Way to go!
I just wanted to send a note of thanks to all of the folks who have worked so hard to clean up our environment, and make our appliances and utilities a little more friendly to our mother earth. I know there have been challenges along the way, and resistance from some quarters, but you really are making a difference.
Take for instance the toilet in my office. If it wasn’t for you and your efforts, we wouldn’t have the government making guidelines about how much water each flush was allowed to waste. And what a waste it was before! Of course, now that the water used in each flush has been reduced, it takes two flushes to get a “clean bowl” for the next person, which of course takes twice the amount of water. And I’m pretty sure twice the amount of water in a new eco-friendly toilet is more than the one flush it used to take in our non-eco-friendly toilet.
So, great job guys! You’ve really made a difference. Keep up the good work!
Just a little help, please.
Now that I work in a church office and spend most of my day here, I am lucky enough to get to answer the phones almost all day long. Having not worked in a church office full-time for several years, I had forgotten how many calls we get everyday from people looking for help. 98% of those calling for help are very specific about the help they want: rent, gas, and food. And, being a small church whose budget has been adversely affected by the current recession (like every other organization across America… except for Apple…), we simply don’t have the resources to help. It bothers me that we can’t be more help, but it has gotten me thinking.
Most churches don’t really help people like that directly anymore–at least not to my knowledge. Indirectly, they help by contributing time, money, and other resources to other organizations whose sole purpose is to help the needy, like food banks and so forth. But the days where folks would call the church and ask for a handout are mostly gone.
And that’s sad.
But is it necessarily bad?
My first thoughts were “of course it is!” And I’m sure most people would feel that way. I can think of several people who don’t go to church who would say “that’s because the church is full of self-serving hypocrites who aren’t interested at all in helping people.” Sadly, they are not wrong, for the most part. And to think that I myself, or my church, are any different, would fall in the realm of arrogance, or ignorance–one of the two.
But stop and think about it for a second. Putting yourselves in the shoes of the person answering the phones all day long or the person whose decision it is whether or not to help, might give you a different perspective.
I ask you this: is it possible that churches, or other charitable organizations, have limited their handouts because there is so much fraud? I mean, you can’t be so blind or so immersed in the sadness of the situation that you can’t see the abuse. We (churches) have been taken advantage of so many times, or find ourselves in a situation where we don’t have the resources available to make an informed decision of the person’s real need, that we have pulled back a little–or a lot. We’re gun-shy when it comes to helping people because we see so much abuse of our charity, day-in, and day-out. I’ve had the same person call 3 times in a row because they were simply going down a list of churches in a phone book. I’ve brought food to people’s houses that were nicer than mine with a new car and shiny rims in the front yard, but they can’t make their bills. You can’t help but get a little bitter about it.
What do you think? Have you seen the abuse? Have you been burned by fraud?
Of course, I can’t end this without thinking about what Jesus would say about the situation. I think He would say: “Suck it up, boy. Don’t be a punk. I didn’t call you to help people who didn’t need it, or didn’t deserve it. Did you deserve my grace? Quit your whining and get out there and be my hands and feet.”
I’m not saying it’s OK to quit helping the needy. It’s pretty clear that the early church in the Book of Acts spent much time and energy helping the needy. I am, however, offering this as an explanation to the perceived inability of the church to help people. It’s really not fair to expect us to help everyone, in every way. But we have to at least try. We have to continue helping, because Jesus would.
Because Jesus would.
Mysticism vs. Practicalism
So this is what I’ve been dealing with recently. And I’m just being honest. I am critical of pretty much anything mystical these days. And that’s almost antithetical to the faith and doctrines I hold dear. I am an Assembly of God minister. I believe in the baptism in the Holy Spirit, complete with the initial physical evidence of speaking in other tongues. I really do believe it. This is not a crisis of faith where my beliefs are in question. My faith in God is pretty much sound. It’s my faith in people!!
I tend to lean more towards the practical side of Christianity. The cup of water is His Name kind of ministry. But I long for, and pray for, authentic moves of God, and the third person of the trinity, in my life and in the lives of those around me.
I’m only 29 at the time of this writing, so I can’t exactly say I’ve seen it all. But I have seen and experienced more than most people my age–at least what one would call “mystical.” And the sum of those “mystical” experiences have left me jaded. I have seen too many authentic moves of God to doubt His Word. The problem is…that I’ve seen too many fakes, too. There are so many screwballs out there when it comes to spirituality. It’s the mysticism that attracts them. Some of them are just trying to make themselves appear “uber-spiritual” to others. Some are trying to scam you out of money. Some, and this is probably the scariest of them all, are just certifiably nuts!! And seeing so much of this fake-ness has left me cynical. I’m to the point now where in my mind I’m daring them to prove themselves to me.
And I am ashamed.
I know my God is real. I’ve experienced Him. I’ve felt Him. I know Him.
And I know that He uses people to perform signs and wonders.
And I know that there are many bona-fide Christian mystics out there.
And what’s really concerning me is the fact that in the Bible, most mystics, prophets, and authentic people of God were indeed certifiably crazy! And everyone around them thought so. I could make a long list right here and now of many of those people. So I’m really having a difficult time with this.
Does anyone else have these issues as well? Not a set of doubts that God is real–just that people, and their mysticism, are real. Have you faced this and come to terms with it? How did you marry the mystical and the practical? Help me out with your comments and your feelings about this.
Forgiveness
Michael Vick and Dog
So, I’ve been listening and watching the comments and blogs about Michael Vick’s release from prison and re-emergence back into the NFL. The opinions vary pretty widely, but whatever their stance on it, they’re very passionate about it. On the one hand, people are still angry about what he got caught doing. And these folks think he should be banned from the NFL. On the other hand, people are crying out that he has served his time, just let him get back to his life, which includes the NFL.
I’ve been trying to sort out my feelings on the subject. Here’s what I’ve concluded:
His apology in his blog is pretty well written. He sounds very sincere and seems to be taking steps towards ending further abuse of animals. And I tend to be a little naive and I’ll be the first to admit that I want to believe him. But, as someone commented, there are people out there who are well paid to tell you just what to say to make people believe you. And his blog may have been a little too well written. So I don’t believe he is really sorry, but I do think he won’t do it any more because people are paying attention. And I believe he really is contributing to the efforts of stamping out dogfighting, but only because his highly paid PR people are telling him to. His decision to engage in such activities is a mind-set that he has. His actions are simply symptoms of this mind-set.
But, do I believe his re-entry into the NFL should be banned? Of course not! That’s really stupid! He has served his sentence. He has done what our justice system called for him to do. It’s done. So now, he should return to his life. If they ban him because of his actions off the field, they’ve got a lot of other players to investigate. It would be a band-aid on a broken bone–and they would be allowing a small percentage of the public opinion to dictate their policies. There’s too much of that in DC, we don’t need it in the NFL!!
Furthermore, what about forgiveness? The Bible teaches us to forgive. Plain and simple. Whether or not they deserve it is irrelevant. We certainly don’t deserve the grace we are shown on a daily basis, but it is given regardless. So, at least to those of you who profess Christ, get over yourself and forgive. Those of you who do not profess Christ should at least begin to look at your own life first and try to correct your own flaws. That just makes sense.
Michael Vick has served his time. The legitimacy of his remorse remains to be seen. But he’s served his sentence. There are too many other issues in life that demand our attention (like Brette Favre’s return to the NFL–now that’s worthy of some serious attention…).
What do you think? Should we forgive and forget? Should a civil suit against Vick be pursued? Should we even care?
Pay Attention
Today my wife and I went to Busch Gardens in Tampa. We have season Passports there and have used them many times. Both she and I enjoy going there as much as we can. We both love roller coasters (specifically the Montu) and she really loves the animals…and I love watching her light up when she sees them.
While trudging through the crowds, something occurred to me that never had before. You see, every time we go, I tend to get all bent out of shape about people that have no self-awareness. Let me explain: self-awareness means being aware of your own feelings, tastes, desires, etc. But I take it a step further (if there is an official term that defines this please let me know…). I believe that self-awareness also means being aware of your surroundings. It really ticks me off when you’re walking along, and the people walking in front of you just stop…and then you run slap into them, or almost fall all over yourself trying not to. Or people are just wandering around not looking where they are going and completely run you over. Or they are just standing in the middle of a thoroughfare. I think you get my drift.
This kind of behavior really sets me off. To me, you’re encroaching on my rights as a human being when you aren’t aware of what you are doing and run me over. Sure, there are exceptions–like when you are trying to find your kids in a crowd, or craning to see something interesting. But even then, you should at least be paying attention!
And this happens all over the place. Like in grocery stores–the people who stop to look at something but leave their buggy in the middle of the aisle completely blocking you and everyone else trying to get through. Move your junk so the rest of us can move on!
But what actually occurred to me, probably at the prompting of the Holy Spirit, was that this is our problem altogether. We aren’t paying enough attention to what is actually going on around us. We walk right by people that are hurting all of the time. Some of us fail to notice. Some of us choose not to notice. Some of us notice but don’t care. It’s the same as all those people in a crowded amusement park. Except people’s very lives are in jeopardy–or maybe even their eternity, and we walk right by without paying any attention. Maybe all that’s needed is someone to stop and listen. Or maybe a warm meal. Or maybe the fact that someone loved them enough to die on a cross for them.
WHY AREN’T WE PAYING ATTENTION!!!
Those of you (myself included), this is a call to wake up and pay attention. Be aware of your surroundings. Get your buggies out of the way. And reach out with the gifts and talents and the wherewithal that you’ve been divinely blessed with.
Pay attention.