Saving the Starfish

6 Comments / May 13, 2019

This morning’s post is really specifically for my fellow discerners. For those that have a passion for discernment, who see what’s going on, and feel frustrated that so few seem to care.

What brought it to mind recently was a story someone shared with me. They had been falsely accused by a local newspaper. They decided to meet with the editor, complete with stacks of files in hand of proof that refuted what had been said. As the conversation progressed, this statement was made: Well, our reporters don’t get paid enough to do research.

Come again??

They don’t get paid enough to do research? But isn’t research over half the actual job of a reporter??

This is a ridiculous statement and yet it was made. At least according to my story-teller. Whom I don’t know very well.

But this story made me think of something I’ve run into again and again. I’m sure many of you have, as well.

I’ve noticed an interesting trend among many believers: They will often make assumptions without doing any analysis.

They, too, don’t have time to study the scriptures and compare it to what a certain book or author has to say and yet they will tell someone who has done that research that they are wrong.

I’ve run into this more times than I can tell. When you share that a certain author or teaching isn’t biblical, they will disagree with you and then say something similar to the reporter, perhaps like–

“Well, that’s all fine, but I don’t have time to do research like you.”

or

“I don’t have the gift of discernment.”

Somehow the implication is that we do not need to discern if we are lacking the time or the “gift of discernment”.

Of course we know that scripture would clearly show that this is not the case. No one, no matter where they are at in their Christian journey, has the right to be lazy when it comes to anything we allow to impact us spiritually. We have no right to make assumptions and develop opinions about authors, biblical passages, pastors, and blogs without proper analysis. And, yet, so often we encounter those that declare that there isn’t anything wrong before actually doing the proper research to see if the sharer is wrong or right, according to scripture.

Just as a reminder for us all, I Thessalonians 5:21 reminds us to:

Test all things; hold fast what is good.

We are to test all things. All. Things. Nothing should get into our heads or the heads of our children before it is put to the biblical test.

You can also check out Ephesians 5:8-11 and Romans 12:9. Honestly, Paul makes the case in many places for the need to be on our guards. To not accept things at face value. And to stand firm on the Word.

Let me add here that should someone take the time to study the scriptures and prove me wrong, I would gladly–yes gladly!–change my mind. I know many of you feel the same way. You, along with me, are committed to scriptures and not to your own opinions.

We get no joy out of pointing out false teachers or spending time focused on compromised celebrity Christians. No joy at all. In fact, it deeply saddens us. Those of us who truly have a heart for discernment and see the big picture of what’s going on are not relishing this at all. We are heartbroken at the direction it’s all going and totally baffled that so few people see it.

The question so many of us wonder is why do we so often encounter Christians who are utterly unwilling to look at any proof we may offer regarding a popular book or author or preacher that shows clearly that they are not teaching truth?

And what do we do with this?

What can we do?

We can’t change their minds. Just as we can’t make a reporter do research before printing something as truth in a local newspaper, so we can’t make a Christian study the scriptures and fill them with conviction about their favorite author.

It’s probably one of the hardest things we encounter, quite frankly, this stubborn refusal to see the danger with nary a glimpse at the biblical proof.

I’ve learned there isn’t really anything we can do. We can speak up once or twice. And we can pray.

Until a person is willing to open their eyes to the truth of the state of Christianity in this current culture, there is nothing else we really can do. And to try to do more will often destroy relationships.

But every now and again, God will put someone in our paths who wants to know. Someone who is willing to lift their head out of the sand and face the truth of what’s going on in popular Christian culture. These are the ones we have the joy of serving.

And it is a joy, isn’t it?

If someone would have told me even ten years ago that I would be here–ridiculed and hated for presenting clear proof of the departure of favorite teachers and authors from the scriptures I am not sure I would have believed them. It has changed so fast it makes my head spin. So few people unwilling to see the truth. So few people who care about discernment at all. And then there are those self-proclaimed discerners who care more about attacking and maligning people than they care about God’s Word–destroying and ruining the reputation of anyone who would even lean that way.

It’s a frustrating place to be. And many have backed away because it is just too painful. I get it. I have, too, to a certain extent. And yet, Satan would like nothing more than for us all to back away and let it all happen right under our noses.

Someone once said–

The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is that good men do nothing.

Let us not be good men and women who do nothing. Let us gather strength from each other and encourage one another on in this road that God has put us on.  And may we remain passionate about staying true to God’s Word. May we never be about our own glory or about ripping people apart. May being unkind never be a part of our ministries. May love be the heart of our ministries.

Stay strong, my friends. The train has left the station, so to speak, and Christianity will never be the same again.

I’ll close with a familiar story–

A boy and his Grandpa were once walking on the beach where thousands of starfish lay marooned. The tide had gone out and left them helpless. They would dry up and die without intervention. The Grandpa started throwing the starfish back in the ocean one by one.

The boy, scanning the ocean shore, said, “you aren’t really even making a difference.”

Grandpa replied: I am making a difference for that one.

One by one, we, too, can make a difference.

 

 

 

 

Five Lies Satan Really Wants You to Believe

4 Comments / May 7, 2019

Last week I wrote about my conviction that much of today’s music that is labeled Christian really isn’t Christian at all (You can find that post here). I then shared a bit of my journey out of my addiction to that style of music and the difference it has made in my life.

Part of this journey has led me down the path of searching for worthwhile music to listen to. As I mentioned last week, I am very much a “music” person. There is a lot–I mean a LOT– of music labeled Christian out there. I started exploring some of this and have found some real gems. Amazon Prime Music (where I can often listen to the whole album) and Itunes preview option (where I can listen to a nice long clip) have revealed some real favorites.

Last weekend I saw a new family singing group pop up on the side bar of Amazon Prime Music. There were two CDs there, so I clicked on the first one. I really liked it. I was pretty sure I had found my newest favorite! I clicked play on the second CD to see if I would like that one, too.

And I did. Until–

I heard something like this: “Somehow you saw something worth dying for”

Wait! What??

There it was again. The song was implying that the reason Jesus died was because He saw something of worth in us. There–right on this nice, sedate, Christian family album–was that insidious lie Satan has been trying to sell us on since the beginning of time.

Satan is in the business of selling lies. You see, if he can get Christians to believe them, then he has rendered true Christians ineffective and defenseless; and professing, fruitless Christians comfortable and feeling secure when they shouldn’t.

What are some of his most crowd-pleasing (and dangerous) lies?

Well, let’s start with the one I ran into last week: We are worth dying for.

Since the garden, Satan has been trying to sell us on our self-worth. This lie has taken on exponential influence with the advent of the self-esteem movement.

But what does the Bible have to say about this?

Let’s go to Romans 3:10-18 to find out–

As it is written:

“There is none righteous, no, not one;
11 There is none who understands;
There is none who seeks after God.
12 They have all turned aside;
They have together become unprofitable;
There is none who does good, no, not one.”
13 “Their throat is an open [d]tomb;
With their tongues they have practiced deceit”;
“The poison of asps is under their lips”;
14 “Whose mouth is full of cursing and bitterness.”
15 “Their feet are swift to shed blood;
16 Destruction and misery are in their ways;
17 And the way of peace they have not known.”
18 “There is no fear of God before their eyes.”

 

There is none righteous. None who seeks after God. None who understands. Let the impact of that word settled into your heart.

None.

If there are none then that means you, me, your friends, your kids, your parents, your pastor, your mentor–and any godly Christian you can think of–is not righteous. They are sinners.

Oh, thank God, we are sinners saved by grace and given a new nature. But all the glory goes to God and we don’t deserve any of it.

The amazing grace, the incredible love, the awesome gift of salvation is so wonderful because we weren’t worth it. Because we don’t deserve it. Because there is nothing good in us.

How the Gospel gets distorted and pride starts to take over when we start thinking that somehow we deserved to be rescued.

A second lie Satan is trying to get us to believe is that scripture is no. big. deal.

He is diligently trying to take our attention off of the Bible, because as soon as he does that, he knows he wins. Christians are anchorless without the Word. We lose all of our moorings, boundaries, and solid footing without the Word. When we start playing loosey-goosey with the inspired Word of God and begin to change age-old interpretations to match the culture, Satan has scored a huge victory.

We are also powerless to win souls without the Word. We lose the heart of the Gospel and our ability to truly know and understand God.

But evil men and impostors will grow worse and worse, deceiving and being deceived. 14 But you must continue in the things which you have learned and been assured of, knowing from whom you have learned them, 15 and that from childhood you have known the Holy Scriptures, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus.

16 All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for [c]instruction in righteousness, 17 that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work. (2 Timothy 3:13-17)

Third, love is all that matters and true love is determined by how someone feels. 

Satan wants us to believe that love is the only thing that really matters. But, even the definition of love is warped and wrong. He would have us believe that if we speak the truth in love to someone, we actually aren’t loving them if it makes them feel bad. Do you see how twisted this has gotten? Loving someone has come to mean making someone feel good. But is this love?

Of course not.

Love does sometimes bring wonderful feelings. Remember that feeling when you received warm words of approval from your mom or dad when you were a kid? Or looked into the eyes of your groom or bride on your wedding day? Or held your child that first time? True love does feel great sometimes.

But sometimes, true love doesn’t feel so good. Sometimes our parents needed to discipline us and make us feel very un-good. Sometimes, we have to talk about something really hard with our spouse or our kids and it doesn’t feel good at all. But we know it is in their best interest.

Satan would have us believe that this isn’t really showing love. So we must always go back to scripture. What does scripture teach about this?

 that we should no longer be children, tossed to and fro and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the trickery of men, in the cunning craftiness of deceitful plotting, 15 but, speaking the truth in love, may grow up in all things into Him who is the head—Christ— 16 from whom the whole body, joined and knit together by what every joint supplies, according to the effective working by which every part does its share, causes growth of the body for the edifying of itself in love. (Ephesians 4:14-16)

God has designed us to be truthful with one another as a protection. We can help each other. What you see, I may not see. What I see, you may not see. True love speaks the truth so that we may all grow up together in Christ. But, oh, how pride ruins God’s plan.

Fourth, salvation is just a prayer.

How many people believe they are saved because they said a childhood prayer and then went on to live sinfully, without remorse or repentance for the rest of their lives?

The Gospel without taking up our cross is no Gospel at all (Luke 9:23).

The Gospel without some kind of life transformation is no Gospel at all (2 Corinthians 5:17).

And yet we now have a thousands–maybe millions?–of people who believe they are saved because they said “I believe in Jesus.”

Anyone can say it. True belief is shown by actions. This is clear from the Word.

The fifth lie is that conflict is bad.

Satan would have us believe that all conflict is sinful. And yet, we know that in order for the truth to prevail, there will have to be some conflict. We read this all through scripture. Christ first showed us this by his declaration in Luke 12:51:

 Do you suppose that I came to give peace on earth? I tell you, not at all, but rather division.

Christ knew that his first coming would not bring peace to the earth but would bring division. And, oh, how it has!

Paul also shows us that conflict can be expected if we are preaching and teaching the truth (2 Timothy 4:9-16). He also shows us in many places how to deal with the conflict as a believer–such as loving our enemies, having much patience, and not letting anger get the best of us. That’s probably worth a whole post on its own. But the point here is: We will have conflict and conflict, in and of itself, isn’t bad.

The conflict we experience in our lives is either due to selfishness or to standing for the truth. It is one or the other. We can determine which it is when we take a look at what we are fighting for.

If we are fighting over something we personally want or desire, that conflict is wrong and sinful. However, if we are standing for something the Bible clearly teaches, then this conflict is due to our stand for the truth and we mustn’t get too upset about it. In fact, the Bible teaches that we must expect it.

_________________________________________

And there you are! Five of the lies that Satan wants us to believe. If he can get us to believe them, then Christians will be rendered ineffective and the lost will hear the true Gospel less and less…

He’s been pretty successful, thus far.

There are more lies. Many more. Satan is the father of lies (John 8:44). And he is seeking to devour us (I Peter 5:8). Be vigilant! Be aware! Be watchful!

 

 

The Case of the Disappearing Hair Cream

12 Comments / April 29, 2019

My eyes scanned the store shelves. Oh, no. My heart sank. Could it be they stopped making it? No, that couldn’t possibly be.

Let me back up just a bit. I have very thin, rather lifeless hair. My hair would definitely be one of things at the top of the list were I given the opportunity to change anything about my appearance. But many years ago–perhaps 15 or more–I had stumbled onto a texturizing cream that had worked wonders. I bought it year after year after year. Until that fateful day.

I asked the store clerk. She thought maybe they were just out of stock.

I went back several more times over the course of the next year and realized that it had happened. My hair cream was off the market. At that point, I purchased nine tubes (yes, nine!) off of Amazon and started on my search for a new, comparable product. But, time after time, I’d be disappointed. It would be inordinately sticky. Or too thin. It wouldn’t hold my hair enough. Or it would hold it too much. I was growing less and less sure that I’d ever find a replacement. This went on for a couple of years and my stock was growing dangerously low.

And then one day, just a few weeks ago, I was scrolling through an online store and came across a product that I thought might be worth a try. Why not? I added it to my cart.

After it arrived, it sat there for a few days. This shows you how little expectation I had that it would work. It was almost like I was stalling the disappointment.

One morning, I pulled it out and opened it up. It was a little sticky. I sighed, placed a dab of the white cream on my fingertips, and reached my hand up to my head and…it worked! It worked better than the original! I couldn’t believe it. Finally, I had found a replacement.

I am still so surprised when I use it and it works. It works for hours. It’s better than the original in every way.

So what is my point?

Well, I’d like to tell you another story. Don’t get caught up in the details of the story. Please keep in mind that I am not telling you what your convictions should be. I am telling you my testimony so that you will see that God won’t give conviction without making it possible to experience victory. And that if you are filled with conviction then be sure to follow it through–and if you are smart you will do this much quicker than I did.

If you are a “music” person, this will make more sense to you. I love music. My life would be incomplete without it. I love all kinds of music–well, most kinds, anyway. I had to actually train myself to turn it off sometimes and learn to enjoy quiet.

As a college student, I listened to a variety of music, which included quite a bit of secular rock and pop. As I matured as a believer and became a mom, I began to realize that the lyrics of much of the secular music I was listening to was saying the complete opposite of what the Bible taught. It wasn’t what I wanted to teach my kids or fill my head with. I made the decision to eradicate most of that style from my life. (Which I have never regretted).

While I listened to classical and southern Gospel and jazz music while the kids were growing up, mostly what I listened to was of the Christian Contemporary Music variety (or CCM as it is frequently called). I had nary a hint of conviction about listening to this and was content to have this as part of my life for a very long time.

And then, several years ago now and through various avenues, God started to bring to my attention some concerns with this music. The lyrics were theologically wrong more often than not. The artists themselves were less than impressive when interviewed and often admitted to worldly lifestyles and bad theology. And, the truth of the matter was, if I listened to anything with a heavy rock beat, it would actually negatively affect my mood.

I remember often being angry about something and turning on a heavy rock song. Christian or secular, it didn’t really seem to make much difference. It matched my mood and would feed my anger. I vividly remember the day and exactly where I was when I realized that I needed to make a change. God had filled me with conviction that this music–no matter what the lyrics said–was not His music.

That led to ten or more years of me fighting against this conviction. I was basically addicted to CCM and the rock-style of music and, to be truthful, had no interest whatsoever in giving it up. Besides if I didn’t listen to modern music, what in the world would I listen to? What would even be left? I had already given up rock music and was viewed as really odd because of it. Did the Lord really desire I give up CCM, too? And was I really willing to make myself look even odder? Was I convicted over nothing? And yet the fruit of this music in my life wasn’t the best on many different levels: Teaching me incorrect theology, affecting my mood, and leading me towards the world rather then away from it. I had to admit this. Oh, how I vacillated back and forth for a very long time.

Finally, one day in the not-that-distant past, I said something like this to the Lord: “Lord, if it is Your will that I stop listening to this music, you will have to remove my desire. You will have to help me because I can’t do it on my own.” And I left it at that.

I had no instant answer. I still liked that style of music the next day. And the day after that. But a year or two down the road, a small miracle had taken place. That music had lost its hold on my life. I now was content to fill my ears with hymns and songs that didn’t need a heavy drum beat. I started listening to classical and instrumental much more often. While I still listen occasionally to a theologically correct CCM song or album, I have lost my passion for it. Now, I can take it or leave it.

And here’s the thing: I am a much healthier Christian for it. I even experience less fits of anger. I think rock music does something to our psyches. I can’t prove it. I can just share my experience. I do think it has been proven, actually, but that’s not my point.

My point for today’s post is to let you know that if God gives you conviction, it is for a reason. And the sooner we follow Him, the sooner we will be experiencing the wonderful benefits of yielding to the Spirit, separating ourselves from the world in that area, and growing in our sanctification.

So back to my first story. My new hair cream surprised me by being so much better than my old hair cream. Oh, I could still use the old stuff, but I much prefer the new one. I found something better to replace the old.

So, too, is the issue of music for me now. Oh, I can listen to CCM on occasion but I don’t really enjoy it very much anymore. God really did deliver me from my passion for it. I have no other earthly explanation.

When God calls us to give up something, we don’t spend our lives pining for it. We don’t long for it when we run into it again in the world. He actually takes away our hunger for it. And He gives us new and better desires. It is truly amazing! This is sanctification at work.

While I know this post wasn’t officially about music, I also realize that many of you won’t agree with my conviction about it. In fact, I imagine I will lose some readers over it. People feel very, very strongly about their music. It is one of the reasons I don’t talk about it that much.

However, if any of you reading this have started to have little niggling doubts about this modern day music that is labeled “Christian”, may I encourage you to start praying about it. And then start listening to the lyrics, comparing them to scripture. When the radio is on or you are listening to any song–secular or Christian–pay attention to what message is really filling your brain. Is it a biblical message? Or is it anti-biblical? Pay attention and be diligent in prayer. Ask the Lord to give you wisdom and guidance and then the strength to make a change if you are convicted to make one. He is faithful.

 

Are You More Like Saul or David?

6 Comments / April 15, 2019

It is springtime in our area. The dull, barren ground is turning different shades of green as grasses and weeds come back to life after being dormant all winter. The trees are pushing forth leaves and blooms. The world is coming alive again with vibrant colors. It is one of my favorite times of  year.

What do the plants need to grow?

If you had any science in school, then you probably already know this. They need water, and sunshine, and warm temperatures. They need the nutrients that are in the soil and they need to be disease-free so that they are able to take up those nutrients and process them correctly.

Just as a plant needs certain things to grow, so, too, do we Christians.

I have been reading about David and Saul in I Samuel over the past few weeks and I was so struck by the contrast of these two men. David was called a “man after God’s own heart” (Acts 13:22) while King Saul was called rebellious, stubborn, and was eventually rejected as Israel’s King (I Samuel 15:23).

Both men committed grave sins. Both men made some really bad choices. We know this because of the events recounted in scripture. One was not a greater sinner than the other–so why was one called “a man after God’s own heart” while the other one was rejected? What made the difference?

I believe there are four very critical differences and that these differences determined their relationship with God–

1) When confronted, David was repentant while Saul was not. In 2 Samuel 12:13, Nathan confronts David about his sin. Without hesitation, David admits his sin and offers no excuses. Compare that to I Samuel 13:11-14, where Samuel confronts Saul about offering a burnt sacrifice himself instead of waiting for Samuel and going through the proper channels. Here we read no less than three excuses and not even one admission of wrong-doing.

In order for growth, transformation, and change to take place, a heart and mind willing to admit wrongdoing and then to repent of that wrongdoing is critical. Excuses will just keep one mired in sin. Like quicksand, it keeps us floundering and hopeless and stuck because we want to blame everyone else for our problems instead of taking ownership of our sins and then working along with the Holy Spirit to eradicate the sin.

2) David is teachable, while Saul is proud. We can see this as we read the Psalms and also as we read the accounts of both David and Saul. This comes across so clearly. A proud heart is never a teachable heart. When one is proud, a know-it-all attitude often comes with it. When there is questioning, it is often done with a demanding spirit–as if they deserve to be told the answer. True humility leads to a teachable heart and this is what we saw in David’s life, both in his writings and in the accounts of his life. In contrast, Saul was a proud man–seeking to kill the man who threatened his kingship and contacting a medium (and going completely against God’s command) when searching for an answer.

The difference is so striking and, honestly, we can see this played out over and over all around us. Pride yields stagnancy, strife, and broken relationships, while a teachable spirit yields vibrant growth and loving, healthy relationships.

3) David was willing to wait on the Lord, while Saul tried to manipulate events to his advantage. David had to wait a very long time to become King. David shows us his heart in Psalm 130:5-6–

I wait for the Lord, my soul waits,
And in His word I do hope.
6 My soul waits for the Lord
More than those who watch for the morning—
Yes, more than those who watch for the morning.

But we find Saul trying to take matters into his own hands. He clearly did not trust the Lord. Again, the most obvious examples of this are his efforts to eliminate David in order to preserve his kingdom and his sin in contacting a witch to discern what to do. Instead of waiting on the Lord, he jumped ahead and tried to fix things himself.

And what a difference we see! David, anointed as a young man, finally becomes King of Israel at the age of thirty (2 Samuel 5:4). In contrast, three of Saul’s sons are killed and Saul is mortally wounded and ends up committing suicide (I Samuel 31:1-6).

We all have a choice. We can trust in the Lord and wait on Him. Or we can jump ahead and try to manipulate circumstances and fix them to our advantage. One choice leads the believer to vigorous growth and the other leads to spiritual murkiness.

4) David upheld and was dedicated to God’s Word while Saul was more interested in his own opinions and experiences. Psalm 19:7-11 shows us clearly how David felt about God’s Word–

The law of the Lord is perfect, [e]converting the soul;
The testimony of the Lord is sure, making wise the simple;
8 The statutes of the Lord are right, rejoicing the heart;
The commandment of the Lord is pure, enlightening the eyes;
9 The fear of the Lord is clean, enduring forever;
The judgments of the Lord are true and righteous altogether.
10 More to be desired are they than gold,
Yea, than much fine gold;
Sweeter also than honey and the [f]honeycomb.
11 Moreover by them Your servant is warned,
And in keeping them there is great reward.

He was passionate about the Word of God and this Psalm has inspired, comforted, and reminded many Christians through the ages of the importance of it.

Saul, on the other hand, was more interested in himself. As this site puts it–

“In essence, Saul’s root character flaw is self-exaltation and self-deception. He thinks he knows better than everyone else, including God. The biggest tragedy is that he’s not even aware of it. The story shows he is completely blind to his arrogance and always believes he’s in the right.” (The Bible Project: King Saul and Self-Deception)

Growth is always greatly hindered when we care more about our own opinions and experiences than we do about the Word. Again, we can see this play out over and over again in the “Christian” culture around us. How often are people much more interested in their own version of “right” and “fair” than in what the Bible teaches? Even going so far as to ignoring proper hermeneutics and twisting scripture to make it say what they want? And, yet, this doesn’t lead to any growth, but rather to a deceived, self-absorbed believer at best or to an unsaved follower of a false religion wrongly called “Christianity” at worst.

________________________________________

 

Repentant.

Teachable.

Trusting in and Waiting Upon the Lord.

Viewing God’s Word as my Anchor and Guide for Life.

 

These four things provide a great environment for spiritual growth! The honest question we all must ask ourselves is this: How do I measure up? Are these four things evident in my life?

We may be doing pretty good at one or two of them and struggle with the others. Or we may be doing “okay” at all of them, but could do so much better. Or we may have never even thought about this and have no idea.

If we are really brave, we will ask our spouse or someone else that is close to us. Do they view us as repentant? As teachable? Do we exhibit a willingness to wait on the Lord? Do we uphold God’s Word?

Sometimes this can be very painfully eye-opening but it will be so worth it because it will get us moving in the right direction.

So let’s examine ourselves in light of David and Saul. Which one are we more like?

 

This is Not the End

10 Comments / April 9, 2019

The past week and a half have passed by in a fog and much sorrow. My dear sister-in-law, Grace, succumbed to the cancer that had cast a shadow of death over her life for the past year and a half. She was the wife of my brother, who many of you know as Pastor Dean, and the mother of their daughter, Katherine.

Grace was a wonderful woman. She lived well and she died well. Our world will never be the same.

So many thoughts have been rolling around in my head throughout this entire time. I wanted to share here some of the important things I have learned through the death of someone I loved very much. Some of these will be things you have learned, too, as you have had to live through a similar situation. And other things will be unique to Grace. She was a very special person and I am so honored to have known her.

First, it is important to die well. We talk so much about living well, but Grace showed me how important it is to die well. The peace and contentment she had in life, she continued to experience as she faced death. Last weekend, we had the opportunity to visit her in the hospital to say our final good-bye on this earth. The peace she radiated as she faced her final days was supernatural. The peace Dean and Katherine exhibited was also supernatural. Grace’s body was failing and the hope for any kind of miracle was pretty much over. And, yet, they were still at peace. It was one of the most inspiring things I have ever witnessed. God, just has He promises, gave grace and peace in an unimaginable trial. They weren’t demanding that God give them their desires or their way through this whole process. They trusted that God knows best and they had yielded their lives to Him. How were they able to do this? Keep reading…

Second, tell people what you appreciate about them now. Don’t wait until they die. We stood beside my brother as hundreds of people came to offer their condolences. I was blessed as I listened to the many kind and encouraging words people had to say about Grace. And I wondered if Grace ever realized what a difference she had made in the lives of so many? For some reason, we have such a hard time saying the good things to people. Or even about people. But perhaps we should say them now to those we love and appreciate. A quick text, a phone call, an email, or a handwritten note are quick and painless ways to let someone know that we appreciate them now–while they are alive. I do wish I would have told Grace what I appreciated about her. What we appreciate about each other is so rarely the the topic of conversation. But it really should be so much more often.

Third, the world will continue on. As we walked out of the service celebrating her life, I saw groups of people chatting and even laughing. I didn’t fault them for I’ve done the same thing. Many of their lives will continue on as normal despite the passing of Grace. And I was so struck by the fact that life goes on. We tend to get a little wrapped up in ourselves and think that a family or a business or a sports team or a school (or whatever) can’t survive without us. And, yet, life continues on. After we die, life must go on. It was a humbling and thought-provoking realization. While we will miss Grace terribly and life will never, ever be the same again for those of us who knew her, life does–and has to–continue on. It feels so very wrong to go on without her and yet this is life.

Fourth, consider regret. In February, we realized that Grace would probably not live through the year. We made plans as a family to spend a weekend with them in June. But some of us weren’t sure we should wait that long. Cancer can go south very quickly. As we talked about taking a spontaneous trip the following weekend, I came to a realization: We would not regret going if she was still alive in June. We’d just have an extra weekend with her and that would be a good thing. But we might greatly regret not going. OH, how very thankful I am that we realized this and made that trip in February. It was a wonderful, wonderful weekend as a family. All of us were able to go except for a few. There is something about the shadow of death hanging over a Christian family that makes the fellowship so much richer and sweeter. That time spent together was incredibly precious.

Regret is a terrible thing. And, in some ways, perhaps we should try to live life in light of this. In both our words and our actions, may we leave little room for regret should death take someone. May we be gracious and unselfish with all people we come in contact with. May we make decisions based on eternity rather than on what is expedient. May we choose the right thing instead of the easy thing. May we do all of this so that we are able to live free of regret.

But, I don’t want to just end this section there. Sometimes we do or don’t do things we regret. We mourn deeply. And yet we must remember that the Lord forgives. May we learn from these things so that the experience is not without growth.  May good changes sprout out of the regret we have experienced so that it is not in vain.

Fifth, express love more often. So often–with family especially–we are a little lax on expressing our love for each other. We are fairly kind and courteous in public and to those that don’t know us that well, but when we get home we leave our shoes and our manners at the door. And yet there is no guarantee that any of us has another day. If you knew this was the last day you would have with your spouse or your child or your elderly parent or that family member that rubs you the wrong way, what would you change? Let’s change it now. Today.

Sixth, don’t get so worked up. Oh, how stressed we get over the littlest things. As Grace lay in the hospital dying it was hard to care about anything else. It was hard to think about anything else. And yet our business had to go on. I had to continue spending hours and hours at a computer learning a new software program. But it did change my perspective. The frustrations and irritations just didn’t seem as big of a deal. In fact, during this time, we also had a terrible stomach flu going through our family. Normally, this would upset me terribly, but in light of what was going on, it melted into unimportance. I wish I could keep this perspective always. I want to. I want to remember what is important and what isn’t. But, oh, how hard this is!

Seventh, fill yourself with God’s Word and eradicate worldliness if you want to experience God’s peace. This may be the most important thing I have learned. Dean, Grace, and Katherine experienced a peace I have never seen before when someone faces death. As I pondered this, I realized two things: First, I do not know of a family that loves the Word of God more than they do. They know it, they study it, and they live it. Second, they have eradicated most of the world from their lives. They do not watch tv. They do not listen to the world’s music. They hold onto the things of this world with an open hand and acknowledge that all they have and are is God’s. They are simply unconcerned with things of this world. Oh, that doesn’t mean they don’t know what’s going on. And that doesn’t mean they do this perfectly. But I recognize in them a real difference compared to myself and most anyone else I know. Worldliness has very little influence in their lives. And I could see that this made a huge difference in enabling Grace to die well. She wasn’t hanging on to the things of this world because she had Jesus and the real hope of a future with Him. The third verse of the hymn “Give Me Jesus” reminds me of what I saw as I watched them:

Take the world, but give me Jesus,
Let me view His constant smile;
Then throughout my pilgrim journey
Light will cheer me all the while.

Eighth, make a difference for the cause of Christ. As I heard hundreds of testimonies of people whose lives grew deeper roots of faith through the Word, who were drawn to Christ, and who were encouraged in Christ through Grace’s life, I couldn’t help but wonder: Will I have such an amazing legacy? Her legacy was incredible. She made a real difference for Jesus Christ. I believe she will continue to do so through her death. As believers, this should be our goal.

What are we doing to draw people to Christ? What are we doing to help people grow deeper roots of faith based on the Word of God? How are we encouraging people in a meaningful way based on the Word and not on some humanistic, psychological, self-help way? These are important questions to consider as we ponder our own legacies.

Ninth, memorize hymns. Last Sunday we spent a half hour or more singing hymns in Grace’s hospital room. Dean and Katherine, my parents, and two of her siblings were with us. It was a blessed, blessed time. Every now and again Grace’s voice, now so weak and faltering, would be heard strong and clear as she sang a phrase or two. And then she would sit and listen again.  It was during this time, that I recognized anew how precious the hymns of the faith are. Most of the modern day worship songs would have been useless and annoying at a time like that. Most of our churches feed on second-rate hamburger when they could be eating steak. I sorrow greatly over this change in modern-day churches and am so very thankful for our music pastor at our church who continues to lead our congregation in the hymns of the faith. This experience has led me to desire to listen to them at home much more often and to memorize them, as well. For some day I, too, may be in a hospital room unable to do anything but think.

Tenth, notice the little things. Grace was a tremendous encourager. She would notice if someone was struggling and would reach out. Even in February, she kept asking me about my knee (it’s been giving me a lot of problems). She had an unusual compassion for others. Pastor Dean told the story of the one day she came home from a chemo treatment and wanted to go shovel a neighbor lady’s driveway. This is who she was. I don’t really think I will ever be like that, but I do want to be someone who isn’t so wrapped up in myself that I am not seeing the needs around me. I want to be someone who doesn’t miss the opportunities God gives me to encourage and build up others.

Eleventh, check your priorities. Oh, how caught up we get in the temporal things of this life. They distract us. They keep us from spending time with the Lord in the Word and in prayer. They keep us from thinking about important things. They keep us from sharing the Gospel. And, maybe most sadly, they keep us from focusing on what is really important as we raise our own children or as we support those around us raising their children–the next generation. Oh, how tragic this is. How critical that we remember what is really important in light of the Bible and in light of eternity.

Twelfth, this is not the end! I was so struck by the difference in the tears of those who knew the Lord compared to the hopeless sobbing of those who didn’t. It was a striking difference. It brought I Thessalonians 4:13 to mind–

 Brothers and sisters, we do not want you to be uninformed about those who sleep in death, so that you do not grieve like the rest of mankind, who have no hope.

I saw this so clearly.

As believers, we know we will see Grace again. God told us so in His Word and we know that it is true. We have a real hope that this world does not have. Oh, the lost may comfort themselves with meaningless phrases of a “better place” but they are basing it on nothing. They are empty words from which to derive worthless comfort. But we know–we know— that we will see our fellow believers again! What a blessed hope and promise! And so we sorrow but we do not sorrow without hope!

And so life will continue on without Grace. It still feels surreal and it is hard to imagine life without her. But may her life and her death encourage us to be more like Jesus. May it remind us to focus on what really matters. May her legacy drive us to scripture and away from the world. May it build us up in the faith and confirm all that we know to be true from the Word. And may it remind us of just how short time really is here on earth.

 

Starting With What We Know

6 Comments / April 3, 2024

I have a jigsaw puzzle app on my iPad. I will often put a “digital” puzzle together while I am watching TV or listening to my audio Bible or a sermon. I am a chronic multi-tasker and need to keep my hands busy!

I normally choose puzzles that have plenty of differences, as the ones that have the same shades of color throughout can frustrate me. The most recent one I put together was a little bit of both. There were areas that were different and there were areas of sameness. When I first started to put it together a few weeks ago I decided to first work on all the pieces that looked the same. I wanted to get the hard stuff out of the way.

But, after a few days, I found this puzzle very frustrating and I left it in favor of easier ones. I was having such a hard time figuring out where all of those green pieces went.

A few weeks later, I decided to give it another try. As I stared at the puzzle and thought about how to best work it out, it came to me: Work with the obvious pieces first and then the rest will fall into place.

And you know what? That was exactly right. I filled in all the different areas and when it came time to place all of the green pieces it was so much easier.

But I first had to place what I knew before I could figure out what I didn’t know.

As I was thinking about that puzzle, it dawned on me that puzzles in life can be a little like this. We want to know all the answers. We want to know where all of those hard-to-define pieces are going to fit and how it’s all going to end. But, if we are a believer, we should first start with what we know.

And what do we know? What pieces can we put into all of our puzzles (i.e. trials, frustrations, storms, adversity) first?

Let’s talk about some of them–

Piece ONE— God loves us so much.

Behold what manner of love the Father has bestowed on us, that we should be called children of God! Therefore the world does not know us, because it did not know Him. I John 3:1

For I am persuaded that neither death nor life, nor angels nor principalities nor powers, nor things present nor things to come, nor height nor depth, nor any other created thing, shall be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord. Romans 8:38-39

Piece TWO–God is working all things together in the way that is best for me. Even if it doesn’t seem that way at the time.

And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose. Romans 8:28

Piece THREE— God desires me to be conformed to the image of His Son. In fact, we are predestined for this! This is more important than my happiness, my dreams, or having an easy life.

For whom He foreknew, He also predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son, that He might be the firstborn among many brethren. Romans 8:29

Piece FOUR— Sorrows and troubles are part of our journey here on earth; We cannot avoid them.

These things I have spoken to you, that in Me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation; but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world. John 16:33

Piece FIVE— God is aware of the minutest details. He hasn’t abandoned us.

So why do you worry about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin; 29 and yet I say to you that even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. 30 Now if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is, and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will He not much more clothe you, O you of little faith?

31 “Therefore do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ 32 For after all these things the Gentiles seek. For your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things. Matthew 6:28-32

Piece SIX— Our first priority is to seek God and His Kingdom.

But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you. Matthew 6:33

Piece SEVEN–Puzzles and trials are testing me and perfecting me.

My brethren, count it all joy when you fall into various trials, 3 knowing that the testing of your faith produce patience. 4 But let patience have its perfect work, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking nothing. James 1:2-4

Piece EIGHT–Supernatural peace through Christ Jesus is possible–no matter what the circumstances.

Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; 7 and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus. Philippians 4:6-7

Piece NINE–This life is temporary and the best is yet to come!

But as it is written:

“Eye has not seen, nor ear heard,
Nor have entered into the heart of man
The things which God has prepared for those who love Him.” I Corinthians 2:9

Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who according to His abundant mercy has begotten us again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, 4 to an inheritance incorruptible and undefiled and that does not fade away, reserved in heaven for you, 5 who are kept by the power of God through faith for salvation ready to be revealed in the last time.

6 In this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while, if need be, you have been grieved by various trials, 7 that the genuineness of your faith, being much more precious than gold that perishes, though it is tested by fire, may be found to praise, honor, and glory at the revelation of Jesus Christ, 8 whom having not seen you love. Though now you do not see Him, yet believing, you rejoice with joy inexpressible and full of glory, 9 receiving the end of your faith—the salvation of your souls. I Peter 1:3-9

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When we put these nine pieces in our puzzle first, the other pieces will slowly fall into place. Oh, it doesn’t mean it will be easy–but it will be easier than if we don’t do this.

Life has its ups and downs. And sometimes we face things that do not make sense; things that are horribly painful; things that are unexpected.

In the swirl of thoughts that goes on whenever we face a trial, we may forget to first contemplate these nine truths from scripture that apply to every situation–no matter how great or small.

I hope this is an encouragement to someone today. I don’t know what you are facing but God does.

 

 

The Other Side of Self-Esteem

11 Comments / March 4, 2019

There is a constant push to view ourselves highly. We are wonderful. We are beautiful. We can do anything.

The world, and, more increasingly, the “church”, encourage us to accept ourselves as we are. To love ourselves first and foremost. We are even told that we can’t learn to love others unless we have this deep, abiding love for ourselves first.

Even as I write the above sentence, I grimace inside. Nothing could be further from the truth.

And as more and more people are loving themselves first, we find a world filled with arrogance, pride, grudges, broken families, split churches, and miserable workplaces.

The fruit of the self-esteem movement has been less than stellar.

But there’s another side to this word that we don’t often talk about. And that is this: Sometimes we don’t feel all that wonderful. In fact, we feel like a big loser. We don’t have any self-esteem at all–or do we…?

I’ve been thinking about this as I’ve personally struggled through something recently.

Let me first state that I am sharing this because I believe that there may be a few of you out there who struggle with this, too. Honestly, I don’t really want to share this and–please understand–I am not asking for you to encourage me or build me up. I am sharing this simply because it has happened. It is happening. And I am trying to work through it in a godly way. And maybe my struggle and how God is teaching me through it will help you, too.

A few months ago, God started allowing a few things to happen in my life that started to dig away at my confidence. While I try not to hold on to anything too tightly, I did possess a comfortable confidence in my purpose for this blog and for life, in general. But, gradually, through a number of different avenues, the assurance that I was in the right place doing the right thing faded away and I was left with a lot of question marks.

It all came to a head one day last week. And, frankly, I just wanted to crawl into a hole and never come out. Thoughts poured into my head of my inadequacy, my countless flaws, my unfitness for ministry, my lack of wisdom, my selfishness, etc. If I am honest, I was a little frustrated that God had made me the way He did.

And I started to spiral down into a very dark place.

And then God turned the light on.

And I remembered something just in time:

Self-pity is just another way Satan gets us to focus on ourselves.

Did you notice all of those thoughts that poured into my head started with “my”??

When we esteem ourselves highly we are self-focused and everything that happens is about us. Whether we take self-esteem in the arrogant, prideful direction or we take off in the self-pity, woe-is-me direction, both lead us to a place of self-absorption and away from God.

How important it is that we take our eyes off of ourselves. If we aren’t careful, we can allow circumstances to lead us down one of these paths. Whether it’s the praise and glory of men or it’s their criticism and ridicule, both have the potential to lead us into this trap. We must take our thoughts captive (2 Corinthians 10:5), stay diligent in prayer and reading the Word, and then choose to live with great intention in order to avoid these traps and stay on the right path.

We can take great comfort from Paul’s words to the Philippians in chapter 3–

Not that I have already attained, or am already perfected; but I press on, that I may lay hold of that for which Christ Jesus has also laid hold of me. 13 Brethren, I do not count myself to have apprehended; but one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind and reaching forward to those things which are ahead, 14 I press toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus. (vs 12-14)

In these verses we read that we will never attain perfection. It is here we learn that we must press on amidst the praise and the criticism. We must keep reaching forward and pressing toward the goal. This takes intention and perseverance. It takes single-mindedness. There is no time for pouting or self-pity. These are mammoth wastes of time. As are boasting and arrogance. Both sides of self-esteem are danger zones for Christians.

So be on your guard, my friends, and don’t follow my example. Don’t spend even a second in the trap that I landed in last week. We must take our eyes off of ourselves and rest them confidently on Jesus. I conclude with these encouraging words from the author of Hebrews–

Therefore we also, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which so easily ensnares us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, 2 looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith, who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. (Hebrews 12:1-2)

 

Disregarded Sins

8 Comments / February 28, 2019

The other day my phone screen went black. I could hear the texts coming in but I couldn’t see them. I fooled with the buttons but nothing I did was successful in giving me back my screen. In my thoughts, I started to complain. What in the world? Why now? Normally, I will tell someone where I am going, but not this time. If I didn’t answer texts, my family might worry. Thankfully, there was an AT&T store nearby so I stopped in there, borrowed the phone of a nice man to call my husband and let him know what was going on, and spent an hour (or more) trying to figure out how to solve my problem.

Somewhere during that hour, while I was waiting for the AT&T representative to return from the back of the store, I realized what a ridiculously unimportant, first-world problem I was having. Really? I am going to complain (in my head, mind you) about such a thing? What is wrong with me?

But we do it so easily, don’t we? We literally complain about everything. Or am I alone in this?

Every time I read Numbers 11, I am struck by God’s lack of tolerance with complaining. Go ahead and look it up. It is incredibly sobering. God hates complaining. It is a vile sin and strikes at the very heart of His sovereignty in our lives. Any complaint-no matter how big or small–is a way to let God know that we are not happy with our lot in life. We are in essence letting Him know that we don’t think He is doing a good job and that, at this particular moment in life, we really don’t trust Him.

We don’t normally think of complaining like this. We view it much more casually than it really is.

Philippians 2:14 lets us know that God’s hatred of complaining continues on into the church age–

Do all things without complaining and disputing.

All things. When our phone dies. When it rains for our summer picnic. When we get sick. When our arm hurts. When someone disappoints us. When we are betrayed. When something really bad happens. We are supposed to live all of life without complaining. That is a really tall order in a complaint-drenched society.

Complaining can become almost habitual if we aren’t careful. It can even be the main gist of the conversation when we hang with friends or family. It can become a way of life.

But perhaps it is time to change. God hates it. This is reason enough to break ourselves of the habit.

As if that isn’t enough, in the next chapter, Numbers 12, we go on to read about the sins of gossip and envy.

Numbers 12:1-2 puts it like this–

Then Miriam and Aaron spoke against Moses because of the Ethiopian woman whom he had married; for he had married an Ethiopian woman. 2 So they said, “Has the Lord indeed spoken only through Moses? Has He not spoken through us also?” And the Lord heard it.

The Lord becomes so angry about this that He strikes Miriam with leprosy!

Was He more angry about the envy than the gossip? We can’t really know, but we do know that both are sins that are very serious in God’s eyes.

We read about gossip in Proverbs 16:28: A perverse man sows strife, And a whisperer separates the best of friends. 

And envy is one of the ten commandments (Exodus 20:17): You shall not covet your neighbor’s house; you shall not covet your neighbor’s wife, nor his male servant, nor his female servant, nor his ox, nor his donkey, nor anything that is your neighbor’s.

Both are considered sin in the Lord’s eyes. And for that Miriam paid dearly.

But in this age of grace, we are not often struck down for complaining or for gossiping or for holding envy in our heart towards someone. Does this mean it is any less grievous to God than it was in the Old Testament? Has the age of grace changed how God views sin?

Most certainly not.

And it’s these sins we view as small and inconsequential that can be the most damaging to those of us who truly desire to live a life pleasing to the Lord.

While we feel pretty good about ourselves for avoiding the big, obvious sins, these other sins sneak in unobtrusively through the cracks in our spiritual armor and before we know it, they have taken up permanent residence in our souls.

Has any of these sins made themselves comfortable in your Christian life today? I know I had to really do a heart and mind check after reading these two chapters.

If God hates these things so much, why do we treat them so casually?

After awhile, we can get discouraged. When we realize some of the sins that have become a part of the fabric of our lives, we can be frustrated or overwhelmed. I don’t believe this is what God intends.

We know He uses the Word to convict and correct us (2 Timothy 3:16) and we know that we are foolish to read the Word and then to remain unchanged (James 1:22-25). And so, as God shows us the sin in our lives, we should thank Him and then begin to intentionally eradicate (or at least greatly lessen!) that particular sin in our lives.

And here’s the wonderful thing–not only will we please God but we will reap the wonderful benefits personally. Curtailing sin has a way of doing that.

If we aren’t complaining all the time, it is much easier to be grateful. And when we are grateful, we are much more content. And when we are more content we are just naturally happier. See how this works?

When we make pleasing God our main priority, He naturally takes care of our peace and happiness. It’s an amazing thing. God’s plan for us is right and good. He is not a mean ogre in the sky making demands (as some people would think). He is a gentle and loving God who wants and knows what is best for us. And it is best for us to not complain, to not gossip, and to not be envious.

But, most importantly, it is best for Him and His glory. What kind of testimony are we if we have these sins in our lives?

When Christians gossip? Envy? Complain? What kind of impression is the world getting?

I’ll tell you: They are thinking “these Christians are just like us.” And, rightly so–because it’s true.

We can remove all kinds of worldly things in our lives but if we are complaining, if we are gossiping, if we are filled with envy–well, we are still very worldly. And we are a discredit to our Lord and Savior.

I say all this to myself, too. It is convicting to think about, is it not? And these sins sneak in so subtly, don’t they? May we never let our guards down.

I thank the Lord for His Word and I thank the Lord that, through the power of the Holy Spirit, we can change. It is never too late!

Let’s begin that change today.

 

 

The Common Denominators

4 Comments / February 25, 2019

What are the commonalities that all false religions share? If we understand these things, it will help us to easily determine if anyone’s religion is true or false–even those that would use the vernacular of scripture (God, Christ, etc.) It is important to remember that using the name of Jesus does not give any religion a free pass. Oftentimes–in fact, most times–they are not talking about the Jesus of the Bible.

My husband is currently teaching a series on world religions in our Sunday School class at church. He gives the history and then shows us how they differ from what the Bible teaches. Personally, I am finding it extremely helpful. I never really knew what these religions believe or how far off they were from scripture.

Today he talked about Jehovah’s Witnesses and something really struck me.  Let me give a bit of background first: The founder of the J.W. religion, Charles Taze Russell, just decided–as an 18 year old–that he didn’t care for what the Bible said and so he decided to just make up a religion of his own. Using verses out of context and twisting them all round, he came up with what would become one of the main cults of this current age, impacting at least 255 different countries across the world.

One of the things he didn’t like from the Bible was its teaching that men who rejected Christ would go to hell. And so he just changed it. In his religion there is no hell.

And this is what struck me: All false religions create a god of their own making and to their own taste.

As I thought on this further, I realized that they have more than that in common. Let’s take a look at four of these commonalities–

First, and foremost, they rely on works. A false religion always, always, always teaches that one must do something in order to attain heaven. Oh, some will say that it’s grace plus works (such as Catholicism and Mormonism) but there are always works involved. Whether it’s the meditation of the Buddhist or the idol worship of the Hindu or the five daily prayers of the Muslim or the praying to Mary or the Saints of the Catholics or the required door-to-door witnessing of the Mormons or Jehovah’s Witnesses (just to mention a very few of the many, required works of these false religions)–all false religions require works. One cannot possibly be saved without them.

In contrast, consider the wonderful news of scripture! Ephesians 2:8-9 could not make it any clearer–

For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, 9 not of works, lest anyone should boast.

It is through faith in Christ alone that we are saved by God’s grace alone. No works. Nothing we can do. It is a free gift. Christianity is the only true religion and we can know this because it is the only religion where God reaches down and saves us of His own accord.

Prideful man can hardly fathom that he is so sinful that there is nothing he can do to reach God. And so he strives and works and wrongly thinks he’s looking pretty good in God’s eyes–when all he would have to do is simply repent and accept God’s gift.

Secondly, false religions turn to human wisdom and create a God of their own making. Instead of turning to the reliable Word of God, they turn to their own thoughts, visions, dreams, and minds to create and develop their own religion. Search the roots of any false religion anywhere and you will find a man who one day decided that he knew more about God than anyone else. A prideful man who thought he knew the truth.

This is one of the main reasons I just love the Word of God. Our faith is based on the Word, not on any man. The Bible was written by many men as the Holy Spirit directed them (2 Peter 1:21). And yet, even with so many different human authors, by God’s miraculous plan, this one book, upon its completion, was consistent and cohesive in every way. A never-changing guide for believers throughout all the ages. We can rest confidently on its truths and doctrines. God has given us His truth within its pages. He is King of the universe and it is our duty to obey. It is outright rebellion to determine that we don’t like this doctrine or that one. We are simply his subjects. All people are–whether they want to admit it or not.

Of course, in a culture obsessed with independence, most people are not going to bow to anyone–even God. No one is going to tell them what they can and cannot do or where they can and cannot go. And, so along with the outright rebellion of the world, we also have those who claim to be Christians changing and twisting long-held doctrines of the scripture. It’s under the umbrella of “evangelicalism” that we now hear of major doctrines being changed to cater to “felt needs”. Perhaps these changes are also being made to cater to the evil world we live in rather than bear the brunt of their hatred, should we disagree.

Thirdly, false religions always by-pass, minimize, or ignore the cross. The Bible teaches us that our salvation come through the sacrifice of  Jesus Christ on the cross. There is no salvation without His sacrifice. There is no other way for us to be reconciled to God (I Timothy 2:5). But false religions make very little of the cross. Some bypass it completely and change who Jesus was. They say He was a prophet or a wise teacher. Others will give lip service to the cross but the thrust of the religion is in works. Jesus isn’t enough. When you want to see if a religion is false, look at the place of the cross.

This is one of the ways we can know that the current false religion that goes by the name of “Christianity” is a false religion. They have completely minimized the cross and the Word of God (more on that below) in favor of mystical experiences. It is based on feelings instead of facts; on personal experiences instead of actual reality; on relativity instead of absolute truth.

Fourthly, false religions always by-pass, twist, or minimize the Bible. Since the inception of biblical Christianity (the book of Acts is the beginning) the focus of this true religion has been on the Word of God. As mentioned above, we will find all we need for life there (2 Timothy 3:16). The Word is living and powerful and a discerner of our hearts (Hebrews 4:12). It is there we read about God’s plan for man’s salvation (John 3:16). Without it, we are powerless creatures vulnerable to any direction a false religious leader may take us.

This is why you will find that all false religions either bypass the Bible altogether (such as Buddhism and Hinduism), override its doctrines by providing sacred documents of their own (such as Mormonism and Jehovah’s Witnesses), or minimize scripture by teaching its followers that they cannot and should not read the scriptures for themselves (such as Catholics and Amish).

This last one is so critical. This is because, while a false religion that looks fairly close to Christianity can still fool us on the first three for a little while, this fourth one becomes clear immediately. Whenever the focus is taken off of the Word or the Word is taken out of context to meet some speaker or author’s agenda, our “antenna” should immediately go up. This is usually the first area of compromise.

We have seen this in the mainstream church over the past several years. Does the Bible really teach ______________? We don’t like that so let’s remove it. We need a new “interpretation” for a more advanced culture so let’s change _________________.  Pulling verses out of context, we hear the false message that God wants you to be healthy and rich.

Over and over we are seeing this. So if you want to know if someone is caught up in a false religion (even if it is called “Christianity”) look here first. What is the place of the Word in their lives? What is its place in their church? In the books they are reading? I can almost guarantee you that its place will be minimal–if it has any place at all.

I hope that this post will help you be able to spot a false religion more easily. It really is pretty easy to discern if we look at these four things. What is not easy at all is reconciling ourselves to the truth that people we love may be caught up in these false religions. That’s the hard part.

Know and study the Word as you stand for Christ and a true biblical faith. Don’t ignore or back down, but lovingly show others how their false religion doesn’t line up with scripture as God gives opportunities. This is how we plant seeds of truth.

While most of those seeds will fall on hard hearts, a few of them will grow. We may not realize it until we reach heaven–but a few of those tenderly planted seeds will grow.

 

 

What I Learned from Jury Duty

10 Comments / February 11, 2019

A few months ago I got the letter. I was called to serve the county as a juror by showing up at the Courthouse at 8:15am on Monday, February 4, 2019.

I sighed. Jury duty is such an unknown. Will it be for one day or will it be for two weeks? It had been quite a few years since I had been called and my memory was not serving me well. I really didn’t know what to expect.

But whatever I did expect was nothing like what actually happened–to say the least. But we will get to that.

A month or so after that first letter, I received another letter. “You do not need to come for jury duty until Thursday, February 7, 2019.” I was so excited. I didn’t know why they changed it, but that meant I got half of my week back. I thanked the Lord and prepared to go on Thursday.

Going into a room of strangers and having to come to a consensus on a decision with them is not my idea of a fun time so I really wasn’t looking all that forward to this. But Thursday came and off I went to the County Courthouse to do my civic duty.

Here are a few things I learned that day–

1. I can live without my cell phone for a whole day. The first thing I saw when I arrived was a sign that said “Absolutely no cell phones on Floor___”. Ughhh. Now the day was going to be realllly long. I traipsed back to the car and said good-bye to my connection to the outside world.

After it was all over I realized that, not only did I survive a whole day without my cell phone, but I actually kind of enjoyed it. There is something extremely freeing about being without it. I do appreciate my phone and the communication it allows me with family and friends near and far, but to take a break for an hour or two or eight is definitely not a bad thing. It is truly amazing how your concentration level deepens without that thing calling your name all the time.

As I headed back to enter the building, I ended up behind two twenty-something girls yacking away. They lead me to my second lesson…

2. Give yourself plenty of time. I thought I had left in plenty of time (and I did) but I did not plan on a) having to park so far away, b) having to walk back to the car parked so far away to put my phone in it and then walk back to the building or c) having two girls ahead of me that took–literally–5-7 minutes (or more?) to get through the security at the Courthouse.

There were two rather elderly people manning the security and, although friendly enough, they moved about as fast as molasses in the winter. They pulled things out of purses, requested the girls remove their cigarettes from their jacket pockets and a few other various items; unhurriedly putting some of the unapproved items in plastic bags and tagging them for pick-up on their way out. It felt like an eternity. At this point, I am noticing that I am the only one in line behind them. All the other jurors must already be in place. I had no clock but I knew time was ticking away. When I finally rushed upstairs, I found my room and hesitantly entered, expecting to be greatly frowned upon for my tardiness. It was then that I learned another lesson…

3. Friendliness goes a very, very long way in setting people at ease. I walked in the door to receive a big smile from the lady there. “Hello, can I have your name?” She kindly joked and made conversation with all of us sitting there so stiffly and, in so doing, washed away a great deal of the nervousness most of us were experiencing. I knew the importance of friendliness before that day but it was a definite reminder that this goes a long way to make people feel at ease and cared about.

And, as believers, who should be more kind, thoughtful, and generous than we? It always greatly pains me to hear that so many in the world view Christians as unfriendly, stingy, and mean because of how some Christians act. How tragic! Today, let’s determine to be friendly to that mom in the store with the screaming toddler or to the grumpy store clerk. Let’s be extra-kind to the irritating co-worker or the mean neighbor. Let’s give a decent tip to that waitress who works hard for a low wage, depending on tips to make a decent living. And–perhaps the hardest thing of all–let’s treat our families with kindness and courtesy. Let’s not be one thing when we are out and another when we are at home. A real challenge, for sure, and one I am sure we all need to work on, but so very important. But I digress…

Anyway–

As we all sat there, the judge came in and told us that we would be serving as jury on a civil trial and it was a bit different than normal. Along with this information, he assured us that we would only be there for one day. I thanked the Lord right there and then (silently, of course!) I was just so relieved. And then the judge started asking a few questions. Does anyone know anyone related to the case? Did they ever hear of this case? A few raised their hands and were excused to leave. That left twenty of us. We walked into the courtroom to take some questions from the lawyers. After they had asked us questions, a few more were excused to leave. That left fourteen. At that point, the judge asked us if any of us would like to be excused due to personal convenience or schedule. (I mean..yeah…I wanted to go home, but I didn’t really have a pressing reason…) None of us raised our hands. “Okay, then we will just have fourteen on this jury. Let’s just pull up two more chairs.” Uhhhh….what..??

Which leads me to my next lesson…

4. When your mind raises a question it is probably for a reason. It was around this time that my mind started to turn. Either things had drastically changed since I was here the last time or there was something unusual about this case. It just didn’t seem quite right. I think this is often how God gets our attention about a false teacher or teaching. Our mind raises a question but we squish it down. Instead of researching and looking for the truth, we just ignore it and hope it will go away. Unfortunately, those questions often do go away, and in that process, our discernment muscle becomes weak and useless.

Okay, so back to the story…

Without giving too many details, the case was one where all fourteen of us had to come up with a single amount of money to award the plaintiff.

We spent the entire morning listening to both sides and then it was lunchtime. They brought us subs which we ate in the actual courtroom while we deliberated and tried to come to an agreement. We had about an hour and ten minutes to agree on an amount. Thankfully, in civil cases, you only need a majority. We needed 12 of us to agree. Doesn’t seem too terribly hard, right? Which leads me to my next lesson…

5. Every single person is remarkably different with greatly varying life experiences. Again–I knew this. Very well. But I was reminded of this as recommendations were hundreds of thousand dollars apart and consisted of everything in between. That was because everyone came at it from different perspectives. We finally were able to get nine of us to agree. But there were five more who wouldn’t budge. They felt very strongly and they refused to move even an inch. I started to realize that we would probably be there for most of the day and great frustration started to settle into my heart. It was just about that time I learned another lesson…

6. Just when you are ready to give up hope, there is light. Oh, this doesn’t always happen, of course, but, eventually, there is a little light or a silver lining or a bright spot that helps carry us on in a hard time. In this particular case, just when we were ready to throw our hands up in despair at ever agreeing, the judge came in and told us we don’t have all day (?? Another indication that this was not a normal trial!) and that we should all fill out these little pieces of paper with our juror number and the amount we thought should be given. I wrote down what I truly believed was the right thing to write down and I thought that was that…

However, I had one more important lesson to learn…

7. Be ready to defend your answer. Would I have written down the same answer if I knew I was going to have to give my reasons for writing it? I think I would have because I believed it to be the best answer, but I would have definitely thought twice.

But let me back up for a moment. We filled out our little papers and went back to our seats in the jury box. Those involved in the case gathered back into the courtroom. And then the judge proceeded to read each juror number and their answer.

It was around that time that the judge finally filled us in on what was going on. It was a new-ish thing to do–at least in our county–and had only been done a few times before. I am not sure of the real title of it, but it was like a “mediation trial.” They had gathered a jury to hear the case and to give their opinions, in order to give both sides a “reality check”, as the judge called it.

It is actually a fantastic idea. Instead of taking three to five days to listen to testimonies of doctors, police officers, and others involved (along with wasting hours of time and thousands of dollars) we listened to one testimony and saw two PowerPoint presentations. From this we made our decisions and these decisions were read by the judge. He was going to then take both parties, now that they had heard realistic settlement amounts, and try to come to some kind of settlement with them. It was a rather old case and I think all parties involved were ready to wrap it up.

After he had explained this to us, he did something else very unusual. He allowed the lawyers to ask the jurors questions. He even asked us one or two himself. It was completely unexpected but also very interesting. It was at this time that I was asked why I had written the specific amount that I had. I had to explain why I had written what I had written. I did feel like I gave a decent answer and I do hope they found it helpful.

But this made me think of how often we say or do things without being able or ready to give a defense. Especially as believers we should be able to take people to the Word and explain. It reminds me of I Peter 3:15–

But sanctify the Lord God in your hearts, and always be ready to give a defense to everyone who asks you a reason for the hope that is in you, with meekness and fear;

Yes! I was caught off-guard and had to defend my answer. So, too, we may be caught off-guard as believers. It is so very important that we know why we believe what we believe, so that we are ready to give an answer at all times.

And, there you have it. An unusual day in the life of me. Thankfully, before we were excused the judge told us that this did count as official jury duty and we wouldn’t be called for another three years. Whew!

 

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