Where are you?

I want to speak to the little boy or little girl inside each of us. I want to peel back the thick, cumbersome layers of adulthood that we pile on to mask our thoughts, feelings and emotions. I want to speak to the child in you – the innocent child that Jesus refers to when He says, in Matthew 19:14, “Let the little children come to me.” The little child who is afraid of the dark, afraid of thunderstorms, hates it when his parents fight, and does not understand why people don’t want to be her friend. Inside all of us, beneath the life-worn exterior of machismo and pride that child still lives within us. And, Jesus still speaks to that child: "Come."

In helping us understand God and the heavens, well-meaning adults pointed to the blue skies and white clouds and said, heaven is there and God lives in heaven. Even the Bible, in Isaiah 40:22, says God stretches out the heavens. We grew up with this idea that God is "up there" somewhere - somewhere far away. People stand in worship, face and arms lifted high, and for some they seem to be reaching upward to . . . somewhere. And, if we dig a hole deep enough, we'll come to a place called hell and the devil lives "down there." Good is up; bad is down. You've probably seen the old cartoons that reinforce this with an elevator. God is up there - far away - looking down on our lives and waiting on a few of us to join Him in the clouds when we die.

As a 12-year-old boy, I was hurting in 1971. I had a good life, lots of baseball, big farm to play on, parents who loved me, grandparents living just next door and they loved me, and all was well. When my grandmother died in 1971, as death often does to survivors, life got reshuffled. Nothing was the same. And, I was hurting. I've told the story many times: To ease the hurting, I used $10 of my birthday money to purchase a Bible, had my name stamped on it, and began reading it. Not long after, our pastor, Roger Williams, came to our Sunday evening Bible Study. He asked each of us (students) to be prepared to stand and read a favorite Bible verse in that evening's worship service. 

I didn't have a verse. I wanted to shout out, "My life is upside down right now. God is far away in those clouds up there. I don't even want to be here tonight. Leave me alone!"

As I sat in worship, between my parents, Roger asked we young people to stand and read our verses. I didn't have a verse. As other children stood and read, I stared at my Bible. It might as well have been a rock - literally. Then, I opened it and the words of Joshua 1:9 jumped off that page at me, "Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid. For the Lord your God is with you wherever you go." It was like a wave of peace flooded through me and over me. I stood and read that verse. Then, I sat down, buried my head in my mama's shoulder, and began to cry. God was not far away; God was right there. And, I knew it. 

As a follower of Jesus, God had spoke that verse into my broken heart, reminding me that He is not an absentee God, far away in story-book clouds. For those who love Him through Jesus, broken under the strain of life, He reaches out through the Holy Spirit in a supernatural way, and says, “Anchor your life in me. I will always be with you. Always. I will be with you wherever life takes you. Even in the darkest, loneliest, most confusing places – I am there.”

Most of us know that God is right here with us. But, that hopeful message slips away. We forget it. We ignore it. We wander away. I have lived a life full of valleys, some very deep, and in each of them, I still look toward the heavens and think, “Where is God in all this? Why does He seem so far away from me.” I completely forget Joshua 1:9 and all the other reminders in Scripture: God is right here. And, while I am saying, “Where are you, God?” God is saying, Matthew 11:28, "Come to me, all of you who are weary and carry heavy burdens, and I will give you rest." Come to me. 

While I am busy asking, "Where are you, God?" God is responding with, "Scott, I am here. Where are you? Come to me. I will give you rest." God is waiting on me and you to come to Him.

What’s wrong with me – what’s wrong with you – what’s wrong with us – that we can’t hold onto that truth? What’s wrong with our faith that we are tossed around like a rag doll in the wind? What's wrong?

God isn't fun.
I am reminded of the family that learns their child will suffer with a disease for his entire life. The child will never know the same life experienced by the neighborhood children. And, how does the family respond? Do they run to God? No, they post Facebook photographs, showing drunken parties. They say, without saying, "God, I just want to be normal and have fun. You aren't fun, God. I don't want to deal with anything 'heavy' like religion. I just want to escape the pain." And, their hearts grow cold toward the only one who can bring them peace.

God isn't convenient

I am reminded of the man who was invited to join other men on a mission trip to North Dakota. He stared back across the table and said, "Well, that ain't happening. Hell will freeze over before I do that." He failed to realize that this wasn't a friend who was inviting him to be on mission - it was Holy God extending that invitation through another believer. Each and every day, God is inviting us to join Him in a work to improve the lives of other people. But, we say, "God, you are so inconvenient. I have plans. I have goals. I have vacation time reserved for me. My children need me at every single ballgame for the rest of their lives. My life can't function without ME. Don't get in my way, God. You are an inconvenience." And, their hearts grow cold toward the only one who can bring them joy.

God isn't forgiving

I am reminded of the woman whose past came rushing up to meet her one day. Poor mistakes as a young woman were being lived out through her children. She said, "God, I know you are punishing me. I am not worthy to walk with you. I want to get things 'right' with you, but I am so unworthy. My chance is over." Feeling blighted, scarred and beyond repair, she had come to a place where she felt God no longer cared for her. And, her heart grew cold toward the only one who could bring her hope.

These are just three examples. I could write 100 more and many would apply directly to me. We turn and run from God, and then we ask, "Where is God?" And, God asks, "Scott, where are you? Where have you gone?"

For Jesus followers, God is right here - beside you, over you, under you, inside you - all the time. And He is constantly speaking, constantly calling you to serve, constantly calling you toward change, constantly reminding you that Jesus came to save and not condemn (John 3:17). But, our hearts have been hardened by the valleys; our hearts have grown cold toward love, peace, joy and hope. We can't hear God. We have listened to bank accounts, the counsel of unbelievers, family calendars, and the false belief that we are responsible for the happiness of our children. We wander, lost, hurting, confused . . . like little children afraid of the dark, but paralyzed to get out of the bed and turn on the light.

And, some of you can't hear from God because you don't know His son as your Savior. Only through Jesus, can you hear God's call to peace, love and hope. Jesus says, "I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me" (John 14:6). Have you made that commitment? Have you said, “I can’t do it anymore all by myself; I’m tired of it. I need Jesus.” If so, have you told others? Because you can’t keep the light under a bushel – it’s impossible. Have you been baptized in front of family and friends – maybe not in a big church service, but have you made that public statement of faith? Do people know that you know Jesus? Only you can answer that, but I promise you that you will never, never know the peace that comes through God until you acknowledge Jesus, surrender to Him, confess Him to others publicly, and allow your heart to be massaged by Jesus' comforting words: "But those who drink the water that I give will never be thirsty again." (John 4:14). 

Where is God? Where is God in the restlessness of our lives? 

Where are you? God is here. Where are you?

Make a decision today. Make a decision to surrender your life completely to Jesus, and if you have already done so, make the decision to step from life’s confusion and uncertainty, and hear from God: Do not be afraid, I am here. I am sovereign. I am God.

Tender heartedness

Richard and I were in Walmart recently, looking for an electric ice cream freezer. We were browsing through the small appliances when speeding out of an aisle came a little boy – maybe 4 – on a tricycle. He stopped, gave us a grin, and then sped off. We chuckled at the unexpected scene, and kept shopping. You just don't expect to get run down by a tricycle in Walmart.

In a few minutes, the little boy came slowly driving by, this time a more concerned look on his face. He was looking around, and Richard said, “I don’t think he can find his parents.”

Unable to find the ice cream freezer, I said, “Well, let’s go try Target.” Richard said, “I’m not leaving here until I make sure that little boy has found his parents.” And, Richard began to follow the boy on the tricycle, keeping his distance but keeping an eye on him.

About 10 minutes later, my 6-5 son joined me at the front of the store, “His mama found him in the shoes. I've seen that look in her eye. He's probably going to get a spanking.”

I propose to you that the Holy Spirit nudged Richard to care for the little boy, and that Richard was obedient to slow his life down and follow that nudging. And, in doing so, demonstrated a measure of tender-heartedness toward the situation. Paul writes in Ephesians 4:31 . . . “believers are to get rid of bitterness, rage, anger, harsh words and slander, as well as all types of malicious behavior and instead be kind to each other, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, just as God through Christ has forgiven you.” We show tender-heartedness when we are kind, caring and forgiving of one another. Our hearts are tender to the needs of others. Further, we are tender-hearted when we are wide-eyed to the needs of others, slow our lives down to serve, and then practice kindness, caring and forgiveness.

For believers, tender-heartedness is not an option. In being tender-hearted, we are replicating how Jesus loves us, accepting His kindness, sacrifice, and forgiveness, and paying that forward to others, including strangers. We are following Jesus when we practice tender-heartedness.

But, let's take it step further. Because many, many good people - who don't follow Jesus - do good things for others. Community service organizations and philanthropies have churned out tender-hearted people for years and years. Most people, I believe, practice a measure of tender-heartedness, especially toward family and friends. In fact, any unbeliever could have responded - and may have responded - just as Richard did in Walmart.

At lunchtime on Friday, I met with three other men in our community for a time of prayer. We were from four different churches though that was not planned. One of the men, a runner, shared that every day he runs 2-3 miles. Along this journey, he often sees a neighbor and they wave at one another. Recently, my friend said his neighbor was at the mailbox when he ran by, and they actually spoke. Something in the neighbor’s eyes caused my friend to stop, turn around, and walk back for a handshake and an introduction. The neighbor then began to cry. His marriage was falling apart. My friend said his heart literally broke for his neighbor and ministry followed. “I pray this leads to a conversation about Jesus,” my friend said. “He may know Jesus, but I want to make sure; perhaps He just needs to turn back to Jesus.”

This is what it really means to be tenderhearted as a follower of Jesus. We see beyond the Earthly pain to the spiritual pain. We look for opportunities to build relationship with people toward a goal of talking to some about faith. Tenderheartedness, I propose, for the believer, is about pouring into a person's Earthly pain toward a goal of easing that person's spiritual pain.

In Matthew 11:25-30, Jesus talks about His own heart. It's one of the only times in Scripture when Jesus does this. In this passage, Jesus says that we will approach Him like (tender-hearted) children - unjaded and innocent. He calls Himself simple and gentle (tenderhearted) and in connecting with people that way, some find salvation and its peace through Him.

You and I are called to make disciples - not just to be good people. Being tender-hearted is the way we build relationship toward faith conversations. Many people do good things for others. Our heart breaks for those who struggle, who are lonely, who are hurting, whose marriages are crumbling, whose children are sick, who need a friend, and who need a cold cup of water. I am a tender-hearted person. My radar goes up for those kinds of needs, and I love to respond to people – often very privately.

But, as a believer, I’m not finishing the race if I just ease the Earthly pain. As I pour into a person, I’ve got to be looking downfield with a goal to talk about Jesus – to talk about my faith. Did you know that only about 50 percent of confessing Christians believe they have a responsibility to share their faith with others? That means 50 percent believe it’s someone else’s responsibility. That’s research from the Barna Group - a leader in research among evangelicals. Research from Campus Crusades for Christ suggests that only 2 percent of believers share their faith. This research speaks loudly about the condition of our hearts toward others and toward Jesus. If it's not our responsibility to share faith with others, whose responsibility is it? Do we honestly believe we can follow Jesus on the one hand and never discuss Him on the other? Impossible.

Those who share their faith, those who have a burden to share their faith, are those who are tenderhearted – tenderhearted to the gospel – tenderhearted toward following Jesus. Those who don’t – those who don’t feel the burden – are growing or have grown hard-hearted toward Jesus – even if their actions toward others include random acts of kindness, hospital visits and chicken casseroles.

So, how do we share our faith with others? It's not something I have a lot of experience with, but I am intentionally focusing my life on being more tender-hearted toward the gospel and toward others. Here are some of my thoughts and discoveries:

1. Be confident that you are a confessing follower of Jesus. It’s one thing to be saved; it’s another thing to claim that Jesus is Lord of your life and that you are following Him. Those who follow Jesus will find it impossible to ignore talking about Him. In the way that I love my boys and talk about them from that pool of love, I will likewise find it impossible to love Jesus and not talk about Him.
2. Practice using the name of Jesus. This has worked for me. It was uncomfortable at first because it draws a line in the relationship sand. Using the name of Jesus - as opposed to "the Lord" as if he's a faraway king - forces others to react. Some will be repulsed by the name of Jesus, but I'm learning that the name of Jesus opens unbelievable doors for ministry and my life is blessed because of my response to Him.
3. What do I say about Jesus? What are the right words to say? Do I need to search for words to talk about my Vicki or my boys? No. There are no right and holy words to recite. As you are asked about your faith, you tell your story with Jesus. You tell how your life was before, how you came to be broken by your sin, and what life is like now. Need help with your story? Click here.
4. What if people want to argue? Don’t. I never argue. I don’t have to argue. I can’t save someone from sin. My responsibility is to be tender-hearted, love people, want people to know Jesus, and talk about Him. The Holy Spirit will go to work and some will respond. Some will not respond. I'm not judged by God based on how others respond to Jesus. My calling is to be obedient in talking about Him and reflecting Him in my life.
5. What if people have questions that I can’t answer? That’s cool. You say, 'I don’t know all the answers. I’ll do some research and get back to you.' I use this website to help me with my own questions and to answer the questions of others: www.gotquestions.org. People are more likely to listen if you impress them by working to get answers.
6. What if someone says they want me to pray for them? Do it. Again, there are no "right words." The Holy Spirit will give you the words. They may be awkward, but they will not sound that way to the one needing to hear them. Honestly, I've prayed some of the most bungled-up prayers and when I finished the other person was in tears. So, it wasn't me - it was the Holy Spirit speaking to them. Remember, we are talking about supernatural matters here. You and I are just vessels through which the Spirit communicates.
7. What if someone says ‘What must I do to be saved?’ – If you declare with your mouth that “Jesus is Lord” and believe in your heart that God raised Jesus from the dead to be your Savior from the worship of self, you will be saved. Romans 10:9. Read the book of Romans. It will change your life and empower you to be bold with others.
8. Pray daily for God to send hurting people into your life. Give them cool water to ease the pain of the Earthly journey, and be prepared to help them drink the eternal water that only comes from Jesus. I promise that once you become tender-hearted to both men and to the sharing of the gospel, your life will be completely different. And, in that alteration comes unbelievable peace and joy.

When good people have hard hearts

People should be able to see a difference between those who follow Jesus and those who don’t. People should be able to clarify between a "good, Christian person" and a person who follows Jesus. 

Many people - most people actually - are good, honest, hard-working people who vote in all the elections, love their family and friends, attend church regular and prepare chicken casseroles when a friend has fallen ill. But, all of that does not make them a follower of Jesus. It is possible and very much a reality that many, many "good Christian people" do not know Jesus as Savior and many who do aren't following Him.

So, as God leads me into this study of hard heartedness, I want to look closely at "good people with hard hearts." Just as a reminder, hard heartedness does not mean mean or wicked. It means hard or cold to building relationships through which Jesus can be shared.

As many of you know, Vicki’s mama is in very poor health. Mrs. Bowen lived here in Lexington until January, when we moved her to Gainesville, GA where she could live with and be cared for by Vicki's sister, Kathy. Mrs. Bowen loved to cook. A big part of her identity was her cooking. But, as her physical and mental health deteriorated she could no longer cook anything. So, Vicki and were left with Mrs. Bowen's expensive mixers, bowls, pots and pans, and boxes of very good kitchen gadgets.

Vicki and I are good people. We love Jesus, we love our family, we are faithful to the church, we vote in all the elections, we pay our taxes, we work hard, and we don't live on credit - we generally pay cash for everything. But, now comes the question: What should we do with Mrs. Bowen's stuff? For that matter, what should we do with all of the stuff that used to be in our two outdoor sheds? In those sheds, we had some pretty high-quality stuff, including top-of-the-line baby furniture that had survived four boys and could survive four more. What should we do with expensive dresses and suits that we no longer wear? 

Some might say, "Let's have yard sale!" That would allow us to turn stuff into profit. But, who does that serve? Ultimately, self wins.

Some might say, "Let's donate it to a non-profit that resells the items very cheaply." That would be easy. And, it would benefit some . . . but it might not benefit those trying to rub two nickels together to produce dinner.

Jesus would say, "Open your eyes to families in your community and give your life away to those who need the stuff, and give it away with no strings attached." And, so that's what Vicki and I are systematically doing. The baby furniture and accessories have made their way to families experiencing crisis pregnancy, and to young and struggling couples. We've given some of Mrs. Bowen's cooking stuff to young people who are just starting out and need to outfit a kitchen.

The hard-hearted would say, "Oh, no! That's too much trouble. How do you know they really deserve it? How do you know they aren't turning around and selling your stuff at the flea market? That welfare bunch should have to pay something - they have to pay their way!" And, there my friends is the real rub of it. That's why it is so difficult to follow Jesus. Because though we believers live good and honest lives, Jesus says that even the ungodly live good lives. Jesus is calling us to live completely and radically different from the ungodly.

Look at Ephesians 4:17-19. In this passage, Paul makes some very strong statements: "Live no longer like the Gentiles do, for they are hopelessly confused. Their minds are full of darkness; they wander far from the life God gives because they have closed their minds and hardened their hearts against Him. They have no sense of shame. They live for their own pleasure and practice every kind of impurity."

Let me talk to you about traffic. I was in the Chick-fil-a drive through last Monday with what seemed like 500 of my closest friends. It was insane. The Cathy family can make a chicken sandwich, but they can't design buildings and have no concept of traffic flow. I was in Chick-fil-a gridlock hell. An elderly woman had unwittingly parked so that she blocked the drive-through release and was stuck in the drive-through line. She couldn't move. People began blowing their horns and some rolled down their windows and started shouting at her. I sat by the drive-through window, drinking my diet lemonade.

Then, I saw a solution. I got out of the van and approached her. She was white with panic. I told her that I would stop traffic so that she could get out and release the gridlock. All I had to do was stop one car, she pulled out, and everything began working more smoothly. But, as I raised my hand to stop that one car, the driver looked at me in disgust because she didn't understand. Then, she saw what was happening, she smiled, nodded her head in the affirmative and all was well.

Now, here's the thing.

Those who did nothing but blow their horns and yell at the poor lady were hard of heart toward the gospel. I'm sure many of them are really good people 99 percent of the time. A few may know Jesus. But, at that moment, their hearts were hardened to the gospel. They did not value the relationship with the woman as Jesus would have. They valued a chicken sandwich and a hurry-up-to-be-somewhere attitude more than they valued that woman. Their hearts were hard. There's no way they could have been of value to the Kingdom in that moment, and that saddens our Savior.

But, even the nice woman who stopped for me and patiently waited was hard of heart, too. Why? Because even though she stopped when prompted, her heart was hardened not to see the opportunity. I suggest to you that her heart was not as hard as others because she came quickly to tenderness, but she is an example of how easily it is to toggle between good and bad, and how good people can become hard hearted. And in that instance, opportunity for relationship-building is forfeited.

As I was convicted of all this - because I'm guilty, too, for daily moments of hard heartedness - I suddenly found myself in the mindset of allowing anyone and everyone to turn in front of me in traffic. In fact, I spent the rest of the week, stopping for people to turn in front of me in traffic.

The hard of heart would say, "No! It's my turn!"

The hard of heart would say, "I've got somewhere important to be! Out of my way!"

The hard of heart would say, "Scott, I can see helping the old lady at Chick-fil-a, but I can't see letting everyone turn in front of you for an entire week."

Really? What do you think it means when Jesus says in Matthew 16:24:  “Then Jesus said to his disciples, ‘If any of you wants to be my follower, you must turn from your selfish ways (deny your self), take up your cross (take up your own burden) and follow me (because I’m going to take care of you.)” 

You see, we really don't believe that. We believe, "\God takes care of those who care for themselves." Well, hmmm, that phrase is not in Proverbs. That phrase is attributed to Benjamin Franklin, who most likely extracted it from Aesop's Fables.

No, you and I are to be unconcerned for self, completely putting all of our lives, hopes, dreams and goals into the hands of God through the Savior who loves us. And, as we do that, we are to be wide-eyed, open-minded and tender hearted to helping every single person on this planet above self and without prejudice. Do they deserve it? None of us deserves the sacrifice on Calvary, and so let's start there when we talk about what people deserve. When you can't love every single person above self, the end result is a heart that hardens to the gospel.

Do well today by others. You will find that as you do, your heart will become tender to the peace, joy, love and hope of our Savior. As we follow Him completely, in word and attitude and deed, He will massage our hearts to tender places and the answers to life’s questions will become crystal clear. Or, the questions just won't matter. And, that’s where we will go next week.

Hard Heartedness

Do these people seem familiar?

• The churchman who, faced with knee-buckling family tragedy, turns completely from faith and lives the rest of his days cursing God, and shunning everything about the church.
• The scolding family member who says, "You are becoming a Jesus freak; you are embarrassing our family." 
• The matriarch who says, "No, let's not pray at our 50th Anniversary dinner; it will make some feel uncomfortable. Let's just leave religion out of it."
• The couple, no longer having babies, that looks beyond young parents in need of free baby furniture to see a few dollars made at a neighborhood yard sale?
• The successful white-collar businessman who looks at a neighborhood and refers to everyone in it as "them," assigning a measure of superiority and societal blame with his words.
• The church volunteer who throws her hands up in disgust and says, "I quit! No one is helping, and everyone is happy to watch me work myself to death."
• The uncle (or aunt - fill in the blank) who knows his nephew doesn't know Jesus and washes his hands of any guilt by saying, "Well, if it's meant to be, God will get his attention."

All of these are but a very few examples of spiritual hard-heartedness.
For all of those examples, above, I can assign a very real person to each of them. I can even assign myself to one or two. I'm not suggesting any of these people are bad, immoral, un-Godly people. Each of them is a good person, and a follower of Jesus. But, each of them, too, experienced a measure of what Jesus calls hard-heartedness to the matters of faith, meaning their spiritual journey detoured. If unchecked, the detour can be costly.

Let's look at Mark 8: 1-21, and let's look at in several parts.
Part One: 8:1-10. Jesus has miraculously fed 4,000 people with a few loaves of bread and fish. And, in fact, there were even leftovers. That's pretty impressive. How could anyone close to the miracle be blinded to the reality of Jesus? After the feeding of the people, Jesus and the disciples got in a boat and crossed to another place.
Part Two: 8:11-13. When the Pharisees heard about the miracle, they confronted Jesus, and demanded that He show them a miracle. He sighed deeply. That's big for me - Jesus just gave a weary sigh. He refused to give them a sign, and he and the disciples got back in the boat to travel again.
Part Three: 8:14-21: Back in the boat, the disciples got hungry, but they had forgotten the leftovers. They had just one loaf of bread. Gee whiz. Jesus warned them, "Watch out! Beware of the yeast of the Pharisees and of Herod." The disciples ignored Jesus and began to argue with each other, blaming one another for forgetting the leftovers. Jesus was exasperated. They had seen but quickly forgotten that He had miraculously just fed 4,000 people from a few loaves. One loaf of bread to feed those in the boat was nothing. And, Jesus says, "Are your hearts too hard to take it in?"

Oh, my. Just like the disciples, we suffer from hard hearts. We suffer from Teflon hearts. We see and know and follow Jesus, but in the matter of seconds, minutes and in our everyday attitudes - we act no different than the Pharisees who hated Jesus. Drawing from yeast as a microorganism that enriches bread, Jesus warns us to not to have the yeast of the Pharisees growing within us.
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What is hardness of the heart? Well, at its core – it is sin because it puts the will of self ahead of the will of God. The will of God is always about loving Him and loving others ahead of self. With hard heartedness, there is an attitude of stubbornness, disobedience and self-will. When a child stands up against parental authority, we speak of the child as hard-hearted – a heart that is hardened to parental love. In our spiritual lives, hardness of the heart is choosing self and things of the Earth over loving and serving God, and following Jesus. What it makes it worse is that it is willful disobedience. We can’t excuse it away.

What are some of the effects and manifestations of a hard heart? There will be a spirit of defensiveness – a rejection of conviction of sin. Two believers were arguing over a photograph one had posted on Facebook. They asked me if I approved of the photograph, showing one believer - a leader in his church - at a roulette wheel on a cruise ship. I told them that the photograph did not personally offend me, but I could make a case for it tarnishing the witness of the believer. The person in the photograph became indignant, lashed out, and essentially told me to "mind my own business." Hard-heartedness always defends, justifies and rationalizes sin. Hard heartedness manifests itself, too, in prejudice, blunted morality, a limp gospel (that hell does not exist and God will usher everyone into heaven), mockery of faith, and a blindness to the social position of others.

What is the byproduct of a hard heart?
Just like the yeast growing in bread, a hard heart can grow so thick that a person can't hear from God, cannot hear the voice of God through others, and if the person is unsaved . . . well. You and I always stand on the precipice of hard-heartedness. For me, hard heartedness is like a veil that comes between me and God. It's like something blocking me from being in that sweet spot with Him. Fortunately, I can hear the Holy Spirit crying for me to acknowledge the veil exists, and to tear it away through my obedience to our Lord.

Having a tender heart for the gospel, and for others, is something that requires our constant focus and prayer. It also demands that we have people in our lives who can hold us accountable when our hearts began to turn hard.

Humbling ourselves to other believers

By Chuck Cordovano -- Are you humble?  Aren't you proud or haughty (blatantly and disdainfully proud), arrogant or assertive?  When we are young and invincible most of us had an overabundance of pride. We felt indestructible, our lives were ahead of us and we believed we could do anything. We wanted more, we needed more. But, we grew older. Life happens to us. The world gets a hold of us.  

Take a look at Mac Davis in 1975 (right).  Remember Mac in North Dallas 40 - the football movie with Nick Nolte? Remember when Mac Davis recorded the hit song, "It's Hard To Be Humble" with the line, "Oh Lord, it's hard to be humble, when you're perfect in every way!"

Now, take a look at Mac Davis today. (left) He's not quite as pretty as he was in the 1970’s.  I suspect he is a little more humble, a little less prideful, than he once was.  I hope we all are.

Christianity has an oral tradition.

I watch TV a lot. Windy will tell you if you ask her.  I believe I was the first to discover Duck Dynasty (and Swamp People and Ice Road Truckers).  But I also watch ETV and one of their shows, Frontline, produced a series called, “From Jesus to Christ, the First Christians,” and it was about the oral tradition of Christianity.

 

L. Michael White, Professor of Classics and Director of the Religious Studies Program University of Texas at Austin says, “We have to remember that Jesus died around 30. For 40 years, there's no written gospel of his life, until after the revolt. During that time, we have very little in the way of written records within Christianity. Our first writer in the New Testament is Paul, and his first letter is dated around 50 to 52, still a good 20 years after Jesus, himself. But it appears that in between the death of Jesus and the writing of the first gospel, Mark, that they clearly are telling stories. They're passing on the tradition of what happened to Jesus, what he stood for and what he did, orally, by telling it and retelling it....”

This got me thinking, 'Don’t we have an obligation to continue this oral tradition?' We hear sermons in Church on Sunday, we hear lessons in Sunday School, we pray with our families, but do we share enough about ourselves with one another? Aren’t we just a little too prideful to ask for help or share our weaknesses?

In Matthew 18: 2-4, we read: "2 Jesus called a little child to him and put the child among them. 3 Then he said, “I tell you the truth, unless you turn from your sins and become like little children, you will never get into the Kingdom of Heaven. 4 So anyone who becomes as humble as this little child is the greatest in the Kingdom of Heaven."

And, in Luke 14: 7-14 we read, "7 When Jesus noticed that all who had come to the dinner were trying to sit in the seats of honor near the head of the table, he gave them this advice: 8 “When you are invited to a wedding feast, don’t sit in the seat of honor. What if someone who is more distinguished than you has also been invited? 9 The host will come and say, ‘Give this person your seat.’ Then you will be embarrassed, and you will have to take whatever seat is left at the foot of the table!

10 “Instead, take the lowest place at the foot of the table. Then when your host sees you, he will come and say, ‘Friend, we have a better place for you!’ Then you will be honored in front of all the other guests. 11 For those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted.”

12 Then he turned to his host. “When you put on a luncheon or a banquet,” he said, “don’t invite your friends, brothers, relatives, and rich neighbors. For they will invite you back, and that will be your only reward. 13 Instead, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, and the blind. 14 Then at the resurrection of the righteous, God will reward you for inviting those who could not repay you.”

In Luke 18: 9-14, we read, "9 Then Jesus told this story to some who had great confidence in their own righteousness and scorned everyone else: 10 “Two men went to the Temple to pray. One was a Pharisee, and the other was a despised tax collector. 11 The Pharisee stood by himself and prayed this prayer[a]: ‘I thank you, God, that I am not a sinner like everyone else. For I don’t cheat, I don’t sin, and I don’t commit adultery. I’m certainly not like that tax collector! 12 I fast twice a week, and I give you a tenth of my income.’

13 “But the tax collector stood at a distance and dared not even lift his eyes to heaven as he prayed. Instead, he beat his chest in sorrow, saying, ‘O God, be merciful to me, for I am a sinner.’ 14 I tell you, this sinner, not the Pharisee, returned home justified before God. For those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted.”

What happens when we humble ourselves?  Jesus says we will be exalted! Stephen Newell, pastor of Overmountain Deaf Church in Virginia, writes: “Scripture tells us that God actively opposes the proud, while actively assisting the humble. “The LORD sustains the humble but casts the wicked to the ground.” (Psalm 147:6) “He mocks proud mockers but shows favor to the humble and oppressed.” (Proverbs 3:34) “For the LORD takes delight in his people; he crowns the humble with victory.” (Psalm 149:4) Sometimes God allows things to happen in our lives to force us to stop getting a big head. Our bubble needs bursting! Sometimes all we need to end a time of trial, struggle and suffering is to stop, step back, take a deep breath, and say, “Ok, Lord. I get it. Help me to meditate on my sinful attitudes and actions, to beg your forgiveness, and trust that Jesus has secured your forgiveness forever on the cross.”

That has happened to me in my life and I bet it has happened to you in yours.

A few weeks ago, I was struggling with a number of issues.  Taylor was not happy with her Sunday School class here at LBC. Windy and I were arguing about what was best for her and how we should best promote faith in her life.  Of course, I was convinced my way was the right way!  My niece, Margaret, got a DUI and it was her second alcohol related accident in three months.  As an alcoholic I, again, knew what was best for her and her family and was frustrated they would not listen to me.  Lastly, I periodically worry about my business and money and taking care of my family even though Windy tells me to simply,“Work hard and be faithful.”

I was feeling the pressure of life and keeping up, and being the smartest person in the room and I needed someone to pray for me.  But, I am prideful.  Everyone has their own problems; they don’t want to hear mine. They have more important things to pray about.  Finally, I decided to humble myself and ask for prayer from two men in our class.  I sent a text to Jay Tompkins and Jimmy Woods and asked them to pray specifically for those things bothering me.

That afternoon, not two hours later, I went to the mail box and had received a check for $363. It was not enough to pay the mortgage, but enough to know God heard my prayers, he heard Jimmy’s prayer, and he heard Jay’s prayer.

Are all my problems solved?  Of course not!  But, I believe when I humble myself to ask for help or listen to, and accept, another point of view my life is better.  I believe when we share with others of faith, when we continue the oral tradition of our faith, through Jesus Christ, God exalts us.

Have any of you humbled yourself and been exalted by God?

Beware the Thief

By Monty Hope -- Growing up the son of a Southern Baptist Music Minister in a small town was always interesting.  My mother, ever the right brained, creative, emotional entertainer has always had a problem with time.  She never has been able to gage time and surely has an issue showing up on time.  One warm, summer, Sunday morning I was a good little eight year old and got myself ready for church.  With plenty of time to kill, I climbed into the front seat of our ‘74, Chevy, Impala and rolled the windows down.

Well, time kept on ticking and I got a little antsy.  Compared to the right brained personality of my mother, I am diametrically imposed.  Even as a young child, I was severely left brained (logical, not emotional, concerned about time, etc).  So, with time clicking away, what was a left brained little boy to do?  That’s right, get on the horn.  The first series nor the second series of honks brought any attention.  It was on the third series of honks that all hell broke loose.  My mama erupted out of the house with screen door swinging behind.  Her hair was done, her makeup was done, but she was only wearing a slip.  She extracted me out of the Impala through the open window and, before she planted my feet on the ground, there were at least three swats to the backside.

Why so much trouble on Sundays?  I dare say that during my childhood I got more beatings on Sunday morning that any other day.  While I will never blame my sinful actions on the old phrase “the Devil made me do it,” I do believe Satan, the Thief, was and is very interested in disrupting the Lord’s day.  This is especially true if that day is going to be a day in which the gospel is spread and lives are saved.  Revelation 12:12 says, “Therefore rejoice, you heavens and you who dwell in them!  But woe to the earth and the sea, because the devil has gone down to you!  He is filled with fury, because he knows that his time is short.”

So, if you think the Thief is a little ticked and wants to disrupt a simple day of worship, imagine what he wants to do because of the revival that is occurring in our class?  According to Charles Spurgeon, “When the devil roars at anything, you may rest assured there is some good in it. The devil is not like some dogs we know of; he never barks unless there is something to bark at. When Satan howls we may rest assured he is afraid his kingdom is in danger.”

Revival is occurring because of one simple fact.  The Gospel of Jesus is being taught.  Even more importantly, the Gospel is being taken beyond the four walls of our class into the community and world. There is no doubt Satan must be shaken by this revival.  The more he is shaken the more desperate his actions may become.  We must be on guard for the thief.  Will we be so enamored with what “WE” accomplish that we forget Jesus is accomplishing it?  Will we be so focused on what “WE” need from this class that we forget our goal is to share what we receive with others?  Will our pride be hurt because we are not included in this group or that group.  Will we not recognize our goal is to include others and not worry about being included?

Take head, but also take heart.  Jesus says in John 16: 33, “I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.”

Yes, there will be trouble.  Anytime Jesus is using us to expand His kingdom, resistance and pain will be encountered.  The wonderful thing is that the same Jesus who is our message is also our deliverer.  He has overcome this word.  He has overcome the Thief.

Is God ashamed to be called my God?

By Chris Hammett - Think in your own mind the things of which you are ashamed. Things you or someone you know have been a part of that you don’t want anyone to find out; Skeletons in our closet so to speak.

Now think of the things of which you are proud. Pride can be something you have accomplished in school, the workplace, sports, and many other areas of your life. Pride can also be an emotion that we had no part in achieving. Coming off this week’s holiday you look around and see images of pride and freedom in our country, but really how many had a part in securing and defending our freedom? I was not in the country after 09-11-2001, but I heard stories of a great outpouring of national pride and commitment to freedom. Flags were being flown everywhere, bumper stickers were on almost every car and truck and so on. For these who have served for me to have freedom I want to say thanks. PRIDE or being proud is a deep emotion. My question for myself and each of us today is this "Is God proud of me”?

Most of us have those family members we just don’t want to be seen with. You know the ones with unspeakable baggage. I have a brother who spent eight years in federal penitentiary. If I brought him in here none of you would know it and I would be comfortable. However, when there is a family reunion  the family knows his past and there is a sense of embarrassment when he comes around. I also have a family member who has chosen to live a homosexual lifestyle. When she and her friend come to family events it is very uncomfortable for most. I know if you ask the parents in both cases they will tell you that they love these two family members, but they are not proud of them. They are even embarrassed of them and their choices.

I have shared of times in my own life when I have not been proud of things that I or my children have done. I have also shared of times when I have been very proud of my children. These are my children and yet they cause me both pride and embarrassment. I don’t love them any less. And the hurt from embarrassment is very real.

At this point I want to make a clear distinction that I am NOT talking about Salvation. Salvation is when you put your life in Christ’s hands and confess your are lost without Him. You acknowledge your lostness and ask for forgiveness. Just as a child has an earthly father we can have that relationship as Children of God and that relationship can never be broken. When I speak of pride and embarrassment, I'm speaking of how we live our lives out in faith.

I am sure God sees me as I see my children. Some of my choices have pleased God and then other have embarrassed Him. Look at Exodus 32:7-10. This is the account of the First Tablets God had given to Moses. While Moses was on the mountain with God the people became restless and built the Golden Calf and worshiped it. You see God’s displeasure. You see how God is feeling? Does it sound like He is proud to be called their God? 

What does it take to have God proud of us?  First I want to make sure you understand perfection is not required. Look at the people God with whom God is ashamed. Hebrews 11 is not a listing of people who always did everything God asked them to do. Hebrews 11 is a list of people who had faith and it was credited to them.  In Hebrews 11:5-6 the writer speaks of Enoch and because he pleased God, God took Enoch away. 

Ask yourself these questions:

Why should God be proud of me?

How do I live out my faith?

When I see God face to face will He welcome me as in the parable of Matthew 25: 21 or will there be awkwardness as I am welcomed into the kingdom?

WILL God Ashamed to be called My GOD?