What comes before “tween?”

Zoe: age seven.

She is given to melodrama and misplaced logic to the extreme.  She has a compulsive need to be contrary.  When she was younger, meltdowns and the stomping retreat with one final emotion-saturated outburst were the norm, but her transition into big-kidhood has sprouted twitchy, downy winglets of independence that must be exercised.

The subject matter is irrelevant.  So also is the side of debate on which she happens to land.  Last night’s discussion?  Grammar.  I was checking her homework.  It looked wonderful except for one thing: instead of “themselves” she had written “their selfs.”

Really, Zoe?  Come on.  I taught you better than that.  The following conversation ensued:

M: stands for “Mom.”  That would be me.  Which also begins with M.
Z: stands for Princess Has-To-Have-It-My-Way.  Which does not begin with Z.  Don’t worry about that.

M: “Their selfs?  Zoe, what should that be?”

Z: “What?  Their selfs is right.”

M: “It’s themselves.  One word.  I’d like you to change it, please.”

Z: “But I like to say ‘their selfs!’ It just makes sense to me! Themselves doesn’t even make sense!”

(Zoe, dear, you don’t even make sense.)
M: “It doesn’t have to make sense to you in order to be true.”

Z: “Well, I don’t like it and I’m not changing it.  ‘Their selfs’ is right.  People say ‘their selfs’ all the time!”

M: “Yeah, stupid people.  Change it.  It’s wrong.”
(I chose to stop homeschooling why?)

Z: “I don’t care if it’s wrong.  I’ll get the grade I get.”

(Am I really arguing about this?)
M: “If you know it’s wrong, you need to change it.”

I think I started to launch into a lecture about taking pride in your work when I realized I’d been had.  I took her bait.  I didn’t even realize she’d been fishing for an argument.  Before she left for school today, she changed it without complaint.

This morning’s discussion was equally as ridiculous.  Brace yourself: this might hurt your brain.

M: “Zoe, change your underwear, please.”
(a reasonable request, right?  Not too difficult?)

Z: “I hate changing my underwear!  Why do I always have to change my underwear?”

(where did this come from?)
M: “Because it’s been a couple days and you need to change them.”

Z: “It’s been a week!”

(Well, no, it hasn’t, but as she is presently given to hyperbole, I’ll run with it.)
M: “Well, in that case, you really need to change them.”

Z: “But I hate having to just take things off my legs all at the same time (what? what are you, a spider?  how many legs do you have?) because I’m just one of those people who changes their underwear after a shower or in a week!”

M: “Change your underwear.”
(Just one of those people, huh?)

Thank you, Zoe.  Without you, my existence would be very dull indeed.

 

Guest author: Zoe, age seven. “We are thankful for thanksgiving”

To preserve the integrity of this essay, I am keeping all of her creative spelling.

“We Are Thankful For Thanksgiveing”

We are thankful because God blesed us. Becaus God cares and that he wants us to prais him forever and ever to make it better in heaven forever and ever it will be better and better forever and ever because we celebrate thanksgiveing every year will help us know more about God.

Because thankgiveing celebrates God the King of kings Lord of lords Lover of lovers the friend to me My father in heven high above me forever I will love him. God will be with us. We want to live with him the rest of our life. He loves us and we love him because he died on the cross for us. That what Thanksgiveing celebrates, God. That is what it celebrates God, God, God, God, God.

 

Speaking the truth in love

Ephesians 4:10-16
11 And He Himself gave some to be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, and some pastors and teachers, 12 for the equipping of the saints for the work of ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ, 13 till we all come to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a perfect man, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ; 14 that we should no longer be children, tossed to and fro and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the trickery of men, in the cunning craftiness of deceitful plotting, 15 but, speaking the truth in love, may grow up in all things into Him who is the head—Christ— 16 from whom the whole body, joined and knit together by what every joint supplies, according to the effective working by which every part does its share, causes growth of the body for the edifying of itself in love.

We are called to speak the truth in love. So many times I’ve heard this passage used to justify pointing out someone’s (real or perceived) faults. Look closely. Yes, we are to speak the truth in love, but to whom do we speak it? Well, to everyone- but these six verses are written to the Church. They are written to the Church as direction in relating to others in the Church, not how to relate to everyone we meet.

1 Corinthians 5:9-13
9 I wrote to you in my epistle not to keep company with sexually immoral people. 10 Yet I certainly did not mean with the sexually immoral people of this world, or with the covetous, or extortioners, or idolaters, since then you would need to go out of the world. 11 But now I have written to you not to keep company with anyone named a brother, who is sexually immoral, or covetous, or an idolater, or a reviler, or a drunkard, or an extortioner—not even to eat with such a person.
12 For what have I to do with judging those also who are outside? Do you not judge those who are inside? 13 But those who are outside God judges.

Paul is talking about the Church judging- or testing the fruits of- those in the Church. Not those in the world.

When we are called to speak the truth in love, we need to first ask ourselves, “Is the person to whom I am speaking a believer or does s/he claim to be?” If the answer is “no” the only truth in love we need to speak is “Jesus loves you.” We speak this truth not only in words, but in action. We practically show the love of Jesus. That truth comes in the form of a hug or encouraging word. That truth comes in the form of babysitting kids for a single mom and sending her out the door with $50 so she can have an afternoon to herself. That truth comes in the form of covering a bill that someone can’t pay. That truth comes in the form of cooking a meal and cleaning the house of someone who is sick. To those outside the Church, those who are still in bondage to the world, we are not called to hit them upside the head with the Bible or hold them to biblical standards.

That doesn’t mean we compromise. That doesn’t mean we back down or legitimize something of which God does not approve. Love recognizes the ability of the people to hear the words spoken.

If the answer to the question, “Is s/he a Christian” is “yes,” the next question we need to ask is, “Is this an essential?” Or, in other words, “Is this something God is showing me so that I can clean up my own life or is it something that is going to cause great detriment to the person in question?” Even if it is an essential issue (immorality, blatant unrepentant sin) the next step is ALWAYS to wait. Wait on the Holy Spirit and shut up until He tells me to speak.

I believe that as Christians, we have a responsibility to vote for/support laws that reflect God’s heart, His written Word, His laws. However, when it comes to a personal level, we are not called to tell the post abortive mother that she’s going to hell because she murdered her child. We are not called to tell the homosexual that he is an abomination. We are called to love. When we love, we open a door in another person for the Holy Spirit to come with His gentle conviction and lead them into His kingdom, lead them into righteousness and freedom in Jesus.

Truth should be spoken in love- how often do we wield it as a weapon? How often do we use truth as a means to decimate our opponent in debate and emerge victorious? That is not True Truth. That is the clanging cymbal and the meaningless cacophony that is a message delivered outside of love.

They will know that we are Christians by our… relentless bashing? By our… rigid standards? No. They will know that we are Christians by our love.

 

The consequence of sin is… sin?

Romans 1:18-32

18 For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who suppress the truth in unrighteousness, 19 because what may be known of God is manifest in them, for God has shown it to them. 20 For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even His eternal power and Godhead, so that they are without excuse, 21 because, although they knew God, they did not glorify Him as God, nor were thankful, but became futile in their thoughts, and their foolish hearts were darkened. 22 Professing to be wise, they became fools, 23 and changed the glory of the incorruptible God into an image made like corruptible man—and birds and four-footed animals and creeping things.

Does this sound at all familiar? Look at this country, this world. Scientists are trying to explain the existence of everything without giving credit to the Creator. Single-issue voters are called short sighted. Stands taken for righteousness are interpreted as hatred. This happens on a macro level- in communities, in nations, on continents… and it happens on a micro level- in the heart of each person- as well.

v.24-25
24 Therefore God also gave them up to uncleanness, in the lusts of their hearts, to dishonor their bodies among themselves, 25 who exchanged the truth of God for the lie, and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever. Amen.

Who has exchanged the truth of God for the lie? Who has worshiped and served the creature rather than the creator? We all have. I have. You have. The guy next door has. We might not fashion statues of wood, stone, or metal, but we are an idolatrous people nonetheless. Every time we say, “I don’t care what the Bible says; I want to do it my way!” we exchange the truth of God for the lie. Every time we put our own desires before God’s desires, we worship and serve the creature rather than the creator. WE are the creatures! Ours is an idolatrous society- but our idols are not of animal-human hybrids. Our idols are convenience, power, money, satisfaction, and entertainment.

v. 26-27
26 For this reason God gave them up to vile passions. For even their women exchanged the natural use for what is against nature. 27 Likewise also the men, leaving the natural use of the woman, burned in their lust for one another, men with men committing what is shameful, and receiving in themselves the penalty of their error which was due.

This is the part that really jumped out at me. I’ve used this passage countless times as an example of just how God still isn’t down with homosexual behavior, but I see now that immorality (not just homosexuality) is not a root cause or inherent tendency, but it is a consequence. Immoral behavior is what we get when we put ourselves and our own desires first. Immorality is the judgment exacted for our selfishness and idolatry.

v.28-32
28 And even as they did not like to retain God in their knowledge, God gave them over to a debased mind, to do those things which are not fitting; 29 being filled with all unrighteousness, sexual immorality, wickedness, covetousness, maliciousness; full of envy, murder, strife, deceit, evil-mindedness; they are30 backbiters, haters of God, violent, proud, boasters, inventors of evil things, disobedient to parents, 31 undiscerning, untrustworthy, unloving, unforgiving, unmerciful; 32 who, knowing the righteous judgment of God, that those who practice such things are deserving of death, not only do the same but also approve of those who practice them.

It is a result of not retaining God in our knowledge. Homosexuality, immorality, envy, murder, strife, deceit, evil-mindedness, backbiting, violence, pride, disobedience, and, well, you go down the list… these are sins in and of themselves, but are also the result of putting self first.

It is the presence of the Holy Spirit that keeps the sin nature in check. It is He who empowers us to live a righteous life. Without Him, we can do nothing. Sin is like an infection. When we have an infection, we are prescribed antibiotics. The course of antibiotics takes 5-10 days before the infection is totally cleared out. After 24 hours of antibiotics, we are no longer contagious but still generally feel pretty crappy. After a few days, we feel fine but still need to take the medication until it is gone. If we don’t, the infection will come back stronger and will take more of an effort to cure.

So it is with sin. We sin, put ourselves first, and by our own choice, diminish the Holy Spirit’s power to keep our vile passions and our sinful nature in check. The sin grows stronger. We repent, ask forgiveness- and on the heavenly side, we’re good! We’re no longer dirty, no longer contagious- but because we lack God’s ability to forgive (ourselves) AND forget, we still feel pretty crappy. So, we continue to seek God first for a while and after a few days or a few weeks we are confident. We haven’t sinned (knowingly) in a while and we say, “I’m delivered! Praise God! I’m free!” Which is true- but then we go and put ourselves into the path of temptation again. We go to that place where we have a tendency to say, “But I want it really really bad and just once won’t hurt and it’s okay…” and once again, we put self on the throne of our hearts and the sinful nature takes over once again.

The consequence of that pride and that selfishness- the consequence of that SIN is more sin. It’s not just more sin, but it’s the perverting of the mindset that even calls it sin so we think it’s okay. We say, “That can’t possibly be sin. It makes me feel good, it doesn’t hurt anyone…” and we begin to exchange the truth of God for a lie. We begin to, in earnest, worship the creature (that would be us) rather than the creator. And when we do that, God gives us over to our vile passions. Then we start to call evil “good” and we start to call holiness “hate.” We buy into the theology that says that God created us to sin. We start to make excuses and with every excuse we make our hearts get a little bit harder until we have only the vaguest vestige of Truth and Reality if we retain any at all. And the enemy wins.

Micah 6:8

8 He has shown you, O man, what is good;
And what does the LORD require of you
But to do justly,
To love mercy,
And to walk humbly with your God?

How do we walk humbly? We acknowledge that we are fallible and are predisposed to wrong thinking. We acknowledge that God alone is the only One who is allowed to say what is wrong and what is right. We acknowledge that we are weak and cannot do anything without His strength. We acknowledge that what we are doing is in fact sin even though we really really want to do it. Even though it makes us feel good. Even though we think we have a right to engage in whatever practices we want, we must acknowledge that when we do engage in those practices or when we incite others to engage in those practices, we are sinning.

Take your antibiotics. Unlike the brown bottle of penicillin, though, Spiritual antibiotics never completely run their course. We can’t ever stop taking them. We can’t ever stop putting God first or we run the risk of being given over to our own sin. Then we get to face the consequences of that sin- the wages of sin which is death.

The good news is that we are created to be more than conquerers. We are created to be the righteousness of God in Christ. We are created to be holy and blameless. This is not an impossible feat or an unreachable goal. It is our destiny as His children!

 

Life lessons… in beads

I recently re-entered the working world. After 4 1/2 years of being a homemaker, I am again employed. I have been taking the time spent getting ready for work and/or driving to work to pray, “Lord, lead me today. Take me where You want me to go, show me what You want me to see, put before me what You want me to do and work it all to Your glory.” It’s not a fancy prayer. It isn’t a long prayer. It isn’t eloquent. But it is heartfelt.

I work at a bead store. Well, one side of the store sells beads. The other side sells imported goods from around the world. Sure, I know that Wal Mart does the same (everything is from China, right?) but this is fancy imported stuff that is really expensive. (even with my 50% discount) But back to the beads.

The beads are sold by the strand. Each strand of beads must be priced. To price the beads, the employee (in this case, me) writes the price on the “shark skin” tags.

These tags come 28 to a sheet. The beads I was pricing came 10 strands to a bundle. Not exactly a perfect match. As I was sitting and pricing a shipment of beads that had just arrived, I was allowing my mind to wander. Pricing anything is a rather tedious task, fairly mindless, and can be done with little to no concentration. This particular day was no different. As my mind was wandering, I was pricing beads set at $2/ strand. I looked down and had filled a partial sheet and two entire sheets with $2 tags. I put the price tags on the bead strands and found, to my surprise, that there were exactly enough price tags for the $2 beads! On to the next size up: the $2.50 strands.

Again, my mind wandered as I wrote the price tags, and when I looked back at what I was doing, I found that I had filled three sheets with that price. I thought, “Oh no… I have too many tags… I’m going to waste them!” No… as it turned out, there were a few strands missing from one of the bunches, and there were exactly enough stickers for the available strands.

At that point, God broke in and said, “I knew how many strands there were and I knew how many price tags you needed. I led you without you even knowing what I was doing. I have you covered.” I thought, “Sweet! God even cares about pricing beads!”

And He does: because it’s my life and He cares about me. He cares about every detail of my life. There is no detail too insignificant for His knowledge or His concern.

With that encouraging thought, I went on to the $3 beads. I pulled out a HUGE bundle and set to writing the $3 price tags. The thought occurred to me, “I should count these strands.”

I began to argue with myself: “If I count these strands, that is displaying a lack of faith! God took care of the other two; He’ll take care of this one too!”

“But if you don’t count the strands, that’s just being stupid and you’re going to waste the price tags!”

Go ahead… laugh. I know it’s stupid. I chose to go ahead and just fill out two sheets of price tags, figuring I’d be safe, and I could make more if I needed them.

I filled out too many. I had about half a sheet of $3 tags left over. No big deal- the next size up was $3.20 and the price tags were altered easily enough- but that isn’t the point. Here is the point:

That is when God broke in again and said, “See? Now, that thought you had? The ‘I should really count these?’ That was me. I was leading you. There are times when you won’t have to worry about working things out; things that are beyond your control or things that I’m just going to take care of. There are other times when I’m going to require you to take part in making sure things work out. When You give your day to Me, you can trust the instincts and gut reactions you have because they come from Me, and they are given to you to make your path smoother.”

So I responded, “But I totally disregarded You and went ahead and did my own thing!” (in confusing presumption with faith- in determining to go ahead and fill out two sheets of stickers… if y’all haven’t realized by now, it wasn’t the pricing of the beads that was the big deal… it was the underlying lesson that was exemplified by the pricing of the beads)

He said, “True, you did. And it was a little trickier to change the price on those extra tags than it would have been to just write the tags out correctly from the beginning- but it was possible. When you give your time, your day, your thoughts, your LIFE to Me, redemption is ALWAYS possible!”

All of that: an entire life lesson explained with something so paltry and unimportant as beads. But now I have the foundation, the assurance that when I give my time to Him, He is faithful to lead me. I don’t have to be conscious of His leading every second of every day. I just have to stop beforehand and hand the reigns over to Him. He’ll take care of the rest. Isn’t that awesome?

 

Ten Reasons Why I wish I could be more like Spongebob Squarepants

Spongebob is an awesome person. Sponge. He’s naive, it’s true, but he is also fiercely loyal and responsible. Here are ten reasons I wish I could be more like Spongebob.

1. He has a positive outlook on life.
His catch phrase is, “I’m ready!” He doesn’t shy away from challenges, but faces them head on with the anticipation of overcoming whatever obstacle is in his path.

2. He is loyal to his friends.

He doesn’t stand in judgment of friends who are either above or below his intelligence level. He doesn’t consider a constantly contentious individual a turn off. He speaks the truth in love and his actions are motivated by considering others as better than himself. He always does what he does with someone else’s best interests/ enjoyment in mind.

3. He is willing to give others the benefit of the doubt.

Even when someone has demonstrated repeated antagonism or even malicious behavior, Spongebob continues to treat them with kindness and love. He looks for the good in everything and it seems at times as though he doesn’t even perceive the negative. He is an example of positive reinforcement and encouragement!

4. He has the best work ethic anyone can possibly have.

For Spongebob, there is no such thing as menial work. He considers being a fry cook the best job in the world and throws himself into cleaning the toilets with the same enthusiasm as he demonstrates when building the perfect Krabby Patty. He genuinely loves his job. He loves serving others and treats his boss with respect- whether or not he deserves it. When he is asked to give an inch, he gives a mile.

5. He has no problem displaying his emotions. He doesn’t keep things bottled up inside.


You always know where you stand with Spongebob.

6. He doesn’t need external stimulation to be entertained. He isn’t a couch potato. You only rarely see him watching television. He loves to go jellyfishing, bike riding, bubble blowing, or just playing in a big cardboard box. As long as he has imagination, he’s set.

7. Spongebob can teach a friend a lesson without even trying. Just by being himself, he draws out pretense in others. His innocence tends to be a plumb line for other people (well, fish and sea critters, anyway.) His intentions and his walk are so full of integrity and so transparent that when someone does have ulterior motives, their conscience is pricked when they are around him.

8. Spongebob is patient and knows the meaning of perseverance. He can keep his eye on the goal and press forward even in the face of extreme adversity.

9. Spongebob can’t be malicious for long. Spongebob also can’t lie. He can try, but he isn’t any good at it, and he is quick to keep a short account when he hurts someone. He is not short on either apologies or forgiveness. He does not repay evil with evil, but he overcomes evil with good.

10. He’s funny.  He doesn’t even have to try.

 

God made Adam and Eve…

Okay, so I have something stuck in my craw, though I am not sure what exactly a “craw” is or where it might be located… and to have something stuck in one sounds rather uncomfortable. But whatever it is and wherever it might be, there is definitely something stuck in mine and it surely is uncomfortable. Because of this, I must get it out.

This is the kind of thing that people don’t want to hear, much less say. Because it’s unpopular. It’s uncomfortable. It smacks of holier-than-thou attitudes (and I’ll address that in a bit) and messages like this tend to get people labeled as intolerant, bigoted, shortsighted, brainwashed… and those are the “nice” epithets.

I’m talking about homosexuality. I don’t know why it’s become such a big deal to me since I’m not gay and I don’t know very many people who are, but the pervading attitude (held even by those who profess to follow Jesus!) that there is nothing wrong with homosexuality is distasteful and offensive and blatantly unbiblical.

For those who don’t care what the Bible says, fine. Go ahead and think what you want. You will anyway. If you have no moral authority, you will do what is right in your own mind and submit to nothing, this isn’t a message for you. For those who claim to be Christian, though, woe to you!

Isaiah 5:20
Woe to those who call evil good, and good evil;
Who put darkness for light, and light for darkness;
Who put bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter!

Jeremiah 4:22 “ For My people are foolish,
They have not known Me.
They are silly children,
And they have no understanding.
They are wise to do evil,
But to do good they have no knowledge.”

We have become so far removed from what Scripture says. There are messages of “context” and “interpretation” that water down the hard truth of God’s perfect Word and make it easy to tolerate sin. In fact, those who don’t tolerate sin, those who insist that sin is in fact a bad thing, are labeled as haters.

What does God say about homosexuality? Well, in the Old Testament, He says this:

Leviticus 18:22 You shall not lie with a male as with a woman. It is an abomination.

But wait! You can’t use Leviticus to say that homosexuality is wrong! That’s the old testament. Now you’re going to start saying that women shouldn’t sit on the couch when they’re menstruating and that we have to start sacrificing animals again!

Not at all. Look at the whole of Leviticus 18. Concerning sexual sins. God condemns homosexuality. He also condemns: incest, bestiality, and adultery. We agree today that these things are reprehensible. Even the most hardened liberal will agree that daddy doing his daughter is wrong. That Fido is supposed to be mans’ best friend, not mans’ BEST friend, and that a cheatin’ man (or woman) is cruel and should be kicked to the curb. These standards have stood the test of time but homosexuality for some reason has not been given the same respect. “How can any love be wrong?”

1 Corinthians 6:9-10
9 Do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived. Neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor homosexuals, nor sodomites, 10 nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners will inherit the kingdom of God.

Romans 1:24-27
24 Therefore God also gave them up to uncleanness, in the lusts of their hearts, to dishonor their bodies among themselves, 25 who exchanged the truth of God for the lie, and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever. Amen. 26 For this reason God gave them up to vile passions. For even their women exchanged the natural use for what is against nature. 27 Likewise also the men, leaving the natural use of the woman, burned in their lust for one another, men with men committing what is shameful, and receiving in themselves the penalty of their error which was due.

God will not be mocked. He makes it clear that He has not created men to be with men nor women to be with women.

Genesis 2:24 Therefore a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and they shall become one flesh.

Matthew 19:4-6
4 And He answered and said to them, “Have you not read that He who made them at the beginning ‘made them male and female,’5 and said, ‘For this reason a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh] 6 So then, they are no longer two but one flesh. Therefore what God has joined together, let not man separate.”

Political correctness, societal mindset, personal offense, perverted desires, and a sense of entitlement do not negate God’s perfect wisdom. He knew what He was doing! He doesn’t ever say that homosexuality is the worst sin ever, but He does say it is a sin. He does not ever give license to do what should not be done.

Look at the early church. Not only the Jewish Christians but also the Gentile Christians. Homosexuality was not condoned. “But it was the culture! It was unheard of at the time!” Not at all. The Romans were in charge, still, and the Romans had no moral code. Sex was good and as much sex as one could have with as many people as it could be had was even better. Girls were ‘wife material’ as soon as they were able to bear children, so it wasn’t unusual to have a 12, 13, or 14 year old girl married. It wasn’t considered pedophilia. Prostitution was legal and homosexuality was encouraged. God had a different plan, though, and a different way. Society today is much like it was in Roman times. Whatever feels good, that’s what’s good to do. Even Christians are getting sucked up in the mess!

I can understand the gay activists. I really can. For those who do not know Jesus, those who don’t believe that the Bible is actually the recorded word of God, why shouldn’t they fight for what they think is right? I’m not going to stand on a soapbox and point and say, “SINNER! YOU’RE GOING TO HELL! GOD HATES YOU!” We’re all sinners until Jesus gets a hold of us, and we’re all God’s enemies until we’re redeemed by His cleansing blood.

What I don’t understand are the Christians- or those who profess to be- who will defend the gay lifestyle! How can you say you believe what God says, read the Bible, and still think that homosexuality is an acceptable lifestyle? Do I sound holier than thou? I’m not. But God is. Really- He IS holier than thou. Or, in more conventional and plain English, He is holier than you. That means that what He says goes. It doesn’t matter how your heart bleeds for the people who get picked on, what He says goes.

“Well, I’m a Christian and I don’t think there’s anything wrong with homosexuality.”

Where do you get your information? From the news? From your atheist friends? I can assure you that if you get your information from the One who has the only authority to abhor or condone a behavior, you will change your tune really quickly.

When are we going to start fearing GOD and stop fearing MAN? When are we going to take a stand for what is right?

This is not a gay-bashing essay. There is, as far as sin is concerned in God’s eyes, no difference between homosexual acts and any other sin. In this society, though, the difference has been made. There has been a statement made both overtly and otherwise that homosexuality is not, in fact, a sin, and that God creates some people to be that way. That it’s there at birth or before. That it’s genetic.

Guess what? Even if that’s true: that it’s genetic or that it’s a tendency that is there since birth doesn’t make it any less of a sin when those tendencies are acted upon! Through one man, sin entered the world. This world, created to be perfect, became imperfect through one man’s disobedience. He opened Pandora’s box, and not only did sin enter the world, but the world became defiled. The very framework of the created world had imperfection, disease, drought, abominations woven into it through Adam’s disobedience. Things changed. The land itself became harsh and unyielding. It was the curse. Pain was introduced. These things are the result of a fallen world.

People have been found to be genetically prone to addiction. Some people can drink a drink and stop; others are compelled to drink until they’re dangerous to themselves and others. Does that mean that drunkenness and abuse are right? Just because it’s there? Even if there was a homosexual gene… that doesn’t change what God’s perfect will is or what He considers to be a sin. There are people who are born with a hyperactive sex drive. Who feel compelled to sleep with everyone they can. Does that mean that in their case, adultery is okay? Because they feel like doing it? There are people who are attracted to little kids. Does that mean that because they feel like having sex with a four year old, it’s okay? Because they were born that way? Oh, is that too offensive to the sensibilities? How about the fifty year old man who is attracted to the fifteen year old girl? Technically, she’s old enough to consent. Is that okay? How about the woman who can only be satisfied by her great dane? Well, because she feels compelled to have sex with an animal, it’s okay. Because she was born that way, so what’s wrong with it? Or the mother who is having sex with her son? Maybe she’s really hot and he’s just past puberty. Surely that’s okay. I mean, they both want it.

The line has to be drawn somewhere. How can we abhor pedophilia, bestiality, adultery, incest, and condone homosexuality? God doesn’t. He abhors it all.

Here’s the good news: Jesus CAN set you free from bondage and lies. He came to rip the veil of complacency and apathy and sin from the eyes of the people whom God created. He came and died so that sin could be overcome and that those who are struggling in lifestyles that will only lead to death can be free to live the abundant life that Jesus has for them!

Here’s more good news: temptation is not a sin. Someone can have homosexual tendencies and not act on them. A man can have feelings/desires for a woman other than his wife and choose not to act on them. Someone can want to have sex with a child or an animal or their immediate blood relative and choose to not do it. Through the power of the Holy Spirit, even these tendencies can be overcome! We need to stop calling evil good and good evil. We need to stop being politically correct and start being holy. We need to stop cowering to society and start standing up for Truth.

If there is still any doubt, just ask Jesus what He says. Ask Him what He thinks. Really ask. Don’t ask with the preconceived notion that He is going to tell you what you want to hear. Throw all your ideals out the window and ask with an open heart. Resist the tendency to say, “That’s not fair!” God doesn’t have to be fair in our eyes. He is, though, unfailingly just and what HE says goes. He is the Creator. We are merely the created. He is the One with infinite infallible wisdom. We are the ones who are finite and imperfect. He is the One who can see the end from the beginning. We can only see what is right in front of our faces and even our views on such limited sight are flawed.

People are going to do what people are going to do. It’s been happening since the dawn of time and will happen until time itself is suspended and morphs into eternity. That doesn’t mean that those things are right. That doesn’t mean that I should teach my children that what God says is sin is in fact okay. Go ahead and feel sorry for my kids for being brought up in such a myopic and intolerant household. I know they’re being brought up to understand true freedom, true love, and true Truth. God backs me up so why should I care what people say?

 

The widow’s oil

1 Kings 17:8-16
Elijah and the Widow
8 Then the word of the LORD came to him, saying, 9 “Arise, go to Zarephath, which belongs to Sidon, and dwell there. See, I have commanded a widow there to provide for you.” 10 So he arose and went to Zarephath. And when he came to the gate of the city, indeed a widow was there gathering sticks. And he called to her and said, “Please bring me a little water in a cup, that I may drink.” 11 And as she was going to get it, he called to her and said, “Please bring me a morsel of bread in your hand.” 12 So she said, “As the LORD your God lives, I do not have bread, only a handful of flour in a bin, and a little oil in a jar; and see, I am gathering a couple of sticks that I may go in and prepare it for myself and my son, that we may eat it, and die.” 13 And Elijah said to her, “Do not fear; go and do as you have said, but make me a small cake from it first, and bring it to me; and afterward make some for yourself and your son. 14 For thus says the LORD God of Israel: ‘The bin of flour shall not be used up, nor shall the jar of oil run dry, until the day the LORD sends rain on the earth.’” 15 So she went away and did according to the word of Elijah; and she and he and her household ate for many days. 16 The bin of flour was not used up, nor did the jar of oil run dry, according to the word of the LORD which He spoke by Elijah.

This is a story that I keep coming back to. There is economic upheval on the horizon. Recession. Depression. Lack. Kevin was telling me this morning about an ad on the radio in which the announcer says, “Are you stuck in a dead end job? Are you tired of only making one hundred thousand dollars a year? Are your bills overwhelming you? Let us teach you how to realize your full potential and make more money. Contact the _________ Institute…”

Turns out, the owner of this “institute” (glorified motivational speaking/self help) is the owner of a house that Kevin painted while working for one of his previous employers. This is a man who exemplifies opulence. A man to whom “one hundred thousand dollars” as a yearly salary is a mere pittance. This man earns somewhere in the millions. That he has to branch out and start advertising on the radio when previously, he was so high-falutin’ and “in demand” that it was all word-of-mouth and personal referrals only- speaks of the state of the world.

Only one hundred thousand dollars per year?

I think of how TWO thousand dollars at one time is a huge amount of money to me. How I’m grateful to just be able to pay what I need to pay and how I’m perpetually in a position of “where is my next (meal, job, rent payment, tank of gas…) coming from?” I have never known a salaried position. I have never known what it is to expect that a certain amount of money is going to be in my bank account at any given time. It has, in the past, discouraged me. Especially when the economy was thriving and I was still struggling. Now, however, we’re “all in the same boat.”

Look at the circumstances described in 1 Kings chapter 17. There was a drought. Things were sucking for everyone. Not just the poor. For the rich as well. Here’s this widow who has just enough oil and flour to make one last meal for herself and her son so they can eat it and prepare to lie down and die. Can you imagine? “My husband is dead. I have nothing. I can’t even glean anything because nothing is growing because of the drought. The wells are nearly empty. We are wasting away before each other’s eyes, and the only thing left to do is eat our last meal and prepare to starve to death.”

Then Elijah comes on the scene. “Hey, widow: before you eat your last meal and prepare to die, make ME something to eat.”

What would be going through her head? Would she be rankled at his sense of entitlement? Would she figure, “Why not? I’m just going to die anyway. Might as well be a couple hours sooner.” Whatever the case, she did it. And he moved in with them- and their oil and their flour never ran out.

Awesome! Though… it was kind of living paycheck to paycheck. There wasn’t a sudden surplus of oil in the oil jar and a full jar of flour. There was always just enough to make one last meal. But it lasted until the drought was over.

How are we willing to trust God? Do we think that because our bank account isn’t suddenly full to overflowing, we haven’t received that billion dollar inheritance, we don’t have work lined up for the rest of the year… that He isn’t providing what we need? What if, like in our case, Kevin gets a job that provides what we need for a month and doesn’t hear anything about another job until we’re down to fifty cents in our bank account? Does that kind of provision cause us to praise God for His faithfulness? Or does it cause us to grumble and complain about how we need security?

We’re being trained. We’re being trained to trust God when things look absolutely bleak. We’re being trained to lean on Him and Him alone for supplying our jobs, meals, gas, money, clothing, what have you. Those who have become accustomed to living an opulent lifestyle- or even a conservatively wealthy lifestyle- where they know what they’ll be making and when it’ll be coming in… who have placed their trust in the systems of this world and the god of Mammon to supply what they need… how will they stand when the bottom drops out? Like the motivational speaker who had become accustomed to living a seven-figure lifestyle who is now resorting to “scraping the bottom of the barrel” just to keep his debts from drowning him, will we grumble and scramble and flip out when things happen that aren’t comfortable? Or will we, like the widow, thankfully make our last cake and be grateful that there is enough oil and flour to make another one when it’s time for dinner again?

Will I be grateful for this job that Kevin has, knowing that it was answered prayer that got him the job, knowing that it’s God’s favor and His provision, and trust that when it’s over and we need to cover our bills, God will supply another one? Or will I start to worry even before he’s paid from this job and before our month’s expenses are covered about how we’re going to cover next month’s expenses?

Lord, thank You that You are never late in your provision. Thank You that You can stretch the oil, the flour, the money, the gas in the car, the work, and whatever else we need. Thank You that Your way of doing things is not our way. Your way produces faith. Our way produces presumption. Thank You for Your faithfulness. May I be like the widow, willing to give up my very last and looking to You to sustain me. Let my life and let my provision be a testimony to those who are hurting, who are scared, and who don’t know how to trust in You. Let Your light shine through me even as You calm my anxious heart and bring me to the place where I have nowhere to turn but You. I choose now to rest in You, Jesus, because You are good and Your mercy endures forever. Amen.

 

Judgment call

Matthew 7:1-2
1 “Judge not, that you be not judged. 2 For with what judgment you judge, you will be judged; and with the measure you use, it will be measured back to you.

Judgment really walks a slippery slope. There is a fine line between testing someone’s fruit and judging them. We cannot know what God is doing in someone else’s life. We can only know what He is doing in our own. There are the non-negotiable, of course. The put God first, don’t murder, don’t steal… but when things aren’t so obvious, what then?

What about when we have a revelation or we get a little bit more of God’s awesomeness invested into our spirits? I know my first reaction is to ponder it for a little while and then go and tell everyone I know what it is I’ve just learned. What it is that God has just highlighted to me. I know that I’ve come to really anticipate His discipline and His correction. I’ve grown to desire His conviction. I can recognize His conviction. It is gentle and it is loving. It is both the hardest and the most welcome thing I can hear. It’s hard because I don’t like to hear that I’ve grieved His Spirit, but it’s welcome because with Him, there is never any condemnation. There is never a case of Him loving me any less. When He shows me something new that I need to either give up or take up, it is a joyous thing because I’m hearing HIS voice!

But let’s get back to judgment, shall we? I know that for me, when God highlights something new, when He increases the light in which I am walking, when He gives me a new level of revelation and understanding in His Word, as soon as that new thing is unlocked, it seems so obvious. “Why didn’t I see that before?” My natural tendency- in temporal, natural matters as well as spiritual ones- is that “if I get it, everyone else should get it too.” That’s why I’m such a horrible trainer. I might be an okay teacher, but as far as training someone to undertake a new task? Oh merciful heavens, that is hard! I have the attitude that says, “I get it, so why can’t you? I learned how to do this new task in four hours… why is it taking you three days? What’s wrong with you?” I’m an excellent learner but that doesn’t translate well when I’m trying to teach someone how to do something.

What does this have to do with judgment? Everything.

“Walk in the light that you know.” That is not a new concept. I’ve heard it for my entire Christian walk. The parable of the talents. Someone who is given much is responsible for much and someone who is given little is responsible for little. Someone who is responsible with the little they have will be given more. I can only gauge my own walk and not someone else’s. When I try to judge someone else by the revelation I have, I am attempting to judge without having all the evidence.

Because GOD is the Righteous Judge, He is the only One who has the right to judge. (like that? I came up with that all on my own.) Think about a judge- an earthly judge- for a moment. His (or her) job is to reach a verdict based upon the evidence with which he (or she) is presented. Well, any one person’s walk is full of evidence available only to One Judge. That isn’t us.

I’m not saying we can’t judge the fruits of someone’s walk or that we are never called to rebuke someone we see on a slippery slope. That is part of being a Jesus follower- helping other Jesus followers stay on the right path and giving a heads up when we see something going down that doesn’t line up with Scripture.

But judging another? Expecting another to walk in the same revelation we have without knowing if they have it? That’s a sticky wicket that I don’t want to be caught in. Because: if the measure that I use to judge another is the measure that God will use to judge me, well, I don’t want to judge.

If my measure of judgment is to judge another believer by the light and revelation I have, that is the measure that God will use to judge me. Meaning, He will judge me by the light and revelation HE has. Guess what: He has ALL the light and ALL the revelation. If I am holding someone accountable to my revelation, God is going to hold me accountable to HIS revelation. Can I ever achieve anything when those are my standards? Not in a million years. Kind of makes me think twice about making snap judgments about people. I want God to be understanding to me with my weakness and my failings and my struggles so it makes sense that I should be understanding to others. To be ready with a word of encouragement rather than criticism. To be ready to stand firm on Truth but not to make judgment calls about the state of someone’s soul or their ultimate destination. Because truly, only God knows that.

I will continue to stand for truth. I will continue to stand for justice. I’m kind of like Superman that way. I will continue to stand for righteousness and holiness. I will continue to speak for doctrines that line up with scripture and speak against doctrines that do not. I will continue to pray for wisdom and revelation to be released in my family, my friends, my church, my country, my government and my world. But I will not judge. Lord, help me not to judge.

 

Punked…skunked…sent up a tree.

My eldest has inherited my fearless tendencies.   (That sentence was meant to be sarcastic- just in case there was any doubt.)  Several years ago, I fearlessly rescued my upstairs neighbor from a sleeping bat which was minding its own business on a wall in the hallway.  After successfully tossing it outside to its freedom, I sauntered back to retrieve my  ten month old baby Zoe. (the neighbor was holding her) As I took her in my arms, I turned and saw what I thought to be a spider.  I jumped down the entire flight of stairs only to discover it was only a mosquito hawk.

Zoe, now six and a half, is following in my footsteps.  She and Abigail were playing outside when I, standing inside the house, heard a most horrific shriek emanating from the backyard.  I dashed to the bathroom (which had an open window that looks into the backyard) to find Zoe screaming and running to the back corner of the yard.  She climbed the redbud tree and stayed there, crying.  I asked her what was going on.

“I saw a SKUNK!”

Okay… a skunk.  I suppose it is possible, but since Abigail didn’t seem all that concerned, I wasn’t all that concerned either.  I turned to leave when Zoe screamed again,

“NO ABIGAIL!  DON’T GO THERE!  YOU’RE GOING TO GET SPRAYED!”

Still in the tree, mind you.  Screaming from in the tree.  Abigail was just standing there looking perplexed.  When Zoe refused to calm down, I came to the reluctant conclusion that I was going to have to intervene (which meant distracting Madeline who really wanted to go outside with her sisters but hadn’t wanted to stay outside once she was out.)  I found my sandals and made my way to the door.

I opened the door and looked around.  Nary a skunk to be found.  Abigail still standing in the yard looking perplexed…Zoe still in the tree freaking out.

“Where did you see a skunk?”  I asked.
“Right there in front of the door!”
“What was the skunk doing?” I asked.
“Just sitting there!  I saw something that was black and white!”

I reached down and picked up the “skunk.”  It was a hobby horse.  You know, a plush black and white horsehead on a stick so kids can pretend they’re riding?  Yeah, that.  More than likely, it had been left in front of the door by Zoe herself.  I lifted it into the air.  Zoe screamed again.

“Is this your skunk?”  I asked.
“Yes.”  She said.  “I thought it was a skunk.”  It still took some doing to get her out of the tree.

Imagine that… treed by an inanimate object.  I guess it’s not so different than being forced to jump down a flight of stairs while holding a ten month old baby by a mosquito hawk disguising itself as a spider.