Bible

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But What About Us?

As I continue to read through Jeremiah, I’m constantly struck by the similarity between the moral state of their nation and of ours. The Israelites were intentionally ignoring God while sacrificing even their children to idols. Instead of seeking holiness through obedience to the Lord who loved them, they were focused on feeding their appetite for power and wealth. Over and over God decried the lack of justice in the land. He sent prophets to warn them, and they mocked God’s word.

Sound familiar?

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Avoiding “Yearbook Christianity”

Have you heard of Yearbook Christianity? I recently heard a speaker describe it, and I admit it really hit home.

What was the first thing you did when you got your high school yearbook? What’s the first thing any of us did? We flipped to the index, if there was one, and located every page where our picture appeared. Then we checked out each photo to see what we looked like. Sound familiar?

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Alliens Among Us?

y2k bugToday is Halloween. While I resolutely avoid anything that smells like evil—demons, mediums, and the like—I’ve always enjoyed the idea of firing up my imagination and dressing up as something fun and interesting.

Past costumes have included Pete and I as two frogs from the plague in Exodus 8), me as an aspen tree infected with Cytospora (a scary costume for a master gardener Halloween party), and our interpretation (see Pete, left) of the Y2K bug (remember those from 1999?)

Aliens_Roswell-NM_LAH_9578-001Last summer Pete and I drove through Roswell, New Mexico—probably the universe’s most famous destination for extraterrestrials on vacation. If the signs around town are any indication, aliens are certainly welcome there! It occurred to me that if aliens want to visit earth, the best time to do it would be on Halloween. Think of all the complements they’d get on their costumes!

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Saul, King of Fear

Saul was one messed up king. That’s my conclusion as I read through 1 Samuel, and it’s easy to see why. He screwed up, royally (sorry). From disobeying God’s specific orders (see 1 Samuel 13 and 15) to years of trying to murder his most valuable and devoted subject, David, he seemed to have a hard time getting anything right. I’ve been wondering why God picked him in the first place.

Chapter 9 explains one possible reason:

Kish had a son named Saul, as handsome a young man as could be found anywhere in Israel, and he was a head taller than anyone else.

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Being a Berean

Are you a Berean? Acts 17:11 reads:

Now the Berean Jews were of more noble character than those in Thessalonica, for they received the message with great eagerness and examined the Scriptures every day to see if what Paul said was true.

When it’s time for the sermon, do you listen with great eagerness? Then, do you read your Bible on your own to see if what they said is true?

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Celebrating Freedom

fireworks_theme_350Today is Independence Day, the day we celebrate the birth of a nation dedicated to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. I’ve been mulling over just what that means, particularly in an age where our liberties seem to be diminished more and more. We read that we’re under surveillance by our own government, we trade our rights for an illusion of safety, and our elected politicians don’t obey the laws they’re sworn to uphold.

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Facebook Spirituality (2)

Last March I posted six “wise sayings” culled from my Facebook friends’ posts. (If you missed that post, you can find it here.) Today I’m going to add another six, and ask the same question—is this God’s wisdom or man’s? If you can’t read the text on the images, click on them to enlarge them.

1555453_658037090906040_722247176_n“I care very little if I am judged by you or by any human court; indeed, I do not even judge myself. My conscience is clear, but that does not make me innocent. It is the Lord who judges me.” (1 Corinthians 4:3-4)

“Am I now trying to win the approval of human beings, or of God? Or am I trying to please people? If I were still trying to please people, I would not be a servant of Christ.” (Galatians 1:10)

“On the contrary, we speak as those approved by God to be entrusted with the gospel. We are not trying to please people but God, who tests our hearts.” (1 Thessalonians 2:4, italics mine)

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Molehills to Die On

What are your core beliefs? If someone asked you to explain what you’re all about—the central convictions that define who you are, what would you tell them?

Our adult Sunday school class was talking about different world views. The speaker explained that as Christians, our world view differs from Muslims, Hindus, humanists, atheists, etc. Then he asked us to list five things we absolutely believe to be true about our faith. He claimed that most people would have trouble making such a list. Of course, with a challenge like that, I pulled out paper and started writing. The more I wrote, the more items I thought of. I soon realized that if I wanted to pay attention in class, I’d have to finish my list at home.

Later that evening I was still working on my list. (I’m kind of one-track like that.) As I finally ran out of Truths I was sure about, I realized that there were still a lot of truths (small “t”) that I believed but knew I could be wrong about. So, I made a list of those, too.

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Where’s the Power?

Visiting a friend’s church recently, the sermon I heard really bothered me. In general, I hate to criticize pastors or their sermons, as I know the they spend a lot of time and effort composing something that they believe to be true and helpful to the congregation, but this one kept replaying in my mind. Maybe writing it all out will help.

The young pastor started off by reading Matthew 11:28, a familiar verse: “Come to me all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.”

Then he asked some good questions: How do we come to Christ? We believe in Christ Jesus, but “where’s the beef?” Where do we get the power to live out the Christian life day to day? How do I hear His voice? How do I get the strength I need?

Stop at this point and consider—how would you answer this question?

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Facebook Spirituality

Are you on Facebook? Like a lot of our friends and family, Pete and I have Facebook accounts. I try hard not to spend too much time watching all the “heartrending” videos, checking out everyone else’s grandkids (ours are cuter), and noting that my photographer acquaintances have recently taken incredible photos and I haven’t because I’m home reading about them on Facebook.

Along with all the political statements, sentimental photos, and check-ins, are a growing number of “wise sayings.” Whatever the topic, someone has created a small graphic with some sort of lovely border or faded photo in the background, highlighting the latest in popular philosophy. They’re shared, and shared, and shared, with comments ranging from “Yup” to “That is so true!” I’m sure you’ve seen them too.

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