He’s Not Our Kid!

            Former Virginia governor and U.S. Senator, George Allen, tells a funny story that illustrates the competitive spirit of his father, for whom he was named. Coach George Allen coached the Los Angeles Rams and Washington Redskins during the 60s and 70s.

            Once, when Allen was coaching the Redskins, they were playing the Philadelphia Eagles in Philadelphia. One of the officials made a terrible call against the Redskins, and the entire Washington bench protested.

            It just so happened that Bruce Allen, the coach's son, was on the sideline that day working as a ball boy. Bruce began screaming at the referee informing him of just how bad a job he was doing. The referee, none too pleased, informed Coach Allen that Washington would receive an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty if “that kid” didn’t shut up.

            Apprehensive that he would receive a penalty, Allen told the official, “That kid is not with us. He must be one those ball boys the Eagles gave us.” Evidently, the line judge accepted that explanation, because he did not call a penalty on the Redskins.

            Now, I doubt if Allen would have ultimately renounced his son, but that humorous story lends itself to ponder the troubling thing that Jesus said to his disciples, “51 Do you think that I came to bring peace to earth? No indeed! I came to make people choose sides. 52 A family of five will be divided, with two of them against the other three. 53 Fathers and sons will turn against one another, and mothers and daughters will do the same. Mothers-in-law and daughters-in-law will also turn against each other” (Luke 12:51-53 CEV.)

            Wow! If the gospel writers had not recorded what Jesus said, it would be easy to place him in a box and package him in an innocuous way that would cause the whole world to love him.

            Strangely enough, God has always seemed more concerned with having himself expressed through the venue of truth rather than of good marketing. 

A Stitch for Time

            Horace Porter, served as General Grant’s secretary during the Civil War. Before the epic Battle of Cold Harbor, he noticed an interesting occurrence: many of the northern troops were sewing their clothes before battle. That seemed strange, so he decided to investigate.

            What he discovered was this, "... upon closer examination it was found that the men were calmly writing their names and home addresses on slips of paper, and pinning them on the backs of their coats, so that their dead bodies might be recognized upon the field, and their fate made known to their families at home."

         Some later read Porter's report and interpreted it as a sign of bad morale. Porter disagreed, "They were veterans who knew well from terrible experience the danger which awaited them…. Their minds were occupied not with thoughts of shirking their duty, but with preparation for the desperate work of the coming morning. Such courage is more than heroic – it is sublime."

            I think disciples of the Lord Jesus should maintain a similar attitude. Jesus, in Luke 9:23, tells us, “If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me.”

            Crosses are for killing. We should all be prepared to die in the service of the King. Even if we do not die physically, we shall surely die to self.

            There are things more important than our own lives.

Story source: H. W. Brands The Man Who Saved the Union 

The Mighty Mesquite

            When I lived in West Texas, I hated Mesquite trees. For one thing, I was allergic to them. For another, I thought they were ugly!

            Having said that, James Dobson helped me appreciate one quality about them. He compared them to a tree in the rain forest.

            A typical tree in the rain forest has an easy life. Water is always available. Consequently, the tree does not have to grow roots very deep. Unfortunately for the tree, a mild storm can blow it over to its death.

            On the other hand, a West Texas Mesquite tree is lodged in that region’s dry and unwelcoming land. The adversity leads the Mesquite to drive its roots at least thirty feet down into the soil on a water finding mission. As a result, the most terrible winds of West Texas cannot force the tree to topple. It is anchored to the ground. Adverse conditions actually energize the tree to create a strong survival mechanism.

            Perhaps that is one reason God allows us to face adversity. Mull over what our brother James wrote, “Consider it a sheer gift, friends, when tests and challenges come at you from all sides. You know that under pressure, your faith-life is forced into the open and shows its true colors. So don’t try to get out of anything prematurely. Let it do its work so you become mature and well-developed, not deficient in any way (James 1:2-4 THE MESSAGE.)

            Nothing like hard times to help us grow deeply rooted in Jesus.

  

Source: James Dobson, When God Doesn’t Make Sense

Where Is Your Heart?

            An old commentary carries the story of a soldier of Napoleon’s army who was wounded one day by a bullet that entered his breast above his heart. As the surgeon probed for the bullet the soldier exclaimed, “An inch deeper and you will find the emperor.”

            Were your heart laid open, would Christ be found there?

Gandhi's 7 Deadly Sins

Years ago, I was fascinated to come across Gandhi's list of 7 deadly sins. They were:

1. wealth without work

2. pleasure without conscience

3. knowledge without character

4. business without morality

5. science without humanity

6. worship without sacrifice

7. politics without principle.

            That seems pretty accurate to me.

            What’s on your list?

            

Who Owns Who?

            Several years ago, I read that one of Babe Ruth's bats sold for $63,000. Now, you can buy a good bat for quite a bit less, so what makes this one different? The owner.

            If you are a Christian, you are owned by Jesus Christ. That's why you have  special value as a human being. You are the salt of the earth and the light of the world.

            This is also a reason fellowship with other Christians is so important. They, too, are owned by Jesus.

            In a letter emphasizing the community of Christ, Paul writes, “19 Do you not know that your bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own; 20 you were bought at a price. Therefore honor God with your bodies”(I Cor. 6:19-20.) NIV

I Only Have Eyes for You

            Years ago, I heard a preacher tell about the ancient emperor, Cyrus, who systematically plowed through city states, territories, and countries—capturing the land and creating an empire.

            Legend has it that after Cyrus had conquered yet another Kingdom, soldiers brought him a defeated Ruler. With the Ruler was his frightened family.         

            Cyrus was known to test those whom he conquered. Hence, he asked the Prince, “What would you give me for your life?”

            “I would give you up to half of my kingdom,” the Ruler replied,

            Cyrus asked, “What would you give me for the lives of your children?”

            “I would offer you my entire kingdom and everything I have,” answered the Ruler.

            Cyrus saw a beautiful woman standing beside the Ruler, and he perceived it was his wife, so he asked, “What would you give me for the life of your wife?”

            The Ruler responded, “Then, Sir, I would offer you my very life itself.”

            This answer made an impression upon Cyrus. He decided to spare the family, including the Ruler, and he gave them their own plot of land to live on.

            Later, reflecting on the events, the Ruler spoke of Cyrus and said to his wife, “That Cyrus was a handsome man.”

            The wife quickly countered, “I would not know. For I could not take my eyes off of you.”

            There is something special about a bride who loves and admires her groom so much, she cannot take her eyes off of him. There is also something special about a groom who loves his bride so much that he would willingly give his life for her.

            In Jesus, we as the bride of Christ have a groom, who has willingly given up his life for us. Let us therefore fix our eyes upon Him.

Walking the Talk

            In youth minister’s Tony Tucker’s bulletin article, I read that the Christian band dc Talk wrote the following lyrics in one of their songs, “The greatest single cause of atheism in the world today is Christians who acknowledge Jesus with their lips often walk out the door and deny him by their lifestyle. That is what an unbelieving world simply finds unbelievable.”

            Wow! What a challenge to live lives consistent with the teachings of Jesus.

            The Apostle Paul talked about the same challenge when he wrote to the Thessalonians that Christians should embody the gospel they proclaim. Easier said than done!

Modern Art

           An old story tells about Liz, who goes to her first show at an art gallery and is looking at the paintings. One is a huge canvas that has black with yellow blobs of paint splattered all over it. The next painting is a murky gray color that has drips of purple paint streaked across it.

            Liz walks over to the artist and says, “I don't understand your paintings.”

            “I paint what I feel inside me,” explains the artist.            

            “Have you ever tried Alka-Seltzer?”

            Paul was pleased with the young Christians in Thessalonica, who clearly had the Spirit of God living inside of them. This was evidenced by the lives they lived among the people of their region. That lifestyle in turn created listening ears on those outside the body of Christ.

            What is on our inside impacts what is on our outside. With the Holy Spirit living inside of us, we should have something beautiful come out.

“How Many Times”

            A tomcat and a tabby cat were courting on a back fence at night.

            The tom leaned over to the tabby with pent up passion and purred..."I'll die for you!"

            The tabby gazed at him from under lowered eye lids and asked, "How many times?"

            Jesus asked us to die to ourselves, everyday: 23 Then he said to them all: “Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross daily and follow me. 24 For whoever wants to save their life will lose it, but whoever loses their life for me will save it.

Loving Confrontation

            George Guthrie writes of an experience that made an impact on his life. Sue, a young lady in his singles’ group, confronted him with news he probably did not wish to hear. Here is how he tells the story:

            One day [Sue] approached me–I was serving as head of the singles' Council at the time–and requested we talked privately for a few minutes. Being single, young man I was thrilled at the opportunity; but talk had nothing to with counsel business or romance.

            Sue started by thanking me for the job I was doing in leading the group and said she deeply respected my walk with the Lord. Then she said, “I want to share with you what seems to be a weakness in your life. You are so busy and move so fast from one project or person to another you often lose eye contact with people. By being distracted, failing to maintain eye contact and looking away from a person, you communicate that the person and what they are saying are not important to you at that moment.”

            Sue went on to give examples, showing that the problem, rather than an isolated incident, had a pattern. She also told me about a godly missionary she had known while serving overseas in a journeyman program. This man, with the weight of his vast mission responsibilities on his shoulders, had never failed to stop and listen intently when Sue needed to talk. He had given her “the gift of his presence.”

            Sue's rebuke was painful but much needed. That encounter, which happened over a decade ago, has made a lasting impression on me. To this day if I am in conversation with a person and my attention begins to falter, Sue’s exhortation comes to mind. I challenge myself, “focus, George. Your full attention.” I still struggle with that focus, but that sister in Christ, who risked being misunderstood and becoming the object of my defensiveness, has by her truth telling had an impact on the way I relate to others.

            I can think of no other example of loving confrontation: speaking the truth in love, and then the listener hearing the truth in love, and doing something about it.

Source: HEBREWS NIV APPLICATION COMMENTARY ON HEBREWS by George H. Guthrie

So You Had a Bad Day

            New year off to a bad start? Maybe the following experiences (according to various traditions) of ten of the original twelve disciples will make you feel better:

What Became of the Apostles?

              1. Judas Iscariot, after betraying his Lord, hanged himself.

              2. John died an old man in Ephesus.

              3. Peter was crucified, head downward, during the persecution of

                   Nero.

              4. Andrew died on a cross at Patrae, in Achaia, a Grecian Colony.

              5. James, son of Alpheus, was thrown from a pinnacle of the Temple, and then                                 beaten to death with a club.

              6. James, the elder son of Zebedee, was beheaded at Jerusalem.

              7. Thomas, the Doubter, was martyred in India, by a lance.

              8. Philip was martyred (some ancient sources recorded he was hanged on a                                  pillar) at Hierapolis (now Turkey).

              9. Thaddeus was martyred in Persia.

            10. Matthew was martyred in Ethiopia.

            Again, I emphasize these are not nailed-down facts. Still, I feel confident a thread of truth runs through these stories to reveal to us that being an original disciple of Jesus was not easy.

Go For the Gold!

          [From December 26, 2011 through January 1, 2012, I'm going to be running some of my top viewed posts for 2011. I hope you enjoy these once again--or for the first time. ME]
           We don’t know who the source is of this story; hence, it may be legend. So let’s listen to it as a parable and apply it to mentoring.

            Over a century ago, Andrew Carnegie was the wealthiest man in America. He came to America from his native Scotland, when he was a small boy, performed a variety of odd jobs, and eventually ended up as the largest steel manufacturer in the United States.

            At one time, he had forty-three millionaires working for him. In those days a millionaire was a rare person; conservatively speaking, a million dollars in his day would be equivalent to over twenty million dollars today.

            A reporter asked Carnegie how he had hired forty-three millionaires.

            Carnegie responded that those men had not been millionaires when they started working for him. They had become millionaires as a result of working for him.

            The reporter's next question was, "How did you develop these men to become so valuable to you that you have paid them this much money?"

            Carnegie replied that men are developed the same way gold is mined. When gold is mined, several tons of dirt must be moved to get an ounce of gold; but one doesn't go into the mine looking for dirt - one goes in looking for the gold.

            That's exactly the way Christian leaders need to view people. Don't look for the flaws, warts, and blemishes. Look for the gold, not for the dirt; the good, not the bad.

            When we achieve this, we can truly cultivate a culture in our churches where equipping disciples can occur.

Fixing Your Eyes

            Calvin Partain recounted a good story from the farming years of his youth that helps us in our walk with Jesus:

             In the cotton farming country around Lamesa, Texas, where I grew up, the land was flat and the cotton rows often where as straight as an arrow. I asked a farmer how he made the rows so straight. He said, "When I plow a new role I fix my eyes on an object at the far end of the field and never look back. You can't plow looking back.

1 Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, 2 fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith. For the joy set before him he endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God (HEB. 12:1-2.) NIV 1984

Source- PROCLAIM … Oct-Dec 1995.

Must You Live?

            The great British author and linguist Dr. Samuel Johnson once rebuked a man for engaging in a shady business. The man replied, “You know, doctor, that I must live.”

            Dr. Johnson answered, “[I do] not see the least necessity for that.”

            Dr. Johnson was channeling Jesus, “For whoever wants to save their life will lose it, but whoever loses their life for me will save it.”

Source: Edmund Fuller

The Coal Miner and the Disbelieving Sons

            5-6 For the second test the Devil took him to the Holy City. He sat him on top of the Temple and said, "Since you are God's Son, jump." The Devil goaded him by quoting Psalm 91: "He has placed you in the care of an gels. They will catch you so that you won't so much as stub your toe on a stone."

 7Jesus countered with another citation from Deuteronomy: "Don't you dare test the Lord your God" (Mt. 4:5-7.) THE MESSAGE

            The story was told years ago of a coal miner who was devoutly religious. Some acquaintances chided him because he had not successfully passed along his faith to his three sons.

            He defended himself with these words, “I tell them to pray, and they don’t pray. I tell them again to pray, and they don’t pray. I knock them down, and they don’t pray.”

            Phillip Yancey writes that Jesus never coerced belief. Jesus never seduced belief.

            Jesus cherished the freedom of each individual to freely choose to follow Him. We don’t have to take people’s choices personally.

            Unbelief is not so much a sin against us; it is a sin against God.

A Free Appendectomy!

            Many years ago, a contest was held in West Virginia to name a new county hospital. First prize was a free appendectomy… a great prize—if one needed to remove an appendix.

            Jesus was a servant, who met the needs of people. We Christians follow in the steps of Jesus. However, let us remember, our service is not much help if we are not meeting a NEED.

The Throne Room

            When I was in college, I remember hearing a speaker tell a story about the first time a certain pope came to the U.S. Customarily, a pope’s visits would include calls upon cardinals in some of the dioceses.

            Now, in locations in which a cardinal was serving, the Roman Catholic Church maintained a facility containing a throne room. That throne room was to be constantly kept ready so that when the pope visited, he was able to sit on a throne.

            The pope was to visit the cardinal serving in one of America’s great cities. According to lore, the diocese there did not think the pope was ever coming, so they turned the throne room into a committee room. Then word arrived that the pope was coming, and officials could not find the throne.

            The preacher said, “That’s the way it is with me. My heart's a throne room. Or it is supposed to be. It is to be available at all times for Jesus to sit on the throne. Yet, He comes and He can't find that throne, because I'm sitting on it.”

            Remember, Jesus is Lord.

Little Things

                  The date is the early nineties. It was the first game to be played in the new Chicago Stadium. The superstructure built for the 21st century cost $175 million. The first game ever played in the building was a basketball game between the Chicago Bulls and the Utah Jazz.

            As you might imagine, opening night was special. There were dignitaries and special guests. There were fireworks. 

            Finally, the moment arrived for the opening tip-off. The players took their positions on the floor, likewise, the referees. The crowd yelled with anticipation. Everyone was set. There was one minor problem. Someone forgot the basketball.

            The game was delayed for several minutes, while someone left to look for a basketball.

                 Now think about it: a $175 million arena, athletes making millions, 1000s of dollars spent on tickets, 1000s of dollars spent for uniforms…. Everyone-players, refs, coaches, fans, management-was in proper place. And, the game had to be suspended—for a ball.

            Sometimes, it's the little things that count. You can have a basketball game without fans, without a big arena, without players earning big money, without fancy uniforms, but you just can have a basketball game without a ball.

            In Christianity, you can have big, expensive church buildings, you can have sound Biblical doctrine, you can have knockout assemblies, you can have big offerings, but if you don't have a fundamental faith in Christ that is transforming you into His disciple, you cannot have Christianity.

            (Let me err on the side of caution--I may have found this story in an old bulletin article back in the nineties. If so, I apologize to the original writer for not giving proper credit.)

Where Is He Going?

Legend has it that the great biblical commentator, Matthew Henry, went to London, as a young man and met a young lady of nobility and wealth. They fell in love. She asked her father if she could marry him. He replied, "He's got no background; you don't know where he's come from."

Her reply? "Yes, I know, but I know where he's going, and I want to go with him." 

I like that. When it comes to making disciples of people (for Jesus), we can easily overlook someone because of where they come from. God sees where they can go.

I Sam. 16:7--But God told Samuel, "Looks aren't everything. Don't be impressed with his looks and stature. I've already eliminated him. God judges persons differently than humans do. Men and women look at the face; God looks into the heart." THE MESSAGE