God's Presence

Well...we're back. Fresh off a 10-day tour of Israel. I have to admit...I love the Holy Land. When I was a student there back in 1972, I fell in love with the country and have enjoyed returning on several occasions. This most recent trip was especially meaningful because my son and daughter were with me. Although Queenie wasn't able to go, the three of us soaked up the experience, learning, laughing and looking to the future to see what other possibilities God might have to teach us and mold us into more solid disciples of Christ.

You know, unquestionably, God can use every experience we have in life to nurture us. It wasn't being in Israel that made the difference for our group...it was being in the presence of God and tapping that presence in such a way that His Spirit dominated our pilgrimage. We made a conscious effort to drink in His wisdom, look for His fingerprints, acknowledge His handiwork, walk in His footsteps, breathe in His holiness and fill our hearts with His essence. It is no wonder that the people in our group were melded together as one. Where there is a mutual pursuit of Christ and a desire to know Him at deeper levels, unity and love blossom.

We are thrilled not about traveling to Israel...but about knowing God.

"This is what the LORD says: "Let not the wise man boast of his wisdom or the strong man boast of his strength or the rich man boast of his riches, but let him who boasts boast about this: that he understands and knows me, that I am the LORD, who exercises kindness, justice and righteousness on earth, for in these I delight," declares the LORD." Jeremiah 9:23-24

Priceless

Please read..."PITTSBURGH (AP) - A mural in a Pittsburgh subway station has been appraised at $15 million. The Port Authority of Allegheny County must now decide what to do with the Romare Bearden mural installed in 1984. Officials say insuring it could cost the financially strapped agency more than $100,000 annually. Bearden was paid $90,000 for the mural. The 60-foot-by-13-foot mural was appraised as the agency plans to remove it during construction to extend the subway to the city's North Shore."

Amazing, isn't it? Down in the trenches of public transit lies a multi-million dollar work of art. The City of Pittsburgh paid what it considered a small sum to add color and art to the not-so-attractive underground of subway travel. Who would have guessed that its value would soar into the millions?

I wonder if we ever give much thought to our value. We are priceless...we are handmade by God himself. We are creations of our heavenly Father and, from day one, we were meant to be eternal. As our life unfolds, we are drug through enough mud and we hit enough walls and we are knocked down by enough opposition that we often begin to question our worth. Our esteem takes a beating...our failures mount up...our vision is sometimes blurred and our self-appraisals can be tainted at best.

Please remember...you are priceless. You belong to God and He became like you in order to redeem you. We are told..."You were bought at a price; do not become slaves of men. Brothers, each man, as responsible to God, should remain in the situation God called him to." I Corinthians 7:23, 24 There is no amount of trauma...never enough power in the assaults of Satan...never a stain so deep as to lessen your value before God. He loves you...hands down.

If you are hurting today, let the grace and love of Christ wash over you. Find solace and refuge in His presence. If there is sin in your life...confess it and allow the Lord to bring cleansing, forgiveness and peace. And...though it goes much deeper than a hair commercial...we can honestly say...you're worth it.

"But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light. Once you were not a people, but now you are the people of God; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy." I Peter 2:9, 10

Apologies

So...what really constitutes an apology? It seems in today's culture, we like to keep up appearances. Although we have essentially thrown out morality, as well as the ability to discern right from wrong, let alone good from best, we still like to express outrage over a variety of issues. People often complain of being "offended" by something that was said and demand an apology. As a result, we regularly hear TV, sports, political and entertainment personalities trying to make amends and get back in the public's good graces.

Now...let's face facts...some pretty offensive remarks have been made and, like it or not, will continue to be made. Some comments are outright insulting and demeaning. Others...well...they just lack good taste or common sense. But then, after making these kinds of sawed-off-shotgun remarks, it is not uncommon to hear the offender make an apology phrased like this: "If I have offended anyone by the comments I've made...I'm sorry...my bad." And here I offer a long pause...

What kind of an apology is that?! In essence, those words say..."I did no wrong and if you were taken aback by my comments then you obviously have issues. But...in order to preserve some level of proper appearance in our society at large, I'm saying I'm sorry. I'm not really sorry for what I said...but sorry you were so sensitive as to be bothered by it." Sheesh. Such apologies rank right up there with screen doors on submarines. They're full of holes.

An apology is supposed to be an expression of genuine regret. Admittedly...we sometimes apologize to restore a relationship with people who are overly sensitive. However, we should be sorry that others are hurt by what we say and do, even when they may be overreacting. A genuine apology not only expresses our remorse over doing something that resulted in pain for someone else...a genuine apology says that others matter. And, in cases where our actions or words have been blatantly damaging, an apology is the first door we open to begin a journey of reconciliation.

As we continue down the road, we will make mistakes and we will have ample opportunities to say "I'm sorry." Let's fill those words with sincerity and love. Let's allow the character of Christ to shine in our apologies.

"...yet now I am happy, not because you were made sorry, but because your sorrow led you to repentance." II Corinthians 7:9

Oprah's New Religion

Recently Oprah launched a new online class with best-selling author Eckhart Tolle. The class deals with Tolle's book, "A New Earth." On the surface it seems fairly benign...but the focus is very much counter to the claims of Christ and the church. What is frightening is the mass appeal it's received. The first class had over 300,000 participants. By the third week of the class, more than 2 million people were registered. That is influence.

Sadly, this particular influence draws people away from Christ and leads them to believe in a shallow, self-centered system predicated on emotions, not faith in Christ or a "belief" system of any kind. It centers around what you "feel" as the center of your being. It may sound like I'm over-reacting...but watch the following link.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JW4LLwkgmqA&feature=related

If that doesn't stir you up...you need to dig deeper. We must realize that Satan does not play games and he uses people to lead others astray. Anything that is antichrist (I know...strong word) is not to be trifled with. And...anything that denies the deity of Christ...or states that Christ is not the only way...or puts anyone before Christ is antichrist.

Tolle quotes from the Bible and presents enough "truth" to make him sound credible. That is a common practice among cults and false religious sects. He makes no bones about the fact that his book is meant to address a spiritual awakening. But without Christ being central and the driving force...whatever anyone, including Tolle, has to offer is empty.

Lots of people are running after this class. But remember: The number of people pursuing a spiritual belief system (even when they tell you it has nothing to do with "believing") does not validate it as truth.

Be careful...don't throw your heart or your mind over to those who tread on sacred soil and treat the King of Kings like another one of the boys. Pious talk and ethereal platitudes won't cleanse sin, won't transform lives and won't alter eternal destinies. Only Christ can do that. Listen to Him...surrender to Him...walk with Him.

"But there were also false prophets among the people, just as there will be false teachers among you. They will secretly introduce destructive heresies, even denying the sovereign Lord who bought them-bringing swift destruction on themselves. Many will follow their shameful ways and will bring the way of truth into disrepute. In their greed these teachers will exploit you with stories they have made up. Their condemnation has long been hanging over them, and their destruction has not been sleeping." II Peter 2:1-3

Disaster Lurks

There are two recent news stories that knocked me against the wall. The first has to do with a group of third graders that conspired to do bodily harm to their teacher. The second reveals issues of intolerance toward Christianity.

Waycross, Ga. -- A group of third graders plotted to attack their teacher, bringing a broken steak knife, handcuffs, duct tape and other items for the job and assigning children tasks, including covering the windows and cleaning up afterward, police said Tuesday. The plot by as many as nine boys and girls at Center Elementary School in south Georgia was a serious threat, Waycross Police Chief Tony Tanner said Tuesday. "We did not hear anybody say they intended to kill her, but could they have accidentally killed her? Absolutely," Tanner said. "We feel like if they weren't interrupted, there would have been an attempt. Would they have been successful? We don't know." The children, ages 8 and 9, were apparently mad at the teacher because she had scolded one of them for standing on a chair, Tanner said.

MADISON, Wis. — A Tomah High School student has filed a federal lawsuit alleging his art teacher censored his drawing because it featured a cross and a biblical reference. The lawsuit alleges other students were allowed to draw "demonic" images and asks a judge to declare a class policy prohibiting religion in art unconstitutional. According to the lawsuit, the student's art teacher asked his class in February to draw landscapes. The student, a senior identified in the lawsuit by the initials A.P., added a cross and the words "John 3:16 A sign of love" in his drawing.His teacher, Julie Millin, asked him to remove the reference to the Bible, saying students were making remarks about it. He refused, and she gave him a zero on the project. Millin showed the student a policy for the class that prohibited any violence, blood, sexual connotations or religious beliefs in artwork.

The lawsuit also alleges school officials allow other religious items and artwork to be displayed on campus. A Buddha and Hindu figurines are on display in a social studies classroom, the lawsuit claims, adding the teacher passionately teaches Hindu principles to students. In addition, a replica of Michaelangelo's "The Creation of Man" is displayed at the school's entrance, a picture of a six-limbed Hindu deity is in the school's hallway and a drawing of a robed sorcerer hangs on a hallway bulletin board. Drawings of Medusa, the Grim Reaper with a scythe and a being with a horned head and protruding tongue hang in the art room and demonic masks are displayed in the metals room, the lawsuit alleges.

The face of America is changing. It is. We can sit back and muse that these incidents are more the exception than the rule...but they are becoming far too commonplace. As Christ is pushed further and further away from the core of what we hold near and dear and as tolerance continues to be the badge of honor for those who are considered intellectually astute, godless paganism will ultimately be the norm in our communities. I know...I sound like some wild-eyed nutcase who exaggerates and makes mountains out of mole hills. Listen...that is not what I am doing. And...not that many more years down the road we will be horrified at the violence in our communities and the overt oppression of Christianity. I'll have more to say on this in the next few weeks.

Meanwhile...we need to ask ourselves...What place are we giving Christ in our lives? Are we apathetic to the cultural behaviors that demean Christ and all that He is? Are we sold out to Christ in a way that is making our part of the world different? Have we grown insensitive to sin and find ourselves looking past men and women who are spiritually dying around us? What do these two stories reveal to you? What actions do you need to take?

"Be self-controlled and alert. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. Resist him, standing firm in the faith, because you know that your brothers throughout the world are undergoing the same kind of sufferings." I Peter 5:8,9

Second Chances

We are on the edge of one of the most significant celebrations of the year...Easter. It is the time we remember Jesus Christ exiting the tomb, having conquered sin and death. That reality is our hope and our assurance for eternal life...as our lives are surrendered to Christ.

Easter is the day that ushered in our second chance...and who doesn't need a second chance. We were born into sin and have done an exceptional job in practicing sin. So...obviously...biblically... our futures are dim without Easter. Some say that second chances come in the form of reincarnation. I've even heard it said that reincarnation "has its roots in Christianity and Judaism." Listen...nothing could be further from the truth.

It is true that early Gnostic sects believed in reincarnation during the 1st century. The Manichaeans in the 4th and 5th century believed in it, BUT the theory was repudiated by the orthodox Christians. The Manicheans were a major rival for Christianity in the fourth century. St. Augustine was a member of this group before he changed his beliefs. When he moved into the mainstream of orthodox Biblical Christianity, he renounced such false teachings as reincarnation. Orthodox Christianity has NEVER taught or believed in reincarnation. Not ever. Nope. Didn't happen.

The bottom line to all of this is to ask "What does the Bible say?" It leaves no doubt as to the truth. Hebrews 9:27, 28 says: "Just as man is destined to die once, and after that to face judgment, so Christ was sacrificed once to take away the sins of many people; and he will appear a second time, not to bear sin, but to bring salvation to those who are waiting for him."

Again, I think I can understand the rationale behind reincarnation. After all, aren't we all looking for a second chance? Of course! I doubt if there is a one of us who wouldn't like "do overs" of some part of our lives. But...that's the message of Christ. He came to give us a second chance. We don't need to die and come back as a cow or some other person. Rather, we need to die to the sinful practices of our lives and be "born again" here on earth. We are new creations because of the forgiving grace of God.

The good news is that God offers us a second chance...and in many cases...let's face it, it's a third, fourth, fifth, and beyond chance. What are we doing with our second chance? Are we seeking to be spiritually reproductive? Are we seeking to know Christ at a deeper level? Jesus gave us a command as to what to do with the new life He gives us. We find it in Matthew 28:18-20. He said:

“‘All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.’”

Together, let's make our lives count for Christ.

Uncommon Courtesy

The implausible actions of humanity continue. Read on.

"LAKE VILLA, Ill. (March 4) - When Robert Kadera's teenage son was running late for a tennis date near their northern Illinois home, Kadera came up with a novel way to avoid 45 minutes' worth of traffic - fly. There was just one problem - he had to land, without permission, at a golf course. Now the Federal Aviation Administration is investigating, and local authorities are considering charges. Kaders said he thought flying his son would be "a convenient way to get him down there and get him to his tennis on time." "We're all pretty dumbfounded," said Lincolnshire Police Chief Randy Melvin. "I don't have any idea what the guy was thinking. He was going to park his plane across the street like nobody would notice."

What was this guy thinking?! I can't begin to imagine the potential hazards of bringing a plane down on a golf course. He'd have to avoid power lines, trees, golfers...not to mention that a plane landing on a golf course is certain to create damage to the turf. Getting his son to the tennis match was obviously pretty compelling.

I have to ask myself...why were they going to be late? Had they dilly dallied around until being on time was an impossibility except for an aeronautic miracle? Did one irresponsible action lead to another? How does a person justify landing a plane on private property when there wasn't an emergency? Robert's son may have made it on time for the tennis match...but the net result wasn't pretty.

What has happened to common courtesy? You know...where consideration is given to others. To be courteous means more than saying 'thank you' and 'please.' It means we don't trample on others' property, their emotions, their dreams or their character. We don't disrespect their time or their opinions or their lives. Because Christ lives in us...His residency...His presence alters how we respond to those around us...and how we treat people in general. It seems that, often, common courtesy disappears when our selfish desires become more dominant. Courtesy is about putting others first...thinking of how others will be affected by my actions....considering how those around me will be influenced (positively or negatively) by what I do or fail to do. Perhaps common courtesy has become uncommon.

Let me encourage you to allow the grace of Christ to become the fuel of your uncommon courtesy. Let His character coat your actions and reactions. Let His kindness drip from the influences you leave behind. Let His responses to people become the model for your responses to life's circumstances and the people who come across your path.

Uncommon courtesy. It's nice to think about...exceptional to experience...and gratifying to give.

"An anxious heart weighs a man down, but a kind word cheers him up." Proverbs 12:25

"Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you." Ephesians 4:32