Eyes to See - ID and a bat

This video is pretty amazing. Well, at least somewhat amazing. The thing that made me think more deeply about it is the last comment that the commentator says, "That would never happen in a hundred years." It made me think about the odds of a bat standing on end unintentionally, like this one. Even the average person sees the unlikeliness of such an event. For this event to repeat it would take 100 years to do so. That's what I call eyes that don't see. People look at such an event and sees the rarity of it. It is so amazing that it causes some to take a video clip of it and put it on the internet for all to see. However, when the very same concept is presented to point people toward intelligent design it is given the cold shoulder. Why? A few are given eyes to see. It reminds me of the Israelites (Deut 29:4). God had worked mightily among them and even given them miracles that we haven't been privy to see. Although, they did not truly see. So what is the application of all this? Use your eyes to see and your ears to hear; not just the earthly things, but the spiritual realities that surround us. Use the everyday to point to eternity. Talk about LOST and HEROES and whatever else comes up, but be an opportunist. Show those things that people are interested in for what they truly are: signposts to spiritual realities. (Look for a future post on Jesus as an opportunist.)

Responsibilities of a Pastor - Part 2 -Spritual Vitality

The second most important duty of a pastor is to maintain spiritual vitality. A man cannot do this of his own will, which is why reliance upon God through prayer is of first importance. However, we can make use of the God-given means by which we are made new. If a man is to lead others into a greater degree of intimacy with the Lord Jesus, then he must first have this spiritual vitality that he looks to bring others into. We cannot expect a man who is not walking joyfully alongside his God to be used to impart life to people. Of course, the Lord can use whatever means he pleases, but it is not how he typically works, nor is it how he instructs us to be faithful and prepared. For example, remember the warning for husbands in 1 Peter 3:7 where God tells husbands their prayers will be hindered?

So, elders should be constantly putting God's "means of grace" in their way. (Another post will address "means of grace" more thoroughly.) If God has provided things to help us grow, then bishops should be throwing these things unavoidably in their path. They should be going to Scripture to be influenced and changed by God's thoughts. They should be men of prayer who depend on God to change hearts including their own. They should be men of fellowship who look to others for counsel and advice. They should look forward to reminders of their faith, like when others are baptized, taking communion, or hearing testimonies. Since pastors are responsible for the shepherding of people unto spiritual vitality it requires the man, himself place his own life in Christ as a very high priority. This is to say nothing of the temptations with which pastors are constantly and consistently bombarded. In such cases, a good offense is often the best defense and a man best thicken his skin and steady himself for the sure and coming battles that lie ahead. The best way to prepare oneself for the temptations of Potiphar's wife (Gen. 39) and the accusations of the superapostles (2 Cor. 2:12) is to be valuing God more and more.

It seems odd that I have listed the two most important responsibilities of a pastor, but I haven't yet even talked about any personal contact with other people (aside from the need for fellowship). However, I believe that this testifies to the importance of the position because it takes such great preparation before one even interacts with others.

Responsibilities of a Pastor - Part 1 - Prayer

I am currently being considered for the position of elder at our church. And in this process I have had time to reflect on some things that I don't usually think of so concretely. Out of concern for the people in our church I wanted to communicate to them what I felt my responsibilities would be if I became a pastor. As the second pastor in our church, they would surely be wondering about this. So, I plan to spell this out in a short series of articles that may not necessarily be in order of importance. However, I believe that this first article is of first importance in the order of responsibilities.

The first and most important responsibility of a pastor is to pray. He must pray for himself, his family, and the body. Prayer is of such great importance because it is the catalyst for all other spiritual growth. Let me explain what I mean. Let's say you are in a spiritual drought. You haven't been reading your Bible, you haven't been praying very much and when you do it doesn't seem to help, you act irritable towards family members, and maybe you just lack joy, in general. What can you do to help? Scripture won't come alive to you, so that doesn't seem to be helpful. Talking with others helps to understand the problem, but may not be the helping hand to lift you out of your valley. The starting point is to focus on prayer. God is the changer of hearts and the reviver of them, too. What will be helpful is to ask, plead, and beg God to make your mind and heart interested in the things of God again. Abandon your "routine" prayer. Being realistic with God about your situation and what needs to happen will be greatly beneficial. This might look something like "God, I honestly don't desire to know/love You more right now. I feel content in my relationship with you and have no motivation to serve You. I know this is wrong. Please, help me. I believe your promise that you won't leave me in such a state, but will continue the work you started in my life. Father, please change my heart."

I believe that this example helps to highlight the importance of prayer. If prayer is our aid in our worst spiritual state, then it will certainly be helpful in all lesser trials. Even more importantly, God is clear about the importance of prayer and its effectiveness. And because of the emphasis that our Lord puts on prayer, I feel it would be my first duty to pray for those under my care. This is not to say that all people shouldn’t be praying in such a way. I believe they should. However, as an elder has specific responsibilities to shepherd and to oversee souls, I see this means of change in people’s hearts and lives as of first importance.

Why I Love the Clintons

I imagine that those who read my blog are intrigued by the title of this post. Mayhaps that is why you are reading it right now. For the most part, my readers would be conservative Christians who disagree with many views of the Clintons. However, there is something wrong with this scenario. Think about it - Christians fascinated by another Christian proclaiming to love the despicable (at least, that's how most of us think of them). Sure, I intentionally chose the title of this post to try and "trap" you. But, did it work? If not, then great! But, if you were one of the millions (or couple) of people who were so fascinated by why a conservative Christian might love a liberal non-Christian (despite who they may be), then my little snare worked. The body of Christ has drawn too many lines in the sand where Scripture doesn't. In fact, sometimes beyond where Scripture does. One of those lines is how we think about people different than us, despicable people, lying, cheating, stealing, prideful, Clinton-type people. The love of Christ should surprise anyone except a Christian. After all, we are the very ones who know personally the amount of forgiveness that Christ has poured out onto us. It covers us head to toe, drenching our sinful garments. Remembering our own sinfulness should keep us humble, should keep us loving. Even people so wicked as the Clintons. It is always good to keep in mind the saying, "But for the grace of God, there go I."

Survey on Murder

I've been thinking a bit about the relationship that Christians have to the law of the land. And I hope that these questions will help us define it better.
Would you turn yourself in for murder? If so, why?
Would you turn yourself in for speeding? If not, why?

I Love Disciplining My Daughter

Before I was a dad I was influenced with great understanding of biblical parenthood. I have always looked fondly forward to being a father, so I took this parenting advice very seriously. And I often would try to influence others with the same biblical insight. Inevitably, people would respond with statements such as, "Yeah, you say that now. You just wait. You'll change your tune." I really hate that (and still do). Still, I had never experienced being a parent and wondered how things might play out differently than I thought they would. Sure, my perfect plan for parenting looks good on paper, but what will I tweak when I'm actually standing there and I must take action? I am happy to say that I have had to tweak hardly anything. What's even more surprising is the ease with which I slid into the role of father. I even find myself loving to discipline my daughter. And I'm loving it more and more. She's not very old, but she definitely understands what no means. In fact, a couple of weeks ago a child snatched a toy from her hands. She told him, "No" and pointed to her hand (where my wife and I most often discipline her). As her father, that makes me proud and it encourages me to strive in discipling her consistently. When I make a statement like this people either look at me very oddly or reach for the phone to call social services. But, I truly do enjoy slapping my daughter's hand. Does this mean that I enjoy her defiant grunt or pain-induced cry? Certainly not. However, it does mean that I have been strongly influenced by a long view of things. When I spank my daughter it is as if I am teaching her right from wrong. Ultimately, this will culminate in a presentation of the gospel. I want her to see that it is good to choose right and that my love for her causes me to inflict her with pain for a little while. (Although, sometimes I think it is just as much a pride issue as it is a pain issue.) When done correctly, biblical discipline will (generally) produce great rewards. And I love my daughter too much not to slap her hand for doing wrong.

Rethinking Some Idolatry

Can I really love my child too much? The more I think about this question, the more I become convinced that the answer is "No." Throughout my Christian upbringing I have been taught that I can love anything too much. Traditional teaching on this says that when I love my child too much I am committing spiritual idolatry because I am loving him/her more than my Lord. I want to challenge that thought. Where in Scripture does it define idolizing people that way? I can't find any passage that teaches that. If you can, please let me know. However, I suggest a different way of looking at the "problem." Typically, we compare our love for God against our love for other things (money, sex, children, etc.). We talk about this in a way that says we need to prioritize these things biblically (God, family, church, etc.). We give God priority in these things, as we should. But should we make distinctions between these things? I think we should. We are told to not to love certain things (Hebrews 13:5). And we are told to love other people (Matthew 22:36). What I am putting forth is that we should love people and should not love things. Sure, we often talk that way and say, "I love these new shoes." Most of us don't mean it in the same way as "I love my mom." If we do, then there's a problem. What bearing does this have on idolatry? Well, remember the original question? I don't think we can love people too much. Sure, we can wrongly prioritize our love for people. For instance, a woman can desert her husband for another man. However, I don't think it is possible to love another person too much. As long as I love my Lord more than any other person, then I am free to love them as much as I want. This is where I believe the problem comes in our understanding of idolatry. Idolatry is to love something more than the Lord. So, perhaps the problem is our capacity of love for God. What we should do is confess our lack of love to the Lord and ask Him to change our hearts. We need to cry out to Him, seeing that our love for Him pales in comparison to our love for someone else. Our prayer should reflect the thoughts in Luke 14:26, which says, "If anyone comes to me and does not hate his father and mother, his wife and children, his brothers and sisters—yes, even his own life—he cannot be my disciple."