Think About It

          The other day I was listening to a sermon on the life and times of Naaman when a modern-day issue struck me.  Most of us are familiar with the story – Naaman was infected with leprosy and was cleansed when he washed himself in the Jordan River.  Now, while this is an incredible story, it is something else that jumped out to me.  Before Naaman ever went to the Jordan he was told of an opportunity for help in Israel.  Naaman sent a letter to the Israel’s king seeking cure, but the king had no idea how he could help, in fact he became frightened, “ When the king of Israel read the letter, he tore his clothes and said, ‘Am I God, to kill and to make alive, that this man is sending word to me to cure a man of his leprosy? But consider now, and see how he is seeking a quarrel against me.’” (II Kings 5:7).  You see, it was the prophet Elisha, not the king who had the answer to the problem.  When Elisha heard ...

Over the last several months we have visited a lot about being socially involved.   We have discussed things such as taking care of the widows and orphans as well as helping those who might be homeless or indigent.   I am a firm believer in our need to respond to these needs on a community level, but there is something else that needs to be discussed when it comes to those needing help.   Yes, we should be there for them, but we must also be willing to work with them to help them to become personally independent.   No, we may not know the circumstances of all the people we are called to help, but we will know the backgrounds of some folks – and when we do, we should consider if they need a hand out or a hand up.   Do they need us to take on their responsibilities for them or do they need us to teach them what they need to do, then encourage them to do it for themselves?   I believe the modern terminology for this centers around the concept of “enabling”, b...

          I believe that we often make things more difficult than they need to be.   This is especially true when it comes to religion.   Could it be that we have over-analyzed things to death over the last two thousand years?   What would happen if we returned to the basics of Bible-based principles?   Take, for example, the process of salvation.   When we go back to the beginnings of the Christian church we find a pattern for the forgiveness of sins.   The New Testament seems to highlight the process when, after the Apostle Peter preached a powerful sermon in Jerusalem, “ Now when they heard this, they were pierced to the heart, and said to Peter and the rest of the apostles, ‘Brethren, what shall we do?’   Peter said to them, ‘Repent, and each of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins; and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.’” (Act...

          It is hard to believe it was forty years ago that I sat in those teenaged devotionals back in south Florida and west Texas.  It seems like it was only yesterday that we sat around in people’s homes or around a campfire and sang what we called “devo songs”.  (I also have a hard time believing that those songs have become “traditional Christian music” that the younger generations view as being archaic.  Wow, I guess I am old!)            Last Sunday morning we sang one of these songs in our worship service, “They Will Know We Are Christians By Our Love”.  Not only did it give me a ride in the way-back machine, it got me to thinking about things from my modern perspective.  One verse that got me to thinking was, “We will work with each other, we will work side by side - we will work with each other, we will work side by side – and we’ll guard each one’s dignity and save each oth...

          In yesterday’s blog I mentioned the need to take our Christianity seriously.  We have to be people committed to our religion, not just someone who “identifies” with Christianity because of culture or familiarity.  With this in mind, it is important to understand something else about true Christianity – it is about how we live day-in-and-day-out.  Christianity is not just a name, nor is it merely something we do on the weekends, it is who we are every day.           The reason for this observation is something I read a couple days ago, “ But whoever has the world’s goods, and sees his brother in need and closes his heart against him, how does the love of God abide in him?   Little children, let us not love with word or with tongue, but in deed and truth.” (I John 3:17-18).  As the Apostle John was teaching the early Christians about their spiritual walk, he...

In his book, “Christians In The Age Of Outrage”, Ed Stetzer considers the influence Christians have in the world by taking a look at how Christians live their lives.  As a part of the book, Stetzer sets out to describe various types of “Christians” in the modern world.  Among his categories of Christians are: 1.  Cultural Christians – Some people self-identify as Christians because were born in a historically Christian country and they really don’t fit in any of the other major religious groups. 2.  Congregational Christians – These people may not have a vibrant faith, but they retain some connection to a congregation (a Christian home church).  They typically attend this church during the more “religious” times of year or for the occasional wedding or funeral. 3.  Convictional Christians – These folks readily identify as Christians and are decidedly more religious than the other sub-categories.  They are more likely to go to church regularly...

          If there ever was a friend of the service personnel of the United States military, it was probably Bob Hope.   For decades the comedian entertained American troops by taking his star-studded shows out to the world’s battlefields.   When I was growing up, I couldn’t wait to watch his Christmas shows from places like Vietnam, but as excited as I was to see him, I can’t imagine what it meant to those troops on the frontlines.   The other day I came across a quote from Hope’s book, “I Never Left Home” that noted, “I saw your sons and your husbands, your brothers and your sweethearts. I saw how they worked, played, fought, and lived. I saw some of them die. I saw more courage, more good humor in the face of discomfort, more love in an era of hate, and more devotion to duty than could exist under tyranny.”             As I thought about Bob Hope’s description of the Amer...