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.
Titles
One of the prominent Pastors I follow on Twitter posted a tweet today advertising a conference they are putting on at their church. I won’t go into detail because I have no interest in slandering another ministry. However, i did notice something that reminded me of yet another issue I have with prominent figures in the church today: titles.
If you search around the interwebs enough for almost any high profile church leaders today you will see some sort of title along with their name–titles such as “Bishop,” “Evangelist,” or even “Lady.” I take issue with this practice. I’m sure there are those out there that would argue the point that these people have worked hard to earn their position, and are simply adding the weight of their title to make their words and opinions more influential–and I get that.
It reminds me of a recent exchange between Brig. Gen. Michael Walsh with the Army Corps of Engineers and Senator Barbara Boxer, D-CA. During senate testimony, Walsh had the nerve to refer to Boxer as “ma’am” (which is perfectly acceptable when addressing anyone raked higher than they are according to military protocol), to which she responded “You know, do me a favor. Could you say ’senator’ instead of ‘ma’am.’ It’s just a thing, I worked so hard to get that title, so I’d appreciate it, yes, thank you.” You can see the entire exchange here.
Right away, many of you are thinking how absurd, especially when she was talking to a Brigadier General (to which he never once complained about not being referred to as “General,” but I digress…). It’s laughable that she was so bold as to call him out for something so minor. And yes, she did work hard to gain her position, so some respect is due. But he was clearly being respectful, and had even been trained to use such diction.
So if it’s silly to hear a Senator say that, how is it ok for church leaders to have such titles appended to their names? Sure, they are leaders and have worked hard to get there I’m sure. And they deserve respect. But how far is too far? Please show me in the Bible where a title is to be our focus, our aim. And please show me in the Bible where any other of the apostles are pulling rank. Furthermore, the only time Jesus ever got bent out of shape about titles was when he was calling people out for using theirs! He was constantly badgering the Pharisees about their arrogance due to their titles.
I’ll even use the obvious example of the story in John 13, where Jesus washes his disciples’ feet. He was showing them what we have come to refer to as Servant Leadership. He teaches them that they (we) are no better than Him, yet He came to serve. How much more so should we also serve? It’s not about the title, it’s about serving others.
Later, Paul, arguably the greatest apostle and missionary for Christ, begins the book of Romans like this (Romans 1:1-7, The Message):
I, Paul, am a devoted slave of Jesus Christ on assignment, authorized as an apostle to proclaim God’s words and acts. I write this letter to all the believers in Rome, God’s friends.2 -7The sacred writings contain preliminary reports by the prophets on God’s Son. His descent from David roots him in history; his unique identity as Son of God was shown by the Spirit when Jesus was raised from the dead, setting him apart as the Messiah, our Master. Through him we received both the generous gift of his life and the urgent task of passing it on to others who receive it by entering into obedient trust in Jesus. You are who you are through this gift and call of Jesus Christ! And I greet you now with all the generosity of God our Father and our Master Jesus, the Messiah.
Here, Paul briefly qualifies himself, then quickly moves on to give the credentials of Jesus in detail. He even goes on to tell the Romans that “you are who you are through this gift and call of Jesus Christ!”
So why are church leaders today obsessed with titles? Why can’t they get over themselves and point to the one person that deserves any and all of our respect: Jesus. He alone deserves our honor and our praise. Why do we continue to think that we have something to do with the gift of God’s grace? We benefit from His grace, but we cannot earn it. We are not able to earn it. But it is given.
Move on past your ego. Move on past your titles. Get over yourself and be a reflection of Christ.