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Thursday, November 30, 2017

Real Faith: Forged in the Fire

Blacksmith's fire: fir0002 | flagstaffotos.com.au [GFDL 1.2 (http://www.gnu.org/licenses/old-licenses/fdl-1.2.html)], via Wikimedia Commons

When do we get to see real faith in action, the kind where Jesus singles us out like He did the centurion in Matthew 8:10? Real faith is seen in testing, during those times when we are asked to trust God with something we would really rather handle ourselves or would really not have to deal with at all. It's during those times, when the climb becomes too difficult or the temptation too hard to resist, that we find out if our faith is real or just something we say because Christians are supposed to do so. Are you willing to endure trials in order to see your faith grow? Are you willing to demonstrate the strength of your faith by following God down the sometimes difficult path of the Christian walk?

For years I settled for easy faith. I settled for a life where I said I had faith while trying to avoid trials and tribulations. In the process I was only cheating myself, missing out on opportunities for growth. Yes this path was easier but it was also empty. It held the assurance of going to heaven while being devoid of the abundance promised by our risen Savior. And after years of saying I believed while not growing as a person, I found I didn't fully like what I saw each day when I looked in the mirror.

Real faith does not magically appear. It is given by God, then cultivated as we allow Him to work in our hearts. At times He chooses difficult situations as His tools. This is where real faith, and the process of growing faith, does not come easy. But for those who are willing to fully surrender to God, difficult growth is followed by immense reward as from the fire comes faith that is forged by the hand of the Almighty.

I have accepted the challenge of growing my faith while facing whatever God allows in my life. Are you willing to accept the same challenge? Real faith is forged in the fire. Are you willing to let God take you to His forge?

Monday, November 27, 2017

Have We Lost Our True Heroes?

From time to time I like to watch tv (actually more often YouTube) with my sons. I want to know what they are watching and what influence the programming will have on my kids and on their peers. Recently I watched an episode of a show which left me in complete shock. The show's heroes were looking for a way to help a friend. In the end they chose to rob a bank, framing an adversary for the crime. After surprising my son by calling the heroes the bad guys, I had to explain how a true hero would never rob a bank. The conversation left me pondering a question: one I would like to ask you now. Have we lost our true heroes?

This is something I find myself thinking about ever since watching a PBS series covering the history of television. In one of the episodes the show's creators looked at the evolution of the television hero. Early heroes were clearly defined, often wearing white and always doing what's right. Over the decades our heroes have become more "real" which tends to translate into more flawed. As a result our heroes have picked up a tendency of wrestling with internal moral dilemmas almost as often as they wrestle with bad guys.

The PBS episode talked about a number of different heroes over the years, many of which were characters I grew up watching. My earliest memories of tv heroes were of Superman and of the Lone Ranger, though I watched them in rerun. There were people like Speed Racer, who occasionally made a wrong decision or two but always had his heart in the right place. The PBS series moved from these types of heroes to people like Hawkeye Pierce on MASH, who once performed an unnecessary surgery in order to get an inept officer off the battlefield. This moral dilemma challenged the viewer to decide if it is right to do wrong if doing so would save lives.

The PBS episode ended by talking about the show “Dexter” in which the hero kills bad guys who would have otherwise escaped justice. The official webpage for the show describes Dexter as a crime solver by day and serial killer by night. As the local forensics expert, he is able to hide his crimes from the investigators with whom he works. I have only watched one episode of Dexter which I admit I found entertaining. It is also perhaps one of the most challenging programs in which to find a true hero. Even Dexter struggles with whether or not his life as a vigilante is acceptable and so should the viewer.

While I understand the entertainment value of having a hero who also qualifies as a bad guy, the trend is still troubling especially in a show aimed at kids like the one with our friendly neighborhood bank robbers. The target audience for Dexter is old enough to process whether or not the ends justifies the means. And while most kids understand that robbing a bank is wrong, the message sent when the "heroes" are the robbers is not the one we need today. When this is what we present as good we lose something important. We lose our heroes and in the process we lose our children.

Wednesday, November 15, 2017

Serving Without Knowing God

1 Samuel 3:1-7

Samuel grew up serving God in the Temple, working daily side by side with Eli's corrupt sons. And  while it seems as if he was doing a good job, something was missing. The Bible tells us that Samuel carried out his duties without knowing God. I suspect he knew about God but he did not have a relationship with God. I wonder how many Christians are in the same boat today. How many Christians suffer the emptiness that comes with doing what is "right" without knowing the One who gives life?

This was my walk for a number of years. I served dutifully in the church, being the first one there and the last one to leave. In between I did everything I could to make sure the day's services ran smoothly. During the week I made small repairs, took care of the lawn and when needed I shoveled snow. While spending so much time working for the church, I had very little time to spend with God. Eventually I burned out, after which I became content with just showing up. But whether I worked myself to death or just spent the service holding down a pew, I found service an empty endeavor: a complete waste of time.

Like with Samuel, God found a way to get my attention. In my case all that I worked to build collapsed around me, forcing me to stop and ask God why. He responded by changing my focus from works to relationship, showing me the value of what He was truly offering: Adoption. Now I seek to know God instead of just serving. Now I am His son, not just a servant. I am experiencing abundant life instead of empty works. Like Samuel, I stopped when God reached out to get my attention. This was the best move I have ever made.

What is the focus of your "Christian walk"? Are you substituting work in place of relationship? If you are caught up in what you can do, you are missing out on who He is. Your relationship with God should come first or else you will find yourself on the road to burnout. God is speaking, calling you by name. Please stop and listen. Please make a deliberate effort to build a relationship with God. If you do, He will pour himself into you. His fullness will touch your life and you will wonder why you ever settled for the emptiness of everything else.

Monday, November 6, 2017

War of the Worlds and How I Learned to Love Reading

On 30 October 1938, a peaceful Sunday evening was upended when Martian invaders began vaporizing everyone they could. As listeners turned to their radios for information, Orson Welles and his Mercury Theatre repertory company put together a powerful and convincing performance of "War of the Words" by H. G. Wells. Forty years later I opened to that story in my fifth grade reading book: a discovery that forever changed my opinion of reading.

Like just about every other boy in fifth grade I read when and what I was told to read. Even our "free" reading time was limited to what we could find in our reading textbook. It was there during one of our reading sessions that I discovered an adaptation of the text of Welles' radio program. Thinking the story might involve tanks and airplanes I started reading and was instantly sucked into a different time. Intrigued by Welles' script, I did not notice the rest of the class lining up to go to art.

I was not aware of my teacher calling my name nor did I notice the laughter as my classmates assumed I had lost my mind. The sudden tap of a hand on my shoulder was quite jarring, catapulting me from the 1930's back to the reality of the 70's. While making an effort to avoid eye contact with the other students I reluctantly put down my book and joined the line. It was the first time a story had so captured my imagination that I became unaware of all that was happening around me. At that point I understood the allure of reading: of getting lost in another time or in another place. I had finally found the joy that comes with opening a great book.

While I understand the need to expose students to different styles of writing and to certain standards of literature,  I wish schools would schedule more time for free reading. Schools should offer more time of discovery where students find and read stories they find interesting without having to answer questions or putting together reports. This free time might open the door to a love of reading, giving more children an opportunity to lose themselves in the pages of a good book. Free reading time could become a step forward towards the U.S. becoming a more literate nation.