Think About It

Have you noticed that our nation has spent a lot of time over the last few years defining who could get married, but not discussing much about how to keep people married? As a lot of people lined up in courtrooms to advocate for civil rights, a lot more people were visiting courtrooms dissolving relationships. Divorce has been a major issue in our nation through the years and it isn’t getting much better! When we discuss the longevity of relationships, I think we need to start at the beginning. The best marriages are those that begin with a committed friendship. Marriage isn’t about pooling resources so that people can buy a house, it is about uniting two lives so that they can become one relationship. It begins by finding someone you like and spending the next several decades figuring out how to love them. Speaking of love, we need to remember that it isn’t merely an advanced from of physical lust, it is an emotional commitment to support and encourage another person – to help...

How do we view God? Do we see Him as some aloof, inapproachable figurehead somewhere out in the great beyond? Do we view Him as the extension of some branch of political thought? Do we see Him as an almighty ogre who is sneaking around trying to catch us doing something wrong? When this is our view, it is understandable why people are afraid to connect with Him. The Bible is filled with several descriptions of God, but one of the most compelling comes from Psalm 100:3, “Know that the Lord Himself is God; it is He who has made us, and not we ourselves; we are His people and the sheep of His pasture.” In this simple description we see that our Heavenly Father is the All-powerful Master of the universe, He is the Creator of the world, and He is the loving caring Shepherd of His creation. There is no way that we can describe God in a world full of books (much less than one verse in one book), but I believe this gives us a place to start. We see God’s majesty and His love. We feel ...

One of the biggest complaints I hear about Christianity is how complex it has become. There are scores (if not hundreds) of Christian-based entities that have produced thousands of individual organizations and churches. There are various degrees of thought that span the spectrum from being ultra-conservative to progressively liberal. (By the way, these labels mean different things to different people, so you have to establish the groundrules for the discussion before launching it.) It goes without saying that if “we” can’t come up with an agreed-up position, how can others understand us? So, how can we make Christianity more simple and understandable? 1. We must take the time to understand the parameters of what is Christian and what isn’t. Are we using Christian as a biblical, political or social term? We will only be able to understand the discussion when we define the terms we use. 2. We must establish the foundation for the Christianity. There has to be one ultimate au...

One of the challenges of growing up is the desire to be independent combined with an understanding of the need to ask others for help. Early in life, we can’t wait to grown-up enough to do things by ourselves. Everything from tying our shoes to walking ourselves to school to choosing our own wardrobe is part of the process of becoming our own person. However, with maturity comes an understanding that we can’t do everything by ourselves – nor do we have to do everything on our own. In fact, allowing others to help us can produce better results and coopering together can be fun. As I thought about this process of human development, I also got to thinking about how it applies to our spiritual lives. The Bible tells us, “So then, my beloved, just as you have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your salvation with fear and trembling …” (Philippians 2:12); but it also says, “Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; k...

Can you imagine the uproar if our nation’s economy crashed? Now before we move on, I am not a doomsayer; nor am I convinced that our economy is going to go down the tubes – all I am doing is asking you to play along with me for a little bit. What if our economy tanked? I believe the first thing we would do is scramble to see what needs to be done to rectify the situation; but I believe that the “blame game” would follow close behind it. Not only would we seek to identify who was to blame, we would also be wondering who knew and who should have known! The reason I bring this up is not for a lesson in economics, rather my concern is the moral condition of our nation. Folks, we are struggling with morals and values today and, while we need to be working to rectify where we are, we need to be taking a good hard look at how we got here. Who knew (and should have known) that we were heading down this path – and maybe, more importantly, did we do anything to correct it? It is easy t...

While I am convinced that the wisest man to have ever lived is Solomon (that was God’s gift to him) there have been others along the way to have gathered some wisdom and insight as well. One of the ones that often makes the list of sages is Socrates, the Greek philosopher who lived some 2500 years ago. The list of Socrates observations is much longer than this blog allows, but one gem I recently discovered was, “To find yourself, think for yourself.”. I am well aware of the frailty of manmade thought and the danger of human logic; however, I like this principle as it applies to a willingness to take the initiative to think for ourselves. Throughout my lifetime I have been reminded of the need to think for yourself. My Mom would caution me about merely going along with the crowd that is prevalent in adolescence; yet, we don’t always outgrow it. It is easy to get sucked into popular propaganda and end up in an adult version of follow-the-leader. (I believe this is currently being...

Have you ever heard the saying, “Give someone the benefit of the doubt”? This is an oldy, but a goody. (Other quips might be “cutting someone some slack” or “seeing the best in them”.) I don’t know that we hear these quips all that much anymore these days – and society may practice them even less. Typically, when we assess the activities of others, we are apt to critique them by supposing the worst. When we look at their actions and decisions, we often assume that their intent was devious and their motives were nefarious. In other words, we don’t give them the benefit of the doubt. While this may be society’s mindset, it shouldn’t be that way with those who profess a belief in Jesus. Jesus told His disciples, “Do not judge so that you will not be judged. For in the way you judge, you will be judged; and by your standard of measure, it will be measured to you.” (Matthew 7:1). James reminds us, “Do not complain, brethren, against one another, so that you yourselves may not be ju...