How Fast or How Well?

Seth: "I'm the new manager."
Jerry: "But you were a bank executive. This is fast food!"
Seth: "Not fast food, good food quickly."

The American experience is a constant trade-in of quality for speed. This issue was recently driven home during my morning workout. The Nike Training App has been my go-to for a while, and I appreciate each exercise is accompanied by video and audio reminders as you progress.

Today's routine included 30-second increments of the "Crab Reach", a move I've done umpteen times. However, a line in the audio immediately changed my approach to this move as well to the remaining sets in my workout:

"Focus on good form over speed"

In my desire to do something good (exercising my body), I'd been emphasizing speed over quality. I emphasized how fast I could perform the move instead of how well I could perform it. 

I think you may see where I'm going with this.

May the favor of the Lord our God rest on us; establish the work of our hands for us-- yes, establish the work of our hands. Psalm 90:17 (NIV)

Psalm 90 is a prayer of Moses, the man working to establish an unstable people. Israel was coming out of Egypt and anxious to settle into their permanent homeland, but Moses fought that mindset. Moses prayer wasn't for a quick build, but a quality build. Throughout the Psalm he uses words like everlasting and steadfast. These are words that are willing to take time with the Lord to do things well.

Are you?  

Whether in our devotional time, family time, or work efforts, we must have a desire for God to establish our work as works of quality. Reading the Bible in a year isn't more valuable than studying the Bible for a year. One advances your reading plan, while the other advances your sanctification (becoming more like Jesus).

There's a lot to do everyday: For God, for others, for yourself. Don't focus on how fast you can accomplish these tasks, but on how well you can do them. You just may find the end of each day is more satisfying than it's ever been. 

OMG...Pardon Me?

I think we're doing that 3rd commandment wrong. 

Like me, you may have grown up in a household that didn't allow for phrases like...

OMG

Jeez

Gosh Darn

For those of you who just survived the PG-13 part of this blog, let's continue. If I may be so bold, I believe the commandment our parents tried to keep us in line with goes much deeper than a word spoken in anger or frustration. 

My seminary president once had the honor of teaching an Old Testament study to a group of rabbis. Afterwards, they repeatedly thanked him for not using the proper name of God, Yahweh, during his teaching. Many Christians who'd been invited to teach had used the name, causing extreme offense to their audience. 

If you've ever noticed in your Bible, the word LORD is often capitalized throughout the Old Testament portions. This is actually a substitution by the Hebrew scribes for the name Yahweh that for them was too holy and special to even be written down. The Jews have always treated God's name with a deep reverence, but it goes far beyond the understanding you may have grown up with. 

How do we use God's name in vain.

1) Profanity. Ok, so let's get this out of the way. If you're using the English expression for God as a curse word, then you clearly are speaking it vainly. However, for those with no relationship with Him, "God" is simply a word. We need to be careful about demanding lost people use the name of God properly. Lost people gonna lost. 

2) Prayers of Unbelief. James 1:5-7 says that when we pray we should do so, "...in faith with no doubting, for the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea that is driven and tossed by the wind. For that person must not suppose that he will receive anything from the Lord" What is the issue with this prayer? It called upon God in vain, doubting His ability. We recognize God may answer differently from our preference, but in faith we pray trusting He will answer. 

3) False Oaths. Some people "swear to God" in proving their sincerity, mainly because they've been found insincere in the past. Numerous people swear before God to love "until death do us part", but step away long before. James 5:12 challenges us, "Above all, my brothers and sisters, do not swear--not by heaven or by earth or by anything else. All you need to say is a simple "Yes" or "No."

So now what?

Obviously, we just say OMG all we want....NOT! My purpose isn't to be flippant about our attempts at honoring God, but to simply think a bit deeper on how we go about it. Idol worship in America looks differently than it did in biblical times, but we have recognized how to think deeper on the temptation to idolize fame, fortune, etc. 

In the same way, let's approach the name of God our Father and Friend with the complete reverence He deserves. Using the name of God with purpose in front of our kids or co-workers will speak louder than simply avoiding random utterances of His name at all. 

Presently Absent

"I take shame to myself for my unprofitable attendance"
-Valley of Vision

Teacher: Susan?
Susan: Here.
Teacher: Billy?
Billy: PRESENT!!!!

Everyone had a Billy in their class...physically present, but mentally absent. Many of us nabbed a perfect attendance award sometime during our school years, but those awards said nothing of our effort. When you're six, Mom's gonna put you on the bus every chance she gets!

Whether kids or adults, we have all been presently absent at some point. We might get credit from others for being in class, at work, or even in church. But are we getting any credit in Heaven?

Work willingly at whatever you do, as though you were working for the Lord rather than for people. Col 3:23 (NLT)

God doesn't tell us to work. He tells us to work well! Christians are placed as ambassadors to a watching world. Sometimes those watchers are less evident than at other times, which is why we must always work as though we're doing it for God rather than people.

Where are you present physically yet mentally absent?

• Your job is paying you, but your extended breaks and slack hands rob your employer.
• Your teacher invests their expertise in you, but you ignore their wisdom and preparation.
• Your church prepares a worship environment for you, but you fail to prepare spiritually

God's not handing out attendance awards. God rewards diligent hearts that fully invest themselves in whatever they're doing. If you have to be there, why not put in your best effort to glorify your Father in Heaven?

The Responsibility of Readiness

Our community has endured an incredibly tough run the last few weeks. Two of our local schools had students who made threats against the safety of their fellow students. Then we were further shaken by the horrific loss of two teenage brothers at the hands of their own father.

I’ve spent a lot of time around one of those schools in support, and noticed various encouraging messages like this one all over the building.

Other local schools followed suit, encouraging students to look for opportunities to stand ready for moments of support to outcast and downcast classmates. I’m inspired to see these administrators, teachers, and students respond positively to such tragedy.

I'm hopeful that this response to tragedy will remain in the future.
I'm hopeful also that Christians will assume greater responsibility to be pre-tragedy. 

We don’t need more nice people at school. We need more ambassadors for Christ at school.

We don’t need school-sanctioned prayer, but student-sparked prayer by students for students.

The world will remain sick with sin until the eternal reign of Jesus, so Christians have a responsibility of readiness. When faith in Christ is displayed prominently, our focus moves from arguing issues to sharing Jesus. As my evangelism professor said in seminary, "You'll never argue anyone into the kingdom of Heaven."

Are you available to the lonely person at school, work, or even church? It's more comfortable to stick with your clique, but our responsibility as Christians calls us to a higher standard.

So don't cast anyone away! When we see the outcast and downcast, let our hearts and minds be prepared to gather in and lift up! Not everyone will come to a full or immediate acceptance of Jesus, but when Christians live kindness, we reveal the hope of Jesus to people who have bought Satan's hopeless lies.

Biblical Racism

I wonder if I would have owned slaves?

American Christianity today cries loudly against slavery, but the voices were muted in the earlier days of our nation. Many pastors, like Richard Fuller, used the Bible to justify the enslavement of blacks by white Christians, who themselves had been freed from the chains of sin by Jesus.

Of course I find black slavery and Jim Crow laws reprehensible today...but what if I had lived back then?

Recently I watched the Jackie Robinson biopic "42". Film critic Richard Roeper's called it an "unexceptional film about a most extraordinary man." Having read many firsthand accounts of Robinson's life, I would agree. However, one scene left me very unsettled. A young white boy sits next to his father who, upon seeing Robinson take the field, begins using that most infamous of black insults. The boy is initially rattled by his father's behavior, but soon emulates it and I wondered, "Would I have been that boy?"

This settles me on a hypothesis for Christians: When we fail to base our personal convictions on the basis of scripture, we form them on the basis of man. Today, we read scripture in light of our society where slavery isn't the norm. 18th century Christians read scripture in a different society and allowed what was normal to overwhelm what was true. 

I suppose it's possible I could have found myself justifying slavery and oppression of black men, women, and children while quoting scriptures. But perhaps I would have read scripture for myself and come to a different conclusion.

Like Wilberforce, whose conversion to Christianity led him to fight diligently for abolition.
Like the Quakers whose movement made slavery a central topic of discussion in Christianity.
Like Francis Wayland, the Brown University president who directly opposed the claims of Pastor Fuller.

Why did I write this? Mainly because I don't want us to take our beliefs for granted. Are your beliefs about the sanctity and value of human life based on biblical convictions or human teachings? Even if the teachings are true, responsible Christians must take the time to understand these truths themselves. Do not merely adopt the beliefs of those who seem trustworthy, but dig and discover the truth of God from the Word of God.

Christians are confronted with an ever-changing society, and it's critical that we be diligent disciples of God's never-changing Word. Finally, Here is an excellent article that more clearly details how Fuller and Wayland, each using scripture, reached their positions.  I highly recommend you take a few minutes to read it. 

I Should Probably Come Up With a Title

I hate titling sermons. Some churches have creative teams that assist the pastor in creating a sermon title or series that will attract hearers...

Comeback!
Overcoming the Storms of Life!
Seven Secrets to Sabotage Selfishness!

I think creating themes like this is smart and fits the old adage,
"If you can't describe your sermon/speech/essay in one sentence, you did it wrong."

So why do I struggle with sermon titles? I can generally summarize each of them with a sentence, so it seems like the title would come pretty easily. However, truth is a deep well. People can drink of it, and be impacted in different ways. I can preach a message on financial stewardship and instead see someone walk past their past in an unrelated area of sin, pleading for Jesus to save them (true story).

Peter, Paul, and even Jesus didn't title their sermons. We did it for them, trying to provide a summary of each section of each chapter of the Bible. Have you ever read one of those subheadings like "Jesus Feeds the Five Thousand" and realized His feeding of the multitude wasn't the point?
SPOILER ALERT: The point was 12 weak-faithed disciples had to pick up, hold, and stare into 12 baskets of leftovers. The miracle wasn't to feed hungry people, but to feed the faith of these future missionaries/pastors/church planters.

Preacher: Next time you write a sermon, don't become so focused on a theme or title that you dry up the various truths that tend to leak out around the edges and speak to people in profound ways! Don't focus on how another pastor does it. Focus on how God has called YOU to do it.

Hearer: Next time you sit to listen to a message, don't presume the sermon title is all God may potentially want to talk with you about.

Why Anti-Bullying Doesn't Work

My parents used to dip my fingers in jalapeno juice. 

Why was I subjected to such cruel and unusual punishment? Because I wouldn't stop biting my fingernails, leaving my fingers looking awful. At first the burning was a pretty strong deterrent, but still didn't stop me from this poor habit. A guitar did. 

If you've never played guitar, that highest E string is pretty thin. This becomes very apparent when you're biting your nails very short and the string jams between the nail and the skin, as happened to me during a worship set one morning at church!

(Dramatic re-enactment)

That was it. I resolved to stop biting my nails to improve the appearance of my hands, and allow me to play guitar pain-free. It's been 7 years and I haven't gone back to it since. So what made the change? I needed a reason to stop. Telling me it was bad wasn't nearly as impactful as gaining a real understanding of why I should quit. 

Which takes me to the subject of bullying. If you haven't seen the heart-wrenching video of Keaton Jones sharing his experience of being bullied at school, you should.

As I watched, I began to ask, "Why aren't the anti-bullying campaigns working?" Clearly because kids don't have a reason to. Bullying isn't overcome without a strong reason why, and saying, "It's wrong" clearly isn't enough.

We have to make our kids pro-people.

The strong reason is this: every person is a creation of God (Gen 1:26). He has built them with value, worth, and an eternal soul. When someone is bullied, the very creation of God is mocked. Sadly, Christians in my elementary school were some of the harshest bullies I faced. Imagine if instead of making fun of my cheap clothes they had talked to me about treasures in Heaven! Think of how my life could have been changed earlier with knowledge of a God who loved me. Loving Christians could have made such a positive impact!

I want to see an end to bullying. But instead of focusing on anti-bullying, teach your kids to be pro-people! Remind them that every person has been made in the image of God. God has placed many types of people in our circle of influence so we can love them and learn from them. I know this has motivated me to a fresh conversation with my own kids today.