discernment

Candy Crush Madness

2 Comments / December 15, 2013

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It all started with an innocent question asked by a friend.

“Do you play Candy Crush?”

I don’t like to waste a lot of time playing iPad games, but I do enjoy a half hour in the evening to wind down and I was in need of something new and fresh. I thought I’d check into it.

At first, I sailed through the levels, enjoying the challenge of moving the little candies into rows of three. It reminded me of the original Bejeweled game, which I loved and no longer exists (to my knowledge). And so, about a week ago, Candy Crush became my game of choice.

As I moved up in levels, it became increasingly harder to pass. And if you failed so many times, a message would pop up, telling you that you would have to wait for so many minutes before playing again.

But, lo and behold, this could be avoided by paying for extra lives. Or extra treats to help beat the levels. Only $.99.

Now, I like to play games but I’ll be darned if I am paying anything to beat a level. That seems almost dumber than gambling. At least in gambling there is a slight chance to come away with more than what you put in. Apparently there are plenty of people who do pay, however. A website claims that Candy Crush makers rake in almost a million per day from people who pay to play.

So, if I wasn’t going to pay, how was I going to beat this thing? Well, at first I figured out that if I changed the date on my iPad, I could continue playing. It would fool the game into thinking that my “Life” stash was full again. Great. Now I could just play.

But, alas, I got to a very, very difficult  level. I just kept playing and playing the same board, all the while telling myself how utterly ridiculous I was to waste time on this. But, finally, I passed that level and then went onto the next level. I passed that one after only a few tries.

And then I got to one that truly appeared impossible.

I kept playing and playing and the screen, offering the little treats for only $.99 became more and more appealing. Just once wouldn’t hurt, right?

Failed again.

Surely, I can get this. I continued to waste time trying to beat a level that I am still not sure it was even possible to beat without paying anything.

And then I realized something.

I had been fully sucked in. And I decided to escape while I still could. (How in the world would I explain Candy Crush charges to my husband??)

And, so I exited the game, deleted it from my iPad, and chose to move on with a more productive use of my time.

But my time spent on that game showed me one thing.

It showed me just how we get sucked in to sinful habits.

You see, at first it doesn’t cost much. There is a great deal of satisfaction and no payment–

~One cocktail or beer relaxes us and helps with our conversation skills.

~A few minutes looking or listening or thinking about something ungodly doesn’t seem to hurt a thing and gratifies something fleshly inside of us.

~A few minutes at a gaming table is all great fun.

~An evening spent playing video games is a fun evening with friends.

~Eating a pastry that is loaded with calories just melts in your mouth.

That first taste doesn’t cost us anything and the rewards are great. But, if we aren’t careful–if we aren’t self-controlled–we can get caught up in the rewards and we need more and more to yield the same feelings of satisfaction. That is what addiction is and it can happen with almost anything.

I think it is clear that there isn’t any sin in having a drink or a delicious pastry. There is no sin in spending the evening playing video games (if it is a video game that is not dishonoring to God in any way). But if we become compelled to have more and more, we will get caught in a web that becomes almost  impossible to escape from.

Self-Control. A highly under-rated character trait that has almost disappeared from our world. I can tell you that it is one that I struggle with daily.

But if we don’t cultivate self-control in our lives–if we aren’t even aware of the battle– we will, at the very least, end up wasting our time on unimportant, trivial things, or, at the worst, end up destroying our family, our health, or our very lives.

And, so it is good-bye to Candy Crush for me. It is so not worth it. Glad I found out before I wasted too many of the few precious hours that make up my life.  Now…to apply that same philosophy to a few other areas of my life that need some work!

 

The Missing Piece

6 Comments / December 8, 2013

1425515_63276460So I realized something today. One of the reasons I have felt so uninspired in my blog post writing recently is because I have been so worried about offending people. I think I was, unconsiously, trying to gain a bigger readership and found myself avoiding subjects that would cause Christians to squirm. You see, I had become aware of the fact that my most popular posts were/are the “feel good” posts. The posts about God working and providing. The posts about love. The posts about missions and outreach and caring for others.

And don’t get me wrong. Those posts are important. But that is only half of the Christian life. And sometimes we have to hear the hard stuff.

And one of those hard things is something that, seemingly, no Christian wants to even talk about. It’s so much a part of our way of life these days that this has become a non-issue for many believers. And yet it is rendering many of us completely ineffective in our witnesses to the world.

So what is it?

Let me give you a hint: the main river of this flows from Hollywood.

Yep. You guessed it. It is what the world calls “Entertainment”.

The problem here isn’t really what the world is entertained by. Obviously, the world is not living by the same book we are.

No, the great worry for me is that Christians are watching it, enjoying it, and, even worse yet, not seeing anything wrong with it.

How incredibly grieved God must be.

This post is the result of a conversation I had with one of my children regarding a recent gathering she had with her friends. I do not want to give details because it is not my information to offer, but suffice it to say that these kids who are filling their heads with garbage are now starting to live it and see nothing wrong with it.

You think that filling your mind with pictures of adultery and fornication and naked, writhing bodies doesn’t affect you? You think seeing people shoot another human without blinking doesn’t affect you? You think that hearing God’s name in vain and the F-word a thousand times in one film doesn’t affect you?

Well, I think you’re naive.

It does affect you.  I know this because of how hardened the hearts of Christians have become to sin, as evidenced by this group of “Christian” young people who have now started acting upon what they see and thinking it is all a big joke.

And my question is WHY? Why is this even a conversation among Christians? Why is the choice to practice discernment in this area so abnormal? Why do Christians get so much flack and criticism from other Christians when they choose to practice purity in this area of their lives?

We know FOR A FACT that God hates all sexual sin (I Corinthians 6:18), violence (Psalm 11:5), coarse and crude language, lying (Colossians 3:6-9), drunkenness, and witchcraft of any type (Galatians 5:19-21).

And, yet, on any given evening, many Christians are watching shows and movies that not only contain these things that grieve the heart of God, but are filled with them.

Oh, some of the plots are good — I’ll give you that. Satan is not stupid. Of course, they have to be good. It helps to draw you in. But is a good plot worth the sacrifice of grieving our heavenly father?

It’s just not.

So, I guess my question is this: How much do we really love God? 

Do we love Him enough to sacrifice our favorite TV show?

Do we love Him enough to say no to a movie, even though all of our friends are going?

Do we love Him enough to pass by that very popular video game that is all about violence or that bestseller that is based on the principles of witchcraft?

Does our love run that deep for our Savior?

Yes, true Christianity is about love and caring for the needy. But it’s also about being different. It’s about being a light in a very, very dark world.

Maybe our addiction to worldly entertainment is the thing that has kept us from a close walk with the Lord. Maybe our decision to “join in the fun” drinking, partying, and living it up is what’s keeping our friend from knowing Jesus and having eternal life. Maybe our choice to fill our minds with things that grieve our God is the missing piece of the puzzle that keeps us from peace and joy in the Christian life.

Please, this is too important to ignore or to shrug off. If Satan can render you ineffective he has done his job. Don’t let that happen!

 

Impatience Is Not a Virtue

Leave a Comment / October 24, 2013

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Inevitably, we run into the same problem every spring within our landscaping company. Everyone wants their patios and outdoor fireplaces and retaining walls built immediately. They are excited about the upcoming season and want to put their exciting plans for an outdoor living space in motion as soon as possible.

But here’s the problem: hardscaping is a job that requires skill and education, and so we only have a handful of men qualified in this company to take a job from start to finish. We have divided them into two crews. That means that we can only work on two projects at a time. As we are well-known and trusted in the area, we usually end up with a pretty long waiting list for installs. We try to tell people we are worth the wait, but, occasionally, some of them get impatient and won’t wait. I can understand their frustration. But that frustration can lead to a big mistake.

They call a guy who is just getting started (or an old guy who is starting a new business with a new name for the 5th time!) and hire him. These guys do not generally have a waiting list and can often start jobs immediately. Now, let me preface all of this by saying that a few of these guys are good, honest guys who do quality work to the best of their ability. But that is not the norm. Many of them are uneducated without proper insurance at best and complete shysters at worst.

As my husband always says: If someone can be there right away (or even in two weeks) in the springtime, they are probably not a very quality company.

Ironically, this decision has often ended up causing people great stress and, most times, even more frustration than they started with.

Take, for example, two recent situations where Eric was approached for a price to fix the shoddy work of these types of incompetent contractors. In both cases, the customers are also out quite a bit of money and one is looking at a lawsuit to try and retrieve at least some of it. These are not the first jobs that we have entered midstream because of this reason.

You see, patience sometimes is necessary in order to get a beautiful product that will last for a lifetime. There is so much more to hardscaping than throwing down pavers. There is great care needed in laying the proper base, great importance in using the right materials and tools, and careful precision needed in making the right cuts. Does the person you want to hire have specific training for this job and the proper insurances and equipment? These are critical questions before hiring a contractor.

So why am I writing about this on a devotional blog? Or do you already see the correlation?

We live in a world that wants everything right away. We do not want to wait for anything. And so we make mistakes.

Sometimes they are home-related –like hiring a shyster who can start right away instead of waiting for a respected and trust-worthy contractor.

Sometimes our mistakes are financial –like wasting hundreds of dollars at a casino or on lottery tickets trying to make quick, easy money instead of working hard and investing wisely.

Sometimes these mistakes are made by young singles –like marrying an unbeliever instead of waiting for a godly spouse.

And sometimes they are made as families –like settling for the first, comfortable {and compromising} church we visit rather than carrying out a thorough search for a church that is teaching sound biblical doctrine.

But all of these mistakes are also spiritual. How come?

I guess what I see as a common thread here is self-centeredness driven by feelings. When we aren’t willing to wait on an outcome, even though that outcome would be better and yield much higher dividends and rewards in the long run, then we are operating on feelings. And feelings are just never good things on which to base decisions.

Don’t get me wrong, feelings hold some weight. But when faced with a decision, it is best to look at all of the possible options with all of the possible outcomes. And then, pushing the impatient feelings aside, we make the wisest decision we can with the information we have.

There is no doubt that decision-making can be excruciatingly hard. But we should never base any decision on our feelings of impatience and frustration.

 

Holy What??

7 Comments / October 17, 2013

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Holy _____________.  You fill in the blank.

Yes, this word can be followed by Spirit or Bible or God. But, most often, it is followed by crap (or crap’s crude counterpart) or cow or some other meaningless word. I hear this ALL. THE. TIME. I hear friends and family explode with these terms in surprise. I hear people I consider very godly use these terms. I even heard a pastor on the radio use one of these terms in a sermon.

For some reason I cannot fathom, Christians think this is perfectly okay to say.

So…why do I think it’s not okay? (And, trust me, I am well aware that I am probably the only Christian on the planet who finds offense when this is said.) But here’s why I believe these are terms better left unsaid–

A. The meaning of the word holy is is almost exclusively religious outside of it’s crude expression. There is no meaning apart from its sacred definition. While it doesn’t explicitly apply to Christianity, it does always have a religious meaning. It is most often applied to the Christian God and used in the Christian religion.

Find the definition for HOLY here. You will notice that only the 7th –7th!– definition has nothing specifically to do with God or religion. So when we speak the word holy, we are using a religious term.

B. God is made up of three persons –God, the Father, Jesus, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, the Comforter.  We Christians are offended when we use the names God or Jesus as a swear word (well, some of us are, which I already addressed in a post here), but for some reason we can use part of the Holy Spirit’s name and not find offense.

These are the two reasons why I, personally, do not use these terms. It just doesn’t seem like the best thing to say. I am not making a judgment about your spirituality or godliness if you do use these terms. I am simply asking that we give some thought to this term.

Is it the best term to use? Or could we express our surprise and shock in a way that is more pleasing to God? It’s just something to think about.

 

Dodging the Land Mines

2 Comments / October 7, 2013

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The other night we visited with some friends who had spent many years in a foreign country as missionaries. The husband talked about how dangerous his first few years were when he was there as a single missionary. The nationals had warned him of the deadly land mines and bombs that were still part of their daily existence. They cautioned him to beware of every piece of trash, tiny fragment of plastic, or piece of string on the street, asserting that the smallest thing could be a set-up. He would ride his motorbike trying to avoid anything that lay on the road, knowing that he could be blown to smithereens in a heartbeat.

I believe his experience may be likened to the Christian culture we find ourselves in.

It is like we are on a motorbike and everywhere we turn there is danger. We can never take anything at face value, because there may be something deadly beneath the surface.

For instance, I recently saw a Facebook status of a woman who was asking about “hypnobirthing”.  I knew with a prefix like hypno  it was probably not a good thing, so I did a little investigating. I found out that it is the process of self-hypnosis while giving birth. Imagine my surprise when all of the comments below her status were by women who were praising this method and even talked about how close to God they felt during the experience.

But wait a minute! Anything to do with hypnosis should be a problem for a Christian. Any type of hypnosis means giving up self control and putting control of your mind into the hands of another person or being. This practice is in direct opposition to Christianity. And yet here were well-meaning Christians promoting something that threatens a healthy walk with God.

They had unknowingly stepped on a spiritual land mine. Spiritual land mines do not kill us outright. No, they are instead like an insidious poison that seeps into our minds, doing great damage to our spiritual walks. And since we do not realize that we have been poisoned, we will, with well-meaning motives and enthusiasm, often infect others.

Here are a few other instances of spiritual landmines–

~A “Christian” book that completely and totally dismantles the gospel, piece by piece, that I see in the hands of a Christian friend.

~A suggestion to my daughter that she read a book that destroys the image of God as set forth in scripture, also labeled as a “Christian” book.

~Songs that are on the playlist on my Christian radio station that promote anti-biblical, new age themes.

~Statuses of sincere Christians, quoting mystics and false teachers, unaware that these people they admire have tainted and twisted the gospel beyond repair.

~Revered pastors and teachers using a version of the Bible that changes the meaning of entire passages of scripture.

If you are a genuine believer at this moment in time, then you and I are in this dangerous, deadly field of spiritual land mines together. There is no place that is safe, no place we can run and hide. While there may still be a few churches and ministries unaffected by false teaching they become rarer and rarer each day. We have to take every step carefully, always being aware of what we are reading, who we are listening to, and the preachers and authors we are promoting.

We have to be willing to turn away from something that looks promising or exciting or deeply spiritual, if it goes against what is taught in God’s Word.

Of course, as I have said maybe a million times before on this blog, we can only do so if we know God’s Word. We need to keep ourselves immersed in the Bible, studying and memorizing it.

We are in a spiritual war and the battle is growing more intense by the day. We can put our heads in the sand if we want to, but to do so not only puts our own spiritual health in danger, but also the spiritual lives of our families and friends.

Oh, my dear brothers and sisters in Christ, we are in a very dangerous era. Worldly Christians will tell you otherwise, but don’t you believe them. We are walking through the land of spiritual landmines. We are not friends with this world. We are on a narrow path. And we are hated. But take heart! This world is not our home! The best is yet to come!

Meanwhile, let’s keep our eyes wide open and take our spiritual steps very cautiously. I Thessalonians 5:21 says it best: Test everything. Hold fast what is good. 

 

 

Giving Up Without a Fight

4 Comments / October 3, 2013

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The Cockatoo sat nonchalantly on its perch in the center of the giant metal cage. We spotted its white feathers as we walked towards it. It was a beautiful day to go to the zoo and we were enjoying it. We had just passed the parrots and were moving on to the beautiful white bird that is native to Indonesia.

At first our eyes took in the bird, but then movement at its food dish caught our eye. We laughed as we saw the squirrel chowing down on the cockatoo’s food. And then I took a picture–because I just knew there had to be a blog post in there somewhere.

We watched the squirrel eating for a few moments while the cockatoo sat indifferently and unmoving on its perch, and then we walked on to the next cage. But the sight had started my thoughts turning.

Why didn’t the cockatoo protect its food? It easily could have, using its loud squawk and large wingspan.

Was it frightened?

It didn’t really look like it.

Was it distracted?

Could have been, with all of those people walking by.

Was it satisfied and unthinking about the future?

Probably.

You may already know where I am going with this.

I think we often make the same mistake with our children. I watch parents let the world swoop down and steal their kids away, barely putting up a fight.

Did you know that Satan is after the souls of your children? He would like nothing more than to break the chain of your family’s Christian heritage and to render your child useless for God’s Kingdom.

And many of us fall prey to his schemes.

Are we frightened?

Some of us are very frightened. We are scared we will lose the hearts of our children and so we allow them to do anything they want, not realizing that doing so is almost a certain formula for the very outcome we are trying to avoid. We want to be the friends of our kids, instead of the parents that God designed us to be. We don’t want to step on any toes and so we set few boundaries and rarely discipline.

Are we distracted?

Many of us are very distracted. We are busy with careers and committees. We are busy with our girlfriends and our fantasy football leagues. We are busy at church and at school and at club. We lose sight of the battle for our kids’ hearts because we are distracted.

Are we satisfied and unthinking about the future?

Yes, I believe most of us are. Oh, don’t get me wrong–many of us think about the future, but our thoughts generally center around the choices of college and career. We think proudly of their straight A’s or their future basketball career, while we strive to get them the scholarships they deserve. But how often do we think about their walk with God in relation to the future? What kind of Christian do you want your child to be as a grown-up and what steps are you taking to help that happen?

What can we do to keep the “squirrels” from stealing our most precious possession?

1. Parent with courage. It takes courage to say no when every other parent is saying yes. It takes courage to have meaningful conversations about sex and alcohol and creationism and God. It takes courage to set a good example and do what’s right, even when no one is watching. It takes courage to lovingly and graciously tell the truth. If you must fear, then fear the consequences of your child’s heart turned to stone towards God. So many of us parent selfishly, desperately worried about our child’s opinion of us. We should probably be much more worried about our child’s opinion of God. For that, in the end, is what determines their eternal destiny.

The irony of all of this is that if we can parent with courage, most of us will reap wonderful benefits for ourselves. For if our kids love the Lord, then they will love us, too. If they love the Lord, then we will share a biblical worldview and a common purpose. There is nothing sweeter than this.

2. Make your kids a very important priority. There is nothing wrong with doing things outside the home. I think the problem comes in when we are not discriminatory with our choices. We can’t do everything and yet we try. But something has to give. What are you willing to sacrifice in order to spend time with your kids? It may even be one of their activities that has to go. Most kids would benefit much more from a game night with Mom and Dad than from a weekly dance lesson. We cannot allow the world to tell us what is important.

Many years ago, my husband was actively involved in a softball league. Baby J and I would spend many summer evenings watching the games. After a year or two of this, another baby came along and Eric became aware that he was going to have to make a choice. At the time, he was in the first years of starting a business and this occupied much of his time. He knew that in order for his kids to be a priority, he would have to quit softball. How thankful I am for a husband who made our kids a priority.

It sounds like a no-brainer. Of course, the kids are the priority. But, unfortunately, I see this isn’t true in the lives of many parents, and if I am being honest, especially fathers. Many fathers check out when it comes to spending time with their kids, disciplining their kids, and talking with their kids about the hard stuff. Dads, you are one of the most important factors in determining your child’s future relationship with God. Fight for their souls!

And one more thing here, for the grandparents who are reading this–the value of your support in helping your children raise their children is inestimable. You can have incredible influence in the lives of your grandchildren. Our children should not stop being a priority for us just because they have reached adulthood. You can really make a difference in the lives of your grandchildren.

3. Think of your child’s spiritual future. We would consider it irresponsible not to consider our child’s future education or vocation. And, yet, many of us do not think about our child’s future spiritual condition. We need to consider this in the conversations we have and the things we allow in our home and the places we allow them to go. We need to give this consideration as we choose which church to attend and the friendships we encourage our kids to develop. But, most importantly, we need to be who we want them to be. If we want them to be honest and kind and loving and courageous, then we need to be those things.

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I know that almost all of us love our children with our whole hearts. We’d do anything for them. But sometimes we lose sight of the world as it swoops down and steals the hearts of our children, while we sit, our eyes half-closed, on a perch nearby.

I say that it is time to open our eyes wide and parent with vigilance and abandon for the very short time we have them in our homes. We need to fight for the souls of our children!

Redeem the time and fight! For the heartache that comes with grown kids who aren’t following the Lord is a very real and painful thing.

 

On Finding a Wolf

8 Comments / June 28, 2017

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Over the past year I have become aware of a few wolves in the modern day church. They are surprising wolves, quite honestly, and by all accounts, play the part of a sheep quite well–almost perfectly. In one case, I was appalled to read a review of a popular book that basically redefines Christianity. The man who wrote it is a popular evangelical preacher. And I was equally appalled to attend a conference where I heard a live presentation by a very popular Christian author who so effectively weaved together true doctrine with heresy that it was almost impossible to define between the two. I am not going to go into who they are here, as my purpose for blogging is not to take a controversial stand against certain persons. However, there are a few things we need to be looking for when we choose to listen to or read the books of another person (no matter how famous). So here are a few criteria that can be used to spot a wolf–

1.  Wolves use buzz words like “social justice” and “rights of the poor” on a frequent basis. The term “social justice” is never found in scripture but is found in books written by Karl Marx. In other words, it is a communist term, not a biblical one. From a biblical standpoint we are to extend mercy and help, but it’s not about “social justice”.  Now, let me be clear, I am not saying that all people who use this term are wolves. It has become such a popular term that it may be used quite innocently. But when I hear this word, my ears perk up and I make sure to investigate further. Along that same line, Wolves try to make us feel guilty for any material blessings we enjoy. There is a big push for communism in this country and the church has jumped on board, adding a spiritual twist to it. Wolves give the message that if we have something that someone else doesn’t have we are materialistic and selfish. But this is not a biblical point of view. While we are called to be good stewards of our money, there is no sin in being wealthy. The sin comes in when our treasure, hope, and joy is found in our wealth. The sin comes when we use our wealth only for our own good and satisfaction, giving no thought whatsoever to the poor and needy (Matthew 6:20, Proverbs 13:22, Genesis 13:2, I Timothy 6:7-10).

2.  Wolves focus on love and tolerance alone. However, tolerance has been re-defined to mean that anyone can do anything they want and it’s okay. (Of course, there is no tolerance for those who believe scripture teaches living a holy life. They categorically define that as legalism.) There is very little, if any, talk about sin and moral justice. There is almost no mention of righteous living. If you never leave church feeling convicted of sin in your life, it may just be led by a wolf.  They do not preach about sin, because sin is not important to their religion. It is all about love. But I ask you–doesn’t that leave a gigantic hole in the gospel? If there is no sin, there is no gospel (Romans 6:23).

3.  Experience always trumps biblical doctrine. And so wolves teach that the foundation of spiritual religion is personal experiences and feelings, rather than the Word of God. This was has reached its tentacles into even the most conservative churches. Someone once asked my husband when he was in church leadership how he can argue against someone’s experience. But I ask you– doesn’t it seem like the lion who is seeking to devour us (I Peter 5:8) and the angel of light (II Corinthians 11:14-15) could offer counterfeit experiences?

4.  Wolves tell us that any confrontation is equal to judgment. They will quote Matthew 7:1 emphatically, conveniently ignoring verses like Matthew 7:16 and James 2:26. Church discipline and confronting a sinning church member are almost unheard of anymore. Wolves teach that confrontation is the opposite of love. But the Bible teaches us otherwise. Check Matthew 18:15, Galatians 6:1, and 2 Timothy 2:24-26.

5.  Wolves conveniently forget about the scriptures that have to do with worldliness and holiness — or they re-define them to mean something different than they have meant for the last 2000 years.  All tradition is thrown to the wind, so that they can satisfy worldly desires or grow mega-churches and gain popularity (or both). Of course, not all mega-churches are bad and don’t confuse traditions with traditional interpretation of scripture–they are two very different things. If your pastor is discarding traditional interpretations of scripture faster than you can blink, you may want to make sure that he’s not a wolf. If your pastor is using worldly entertainment such as ungodly movies and songs to promote scriptural principles or is more like a stand-up comedian than an expositor of God’s Word, you may want to run. Wolves change their churches to appeal to the world instead of making an effort to be separate from it (I John 2:15).

6.  Wolves also conveniently forget that Christians are going to be hated in this world and the road to heaven is narrow (Matthew 7:14, Matthew 10:22). They proclaim the salvation of thousands because of a prayer whispered at an alter, even if no transformation or any life change has ever taken place.  They tell us that we can expect the praise and honor of the world. They teach us to join with the world to solve big problems. But Jesus said in John 15:19 that the world will hate us because we are not of it.

7.  Wolves encourage new age spiritualism, giving them new names that sound biblical. Contemplative prayer, breath prayers, divine mystery, centering prayer, inner light, labyrinth, and spiritual formation are all terms that find their origins in far eastern religions. This is a very serious infiltration in the church today, moving people towards one world religion. It it so important that we be well read and aware of what’s going on, so that we will not be fooled.  Be very, very wary and keep your eyes open (I John 4:1, I Timothy 4:1, Jude 1:4).

8. Wolves are not very careful with their associations. They partner with known false teachers in the Christian religion and these days we even find some of them partnering with teachers of all religions. Be very careful of a teacher who has condoned, partnered with, or quotes any speaker or author who has clearly turned away from the Gospel and biblical doctrine. I could give a zillion examples of this (i.e. Focus on the Family, along with many others, promoting The Shack and Francis Chan promoting Mike Bickle) and we should find this most disturbing (Romans 16:17-18).

Now, in presenting this list, I want to make it very clear that I do not believe that all pastors and teachers promoting one or two of these seven things is a wolf. Some very sincere pastors and teachers have been deceived. If you believe that your pastor or spiritual leader has been deceived, make it a matter of prayer and then talk to them about it.

But what I am saying is that  you might want to investigate because they could be one.  We need to stop relying on fallible men for our spiritual growth. While they can be used to help us to grow, God’s Word needs to be our compass, so that we can spot a false teacher. We need to love the Truth. We need to study the scriptures and we need to study with  humility, integrity, the guidance of the Holy Spirit, and a willingness to mold our lives to the lessons held within its pages. We need to be careful not to manipulate the Bible to say what we want it to say.

The other thing we have to do is to be very careful not to allow the pendulum to swing the other way so that we shy away from helping the poor and loving our neighbor. The Bible clearly teaches that we are to do both. The gospel is about justice and love.

Let us be ready and willing to fight the wolves that have surreptitiously made their way in among the true church flock (John 10:11-14). Let us step outside of status quo and stand up and be a light in this very dark church age!

 

 

Wednesday Wisdom: Soul Erosion

Leave a Comment / September 18, 2013

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This morning I want to share with you a few paragraphs from a book I am reading. This week I will write my comments after the excerpt–

Nothing erodes progress toward godliness more than today’s entertainment mindset and the modern church’s casual Christianity. Devotion to Christ, which characterizes the godly man, is cultivated not with a game console in hand by the hour but by gradually increased time spent with a Bible in hand. It does not grow by hours a week spent before a television, computer, or theater screen but by more and more understanding of the person, work, and ways of Jesus Christ through increased time spent in His Word. This is foundational. Godliness is not accidental; it is intentional. “The Lord hath set apart him that is godly for himself,” (Psalm 4:3) and the godly man thrives on this personal time with God. The Christian who would be godly cannot fill his time with entertainments and recreations. They have their place but should be sampled more like salt sprinkled sparingly on a meal rather than a plate of salt consumed as the main course.

Furthermore, this devotion to Christ is not fueled by high-energy Christian pop concerts, sentimental Kumbaya campfire experiences, or emotional charismatic services. Energy, enthusiasm, and emotional experiences are no substitute for the daily, personal pursuit of Christ in the Word.

The believer must personally and regularly observe Christ in his Bible, meditate upon what he sees, and respond in contrition, commitment, and praise to his Lord and Savior. There is much going on between the godly man and his God, and his personal quiet time with God is measured, not by minutes a week but eventually by hours a week.

Thus, the godly man’s life is notably Christ-centered rather than self-centered. It is his chief distinction. It is this way because he has purposefully cultivated the pursuit of the excellence of Christ-likeness and sought the knowledge of Christ in His Word. Godliness has the imprint of this kind of personal devotion to Jesus Christ as its hallmark. Many men today are Christian, but alarmingly few are godly.

Wow. That is convicting, isn’t it? This is from the book Essential Virtues: Marks of the Christ-Centered Life by Jim Berg. He does go on to say a few paragraphs later that we should not panic if we are not spending hours each week in God’s Word, as this is an eventual outcome of a holy, righteous life. But this excerpt certainly did make me think about the hours of time I spend on entertainment and pleasing myself. I love these two sentences: The Christian who would be godly cannot fill his time with entertainments and recreations. They have their place but should be sampled more like salt sprinkled sparingly on a meal rather than a plate of salt consumed as the main course.

As I read this, I did find myself wondering something.  Are “many men” actually Christians? Is it possible to be Christian and not be striving towards godliness? The answer to this question scares me a bit. It would seem that the very essence of transformation would be a change in priorities and desires. Of course, we are all at different places, but is it possible to focus ONLY on me with no movement towards godliness and still be saved? Any thoughts? 

 

The Mouse and The Camper

Leave a Comment / September 16, 2013

1127727_13591352The tell-tale droppings were found in the most horrible of places — the silverware drawer.

“Oh, no, not again!” was my first thought.

It is first important for you to understand that we live in a home surrounded by fields. It is beautiful and I wouldn’t want it any other way, but along with the fields come the mice. The bothersome rodents always seem to find a way into the camper during the winter but this was mid-summer–August, in fact. What were they doing invading my space now? After checking all of their favorite places for evidence, I–once again– pulled everything out to wash and disinfect.

I expressed my frustration to my husband, who decided to set a few traps and put out some poison. I then doused cotton pads with peppermint oil and put them everywhere (supposedly mice hate the smell of peppermint oil).

A few days later, Eric went down to the camper to check his trap. And there it was! The tiny, gray creature that had caused me so much frustration. My husband disposed of it and we figured that was the end of the mice…at least for the summer.

Boy, were we wrong!

A few days later, as Eric pulled out one of the bagged chairs for a picnic, out fell three baby mice. The mouse had built a nest right in one of our chairs. Had we not found them we would have multiplied our mice trouble times three!

The things is, we can’t figure out how or where these annoying pests are entering our camper. They can get through the smallest space, so it is imperative that we seal even the most minuscule place of entry.

When we got this camper last year, my husband assured me that my mice troubles would be over as he was sure this model was sealed up tight, unlike our old one. How frustrating to realize that there is still some small way of entry.

I think we get ourselves into trouble with sin sometimes when we have that philosophy. Our pride leads us to believe that we are locked up tight against sin and we let our guards down.

When we see the tell-tale signs of a short temper or apathy or prayerlessness (to name a few), instead of finding the problem, we just “wash” the outside and keep going on.

But, just like the mice multiply, when we don’t find the sin and eradicate it, it just keeps growing and clean-up becomes messier and harder with each season.

We have to figure out what’s going on. What is causing the symptoms that are showing up in our lives?

Is it–

Greed? A lack of discernment? Anger? Pride? Disobedience? A rebellious heart? Fear? Doubt? Messed up priorities?

You see, until we can figure out the true reason of what’s going on in our lives and confess it and start working on it with the help of the Holy Spirit, we will continue to put out the numerous fires that are started because of it.  We will continue to use our human efforts to wipe up the messes we leave behind but never solve the problem that caused the messes in the first place.

And just like we “accidentally” found those baby mice, if we pray with a heart that truly longs to know, then God will show us sin in areas we never even dreamed there was any.

Some of us leave many openings for sin to invade our souls. We have ungodly friends, we pour wretched, sin-filled entertainment into our minds, and we go to places and participate in activities that are full of worldly temptation.

Others of us work really hard to keep ourselves locked up as tight as possible from the sin that can destroy. And we do so by keeping ourselves in God’s Word. We pray. We discern. But we can never rest. Sin is like that mouse–there is almost always a way in. We can never let our guards down.

On our camping trip this past weekend, our camper was mouse-free. We are thankful, but we will not rest. We will continue to give our efforts to keeping our living space free of rodents and other creatures.

We need to give as much (or more) effort to keeping our lives sin-free.

 

 

Life with Almost Grown Birdies

2 Comments / September 12, 2013

93189_7381revWe have a nest full of almost grown birdies in our home right now, with two young adult children almost ready to fly, a college student, and a 9th grader. While we enjoy their company and are glad to have them with us for right now, one of the greatest challenges we face is determining correct boundaries for these almost full-grown birdies.

I have seen parents that have completely eliminated rules and expectations after their kids have graduated high school. Usually this has not turned out very well.

I have also seen parents who have tried to micromanage the lives of their young adults. This, too, does not often turn out well.

But how do we find the balance in this area?

I have had a couple of different friends ask me about this recently. I thought I might take a few moments to let you know what we do in our home–not that this is the “perfect” formula– but we do have a good relationship with our young adult children (most days) and I thought I would share how we have managed to do that. (And don’t stop reading here if you have young children! The peace we enjoy now is because of some things we did when they were small, which I will talk about in this post, as well).

First, we have given them the control of their personal choices and decisions that are outside our home. They are now old enough to determine where they want to go, who they want to be with, and how to spend their money. It is important for them to experience the consequences of bad choices and the blessing of good choices. If we constantly monitor and rescue, they will experience neither.

Second, we continue to have good conversations and discussions about the things that matter– morals, standards, discernment, world view, budgets, time management. Our kids often ask us for advice and, while they don’t always follow it, they will generally give consideration to what we are saying. The only reason we can do the first thing is because of the second thing.

Third, we continue to hold standards and rules for our home that they must follow if they are going to live here. Some examples of this are, as a general rule, we do not allowed R-rated movies in our home, we do not allow music that is offensive to God to be played aloud, and we do not allow them to come in at all hours of the night. We ask them to be considerate of our preferences in these areas if they choose to live with us. However, we do make exceptions on occasion and, for example, as long as we know they are coming in at 2am and it isn’t happening every day, it is fine.

Fourth, we do not punish our twenty-somethings. We believe that the relationship has moved beyond that. We do not take their cars, their phones, their TV. I do not check up on their phones or their internet use. We can do this because we trust them. With that said, we do “fine” them on occasion!

Fifth: the couple thing. Both of our twenty-somethings are dating. When they first started dating as teenagers, we would really watch over them. We would not allow them in the basement or bedrooms alone and we kept a close eye on them when they were in our home –or driveway ;). It was our way of helping to protect them from themselves. But as they have grown older, we realize that their purity is a reflection of their relationship with God and that they are now accountable to Him, and we have relaxed in this area a bit. But again, we can do this because we trust them.

Sixth, we do require some simple chores to be done. For some reason, young adults feel that they “grow out” of chores, and yet the chores still remain and, in some cases, are enlarged, as the kids become adults. It is very important (in our opinion) to expect the young adult kids to help with chores around the house. It gives them some sense of what to expect in the future (although they truly do not really have a clue!) and also helps to lighten the loads of Mom and Dad a bit. A question some of you might have is what to do about rent. At this point, we do not charge our kids rent. I am still not really sure if this is in their best interest or not, but I see them saving their money and not spending it too unwisely so we feel that this is the best option to give them the best start in their lives. If we felt that they were wasting their money we would probably have to re-visit that.

What we are doing works for us. It works for us because of some really important things we did when our kids were younger. If you have younger kids, start this now, so that your young adults will be joys instead of headaches–

1. Listen. Listen. Listen. Kids of all ages have big questions. Listen to them and then find the answers. Yes, it takes work but it is worth it. Take the time for conversations of substance.

2. Teach your kids about the Lord. Take them to church. Help them hide His Word in their hearts. Make God the priority of your family instead of sports, education, or anything else. Enjoy all of these things, but don’t sacrifice God because of them.

3. Teach them to respect you as an authority, so that when it is time for God to be their final authority they have already developed a spirit of submission and obedience.

4. Make boundaries that are driven by scripture, not by man made traditions. Explain why the boundaries are there and don’t budge if you have scripture as your basis.

5. Be a person they can relate to. It is so important to be humble and admit mistakes. It is so important to be fun and to laugh with your kids. It is so important to show your fear, your sadness, and your joy with them. Only when they realize that you are a fallible human being, just like them, will they be able to open up their hearts to you.

6. Love unconditionally. Let your kids know that there is absolutely nothing they could do that would stop you from loving them.

7. Pray. Alot. I almost always end my parenting posts with this thought. I cannot express just how important I believe this is. Pray for their spiritual welfare. God wants them to know Him. We need to pray for the hearts of our children every day.

Whew. This post covered a lot. That wasn’t my original intention. Hope I didn’t overwhelm you!

Our kids are still growing up and are still making mistakes — kind of like their parents. And as I write this, I don’t want you to think we have it all together — because we so don’t. God’s grace has covered SO much. But if we give our best efforts and make choices with a desire to please Him, we have found that He meets us half-way (or is it a quarter of the way??) and takes it from there. God is good. When we choose to honor Him with our lives and with the way we raise our families, He will guide and sustain us.

Are there some exceptions to this pattern? I know there are and it must be heart-breaking. I do not point fingers of judgment at any who have lost children to the world. Young adults make their own choices. We, as parents, can only do so much. We need to keep loving and praying. Never stop loving and never stop praying. We can pray with confidence because we know that God wants our children to be saved.

May God bless you as you raise your children to love and serve Him!

 

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