What do you know about your food?

I normally don’t write about what I see in movies, but after watching “Food Inc.” at Cine Theatre in downtown Athens, GA, I have to write about this one.  As a follower of Jesus I am convicted about how relatively little thought I have given to the subject of food, particularly where it comes from and who is part of the process.  It’s not that I haven’t thought about it at all, my wife and I had started buying organic milk and vegetables in recent months.  But I had not put all the pieces together, and this movie was a big step toward seeing the bigger picture.

If you don’t know me, it is important that you know that I am a carnivore extraordinaire!  When the film said that the average American eats over 200 pounds of meat a year, I said, “YES!”.   I generally make it a point to eat meat at least once a day and rarely go without.  I love to grill!  Some of you are right with me and others of you are probably revolted at my carnivorous appetite.  But those are the facts about me…and now on with the issues at hand.

After watching “Food Inc.” I am convinced that this issue is not a preference issue, but rather it is an ethical issue.  And for those who are followers of Jesus our Christian ethics must examine this important area of life.  Why?  Because we all eat – and many of us do so multiple times a day.  And all of this eating means that many people and animals are directly affected by the choices we and businesses make.

Of course the main issue is on the people side of things.  My conclusion is that people are heavily exploited when it comes to food.  Not just a few people, but masses of people.  Migrant workers are particularly exploited by the system.  I’m left just being angry about this part of the equation.  The source of the anger is compassion.  Remember how Jesus looked out at the masses with compassion.  Before going into other elements let me just say that if you don’t have compassion for humanity then you aren’t very much like Jesus.  If you are not burdened for the people and nations of the world, then you aren’t very much like Jesus.  You need to ask him for a new heart, new eyes, and new ears, so that you may see as He sees, and be compassionate as He is!

Here are the issues:

How does my food consumption affect the lives of other humans?  Can I change my eating habits in a way that helps people?

Should there be standards for how animals are raised and killed for food?  Does the Bible have anything to say about this?

How can I make those I feed safer based on how I buy food?

What should my perspective be on laws concerning immigration, the patenting of life, farm bills, and safety as related to the food industry?

Are there certain companies I should avoid buying from or owning stock in?

What other difficult issues come into play?

I’ll do my best to give some direction or at least point us to those who have a good direction on these issues.

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Hit Me! Evangelism Linebacker

I could have used a solid hit from the “evangelism linebacker” today. I had a great opportunity, but I did not take it because I was blinded my selfishness and pride.

Tonight in our small group we had a great talk about evangelism, and I am stoked for the next opportunity the Lord gives.  Here are some highlights from our discussion:

Unless otherwise noted the Biblical text for the following points comes from Colossians 4:2-6.

1.  Pray for opportunity

2.  Go!  It may be right next door or moving a conversation to the next level or it might mean moving halfway around the world. (Matthew 28:18)

3.  Be ready to share about Jesus

4.  Be gracious in your conversation

4b.  This means to listen to what the other person has to say.

5.  Redeem the time – because I don’t know how long I will be here or anyone else for that matter – we need to proactively seek opportunity to speak for and about Jesus.

Colossians 4:2-6, “Devote yourselves to prayer, being watchful and thankful. ³And pray for us, too, that God may open a door for our message, so that we may proclaim the mystery of Christ, for which I am in chains. ⁴Pray that I may proclaim it clearly, as I should. ⁵Be wise in the way you act toward outsiders; make the most of every opportunity. ⁶Let your conversation be always full of grace, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how to answer everyone” (NIV).

 

Category 4: Pro-active Men

Part 4 of Contentious Wife Equals Terrible Life

A pro-active man, makes sure that his wife has proper spiritual food on a very consistent basis.  You see this guy isn’t just cowering and ducking around and trying to avoid what hits the fan.  No, he confidently stands on the strong foundation of the Word of God and his eyes are fixed on His Savior Jesus.  The key thing that he knows is that if he is to have any hope of doing right by his wife, then Jesus has to have priority over her.  Is that true in your life?  Can you honestly say, “Jesus has priority over ____” (insert wife’s name here).  If you are not willing to go there – well then you go into the category of no one can do much for you until you repent and turn to Jesus.  (Please don’t try being proactive without having Jesus as your priority – because you will mess it up and give the rest of us a bad name.)

Okay, now that we have the key element known and solid, here is a list of the proactive things these guys are going to do:

1.  He loves his wife as Christ loves the church. Basically this means that he is sacrificial and works hard to take care of his wife.  It does not mean that he just says yes to whatever – though Jesus is sacrificial for His church (to death) does not mean that he just says, “yeah sure whatever you want” in His relationship with her.  No Jesus’ goal for His church is for us to be pure and whole.  We should have this same desire for our wives – that they would in every way reflect the character of Jesus Himself.  In short, a godly wife is a lot like Jesus…loving, tender, compassionate, truthful, bold and sacrificial.  Let me tell you that it’s great to be married to a woman who’s life doesn’t revolve around herself or just the things in her immediate world!

2.  He is watching and observing to see that his wife is eating good spiritual food on a consistent basis. He refuses to sit back and watch her starve herself.   Along these lines he does the following:

• asks what she is reading in the Bible and praying about

He knows that his wife needs to eat daily of the Word of God and to spend time with her God and Savior.  He knows that if her fellowship with God is on point then the time they share together will be more fruitful and less contentious.  When my wife is regularly reading her Bible and praying then we are having some good times.  If either of us are slack, then we are headed for trouble.

• is faithful to take her and be with her at the primary meetings of the church (Heb. 10:24-25)

Men, please listen to this one.  Your wives are generally more sensitive to the Holy Spirit and Word of God than we men are.  So there are opportunities each week for your wife to be challenged and encouraged in her walk with the Lord.  Especially if you are working to get rid of your pansiness then you can at least stand up and make the right sort of priorities so she doesn’t miss the meetings….of course this means you will need to be there too.  If one of you has to travel frequently on business then you need to arrange things to make sure you are both still getting good inputs.
I can guarantee that if you are both faithful in regular attendance (as in 6 out of 8 meetings of the church a month Sunday/mid-week…75% (this level of attendance would get you fired from your job in a hurry) at a Bible teaching and practicing church and are at all open to the work of the Lord in your hearts, then you will grow in your walk with Jesus.  If you think that you can step away from Christian fellowship and teaching for weeks or months at a time and continue to grow then you are absolutely kidding yourself.  You will stagnate and then digress…it is just a fact jack…and no you are not the super spiritual exception that doesn’t have to follow the clear principle of you get out what you put in.  (Note: there are dozens of other reasons you should be meeting for worship, Bible study and prayer – but I’ll keep this post to IT WILL HELP YOUR MARRIAGE!)

• encourages her to have friendships with godly women.

Now when I say this I don’t just mean friendship with women who are “christians” and “go to church”.  How do you know your wife is spending time and being influenced by the right women?  The proof is in the results.  After spending time with “x” woman(en) is your wife more prone to gossip or pray, spend or give, watch some junk show on TV or read her Bible?  I’m not saying that all of the women in your wife’s life have to be off the charts godly women – hopefully your wife has women who don’t know Jesus in her life that she is witnessing to.  What I am saying is to encourage your wife to examine the type of influences in her life from other women and to make sure she is getting a heavy dose of the healthy influence.  Even as adults our choice of friendships have a great affect on us.  So gentleman, you also need to examine this in your own life.  How about make a list of the 5 friends you hang out with the most and then make an honest evaluation of their influence on your walk with the Lord.  You might find that exercise to reveal that you need some new friends or you need to reorder the time so that you don’t sabotage your own life.

Bottom Line: If our homes, churches, and communities are to have any hope of being all that they can be for God’s glory, it will be because men who have been redeemed by the blood of Jesus are standing up and answering the high call of our God and Savior.  It will be because we refuse to be lukewarm, pathetic boys and grow up by the Holy Spirit to be passionate men for our King Jesus!

 

Category 3: Brutes

Part 3 of Contentious Wife Equals Terrible Life

Brutes

As I was writing about brutes it became obvious that they are also just category one losers.  But it wouldn’t be good to go forward with the real men without talking about these punks for a few minutes.

Brutes is a rather large category which ranges from aggressive punks to strong arm manipulators.  These guys work really hard on their image.  They are obsessed with controlling what other people think about them.  Whether in athletics or work they can’t stand the thought of not being viewed as highly successful.  It is more about perception than reality and their perception varies by degree but is generally not close to an accurate assessment of reality.

Here are a few examples of what is typical in the brute category.

Aggressive punks – these guys really need help, they over compensate for who they are by using verbal and/or physical abuse.  They belittle their wives and others they interact with in order to obtain the “dominate” role in the relationship.  I hope we can all agree that any male that hurts women or children is not a real man.  As a society we give these punks way too much room to wreck havoc.  They need Jesus because they have no clue as to what a real man is.  It is the job of real men to protect.  We need to give place to Jesus to exact vengeance which He surely will do upon His return, and in this time of grace give the message of hope and warning to all.

Manipulators – these guys use whatever means at their disposal and if they have money they love to use it to gain control.  These are the guys who will buy your lunch – not in an effort to be nice but to show you who the boss is.  They want life to be a particularly way and when it isn’t boy do they whine.  They whine about nit picky drivel – of course it isn’t drivel to them because they have deluded themselves into thinking their lives or their collection of whatever really is more important than the lives of others..  The real problem manipulators have is that they are living for a life that is fleeting instead of pursuing the things of God.  When a man’s kingdom is his priority he will be willing to do just about anything to try to make it what he wants it to be…and in the process lose his own soul.

Are you very far away from the brute category or is it an accurate description of you most the time or some of the time?

 

Losers and Passives

Part 2 of Contentious Wife Equals Terrible Life

The way I see it there are four basic categories of men:

Category 1:  Losers. These are the guys who have always been fascinated with themselves yet generally have low self-esteem.  If he thinks there is something better elsewhere then he is ready to walk. Basically this has been in the back of his mind since the beginning.  His marriage proposal could have gone like this, “Baby, I love you, I really do.  How about we spend an undetermined number of years together? Maybe we will even have some kids followed by a terrible stretch at which point I’ll upgrade to a younger better looking model and you can go look for an old sugar daddy.”

Well if you are in category 1, then there isn’t that much anyone can do for you until you realize what a pathetic loser you are and repent of your sin and selfishness and turn to Jesus.  (If you think that is harsh then you don’t understand that without being in Jesus and then living in the Spirit – we are ALL spiritual losers and that there is also no hope for the proud).   At that point you can leave Loserville, and work hard to put your marriage on the right track…since it never was on the right track.  If you’ve already passed the point of no return (divorced and at least one has remarried), then Jesus still offers forgiveness to you and you can take comfort in Romans 8:1, “There is therefore no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus.” Of course there are harsh realities that cannot be undone but with God there is comfort and a new day…think King David.

Category 2:  Passives.  If wife is happy than it is all good, and I’ll put up with whatever.  These guys are the guys where all but the few Category 4 guys and the wives who have it together think, “He’s a nice guy.  Look at all the nice things he does for his wife.”  But if you look a little closer you will notice that is about all he is.  He is a yes man.  Or should I say a, “yes maam” boy.  He will do anything to make his wife happy regardless of how wrong she is or how bad of an idea it is or how much debt there is or who else has to get stepped on in the process – as long as she is happy.  He really does care about her so he will cajole and console, but rarely if ever will he say, “No, honey. I hate to tell you this, but you are wrong.”  When he does it usually isn’t over anything that matters – just little stuff – so he can maintain his illusion of being more than a little boy in an adult body.  Most Christian men fall into this category so please think a little more before you just pass over it with, “Hey that’s kinda funny,” and “I’m glad it isn’t me thoughts.”  I hardly know any good men who will say they’ve never had a stay in Passiveville.  The decision you have to make is whether to be a reluctant visitor in moments of failure or a willing long-term resident.

If you are a category 2 guy, then man you really need to go to Jesus and ask for forgiveness and help.  Then you need to go to your wife and apologize at which point you will need to tell her that things are going to change and she might not like what some of that process looks like.  She may look at you like your crazy because she is going to need to SEE IT in your life.  Rhetoric is not going to save the day.  You will need to be humble.  We are not looking to trade pansies for brutes.  At this point you really need to find a category 4 guy to hang out with – SOMEBODY WHO IN LOVE WILL PUT THEIR FINGER IN YOUR CHEST AND TELL YOU WHAT IS UP!  A category 4 guy can be your best earthly ally in this deal – hey he knows what it takes and you can ask his wife to verify the results.

“Therefore submit to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you. Draw near to God and He will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners; and purify your hearts, you double-minded.  Lament and mourn and weep! Let your laughter be turned to mourning and your joy to gloom. Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and He will lift you up” (James 4:7-10).

Next up – Category 3: Brutes and Category 4: godly men

 

Contentious Wife Equals Terrible Life

Part 1

“And the LORD God said, “It is not good that a man should be alone; I will make a helper comparable to him…Therefore a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and they shall become one flesh” (Genesis 2:18,24).

My wife and I recently celebrated our sixth wedding anniversary – this in combination with the constant stream of bad news in the realm of marriage and the general pandemic state of the home have given me a desire to write the following posts.  Let me state up front that my primary intended audience for this one are the males readers – but ladies – please feel free to pass this one along to hubby, dad, brother, future hubby or friend.  So men whether you are single, happily married, in a distressed marriage, or in a marriage that isn’t your first, it’s time to strap on the helmet and get ready for some big hits!

Proverbs 21:19, states that it is better to sleep alone on the roof than in a house with a contentious woman.  It was true when it was written thousands of years ago and it is true today.  No one wants to live with a woman like that.  So men, what actions are you taking to help lessen the possibility that you will wake up one morning and realize that your wife is miserable, that you are miserable and that your marriage is a marriage on paper and that’s about it?

The reason I say this is because when things don’t work out and the woman appears to be contentious either one of two things happened.  Either the guy didn’t do his job or he picked poorly.  And even if he does pick poorly if he does the right things in the Lord’s strength then the marriage still has a chance to turn out well.  Of course what I am writing is much like the wisdom literature in the Bible – it tells you what is generally true – though there are exceptions and therefore the truth here is not a 100% guarantee but it has you fighting the battle for your marriage from a position of victory instead of defeat.  Obviously we have great sympathy for those who have really sought help from the Lord and generally have done the right things yet would legitimately be better off sleeping on the roof.  Remember that the Lord Jesus is gracious and compassionate whenever being gracious and compassionate is called for, and we should seek to be like Him.

In the next couple of posts I will talk about several basic categories of men and what godly men do to give their marriages the best chance to be long and joyful.

 

Another home – divorced

What does it say about our society when the news of Jon and Kate divorcing is the 2nd most read article on CNN.com (#1 for a good portion of the day)?

Does it reflect that people care more about the “news” surrounding the Gosselins then they do about the news of political turmoil in Iran?  Or perhaps is it that more people can relate to the Gosselins as almost everyone in our country has been affected in a close personal way by divorce?  Perhaps it’s the novelty of their situation with 8 kids (6 of which came at one time) and a tv show?  In any case their personal life and failures have become the news of today.  It is indeed sad news.

After reading the article and then getting a feel for America’s response via the comments I was surprised how many people ran over Kate and gave Jon a pass.  It is obvious her priorities got out of whack and that she tended to be bossy, but I’ve got a different take on the situation.  Put simply Jon has failed to lead his wife, his children and his home and now EVERYONE in their family is paying a steep price.  It all comes back to him – he could have lovingly told her “no” a long time ago to a myriad of things – he could have said “no” to the tv show at any point during the past few years, he could have said “no” to her speaking engagements, he could have said “no” to her book promotions.  He could have said “no” to their combined selfishness.  He could have said “no” to “hanging out” with women not named “Kate Gosselin”.  More importantly he could have said “yes” to leading his wife and kids.  He could have said “yes” to marriage counseling.  He could have said “yes” to the biblical charge he was given.  He could have said “yes” to his commitments.

Instead he just went down the road of the average “husband/man” (Christian or not) and lived in Pansyville for years until he finally got tired of living in Pansyville and realized he could “be liberated”.  The following comment by Jon proves my assessment to be accurate.  “I just let her rule the roost and do whatever she wanted,” Jon said. “Now I finally stood up on my own two feet and I’m proud of myself.”  Notice even here the deceitfulness of sin.  He doesn’t just say that he has sinned and failed and that he is sorry, no he is “proud” of himself.  I can tell you after being alive for almost 34 years and having read the Bible that there are only two responses people have when they are confronted with their sin – one is “godly sorrow that leads to repentance” and the other is “I’ve made the right decision, and I am proud of myself.”  Most people go with the latter time and time again.

Men, the bottom line is that we have stop hiding behind the excuses of her inadequacies and do better.  During the past few weeks, I’ve been working on an article entitled “Contentious wife equals terrible life” with the focus being on practical things we husbands need to do in order to avoid the situation where you would rather sleep on the roof (or with another woman) than with your wife.  I’ll have it posted by Thursday.

Final thought on the Gosselins, If you have access to God through praying in the name of Jesus, then say a prayer that they would turn to Jesus and have reconciliation.  If you took the time to read the news or to read this post then you can take a minute and do that.

 

Sweetie!

On Monday, I was driving out of my neighborhood to go to a meeting when I saw a small dog running past me going the opposite direction. Dogs in my neighborhood do not generally run around – they are walked – and I could tell this was definitely an inside dog.  I stopped and tried to get the dog, but the little one just kept on running.  I knew that I wouldn’t like myself very much if I went ahead to the meeting and came back to find the dog laying dead on the road.  So I turned around and with the help of a couple neighborhood kids and another man caught the little guy – actually a girl – named Sweetie!

Sweetie’s dog tag had an address from the other side of town and a phone number.  “How in the world did you get way over here?”  I called the number, but I just go an answering machine.  So I grabbed a dog crate from my house and headed to my meeting with Sweetie in tow.  No return call before, during, or after my meeting.  When I got home it was dark, and I’m thinking that I will just have to figure this out tomorrow.  Before taking Sweetie in for the night I grabbed a leash in hopes that the dog would use the bathroom outside and not in my house.  As I’m walking back toward the house with the dog behind me, I suddenly realize that there is no longer any tension!  I turn around, and I all I have is the leash with the entire dog collar including the identification tag!  “Oh no!”  I look around the other side of the truck and yard – no dog – I look up the road and there is Sweetie – booking it.  So I take off after her IN FLIP-FLOPS…I had already played basketball and mowed a lawn so I don’t have much in the tank and this little dog is fast.  So the rest of this is like something out of a movie – I’m yelling at a car to stop that is about to run her over.  I lose track of the dog at one point and don’t see which way it went, the dog ends up running across 5 lanes of traffic, several motorist point me in the right direction, and people are looking at me like I’m crazy because I’m at a full sprint in flip-flops.  A 1/2 mile later from when we started running, I finally catch up to Sweetie in the Wendy’s drive-thru.  She is now safe once again.  After some detective work the next day, I was able to track down the person who was in charge of watching Sweetie while the owner was on a cruise.  The son-in-law who is a local police officer called to thank me and told me that Sweetie was a “rescue dog” and that she is an escape artist…with a history of running away.  In his opinion, this cute, little, dog is very fortunate to still be alive.

I’ve been reflecting some this week about Sweetie, and how I have observed that many people are the same as Sweetie – running away from the Person or people who are trying to help.  Ever since I was old enough and spiritually mature enough to understand it I have seen people run away from Jesus.  They think they are wise and are doing what is best for them – but they run from Jesus and into the Enemy’s trap.  It is only by the grace of God that more are not utterly crushed.  I’ve also noticed over the last 15 years the tendency of people to run from the truth tellers and spiritual helpers in their lives.  In western culture it is in large part due to the drastic individuality we are taught to embrace. “Whatever makes you feel good is right for you,” and “You don’t have to listen to anyone but yourself,” are the mantras of our culture.  The extreme emphasis on the individual is a great hindrance toward healthy churches in the west today.  So, if you are being like Sweetie, STOP, and let Jesus grab you with His gentle and scarred hands and let Him embrace you deep into His love.

Please take a few minutes to read and meditate on the following verses:

Judges 17:6, “In those days there was no king in Israel; everyone did what was right in his own eyes.”

Isaiah 53:6, “All we like sheep have gone astray; We have turned, every one, to his own way; And the LORD has laid on Him the iniquity of us all.” (Praise Jesus for His sacrifice for us!)

I Timothy 1:1-2, “Now the Spirit expressly says that in latter times some will depart from the faith, giving heed to deceiving spirits and doctrines of demons, speaking lies in hypocrisy, having their own conscience seared with a hot iron…”

Hebrews 13:17, “Obey those who rule over you, and be submissive, for they watch out for your souls, as those who must give account. Let them do so with joy and not with grief, for that would be unprofitable for you.”

Hebrews 12:1-2, “Therefore we also, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which so easily ensnares us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith, who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.”

Thank you for taking the time to read and reflect, and may God use this for His glory and honor.

 

How do I start reading the Bible?

In the last couple of months I have had a few people ask me how they should begin a serious reading of the Bible.  They have had access to the Bible and have tried to read it before but then got bogged down and did not get very far.  Here is the advice I normally give and perhaps it will be helpful for you in sharing with someone else.

If the person is not a believer in Jesus or is shaky about their faith, then the Gospel of John is the place to begin.

If the person is a believer in Jesus then the following method will help them to have a better understanding of God’s Word:

1.  Gospel of Mark – a synopsis of the life of Jesus Christ (shortest of the Gospels)

2. Philippians – the Christian life (4 chapters)

3. Acts – the history of the early church

4. Romans – important teaching and application

5.  Gospel of John – our message to the world

6.  The rest of the New Testament (NT) including Matthew and Luke

7.  The Old Testament (OT)

The first 2 books are great in content and also shorter in length.  It is important for the readers to have a sense of accomplishement so they are encouraged to continue on.  After they have gone through the Scriptures this way once then they can start a reading plan that has a portion of the OT and NT each day.  Proverbs can also be particularly helpful for someone wanting to live a life honoring God.  Isn’t there a phrase: “A proverb a day helps keep sin away”?

 

Powerful Words from an Atheist

Penn from Penn and Teller asks a profound question of those who have faith in God.  “How much do you have to hate someone to believe that everlasting life is possible and not tell them that?”  Penn is a self-proclaimed atheist, and yet he gets this serious truth far more than many followers of Jesus do.  We can see the task Jesus gave us to do (“Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations…”) should be an obvious top priority.  Please also recognize how profoundly touched Penn was by a Christian who”loved his neighbor” by engaging him as the Scriptures teach us.  The video is 5 minutes long – it is worth your time – watch it!  You can also say a prayer for Penn that he will read the Bible he was given and come to faith in our Lord Jesus Christ.

Vodpod videos no longer available.
more about “Penn Says: A Gift of a Bible“, posted with vodpod

 

Seeds of Blood, The church in China

Vodpod videos no longer available.

more about “Seeds of Blood, Christianity in China…“, posted with vodpod

Here is the video I referred to in the previous post.  Very powerful!

If you only have about 8 minutes, I would recommend that you let the video load (buffer) and then fast forward to where the time counter says (-01:24:45).  You will then be able to hear the amazing testimonies of husband Allen Yuan and his wife Liang Huizhen.  Whenever you are not sure of God’s ability or willingness to provide for the faithful you can remember this true story.  May God help our faith to increase to this measure!

 

Shake yourself and wake up!

Are you willing to go to prison for Jesus?  Are you willing to be separated from your family for years for Jesus?  Are you willing to die for Jesus?

If you are a follower of Jesus, you really need to watch “The Cross – Jesus in China”.  It was made in 2003, and it gives the history of the church in China.  Let me tell you that unless you are really hard of heart you will be moved.  The testimonies of these beautiful and dedicated people will cause you to reconsider what it means to be a follower of Jesus.  I believe you will also be convinced that no cost is too great to pay to follow Jesus in obedience!  It is rare that I recommend movies or books on this site (perhaps I should more often).  I put this on the HIGHLY recommended list.  I literally wept with joy and thankfulness during parts of it the first time I saw it.

http://www.chinasoul.org/e/e-va.htm from this link you can watch it online (it does take a while to load…worth the wait) or you can buy the DVD.  It is a 2 disc 4 hour set for $15, and yet timeless and priceless.  If you are myopic and self-centered and want to stay that way, well then this video is not for you!  Watch at your own risk.

Are you willing to live for Jesus?  Luke 9:23-26, “Then He (Jesus) said to them all, ‘If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow Me. For whoever desires to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake will save it. For what profit is it to a man if he gains the whole world, and is himself destroyed or lost? ²⁶ For whoever is ashamed of Me and My words, of him the Son of Man will be ashamed when He comes in His own glory, and in His Father’s, and of the holy angels.'”

 

As if Jesus cares…

I was driving on Wednesday when I heard two back to back radio ads.  The first reminded me that I only had a short time to buy flowers for Easter.  The second wanted to let me know that I needed to buy some new clothes so I could look my best on Easter morning.  As if Jesus cares whether I bought flowers or new clothes.  Many of His followers in the world can afford neither.  Do we really think that Jesus is more pleased with the man who has new clothes than He is with the the man who has ragged clothes? Of course not!  Jesus is primarily concerned with the heart, while the hearts of men and women are often concerned about what those around them will think.

The only things in the New Testament I read about clothes are that we should be modest (I Timothy 2) and that we should not play favorites based on attire (James 2).  On a related note, if we really wanted to be symobolic in our attire for Sunday then perhaps we should wear work clothes to remind us of the cost of following Jesus.  His road was a hard road of suffering.  Are we greater than He?  In fact Jesus instructs us to take up our cross daily and follow Him (Luke 9).

Jesus, please help us to keep everything in perspective of Your life, Your death, Your resurrection!  You are the glorious Lamb of God that was slain!  Help us to complain less and act in love more!

 

Adoption Update

I just posted this on our church forum – but since a good number of you don’t ever see that – we also wanted to share this news with you:

“We wanted our church family to be the first to know. The mail came to day and with it our approval letter to begin the matching process. Here is a quote that brings both excitement and fear:  ‘You have now been approved to adopt up to five male or female children, between ages of 0 and 15 of any heritage.’ Feel free to drop your input – you can go to www.myturnnow.com or www.adoptuskids.org and look at sibling groups – let us know who you are rooting for. They will be your family too!”

If you click on adoption under categories you can see my other posts on this very important subject.

 

One good thing…

As I was walking through a parking lot the other day, this thought came to mind, “If I can do just one good thing for someone today, then it is a good day.”

Each day God is faithful to provide more than one opportunity.  God’s word provides encouragement to this end, “For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them” (Ephesians 2:10).  It should give us great confidence each day to know that God has a plan and good things for us to do.  Many times these things will not be easy, but they are for the good of others and for the good of our spiritual growth.

The good things we do should be done without any expectation of reciprocity as they should ultimately be done as an overflow of the love of God in our lives and for God’s glory.  May God help us to be joyful and willing servants.

“Sing to the LORD, bless His name;
Proclaim the good news of His salvation from day to day.”
Psalm 96:2