Building Bridges Pays Dividends

     With this post, I'm bringing you greetings from the Midwest! As of today (June 22), I'm sitting in the living room of my parents-in-law in Ottawa, Kansas.  We just came here yesterday from visiting my side of the family.  We attended church with my parents yesterday in St. Joseph, Missouri.  It was the first time my whole family had been together in church for many years.  Of course, all three of us kids have our own churches and schedules, so we can't be together on Sundays very often.  Yesterday, however, things came together for all of us, and we were there, on Father's Day, to hear my father deliver a sermon.  My sister and I both sang.  My father was rather touched to have us all together--I think we gave him a pretty good Father's Day present.

     The whole week was a good one for strengthening relationships.  We three siblings stayed up a few very late nights, just talking about what has been happening in our lives, and how our perspectives on life and faith have adapted as we have gained experience.  We were intrigued, I think, to see how we have come to some of the same perspectives even though we are separated by space, time, and circumstances. Even as our insights have come into greater agreement, it also seems that we are increasingly appreciating the importance of humility--we are realizing how much we have yet to learn.  God is always seeking to impart greater wisdom to us through His Word, our experiences, and through the perspectives of others.  It would be a shame to close ourselves off to that wisdom, thinking we already understand things well enough.  That openness is so important, both for our own growth in Christ and our relationships.

     All of this causes me to reflect, once again, on the great benefits we may gain from Christian fellowship if we just invest the time and effort to reach across our differences, and with a teachable spirit, open ourselves to the stories and perspectives of our brothers and sisters in Christ.  It's important to be honest with ourselves, understanding that it takes constant effort to bridge the gaps caused by differing backgrounds, personalities, and styles.  We love to take the path of least resistance; it involves little effort when we spend time with those who are like-minded and kindred spirits.  However, if we associate only with those who are like us, we are probably not going to learn very much.  

     The Apostle Paul wrote, "Make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace." (Ephesians 4:3, NIV).  I like that verse, because first, it recognizes the challenge of unity with those who are different from us. We can all testify to the difficulty of relationships with those we'd term "difficult people" -- though we often dismiss as difficult those who are simply very different.  The second thing I like about the verse, though, is that it gives the method for surmounting the difficulty: the "bond of peace."  What is this "bond of peace" which is supposed to give us the resources to have unity with those very different from us? The answer: Jesus Himself; His work on the Cross reconciles us both to God and to each other.  In Ephesians 2:14, Paul reminds us that "For he himself is our peace, who has made the two groups one and has destroyed the barrier, the dividing wall of hostility..." (NIV)

     If we have truly made Christ's atonement a part of our lives, we should be living the full implications of the Gospel. One of those implications is that we can live in unity and mutual encouragement with any Christian brother or sister, regardless of our differences.  In the Father's wisdom, He has ordained that a good portion of the wisdom and guidance we need is sent to us by the fellowship of others in the Body of Christ.  We are stunted in our growth when we refuse to bridge the gaps of personal differences and humble ourselves enough to learn.  I pray that you and I will continually commit ourselves not to miss the riches of wisdom and caring that can be found in our Christian family.

Praying in the Big Leagues

     I'm sure you all know my opinion of politics by now.  Let's just say, I don't like politics.  Not a bit.  I have little faith in the American political system, and that includes both sides of the aisle.  The whole thing is rife with corruption, as legislators are owned by special interest groups.  Self-interest rules over the good of the country.  Our religious freedoms are being whittled away.  This latest intrusion by state government into the working of local churches is one example--the background checks and mandatory reporting, etc.  I growl a lot about new laws and regulations, and I sometimes wonder if certain politicians might be actively working to destroy the country.  I get angry...and I sometimes have a hard time thinking Christ-like thoughts or expressing His compassion for all people.  And that's precisely how I learn where I need to grow, when I find an area where I don't reflect the heart of Jesus.  Maybe you need to grow, too.

     Regardless how you vote, there's likely a bunch of times that you've been upset about laws and regulations that have been put in place by some legislative body.  Like I said, I sure have, plenty of times.  Let me ask you this--how many times have you prayed for our leaders? I know, I know--sometimes we get so angry at them that we just want them to get voted out and go away.  Some may even wish them harm!  Before we let our feelings carry us away, however, we ought to find out what Jesus would have us think, and do.

     In First Timothy, chapter 2, the Apostle Paul instructs his pastoral protégé in the methods by which he can cultivate the heart of Jesus within the Ephesian church.  Prayer heads the list, as it must.  He urges that the church pray for everyone--even those for whom they might not feel like praying: "I urge, then, first of all, prayers, intercession and thanksgiving be made for everyone--for kings and all those in authority..." (vv. 1-2a, NIV)  It's easy to pray for people we like, right?  Praying for people we don't care for, however...that's when we separate the pros from the amateurs.  Jesus reminded us in the Sermon on the Mount that even the "tax collectors" and "pagans" show love to those who love them. (Matt. 5:46, 47) Followers of Jesus must distinguish themselves from the world by wielding a love that is much higher than unbelievers can attain.  And so it follows naturally that if we truly follow Jesus, we should not balk at praying even for those in power.

     Paul gives two other reasons for such prayers.  The first directly benefits us: "...that we may live peaceful and quiet lives in all godliness and holiness." (2b)  I can't tell you how many times I've wished that the government would get out of our lives.  I'm sure you've done the same.  Rather than watching the news and seething in resentment, because we're powerless to change things, we should do the one thing that makes change possible--pray!  Yes, God's Word plainly says that praying for those in power can bring about an environment in which governmental leaders leave us alone, and free to pursue lives of godliness and holiness.  How does this work?  I haven't the foggiest notion.  But apparently something happens in the heavenlies when God's people pray for the knowledge and blessing of God to come upon those in authority.  Perhaps God softens their hearts toward us, causing them to look on us more favorably--I don't know.  I do know that whatever we're doing now isn't working.  I think it's time to quit working ourselves up into a froth, drop the angry slogans, and take our place on the battle-lines of prayer.  That's where we do have power.  And just perhaps, the Lord will give us the peace and quiet for which we've been searching.

     The second reason for praying for people in power is more important than our own comfort--it's for their very eternal souls: "This is good, and pleases God our Savior, who wants all men to be saved and come to a knowledge of the truth." (vv. 3-4, NIV)  Whatever we may think of presidents, or governors, or legislators, or judges, we must remember who they truly are.  They are, every last one of them, people lovingly created by God, in His image.  They are sinners, like you and I.  They wield a power that can spread the effects of their sin much farther that us, but their level of brokenness is quite equal to ours in the eyes of God.   The love God has for them, furthermore, is just as great as it is for us.  Out of His compassion, He sent His Son to die for them and hopefully to redeem their souls.  To this day, He sends His Holy Spirit to contend with their hearts, opening their eyes to their sin and need for a Savior.  He wants them to be with Him for all eternity.  That is who these people are.  We pigeonhole them, seeing them only in terms of their title, their power, their riches, and perhaps the damage and mischief they can accomplish.  But that is not who they are, whether they know it or not. They are children of the Living God, who wants to redeem them.  That is how we must see them.  We must see past the facade, see their souls, and pray for those souls.  If we do not, we cannot call ourselves followers of Jesus, or of the Father who wants all men to be saved.

     It is time to stop grumbling and kick into action.  It's time to pray!  On May 7, Christians from our entire area will gather at the site of the new school in Kittanning for the National Day of Prayer.  It will be an hour in which we fervently pray for God's love and truth to come upon all of our leaders, national, state, county and local.  We will pray for the new school, for its administrators and teachers.  We will pray for the students who will join together in ways they never have before.  We will pray safety for our law enforcement officers, and all those firemen and EMT's who sacrifice to keep us safe and healthy.  We hope that you will come with us to pray that a knowledge of God and His truth will dawn upon our leaders.  We will pray that blessing will return to our people, and that we will be able to live our lives in peace and godliness.  If you really want things to change, you need to be there.  Our National Day of Prayer service begins at 6:30 pm, at the location mentioned above.  In the event of rain, we will meet instead at the pavilion of Vision Hill, the future site of the First Church of God.  I anticipate seeing you there.

A Long Look Within

   The Lenten season is already upon us. Can you believe it? Do you realize that just two months ago, we were celebrating Christmas? Something really strange has happened this year, with the way all those solstices and equinoxes fall, and Easter will be exceptionally early this year. April 5! I'm having a really tough time making the mental gears switch over--and all this crazy snow everywhere doesn't do much to help me come to terms with the fact that Lent is already here, and Easter is coming fast.

   But we should do everything we can in order to enter into the journey of Lent. The alternative is missing out on a truly precious opportunity: the opportunity to enter into the story of Christ's ministry, His passion, and His resurrection. It's your opportunity to enter into the drama--to make the Gospel story, your story. The result of doing this is wonderful and transformative.

   But before we jump in, headlong, we really ought to make sure that we are clear about what we are doing, and why. A good, first question would be: what is Lent? What does the word mean?

   The word, "Lent," is an Old English word that means "long," in observance of the fact that the days visibly lengthen in the spring. It and "spring" were used somewhat interchangeably. So the Old English term for spring would have been something like, "the lengthening." So originally, the term, "Lent," wasn't even a particularly religious word. However, given that it was in these days of "lengthening" that people also prepared themselves spiritually for entering into the story of Christ's Passion and Resurrection, the word Lent has morphed over the centuries to take on a spiritual connotation.

   A much older term for what we call "Lent" is how they referred to it in Latin: Quadragesima, meaning "fortieth." This is in reference to the fact that the Lenten observance is forty days in length. The forty days of Lent are meant to commemorate the 40 days that Christ spend fasting in the desert, after His baptism, and prior to the beginning of His public ministry. In preparation for celebrating the Passion week, believers have also entered a forty day period of fasting, symbolically participating with Jesus in His wilderness fast. Other foreign words for "Lent" recognize that it is all about entering into the story of Christ's preparatory fast. The German word for Lent is fastenzeit, simply meaning "fasting time." Other European languages, like Russian or Czech, use an expression which translates into "the great fast" (Czech is postni doba; Russian is vyeliki post.)

   So, there we have the meaning and origin of the term, "Lent." Having covered the what, however, we should talk about the why. For many Christians in this country, there is a serious question about whether Lent should be observed at all. Believe me, I understand. My first church memories were in a small, Independent Fundamental Baptist church, and the term Lent only conjured up people eating fish and carrying out mystical, Catholic rituals. I'm ashamed to tell you that anything liturgical like this stirred up suspicion in me and other members of my little group of "Fundies". I have grown a tremendous amount since those days. The denomination I now call home is far more hospitable and ecumenical, praise the Lord, and we understand that liturgy is not a sinister or wrong thing.

   Many strongly object to observing Lent because, they say, it's nowhere in the Bible. To that objection I would be quick to point out that an annual celebration of Christmas is also mentioned nowhere in the Bible, but that holiday is celebrated without anyone raising an eyebrow. To be clear, I'm glad about that. As far as I can tell, there is no biblical prescription for an annual celebration of Easter. Rather, each Sunday is supposed to be a celebration of Christ's resurrection. That's why Christian worship was moved from the true Sabbath, Saturday, to the first day of the week. The first day of the week is when Jesus arose from the tomb. Nevertheless, I hardly have a problem with a special, annual celebration of Easter--I rejoice in it, and so should you. Returning to the subject of Lent, granted, there is no commandment in the New Testament to celebrate it each year. But, are there good reasons to do so nonetheless?

   I submit that the answer is yes. I feel it important to note that motivation is everything. Why do we observe Lent? Is it with the hopes that, from performing "extra credit" religious rituals, we might gain extra favor from God? I fear that far too many people think this way. They treat God as a gum ball machine, and ritual as the coin. Insert religious ritual, turn crank, and out pops good fortune in life. My friend, God is not a divine dispenser of handouts, whom you may manipulate. He is a loving Heavenly Father, who wants to be present in, and to transform, every single area of your life. He wants you to share everything with Him, and He wants to share everything with you.

   The only detail is that you must let Him in. That takes time. And tragically, time is a commodity so precious to us that we begrudge sharing it with Him. Why are we so miserly of the time we are willing to share with God? We're just so BUSY all the time. The alarming thing is that we never stop to consider that all this busy-ness may be a tactic of Satan himself.

   In his book, Celebration of Discipline, Richard Foster says the following:

In contemporary society our Adversary majors in three things: noise, hurry, and crowds. If he can keep us engaged in 'muchness' and 'manyness,' he will rest satisfied. Psychiatrist Carl Jung once remarked, 'Hurry is not of the Devil; it is the Devil.' (p. 15)

   If you are too hurried, too busy, to invite God into all the moments and places of your daily living, then you are too busy, by far. But why does busy-ness have such a hold on us--why do we all feel bound by it? Perhaps part of the answer is something we dare not admit to ourselves. Perhaps it's because we are all too aware of what may happen if we take the time to walk with Jesus, and to share with Him all our goings and comings and doings and thoughts. Perhaps we KNOW what He will do if we open these things to Him--He might start changing things! And just perhaps, we're not sure we want Him to!

   Later in the book I just mentioned, Foster says this:

Human beings seem to have a perpetual tendency to have somebody else talk to God for them. We are content to have the message second-hand...In this way we do not need to go to God ourselves. Such an approach saves us from the need to change, for to be in the presence of God is to change. (p. 24)

Our fear of being alone drives us to noise and crowds. We keep up a constant stream of words even if they are inane. We buy radios that strap to our wrists or fit over our ears so that if no once else is around, at least we are not condemned to silence. (p. 98)

   Why are we so scared of being alone...being quiet...taking time to think? Perhaps (though we'd never admit it to ourselves), we fear what God may say to us, and do within us. If we hold Him at arm's length, we can keep the relationship nice and cordial. God may be less likely, that way, to ask anything of us that we would be uncomfortable doing. When we insist on keeping God at arm's length, relating to Him only through what we hear a preacher say on Sunday, however, that's not enough. We still aren't allowing God to share our lives and innermost thoughts. And that leads to temptation and sin.

   That leads me to another reason we are afraid to take time, alone, with the Lord. I hate vehicle inspection time, don't you? I watch the date on that sticker, and as it gets nearer, my dread grows. I just know that when the mechanic takes a look at my car, he will find something wrong. It's not that seeing the mechanic makes the car develop a problem--the problem is already there. But when the mechanic looks, he will see the problem. I hate that. That means money from my pocket, which I can't easily spare.

   I feel that is another part of the answer as to why we allow our busy-ness to have such a hold on our lives. Being obsessively busy keeps us from time alone, with God, in silence. And, if we don't allow God enough time to see into our hearts and lives, the very real problems we have will remain undiscovered, right? God won't see them? Well, that's foolish thinking, and that's where the whole analogy falls apart. God is not like a mechanic, who won't discover the problem if we don't let Him take a peek under the hood. Psalm 139 breaks the news to us in powerful and beautiful language. Consider the first six verses:

"You have searched me, and you know me. You know when I sit and when I rise; you perceive my thoughts from afar. You discern my going out and my lying down; you are familiar with all my ways. Before a word is on my tongue, you, Lord, know it completely. You hem me in behind and before, and you lay your hand upon me. Such knowledge is too wonderful for me, too lofty for me to attain." (NIV)

   Christians have always held that God sees and knows absolutely everything. We learned this in Sunday School when we were very young. Still, we mortal humans have a difficult time processing that truth in real life. The reality we experience is that our private thoughts and deeds will remain that way unless we choose to reveal them. Despite the fact that we say we believe in the infinite and extensive knowledge of God, we instinctively fall back on the assumption that if we keep certain doors closed to God, He will never find out about the extent of our sinful tendencies.

   We really do need to get the truth to sink into our mortal skulls: there is no use trying to hide anything about ourselves from God. He already knows it—all of it--even better than we know it ourselves. To really blow our minds, He knew all of it before we were even born! Since He already knows it, we may as well be honest with Him, and ourselves, about it. That is because, once we open up to God about our profound brokenness, the way is opened for God to begin cleansing and purifying us. In the Bible, God makes clear His earnest desire to work with us so that we can be conformed to the character of Jesus and bring Him glory.

“'Come now, let us settle the matter,' says the Lord. 'Though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they are red as crimson, they shall be like wool.'" -- Isaiah 1:18 (NIV)

"If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness." -- 1 John 1:8-9 (NIV)

   The type of transformation that can set us free and bring us to a life of true purpose awaits only our being totally open with God, and trusting His loving hand to purge all that stands in the way. King David was eager that the Heavenly Father would undertake this complete renovation of his life. This is why he made the following invitation in Psalm 139:23-24...

"Search me, God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts. See if there is any offensive way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting." (NIV)

   Just as the forty days of Christ's fasting in the desert marked His complete dedication to the Father's will in His life, the forty days of Lent give us the opportunity to symbolically join Him in a journey that strips away the false directions and securities that keep us from knowing the good He has in store for us. Lent is a long look within--one which helps us to consecrate ourselves to the higher and better purposes for which the Father has destined us.