Is it Biblical to ‘Surrender’?

If you haven’t noticed, there is quite a bit of ‘surrender’ language in the church. Popular worship songs admonish us to, “surrender all,” “surrender all to You,” and “wave our white flag,” (All songs I personally enjoy by the way). I don’t think you have to be a Freudian psychoanalyst to see that this is representing something about the way we see sanctification: the process by which we become holier, more mature Christians.


Some people may be surprised to know that not one time in the new testament, does Paul, Jesus, Peter, or anyone else encourage the Christian to ‘surrender’(see footnote 1).

I have seen the fruit of a passive approach to sanctification in the teaching of people I have looked up to over the years as well. On one occasion, the leader of our young adults group taught from the armor of God text in Ephesians 6, that with our armor, we are not supposed to fight, but only to ‘stand’. “Put on the whole armor...that you may be able to stand...” (Eph 6:11) Reading the next verse would have showed him that we do indeed ‘wrestle’.

On another occasion, I was enthusiastically sharing some insights from a book on sanctification with a pastor, and he too saw the Christian life as one of ‘surrendering’ rather than one of battle or work.

Going back to the Bible, in the absence of the word surrender, we have words and phrases like this: “put to death” (Romans 8:13), “fight the good fight” (Tim 6:12), “strive” (Luke 13:24), “run the race” “discipline my body” (1 Cor 9:24-27), and on and on I could go (see footnotes 2).

So am I advocating that we go on a crusade to rid our music and preaching of this word?

No.

I believe this word is an imperfect attempt to communicate two good concepts or principles of Christianity:

First, it speaks of an abandonment of our efforts to be right with God, and receive the grace of Jesus Christ: His death in our place for our sins, and the gift of His righteousness. That is a good concept.

Secondarily, I think it refers to the concept expressed by Galatians 3:2-3:

“Let me ask you only this: Did you receive the Spirit by works of the law or by hearing with faith? Are you so foolish? Having begun by the Spirit, are you now being perfected by the flesh?”

In other words, there IS an aspect to Christian sanctification that you COULD say is a surrendering of our fleshly desires to our spiritual ones. To fill this out, one more place where the concept of surrender is exemplified in scripture. Romans 6:2:

“How can we who died to sin still live in it?”

It is a bit of a stretch, but I believe that the concept of ‘dying’ has been reinterpreted as ‘surrendering’. So perhaps the concept is somewhat in the Bible.

So what is my problem, why do I bring it up at all?

Because I believe the term, ‘surrender’ must be carefully qualified by church leaders before being accepted wholesale into the framework of sanctification.

Think with me about the person who is trying to quit smoking, or taking second looks at girls, or who is feeling as though they must offer a particularly humbling apology, and the word the have ringing in their ears is, “just surrender”. I suppose some people might come to the right conclusion, but I’m willing to wager that most Christians will take that to mean, “Smoke the cigarette, check out the girl, and don’t apologize”.

What I’m saying is that we have to let people know that this surrender will likely be hard. Really hard. Most of us have felt the lure of the flesh, and have felt as though the Spirit needs to speak up a bit at times. So yes, we are surrendering to our spiritual desires, we are surrendering to the will of God, but it will not be easy. It will often be hard, it will often be painful, it will take work, effort, striving, and all of that.

Let’s get our surrendering right.

1 NIV uses the word ‘surrender’ once in Luke 23:25 “He released the man who had been thrown into prison for insurrection and murder, the one they asked for, and surrendered Jesus to their will.” This word is ‘paradiomi’ which is more commonly translated, ‘to deliver or give over’. 


2 Kevin Deyoung, The Hole in Our Holiness (Wheaton, Illinois: Crossway, 2012), 88

A Defense of Heavy Music

My intention in this short piece is to defend heavy music for the sake of the lost and immature in Christ, that those who are mature may not alienate them in condemning their music and their subculture and in essence them. (because, if we’re honest, we all know how music can draw us in to the point where an insult to our music is an insult to us...)

I implore the reader to NOT use my arguments to fuel a disagreement between them and someone in their church or family. Those who are mature in Christ really have no option but to give up their preferences for the sake of their relationships. If God chooses to bless me with a wife, and she hates heavy music, I intend to joyfully relegate that music to my headphones or when my wife is not by my side, where I hope she would be for as much of our married life as possible.

It would be a truly sad commentary on any relationship if they were willing to chose a musical preference over a relationship.

That being said, let us begin.

Musical argument

I have repeatedly heard the argument against heavy music, that ‘it isn’t music’. If that is true, than the critic of heavy music need not show any understanding or engage in any discussion about its merits as music. I intend to show that it IS music.

The reason why many in our culture have a hard time understanding heavy music is because our ears are immediately drawn to the lead vocals, and it is there that we search for the melody or ‘hook’ of the song.

When confronted with heavy music (or rap, but that is another discussion...) they are greeted not only with disagreeable screaming or growling, but NO MELODY! To being to understand heavy music, you have to see the vocals as more of a percussive instrument. Or perhaps more like a ‘didgeridoo’. A monotone instrument, which can vary in percussive qualities, intensity, volume, etc.

I believe this is where the idea comes that it is not music. But as you hopefully can see at this point, just because the lead vocals do not contain a melody, does not mean it is not music.

In fact, growl/screaming is one of the most amazing percussive instruments. it can convey emotion in a way that beating on a skin stretched over a wooden case could never hope to convey. It holds within it all the percussive sounds of a full drum set: high hat, snare, toms, etc. It truly is amazing, and I’ll be honest, I wish I could do it.

Theological argument

The second reason why many people, especially Christians, frown upon heavy music is because of the anger or other negative emotions that seems to be there.

However, I would challenge the heavy metal hater: we are in a culture that has sinfully relegated anger to evil. It is not sinful to be angry. If I hear about a child molester who has take advantage of my niece, and I am not angry, I am a sociopath.

Does all heavy Christian music demonstrate righteous anger? Not at all. But just a it would be wrong to judge all pop music to be sinful if it does not convey joy stemming from a perfectly theologically correct source, it is wrong to judge all heavy music for being not perfectly theologically correct anger. Furthermore, the sinful distaste for anger has worked its way into the church.

I have heard pastors, 10, 20, and even 30 years into the ministry shocked by the wrath of God in the old testament. Men who have dedicated their lives to the study of God as revealed in His word! I have heard dear people in the faith unwilling to look upon the death of Christ as displayed in “The Passion of the Christ,” even though many scholars believe that the actual crucifixion would have been worse.

The modern evangelical church has relegated the righteous, holy, loving wrath of God to the equivalent of ‘potty language’ or ‘unnecessary crudeness’.

All that to say, the average church member is not equipped to hear heavy music, and appreciate character of God as expressed in the music, because for the average North American church member, the wrath of God is very insignificant, and certainly isn’t something beautiful about God.

So my point is, if someone is offended by heavy music to the point where they won’t even respect that it is a music style, just one they don’t enjoy, then IT IS POSSIBLE, that this attitude is a symptomatic of a lack of understanding of who our Glorious God is.

Let me reiterate: It is not wrong to dislike heavy music! But I would submit it is very likely wrong to condemn it as in illegitimate art form, or inherently sinful.

Conclusion

I have been blessed by God throughout the years as God has allowed me to be made fun of on numerous occasions because of my love for heavy music. He has taught me a lot about how selfish I am, and how I need to grow in ‘letting it go’ and ‘not taking it personally,’ and I still have a long way to go.

But I hope that this brief piece will encourage the body of Christ to be one in a more profound way, as we continually seek to put aside our differences and love each other for the fame and renown of Jesus Christ, our beautiful Savior.

God is merciful

Many of us wish we could confront God on the manner in which He executes judgement in the Bible, especially in the old testament. What many people don’t understand, is that the Bible records a conversation between Himself and Abraham, with that very topic.

In Genesis 18, verses 22-33, what we have is an Abraham who is informed that God is about to destroy Sodom for her immorality, but deeply believes that there must be a group of righteous people in Sodom. Therefore, Abraham confronts God on the injustice that would result if an entire city was swept away, even if righteous people lived in it. Abraham haggles with God, starting with 50 men, eventually ‘talking God down’ to 10 men. If there are 10 righteous men, in Sodom, then God will not destroy it.

What we have is a classic modern scenario. A man who thinks that he is more just than God. We may have different standards, but the issues is the same. Abraham believes that he is more merciful, more loving than God. He believes that if not for his rhetoric, God may have swept away 50 righteous people with the many wicked. How many modern readers think the same? But what happens in the story?

It turns out, that there are no righteous people in the city. First, everyone in the city turns up at Lot’s house that night, in order to gang-rape his two angelic visitors. I know that is offensive; that’s the point. The men in this town are evil. What about Lot? Well, he offers his two daughters to this lustful crowd, to appease them. Not exactly what I would call a noble and righteous father. Finally, in chapter 19 we have the character of Lot’s two daughters exposed, when they get their father drunk and have sex with him on two consecutive nights, in order to get pregnant.

But God is merciful. He saves Lot! There is no requirement in his discourse with Abraham that would bind him to saving Lot. But he does it anyway. Why? Because Lot is so righteous? No! As we have already seen, Lot is a filthy coward. Even when the angels offer to save him, Lot dawdles around, and they have to physically take him out of the city (19:16). And even then, when the angels tell him to escape to the hills, he says, “No, I want to go to another city”. After God says that’s okay, he goes to the hills. Wow.

On a final note, the two children that result from the incestuous intercourse of Lot’s daughters, end up being the starting point for two evil nations that cause Israel a great deal of trouble. What sort of legacy would have come from a whole city of evil men?

If you haven’t seen the point yet, it is simply this: God is far more merciful than we are. If anyone is saved by Him, it is due to grace: unmerited favor (Gen 19:29). And before we start to argue with Him like Abraham did, we should take some time to read and reflect on this story.

Faith vs Doubt: Don't be extreme

I have noticed recently a sort of “back and forth” movement between the virtues of faith, and the virtues of doubt.

Those on the “faith” side, will site countless Biblical passages that encourage us to have faith in a variety of situations. However, men, being sinful, have taken those commands, and have created scenarios where people feel they must lie about their doubts in God, His Word etc., creating a inauthentic culture where any challenging questions are frowned upon because they could create doubt.

In reaction to this fake culture, the post-modern christian culture has made doubt a thing of health and maturity, as though, if you don’t doubt certain things about God, then you are just a bigoted, immature, fundamentalist who really doesn’t believe God can stand up to you doubts. As a result, we start to see the unhealthy extreme of, “Is it really wrong to have sex before marriage? I don’t know.” In other words, Christians using their “virtuous doubt,” to make moral compromises.

These two views are obviously extreme; and I would argue, both wrong.

The Bible commands us to have faith (1Cor 16:13). But we should not lie if we don’t (Rom 12:3). Neither should we embrace our doubt as though there is something virtuous about the doubt itself (Luke 12:28). The Christian that, in the face of Christians who condemn doubt, challenges the virtue of faith itself, is still bowing to fear of man or people pleasing. In other words, the truly humble person, who believes the gospel, can say, “Yes, I don’t have faith. No, it is not good. Praise God, that I walk under the blood of Jesus while I come to a stronger faith.” The reason Jesus says, If you have faith as small as a mustard seed, you can move mountains,(Matt 17:20) is not necessarily so that we can all become entrepreneurs, whether altruistic ones or not. It was more so that we can rest secure in the promise of our salvation, even when are faith is small.
Even when our faith does not all the implications it should have.

So what do we do?

1. Pursue faith.

• Don’t wallow in your doubt unnecessarily.
  
• Ask God to strengthen your faith. Earnestly desire to be a man or woman of more faith. Ask as the man in scriptures, “I do believe, help my unbelief!”
• Read your Bible, even when it doesn’t seem to change anything, or even if it seems to make it worse.

2. Pursue community.

• Read good books, don’t immerse yourself in other doubters.
• Serve.

If you are the one with faith, and the other is the doubter:

• Listen patiently to the doubts of others.
• Don’t condemn others for having doubts.
• Don’t correct them immediately if possible, hear them out.
• Do guide them to good material, share your own journey, remind them that God loves them no matter what, demonstrate it.
• Don’t be afraid to lovingly challenge sin in their lives

3. Pursue a fear of God that would outweigh your fear of man.

• Recognize when you are acting out of a fear of man. I believe most don’t believe that they guilt and condemnation they feel from other Christians when they express doubt is largely due to their own insecurities and desire to be loved and affirmed by other Christians. How ironic is it then to create a culture where those who don’t doubt as much are ostracized and belittled!

With Love,

Tawmis.

Another Reason...

In the hope of restoration, that is restoring a Christian who has, for whatever reason, chosen to pursue a dating relationship with someone who is not, here is another reason that may help you to see this sin the way Jesus does.
I think that it is pretty clear biblically, that as you grow closer to Christ, you become a better person. You become more secure, less needy, more selfless, etc.. That is due to God’s grace. He is changing you. But for what? I hope that you would agree that he is not primarily changing you for you. It is not so that you become more popular, have more friends, etc. He is changing you for HIS glory. That people might go, “what’s up with you?” and you might say, “not what, who: Jesus”. Thereby giving credit, or glory, to Jesus Christ.
When Christians date non-Christians it is particularly grotesque, because you are using the good character traits that God has given you in order to disobey Him.
It would be like a husband buying His wife a new dress and jewelry for their anniversary, and then her wearing it down to the club so she could pick up guys. Or, for the men, it would be like your sweet wife buying you that hot car you always wanted, and you going down town and picking up young ladies in it. Think about it.
You are committing adultery on your first love. You are using the gifts He gave you, out of love, to betray Him.
If you think I am off base, or my language is too strong, read Ezekiel 16, or James 4:4.
I love you.

Entitlement or Faith?

The other day I was driving downtown for some errands, and I was looking for a parking spot and I realize, “I get good parking downtown fairly often”. I was getting closer and closer to where I needed to go, and parking wasn’t showing up, and I thought to myself, “don’t worry, you have faith that God will provide a good parking spot.” I gave my head a shake after that. “Really? Is that why I often get good parking spots?” Then the truth came in. I actually think I DESERVE good parking spots! What would lead me to that? I’m not totally sure, but maybe it is a bit of theology that says, “Jesus loves you, so you will get the best of everything.” otherwise known as “prosperity theology”. Which, in case you’re wondering, is wrong.
So I wonder how many of us do this: expect things in “faith” that is actually expected in entitlement not faith. I know people do, because tragedy strikes, a job is lost, a family member gets sick, and there is a reaction like, “What the heck? I had faith that my family would stay healthy! I had faith I would keep my job!” But did you have faith? Or did you just figure, “I deserve to have a healthy, happy family and a job”?
If I had to blame one thing for this misunderstanding, it would be a lack of understanding of the Bible. God does not promise us a good job, He does not promise that all our family will always be healthy. So when you say you are having faith in God maintaining these things, you are not having faith in God, but rather, your IDEA of God. A figment of your imagination. Let me say it another way.

If you have faith in God to do something He has not promised to do, your faith is worthless. Faith is only as strong as the object you place it in.

The issue is we look around at people and think, “They have a healthy family, a good job, a nice house, so I deserve one too.” That is a lie. We only deserve to be in hell for our sins. And regardless of how many people enjoy the things you long for, you are not entitled to receive them. I am not entitled to receive them.
So it is comparisons to others that starts this. It is walking by sight and not by faith that begins the growth of entitlement which we believe is faith. How ironic.
So let us have faith in something that won’t disappoint us in the long run, though we may feel disappointed at times: God is good, God is love, Jesus loves us. Let us truly walk by faith and not by sight.

The Trinity and Childcare

Most people would not deny that running a childcare is tough. But you would be amazed at what kinds of things kids will do once they get into a routine. They will clean up their toys cheerfully, they will get their lunches, brush their own teeth, go to the bathroom, wait in line, eat nicely, and all sorts of things that normally you would never get them to do. So in one way, it is easier than people think.
In another way it is harder. Because the “community” is always changing. Every time a new child comes in, he or she throws everything off. Not only does the new child NOT clean up the toys, NOT eat nicely, etc. etc., they cause every other child to question the necessity of the task at hand. In short, they make a big mess of what was a nice peaceful community.
We all know that churches can be the worst for little cliche groups. We like them because everyone knows the routines, and no one really questions. And if someone new enters into the group, not only do they make us uncomfortable, but they also cause problems between others that seem like they never were there until the new person arrived.
God’s community is perfect. Father, Son and Holy Spirit dwelling together in perfect love and joy. And they invited us into their community. Why would they do that? If a new person seems to throw our little cliche group into a bit of chaos, then what kind of challenge would it be for a perfect community to accept evil sinners like you and me? How do we know how uncomfortable we made God’s community? We look at the cross. That was the cost of letting new people into the community of Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. The bloody, torturous death of Jesus Christ. He did it in love. That’s why.
As people who believe the gospel, we cannot allow ourselves to huddle in our safe little groups and reject people because they might change the dynamics in our careful group. As outsiders, we need to realize that even if no group ever accepts us, The best community in eternity has accepted us, at great cost. Let’s look for how the gospel applies to every area of life.

Jesus Christ and Sports part 2

A Positive thing that major sporting events indicate.

One thing that I believe is a good thing about major sporting events in general, is that in a way, it has taken the place of war. Think about it. The fact that we have Olympics, World Cup, etc., shows that we have unprecedented peace and prosperity on our land. It wasn’t too long ago when certain sporting events couldn’t take place because of the danger.
Back in ancient times, the reasons for a city or nation rejoicing together was because of a major conquest or a fending off of an enemy. A much more worthy reason to rejoice, to be sure. However, we now do battle in the stadiums in the world, and we are not killing anyone.
If we are spending money on athletes, that is money that is not going towards training soldiers and making weapons. It is a ‘lesser of two evils’ situation, for sure, since sports can have its evil, which I will talk about next.
But I still maintain that it is something that we should be thankful for!

Jesus Christ and Sports part 1

Outside Christendom, there are three basic reactions to the arrival of a major sporting event. The first is by the fans of the sporting event. This is easy enough to spot, and ranges from mild enthusiasm to outright fanaticism. The next group are those who have no real care or understanding of the sporting event in general, so they are mostly indifferent. The third group emerges as the second group becomes inconvenienced or made to feel inferior because of the sporting event. This can be especially contentious when a wife is ignored or disregarded due to sporting event that to her seems to have little or no significance. It causes problems in other people when something they love, (ie a TV series) is interrupted for coverage of the sporting event.

Inside Christendom, the groups are very similar, but there is a slight difference. The third group will often revert to self-righteousness. As in, they will act like martyrs who are being persecuted for their love for Jesus, which outweighs their love for the sporting event, unlike the other immature Christians who have succumbed to the devil’s sporting event; conveniently overlooking their own fanaticism when the season finale, or concert, or the other thing that they love comes into view and challenges their own love for Jesus.
I am ashamed to say that I have been the self-righteous ‘martyr’ and the fanatic.

I’ll talk more about the balance later.

Once a year risk...

One of the most difficult things to see in the life of a Christian in the sprint mentality in regards to risk.
What I mean is the idea that we can just pump out 100m and then walk it out for few km and hope to win the race.
This plays out in the area of “risk taking” or “leaps of faith” or whatever you want to call it.
It usually plays out something like this:

A relatively new Christian has some musical ability, but is incredibly shy. People around him encourage him to play on the worship team, and he confesses that God has been leading him to this. Finally, after much encouragement, maybe some rebuke, he gets up there and plays a set on the worship team, and he loves it! And life is exciting, and his obedience gives him confidence to be obedient in other areas.
However, before too long, it isn’t a big risk anymore. He is comfortable up on stage, and God is calling him to new risks. However, this time there is more resistance. Whenever God calls him to a new risk, Satan slinks up and whispers, “Hey, you’re already on the worship team, what more does God want? That was really hard for me!”
Now what was once a source of joy in God actually hampers spiritual growth as it become an agent of justification for all sorts of small, yet soul-draining compromise.

(of course, the worship team is just an example, it can be any area of service or risk...)

I unfortunately see this in myself as well. I want to be ready to obey whenever God calls, but there is a strong tendency to live off of the obedience of yesterday, but Jesus calls us to take up our cross each day.

The worst thing about it is that when I choose to ignore these prodding's, life becomes incredibly boring, and so does God. And I blame Him, but the boredom in my life is no one's fault but my own. Let’s get off the couch, there is no one, or nothing else worth living for.

Predator or Protector: What Kind of Man are You 2010

An updated version of an old blog, seems to be relevant right now.

"Wild at Heart" has been a huge thing, at least in the Christian community lately. It's call for boys to be men, it's declaration that all the longings for beauty and battle in men are God given and to be honored and embraced. But how does that translate to our culture of latte's and LCD TV's? How do we engage in battle for a beauty in this culture? That answer might surprise you.

I think I will just come right out and say that most guys believe that they are the good guy. The bad guys are out there somewhere: hurting, abusing, and otherwise degrading women. You are most prone to think this way if you have had a dramatic change in your life where you treat woman much better than you have previously. But make no mistake, the person you are protecting the women in your life from is primary YOURSELF. Yes you.

There are two general desires that our actions around females will emanate from: Our desire to be a protector and our desire to be a predator.

The predator may not even be aware he is a predator, but he only need as these types of questions to determine whether he is protecting women or preying on them: Am I doing everything in my power to protect this girls heart? Am I being as clear as possible about my intentions? Am I avoiding deep, soul connecting moments and conversations? (those conversations are appropriate when you have made your intentions clear to a girl!)

How many times have you seen it happen? Male A spends countless hours with female B under the guise of “we’re just friends”. Eventually (it can happen both ways), female B develops feelings for male A, and male A responds, “What? I had no idea! I thought we were just friends!” That’s garbage.

I see many predators in the church. I see a predator in myself from time to time, and by God’s grace, I am becoming more of a protector.

I understand the feelings of strength and masculinity that come from having these conversations and moments with a girl. But we have to face up to the fact that to draw out a woman’s heart when we have no intention of marriage, is cowardly and evil. We need to have our needs for significance and masculinity met in how God sees us, not how women treat us.

The protector sees girls not as a way to boost his own ego, but as precious treasures that he is charged by God to protect. Each young lady that is your friend puts you in the place of responsibility to fight and protect her heart. That means you watch what you say, you don't imply more than you want out of the relationship. That means you watch how flirty you are, you don't imply more than you want out of the relationship. And it means you are wiling to have the DTR talk (define the relationship) as often as it takes to make sure that your coming across the way you intend: as a loving brother. YOU PROTECT HER HEART!

So where does this fight come in? Well, you have to fight yourself. You have to fight to keep your mind on who you are before God, because if you don't, you will feel insecure and will need to have your confidence boosted by your girl friends, and therefore become a predator instead of a protector.

One Danger of Preaching

In my admiration of other preachers, I noticed a real danger that we could have here in north america. Let me back up a bit.

A good preacher will be connected to God. He will be in tune with what God is speaking.

When a preacher preaches, God will want to say things to individuals through that preacher. The things that God will say will often confront individuals in a very personal way, a way that will make an individual feel deeply understood and loved.

Because we have a very man centered culture, people are hard-wired to give praise and glory to human beings rather than to God like the people at Lystra were (Acts 14:8-18).

So this is a message for preachers and people.

People: when you feel deeply understood and loved, remember that it is God’s love you are experiencing, not a deep connection to a preacher. Especially those who are on or radio etc.

Preachers: this should strike fear in your heart, that people would give you glory where God should be getting it, feeling loved and understood by you when it is God that is really loving and understanding them.

May we be like Paul and Barnabas who, in the previously cited chapter,

“tore their robes and rushed out into the crowd, crying out and saying, ‘Men, why are you doing these things? We are also men of the same nature as you, and preach the gospel to you that you should turn from these vain things to a living God who made the heaven and the earth and the sea and all that is in them.’”

Reality.

One of the most disturbing things I have seen, both in myself and around me is the propensity to test everything by personal experience.

Is this always wrong? No. However, I have noticed a disturbing tendency for even Christians to disagree with a sermon, a doctrine, or a Bible verse not because of any particular reason besides the fact that it just rubs them the wrong way.

This could go in a number of directions, but one direction is coming up.

A prime example is the idea that God knows the future. Many Christians simply hate the idea that they are not surprising God with their good deeds. That God is not relieved that we did something in obedience, like God is up in heaven thinking, "I don't know, if Thomas doesn't talk to John about me, it might just ruin everything!"

the thinking is, "If people believe that their actions don't make any difference in how things end up, then they won't do anything." The thing is, if you only act in hopes that your actions will have some incredible significance in history, then you are only motivated by your own glory anyway, and as Christians, we are called to be motivated by love for God.

Would you do something for God if no one noticed? If it cost you a lot, and people not only ignored it, but scorned your actions as selfish and prideful? Is it enough for you that God has noticed?

As Christians, we do use our experiences to test what is right and wrong. However, that is not our ultimate court. Our ultimate court is God's word. Beware when you feel more passionately about your experiential sense of right and wrong than the Biblical right and wrong.

Defining.

Here are a few words that probably best express how life has been for me lately. Not the happiest thing in the world, but maybe it will encourage you too keep on track.

Oh, how You know the feeling...

to stare into the eyes of a love so true,
watch him strip himself of everything
that is keeping him alive.
everything he's ever owned of value.
Because he's stumbled upon the smell of feces
and can't stop thinking about it.

Is there yet a man in Judah
who will fight for what is beautiful?

Or is there only those who curse the truth?
Smear disgrace on their chest and arms like sunscreen?
And their mouths drip with festering platitudes.
Their hands so filthy that they poison the soil
as they dig their own graves.

Is there yet a man in Judah
who will fight for what is pure?

Selah.

I left because of you…

This is the first time in my life I’ve been officially accepted into church leadership.

It is kind of strange, because in some ways, not much changes.

I do basically all the same sorts of things I did when I volunteered, just a little bit more so. But I have had a long history with the church.

I have historically had a lot of complaints against the church in general, and often against the church I attended specifically.

I have done my best to ignore issues of preference (music for example) and tried to focus on things that I genuinely believe are heart issues, and even tried to keep those to a very select audience. I know the warnings in the bible against divisiveness.

I think that amongst my generation, I was, in fact, one of those who complained the least about certain petty things. I actually really love a lot of the church. In fact, I would often find myself trying to defend the church and church attendance in general.

But nothing could prepare me for this change in perspective.

One day, I found that a family at our “church” (congregation, gathering, whatever you want to call it) left to another church. And they left because of me.

The issue was there was a certain standard that they upheld at home, and I was organizing youth events, and one of the events we did usurped what they were trying to teach their kids.

Now, if I told you the specific issue, most people would probably be on my side, but that’s not the point. I caused someone to leave. My choices. My leadership.

All this to say, you just don’t know what your talking about, until you come under the scrutiny of leadership position. Imagine some humble, loving people feeling too intimidated by your position and not wanting to talk to you about it, but feel rather that leaving is the answer. It has taught me a lot.

One of the biggest things, is that I hope people would talk to their leaders rather than about them. I know it can be intimidating, or you may think they don’t have the time, but it is so much more appreciated than just leaving or harbouring feelings.

There may be a day when I offend people for the right reasons. In that day, I hope to be given the grace to stand my ground. But in the meantime, I pray for the humility to ask for forgiveness, and honour those who have come back and celebrate the great gift of Jesus Christ with me.

Can I pick the story?

It’s the little things that tend to throw me for a loop.

Today was one of those days where dinner took a little extra time. We had a roast with gravy and mashed potatoes and green beans. Those stupid green beans take forever to cut.

I was a little later than I had hoped for dinner, so I had to run out for ball hockey: something that I had organized to be from youth to young adults, a kind of mingling activity, plus a lot of fun.

Near the end of the game I found out my sister had phoned one of my friends to babysit, very odd since I don’t know if this guy has ever babysat in his life. It was a sign of desperation; she really wanted to go somewhere tonight.

I got home to my one of my biggest fear: the dinner mess had not been touched. Pots open, roast sitting on the counter, potatoes and green beans slowing going hard.

All those negative thoughts rushed into my head: “this is so unfair! Don’t those guys see what I do for them?”

I really did try to look away from what was in front of me, but I just couldn’t. It was right in my face. My brother and sister off doing social events, leaving me with a huge mess and a crying niece. So I did the only thing I could muster the strength for. I went outside and prayed.

It helped a little, so I went back in side, and started to clean up, and not focus so much on what was in front of me. I honestly started feeling sorry for myself, wishing that I at least had someone to talk to.

Gwyn was still crying for her mother. I decided to go in and try and comfort her, knowing full well she could just get mad at me. She does that sometimes, I know she doesn’t mean it, but in situations like this, it is kind of hurtful.

So I went in, and thank God, she was really sweet: “All I want to do is read my Bible story”. She said in between sobs.

“Alright Gwyn, I’ll read you one”.

“Can I pick it?” She asked as always.

“Sure.” She snuggled up and turned to a familiar picture with a boy wearing a coat of many colours.

I almost couldn’t read. I was tearing up. It was just what I needed. The title of the story was: “The Forgiving Prince” I remembered the line, “What you intended for evil, God has used for good.

I remembered how spoiled I am. All I have to deal with is a lonely night and a few dished, Joseph had to deal with many lonely nights in prison. Jesus had his share of lonely nights too. And neither of them had done anything to deserve them.

Thank You so much Jesus. You heard the prayers of a winy little boy tonight. You don’t just tell us how to act, you were there. You don’t just tell us you love us, You show us.

Jerry

I go for a lot of walks.

On this walk I was, ironically, sitting down.

Sitting down with a great view of this beautiful little city.

A man on a bike stopped just off to my right and said, “enjoy this.”

He continued on. This man had strong opinions, but he loved Our city.

By most accounts, this was a strange looking man. Long black hair, a bike helmet with two small side view mirrors on it, black jeans with masking tape around the bottoms, and all sort of reflective stickers and a vest on. But he had a lot to share about life, and death.

One of his strong opinions centered around Christians. The Nazi’s were Christians. Pretty much every atrocity that was every committed was done in the name of “some Jewish corpse”.

Was I offended by this? I’m not sure. More than anything, I just wanted him to know what was true. But I just listened. One of the few things I said was in response to his statement when he leaned close to me and said,

“I have good news: your not a dirty rotten sinner!”

With a smile I responded, “yeah, not anymore!”

Then he launched into his philosophy about how only those with 100% cruel intent were actually evil. I thought of the verse that talked about how an apple tree doesn’t bear figs, and a fountain of bitter water does not give for sweet water. But I didn’t have to. I just listened to him. And for me, that was okay.

It isn’t always okay. I think the reason why I was okay to not talk was because I knew in my heart I wasn’t afraid too.

As my awareness of the evening’s activities became more pressing, I excused myself, with one thing I really felt I needed to say.

This thing would be trite and meaningless in many contexts, but in this one, somehow, I think it meant a lot. Was it my idea to say it? Probably not. But I knew I had to say it, and it makes a lot of sense now as I reflect on it. So from about street’s width away, I called out my last words to him:

“God Bless, my friend!”

belonging...

What desparate things would a man do to feel like he belonged?

How would a man walk if he knew where he belonged?

subtle arrogance.

I was inspired to share this little story by a new friend, so here goes.

I was reading the SS 11 text book, since I'm teaching SS 11 right now, and the topic is WWII. I'm just at the beginning. How the treaty of Versailles was really harsh on the Germans, to the point were there was no way that they could pay back their debt.

Another interesting note, the American president at the time, wanted a treaty that emphasized forgiveness, which may have lead to the avoidance of WWII! Anyway...

So the first thing I realized was that Germany, albeit for a short time, was an oppressed country! People were hungry, and poor, and out of work, and the world was like, "Pay up!"

At the same time, Canada (and the US) was going through a depression, and socialist parties were gaining momentum because of the hard times. The people figured democracy didn't work, so we should try something else. And it wasn't even as bad in Canada as it was in Germany!!

Now in comes Hitler, makes all these promises to get people back on their feet, and when he does come to power, he actually delivers!!

Now tell me we wouldn't follow a guy who brought us out of the suffering and misery of a depression? Most of us don't even know what a depression is like, though we may soon find out. What would it be like to look your family in the eyes when they tell you they are hungry, are we going to eat tonight, and this guy gets you a job, and feeds your family?

The fact is, we turn to false saviors everyday. Not all of them have the immediate repercussions of an Adolf Hitler, but we do anyway.

Any Savior besides Jesus Christ is idolatry, and Christians need to be careful they don't see themselves as morally superior to even the Nazis! For it is by grace we are saved. Of course, that doesn't mean we excuse the behavior at all. sin is sin.

Just a little something I noticed while reading a text book.

If you want to know a guy...

Some people say that if you really want to know what a guy is like watch him play sports. I agree. I've know some pretty soft-spoken guys that are absolute goons on the turf. But I have noticed another one.

Maybe this is with all people, but if you want to know how insecure a guy is, watch how he reacts when somebody cuts him off, or does something else inappropriate in traffic. Chances are he'll do this:
1.Immediately get mad, perhaps swear, or display other uncommon behaviour
2.He will continue to talk about it, even though you try to bring up another topic.
3.He will tell this story to the first friend he meets, and all the rest of his friends for the rest of the week, and even beyond that if the topic comes up.

I can't say what exactly is the source of this, but I know for me, I really want to be right. I need everybody in the world to tell me that "the other guy" was wrong, and idiot, unsafe, etc., and that I am a skilled, competent driver. Ha ha. If I was really confident in my driving ability, I would be able to let it go, and sometimes I can. It all comes down to having my value in how Christ sees me, not the people I'm driving with, not my friends, not anyone else.

Anyway, ladies, if your wondering if this guy is "the one" watch how he reacts in traffic...