Finishing Well

Posted on December 8, 2011 by jesustrek
Patrick J. Sullivan Jr.

Patrick Sullivan Jr. was once named the nation’s sheriff of the year. Now, the former Colorado lawman has been charged with drug and prostitution offenses. Sullivan, 68, was being held on $500,000 bond in a jail in the Denver area. Ironically, the jail was named after him. It’s called the Patrick J. Sullivan Jr. Detention Facility.

That’s quite a fall from grace! Imagine how humbling it must feel to be incarcerated in a facility that is named after you.

The Bible consistently urges us to finish well. The rewards that Jesus promises to the churches in Revelation 2 and 3 are only to those who persevere. Paul warns that some have fallen away from grace (Galatians 5:4). There is a lengthy discussion in Ezekiel 33 about how a person’s former righteousness will not help him if he turns to a life of sin.

The last chapter has not yet been written in the life of Patrick Sullivan Jr. If he so chooses, he can turn his life around. It is still possible for him to finish well.

The same is true for you and me.

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When “Rights” are Wrong

Posted on December 7, 2011 by jesustrek

Today’s news brought a stark reminder that it does indeed matter how we vote. The Obama administration declared that the U.S. will use foreign aid to promote homosexual rights in other countries.

Really!? We have so much money to throw around that we can afford to use some of it to promote the homosexual lifestyle? That’s funny. I thought we were in a recession. I was under the impression that we needed to tighten our collective belt and spend our money more wisely.

It’s no wonder that liberals don’t understand why most Americans wish the government controlled less of their money rather than more of it. With policies like these, it’s time for God-fearing citizens to take a stand. Actually, I think the time to take a stand arrived long ago.

The book of Revelation warns believers not to become entangled in the lifestyle of those who have rejected God. We are not to join in the madness of those who delight in evil; we are to stand against it.

Remember that the next time you go to the polls.

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The Hunter

Posted on December 6, 2011 by jesustrek

I have never seen the following story in print. I heard Tommy Oaks tell it several years ago. It goes something like this.

My Uncle Charlie was one of the best hunters in these parts. Everybody knew it, even Uncle Charlie. He was just a little bit cocky about his hunting ability. He used to tell everybody that he only took 3 bullets with him whenever he went into the woods. Anything more than that was just extra weight to carry around. That’s what he used to say.

I used to beg Uncle Charlie to take me hunting with him. Finally, the Thanksgiving that I was 12, he let me go. He even let me carry the gun. I just knew that we were going to come back with all kinds of meat for our Thanksgiving dinner.

We walked and we walked, and suddenly, Uncle Charlie stopped me and pointed to a deer. He said, “You’ve got a good angle on it. Go ahead and shoot it.”

Taking aim, I got so nervous I couldn’t hold the gun steady. I pulled the trigger, but I reckon I missed the deer by at least 10 feet, and he scampered away.

When I turned to look at Uncle Charlie, he was holding up 2 fingers. I knew what that meant. We only had 2 bullets left.

We walked deeper into the woods, until Uncle Charlie stopped me again. He pointed out another deer, and told me to take my best shot. Again, I got so nervous that the gun shook up and down in my hands. I must have missed that deer by 20 feet, and he got away too.

Handing the gun to Uncle Charlie, I slinked along behind him, feeling like a total failure. We only had one bullet left, and I was afraid that we wouldn’t have any wild game at all on our Thanksgiving table.

We walked further into the woods and then, suddenly, Uncle Charlie stopped at the edge of a clearing. He had obviously spotted something. Peering around him to the left, I saw a huge buck deer that had not yet seen us. Looking around him to the right, I saw an angry bear that had seen us!

What would Uncle Charlie do with the one remaining bullet? Would he shoot the deer for the meat, or would he shoot the bear to protect us?

It turned out that he didn’t shoot either one of them. Instead, he took out his hunting knife and threw it with all of his might. But he didn’t throw it at the deer. He didn’t throw it at the bear either. He stuck the knife in a tree about halfway between the deer and the bear.

Then he raised his gun to shoot. But he didn’t shoot the deer. He didn’t shoot the bear either. Uncle Charlie shot the blade of the hunting knife! Half of the bullet went to the left and killed the deer! The other half went to the right and killed the bear!

And that’s not all! The force of the bullet caused the knife to spin up into the air, where it killed and dressed two turkeys that were roosting in the tree and 6 ducks that happened to be flying overhead. When it came back to the earth, the knife landed in a stream, where it killed and filleted 6 huge catfish and 4 nice bass.

It turned out to be the best Thanksgiving we ever had!

“We did not follow cleverly invented stories when we told you about the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but we were eyewitnesses of his majesty.”—2 Peter 1:16.

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Another Mile

Posted on December 5, 2011 by jesustrek

“If someone forces you to go one mile, go with him two miles.”—Matthew 5:41.

Jesus was referring here to the practice of Jewish people being forced to carry a Roman soldier’s equipment for him. The people hated to have to do that for the despised Romans. So when Jesus says to go an extra mile, he was talking about a radical lifestyle of doing more than is expected of you.

Several years ago, I got a phone call from an unhappy neighbor. It seems that someone had cut down a tree on my property, and the tree smashed the barbed wire fence that separated his property from mine. The man wanted to know what I planned to do about it. I assured him that I would do something to make it right.

After I hung up the phone, I went to the farm supply store and bought a roll of barbed wire. Then I drove to my neighbor’s house and gave him the wire, which was far more than was needed to do the repairs. I also told him that I would help him fix the fence whenever it was convenient for him.

My neighbor wasn’t mad anymore. I had listened to him and acknowledged that he had a legitimate problem. I responded to his concern in a way that far exceeded his expectations. It has a wonderful effect on people when you go that extra mile like Jesus says we should.

Can you recall a time when you went a second mile for someone? How did that person respond? How did it make you feel?

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Leading Toward Church Growth

Posted on December 1, 2011 by jesustrek

A few years ago, I attended a seminar on church growth. The leader of the seminar was the new preacher at a large, but declining church. He had been called to lead the congregation out of this period of stagnation and into a new era of growth.

The preacher said that he had studied the history of the church. It had once been a vibrant congregation that was blessed with visionary leaders who made bold decisions. Their cutting-edge initiatives were well-received by the congregation, and the church enjoyed a time of numerical growth. They were making a huge difference in their community and earned a reputation as a church that other congregations could learn from. They maintained this momentum for several decades.

Then, for some unknown reason, the church became timid. They copied other churches and made the mistake of adopting a set of legalistic rules and regulations that served to handcuff the leadership. Rather than allowing the elders to make the most important decisions, the congregation began to vote on important matters. (Show me where that ever happened in the Bible!) Non-leaders were given the task of making leadership decisions, and you can imagine how that turned out. Those who were gifted with leadership abilities became tentative, and were reluctant to try to truly lead. The church not only stagnated, it headed into a downward spiral that continued for years. Attendance dropped by about 40%. The congregation was no longer a model for other churches to follow.

Romans 12:6-8 says, “We have different gifts, according to the grace given us. If a man’s gift is…leadership, let him govern diligently…”

This is good biblical advice for everyone, both leaders and non-leaders. Let the leaders lead! Many churches are paying a huge price for ignoring this part of God’s word.

Oh, and the preacher who was called to help the stagnant church? He presented the congregation with the same findings that he shared with us at the seminar. He wasn’t their preacher very much longer after that. What a shame!

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Until Proven Guilty

Posted on November 30, 2011 by jesustrek
Suh

Ndamukong Suh, the 307-pound star defensive lineman of the Detroit Lions, has been suspended by the NFL for two games for unsportsmanlike conduct. In a game last Thursday, Suh pounded the head of an opponent into the turf a couple of times, then stomped on the player. The video of this outrageous infraction has been replayed countless times since it occurred. Many Americans have seen the replay of this incident, and are appalled at Suh’s behavior.

Suh’s immediate response was quite defensive. He denied doing anything wrong, even though the proof was there for all to see. He finally admitted some wrong-doing on his part, but plans to appeal the two-game suspension.

It’s easy to become outraged at people like Suh,  who commit such atrocious acts and then deny any wrong-doing. But it’s much more difficult to accept responsibility for our own sins. I can remember being a boy named “Suh” a time or two myself. Tell the truth—haven’t you ever denied responsibility for doing something wrong, even when it was obvious that you were guilty?

1 John 1:8-9 says, “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.”

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Peace and Quiet

Posted on November 29, 2011 by jesustrek

Several years ago some friends and I went on a whitewater rafting trip in West Virginia. As we turned off the main highway, I looked forward to a peaceful evening of camping out in the wilderness.

An employee of the campground directed us to the site where we would pitch our tents. Twisting and turning on a dirt road, we worked our way farther away from civilization. Finally, we arrived at our camp site and began to set up our tents.

It didn’t take long to realize that we could hear the traffic from the highway, and it wasn’t very far away! Our winding path had taken us right next to the main road! Instead of an evening of peace and quiet, we endured the sounds of 18-wheelers gearing down and struggling to make it up the hill. It was late in the night before I could finally drift off to sleep.

Jesus often got away from everything in order to spend time with God. Mark 1:35 says, “Very early in the morning, while it was still dark, Jesus got up, left the house and went off to a solitary place, where he prayed.”

We know that we should follow the example of Jesus and spend some quiet time alone with God. However, sometimes we get turned around, like on my camping trip, and end up right back in the noisy traffic of life.

What is it that sometimes interrupts your quiet time with God? What can you do to try to prevent these interruptions?

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Perfect Timing

Posted on November 28, 2011 by jesustrek

I recently stayed at a motel that offers free breakfast. You never know exactly what that means, since the definition of “breakfast” differs from one motel to the next. I was pleased to find a nice selection of tasty options. My favorite was the do-it-yourself waffles. I usually hesitate to take on that kind of a project myself. My wife is so much better at that kind of thing. However, she was not available to help me, so I bravely read the directions on the waffle-maker and attempted to make my own breakfast.

The timer on the waffle-maker was set for two-and-a-half minutes. By following directions to the letter, I had a perfect waffle in two minutes and thirty seconds. If I had to decide on my own how long to cook it, the waffle may have been far from perfect. I might have impatiently taken it out too early, only to find it gooey and uncooked on the inside. If I had become distracted, say by pouring my coffee, I might have ended up with a burnt waffle. By trusting the timer, everything worked out fine.

Sometimes we find ourselves questioning God’s timing. We think that we aren’t ready for the opportunity that has presented itself. Or, more often, we wonder if God has forgotten about a need or desire that we have been praying about.

We need to trust God’s timing. A friend of mine used to say, “God is seldom early, but never late.” I have found this to be true. We may not understand God’s timing until later—perhaps not until eternity—but we must believe that he will ultimately accomplish what he intends to bring about. And he will do it in his perfect timing.

 

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Songs of Thanksgiving

Posted on November 25, 2011 by jesustrek

“Every time I tried to tell you, the words just came out wrong, so I’ll have to say “I love you” in a song.”—Jim Croce.

Have you ever noticed how you can say things in a song that you could never say otherwise? Music somehow enhances our ability to express ourselves, especially when deep emotions are involved.

It’s no wonder then, that the Bible places such a heavy emphasis on music and singing. This type of worship gives us a much-needed avenue for expressing our gratitude to God for the many ways he has blessed us. Remember this if you ever find yourself hoping that the song service will end soon!

“Sing to the Lord with thanksgiving; make music to our God on the harp.”—Psalm 147:7.

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Best Word

Posted on November 24, 2011 by jesustrek
Rudyard Kipling

Rudyard Kipling became such a popular author that for every word he wrote, his publishers paid him 10 shillings. When they heard about this, some college students, as a joke, sent him 10 shillings along with a letter asking him to send them his best word. Kipling wrote back, “Thanks!”

Perhaps the best word we have to give God is “Thanks!”

“And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.”—Colossians 3:17.

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