The Light is Getting Closer

Respect for life is starting to gain some ground.  I admit that I have been one of those people that assumes that most politicians are too weak to make a stand for anything that might seem controversial, and most of them do pretty much the same stuff once they’re in office.  Of course, I would have admitted that there are exceptions.  One is developing right now.  An article in the Washington Times came out on Monday that said that 72 members of Congress have written a letter to the Government Accountability office requesting that Planned Parenthood be investigated. 

Planned Parenthood performed over 300,000 abortions last year and received over half a billion dollars in federal funding.  That in and of itself is dangerous and is the primary reason for the investigation.  The Hyde Amendment, passed in 1977, made federal funding of abortion illegal.  Since then, it is been amended so that it has three exceptions: when the life of the mother is in danger, when the pregnancy results from rape, and when the pregnancy results from incest.  The Guttmacher Institute, an organization like Planned Parenthood that pushes “reproductive rights” and is an abortion provider, reported in 2005 that less than 2% of women get abortions because of rape or incest.  They didn’t even have health concerns in the report as a reason for abortion.   

Technically speaking, Planned Parenthood receiving federal funding is not a problem legally, so long as that money does not go to funding abortions.   The question becomes, what are the chances that of the half billion dollars, not a penny is going to abortions when Planned Parenthood performed over 300,000 of them?  Texas Representative Pete Olsen said that a previous GAO report was done, but new information has surfaced.  “[it was] before we learned what many feared to be true — that Planned Parenthood has failed to properly follow correct billing practices to prevent federal tax dollars from funding abortion services, as demanded by law.” 

This is big.  Just last week, Planned Parenthood said some of their clinics in Indiana would be facing failure if a law passed that required giving an ultrasound before giving an abortion-inducing pill (read about it here: http://www.washingtonpost.com/business/indiana-senate-approves-requiring-ultrasound-before-abortion-pills-given-tougher-clinic-rules/2013/02/26/fae39b44-806e-11e2-a671-0307392de8de_story.html).  Now, in addition, they could face punishment for the misuse of federal funds. 

Perhaps the most encouraging part of this is how many Congress members joined in.  72.  It’s pretty hard to ignore a request made by 72 lawmakers.  In a time when respect for unborn life was reaching an all-time low, we are seeing an encouraging fact: the battle isn’t over yet.  According to gallup.com, in 1996 only 33% of Americans were pro-life.  In 2011, 45% of Americans were reported to be pro-life.  In addition, when you take away the pro-life and pro-choice labels, only 39% of Americans in 2011 saw abortion as morally acceptable. 

I fear many Christians have accepted it as a fact that the battle is over and abortion is accepted by everyone in our society.  That’s not true.  Not yet.  As a matter of fact, things are looking better now than they were fifteen years ago.  We’re gaining some ground, so let’s take advantage of that and keep pushing forward.  Keep praying, keep talking, and keep taking the issue head-on.  With God’s help, we have nowhere to go but forward.

Whips, Wild Animals, and Green Thugs

I was reading in Mere Christianity by C.S. Lewis today, when I read something that got me thinking: “Strictly speaking, there are no such things as good and bad impulses.  Think once again of a piano.  It has not got two kinds of notes on it, the ‘right ones’ and the ‘wrong ones.’  Every single note is right at one time and wrong at another.  The Moral Law is not any one instinct or set of instincts: it is something which makes a kind of tune (the tune we call goodness or right conduct) by directing the instincts.” 

This connects well with something I once heard from someone much wiser than I: all sin is a perversion of something created by God for good.  Sexual sin is a perversion of sex, which created for the marriage relationship, which He calls “good.”  Sins of the tongue such as lying, slander, and filthy speech are perversions of speech, which God gave us so we could worship Him and build each other up.  Satan is not very creative.  That fact relates just as much to emotion and impulse as it does to speech and sex, which brings me to the point of this article: anger.

Anger is an interesting thing.  When you become angry, your body temperature rises, you clench your fists, and find it necessary to breathe heavier than  normal.  Anger can lead you to believe you have suddenly become The Hulk, or to become convinced that your sweet little sister is actually Satan incarnate.  Now, reread the last sentence.  Anger sounds like a pretty bad thing, right?  However, like all emotions, anger was given to us for a reason.

Jesus is very patient.  Most of us would become furious realizing that one of our closest friends had betrayed us or being crucified for a crime that we didn’t commit.  Not Jesus.  He did, however, become angry.  Twice in His life here on Earth, in John 2 and in Matthew 21, he drives vendors out of the temple, overturning tables, driving out the animals, and even making an impromptu whip for a little extra “encouragement.”  I’ve done some things out of anger, but I’ve never made a whip on the spot.  So why then?  Why did Jesus become angry then but not the other times?  The answer is very humbling.  Let’s compare this event to the betrayal of Judas.  Why was Jesus angry about the misuse of the temple, but not about the betrayal of Judas?  The answer is in who the focus is on.  Jesus was angry about the misuse of the temple because it showed blatant disregard for God.  The betrayal of Judas was against Jesus, not God.  In other words, He became angry over disregard for God, not when His rights were violated.

We often have the wrong focus when it comes to anger.  We think “I have a right to be angry because my rights have been violated, so I am going to take every step legally permissible in order to right the wrong.”  Anger is not inherently wrong.  It should be used when we see people blatantly disregarding our Father.  Otherwise, we have become self-focused and selfish.  Let’s take a step back and see who it is we really care about pleasing: God or us?

Sleeping Soundly in a Den of Demons

Of all the men in the Bible, save Jesus himself, I have often aspired to be like David.  Unlike other men, even in his own generation, David sought God with all of his heart, and displayed a level dedication unmatched by many others. I want to be like that.  As a result, I’ve been reading the Psalms a lot lately, and something in Psalm 3 really made an impression on me.

In Psalm 3, David is being pursued by Absalom’s forces.  His rebellious son forced him out of Jerusalem and he, the rightful King, was on the run.  Many of his people abandoned him.  That’s a trying time for any man, no matter how strong.  As a result, at the beginning of the psalm, he feels desperate and helpless.  Yet he comes to an impressive and encouraging resolution: “lay down and slept; I woke again, for Yahweh sustained me. I will not be afraid of many thousands of people who have set themselves against me all around.” (verses 5-6). 

How could he do that?  How could he go from desperation and despair to laying down and sleeping?  I have lost sleep over many things.  Some of them were important, some of them were not.  None of them, however, have been anywhere close to what David was feeling.  I have never had to fear for my life.  I have certainly never experienced such a heart-wrenching betrayal from a close family member.  So how could David be so relieved that he could go to sleep, and not care that his enemies had him surrounded? 

The answer is logically simple but emotionally profound.  David trusted God.  He prayed to God and He knew that God was reliable.  He knew he didn’t have anything to worry about, and you know what?  He was right.  Absalom met his end and David’s kingdom was restored to him. 

I worry about a lot of stuff.  Some of it is important, some of it is not as important.  There are times that I feel surrounded and desperate like David.  In times like that, there’s only one place to turn: to God.  Unfortunately, we often don’t turn to God first.  We turn to friends, to mentors, to self-help books, and even therapists before we turn to God.  Even if we do eventually turn to God, it is usually as an afterthought.  If anyone should be an afterthought, other people should be the afterthought, not God. 

David ends with this thought in verse 8: “Salvation belongs to Yahweh; your blessing be on your people!”  Salvation belongs to Yahweh in many senses.  Certainly in the salvation of our souls, but let’s not forget the power of our God.  This is our Father’s world, and let us not restrict His power in our minds.  Remember the power that He has and let that allow us to go to Him for salvation from our troubles.  Let that allow us to pray to Him with specific and powerful requests.  It worked for David.  We serve the same God as David.  Let’s start praying like we do.

"It is because Christians have ceased to think of the other world that they have become so ineffective." - C.S. Lewis

There is a Man Shooting at Me, but He Has a License to Carry

The future is starting to look bright for our unborn children.  In my home state of Indiana, a bill is being proposed that requires an ultrasound before and after administering a drug known as RU-486, according to an article by lifesitenews.com.  RU-486 is a contraceptive, or an abortion-inducing drug.  As state senator Travis Holdman said, “We're just trying to control and regulate abortion-inducing drugs, which heretofore have not been regulated by the state of Indiana. I don't believe we're asking for anything that's unreasonable. We're talking about the life of the mother and the child.” 

The Planned Parenthood facility in Lafayette, IN said that it may be forced to close down if the bill is passed.  Wait a second.  They will be forced to close if they have to give an ultrasound before giving an abortion inducing drug?  Does something seem wrong with this picture?  Here’s the thing: they are right.  They probably will have to close.  According to the executive director of an Iowa pregnancy resource center, 90% of women who see their baby choose to give birth.  That’s pretty significant.  Ultrasounds are the death of what Planned Parenthood stands for: the death of unborn children.

Ultrasounds are key in the battle for our children’s lives.  Pregnant teens are told that what is inside of them is nothing more than a mass of tissue; sure, it could become a baby, but it won’t if you don’t let it.  When these young, impressionable mothers see the reality on the screen: the baby’s fingers, head, and face moving, the reality becomes irrefutable.  No amount of justification, lies, or scientific jargon can refute the simple truth: it is a baby.

So what about the other 10%?  If it is so overwhelmingly obvious that it is a baby, why do the other 10% go through with it?  I can’t answer that question for them, but I can show what I believe may be the reason.  You would think that upon the realization that this is a baby, a helpless human being, that we are killing, that we would immediately stop.  Unfortunately, this isn’t the case.  Mary Elizabeth Williams, a writer who has written for the New York Times, The Nation, and other publications, wrote an article in which she said, “When we try to act like a pregnancy doesn’t involve human life, we wind up drawing stupid semantic lines in the sand.”  Sounds pretty good right?  Except it didn’t end there.  She went on to say “Here’s the complicated reality in which we live: All life is not equal...a fetus can be a human life without having the same rights as the woman in whose body it resides. She’s the boss. Her life and what is right for her circumstances and her health should automatically trump the rights of the non-autonomous entity inside of her. Always.” 

This statement left me in shock.  It made me realized a horrifying truth: while people are realizing that a fetus is indeed a human baby, some are not allowing that to change their stance on abortion.  Instead, some are saying that women have the right to kill their children (just as long they are inside of them and not outside of them). 

Here’s the good news: the legislation that Indiana is putting forth is an indicator that not everyone is going along with this trend.  Keep praying and keep talking about it, and with God’s help, we can make this generation the one that owns up to the horror that abortion truly is.

Celestial Communication

It has always amazed me how much we as human beings can take things for granted.  I remember being at my great-grandfather’s funeral nine years ago and saying that I didn’t realize how much I loved him until he was gone.  Unfortunately, I usually have to learn this lesson the hard way.  It isn’t until something’s been taken away from me that I often realize how much I underutilized it and underappreciated it.  Thankfully, I have come to one of those realizations ahead of time tonight.

At services tonight, we did something a little bit different.  We had a prayer service.  Each person praying was assigned a different topic.  The topics included praise and thanksgiving, the sick, struggles of all kinds, young Christians, the elderly, and edification.  The end result for me was very emotional.  As we as a congregation were praying to God and giving Him praise and thanking Him for all that He has done, it was nearly overwhelming.  The more I think about God’s involvement and the evidences of His presence in my life, the more I realize that I haven’t really responded with the kind of dedication as should be natural.  I’ve asked God for a lot of things in my life.  He’s given me some of those things.  I haven’t truly been grateful all of the time.  I may not have scorned His blessings, but I also haven’t recognized that I’m nobody in comparison to God.  Anything and everything that I do in the kingdom that has any positive result I only have because God has empowered me to be able to do it.  God doesn’t need me. I do need God; and for some reason, I haven’t been talking to Him that much.

Prayer has got to be one of the most underutilized privileges in the history of mankind.  Prayers have brought down kingdoms, ended droughts, saved the lives of millions, granted wisdom, given children to the barren, rescued many from temptation, and rescued many in times of peril.  Yet for some reason, I still find myself having to push myself to pray many days.  Why?  Maybe because it is humbling. 

Prayer forces me to realize that I’m nobody.  It forces me to realize that everything that I’ve ever done that has done anybody a shred of good is insignificant in comparison to what God has done for me and for the entire human race.  But guess what?  That’s good for me.  Mankind was not made to focus on themselves and what they can get for themselves.  They were made to serve God and aspire to be as much like Him and emulate His character as much as we possibly can.  The encouraging thing is that with God as our Father and our encourager, we could get a lot closer if we would just let God work with us.

The result from the prayer service tonight is very emotionally based. That might mean that it won’t stick, but I hope that isn’t true.  I’m using this to motivate me to be more dedicated to God and building a closer relationship with Him this week than I was last week; to be more dedicated tomorrow than I have been today.  I hope you will make the same your goal.

"If you read history you will find that the Christians who did most for the present world were precisely those who thought most of the next." - C.S. Lewis

A Spitting Image

Like many kids, I was given my father’s first name for my middle name.  As I have grown older and gained more and more respect for my father, I have become more and more proud to carry his name.  As a matter of fact, the last time I was at Starbucks I put my order in under my middle name, which caused my recitation instructor, who happened to be there, a small bit of confusion. 

Truth be told, I carry the name of more than one father.  I also carry the name “Christian,” identifying me as part of God’s family.  Unfortunately, I haven’t always been as proud as I should be to carry God’s name.  There have been times that I have been embarrassed to admit that I cannot do something in good conscience because of being God’s son.  There have been times that I could have told people about being God’s son, about how proud I am and how awesome my dad is.  Unfortunately, I have not always taken advantage of those opportunities. 

In Romans 1, Paul said “For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God unto salvation for all who believe, to the Jew first and also to the Greek.”  For a long time, I looked at this as applying just to evangelism in the sense of sitting someone down and teaching them a book of the Bible.  Lately, though, I have realized that it goes much further than that.  I can study the Bible with a couple of people and get everything else completely wrong.  I want to put aside the “religious terminology” for a moment.  This is what it is all about: due to God’s amazing plan and His awe-inspiring love, I don’t have to pay for my sins.  I have forgiveness, and my relationship with God has been restored.  That small bit of information right there is enough to say that I have an amazing father.  As a natural reaction, I ought to want to tell everyone about Him.

Allow me to backtrack for a moment.  Part of the reason I like having my Dad’s name is that I like being identified with him.  Another reason is that I like to think that I’m like him in some ways.  Occasionally, when talking about some serious stuff, I hear the way that I say things and it reminds me of the way that my dad says things, and I find that pretty cool.  Now here’s the bigger question: do I do things like God?  Do I act in a godly way?  Do I have a zeal for righteousness?  Do I have a selfless concern for others?  That is a challenging thought that helps me to humbly realize that no matter how much I try to justify myself and become complacent in my current position, the fact is that I still have a long way to go.  And that’s okay, because my Father is a very empowering person. 

Ephesians 3:20-21: “Now to him who is able to do far more abundantly than all that we ask or think, according to the power at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, forever and ever. Amen.”

"It is because Christians have largely cased to think of  the other world that they have become so faithful in this." - C.S. Lewis

When the Lions Become Vegetarians

Christian blogger Tom Gilson said in a post last week that he often hears people say that in future years, Christians will be ashamed about how the church opposed same-sex marriage.  That statement caught my eye, not because it is speaking out in favor of homosexuality, but because it shows that there are God-believing people who believe that homosexuality cannot be condemned, and can even be favorable, in the sight of God. 

Unfortunately, this doesn’t even begin to describe the gravity of the problem.  There was a billboard that was circulating for a while that said “Jesus affirmed a gay couple.” The minister that was originally going to pray at President Obama’s second inauguration, Louie Giglio, backed out due to some criticism he received for “anti-gay” comments he had made in some sermons about 15 years ago.  Perhaps the most upsetting part of this was the president’s inaugural committee’s statement: “[We] were not aware of Pastor Giglio’s past comments at the time of his selection.”  There was a time when it would go without saying that a minister of God’s word would be against homosexuality.  That is no longer the case.  As a matter of fact, last year the Presbyterian Church decided to allow openly gay men and lesbian women to be ministers.    In 2009, the Episcopalian Church appointed its second gay minister.  The same year, the Lutheran Church voted to allow gay clergy, so long as they are “monogamous.” 

Clearly, this is an issue.  To those who may be reading this and aren’t familiarized with homosexuality as it pertains to scripture, allow me to clear it up for you. 

Romans 1:26-28: “For this reason God gave them up to dishonorable passions. For their women exchanged natural relations for those that are contrary to nature; and the men likewise gave up natural relations with women and were consumed with passion for one another, men committing shameless acts with men and receiving in themselves the due penalty for their error. And since they did not see fit to acknowledge God, God gave them up to a debased mind to do what ought not to be done.” 

1 Corinthians 6:9: “Or do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: neither the sexually immoral, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor men who practice homosexuality.” 

1 Timothy 1:9-10: “understanding this, that the law is not laid down for the just but for the lawless and disobedient, for the ungodly and sinners, for the unholy and profane, for those who strike their fathers and mothers, for murderers, the sexually immoral, men who practice homosexuality, enslavers, liars, perjurers, and whatever else is contrary to sound doctrine.”

Also, the billboard that I mentioned earlier had a scripture reference: Matthew 8:5-13.  In Matthew 8:5-13, Jesus healed a centurion.  It has absolutely nothing to do with homosexuality.

Are you a little confused?  You should be.  After all, why would all of those people who claim to follow God be openly endorsing something that is blatantly contrary to His word?  The answer is simple.  They aren’t truly loyal to God.  There is unfortunately a heart disease that is quite prevalent, and it really is not a new disease, although the symptoms have changed somewhat.  I like to call it peculiaphobia.  It presents itself in God-believing people who know that God exists and that they should be pleasing Him, but they don’t want to be those weird religious radicals who condemn everybody.  So they find creative ways to justify joining the sinful progression of the culture.  Christians have always been called to make difficult choices; to stand out when it’s difficult.  It’s time to make a choice: will we follow the sinful culture’s sexual liberation movement?  Or will we stand with our Lord and Savior?  I’ve made my choice, it’s time for you to make yours.

Even the Blind Man Sees the Beast

A knowledgeable friend told me last summer that the Pornography makes more money in any given year that the professional sports industry.  It is a powerful and ravenous monster that devours more victims each year.  Think I’m exaggerating?  Here’s another statistic: the average age of introduction of pornography is 10 to 11 years old.  That debunks two misconceptions: first that pornography users are dirty old men, and second, that pornography is only used by those perverted enough to go looking for it.  I’ve been told that scientific research shows that viewing sexual material releases chemicals in the brain that are similar to those released when a drug user is high.  What that translates to is that it creates a similar addiction as to drugs.  When you put two and two together, that means that innocent ten and eleven year olds are quickly finding themselves addicted to internet pornography.  Contrary to popular belief, this is far from a victimless crime.  It is even drawing children into the pummeling airline cruiser, headed for disaster, reducing men and women alike to nothing more than objects to be used for pleasure and animals responding to mindless impulse.

So how did we get here?  This is quite an ugly situation, and as we learned in history class as kids, years ago it was considered shameful for a woman to show her ankles.  Radical transitions like this don’t happen overnight.  The explanation is actually far less complicated than you might think at first glance.

In 1859, Charles Darwin released his infamous book The Origin of Species.  I doubt we will ever fully grasp how radically Mr. Darwin changed the world, especially American culture.  I do not mean this as a compliment.  Regardless of the science of his theory, the gravity of its implications are severe, for it declares boldly that mankind is no more than another mammal in the animal kingdom.  We respond to impulse just like every other creature in existence.  We are animals.  Inevitably, when we accepted macroevolution, we began to act like animals. 

In the early 1900s, along came Sigmund Freud.  Even if we forget about his abundant use of cocaine (both for himself and his patients), Freud’s ideas, when looked at sincerely and honestly, necessitate the itching of the scalp.  He forgets about the innocence of children altogether, and was the father of “psychosexual development,” which basically means that people in each stage of their life (even infancy) have a fixation on some object of pleasure, which as a whole is unapologetically sexual in nature.  As if that wasn’t enough, Freud further said that the only reason we control our sexual desires is for social acceptance.  So not only are we as mankind animals, but the only reason we control ourselves is so that we won’t be ostracized. 

The third piece of the puzzle is the most disturbing.  In the mid 1900s, Alfred Kinsey came onto the scene.  Most of his “legacy” I won’t even mention simply because it would be more graphic that what is necessary to make my point.  Here’s an overview: Kinsey was a “scientist” who studied human sexuality and relied heavily upon Freud. The difference, however, is this: while Freud said that we restrain ourselves for social acceptance, Kinsey wanted to eliminate that factor.  In his perfect world, unrestrained sexuality would not have negative social connotations.  To give you just a brief idea of how extreme his immorality was, he was a married man who filmed and participated in the recording of pornography, as did his wife.  The horrifying truth is not only was he regarded as a legitimate scientist, but he founded a research institute for sex at Indiana University, which is now called the Kinsey Research Institute for Research in Sex, Gender, and Reproduction.  That leads us to today, when not only are humans seen as animals who only restrain their sexual impulses because of social consequences, but the Kensians are working to eradicate those social consequences altogether. 

As I said earlier, pornography is a ravenous and merciless monster, but it is also only one facet to the problem.  As the sexual liberation movement moves forward and gains more ground every day, morality, integrity, and human dignity shrinks at an alarming rate.  I hope I have your attention; because unless become vocal about morality and integrity, things will only get worse.  Freedom of speech is the most underutilized freedom that we have in this country.  Many believe that we are outnumbered by those calling for sexual liberation.  I’m not so convinced.  It might be that we have the numbers, but they’ve got the loudest voice.  Either way, it’s time we found out.  Speak up.  For our sakes and for our children's.

Throw Out the Blood Cakes

Any one of my friends will tell you that I’m an entertainment junkie.  I have huge stacks of movies in my room, a big bin of CDs that I haven’t found a place for yet, and an often frequented Netflix account.  However, there is a trend within the entertainment industry that worries me. 

Recently the AMC hit show “The Walking Dead” was finally moved to a TV-MA rating due to the extreme violence and gore, which is its primary attraction.  I personally have only seen the show a few times, but the things I have seen on the show include a man being stabbed in the eye with a piece of glass, a severed zombie torso resiliently crawling, and a man pulling a bone out of a zombie’s limb to use as a weapon.  What worries me even more is that nobody seems to be bothered by this.  On the contrary, people celebrate it.  On each occasion that the show strives to outdo itself, you don’t hear statements like “That was awful!” or “That’s disgusting!”  Instead, what you hear are statements like “That was awesome!” or “That’s got to be my favorite kill this season.” 

“So our culture is violent.  What’s the big deal?”  I’ll tell what the big deal is.    Fifty years ago, this kind of media was virtually if not completely nonexistent.  Let’s think about violence in reality.  Virginia Tech, Columbine, Aurora, and Sandy Hook have all happened within the last fifteen years.  Coincidence?  I don’t think so.  Don’t get me wrong, I’m not blaming those incidents on the entertainment.  The violence of the entertainment industry is one of the many symptoms, it is not the disease.  Here’s what I’m getting at: what did we think was gonna happen when we started embracing violence?  Violence is now embraced and glamourized.  The dream of being cool is no longer typified only by athletes and artists.  After all, Rambo, Jason Bourne, and Django are so much better.  Who wouldn’t want to be able to kill dozens of people in such a short time?  I believe that one reviewer got it right when he said this while reviewing the recent film “The Hunger Games”: “This is what happens when a culture embraces violence.”  Specifically in relation to the film, it means violent games that involve teenagers slaughtering each other mercilessly while being cheered on by the masses.  A little dramatic?  Maybe.  But the point is valid. 

Ultimately, the result is this: the value of human life is dropping at a shocking rate.  The glamorization of violence, the acceptance of abortion, and the fantasizing of bloodshed are making us as people next to worthless.  By this point, I hope you are seeing the gravity of this issue.  The result is two-fold: first, we need to trash some of our media.  As you’re reading this, you’re probably realizing there are some changes you need to make.  When I realized how big of a deal this was, I stopped playing first-person shooter games.  I was more wary of the movies I saw.  I deleted some songs from my music library.  I did these things because I don’t want to be part of the society that embraces violence.  Secondly, we need to speak out about this sort of thing.  By that I don’t necessarily mean you need to take part in a protest or sign a petition, although I do believe those things can be helpful.  What I do believe we need to be doing is talking with those closest to us.  We need to be talking to our friends and our family about why this is such a big deal and why we have chosen to not take part in these things anymore.  I firmly believe that our culture is not beyond saving; but if it is to be saved, it will take a lot of effort and lot of courage.  Just know this: if we see the dangers and still refuse to speak up, the blood of future generations will be on our hands. 

Finding Purpose

Sometimes the most elusive directional cues are right out in the open.  Ever since I was a kid, I’ve been fascinated by this notion of God’s will and how to follow it.  As I read my Bible I was fascinated by men like Moses.  Talk about a guy who had lost his way.  When God called him, he was a murderer who could never come back home or he would be killed.  God called him and gave him an important job: to bring God’s people back home.  Quite a contrast.  Then there’s David.  A poor shepherd boy who gets called out of the blue to be the king of Israel.  Even amongst the numerous attempts on his life and the years he was forced to live as a rogue, on the run for fear of death, he always was able to rely on God’s will for him.  Indeed, it was his focus on God’s will that would not allow him to lay a hand on the very man that was seeking his life.  I thought also of Isaiah, who was shown the throne room of Yahweh, then given the charge to speak to the people on behalf of the Lord.  These men knew what the will of God was, and they followed it strictly.  To some people this may sound restrictive, like a pair of handcuffs you never take off.  On the contrary, I see it as a blessing to be desired.  These men had direction.  Purpose.  Meaning.  I covet that. 

Sometimes it is easy to grow complacent in the current state of things.  Being an American Christian, it is easy to think that since Jesus has already sacrificed Himself, we are left to sit around, try not to sin, and wait for Him to come back and take us up with Him.  As I look at things that are happening around me, though, I realize that God isn’t dormant.  He’s doing things constantly.  He’s working through His servants with a purpose and direction that I don’t have in my life.  God’s work is far from over.  Indeed, as far as I’m concerned, the work has barely begun.  So I want to know how I can get in on this.  I love Yahweh and I want to serve Him, but how do I find my purpose?  What am I supposed to be doing? 

As I look back at all of these great servants that God gave huge tasks to, I begin to see a few common features.  The result is encouraging and disheartening at the same time.  I find that they had soft, malleable hearts, and a measure of faith that allowed them to see past all rational fears.  Some might say that they were crazy, but they could see past those fears because they weren’t in control.  It’s encouraging because those are not circumstantial virtues.  Those have nothing to do with my physical circumstances.  They are within my control.  The same is disheartening, because as I realize that, I come to the humbling conclusion that I am not yet who I should be. 

This leaves me at a crossroads: I can either continue being content with having religion as a hobby and never truly having a purpose outside of pursuing my own interests and desires, or I can decide to be part of something much bigger than myself.  I can forget about myself and get serious about serving God and finding the purpose He has for me.  The solution to a purpose-less life, my friends, is as simple as this: remove self-focus and look for God, and He will give you work to do.  It’s right in front of our eyes, all we need to do is remove the shades from our eyes.

Lost in Ambition

                                                   
                                         "You just gestured to all of me"

A very good friend of mine once told me that I'm a lot like Hiccup.  I've got the hair.  I definitely don't have the voice.  But regardless of physical characteristics, I feel like Hiccup a lot: ambitious but feeling incompetent and significantly smaller than life.  I like to think of How to Train Your Dragon as my life story and I just happen to be stuck in the beginning: Toothless is still an angry beast, Astrid is still suspicious of me, and I have no reason to think that anything I'm trying to do is going to make a difference.  I also believe that my circumstances will change.

When I think of people that felt significantly smaller than life, I think of Amos.  Amos was a prophet of God, and yet he wasn't always.  Once he was a nobody.  As a matter of fact, he always considered himself a nobody.  After the king rejects Amos' message and insists that he leave the country, Amos says "I was no prophet, nor a prophet's son, but I was a herdsman and a dresser of sycamore figs. But the LORD took me from following the flock, and the LORD said to me, 'Go, prophesy to my people Israel.'"

Hiccup wanted to train dragons.  I want to change the world through writing.  That's a pretty big task.  It's obviously unrealistic.  It's unbearably childish.  But you see, Amos and I have something in common.  I'm a kid from Orleans, Indiana: home to 2,000 residents and one lonely stoplight.  I'm a nobody.  I'm a nobody that serves Yahweh.  That makes this a whole different ballgame.

Ephesians 3:20-21: " Now to him who is able to do far more abundantly than all that we ask or think, according to the power at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, forever and ever. Amen."  God works in His servants.  That brings two things to mind: first that I'm not allowed to say "I can't."  Second, that I have a responsibility to be the kind of person that He can work with.  A friend of mine once said that there are two kinds of people in this world: those that submit to God and those to whom God says "Have it your way."  I know which one I want to be.

So am I Hiccup?  I have no idea.  But if I can spark half as much change, I will consider my life to be well spent indeed.

"It is since Christians have largely ceased to think of the other world that they have become so ineffective in this." - C.S. Lewis

Christian Warfare

Warfare is an interesting thing.  It turns kind fathers into snipers and farmers into machine gunners.  It turns kind small towns into burning piles of rubble and tears families apart with every death.  War has been glorified by movies, television, and video games; but one thing will always be true when it comes to reality: war is ugly.

Ephesians 6:12: “For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places.”  It’s time for us to wake up.  We’re in a war.  By that, I don’t mean that we’re behind a screen shooting zombies or sharing the heroics of Owen Wilson “Behind Enemy Lines,” but a real war with very real consequences.  Our comrades are dropping left and right, we have bullets piercing through us, we’re in danger of bleeding out on the battlefield, and still we insist that we aren’t doing that bad.  All the while, we seem to be afraid to use our weapons.  It’s time to wake up.

I’ve been reading a book lately called “The Game Plan” by Joe Dallas.  The book relates specifically to sexual purity, but there’s a concept in it that I think applies here.  He makes the point that when you are involved in sexual sin (or sin of any kind) you are not fulfilling your primary function.  My point is this: we haven’t been fulfilling our primary function.  Christians have gotten shy, and as we sit back in our comfort zones, passively wishing things were different, homosexuality continues to undermine Christian values, violence pervades our culture and entertainment, mindless shootings continue, and sexual sin destroys more families.  It’s time to get serious about the situation, stand up for the truth, and work for God.

I for one see the signs.  I can see the doom of our country and our world as clear as day.  Oh, the United States may continue for many more years, maybe even many more thousand years, I have no way of knowing that.  But spiritually our nation is dying fast.  Spiritually the world is dying fast.  It’s time to stop huddling in the fetal position.  It’s time to act.  I’ve decided to submit myself to God and to do what He wants me to.  So Satan, you better watch yourself.  Cause we’re on the offensive.  And we’re coming for your people.

"It is since Christians have largely ceased to think of the other world that they have become so ineffective in this." - C.S. Lewis

The Untriumphant Return

I’ve been away for far too long.  You know you are truly a writer when you go for a few weeks without really writing and you believe you are starting to lose your mind.  When I started seeing scenes in my head and felt like my characters were giving me dirty looks, I figured it was time to get the right side of my brain working again.  You see, I’ve been avoiding the issue.  Feeling sorry for myself, I guess.  And writing forces me to be honest with myself.  I’m slowly starting to realize that a large portion of my innumerable flaws are changeable.  You’d think that’d be fantastic news.  On the contrary, it’s humbling and humiliating.  Because they’re still there and the while I could’ve changed them, but I haven’t.  Yet. 

Romans 12:1-2: “I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship. Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.”  This is a difficult one.  I’ve known this passage for a long time, but only recently have I spent real time thinking about it.  I’ve not been a living sacrifice.  Oh, I’ve been alive.  With two bullet wounds and a broken leg; but that’s hardly living.  I’ve not been renewed.  A new paint job doesn’t help the engine run any better.  

A man I highly respect lately was telling me how we need to be treating our lives more like a war.  Get angry at Satan.  Hate Satan.  Recognize what he's using against us and let that upset us.  In God alone can be the victory, but we must see His enemy as our enemy.  Along with that has come the realization that I've been feeding him.  If there's one thing I've learned in the past few weeks it's that Satan is not fed on sin alone.  We tend to look at things as states of being: I'm either in sin or I'm righteous.  I'm quickly learning that God looks at things in relationship terms instead.  Satan doesn't need me to curse God to His face.  He doesn't me to kill somebody, lie, or commit fornication.  He just needs me to distance myself from God, and the rest will take care of itself.  The sad truth is that so many of us are playing church, and we may even dare to play Christianity.  I'm realizing that the result is always the same: I get burned.  You get burned.  We all get burned.  The subtlety of his attack is so devious, it's almost impressive.  It makes me realize that I don't have a clue what I'm doing.  But I know someone who does.

So I’m changing.  Slowly but surely.  It’s proving to a painful process, and I’m starting to feel awful bruised.  But I’ve seen what I could look like down the road and it’s worth it.  So here goes nothing.

"Christianity, if false, is of no importance, and if true, of infinite importance.  The only thing it cannot be is moderately important." - C.S. Lewis