what they drive, wear as clothes or even whether or not they shave - the glory has departed.

As He ministered, Jesus Christ gave His full attention to whoever the nameless person was in front of Him.
The truth is that these people, whose countless names have been lost to history, mattered to God. They still do.
As such, we should never underestimate our ability to meet their need in the name of God, bringing glory to His name.

In our modern era, engaging people where they are in life has become time consuming, hard work and, at times, very expensive. And many times, the results are far lower than what we have envisioned in our minds.
Yet, I am reminded of the time Jesus healed ten lepers; only one returned to thank Him for his restoration.
This sums up what happens today as ministers and Christians seek to reach the lost through various avenues in sharing the gospel and the power of God.
But when ministry is condemned because that 'one who returned' is not enough to merit our efforts, the glory has departed.

Again, our Creator will not force Himself to be glorified through our lives; He's not going to force Himself on any shrine we have erected in our lives.
He will let us have our way, even when our way is not His way; and His glory will depart from our lives and our churches.

To the Apostle John, Christ commanded that we 'love not the world.'
But it is obvious that many Christians do love the world, do love being materialists and do love themselves more than they love God.
I've met many Christians who seem to stand before their mirror every morning and sing 'How Great Thou Art;' worshiping at the shrine of self. 
When this level of materialism, arrogance and pride takes precedence over the will of God in their lives and in the leadership they may have in the local church - the glory of the Lord has departed.

In Jesus' ministry, lasting spiritual lessons and teachings were drawn from the most ordinary things of life.
When a Christian, group of Christians or a Church body withdraw from the ordinary things of life, seeking to show a disbelieving world the fullness of God's work through them and instead

meeting alone, secluded, aside and without the rest of the body, plotting and planning together - the glory of the Lord has departed.

While it is true that there have been some saints in the past who withdrew to the seclusion of the desert and became hermits; the truth is that this lifestyle facilitates extreme attention - attention to oneself.
Today, we have nearly a 'rock star' culture in Evangelical Christian circles; and when this culture is chosen over repentance and faith among the brethren, the glory of the Lord has departed.

Societies of all eras and times have tended to reward the wealthy, the skillful and the beautiful. 
Jesus was not in the least bit impressed with what we may call, 'Societies Finest.'
When a Christian or a Church group nearly idolizes these material things and places them above the spiritual values of compassion, mercy and grace - the glory of the Lord has indeed departed.

A few years back, I spent some time on the Chaplain mission field in an Arab country. 
I discovered there are some Christians in the Islamic World who have converted and follow Jesus, but do all the required 'Muslim Stuff' in society.
Yet, this is a minority among them; most prefer a clean break with the Islamic way of life, embracing truth and grace.

In our Churches, we could learn much from these brave Christians; for when our church leaders, Sunday School teachers, and even individual Christians cling to the worldly way of thinking and carnal practices in their lives - the glory of the Lord has departed - for Jesus requires a clean and clear break from the world in order to rightly follow Him and glorify Him.

While in the Middle East, I witnessed Christians being arrested for their faith, heard of an execution of a sister because she had converted to Jesus and personally knew a man who was arrested and jailed for over 2 weeks because he dared to own a hymnal. 

With this backdrop, our church fights and accusations upon one another seem insignificant.
And when we think of these things that other Christians endure in our time, some Christians ought to be ashamed of themselves for bringing discord and disunity into the Body of Christ.
For when this happens, the glory of the Lord has departed.

Being allowed to travel by God's grace to various parts of the globe, something has stood out in my mind.
I have found that as Christianity permeates and infiltrates a society, the Christians in that society tend to embrace values that contradict the Gospel.
I don't know why this is - but I do know that when it happens, God's glory has departed.
As evidence, simply look to Europe; quite possibly, that is the American future of Christianity unless we get our minds back on Jesus and off of ourselves, our wants, our desires and our worldly ambitions within the Body of Christ.

As Jesus ministered, we find in the Gospels that grace came to those most willing to receive it; the same is still true today.
Failing to dispense the grace we have been given is a tragedy.
Usually, those who experience God's compassion and receive His grace, do so because they are holding out open hands because they have no where else to turn.

With every criticism of each Christian from within the Body, with every Church fight, with every

accusation unfounded, with every indiscreet tumultuous campaign within the walls - the lost stay away without a reason to seek Christ.

In your life and in your Church, don't miss the moment God has given you in your life.
We are part of a holy universe, created by God Himself for the purpose of His glory.
Therefore, whatever you do, whatever you might say - do so as unto the Lord.

If you choose otherwise, I can promise you that His glory will depart and you may not realize it until it is too late.

Until next time, win one for the good guys.

Heroic Losers

"Man has set for himself the goal of conquering the world but in the process loses his soul."

Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn

When I was a child, possibly the late 1970's, there was a movie on television about the Elephant Man. To this day, I have never seen the movie - my mother evidently thought the Hollywood make-up artists had done too good of a job and made the actor too grotesque for a young boy.

Elephant Man

Although I don't remember much, I do remember hearing one line out of the movie spoken by the Elephant Man himself, 'I am not an animal. I am a man!'

While few think of the Elephant Man or his form today, in his time he stood as the extreme example of the great divide among mankind between humanity's winners and losers.
He was one of life's greatest losers - that is, according to the world, but not according to God.

The beautiful have always enjoyed rewards beyond the reach of the ugly.
The strong have always dominated the weak and wavering.
It is against this reality on Earth that God's Kingdom flies a flag of Divine Opposition.

In nature, animals will breed according to the beauty of the mate or its dominance; males will often kill any competitors for female affection.
In nature, animals will abandon their sick and lame.
Yet, unlike the rest of the world or what some scientist may tell you, we are not just mere animals because humans transcend that instinct.
And the reason we do is because we alone are the image bearers of God Himself.

Jesus was the first leader in history to recognize and develop the intrinsic value within every person; He was the first to conquer the world with a small group of "Heroic Losers."
When Jesus told stories, He did not honor the strong or the great; instead, He honored those on whom the visible world would place little value - the poor, the persecuted and social rejects.
Today some within the Church would call them, 'the wrong people.'

But to Jesus, they were exactly the right people to take His Gospel forward and within just a couple of centuries, they had indeed conquered the world for Christ.
It was these who chose the foolish things of the world and thereby became wise unto God.

John Merrick was the man better known as the 'Elephant Man.'
What most do not realize is that Merrick was literate and nearly an expert in the classics.
He wrote very little during his life, but what he did write left a message that he had found home in the Christian faith.
And rightly so, for the Christian faith is the faith which tends to gather outcasts.

The Lord has never and will never look only at what man sees on the outside.
God made this clear when David was anointed as His chosen King.

Scripture: 1 Sam 16:7
But the LORD said to Samuel, "Do not look at his appearance or at the height of his stature, because I have rejected him; for God sees not as man sees, for man looks at the outward appearance, but the LORD looks at the heart."

This is still true today and our churches should remember this - our power and strength comes not from our own wisdom, our own manipulation; it comes from God Himself and it is because of His Will that we are able to stand against the world.
We should all remember - God has chosen us from where we are because He sees our heart and knows what we are capable of doing.

The people who did know John Merrick marveled that such a pure heart and gentle soul could live in a monster's body.
They failed to realize what we must learn about ourselves; we are all monsters within, it is just that nobody can see our true deformities.

Except God - and He called us to redeem those qualities into something valuable and heroic in His Kingdom.

What we can see on the outside, in the visible world, generally overpower and overwhelm those things of the invisible world, which are more meaningful but we cannot see.
Yet, it has been this way since the time of the Early Church.

Three centuries after Christ's ascension, Rome had become a Christian Empire and many felt Christians had become complacent.
This led some leaders to question if those who had grown cold in their faith were really Christians at all.

"We admire wealth equally with them (non-Christians) and even more. We have the same horror of death, the same dread of poverty...equally fond of glory...How then can they believe."

~ John Chrysostom

Physical or material qualities do not matter in the eternal realm of things - that was the point Chrysostom was making and millions of ministers have attempted to drive home since.
In my life, it dawned on my when I was sick and believed to be dying that in all the funerals I had officiated over the years, not once had I ever heard anyone eulogize the deceased and mention a bank account or their muscle tone.
The reason they are not mentioned is because these qualities will not endure.

When the disciples asked Jesus to teach them to pray, He instructed them to pray that God's will would be done, 'on earth as it is in Heaven.'
It is only through the Christian serving the Lord, that this can be accomplished; it is accomplished by setting aside what the world values and finding what God values, for God can see the heart.

Jesus sought the sick, not the healthy; He found the sinner, not those who were pure and righteous.
We must seek to do the same.

Jesse Jackson was once on the campus of the University of Southern Mississippi; finding a very unusual sight.
He observed this student, who was obviously an athlete, standing about 6'8" tall hanging out with and caring for a female student who happened to be much, much shorter.
In fact, this person was what we would have called a midget years ago, topping out at the nosebleed height of 3'3".
In observing them, he could tell they knew each other and approached them; as it turned out they were brother and sister.
And when Jackson asked them about their relationship and if it seemed odd, given the height difference, the young man said: 
"Those of us who God makes 6'8" have to look out for those he makes 3'3".

That is the role of the Body of Christ, reaching for and lifting those who are hurting, lost and in need of the healing power of God on their souls to the Lord in compassion and grace.

As Christians we are the people who are the outcasts of society, and we always have room for one more.
The world may think we are crazy or off our rockers, believing that there is nothing of value in those who are rejected by society; but the truth is that we have become foolish and in doing so, we have become wise like those who came before us in the Early Church.

To paraphrase Fredrich Buechner, I would rather choose the lunacy of Jesus Christ sooner than the grim sanity of the world. 

Until next time, God's Speed to 130th AW/SFS deployed in theater; praying for all of you and a safe return.
Be sure to win one for the good guys.

God in Horror

"In a world plagued with commonplace tragedies, only one thing exists that truly has the power to save lives, and that is love."

                                                                                      ~ Richelle E. Goodrich


I recently saw on social media a veteran with a sign posted in his yard saying He was a combat vet, and asking those who used fireworks to be considerate.

Courtesy of Military with PTSD

I think any reasonable person in this day and age can understand such a request; unfortunately, 40 years ago when our Vietnam Vets returned few took the toll of vicious, modern warfare into account. 
Even today, there are vets from past wars who are still affected by the tragedies of the past.

By now, I imagine any person who has wanted has seen 'Saving Private Ryan' or 'Full Metal Jacket' or 'Band of Brothers.'
Each in their own right give a glimpse of war and the horrors that come with man killing man; combat, suicide, loyalty, terror - each of these are part of the larger picture we call War.

The Real Band of Brothers

Yet, while these movies or even some TV shows have elements of truth within them, the general public will never understand like the ones who have experienced it for themselves.

Silently in my mind, I argue that those who truly suffer from Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) aren't incurably sick, nor are they in need of some drastic measures.

I know many combat veterans read this blog; so, just think about this for a minute. Just think of what we have been through, what we've seen, what we've experienced and the people whom we have know that didn't come home from 'over there.'
After some of the things that we've witnessed, who wouldn't feet some type of trauma and stress.

It is for this reason I believe that PTSD is actually a sign of life and health, not a disorder and the people who have it are totally mislabeled.
You see, the man or woman with PTSD is acting in their 'new normal' trying to make it all fit back together again; the depression or erratic behavior is a coping mechanism - meaning they are trying to adjust and get better within themselves. 
Like Christ with the sinner, be patient, compassionate and kind and you will go far in helping them.

Generally speaking, we can indeed sympathize and have compassion, seeking to understand when war is involved in our tragedies; yet, there are others we may never understand.
Are we to blame the Newtown shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary simply on mental illness?
What about the Boston Marathon bombing? Do we answer it is radical ideology and nothing else?
With Columbine, are we to blame bad or negligent parenting?
Or Jonesboro, Ark; the Twin Towers or any other tragedy...how do we respond?

Are we to blame or point the finger at anyone or anything?

With natural disasters which destroy indiscriminately, we tend to classify them as 'acts of God.'
The scale of any of the above disasters does not change the underlying issues of suffering, evil in the world or death on our planet.
Instead, we know these disasters and tragedies concentrate the misery we already know; magnifying it to a larger scale. 

For those in a tragedy, a tragedy at any level no matter how minor or major, sympathy and solidarity usually follows among those involved.
The "formula" type answers that ministers are taught to give do not work in such situations.
There is no carbon copy theology that fits; and there is no guidebook for ministers either. 

It does not help to point to someone with a worse condition; are we to compare the evil that was Joseph Stalin to the Recklessness of the Titanic's captain?

While the pain may be equal and the loss just as tragic, these two do not easily intersect.

The point of the suffering for the minister or the Christian is not the degree or level of suffering; it is that there are individual people who hurt.
All pain is pain - and all pain summons the same questions of faith.

We want to know why God permits such things?

When the Virginia Tech shootings took place, I had returned to West Virginia Tech campus to play a supporting role on stage for a few nights.
Each night, I walked out on the stage before the show, welcomed the audience and led them in a prayer for the families of the victims and the student body at Virginia Tech.

04 May 1970 - Kent State University

At the time I heard someone, most likely an erroneous reporter, state that the shooting was the worst school shooting in history. 
I thought, 'Really?' Worse than Kent State?

The truth is neither is worse, they are just different; each of the people who died were individuals, not a group of people existing for the institutions. 
They were men and women who lived and died in their prime; dying in senseless, tragic acts.


A few years later, I heard the same phrase uttered about Sandy Hook.
It was 'the worst school shooting in history...'
I thought, 'really?'
That's when I found that the actual 'worst school shooting in history;' which took place in Bath Township, Michigan, 18 May 1927.
The man who committed the act was defeated in a local election; taking his wrath out on the

'Crater of Death' at Bath School

elementary school he killed 38 children, 6 adults and injured 58 others. He also ended his own life.

Again, these people weren't a group; they were individuals, innocent children, who made up the group and do not deserve to be classified in our minds any more than  those who suffer today need to be classified into a sterile, nicely packaged group.

You see, when we suffer, we suffer alone; becoming islands.
But we need each other; whether we realize it or not.

And we wonder, how can God allow such things, or how to even make sense of tragedy?

While I don't have all the answers, I do have my own personal experience and have been intimately involved in the suffering, death and dying of others - I can tell you only what I have learned.

Pain, as I see it, is a sign of life and love; not necessarily an enemy.
Therefore, when people are hurting from whatever has called pain in their life and they attempt to numb it through drugs or alcohol, they have committed a grand injustice to the soul.
We must never fail to realize, not even God exempted Himself from human pain.

Yet, in our tragedies as Jesus experienced them in the Gospels - He never once stopped everyone and sermonized about the coming judgment or our need to repent because that was what the cause of the pain originated from.
Nor to Jesus ever tell people that they needed to simply accept God's punishment for their sin

Staff Sgt. Timothy Greenfield-Sanders. 

and suffer gracefully; in our time, we'd tell people to "suck it up."
No, we shouldn't respond in that manner; Jesus didn't - He responded with compassion and mercy.

But why are things like they are?
Why do we suffer so greatly at times?
Well, there are only partial hints in Scripture; though the answer is not complete, I found comfort when I was sick in the fact that God knows how we feel because He has felt pain and suffered.

And because God knows how I feel; I too, in this area, know how God feels.
We can say this and know this because God gave us Himself in flesh; a face, a man - one with tears that leaked from His eyes when joyful, when compassionate and when He personally suffered.

Suffering, Pain and Tragedy are unavoidable in our lives; yet, I do know in this mystery they can only be examined in the context of religious faith if a person is wanting to discover a deeper meaning.
You never hear anyone speak the following in the midst of a tragedy:
                                "You're shocked and upset? Why? What else should 
                                 you expect but pain and tragedy? That's what we get 
                                 from an impersonal universe of chance and random 
                                 indifference. Nature is cruel, therefore the cruelty generally 
                                 strikes us all."

That's real comforting, isn't it? 
Actually, it borders on moronic; that being true, why would anyone trust those who teach such a philosophy. If it cannot answer the question of pain and suffering, it cannot be valid in times of rejoicing in our lives either.
It would be equally as false to one set of circumstances as the other.
But I digress.

Well, obviously that's not the answer God wants us to have; so what does He want us to know about those horrifying times?
In my experience, many times when we enter a time of suffering, God will answer loudly....with pure Silence.

And friend, that can be hard at times.

God has never addressed the question of 'why.'
Maybe it is due to the fact that we can learn so much from His silence.
For it is in His silence that God does not reveal His plans to you and I; God reveals Himself.
And in a time of tragedy, we don't need answers - we need the Lord more than ever.

God bless the combat vet and those who suffer without scars.
Enjoy the Fourth - it was earned and renewed occasionally at a very heavy price.

Until next time, Win one for the Good guys.

Christian Hardships

"The Pope?! How many Divisions does he have?"

~ Josef Stalin

It is amazing to me how American Christians deal with hardships or turbulence in their lives.
In the last 40 years or so, we've been taught to pray it away and  have faith that God will take it away.
For this attitude, I blame televangelists. 
But I digress.

True persecution of ministers or Christians in general continues even today in some countries in the world.
In the modern era, the most notable government sponsored persecution has come from the Communists.
When the Bolsheviks overthrew the Russian Czar, murdering everyone in sight, they immediately sought to end religion; it is, after all, the "opiate of the people" as their ideological father has stated.

Between 1917-1921, the Bolshevik Communists executed over 1,200 Orthodox Priests.
After World War II, their dealing with Protestants was even worse; condemning evangelicals to

Banner over door reads:
 "Monks - The bloody enemies of working people."

insane asylums.

In all, the Communists in the former Soviet Union killed well over 100,000 Orthodox Priests and Bishops - this from a group of people who deliberately chose to run a country without God believing the overall good of man would triumph.

Looking at other Christians around the globe, they tend to view hardships vastly different than Americans. 
For some reason, Americans seem obsessed with pain; maybe that is the reason prescription medication and addiction has sky rocketed in recent years.
We don't want to hurt; but I can tell you from personal experience when I had cancer, those drugs aren't for people who just don't want to hurt - they are for people who don't want to feel anything at all because the pain is so bad.

The prayer meetings in our churches seem to focus on illnesses; one even called it an organ recital - with people talking about their livers, spleens and such. 
Our requests to God for healing seem right; but do you realize this is unique to America?

In the past, Christians expected to face opposition; many pastors spent time in jails for their

Adoniram Judson

faith, like Adoniram Judson, the Baptist Missionary.
Yet, today, because of his work, more than a million Burmese Christians can trace their heritage to Judson's faithfulness in his suffering.

To put it bluntly, the Health & Wealth Gospel of the modern Electronic Preacher is simply a cruel lie to the hurting.
Most Christians, even American Christians will experience some type of discrimination. 
Usually we think of Muslim countries when it comes to discrimination against a believer, but the truth is that the secular world can be just as bad or worse.

In the United States, we are blessed enough to have religious freedom; yet, Jesus still complicates life at times.
By instinct, we hate suffering and loathe trials; which begs the question -
"Why in the world would anybody choose to follow a man who promises more hardship like Jesus?"

But amazingly, it has been my experience that those who suffer the most tend to complain the least.
Hardship in our lives seems to quicken our appetite for God; something of a spiritual homesickness occurs.
We seek and we want God more because of our suffering; instinctively we know He is our true comforter.

No person gets exempt from hardship of Earth; how we receive it - that makes all the difference in the world.
For if we receive it with God's presence - we'll soon find that it is a peace which transcends all understanding.
How else can you explain the peace to the survivors and parents of national tragedies?

What hope could an atheist give after the September 11th attacks on New York?
Or what about the shootings at Columbine or Jonesboro, Arkansas?

Jonesboro Aftermath

What Agnostic could have provided comfort, compassion and hope in the wake of those teenagers being murdered?

Even at the Boston Marathon, when two terrorists in the name of their religion sought to kill and maim innocents -there was no non-believer offering a view which would provide strength and hope.
What hope could they give the hurting?

Can you imagine any of them saying: 
"We live in a meaningless world and you should expect pain without any meaning."

Wow...that's comforting.

Yet, I know those lives lost had meaning - individual meaning, not as a society, but as a person.
And the pain and suffering they experienced, had meaning.
The difference is that God makes a difference in a persons life.

Why do Christians in oppressive, Third World countries seek to minister to those who are hurting - even when persecution could result?
God - He is the difference in a person's life to where they become more than they ever imagined as the vessel through which He touches the world and offers the grand hope of redemption through His Son.

For you see, God is in the recycling business.
He redeems the good out of the bad; resurrecting our hope out of every tragedy.

Until next time, win one for the good guys.

The Small Screen

 "For the preaching of the Cross is to them that perish foolishness..."

                                                                           ~The Apostle Paul, 55 AD

Last week my denomination concluded it's Annual Meeting in Baltimore, MD.
The Southern Baptist Convention is routinely criticized and hammered by the media; many times, unjustly.
There are many fine men and women who are a part of, and believe in, the ministry and mission of the Southern Baptist Convention; of which, I am one. 

Being a student of history, I realized that it took the SBC 150 years to apologize for its support and role in the horrible institution of slavery in the United States.
As I read reports online and watched Baptist Press present the election results, I silently wondered what the church will apologize for 150 years from now, after I am long in the grave.

If I was to apologize for something that seemingly defines the Church in this day and age, it would have to be our complacency. 
Somehow, the command of Christ to 'go ye to all the world' has become, 'Why don't ya'll come to church...'

Unwittingly, we have bought into the the Big Screen message of the world and have stopped being the Body of Christ in the world, teaching the redeeming message which contradicts the values of society.

I recently read a story from 2004 which demonstrates exactly how the Church should act in the world.
The 2004 election in the Ukraine was a mess; if you can remember the election of 2000 in the United States, just know that we don't have the market cornered on 'unusual election practices.'

In that election a man named Viktor Yushchenko challenged the party in power.
When the election was called, the State Run television (there's little freedom of the press overseas) had an anchor that spouted the party line:
                               "Ladies and gentlemen, we announce that the challenger, 
                                Viktor Yushchenko has been decisively defeated."

Sounds good...too bad it wasn't true.

Yet, this fact would have gone unknown to the world except for the fact that there was one person whom the Party did not take into account.

Viktor Yushchenko

In the bottom corner of the television screen was a deaf translator who told the world, beginning with the watchers who were deaf tuning in, that what the anchor was saying on State Run television was an absolute lie.

Anyone who could see and understand the small screen learned the truth.

This act of patriotism and honor began what is now called the Orange Revolution.
Soon there was a new election and Viktor Yushchenko won decisively.

If you have missed the analogy: The world is the Big Screen; the church ought to be that Small Screen announcing the truth to the rest of the world with honor and courage.

According to the world, it is the beautiful, those with money, the powerful; it is these who are important and worthy.
That  is the Big Screen picture, but the truth is that most people in the world aren't like that even though we are told repeatedly throughout our lives we are supposed to be like that image.

When Jesus enter the world seen, He told everyone not to believe that Big Screen picture.
Some believed and discovered the truth; many didn't and still don't today.

The Big Screen message to us today: Indulge. Consume. Enjoy. No Worries.

The problem is that this idea is exactly like Communism; it sounds good but it just doesn't work out.

Nearly all of our health problems in the United States stem from our own over-indulgence.
Smoking - It can lead to COPD, Cancer and a host of other problems.
Obesity - It comes from over eating; which can also lead to Diabetes.
Alcohol - This one will make you do stupid things that hurt yourself and eventually kill your liver.
Sex - Seriously,  if so-called 'safe sex' worked there would be a reduction of teen pregnancies, absentee fathers, and diseases.
But the truth is that STDs are rampant even in retirement homes today; but on a very adult level I must tell you that sex is not suppose to be dangerous. 

Quite truthfully, we are destroying ourselves with that which we believe will make us happier.

One question: Shouldn't we be paying more attention to the people on the Small Screen instead of being overshadowed by the lie on the Big Screen?

It is we who are Christians who are to announce Kingdom values to a decadent society. 
WE are the people who are to lead our culture and teach others that we can refuse to believe the lie that is propagated.
For we are not Masters of one another but servants of a God of Love, who is always reaching out to those who seek Him in truth.

Until next time, win one for the good guys.

Out of Control

"It's dark at the foot of the Lighthouse."

~ German Proverb

One truth that I have learned about myself is that I am a thinker, an observer. Sometimes I will be having a huge, analytical discussion within my mind and then say something, which makes perfect sense to me, but to my wife it seems that I am in need of a straight jacket.

The one draw back is indeed the tendency to withdraw and watch - people, places, things, interactions.
When it comes to God and people who claim to have an encounter with Him, I watch and listen, trying to reconcile what is taking place with actual theological and Biblical truth.
At times, it does not help when you are trying to understand another person's spiritual reality; yet, if it is a Biblical experience, the truth will prevail.

I have noticed over time that the wealth are turned off by dramatic, ecstatic displays of emotion when it comes to spirituality.
This is also true of the educated and the socially conscious.
For one, what might be normal seems insane to another.
Yet, the point of the "spiritual" is a connection between a tangible human and an invisible Holy Spirit.
To some, it terrifies; to others, it captivates; and to still others it embarrasses them.

I have seen television preachers "slay in the Spirit" hundreds; yet, I cannot help but think as to why Jesus didn't perform such deeds.
Presumably, He had all the spiritual power and gifts that any man could have; yet, He settled on compassion, grace, truth and love as His greatest demonstrations - along with His miracles, of course.

On the other end of the spectrum, I once read that Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. was praying in the pulpit one Sunday and he was overcome with emotion.
So much so, he swooned to a degree but was unable to speak any words.
Afterward, he did not revel in what had happened; instead, he was embarrassed.

When I was sick, I did not find spiritual truth in fantastic displays but in the quiet moments within God's Word; or, within the compassion extended to me by others.
When God speaks, He does not need to shout to announce His presence or His truth.
He simply needs to reveal Himself in a way that is meaningful to His child.

One area people think God is revealing Himself is in modern Charismatic music; a few phrases are sung, repeated again and again.

This is a Church service, not a concert.

At best, the music is mediocre; in no universe can the lyrics compare to Amazing Grace, the theology of Charles Wesley's writings nor the music written from the hand of Beethoven. 
Yet, millions are mesmerized by something that is clearly lacking; quite possibly, they have never been exposed to the real revelation of God's nature in music.
But I digress.

I have also observed people lay hands on other Christians, praying "for the Holy Spirit to fill them" and be evidenced by either being "slain in the Spirit" or through the modern "speaking in tongues". 
I find this intensely discomforting.

Nowhere in the New Testament is an individual "prayed through" to any spiritual gift, such as the gift of tongues; certainly, there is such a gift, but this is not how the early church were blessed with it.
As for being 'slain in the Spirit,' quite frankly, there is no Biblical record of such an act being performed or taking place beyond the conjecture of a bad and stretched interpretation.

There are various movements and churches who promote these things; I cannot analyze nor explain their positions on such matters nor would I attempt to.
Again, as I said before, my "observer's syndrome" does not help when I'm trying to understand another person's Christian Spiritual Reality.

Yet, among some of these sects, I have witnessed an act called "holy regurgitation" where people literally engage in the practice of vomiting "demons and bad spirits" out of themselves.
I have seen uncontrolled laughter, respectable people crawl around on the floor and make animal sounds and act like chickens - all they insist is under the power of the Holy Spirit.

While these are public spectacles, it is interesting to me that the one public display of the Holy Spirit I have been able to count on has been tears.
Tears speak volumes.

The New Testament speaks consistently of the Holy Spirit; therefore, every Christian should want more than fire insurance with the Spirit's indwelling.
The only way we learn more of the Holy Spirit's work in us and in the world is to turn more and more to Jesus.
It is then that the invisible Holy Spirit will begin to take on a face; it is the face of our Lord.

Jesus Christ is an actual, vivid, real picture of what a human being connected to God through

the Holy Spirit ought to look like.

When people are released from a cult and they are deprogrammed, after being liberated they will soon denounce the propaganda they were fed.
Christians must be careful not to engage in the same type of propaganda, especially when it comes to the work of the Holy Spirit.
You see, Jesus never brainwashed anybody; He always left form for a personal choice with rejection being an option.

In today's world, due to the charismatic or Vineyard movement, among many Christians there is fear and discomfort when mentioning the Holy Spirit.
I wonder what the apostles would think; modern Christians are afraid of God's Comforter. 

Interestingly enough, modern Christians don't want to lose control; we want ourselves and God, alone, one-on-one.
The funny thing is that it was never intended to be that way; we are Christians, which means we are to live out our faith among a community of like-minded believers.

Already within us, the Holy Spirit has provided many needed insights.
He reveals things to us, He warns; He also gives us a self-awareness.
Until we take the time to commit to long periods of silence and listening, we will miss that internal voice of God dwelling within us called the Holy Spirit.
God might speak all through our lives, but until our ears are opened by the Spirit, we will not hear Him.

After we are converted and begin the Christian life, we do relatively the same things as we did before. 
The only difference is that every act now has a reference to God.
We need not clean ourselves up before we come to God; instead, the Holy Spirit indwells and forms us to become like Him from inside out.

And that is how we gain ultimate control over our lives - by giving it to Him.

Until next time, win one for the good guys.