Heartfelt Hope from a Happy Pastor

It Makes Sense That Life Makes No Sense

2011-02-14T09:33:00.000-08:00

“How long shall I take counsel in my soul, having sorrow in my heart daily? How long will my enemy be exalted over me?” (Psalm 13:2).

The tag line to this psalm reads, “A Psalm of David,” but it might just as easily have read, “A Psalm of Dewey.”

I rather suspect that you could just as readily attach your name to this psalm as David or me. There is something satisfyingly common about the human experience. Life tends to be the great equalizer. We just aren’t that different from one another.

I point this out because you might find yourself tempted to think, “David was a king. I am not a king. David lived some three thousand years ago, a full millennium BC – before Christ was even born. I am living now, at the front end of the twenty-first century AD. How can I possibly relate to David? What could David possibly say to me? Turns out that he has a lot to say. And we should listen.

The trajectory of David’s troubled and tortured life circumscribes an arc that takes him from the humble beginnings of a shepherd boy to the dizzying heights of leading God’s people and crowing Jerusalem as God’s Holy City, to the downward spiral of a murderous adulterer, to a man hated and hunted by an assortment of enemies including one of his sons. Yes, it’s true that many of David’s problems were self-inflicted, the results of multiple foolish choices that “a man after God’s own heart” should have known better than to make.

Melancholy in temperament and musical in talent, David’s prodigious output of songs formed the nucleus of ancient Israel’s Psalter or hymnal. Read through his psalms and you will find riding an emotional rollercoaster with David at the helm as he zigzags through the whole spectrum of human emotions, questions, and doubts. Psalm 13 is but one example, on with which most everyone of us can readily identify.

As you listen to the agony of his soul as it pours out of David’s pen, ask yourself if you have ever felt like this. I know that I have. You might perhaps be feeling some of these emotions and asking some of these questions even today.

David asks, “O Lord, how long will you forget me? Forever?” Be honest now. Don’t you sometimes wonder if God has forgotten you? I know I have. I seek Him but do not sense Him. I talk to Him, but hear no answer. I pray to Him, yet nothing changes. I am haunted by the fear that (a) the skeptics might be right after all when they say there is no God, or (b) if there is a God, He is so busy running this gigantic Universe of ours that He couldn’t possibly have the time to pay attention to me.

David continues, “How long will you look the other way?” Reading between the lines, it’s not a stretch to suggest that David is wrestling with such questions as, Is God purposely ignoring me? Perhaps He is mad at me or disappointed in me and turns His head away in anger. If He really loves me, He wouldn’t let this happen to me. It’s not fair. It’s not my fault. Sound familiar? It sure does to me.

“How long must I struggle with anguish in my soul, with sorrow in my heart every day?” Here is the heart of the matter. Anguish of soul and unceasing sorrow. Today, most any Primary Care Physician would prescribe for David the latest greatest antidepressant medication coupled with some serious long-term therapy. David sounds downright suicidal. Given his many challenges, we can understand why. Only those of us who have walked a similar dark path can begin to relate to the hopeless despair that drowned David’s soul. Keep in mind, these anguished cries are coming from a man so loved by God that the very first verse of the New Testament identifies God’s only begotten Son as “Jesus Christ, the son of David, the son of Abraham.” Which begs the question, Why should my life be any different than David’s?

“How long will my enemy have the upper hand?” This, for me, is the crux of the issue. Why do the evil doers who ruined some aspect of my life seem to prosper while I am left to suffer?

“Turn and answer me, O Lord my God! Restore the sparkle to my eyes, or I will die. Don’t let my enemies gloat, saying, ‘We have defeated him!’ Don’t let them rejoice at my downfall.” Having gone through this very thing – watching and listening as those who purposely hurt me now gloat over what they have done – I can tell you that there is nothing more painful in all the world to endure.

Ah. But they didn’t get the last word. They never do. Knowing this, David made a choice. So have I. Have you? The choice is this: But I trust in your unfailing love. I will rejoice because you have rescued me. I will sing to the Lord because he is good to me.”

No doubt about it. Just when David’s life seem to be spinning hopelessly out of control – his enemies winning while he was losing – David did something about it. He made a choice – to trust, to rejoice, and to sing. So can we. Because once the dust settles and the situation comes to its final conclusion, we will know once again that “He is good to me.”

All That Glitters is Not Gold!

2010-09-07T08:49:00.000-07:00

“For I was envious of the boastful, when I saw the prosperity of the wicked” (Psalm 73:3).

Asaph had it all. And he nearly threw it all away.

Asaph is anything but a household name. But he boasted quite an impressive résumé: as David’s handpicked choir director, first in the Tabernacle and eventually in the Temple; as a prolific songwriter (twelve of his psalms are included in the Old Testament Psalter); as a prophet; and as a good role model (evidenced by the fact Asaph’s sons followed in their father’s footsteps and became Temple choir singers).

Yet, like so many of us, Asaph seemed blind to all that he did have and focused on what he did not have.

Somewhere along his spiritual journey, Asaph fell prey to a sickness of the soul that infects many people of faith. At some point in his ministry, for reasons clearly spelled out in Psalm 73, Asaph became jealous of wicked people – a hideously dark disease that, if the truth be told, has affected me as well.

Has it ever affected you? Let’s find out. Check out Asaph’s astonishing admission to see if you can relate. Asaph honestly concluded his own spiritual assessment by admitting, “I almost lost my footing. My feet were slipping, and I was almost gone.” Give him credit; he knew that he was in deep spiritual decline. But why? What threw him into such a spiritually treacherous tailspin? Keep reading.

“For I envied the proud when I saw them prosper despite their wickedness.” There it is. The heart of the matter. Asaph compared his life of strict spiritual discipline to the wanton pleasures that the unspiritual, undisciplined wicked enjoy. And this side-by-side comparison led to only one conclusion: Asaph got the short end of life’s stick.

He continued, “(The wicked) seem to live such painless lives; their bodies are so healthy and strong. They don’t have troubles like other people; they’re not plagued with problems like everyone else. They wear pride like a jeweled necklace and clothe themselves with cruelty. These fat cats have everything their hearts could ever wish for! They scoff and speak only evil; in their pride they seek to crush others. They boast against the very heavens, and their words strut throughout the earth…Look at these wicked people – enjoying a life of ease while their riches multiply.”

OK, so I’ll grant that unlike “the wicked,” Asaph’s life wasn’t the bed of roses he might have hoped for. He lamented (a polite word for whined), “Did I keep my heart pure for nothing? Did I keep myself innocent for no reason? I get nothing but trouble all day long; every morning brings me pain.” Sound like anyone you know?

Fact is, life is tough. Very tough. Tough for the righteous and tough for the wicked, no matter how hardy they might party in order to dull their pain with their pursuit of pleasure. But in the end it’s all just a mirage. Asaph’s view of “the wicked” was skewed from the start, something he thankfully came to realize before it was too late. Upon sober reflection, Asaph arrived at four insightful conclusions:

(1) Had Asaph given in to his envy of the wicked, and flushed his faith in the process, he would have let a lot of people down. People were watching him, just like people are watching us. That may not be fair, but that’s the deal. If we crash and burn, we don’t go down alone. We take a lot of people with us – people who trust us, look up to us, respect us. Especially those closest to us. That was a price Asaph was not willing to pay, no matter how much personal pleasure he might have gotten as a part of that bargain.

(2) Payday will come some day. Sure, “the wicked” might be having the time of their lives now, for a little while. But the “passing pleasures of sin” do pass. And that’s the point. And when they do, the wicked are left holding a handful of nothing, except for their sordid memories and the crushing consequences of their foolish choices.

(3) The wicked live like beasts, governed only by their carnal cravings and animal appetites. Their glands become their gods; their selfish desires their deities. Gone is their dignity, sacrificed on the altars of their depravity. Lost is their self-respect, forfeited by their disrespect of the God who created them.

(4) Asaph came close, alarmingly close, to failing the one, the only one who never would and never could fail him. No amount of perverted pleasure was worth the indignity of letting down his God who would never would and never could let him down.

No doubt about it. As Asaph so correctly concluded, “It is good for me to draw near to God.” Know what? It is good for us to do the same.

I’VE READ THE LAST CHAPTER. GUESS WHAT? WE WIN!

2010-08-21T16:39:00.000-07:00

“’Surely I am coming quickly.’ Amen. Even so, come, Lord Jesus!” (Revelation 22:20).

You ought to hear my melancholy friend, a guy who could definitely use a blast of high-octane laughing gas to lift his constantly sagging spirits.

Understand that my friend loves Jesus and believes the Bible. But every time he reads in the news that someone mocks Christianity, or takes a cheap shot at Jesus, or ridicules people of faith, or glamorizes an ungodly lifestyle, my friend is quick to respond, “What do you expect? We lose!”

I mean, look, I understand that there are people who hate God, and who consequently hate us. They will stop at nothing to discourage and defeat us. Sometimes they are successful. Who of us doesn’t know of someone who used to be a faithful follower of Jesus who, for whatever reason, has denied God’s truth and walked away from Jesus? Add to that the unsettling reality that we are fighting a relentless spiritual foe who is determined to defeat and devour us. Other than that, life down here is just peachy, thank you very much!

Nevertheless, spiritual battles and my friend’s sagging spirits notwithstanding, fact is, “We win!”

Don’t believe me? Not too sure? Do I sound too much like a pie-in-the-sky-by-and-by type of guy to you? Then don’t take my word for it. Take God’s word for it. This is what God prompted the Apostle Paul to write to a group of young-in-their-faith believers who were suffering a ton for their new-found faith. As you read it, you tell me if this sounds like a “We lose” scenario to you.

Dear brothers and sisters, we can’t help but thank God for you, because your faith is flourishing and your love for one another is growing. We proudly tell God’s other churches about your endurance and faithfulness in all the persecutions and hardships you are suffering. And God will use this persecution to show his justice and to make you worthy of his Kingdom, for which you are suffering. In his justice he will pay back those who persecute you.

Did you read that second to last sentence? God will actually use our trials and tribulations to show His justice to the world, and to make us worthy of His Kingdom. That surely doesn’t sound like “We lose” to me!

But wait! It gets even better.

And God will provide rest for you who are being persecuted and also for us when the Lord Jesus appears from heaven. He will come with his mighty angels, in flaming fire, bringing judgment on those who don’t know God and on those who refuse to obey the Good News of our Lord Jesus. They will be punished with eternal destruction, forever separated from the Lord and from his glorious power. When he comes on that day, he will receive glory from his holy people – praise from all who believe. And this includes you, for you believed what we told you about him.

When Jesus finally appears, these troubling times will be vanquished and the spiritual battles won, forever replaced by the eternal ecstasy of living with our Lord forever and ever. Does that sound like “We lose” to you?

Just ask Jude if we lose. What a compelling contrast he set up in his diminutive letter of only 25 verses. Sometimes less is indeed more. That is certainly true of Jude.

First comes the kind of stuff that sent my sullen friend sinking in his spirit.

I have to write insisting – begging! – that you fight with everything you have in you for this faith entrusted to us as a gift to guard and cherish. What has happened is that some people have infiltrated our ranks (our Scriptures warned us this would happen), who beneath their pious skin are shameless scoundrels. Their design is to replace the sheer grace of our God with sheer license—which means doing away with Jesus Christ.

But then comes the “We win!” kind of stuff that sends my spirit soaring.

Now to Him who is able to keep you from stumbling, and to present you faultless before the presence of His glory with exceeding joy, to God our Savior, Who alone is wise, be glory and majesty, dominion and power, both now and forever. Amen.

Just ask the Apostle John if we lose. Because of the unjust and undeserved suffering in his life, John could have easily and understandably allowed himself to be swallowed by hopeless despair. He could have encouraged himself to be eaten up inside by a rotting root of bitterness towards those who wrongly exiled him to a godforsaken island out in the middle of the Aegean Sea. He could easily have died a broken and angry old man, forced at ninety years of age to endure the torments of hard time enforced by the Roman lash.

Instead, John choose to look beyond his sufferings today and to embrace the certain hope of that day when he would see his beloved Jesus once again. And so as John finished writing the last verse of the last chapter of the last book of the Bible, he did so by quoting Jesus’ spirit-lifting promise, “Surely I am coming quickly.”

To which John added his own hope-filled prayer, “Even so, come, Lord Jesus!”

No doubt about it. John’s Scripture-concluding comments don’t sound like “We lose” to me. Not by a long shot. To my melancholy friend, and to you I say, “Read the last chapter. WE WIN!!!”

BITTER OR BETTER? THAT CHOICE IS OURS.

2010-08-09T14:24:00.000-07:00

“Looking carefully lest anyone fall short of the grace of God; lest any root of bitterness springing up cause trouble, and by this many become defiled” (Hebrews 12:15).

For years I hated my dad.

I can assure you that I get no joy out of that sad-but-true confession. It’s simply a fact of my life’s journey, one from which I thankfully recovered.

While I won’t trouble you with the particulars of my conflicts with my dad, let’s just say that I learned some bitter lessons through that ordeal. The single most important of which is this: When God “put me together,” He did not hardwire into the complex web of my DNA structure the capacity to harbor hate. He never intended for me to become, let alone remain, bitter.

The same can be said of you.

Unresolved bitterness is a quicksand of the soul. An unwelcomed interloper. An uninvited intruder. A bandit bent on robbing us of the very essence of life itself. By definition, bitter people are not happy people. They tend to be angry, resentful, critical, often spiteful, cantankerous individuals who darken every room they enter, dampen everyone’s mood with whom they interact, and deaden every conversation in which they engage. They’re just not pleasant people. Not the kind of individuals you’d like to hang out with. In the words of the writer to the Hebrews, bitter people “defile many.”

I should know. For years, I was one of them. The poisons of my bitterness flowed through my veins. The toxins of my pent-up anger repelled everyone who dared to cross my path, leaving me to languish in the loneliness that I myself created.

I am well aware that there are many complex contributing factors to what has become a nationwide epidemic of clinical depression. There is no “one-size-fits-all” cure because there is no one cause. But given my own dance with depression, I cannot help but wonder how much of the depression diagnosed today is the direct result of unresolved bitterness. I can tell you that in my case, much of my emotional meltdown was caused precisely because of the energy-demands of my prolonged hatred. Nothing will drain our emotional reserves faster than inappropriate and misappropriated anger.

Thankfully I learned that there is a better way.

Make no mistake about it. Bitterness is a choice. A choice that we do not have to make.

Consider the basics. As a function of our fallenness, it’s human nature to hate. That has been true since the beginning of the biblical narrative. In Genesis 3, Adam rebelled against God, plunging the human race into a sorry state of sin. One short chapter later, in Genesis 4, Adam’s angry son Cain killed his brother Abel. “Then the LORD said to Cain, ‘Why are you angry? Why is your face downcast?...Sin is crouching at your door; it desires to have you, but you must master it.’” Tragically, rather than Cain mastering his sinful anger, his sinful anger mastered him. You know the rest of the story.

From that day to this, our natural, normal inclination is to react to those who wrong us with anger. When we allow our anger to fester, it invariably morphs into bitterness. And bitterness, when left unchecked, will destroy us.

Exactly like a metastasizing cancer gradually destroys our bodies, over time bitterness eats away at our souls. This is precisely the reason that at the point where we are wronged, God provides an instant antidote to our human tendency toward bitterness – “the grace of God” – the desire and the power to make the right choice (to forgive the wrongdoer) rather than the wrong choice (to become bitter). He then begs us to make absolutely sure “that no poisonous root of bitterness grows up to trouble you, corrupting many.” The stakes are that high.

As Paul wrote his beloved church in Ephesus, “Get rid of all bitterness…Instead, be kind to each other, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, just as God through Christ has forgiven you.” Easy for Paul to say, until you realize that Paul wrote those words from a Roman dungeon. But because Paul chose God’s grace over anger, forgiveness over bitterness, Paul was eventually able to triumphantly declare, “My dear friends, I want you to know that what has happened to me has helped to spread the good news. The Roman guards and all the others know that I am here in jail because I serve Christ.”

Forgiveness always wins. Bitterness always loses.

No doubt about it. Our hurtful circumstances will either make us bitter or better. That is a choice that we alone can make. That is a choice that we alone must make.

THE “APPLE OF GOD’S EYE” HAS A SECURE AND BRIGHT FUTURE; WHICH ONLY GOES TO PROVE THAT WE DO TOO.

2010-07-26T11:12:00.000-07:00

“And so all Israel will be saved” (Romans 11:26).

The question came up over and over again at the Junior High/Middle School camp at which I just spoke: “How do you know there is a God?” As if the wonders of creation are not enough to convince us.

My stock answer consists of but one word: Israel. Apart from the existence of God, there is no other logical explanation for the birth of the modern Jewish State. None.

To see what I mean, let’s start back at the beginning. One of the most history-defining statements in all of the Bible pops up right at the start of Scripture. As early as Genesis 12 we read, “Now the LORD had said to Abram: ‘Get out of your country, from your family and from your father’s house, to a land that I will show you. I will make you a great nation; I will bless you and make your name great; and you shall be a blessing. I will bless those who bless you, and I will curse him who curses you; and in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed.’” Those words constitute what has come appropriately to be called the Abrahamic Covenant, a sacred and solemn promise that God made to Abraham and to his descendants through Isaac and Jacob ; a divine pledge, a heavenly guarantee between God and “the apple of His eye” – our friends, the Jewish people – and the Jewish State, Israel.

Indeed, to say that God has always had a special place in His rather sizeable heart for Israel would be the height of understatement. That being said, the relationship between God and His chosen people has been a rocky one to say the least. It’s not mere coincidence that the name Israel means to wrestle with, struggle with, or fight with God. Through the ebb and flow of the history of the Jewish people, God has at times blessed them, and at other times disciplined them – severely so. But He has never abandoned them; He never will.

You might remember the time when Jesus wept over the city of Jerusalem as He looked through the long lens of prophecy and viewed a heart-rending scene: “Now as (Jesus) drew near, He saw the city and wept over it, saying, ‘If you had known, even you, especially in this your day, the things that make for your peace! But now they are hidden from your eyes. For days will come upon you when your enemies will build an embankment around you, surround you and close you in on every side, and level you, and your children within you, to the ground; and they will not leave in you one stone upon another, because you did not know the time of your visitation.’” The fulfillment of that prophecy took place in AD 70 when the Romans leveled the Temple and burned the city. The final embers of the Jewish revolt against the Romans were snuffed out three years later when nearly a thousand Jews took their own lives high atop the hilltop fortress called Masada rather than submit to the brutalities of the Romans. With the last breath of the last Jew, the Jewish state ceased to exist.

Until the unthinkable happened. Throughout the turbulent history of people on this troubled planet, empires have been born only eventually to die. Nations have come and gone. Case in point: Even the mighty, invincible, unbeatable Roman Empire is today history (pun intended). Fact is, no civilization, once obliterated from the map, ever rises out of the ashes of its annihilation to live again. None, that is, save Israel.

On Friday, May 14, 1948, an event of biblical significance took place in a nondescript building in the heart of Tel Aviv. On that momentous afternoon it was as if the earth stopped spinning and the angels in Heaven held their breath as David Ben Gurion proclaimed the once-unimaginable words: “Accordingly we, the members of the National Council representing the Jewish people in Palestine and the World Zionist Movement, are met together in solemn assembly today, the day of termination of the British Mandate for Palestine; and by virtue of the natural and historic right of the Jewish People and of the Resolution of the General Assembly of the United Nations. We hereby proclaim the establishment of the Jewish State in Palestine, to be call Medinath Yisrael (The State of Israel).” With that statement, a modern miracle was realized; after nearly 2000 years the Jewish State had been reborn.

Today, much of the Jewish population of Israel, and indeed of the world, are secular. Many Jews readily admit that they do not worship the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. And they certainly do not acknowledge Jesus as their Messiah. At least not yet. One day the final chapter of Israel’s storied history will soon be written. And her last chapter will be her brightest. For one day, sooner rather than later I think, “all of Israel will be saved.”

No doubt about it: Pull out a map, find the Middle East, and set your gaze upon that remarkable word, Israel. That’s all you need to know to know that God is alive and well and keeps His promises – to Israel and to us.

Just when we think, “I can’t take it anymore,” we won’t have to.

2010-07-16T08:49:00.000-07:00

“No temptation has overtaken you except such as is common to man; but God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation will also make the way of escape, that you may be able to bear it” (1 Corinthians 10:13).

Interesting word, “temptation.” It’s not nearly as specific as you might think.

Taken on face value, 1 Corinthians 10:31 offers us a precious-enough promise, God’s assurance that we will never be so overwhelmed with a temptation that we will have no choice but to succumb to its seductions. He wants us to know that whenever or wherever we are hit between the eyes with an especially enticing opportunity to indulge the desires of our flesh, God will always “provide (us) a way out” so that we can stand up against it.

Good to know.

But wait! It gets even better. The word “temptation” is a much broader term that it might appear at first blush. Paul carefully crafted this verse by intentionally using a word in the original that can also properly be translated “test.” If you will permit a fuller rendering of this verse – an expanded paraphrase, if you will – it could justifiably be rendered as follows: I’ve got great news for you. News that should brighten your future. God gives you His promise that you will never be tempted nor tested in any way that is unusual or unique. You are not alone. You will never be called upon to face any situation in life, no matter how dire or overwhelming it might seem, that others haven’t already faced before you. We know this because God is faithful. He always does what He says He will do. And in this situation, He promises that you will never be tempted nor tested beyond your ability to handle it. No matter how alluring the temptation, no matter how difficult the test, God will always give you a way out – His grace and power to meet or beat it, so that it will not overwhelm and defeat you.

Now that is a precious promise.

But talk is cheap. What if Paul, who wrote 1 Corinthians, is just particularly good at producing platitudes – pithy little statements that sound good but are have no basis in fact?

Let’s find out. On two fronts. Temptations and tests.

It seems that Paul knew a lot about tantalizing temptations. In one of his rare moments of honest, open, and public introspection, Paul admitted that he, like us, struggled daily with his body of flesh that longed for satisfying stimulation. He admitted to the believers in Rome, “I am merely a human, and I have been sold as a slave to sin. In fact, I don't understand why I act the way I do. I don't do what I know is right. I do the things I hate… I know that my selfish desires won't let me do anything that is good. Even when I want to do right, I cannot. Instead of doing what I know is right, I do wrong… What a miserable person I am. Who will rescue me from this body that is doomed to die?”

If the story ended there, we might be justified for thinking that this poor soul needs some serious therapy. But happily, it doesn’t. Paul went on to victoriously declare this: “Thank God! Jesus Christ will rescue me.”

Just when it seemed that Paul couldn’t take it anymore, he didn’t have to. Jesus provided “a way of escape” – “a way out.” In the words of the MSG translation, “he'll always be there to help you come through it.”

So far so good, at least as far as temptations are concerned. But what about life’s pressures and problems, tests? Once again, Paul possessed enormous “street cred” as one who suffered through a variety of tests, arguably of a much greater magnitude than you or I will ever experience. Things like, “Five times the Jews gave me thirty-nine lashes with a whip. Three times the Romans beat me with a big stick, and once my enemies stoned me. I have been shipwrecked three times, and I even had to spend a night and a day in the sea. During my many travels, I have been in danger from rivers, robbers, my own people, and foreigners. My life has been in danger in cities, in deserts, at sea, and with people who only pretended to be the Lord's followers. I have worked and struggled and spent many sleepless nights. I have gone hungry and thirsty and often had nothing to eat. I have been cold from not having enough clothes to keep me warm.”

Yet, at the beginning of this very same letter, Paul triumphantly acknowledged, “Praise God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! The Father is a merciful God, who always gives us comfort. He comforts us when we are in trouble, so that we can share that same comfort with others in trouble. We share in the terrible sufferings of Christ, but also in the wonderful comfort he gives.”

No doubt about it. Just when Paul was tempted to think that he couldn’t take it anymore, he didn’t have to. Neither do we.

Lighten Up and Laugh? Or Not? (You tell me.)

2010-07-06T15:28:00.000-07:00

Each and every day, I get all sorts of stuff making an appearance on my laptop screen. Yesterday was no exception. What was exceptional was my reaction to it.

First, the disclaimers. I pride myself (in the appropriate usage of that phrase) on being conservative in my theology, and yet not uptight nor legalistic. I’m a guy who chooses his battles. And the older I get, the more I realize that not everything is a hill to die on. So I let a lot of stuff go. I really do.

But not this time. From multiple individuals (self-proclaimed committed Christ-followers each), this one line was sent my way – meant to be funny, I know; clearly intended to bring a smile to my face and some levity to my heart.

The thing is, I didn’t find it humorous. Not in the least. Well, before I continue, let me share with you the joke, and then get your take on it. It goes like this: “My biggest fear when I meet God is that he'll sneeze and I won't know what to say...”

This is not an isolated case. I'm hearing more and more equally inappropriately careless (or legitimately humorous, depending upon your own outlook) "jokes" about God's nature, or "humor" at God's expense.

OK, be honest with me. Am I just showing my age? Has the innocence of youth left me? Am I now becoming what I promised myself and others that I would never become: a take-life-way-too-seriously, need-to-lighten-up, angry old codger (a word that, according to Webster, means “a mildly eccentric and usually elderly fellow”)?

OR… Does Exodus 20:7 mean something? As in the Contemporary English Version that reads, “Do not misuse my name. I am the LORD your God, and I will punish anyone who misuses my name.” The Message Translation renders this verse, “No using the name of God, your God, in curses or silly banter; God won’t put up with the irreverent use of his name.”

Have I become too influenced by my many dear Jewish friends who will not even pronounce God’s name, let alone write it, for fear of using His holy name irreverently?

Have we become so casual, so carefree in our attitude towards the Almighty God who by merely uttering a word flung the stars into space? Or so careless, so cavalier, and treating as common our Lord Jesus Christ who Himself twice said, “For out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks” (Matthew 12:34; Luke 6:45)?

Have we now come to a place in our Christian conversation where what was once said of those who populated the decadent Roman Empire can now be said of us Christians today? “They have no fear of God at all”?

Or am I just becoming cranky in my old age? A guy who needs to stop judging these kinds of jokes and just lighten up? Am I, despite my claims to the contrary, legalistic in my defense of God’s name?

Did God Himself get a good chuckle out of the joke? Is He such a pal, such a buddy, such a cool acquaintance that I ought to be able to joke about Him like I might joke about my puppy? And am really the poorer since I don’t? Since I won’t?

Please. Tell me what you think. I really want to know.

GROANING DEEPLY, WE WAIT EAGERLY!

2010-06-25T08:28:00.000-07:00

“We ourselves groan within ourselves, eagerly waiting for the adoption, the redemption of our body” (Romans 8:23).

OK, I’ll admit it. I’ll admit to you that one of the questions, perhaps the question with which I struggle the most, one for which I do not have an adequate answer, is this: “Why must innocent people suffer so much?”

As when someone’s dad snaps and shoots and kills the entire family. What did they do to deserve that? Or when a genocidal maniac ascends to a position of power and uses that power to destroy the masses? What did those dear people do to deserve a fate like that? Or when someone is killed by a drunk driver. What did the victim do to deserve that? Innocent people suffering at the hands of the guilty. Where is God in all of that?

Our common Christian response to that question is to suggest that the premise of the question is flawed. That in fact there are no “innocent” people in the world. That “Everyone has sinned; we all fall short of God’s glorious standard.” And that since we are all sinners – the dad and his wife and kids; the ruthless leader and his helpless victims; the drunk driver and his clear-headed traffic fatality – it’s somehow OK if life is unfair since no one – neither the oppressor nor the oppressed – deserves a fair shake.

Yes, it is true that we are all sinners. Yes, I understand that. Yes, I accept that. And yes, I readily acknowledge what theologians glibly call “The Total Depravity of Man” – the notion that we are all equally depraved, incurably corrupt. I get that.

But having gotten that, I for one reject out of hand the notion that the hunted deserve to fall prey to the hunter, that bullied deserve to be tormented by the bully, just because the hunted and the hunter, the bullied and the bully are equally sinful. It is not fair and it is not right that the – I’ll say it – innocent hunted and the innocent bullied deserve what they get. Life is unfair. And that’s not OK.

It’s not OK from my vantage point. And it’s not OK from all of Creation’s vantage point. Every molecule within this grand and glorious Universe of ours cringes even at the suggestion that life is unfair and that that it’s OK. And most importantly, it’s not OK from God’s vantage point.

Which is why Paul could write, “What we suffer now is nothing compared to the glory he will reveal to us later. For all creation is waiting eagerly for that future day when God will reveal who his children really are. Against its will, all creation was subjected to God’s curse. But with eager hope, the creation looks forward to the day when it will join God’s children in glorious freedom from death and decay. For we know that all creation has been groaning as in the pains of childbirth right up to the present time. And we believers also groan, even though we have the Holy Spirit within us as a foretaste of future glory, for we long for our bodies to be released from sin and suffering. We, too, wait with eager hope for the day when God will give us our full rights as his adopted children, including the new bodies he has promised us.”

To which I say, “Yes!” Yes, we are groaning deeply. And yes, we are waiting eagerly. Yes, we will be released from the world of pain. Yes, He will right all the wrongs. Yes, He will make what is not OK OK. But not yet.

If you liked that, you’ll love this – this from the pen of Paul, written while unfairly sitting in a prison cell waiting to be unfairly executed the bloodthirsty Nero. “But we are citizens of heaven, where the Lord Jesus Christ lives. And we are eagerly waiting for him to return as our Savior. He will take our weak mortal bodies and change them into glorious bodies like his own, using the same power with which he will bring everything under his control.” To which I say, “Yes!” Yes, He will bring everything under His control. Yes, He will right all the wrongs. Yes, we will be released from the world of pain. Yes, He will make what is not OK OK. But not yet.

Even Peter, who would soon be unfairly crucified upside-down, understood that we are foreigners, strangers, pilgrims on this earth – those who journey throughout a land that is not their own, a visitor whose time is temporary. To which I say, “Yes!”

Yes, we will one day live forever in a place that will be our own. Where we are not temporary visitors but eternal citizens. Where the lion and the lamb – the predator and the prey – will lay down together. Where senseless violence will forever be but an echo of the past. Where we and our loved ones will dwell in absolute safety and security. Where innocent people will not suffer. Where we will be happy, healthy, and whole. Where God will wipe every tear from our eyes. Where there will be no more death nor sorrow nor crying nor pain because all these things are gone forever. Yes, Christ’s kingdom will come. But not yet.

No doubt about it. Groaning deeply, we wait eagerly. To which I say, “Yes!”

My Tribute to My Unsung Hero

2010-06-17T13:30:00.001-07:00

“Thank you, Jerry. And a very pleasant ‘Good evening’ to you wherever you may be!”

With those words, my nightly Communications 101 seminar began.

His name is Vin Scully, play-by-play announcer for the Los Angeles Dodgers. This year will mark his 61st season with the Dodgers, the longest of any broadcaster with a single club in professional sports history. It is also rumored to be his last. Which leaves me with a heart overflowing with gratitude, enormous respect, and a profound sense of personal loss.

In our last little visit together, I shared with you my utter inability to verbally communicate. “Whatever you do when you choose a career, do not go into public speaking,” so said my 10th grade drama teacher. So when God called me to talk for a living – as in giving a speech, a sermon, a message – I freaked out. I could not do it. I didn’t have the tools. I didn’t have the know-how. I didn’t have the slightest idea what to do or how to begin to learn what to do.

So I made a decision. I would find the very best communicator on the planet and study, study, study everything he or she did – this is order to learn the craft. My mentor of choice? Vin Scully.

Vinnie doesn’t just tell you what is happening on the field. He takes you there. Honestly, when Scully is behind the microphone, I can sit in my living room, close my eyes, hear his descriptions, and actually “see” the action down on the field. The Hall-of-Fame broadcaster paints portraits using words as his colors. He is the poet laureate of baseball.

On many-a-night, you could find me sitting in the top deck at Dodger Stadium, transistor radio in hand, watching the drama that is baseball unfold on the field, trying to imagine how I would describe what was happening, and then listening to the master perform his art. I’m telling you, despite the 56,000 people who jammed Dodger Stadium, it was as if I had my own, very private communications clinic going on.

My prayer then was, and my prayer today is, “God, help me to do to the Bible what Vin Scully does to a Dodger game. Not just to tell the good people what’s going on. But to take them there. To see it, hear it, smell it, touch it, taste it, experience it.”

Vin, I don’t know if you will ever read this. But know this: I owe my career to you. And every person God has allowed me to touch, every life He has allowed me to influence, owes you a huge debt of gratitude as well.

God bless you, Vin, in this, your final season. You will be missed. You will never be forgotten. Your legacy will live on and on in the lives of many, many people.

My Unsung Hero...

2010-06-10T09:52:00.001-07:00

Unsung Heroes

Do you have one? An unsung hero? Someone in your life to whom you owe a profound debt of gratitude? Someone who doesn’t even realize the impact that he or she has made in your life?

I sure do. Before I introduce you to one of my unsung heroes, a bit of a back-story.

For nearly 40 years now, I have earned my bread and butter by talking. I am a career communicator. Even though you are now reading my words on a screen, writing is not my forte; speaking is.

Fact is, I talk for a living.

Not an especially earth-shattering revelation. Until you understand this: I am the guy whose 10th grade drama teacher called him into her office one day and told him this (albeit, with a pleasant tone in her voice and smile on her face): “In the fifteen years that I have taught drama, you are the single most boring student I have ever had.” Now that she had my attention, she assured me that she was telling me the truth in such a pointed fashion because she really, truly wanted me to succeed in life. She saw me as a young man with tons of potential… as long as I kept my mouth shut.

“You have a speech impediment that makes it irritating to listen to you,” she explained. “You are so inexpressive. You speak in a monotone.” And then she added this one last little zinger: “If you have to earn your living by talking, you and your family will starve.”

Wow. (I mean, “Come on, teacher. Don’t beat around the bush. Tell me what you really think!”)

Well, you can only imagine what went through my mind three years later when God called me into the ministry. It’s no wonder that God and I wrestled over this “calling” for months. I still so vividly remember conversations that I had with God, daily chats that went something like this:

“But God, didn’t you hear my drama teacher? She’s right. I can’t talk. It’s not my fault that my mouth is broken. You’re the one who made my mouth. In case you missed it, I am boring. Boring. Just ask my drama teacher. BORING.”

In the following weeks and months that stretched into years, everything I tried that was even remotely related to my mouth failed miserably. For instance, when I took my mandatory speech class, my first speech was an unmitigated disaster. I managed to burn up an overhead projector, had to cut my speech short as that infernal machine sparked and smoked; I slunk back to my seat and collapsed into my chair in utter humiliation to the taunts and ridiculing laughter of the class.

First sermon I ever preached, the moment I hit the five-minute mark, my mind went blank. If I remember right, I actually ended that sermon mid-sentence.

Well, to make a long story short, the very fact that I have recently lost 91 lbs, going from a morbidly obese 240 pounds to a slim and trim 149 proves that my drama teacher's doomsday prognostications were wrong on at least one count: I have earned my living by talking, and haven’t yet starved!

So what happened? What turned the tide? How is it that week after week I now muster up enough raw courage, and pump up just enough self-esteem to face a crowd, open my mouth, and talk? On a divine level, God fixed my broken mouth. (Though, if you listen carefully, you can still hear the faint echoes of my not-quite-corrected lisp.) On a human level, I have an unsung hero. One individual to whom I owe my career, my ministry.

My communications mentor. A man at whose feet I’ve sat (and continue to sit), someone who systematically taught me, syllable by syllable, how to talk.

The amazing thing is, he has no idea of the impact he’s made on my life, and by extension, the thousands of lives of people to whom I have talked over the years.

His name? You’ll find out next time.

In the mean time, take a guess. See if you can figure it out. I’ll give you only one hint (well, two actually, since I’ve already revealed the gender of this individual): He’s the single best, most effective, most gifted, most eloquent, most mesmerizing communicator I have ever heard.

And since the Bible says to give honor to whom honor is due, it will be my distinct pleasure and privilege to honor him in my next post.

What Promises. What Assurances. What a Statement of God's Love for Us. Every One of Us!!!

2010-06-07T09:32:00.000-07:00

Several people yesterday kindly commented that they found my reading of Romans 8 insightful, helpful, and most encouraging.

“Just what I needed to hear,” are the words I heard over and over again.

Which both encourages me and humbles me. Encourages me because I live to encourage others. Humbles me because there are so many hurts and heartaches out there that I cannot even begin to heal.

But God can.

So in the hopes that Romans 8 will encourage you as well, here is what I read to the good people of New Hope:

Our sufferings, our challenges, our difficulties, our disappointments in this present life, at this present time, are nothing when compared with the glory that is about to be revealed to us and in us and for us – the glory that God will confer on us! Listen: all creation is waiting eagerly for our graduation day, that future day when God will proudly put us, His children, on display as trophies of His grace. For all of God’s creation was subjected to frailty, futility, and frustration…Yet with the certain hope that all of nature (everything God created) will join God’s children in our glorious freedom from death and decay.

For we know that all creation has been groaning as in the pains of childbirth right up to the present time. And we believers groan too… for we long for our bodies to be released from sin and suffering. We, too, wait with eager hope for the day when God will give us our full rights as His adopted children, including the new bodies He has promised us. We were given this hope when we were saved…We look forward to the fulfillment of God’s promise as we wait patiently and confidently.

And as we wait, the Holy Spirit helps us in our weakness. For example, we don’t always know how to pray, or what to pray for. And even when we don’t know how to pray, the Holy Spirit does. He knows exactly what to pray and how to pray. He comes to our aid and bears us up in our weaknesses, and pleads with God the Father on our behalf with yearnings and groanings so deep that we could never put them into words.

And the Father who knows all hearts knows what the Spirit is saying, for the Spirit pleads for us believers always in perfect harmony with God’s own will.

And we know, we know, that God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to His purpose for their lives. God uses our pain and problems to mold us into the image of His dear Son.

Now that’s something we can hold on to. Today, and every day!

A Silver Lining to Israel's Current Dark Cloud

2010-06-03T19:54:00.000-07:00

THE “APPLE OF GOD’S EYE” HAS A SECURE AND BRIGHT FUTURE; WHICH ONLY GOES TO PROVE THAT WE DO TOO.

“And so all Israel will be saved” (Romans 11:26).

People often ask me, “How do you know there is a God?” as if the wonders of creation are not enough to convince them.

My stock answer consists of but one word: Israel. Apart from the existence of God, there is no other logical explanation for the birth of the modern Jewish State. None.

To see what I mean, let’s start back at the beginning. One of the most history-defining statements in all of the Bible pops up right at the start of Scripture. As early as Genesis 12 we read, “Now the LORD had said to Abram: ‘Get out of your country, from your family and from your father’s house, to a land that I will show you. I will make you a great nation; I will bless you and make your name great; and you shall be a blessing. I will bless those who bless you, and I will curse him who curses you; and in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed.’” Those words constitute what has come appropriately to be called the Abrahamic Covenant, a sacred and solemn promise that God made to Abraham and to his descendants through Isaac and Jacob ; a divine pledge, a heavenly guarantee between God and “the apple of His eye” – our friends, the Jewish people – and the Jewish State, Israel.

Indeed, to say that God has always had a special place in His rather sizable heart for Israel would be the height of understatement. That being said, the relationship between God and His chosen people has been a rocky one to say the least. It’s not mere coincidence that the name Israel means to wrestle with, struggle with, or fight with God. Through the ebb and flow of the history of the Jewish people, God has at times blessed them, and at other times disciplined them – severely so. But He has never abandoned them; He never will.

You might remember the time when Jesus wept over the city of Jerusalem as He looked through the long lens of prophecy and viewed a heart-rending scene: “Now as (Jesus) drew near, He saw the city and wept over it, saying, ‘If you had known, even you, especially in this your day, the things that make for your peace! But now they are hidden from your eyes. For days will come upon you when your enemies will build an embankment around you, surround you and close you in on every side, and level you, and your children within you, to the ground; and they will not leave in you one stone upon another, because you did not know the time of your visitation.’” The fulfillment of that prophecy took place in AD 70 when the Romans leveled the Temple and burned the city. The final embers of the Jewish revolt against the Romans were snuffed out three years later when nearly a thousand Jews took their own lives high atop the hilltop fortress called Masada rather than submit to the brutalities of the Romans. With the last breath of the last Jew, the Jewish state ceased to exist.

Until the unthinkable happened. Throughout the turbulent history of people on this troubled planet, empires have been born only eventually to die. Nations have come and gone. Case in point: Even the mighty, invincible, unbeatable Roman Empire is today history (pun intended). Fact is, no civilization, once obliterated from the map, ever rises out of the ashes of its annihilation to live again. None, that is, save Israel.

On Friday, May 14, 1948, an event of biblical significance took place in a nondescript building in the heart of Tel Aviv. On that momentous afternoon it was as if the earth stopped spinning and the angels in Heaven held their breath as David Ben Gurion proclaimed the once-unimaginable words: “Accordingly we, the members of the National Council representing the Jewish people in Palestine and the World Zionist Movement, are met together in solemn assembly today, the day of termination of the British Mandate for Palestine; and by virtue of the natural and historic right of the Jewish People and of the Resolution of the General Assembly of the United Nations. We hereby proclaim the establishment of the Jewish State in Palestine, to be call Medinath Yisrael (The State of Israel).” With that statement, a modern miracle was realized; after nearly 2000 years the Jewish State had been reborn.

Today, much of the Jewish population of Israel, and indeed of the world, are secular. Many Jews readily admit that they do not worship the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. And they certainly do not acknowledge Jesus as their Messiah. At least not yet. One day the final chapter of Israel’s storied history will soon be written. And her last chapter will be her brightest. For one day, sooner rather than later I think, “all of Israel will be saved.”

No doubt about it: Pull out a map, find the Middle East, and set your gaze upon that remarkable word Israel. That’s all you need to know to know that God is alive and well and keeps His promises – to Israel and to us.

(Just one of 52 Timeless Truths that you can read and treasure in my latest book, No Doubt About It.)

Let the truth be known...

2010-06-02T09:09:00.000-07:00

IDF: Global Jihad links on flotilla

ISRAEL 2011 -- The Trip of a Lifetime!

2010-06-01T15:05:00.000-07:00

The itinerary is set. Check it out. Shaping up to be THE trip of a lifetime...

Saturday, March 12: We will meet at the airline check-in desk the airport three hours prior to departure for our flight to Tel Aviv. Meals and overnight en route.

Sunday, March 13: Upon our arrival at the Tel Aviv airport we will be met and transferred to our hotel overlooking the Mediterranean for dinner and overnight.

Monday, March 14: We will start our day with a visit to Caesarea Maritima, the Roman capital of Judea. Here the centurion Cornelius heard the Gospel preaching of Peter and later Paul made his defense before King Agrippa prior to his final journey to Rome. Continue to Megiddo and view the Valley of Armageddon, site of the final battle of this age. View the excavations from the time of Solomon. Proceed to Mt. Carmel and Muhraka where Elijah prayed down the fire from Heaven. Drive to Korazim to view the remains of an ancient synagogue with Jewish symbols, Aramaic and Hebrew inscriptions, Continue to our Kibbutz Guest House on the shores of the Sea of Galilee for dinner and overnight.

Tuesday, March 15: Today will be spent literally walking in the footsteps of Jesus as we walk the land of Jesus' healing and teaching ministry around the Sea of Galilee. We will view the ancient boat found in the mud and then board our wooden sailing boat, fashioned after the ancient fishing vessels, for a boat ride. Board our bus and visit Tabgha, traditional site of the Miracle of the Loaves and Fishes and the Church of the Primacy of St. Peter. Continue to Capernaum where we visit the ancient ruins of the first century synagogue where Jesus preached. Proceed to the Mt. of Beatitudes where Jesus preached the "Sermon on the Mount". Here we will take time for prayer and meditation while enjoying a breathtaking view of the Sea of Galilee.

Wednesday, March 16: Start the day ascending Mt. Arbel for a magnificent view of the Galilee. Stop at the church in Cana where some may wish to renew their marriage vows. Continue to Sepphorus, birthplace of Mary and Capital of Galilee during Herod’s time. Drive to Nazareth, boyhood home of Jesus for an overlook and brief visit. Visit Kfar Kedem and relive an exciting ancient tradition of a Jewish farmer. Proceed to Yardenit on the Jordan River where those who wish may be Baptized prior to returning to our Guest House.

Thursday, March 17: Ascend the Golan and view the way to Damascus from Mt. Bental. Proceed to Caesarea Philippi (Banias), one of the sources of the Jordan River at the base of Mt. Hermon. Here Jesus blessed Simon and changed his name to Peter. Continue to Tel Dan, site of the ancient city of Leshem. Here Abraham rescued Lot and Jeroboam erected a golden calf. Drive through the Huleh Valley to Ayelet Hashachar where we will pick up our jeeps for our ride to Gadot Bunker. Return to our Guest House for dinner and overnight.

Friday, March 18: Leaving the Sea of Galilee we drive south to Ma’ayan Harod where Gideon received his call from the Lord. We continue to Beit She’an where King Saul and Jonathan fell fighting the Philistines and where they hung from the city gates. After spending some time viewing the spectacular excavations we will continue down the winding Jordan Valley to the Holy City of Jerusalem. We will view the layout from the mountains around Jerusalem before checking into our centrally located hotel for the remainder of our stay.

Saturday, March 19: The Bible becomes a three - dimensional book as the life-changing experiences of the next several days begin to unfold. The remarkable journey back in time begins when we view the site of the Ascension, see the olive trees on the Mt. of Olives that date back to the time of Christ and take time to pray in the Garden of Gethsemane. Drive through the Kidron Valley to Mt. Zion to view King David’s Tomb and the Cenacle or Upper Room (Room of the Last Supper). A view of the Shepherds’ Field will remind us of those who first heard the news of the Savior’s birth. Circumstances permitting, we will also visit Bethlehem.

Sunday, March 20: We begin our day in the Old City, entering through the Dung Gate and visiting the Western Wall where for centuries Jews have prayed and left written prayers in the niches of the stones. Ascend the Temple Mount before continuing on a walking tour of the reconstructed Jewish Quarter. Visit the Treasures of the Temple Museum, where we will learn more about the trumpets, priestly garments, the 24 karat golden miter and other articles described in great detail in the Bible and now being prepared for use in the Third Temple See how it has come to life again as we walk through the Cardo, the original Roman street of the 2nd century C.E. with the amazing Israelite wall and Herodian quarters. View the recent excavations, including the Ophel and City of David.

Monday, March 21: An early departure for the spectacular fortress of Massada, the last stronghold of the Jewish rebellion against the Romans. Ascend by cable car and view the remains of the Roman wall, the water system, baths, store rooms, swimming pool and synagogue before descending. After lunch, enjoy time for a “swim” in the Dead Sea. En route back to Jerusalem visit the oasis of Ein Gedi and the Qumran Caves where the ancient Dead Sea Scrolls were found.

Tuesday, March 22: We will start the day with a visit to Yad Vashem, memorial to the 6 million Jewish victims of the Holocaust. Continue to the Shrine of the Book, home of the Dead Sea Scrolls, then view the model of Jerusalem as it was during the Roman period. Return via the Valley of Elah, scene of the battle between David and Goliath, then via Kiriath Yearim where Abinadab lived and kept the Ark of the Covenant for 20 years and from where we can view Jerusalem. Return to our hotel for dinner and overnight.

Wednesday, March 23: On our last day of sightseeing in the Holy Land we will visit the scenes of Jesus’ betrayal and agony, starting with the House of Caiaphas (St. Peter’s en Gallicantu) on the eastern slope of Mt. Zion. This was the scene of Jesus’ first trial and here Peter denied the Lord. We will once again enter the Old City and visit the Pool of Bethesda, continuing to the Praetorium, site of the public trial of Christ and His condemnation. View its ancient remains in the Fortress of Antonia and continue along the Via Dolorosa, ending at Gordon’s Calvary where we will experience the agony of Christ’s crucifixion. We will end the day and our Pilgrimage with Communion in the tranquility of the Garden Tomb.

Thursday, March 24: Return home today having met the God of the Bible in the Land of the Bible, and having deepened our faith by returning to our roots - OR continue to Greece.

Total cost (out of Portland, OR) $3640. Optional Greece Extension $1099. If you are flying out of an East Coast or Midwest airport, cost will be adjusted accordingly. If you would like a brochure or have any questions, please email me: dewey.bertolini@comcast.net

24 Hours and Counting...

2010-05-29T08:41:00.000-07:00

I am not a touchy-feely kind of guy. But on this particular weekend of each year – Memorial Day weekend – I always find myself quite touchy-feely.

For very good reasons.

But not for the reasons that you might think.

This is not to take anything away from the meaning of Memorial Day. My dad (of blessed memory) fought heroically in the Pacific Theater during WWII. And while he did not give his life on behalf of his country, he certainly gave his back. He suffered a chronically-painful back injury that plagued him until the day he died.

I have nothing but the deepest of respect for every individual who made the ultimate sacrifice so that I and my beloved family could live in freedom.

Memorial Day weekend is all of that to me, and so much more.

For whatever reason, our local college – Linfield College – holds its annual commencement ceremony on the Sunday before Memorial Day. The single saddest Sunday of the year for me.

Over four years, I grow rather attached to the college students who grace our modest sanctuary on Sunday mornings. As a church family, we love and embrace our college students. We receive them as a sacred trust, a blessing to our church family. A privilege bestowed upon us by each student who calls New Hope their church home away from home, by their parents, and by our God.

During the four years of their college experience, we share many, many memories together – some of which are church-related, many of which are school-related, much of which are personal. Such as meaningful conversations, meals where we break bread together, visits in our home, etc.

But on this one Sunday of the year, Memorial Day Sunday, it all comes to an abrupt end. They walk down the center aisle donning their caps and gowns, the somber stains of Pomp and Circumstances playing in the background. We endure a much-too-long ceremony. Their names are read. They are handed their diplomas. They march out. Introductions of family members are made. Photos are taken. Hugs are given.

And then we say “Good-bye.”

Every student, every student assures me that they will return to visit. Some do; most do not. Life has a way of moving on. Leaving those of us left behind to feel so… empty.

That’s how I will be feeling 24 hours from now.

Touchy-feely. Touched by, and feeling deeply an array of emotions that in one way I’d rather not feel at all. But in another way, emotions that I accept as a gift of God’s grace. Because every lump in my throat, every ache in my heart, every tear that I shed becomes a measure, a proof, a statement of just how much I love these students. And of how much better a person I am today because God graced my life with these precious individuals for up to four blessed years.

Congratulations, my Linfield friends. You will always be loved. You will always be missed.

The Promises of God's Rest for Our Troubled Souls

2010-05-23T17:15:00.000-07:00

This Sunday morning, we had a blessed discussion of God's Rest for our Troubled Souls. Here are some of the many promises that God gives to us, promises we can claim, promises that will sustain us during difficult times. I hope they are a blessing...
* Do not be afraid. Stand firm and you will see the deliverance the Lord will bring you today. The Lord will fight for you; you need only to be still. (Exodus 14:13-14)
* My presence will go with you, and I will give you rest. (Exodus 33:14)
* It is the Lord who goes before you. He will be with you; he will not fail you or forsake you. Do not fear or be dismayed. (Deuteronomy 31:8)
* Be strong and courageous; do not be frightened or dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go. (Joshua 1:9)
* Your troubles will go away like water beneath a bridge. (Job 11:16)
* I will lie down and sleep in peace, for you alone, O Lord, make me dwell in safety. (Psalm 4:8)
* The Lord is a refuge for the oppressed, a stronghold in times of trouble. (Psalm 9:9-10)
* I have set the Lord always before me. Because he is at my right hand, I will not be shaken. (Psalm 16:8)
* You show me the path of life. In your presence there is fullness of joy; in your right hand are pleasures forevermore. (Psalm 16:11)
* The Lord is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear? The Lord is the stronghold of my life; of whom shall I be afraid? Though an army encamp against me, my heart shall not fear; though war rise up against me, yet I will be confident. (Psalm 27: 1, 3)
* You are my hiding place; you will protect me from trouble and surround me with songs of deliverance. (Psalm 32:7-8)
* The Lord is near to the brokenhearted, and saves the crushed in spirit. Many are the afflictions of the righteous, but the Lord rescues them from them all. (Psalm 34:18-19)
* Why are you cast down, O my soul, and why are you disquieted within me? Hope in God; for I shall again praise him, my help and my God. By day the Lord commands his steadfast love, and at night his song is with me, a prayer to the God of my life. (Psalm 42: 5,8)
* God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in trouble. Therefore we will not fear, though the earth give way and the mountains fall into the heart of the sea, though its waters roar and foam and the mountains quake with their surging. (Psalm 46:1-3)
* My soul finds rest in God alone; my salvation comes from him. He alone is my rock and my salvation; he is my fortress, I will never be shaken. (Psalm 62:1-2)
* Though you have made me see troubles, many and bitter, you will restore my life again; from the depths of the earth you will again bring me up. (Psalm 71:20)
* When I said, My foot is slipping, your love, O Lord, supported me. When anxiety was great within me, your consolation brought joy to my soul. (94:18-19)
* Those of steadfast mind you keep in peace—because they trust in you. Trust in the Lord forever, for in the Lord God you have an everlasting rock. (Isaiah 26: 3-4)
* Do you not know? Have you not heard? The Lord is the everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the earth. He will not grow tired or weary, and his understanding no one can fathom. He gives strength to the weary and increases the power of the weak. Even the young grow tired and weary, and young men stumble and fall; but those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint. (Isaiah 40:28-31)
* So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand. (Isaiah 41:10)
* Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid. (John 14:27)
* My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in your weakness. (2 Corinthians 12:9)
* We can say with confidence, 'The Lord is my helper; I will not be afraid. What can anyone do to me?' (Hebrews 13:6)
* Cast all your anxiety on him, because he cares for you…And after you have suffered for a little while, the God of all grace, who has called you to his eternal glory in Christ, will himself restore, support, strengthen, and establish you. (1 Peter 5: 7-10)
* And then there’s Matthew 11:28, where Jesus said, Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.

Be Still My Soul...

2010-05-22T11:16:00.001-07:00

Sadly, we live in a day of cutesy little worship choruses, many of which consist of shallow lyrics, nearly devoid of any meaningful doctrinal truth. (The song whose chorus goes, “Yes, Lord, Yes, Lord, Yes, Yes, Lord” comes to mind – no offense meant if that particular song sends your heart soaring heavenward.) Consequently, I often find myself drawn to those “psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs” (Ephesians 5:19) whose timeless and time-tested words reach right down into my sin-sapped soul.

I found myself singing one such spiritual song just yesterday, the words of which are as follows... (Please read it slowly, intentionally, and let its words bring solace, serenity, and stillness to your soul as it has mine.)

1. Be still, my soul; the Lord is on thy side;
Bear patiently the cross of grief or pain;
Leave to thy God to order and provide;
In every change He faithful will remain.
Be still, my soul; thy best, thy heavenly, Friend
Through thorny ways leads to a joyful end.

2. Be still, my soul; thy God doth undertake
To guide the future as He has the past.
Thy hope, thy confidence, let nothing shake;
All now mysterious shall be bright at last.
Be still, my soul; the waves and winds still know
His voice who ruled them while He dwelt below.

3. Be still, my soul, though dearest friends depart
And all is darkened in the vale of tears;
Then shalt thou better know His love, His heart,
Who comes to soothe thy sorrows and thy fears.
Be still, my soul; thy Jesus can repay
From His own fullness all He takes away.

4. Be still, my soul; the hour is hastening on
When we shall be forever with the Lord,
When disappointment, grief, and fear are gone,
Sorrow forgot, love's purest joys restored.
Be still, my soul; when change and tears are past,
All safe and blessed we shall meet at last.

I sure needed that both yesterday and today.

How about you?

When My Faith Falters...

2010-05-18T15:56:00.001-07:00

Time to bare my soul. A line that always yields snickers at church, because the dear people who make up our New Hope family would tell you that I bare my soul every week. Nevertheless, here’s the deal…

There are times when my faith gets feeble, when my faith falters, when my belief system begins to break down, when my carefully constructed theology fails me. A startling admission for a guy who wrote a book entitled, No Doubt About It! That title notwithstanding, there are days when my theological worldview tilts on its axis. Days when nothing I know fits the paradigm of the real world.

Today is just such a day.

Let me be clear. I do not doubt God. I do not doubt His Word. The infrastructure of my faith is in tact. But it’s a story like this one that rocks my world to its core. A story for which I have no satisfactory explanations. A story that keeps me awake at night. A story that causes me to cry out, “Where is God in all of this???”

This from Dan Rather, as posted on his blog of May 18: “Portland, Oregon is without doubt one of the nation's treasures. It has been voted one of the best places to live and work. But according to police, the city and its outlying communities has become a hub for the sexual exploitation of children. In a recent nationwide sting by Federal, state and local law enforcement agencies, Portland ranked second in the country for the number of rescued child prostitutes. And according to Doug Justus, the workhorse sergeant in charge of Portland's tiny Vice Detail, many of the children caught up in this are middle class kids from the area.

“The girls, sometimes as young as 12, often 13-16, are lured by a ‘front man’ in his mid-to-late teens. He becomes her ‘boyfriend,’ taking her to dinner, buying her nice things, sometimes meeting her parents. The girl eventually moves in with him. Then he says they need money to continue being together. First, she's enticed to sleep with his friends to pay the rent. Soon she's turning tricks for what police say is an endless supply of older men willing to pay top money for sex with very young girls.”

This in Portland, OR. One hour north of where I live and am sitting right now. One hour away and I am doing nothing to stop it. And don't even know how or what to do to start trying to stop it.

I could just cry.

I have no doubt that God does cry.

Which causes me to cry out on these children’s behalf, “God, why do You let it happen? Why must these children suffer? When will You end it? When will it stop? When will Your justice be served?” And then to cry out on my behalf, “Lord, I believe; help my unbelief” (Mark 9:24).

Now you know what makes my faith falter. How about yours?

He Makes Us Lie Down...

2010-05-13T10:05:00.000-07:00

“He makes me to lie down in green pastures. He leads me beside the still waters. He restores my soul” (Psalm 23:2-3).

This is one lesson that I had to learn the hard way. The lesson is this: If we won’t lie down, the Lord will likely make us lie down. And He does so for a very good reason.

It’s the old story. When I was in my early twenties, I thought I was invincible. I had boundless energy, more energy than brains as it turns out. I was optimistic and ambitious. The world was my oyster; I was going to crack it wide open and seize the pearl awaiting me inside.

Of course, I justified my ambitions by convincing myself that my desire to make a mark on the world was God’s design for my life. There is, after all, a world to reach. I was simply going to do my part to reach it. So I set out on my path. First college, then seminary. Then my first church gig as a youth pastor.

In all honesty, as my wife and I look back, those early years of ministry were the most fulfilling of our over thirty years of ministry together. But we paid a hefty price for that fulfillment. Out six or seven nights a week. Rising especially early three mornings each week to pray with students before their first period classes at the three high schools where we ministered. Intense involvement on those three high school campuses, plus five middle schools and one college. Endless youth activities. Never-ending counseling sessions with kids, parents, and families in need. Camps. Retreats. Speaking engagements. Meetings, meetings, and more meetings; as so many churches do, we even had meetings to decide when we would have our next meeting.

But here’s the thing. I loved every minute of it. Loved it. Both my wife and I felt as though we were investing our time rather than wasting it. We were doing – as they liked to call it in that particular branch of evangelical Christianity – “Kingdom work.” When our firstborn came along, we happily took him with us to all of the madness, and he happily tagged along. The kids loved him, so it was all good. And as the fruit for our labor, we took a youth group of three (when everybody showed up) and grew it to the point where I can remember having not one but two Bible studies on the same night. (I’d show up at one house and start teaching after the worship set was over. The worship team would travel to a second home and lead those students in worship. Then, once I concluded the first Bible Study, I’d scurry over to the second.) Kids were stuffed everywhere in those homes – all over the living room floor, down the hallway, into the family room, spill out into the kitchen, up the stairs onto a second floor landing. It was exhilarating.

Then came the invitations to speak at some of the premiere Christian camps and conferences throughout North America. I have a vivid memory of counting the nights during the previous year when I was out of town. 137. Meaning that I slept in a bed other than my own over 1 out of 3 nights that year. That was a wake-up call. The one thing I did right – the only thing I did right – was always to take a member of my family with me. So while, thankfully, I did not ignore nor neglect my family, but faithfully protected our time together, I certainly did neglect my soul, and totally neglected my own physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual well-being. I didn’t even take vacations. I loved what I did, more (it turns out) than I loved myself, and that was the problem. I was headed for a meltdown. It was inevitable. The signs were are there, and abundantly obvious to everyone around me. But I refused to see it coming. Why? Because as I would often glibly say, “I’d rather burn out for God than rust out for God.”

Today, I’d prefer not do either.

So true to His Word, God put me flat on my back. For two years. Because of what my doctor called, “Clinical depression.” I crashed and burned. Yep. Burned out for God.

On the surface of things, I had no reason to be depressed. My wife was happy. My kids were doing great. We weren’t in debt. I was succeeding in my career, doing what I loved. Which became my undoing. The wear and tear of all those years of burning the candle at both ends and in the middle, the countless heart-wrenching stories that I heard but could not fix, the lack of any down-time – ME-time – all took it’s toll.

That’s when I knew I needed help. Thankfully, help was on its way. The loving support of a wonderful family. A doctor who really cared and took the time to listen. Most importantly, a God who loved me enough to put me flat on my back, to the point where I could not function, where for days I did not have the emotional wherewithal to get up and get going. Like the loving shepherd whom He is, God put Psalm 23 into action in my life. “He made me lie down in green pastures, he led me beside quiet waters, he restored my soul.” He did that for me.

Is He doing the same for you?

No doubt about it. The next time life seems to knock us flat, God may well have a reason.

Your Tough Times WILL Pass. They ALWAYS Do!

2010-05-07T09:24:00.000-07:00

“And it came to pass…” That has got to be one of my all-time favorite verses in all of the Bible.

Apparently the biblical writers were quite fond of it too. By my count, they used that exact phrase 176 times! Were they trying to tell us something? Could be. Because if you think about it, there’s a subtle subtext to that verse. A very encouraging subtext that goes something like this: The tough times will pass; they always do!

Now lest you think that I’m just toying with this scriptural phrase, playfully misapplying it to suit my own ends, consider the fact that the words “And it came to pass” do indeed refer to troubling circumstances, difficult situations, times of testing, painful periods in a person’s life where blessed relief did indeed come once the tough times “came to pass.”

Case in point: Luke 2:1. If you are at all familiar with the “Christmas Story” then you are familiar with this passage. But for the sake of this discussion, let’s revisit it and discover together what exactly the “it” was that “came to pass.”

“And it came to pass in those days that a decree went out from Caesar Augustus that all the world should be registered. This census first took place while Quirinius was governing Syria. So all went to be registered, everyone to his own city. Joseph also went up from Galilee, out of the city of Nazareth, into Judea, to the city of David, which is called Bethlehem, because he was of the house and lineage of David, to be registered with Mary, his betrothed wife, who was with child.”[1] Talk about being hit with a typhoon of troubles, there’s a lot here to unpack, none of it pleasant.

First, “a decree went out from Caesar Augustus.” Yet another indication that the Jews of Jesus’ day were not a free people. Just as they had suffered bondage under a ruthless Pharaoh until their deliverer Moses came along,[2] so now centuries later they were still a people oppressed. They suffered, unimaginably so, as they were forced by circumstances totally out of their control to try to build their lives under the barbaric rule and at the unpredictable whims of a coldblooded Caesar. Simply by affixing his signature on a single piece of parchment, Augustus was able to upend the lives literally of millions of people.[3]

We then learn that “all the world should be registered.” The word “registered” sounds benign enough, until one understands the purpose behind the census. With his coffers running lean, Augustus demanded an accurate count of his subjects in order to impose upon them yet another hefty tax.

This decree forced Joseph “out of the city of Nazareth, into Judea, to the city of David, which is called Bethlehem…with Mary.” 70 miles as the crow flies, a modest distance by today’s standards. But neither Joseph or Mary were crows and could not fly. Assuming that someone was young and healthy and capable of maintaining a brisk pace, the trip on foot or by camelback could take up to a week. However, given the lay of the land back then, where even in the much-guarded courtyards of the Temple complex worshippers were at the mercy of “den of thieves,”[4] wary travelers were ever on the look-out for bandits who could and would strip them of everything they owned. If you remember the Parable of the Good Samaritan,[5] that story took place on the very road on which Joseph and Mary would have traveled.

We have every reason to believe that Joseph and Mary were indeed young and healthy. But capable of maintaining a brisk pace? I don’t think so. Mary “was with child.” Pregnant. In today’s parlance, in the 3^rd trimester of her pregnancy. Can you imagine, ladies, what it would be like to undertake a week-long or longer excursion through rugged terrain under the constant threat of bandits, essentially forced to camp out in the elements each night at a time when, not to be indelicate here, your water could burst at any moment?

Then, to add insult to their injury, Mary and Joseph were not married; they were “betrothed.” Meaning that they were legally committed to one another, but without the privilege of sharing the marriage bed. Yet, Mary was pregnant. No doubt the small town rumor mill from Nazareth to Bethlehem had a field day with that inconvenient fact.

Such was Mary and Joseph’s lot at this point in their young lives. Where one might assume that as an innocently young nearly-wed couple, Joseph and Mary were wonderfully happy. If so, they were rudely awakened out of their newly-wedded bliss by the deadly decree of crazed king that forced them to brace themselves against a tidal wave of tribulation that would push any family to its limit.

No doubt about it. Just when it seems that our problems are here to stay, they’re not. They never are. Even in the midst of Joseph and Mary’s dire circumstances, Luke reminded them, and he now reminds us, that their tough times and ours “came to pass.”

(Just one of 52 Timeless Truths that you can read and relish in my latest book, "No Doubt About It.")

[1] Luke 1:1-5

[2] Exodus 3:7

[3] Some estimates place the population of the empire under Augustus at some 45 million people.

[4] Matthew 21:13

[5] Luke 10:25-37

There are Some Prayers That God Just Won't Answer...

2010-05-05T09:12:00.000-07:00

There are some prayers that God just won't answer. Aren't you glad? You should be!

“Watch out! Be on your guard against all kinds of greed; a man’s life does not consist in the abundance of his possessions” (Luke 12:15).

What’s a guy to do? His father had died. That caused him grief enough. But adding insult to his injury, his brother refused to give him his portion of the inheritance.

And no one seemed to care.

So he did what so many of us have done in similar circumstances. He asked Jesus to fix it.

If the guy’s brother was the firstborn son, Jewish Law entitled him to a double portion of the inheritance. So assuming the man who approached Jesus was the younger brother, he should have received at least one-third of his father’s estate. Instead, the older brother kept it all. It made perfect sense for the victim of this outrage to ask Jesus to intervene in this clear-cut case of injustice. As the gathering crowd watched and listened, some no doubt wondered, “What would Jesus do?”

OK, I’ll bite. What did Jesus do? Are you sitting down? Here it comes: Jesus refused to get involved. Instead of lending a hand, Jesus rejected outright the man’s seemingly reasonable request. An head-scratching response, don’t you think? Or was it?

Just yesterday I read in a credible Christian publication this money-back-guaranteed suggestion for receiving answers to my prayers: “Ask for something smaller and more specific and really believe that it will be answered.” Tell that to the young man in Luke 12. His prayer sounded “smaller and more specific” to me.

You’ve been there and so have I, too many times to count. We’ve prayed earnestly for something “smaller and more specific,” and truly believed that God would or should give us what we requested, only to have nothing happen. Shooting our prayers heavenward, they seemingly bounce off the ceiling and fall right back in our laps. Ignored. As if God has for whatever reason turned a deaf ear in our direction. Perhaps we’ve been disappointed so many times that we have actually stopped praying altogether, quietly concluding that prayer simply doesn’t work. At least it doesn’t work for us.

It sure didn’t work for the young man in our story. Or did it?

Might I float a theory?

The reality is that our aggrieved young man needed something far more than money. Instead of granting the man his wish for wealth, Jesus gave him what he needed most, this priceless piece of advice: “Watch out! Be on your guard against all kinds of greed.” Ouch.

So there the young man stood. Exposed. Naked before the watching world. Guilty as charged. The young man’s materialistic motive made manifest. Truth is, this guy didn’t care about justice. He just wanted Jesus to show him the money. He wanted wealth that he could waste on stuff, “the abundance his possessions,” as Jesus called it. Jesus saw this fatal flaw in the young man’s character and refused to be used to feed his greed.

As Jesus’ half-brother, James, so eloquently put it, “When you ask, you do not receive, because you ask with wrong motives, that you may spend what you get on your pleasures.” Jesus taught the man a principle of principal importance: Demanding what we want rather than submitting to what God wants is a sure-fire formula for personal disaster. Jesus loves us too much to play along when we pray along with our self-absorbed, it’s-all-about-me motives.

The Bible does not record the young man’s reaction to Jesus’ non-action. Whether he walked away glad or sad we will never know. What we do know is this: There are some prayers that God just won’t answer. At least not in the way that we think He should.

The next time God says “No!” to one of our prayers, we should be grateful. In the words of one wise sage, “Be careful what you ask for; you might just get it.” Or to put it another way, I have now lived long enough to become even more grateful for my prayers that God did not answer than for the ones He did answer. Reread that sentence, please. For I have a sneaking suspicion that the young man in our Luke 12 story would echo the same sentiment.

No doubt about it. Unanswered prayers should not weaken our faith, or cause us to pray less. Unanswered prayers should strengthen our resolve to examine our motives, submit our wills to God’s, trust Him to do the right thing in every situation, and thank Him for loving us so much that there are some prayers He just won’t answer.

(One of 52 timeless truths you can read about in my latest book, No Doubt About It.)

Can a "Happy Pastor" Have a Broken Heart?

2010-05-01T12:58:00.001-07:00

Well, I suppose so. Because this one sure does.

Both yesterday and today, my dear wife and peppy little puppy and I went on walks. Long walks. The days have been beautiful. The sun has been shining (intermittently. But hey, this is Oregon!). The trees are budding. The flowers are blooming. And colors are everywhere. It's enough to make someone feel so blessed to be alive.

But then I looked at the people. Despite the glorious weather and bountiful beauty, if facial expressions and body language mean anything, they are so... so... what's the word? Sad? Depressed? Troubled? Burdened?

Which I understand. I mean, these are challenging times. In our small town, lots of people have been out of work for a long, long time. And those fortunate to have jobs are worried about losing their jobs. Alcohol-related accidents and crimes are on the rise. The incidence of domestic violence is measurably on the increase. I get that. All of that.

That's not what's laying me so low. It's the children. Sad-looking children. Children who should otherwise be spending their Saturday laughing and jumping and running and yelling and climbing around the playground equipment at the park we just visited. But they seemed subdued somehow. Their giddiness gone. Their emotional energy depleted. The countenance crestfallen.

Sorry about this. I surely don't mean to depress you. That's not what this is all about. It is about this personal epiphany that I had in the park this day... The day I no longer feel for the people around me is the day I lose my edge as a pastor.

Jesus felt it. Boy did He feel it. "Seeing the people, He felt compassion for them, because they were distressed and dispirited like sheep without a shepherd" (Matthew 9:36).

So what's a pastor to do? Especially a "Happy Pastor"? Here's what I am going to do: 1. Hug my newborn granddaughter a little tighter and hold her a little closer. 2. Relish every moment God gives me to enjoy my family. 3. Thank God for His many blessings in my life. 4. Pray for my neighbors like never before. 5. Actively look for opportunities to spread a little good cheer around -- like a smile when I pass someone by, a sincere word of friendly greeting, an opportunity to praise someone for doing a kind thing or saying a kind word, let a child pet my puppy and feel an inward glow when that simple act brings a great big smile to his or her face.

Little things all. Simple things. But simple things that can bring some light to an otherwise darkened soul. "Dear God, let me be that light."

Countering a Depressing Post for Us Depression Sufferers...

2010-04-26T09:55:00.000-07:00

Well, my friends, "Timing is everything," or so they say. If that's true, then Saturday's blog post on HuffingtonPost.com is indeed curious timing.

Not that there's any relationship between the posting of the HP blog and my own thoughts posted late last week, but at the same time that I was extolling the virtues of antidepressant medication, Dr. Mark Hyman, MD, was decrying the scandalous deceptions of the same. You can read his entire post here.

But you really don't need to read all 1596 words of his massive missive. The opening lines tell the tale:

Here's some depressing recent medical news:Antidepressants don't work. What's even more depressing is that the pharmaceutical industry and Food and Drug Administration (FDA) have deliberately deceived us into believing that they DO work.

OK, here's the thing... In the interests of full disclosure... I am not a medical doctor. My doctorate is in the field of theology. So perhaps this disqualifies me from rendering an opinion on the good doctor's words.

BUT, I am a depression survivor. I have lived with this particular "thorn in the flesh" for some 17 years. Brought on, BTW, by several contributing factors: Depression runs in my family. Over the years of unrelenting ministry, hearing scores of personal problems that I am powerless to fix, I know that I burned myself out emotionally. My temperament from birth has leaned toward the melancholy. And there are no doubt chemical unbalances that have only exacerbated my tendency to drift toward the sadder side of the emotional spectrum. AND I AM THE RICHER FOR IT!

I cannot quote medical literature. I can only quote my own personal experience. May I be blunt? Without antidepressant medication, over time I become consumed with suicidal thoughts. There. I said it. I am not proud of it. I am ashamed of it. But it's true. AND, I have come to realize that my suicidal thoughts are NOT selfish in their orientation, as some would have us all believe. When I am at rock bottom, when life looks to be hopelessly dark, when I become a drag on the members of my dear and beloved family, I reason (faulty reasoning, of course) that they would be better off without me emotionally pulling them down with me. In those dark moments, thoughts of suicide seem to me to be the most loving and selfless of acts, motivated by an almost irresistible desire to bring some semblance of closure to the pain that I am causing those nearest and dearest to me. (Again I say loudly and clearly, I know that my reasoning in those desperate moments is significantly skewed.)

That's what happens without antidepressant medication. With the medication, I am able to realize some semblance of emotional stability. Common sense takes over. I can once again think clearly. Even to the point of writing a post like the one you are reading now.

Believe me, I should know. Stung by the stigma Christians often attach to antidepressant medication, I have tried on several occasions to wean myself off of the medicine. "I'm feeling really good," I tell myself. "It has been weeks since my last episode," I reason. "I can do this without a medicinal crutch," I think. And I can... For about 3 weeks. And then, wham! I'm back down in the hole, falling into a pit in which there is no bottom.

So with all due respect to Dr. Hyman, I could not disagree more. Antidepressant medication, administered and monitored by my wonderful Christian doctor, has literally saved my life. And for His gifts of a loving and supportive family who just want Dad to be happy, a caring doctor, and the medical technology that provides me with the medication I need, I thank my God. Daily.

In Defense of Antidepressants…

2010-04-23T13:31:00.000-07:00

My doctor – a Christian who loves the Lord and has walked with God for many, many years – has a saying that I find quite intriguing. He has told me on more than one occasion, “If it was up to me, we’d put antidepressants in the drinking water.”

While I’m not prepared to go that far, I am prepared to tell you that doctor-prescribed antidepressant medication has been a Godsend to me. “Godsend” with a capital “G” because I truly believe that God led me to the right doctor at just the right time to treat my ongoing, debilitating depression with just the right medicine.

Sadly, antidepressant medication carries something of a stigma amongst many of us “people of faith.” It’s as if we don’t know where to fit clinical depression in our theology.

Some would say that depression is a sin issue for which we must repent, because those of us who are depressed are not letting the joy of the Lord be our strength (Nehemiah 8:10).

Others would suggest that it’s just a mind-over-matter thing that we should simply ignore. “Just live your life,” I’ve heard it said. “Get up and get going” is the cure suggested by some. Suggested by some who obviously have never been paralyzed by their own boughts of the blues.

But while I cannot speak to anyone else’s depression, I can tell you that mine is not the result of sin, is not an imagined thing. It is, in every sense of the word, a disease. Just like Type 2 Diabetes is a disease. Just like chronic physical pain is a disease. Just like any other malady that must be treated by doctor-prescribed medication is a disease.

Here’s the thing: I thank God for my depression. I truly and sincerely do. God created me (and you) as emotional beings. Over the years of my life, I have known the highest of highs and the lowest of lows. Having experienced the full spectrum of human emotions, I am the richer for it. As a pastor, the ability to understand, to feel, to sympathize, and to empathize with those who are scraping bottom emotionally is a priceless privilege.

Yet, for all of my gratitude to the Lord for blessing me with this particular “thorn in the flesh” (2 Corinthians 12:7), I know that without the proper medication I am consumed with some very dark thoughts, paralyzing thoughts. Just as God uses insulin in the lives of diabetics, so He uses my medication to bring me to some semblance of emotional balance. And I thank Him that I can admit this to you without any sense of shame.

Whether my depression is the result of a chemical imbalance, the cumulative total of 35 years of hearing countless stories of horrific situations in the lives of scores of people I love – situations I cannot fix – or both, it doesn’t matter. What does matter is that God led me to the right doctor at just the right time to diagnose and treat my condition with just the right medication. A gift, lovingly bestowed upon me from the hands of my God, a gift received with gratitude.

Yes, indeed! We've got the GREATEST story to tell...

2010-04-20T09:50:00.000-07:00

HERE’S what went down that first night. (If you're wondering, "What night?" please read the previous blog entry and you will be up to speed.)

The band did a pretty good job of playing their Jesus-songs. The concert ended. The kids who came just sort of hung out as they bought their sweets and sodas. (All according to plan, so far!)

Out of the corner of my eye I saw a guy sitting sort of by himself on one of the hay bales in front of the mock stage at the far end of the parking lot. I thought to myself, “OK, here goes,” swallowed hard, walked over to him, sat down next to him, looked at him awkwardly, and opened my mouth.

And for the life of me, I could not remember what to say. My mind went blank.

So I hemmed and hawed, stammered and stuttered and stumbled around for a second, when finally I blurted out something brilliant like, “So, what did you think of the concert?” Thing is, that opening line wasn’t it my script. Now what???

Fortunately, my newfound friend helped me out. “They’re a pretty cool band,” he replied. And then he added, “But I thought people only sung about Jesus in hymns and stuff.” What a perfect setup!

Yet, there I sat. Frozen. Not having any idea what to do or say next. Fortunately, the awkward silence was broken when he remarked, “They seemed so…so…I don’t know. So excited about it.”

Without thinking I asked, “Does that surprise you?”

“Yeah,” he answered. “I guess. I mean, I only went to church once – when I was staying with my grandma. And it was so boring. Like no one really wanted to be there. I just thought all this religion stuff was for a bunch of old people.”

Well, from that point on, we were off to the races. Now that we were completely off-script, as far as my personal evangelism training was concerned, I just started talking about what Jesus had done in my life. It was like someone turning on the tap and a waterfall of words spontaneously flowed out of my mouth.

Nothing deep, mind you. Nothing particularly profound. A conversation that lasted not more than ten or fifteen minutes. And all that I can remember of the particulars was what this young man said to me when I paused long enough to breathe. He asked, “Do you think Jesus could do that for me?”

I about fell down dead right off that hay bale. I was so taken aback that I actually started to stutter. “We-ell, ye-yes, of c-course He can. Alls you have to do is to ask Him, like I did.”

“Cool! But, um, what did you ask?”

“I asked Jesus to save me from my sins,” I said. “And I told Him that I wanted a relationship with Him.”

And then I asked him this all-important question: “Is that what you want?”

“I do,” he replied.

So right then and there, we prayed together. I kid you not. Just a simple, sincere, heartfelt, good old fashioned, “God, be merciful to me a sinner!” type of prayer. Only his words were something like, “Jesus, thank you for loving me and saving me.”

He went home that night a child of God. I went home that night – No, I floated home – feeling more excited than anything I had ever experienced before. Like a brave new world opened up to this not-so-brave college kid.

I LOVE to Tell THIS Story... One Man's Personal Evangelism Odyssey

2010-04-15T09:01:00.000-07:00

PANICKED.

We’re talking sheer terror here. As in, that was how I was feeling as I approached that unforgettable (though admittedly life-changing), sultry summer’s night, so many years ago now.

I was sweating alright. But not because of the heat.

It was opening night of our church’s “Country Store” – an old abandoned shack on the church parking lot that we converted into a nifty little hang-out place – and what was to become a free weekly concert by local Christian bands. All of this with the goal of us sharing our faith with people who might otherwise not come to a Sunday morning worship service, but who just might come to a free concert.

In preparation for the big night, several of us college-age students went through an intensive four-week course to learn how to share our faith. Our strategy for each concert was to introduce ourselves to the young people who came to check out the music. Then, once the concert ended, we were to “witness to” or “share our faith with” or “evangelize” any and every person who showed any interest in hearing more about a relationship with Jesus.

As our team gathered around an old-style, country store-type barrel in the middle of the store and joined hands to pray for God’s blessing on the evening – our very first evening – amidst the noise of the band’s sound check and the words being prayed in our circle, the sweating began. I was petrified.

What if they ask me a question that I cannot answer? I worried. What if I forget the lines of my rote-memorized script, and they end up dying and going to Hell because of my faulty memory? I wondered. What if they get mad hit me? Am I really ready to die for my faith?

In spite of my little freak-out session, little did I know that a whole new exciting world was about to open up to me. I was about to walk through a door after which I would never be the same again.

I'll tell you what I discovered on the other side of that door next time!

THE ELEGANT SIMPLICITY OF IT ALL

2010-04-09T14:35:00.000-07:00

I cannot wait for Sunday morning. That’s when I have the distinct privilege of teaching my little New Hope Christian Fellowship flock some of the wonders of God’s Word.

While I am always eager to get there and to worship with the amazing people who make up the NH family, I am especially energized by the topic of this Sunday morning.

We have been working our way through the marvelous Gospel According to Matthew. This Sunday, we will be completing the 10^th chapter, Jesus’ instruction manual that He taught His men on the eve of sending them out into the world. The entire chapter is a masterpiece, as we have discovered together over the last several weeks. But Jesus’ concluding statement is breathtaking – the essence of elegance in its simplicity.

After Jesus detailed for His men where they should go, to whom they should speak, what they should do, how they should do it, He ended His seminar by the sea (as in the Sea of Galilee) by saying this (And the “this” perfectly defines the hopeful heart of this happy pastor!) --

“And if you give even a cup of cold water to one of the least of my followers, you will surely be rewarded” (Matthew 10:42 New Living Translation).

That’s pastoral ministry in a nutshell. That’s personal ministry in a nutshell. Not to put too fine a point on it, but that's your ministry in a nutshell. (You certainly don’t have to be a pastor to hand out a cup of cold water!)

I have been intimately involved in local church ministry for more than 30 years. And I have been amazed, and not a little amused, at how utterly complicated we can make it. At New Hope, I have had the distinct privilege, along with our leadership team, of laying the foundation of an unpretentious, no-frills, not-that-complicated, simple and sincere ministry model in which we simply – yet profoundly – LOVE the people. And count it the highest of honors and the pinnacle of privileges to SERVE them in any way we can. To give cups of cold water to thirsty people. THAT’S what the ministry is all about.

It’s not about running an organization. It’s not about the pastor as the CEO of a non-profit corporation. It’s not about plans and programs, strategy sessions and implementing the latest and greatest church growth techniques. (We decided at the very beginning that Jesus said He would build His Church, and we don’t want to compete with Him.) Our church rests on three pillars, three legs to the stool: We love God; we love His Word; and we love each other. That’s it. Period. Paragraph.

In short, we’re just a bunch of thirsty souls handing out cups of cold water to each other, and to every parched parishioner who darkens our doors.

So three cheers for sheer simplicity. Thank you, Jesus, for making it so simple. Forgive us for sometimes making it so complicated. Help us never to forget that in the end, it’s just about giving out cups of cold water.

Which begs the question, To whom will you give a cup of cold water today?

Blog Launch

2010-04-08T11:21:00.000-07:00

Well, dear friends, I am back to blogging. It is my sincere hope (no pun intended, given the name of my blog) that you will find here a humble place of inspiration and hope, from the heart of one happy pastor to yours. So please stay tuned. And if you do indeed find encouragement from some of my random thoughts, please feel free to share this blog with your friends.