Category: Christian life

The Hearing

The big news this week has been the Congressional hearings in which Special Counsel Robert Mueller was grilled by members of Congress regarding his findings in his recent investigation into allegations of Russian interference in the 2016 election. I’m going to leave opinions on the content of those hearings to others; but I wondered as I heard the grilling by the two opposing parties, what it would be like to have to face that myself. Then I had an even better thought: what if you had to face such a hearing?

Only, in your case, the hearing is not before the US Congress, but before a special committee formed to judge you and decide your eternal fate. Similar to this week’s hearings, there will be two groups of committee members: one side wants to throw the book at you, while the other wants to let you off easy. But just to avoid any connections to our political system, I’m going to call the two parties the Apples and the Oranges*. The two don’t get along, but that’s just what we would expect, because we’ve always been told, “Don’t mix apples and oranges.”

So, how would it go? Maybe, something like this:

You enter a room set up almost like a courtroom. There is a long, semi-circular table facing you, behind which are seated the committee members. In front and facing them sits a small table with two chairs. You make your way forward to the table, when the committee chairman, who is the leader of the Apples, scowls at you and barks a gruff command: “Sit down!”

You take your seat in one of the chairs, and the committee chairman continues, “Frankly, this is a waste of time: we all know you’re guilty, but we have to go through the motions. So let’s begin, shall we, and get this over with . . .” You gulp hard and start to dread what lies ahead.

“Not so fast!” comes a shout from the rear of the hearing room, and a man walks forward, stopping right by your table. “Esteemed committee members,” he says, “I am here to represent the accused as Attorney, Advocate, and Counselor.” The stranger takes a seat beside you. The committee chair groans. “And what credentials do you have to be this person’s Counselor” The man, your self-appointed Counselor, opens up a briefcase and pulls out a thick stack of papers, and lays them on the desk. “Here are my credentials,” he answers, “sixty-six books full. You can read them if you like . . .”

The Apple leader shakes his head and says, “No, we only have about 1400 words to go in this blog, so let’s just get this over with.” Now the grilling begins.

One Apple member asks you, “Do you remember that time when you were a kid and you sassed your mom and made her cry?” You search your memories and the incident comes back to you. You were ashamed of what you said, and you never apologized to her. But before you can answer, one of the Oranges butts in and says, “Look, what do you expect when a kid – just a kid! – gets scolded for spilling a little milk and eating some pie that mom made for a bake sale? It’s perfectly understandable!”

You like the Orange member’s reasoning, and are about to affirm it when your Counselor leans over, covers the mic, and whispers to you: “Don’t worry; I got this. Just tell the truth.” You aren’t so sure, but your Counselor seems absolutely sure, so in spite of your fears, you hear yourself reply, “Yes, I did sass my mom and I am ashamed of it.” The Apple team smile at each other, while the Oranges frown.

The second question follows almost immediately”: “And do you remember that time you were at the store and saw a candy bar you wanted, but didn’t have enough money to buy it? So you slipped it into your pocket when no one was looking and stole it!” Once again an Orange jumped in. “Are you serious? It was just a candy bar that cost maybe 50 cents! [substitute a higher or lower price based on how old you are]. The store had theft insurance, so they weren’t really out anything!”

Again, you like the Orange’s argument. That’s exactly what you had thought back then, when you took it. You really wanted it, and no one would miss it. So you are about to defend yourself when your Attorney once again reaches over and whispers, “Just admit it. I’ve got your back.” Again, you speak into the mic, “Yes. I’m guilty as charged.” This time the Oranges shake their heads, while the Apples grin widely and wink to each other. This is not going well for you.

A third question comes to you from the Apples: “And what about the time you cheated on that final exam, and blamed another student by slipping your answer key into her desk? You cheated and discredited another student. That was just wrong!” Before you can answer, the Orange side speaks up. “Really? Who wouldn’t try to gain some advantage in that situation? The whole grade depended on that final, and the grade determined whether our defendant here would be able to get into a good college! And as for the other student? She was always the top grade getter; she deserved to be knocked down a peg or two.”

You look at your Counselor; please let me defend what I did; please?  But he gives you a look that cuts through your excuse, so you meekly admit, “Yes, I did that. And the other student flunked when the teacher found the key.” Now the Apples were high-fiving each other and the Oranges were hanging their heads in defeat. “How can we help you,” one cries, “when you don’t take the lifelines we keep throwing you?!” But the Advocate whispers to you again, “Just keep telling the truth. I have your back all the way.”

And so the questioning – or should I say, interrogation – continues, and it is not a pleasant day for you. As the charges pile up (how did these guys find out about all these things?) you begin to sweat profusely, maybe in anticipation of your eternal destiny. No charge is omitted, no fact forgotten, no stone unturned. One after another, like the blows from a jackhammer, your life is laid bare for all to see. The Oranges try to explain away your moral failures, but their reasons melt like snow under the heat of the charges.

You hear about that time you swore using God’s name, the time you used Christ’s name in a joke, the time you wished someone would get sick and die, the time you broke your wedding vows – or wanted to, cut corners on your taxes, visited some places that were inappropriate, and so on, and so on. The charges and the evidence are so overwhelming that the Oranges finally give up and start clipping and filing their nails. One falls asleep. But the Apples are radiant with their certain victory; you are going down, and there is nothing you can do about it.

You hang your head in despair as well, as the chair of the committee stands and with a snide grin on his face, delivers the committee’s judgment – or at least, starts to: “We have considered all the charges and affirm they are true. Shame on you! We recommend an eternity in hell with no chance of parole. May God have mercy on your soul!”

Your Counselor jumps to his feet, and shouts in a loud, commanding voice: “God has had mercy on the defendant’s soul. Every one of those charges has been forgiven, and the penalty you would inflict has already been paid . . . by me!” At that the Attorney holds out his hands and you see massive, deep scars on each of them. He reaches down and lifts up the papers from the desk and says to the committee, “You should have read these books before you passed judgment. If you had, you would have known that this poor person, a guilty sinner to be sure, trusted in me for forgiveness and therefore belongs to my Father. This sinner is clothed in my righteousness and no longer faces condemnation. This sinner is also a saint by faith; would you condemn a saint to hell?”

At this the Apple chairman squirms and looks around for help, but his team is all looking down. “No,” he mutters weakly.

Your Advocate continues. “Remember that I came to call not the righteous but the sinner to repentance. I came to seek and to save the lost – which this person, and all of you, by the way – certainly is. And yet by faith, any sinner can be saved. As far as the East is from the West, so far have I removed this person’s sins. I will remember those sins no more. Therefore I declare this saint and sinner to be free, and when I set you free, you are free indeed!”

“And as for the committee, all of you need to examine your own lives. To the Apples I say, ‘Judge not, lest you be judged,’ and ‘Let the one who is without guilt cast the first stone.’ And as for you Oranges, ‘Woe to him who calls evil good and good evil.’ Prepare yourselves, admit your own guilt, and come to me for the same forgiveness I have given to this person before you. For one day, you too will all sit there; pray that I am your Advocate when that day comes!”

A wave of relief, joy, and love sweep over you. The hearing has ended, and you enter into the joy of the Lord which he has prepared for you since before the world began. And that deserves an Amen!

And now, may the Lord bless you and keep you, the Lord make his face to shine upon you and be gracious to you, the Lord lift up his countenance upon you, and give you peace. Amen.

Read: Psalm 103:12, Hebrews 8:12, Luke 19:10, Matthew 9:13, John 8:7, Isaiah 53:5

* Not to be confused with current political parties or with “Apple and Android” a topic clearly not addressed here.

 

 

The Dock of the Bay

One of my favorite R & B songs is Otis Redding’s 1968 hit song, “(Sitting on) The Dock of the Bay.” It’s a song from back when pop songs were easy to sing along to (even for me), even though the words were somewhat sad. The lyrics speak of someone whose life hasn’t gone very well. That person laments that he has nothing going his way, and nothing to live for, except to spend his time “sitting on the dock of the bay.” The chorus says it this way:

I’m sittin’ on the dock of the bay
Watching the tide roll away
Ooo, I’m just sittin’ on the dock of the bay
Wastin’ time.

I thought of this song this afternoon as I sat out on our patio, watching some birds fly around our back yard. In a way, I was sitting on the “dock of our bay,” relaxing and watching the “tides of birds” fly away. But was I wasting time by doing so?

How I spend my free time has always been an issue for me. I was raised by a father who never stopped working, either at his office or at home. He seldom watched TV (Yes, we had a TV way back when I was a kid – though it was in black and white and only got in 7 stations – four from Chicago and three from Milwaukee). Instead, he was always working to fix something around the house. If I were available, I could always hear my dad calling me to lend my “strong arms” to his tasks. On a day off school he would wake me up early with the command, “Time to get up and pay for your lodging!” My mom also would encourage me to work hard, telling me to “put some elbow grease into it!”

Later, I saw my work with youth as a calling from God, even before I became a pastor. My work demanded many hours on the job, and preparation time at home; even more, I carried its concerns with me all the time. Therefore, I would feel a bit guilty when I spent my free time doing non-work related things. Once, I met with my boss at work (who was a devout Christian and even more committed to his work than I) and talked about spending my free time doing things totally unrelated to my work (specifically, rock and mineral collecting). I told him I was feeling guilty about it. His answer was: it is good to take a break, and he wished he could relax and get away like I was doing. I took his advice, and found such play times relaxing (even if some guilt remained).

Fast forward to recent years. As many of you know, I have spent several years’ worth of time in a wheelchair, due to a broken foot and resulting ulcers. As one who was always able to do things around the house, I felt bad having to turn over much of my work to my wife. All the yard work, repairs, car maintenance, and vacation/travel prep fell on her or others. Even lifting my chair into the car was easier for her to do; we took the wheelchair with us when we traded in my manual car for an automatic so Karen could test lifting it into the new car. She is stronger than you think.

The other big life change which has caused me to look at how I spend my time is my retirement 2 1/2 years ago. As I anticipated that event, I saw it not as a chance to spend my time “sitting on the dock of the bay,” but rather as freeing me up to do other productive things. Besides catching up on projects around the house which I had put off due to a lack of free time or temporary disabilities (you know, those “I’ll set this aside until I have more time” projects), I planned to do four things:

1. Read from the Bible, classic literature, and history books every day.

2. Learn, relearn, and practice various languages an hour each day. I wanted to improve my fluency in ones I had studied, and learn new ones.

3. Exercise an hour each day.

4. Write something, such as this blog and some books.

So, how have I been doing? The results are mixed. I do read some every day (most recently a book about the Trojan War written in the third century AD). I read from my Greek New Testament – working on # 1 and # 2 above. Just recently I began reviewing my French. And as for writing, I did finish two books and am writing this blog a couple times a month. I also took up crossword puzzles which helps my vocabulary and memory. So far so good.

Now, as for exercise . . . not so much. Now that my foot has healed, I am walking again which should help, and have started using a rowing machine to strengthen my arms and legs, but both workouts have been minimal. I definitely need to do more.

As I ponder how I spend my time, now that it is almost all “free time,” I realize that I do waste a lot of it. Watching cat videos and movies online, playing video games, taking daily naps, and sitting on the patio – all take time that could be better spent – or should I say, more productively spent.

Now that I’ve laid out my present activities (other than some get-togethers with friends and too many doctor visits and procedures), I’d like to share a few observations about leisure time:

1. Work is good. God assigned work to our first parents, even before they sinned. They were commanded to maintain the Garden in which God placed them (Genesis 2:5, 15). It was after Adam and Eve sinned that the work became much more difficult, literally requiring blood, sweat and toil (Genesis 3:17-19). All work which benefits people is a holy vocation, a calling from God.  Think of all the goods and services that benefit our lives and are produced by other people who faithfully carry out their work.

2. Rest is also good. God instituted the Sabbath rest, not only to honor and remember that God created all there is, but also for our benefit to provide us with needed rest. We need periods of rest to recharge our batteries, sort our thoughts and allow emotions to cool, not to mention to recover physically from bodily stresses and injuries. Jesus himself said “the Sabbath was made for man” (Mark 2:27) and took time away from the constant press of the crowds to recover. He needed such a break when John the Baptist was executed, to get away and pray. The fact that the Bible calls eternal life our ultimate Sabbath rest shows that God’s ultimate blessing for us includes a rest from our labors (Hebrews 4:9-10: “So then, there remains a Sabbath rest for the people of God, for whoever has entered God’s rest has also rested from his works as God did from his.”).

3. We have a limited amount of time in this life. Back when I turned 13, I realized I was no longer a child, and began to calculate what percentage of my life was behind me and ahead of me. I came up with 18.5 % used and 81.5 % to go. What a cheery adolescent game. Other parents worried about their kids smoking or drinking, mine had an actuary for a son. I have to say that even before retiring, I gave up that little exercise as a bit too scary. But no matter what percentage of expected life spans we have left, all our time is limited, so the ways we spend free time can never be undone; that time is gone and we are all moving forward to the day when time no longer matters.

4. So how we spend our time is important. Scripture says that we will one day have to give an account for everything we do (Romans 14:12, Hebrews 4:13).  I believe that includes our actions toward others, our stewardship of the resources God has given us, and how we use the time we are allotted on this earth. Now, I’m not saying every minute has to be spent in strenuous labor without a moment to rest; rather, I’m just saying let’s be purposeful in how we spend our limited time. There are many wonderful things we can do, and having the time to do them is a gift from God: spending time with loved ones; socializing with friends and Christian brothers and sisters; playing sports (and working out on a rowing machine); traveling; learning and teaching; volunteering to help others in the community; finishing home repairs and improvement projects; keeping the garden (as God commanded Adam and Eve to do); worshiping, praying, and studying God’s Word; and yes, even sitting on the dock of the bay. As with all our work, consider that all our time is dedicated to God and his glory. It is for him that we work, and for him that we play.

So go and enjoy your time, but be intentional about it. Don’t just let one moment slip into another, assuming you have plenty of time ahead of you to eventually “get around to it.” Don’t let the days pass by leaving you to wonder, “Where did the time go?”

As for me, now that my blog is done, I have to decide what to do next: grab a snack, apprender francais, or defend the world against space aliens. Maybe I’ll just go back to sitting on the dock of my patio and watch the birds go by. How about you?

May the Lord bless you and keep you, the Lord make his face to shine upon you and be gracious to you, the Lord lift up his countenance upon you and give you peace. Amen.

Read: Exodus 20:8-11; Deuteronomy 5:12-15, Mark 2:23-27

 

 

Steeples are Falling

I watched the news report in shocked silence. The video showed the burning cathedral of Notre Dame. As the flames leapt into the sky from the engulfed building, suddenly the main spire came crashing down into the flames. It was not what I expected to see on the news, especially during Holy Week, when my wife and I were enjoying a vacation getaway to see family and friends in the Midwest.

As I watched, the words of an old Lutheran hymn went through my mind: “Built on the Rock the Church shall stand, Even when steeples are falling;
Crumbled have spires in every land, Bells still are chiming and calling.” Though the message of that hymn (Built on the Rock the Church shall Stand by Nicolai F.S. Grundtvig) is ultimately positive and optimistic, the mention of falling and crumbling spires has always made me profoundly sad.

Likewise, I feel saddened whenever I see or hear of any church building being destroyed or converted to some other use because the congregation has moved, died out, or lost its faith. The fact that many churches have been converted to museums, warehouses, mosques, or nightclub venues because no one worships in them anymore, troubles me. It somehow makes the term “post-Christian” all too real – and scary. I am reminded of Jesus’ words in Luke 18:8 about his return: “Nevertheless, when the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on earth?”

Those images of abandoned church buildings remind me of the nations and peoples who, over the centuries, had become Christian, only to fall victim to heresies or conquests and forced conversions to other religions. Areas like North Africa, Palestine, and Turkey were once almost completely Christian. Europe was strongly Christian, but now is populated by empty churches. And then there’s the US . . . which now has more people claiming no religion than Roman Catholics, mainline Protestants, or Evangelicals. (Thanks to reader Dave K. for sending me that data.) One could get very discouraged, indeed.

It’s hard to believe that any nation or people, once enlightened by the Gospel and transformed by the Holy Spirit would ever intentionally discard the faith and either become secular or wander after other gods. Why would anyone exchange the blessings, both spiritual and practical, that come from faith in Jesus Christ, for the shallow pursuit of what cannot satisfy or save?

Here are some of my thoughts about how this happens:

  1. Even though we refer to “Christian nations,” there is never a time when everyone in those nations is a devout believer in Jesus Christ. While its leaders or even a majority of its citizens may profess Christ, there are always a good number of people who just play along, giving lip-service to gain some social benefit. They use the words of the faith and sound Christian as they cry, “Lord, Lord,” but in the words of Jesus, “I never knew you; depart from me . . .” (Matthew 7:23).
  2. There’s a paradox in nations where Christianity has taken root. As people live lives in keeping with biblical truths and principles, their society thrives with peace, generosity, cooperation, law-abiding behavior, and prosperity. (Look up the effects of the Welsh Revival of 1904 for examples.) Then, as the blessings flourish, people get comfortable and pursue those blessings, rather than the One who has blessed them with such good things. There is a Christian song with the words, “I seek the Giver and not the gift” (“I Bow My Knee” by Ron Kenoly), but unfortunately, too many people have sought the gifts only, believing that they have earned them by their own efforts and deserve them.
  3. This is a problem as people look to themselves as the source of their good fortune, rather than to the true Provider. A classic example of this thinking is in the 1965 movie, Shenandoah, in which Jimmy Stewart’s character says a table prayer with these words: “Lord, We cleared this land; We plowed it, sowed it, and harvested it. We cooked the harvest. It wouldn’t be here—we wouldn’t be eating it—if we hadn’t done it all ourselves. We worked dog-bone hard for every crumb and morsel But we thank you just the same anyway, Lord, for this food we’re about to eat. Amen.” This blasphemous prayer denies the words of Scripture, that “every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights” (James 1:17). Unfortunately this is too prevalent an attitude in our country today, where we demand material things as our “right,” while ignoring the Creator who endowed us with those rights. We are so concerned about our own pride that we fail to humbly seek the Lord who provides us with everything.
  4. Another problem is that the faith and devotion of one generation does not automatically pass on to the next generation. In the words of Exodus 1:8, even though Egypt had been saved by the prophetic word and efforts of Joseph, “Now there arose a new king over Egypt, who did not know Joseph.” Likewise, people who are redeemed by Christ too often have children who, in spite of those parents’ efforts, “do not know Jesus.” This was shown in our country’s history, when the descendants of the devout Puritans soon founded heretical churches like the Unitarians and Universalists. I have heard the expressions, “God has many children, but no grandchildren,” meaning that each person must believe for him or herself, and not ride on their parents’ coattails. Another saying warns of the dangers of this truth: “Christianity is always just one generation away from extinction.” Thus, a nation can be strongly Christian in one generation, and then fall away the next, boarding up or converting the buildings which were lovingly built for the Lord.
  5. Even when churches and denominations seem strong in numbers, they must guard against false teachers and what I would call “heretical creep.” Too many preachers want to enhance their own reputations by bringing in “new” ideas to titillate their audiences (appealing to their “itching ears” as Paul put it in 2 Timothy 4:3). Wanting to be respected by their academic peers or other religions, they introduce ideas from the secular world, such as the newest popular philosophies and latest scientific theories.
  6.   And don’t forget the spiritual archenemy of the faith: Satan is active in the world, seeking to turn people away from God. He accuses and condemns us, denying our forgiveness and thereby trying to drive a wedge between us and God. He tempts people with the kingdoms of this world and all their glories, and promises satisfaction and happiness through sin. The Bible says he will deceive the nations (Revelation 20), and “lead astray, if possible, even the elect” (Matthew 24:24). Too many people, even nominal Christians, fall victim to the devil’s lies; in fact, we all do to some extent.

All these factors contribute to the closing of churches and the falling of steeples. So what do we do about it?

First, we must remember that the Bible warns strongly against falling away from the faith. The book of Hebrews (6:4-8) puts it this way: “For it is impossible, in the case of those who have once been enlightened, who have tasted the heavenly gift, and have shared in the Holy Spirit, and have tasted the goodness of the word of God and the powers of the age to come, and then have fallen away, to restore them again to repentance, since they are crucifying once again the Son of God to their own harm and holding him up to contempt. For land that has drunk the rain that often falls on it, and produces a crop useful to those for whose sake it is cultivated, receives a blessing from God. But if it bears thorns and thistles, it is worthless and near to being cursed, and its end is to be burned.” This is scary stuff that people must not dismiss lightly.

Second, we must remember that the Gospel call is the same today as it was in those first centuries. Just as the faith first spread in a hostile, pagan world by the power of the Holy Spirit working through faithful believers, so it can spread again through the same Spirit working through us. If God has “no grandchildren,” then neither does Satan; we can bring the faith to a new generation just as it was brought to us. It may be hard because of the mischaracterizations of  Christianity so prevalent in our culture today, but our faith has always been slandered and maligned b the world. Didn’t Jesus say something about the world hating us for his sake? (Yes, he did, in John 15:18-19, and affirmed in 1 John 3:13 – “Do not be surprised, brothers, that the world hates you.”

Third, our imperative (our “Prime Directive” in Star Trek lingo) is to make disciples of all nations, baptizing and teaching them about Christ. This has not changed in 2000 years, nor will it until Christ returns and “every knee bows, in heaven and earth and under the earth” to worship him (Philippians 2:10-11). Though this may seem futile at times, remember that God’s Word promises that heaven will be filled with “a great multitude that no one could number, from every nation, from all tribes and peoples and languages” (Revelation 7:9).

And finally, we must remember that the Church is not a building. It is the body of believers, those who by the Holy Spirit are being built up into a temple suitable for God. People have gathered to hear God’s Word and worship him in every kind of place: homes, synagogues, meeting halls, forests, catacombs, rented schools, empty store fronts, sports stadiums, and yes, churches. While a dedicated building adorned with the symbols of our faith can be comforting and even inspiring, it is what happens there, and the people who gather in Christ’s name, that is important.

To that end, even as we watch the collapse of a famous cathedral’s steeple, we take note of the second verse of the hymn, Built on the Rock the Church shall Stand:

Not in a temple made with hands
God the Almighty is dwelling;
high in the heav’ns His temple stands,
all earthly temples excelling.
Yet He who dwells in heaven above
chooses to live with us in love,
making our body His temple.

Thank God that his beloved Church will go on in us whom he has saved!

Now may the Lord bless you and keep you, the Lord make his face to shine upon you and be gracious to you, the Lord lift up his countenance upon you and give you peace. Amen.

Read: 1 Peter 2:4-6, 1 Corinthians 6:19-20

 

 

 

Half a Mind is Better Than None

Have you ever heard the expression, “I have half a mind to . . .” followed by some action the speaker is contemplating? An example might be, “I have half a mind to go to my boss and tell him/her off!” or “I have half a mind to tell that blogger he’s just plain nuts!” (For your sake, I hope the other half of your mind talked you out of blasting your boss; for my sake, I hope the second example has never occurred to you.)

Actually, I have come to suspect that the expression may be a description of me after all; that for all intents and purposes, I have only half a mind. Let me explain.

Half my mind is beautiful.

On the one hand, I have a marvelous mind (a “Beautiful Mind” as described in the 2001 movie by the same name, about a math genius named John Nash). Not that I’m a math genius, but my mind does come up with things that astound even me. For example, I can remember poetry my mother told me in grade school (Old Ironsides), the seven hills of Rome, Avogadro’s number (6.023 × 1023), the words to German folk songs I learned in high school, and the name of the Zulu king at the 1879 battle of Isandlwana. I once devised a math formula on my napkin while eating at a restaurant, for the number of lines needed to connect any number of dots on my napkin: x=n(n-1)/2. Since retiring I have taken up doing the New York Times crossword puzzle, and have been surprised how many archaic words I never use that pop into my mind and are the correct answers to the given clues. I can memorize sermons and dramatic monologues. And, recently I stood behind a young man who was wearing a t-shirt written in Russian; though I’m not a Russian speaker, I realized that I could read it: it was Jesus’ statement in John 15:13, “Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s friends.” (Нет больше той любви, как если кто положит душу свою за друзей своих.) Yes, I have a beautiful mind, matched only by my humility.

The other half, not so good.

But, like I said, it’s only half a mind. The other half, not so good. The other half is what happens when I walk into a room and forget why I went there. It’s what shows up when I think about someone I’ve known for twenty years and somehow can’t remember their name. It’s what takes over when I sit down to write a blog and end up distracted by everything else in the room instead. And unfortunately, it’s what takes over at night when I lie down to sleep. Instead of blissful peace and dreams of cuddly sheep jumping over a fence, my mind races with whatever I was doing in the hours before bedtime. I lie there with my (half) mind tied in knots, obsessed with solving the aforementioned crossword puzzles, moving colored blocks in a Tetris-like video game I was playing, replaying exciting scenes from an action drama I was watching, or imagining conversations in various situations that are unlikely to ever happen (such as what I would say from the gold medal podium at the next Olympics). Worst of all, I find my faulty half-mind thinking about things that are contrary to what God would have me think. Too many unpleasant, judgmental, prideful, or just plain sinful thoughts try to form and get my attention.

Recently, while I lay there contemplating sleep (Or as Edgar Allen Poe put it in his poem, The Raven, “Once upon a midnight dreary, while I pondered, weak and weary,”) I was struck by how much I was obsessing over trivial matters and letting those random thoughts control my mind. I thought to myself, “If I have a decent (half) mind, why can’t I just stop those other thoughts and fall asleep?” and “If I can’t keep my mind from dealing with all those fruitless thoughts. how can I apply it to fruitful pursuits, instead?” It was in the turmoil of that struggle that 2 Corinthians 10:5  popped into my mind: “We destroy arguments and every lofty opinion raised against the knowledge of God, and take every thought captive to obey Christ.”

It was one of those moments when something seems so obvious we wonder why we weren’t thinking it all along.

It was one of those moments when something seems so obvious we wonder why we weren’t thinking it all along. In my case, I knew that those random thoughts that were keeping me awake had taken me captive and that I had let them, for whatever reason. Maybe my mind was trying to hold onto the satisfaction that those thoughts had given while I was awake and doing them. But now, that it was time to sleep, I needed to take them captive so that they served me and not the other way around. The more I thought about the verse from Second Corinthians, the more I realized I had to deliberately control my thoughts and take them captive.

It’s amazing how many times the Bible talks about our minds. On the one hand, Scripture teaches us that our very thought processes and abilities are imperfect and flawed by sin. When God destroyed most of mankind by the Great Flood, it was because “every intention of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually” (Genesis 6:5). Second Corinthians 4:4 says, “The god of this age has blinded the minds of unbelievers . . .” Romans 8:5-6 warns that “Those who live according to the flesh have their minds set on what the flesh desires;” and Jesus said in Matthew 15:19, “For out of the heart come evil thoughts.” Acts 17:19 tells us that idols are formed “by the art and imagination of man.” There is even one verse that describes me: “even at night their minds do not rest” (Ecclesiastes 2:23)!

Although our minds have tremendous abilities and can sometimes do wondrous things, they were affected by mankind’s fall into sin and God’s resultant curse on all creation. Just as our bodies eventually wear out and die, so also our minds depend on our flawed brains to function properly. When I applied for a graduate program in history in my 30s, I was accepted, but told that I would have been too old for a similar program in math – because by that age my brain would have already lost too many math abilities.

And even when our brains are “firing on all cylinders” we tend to use our mental faculties for selfish and sinful purposes. How many geniuses were involved in creating the atom bomb? How many brilliant chemists devised poison gas? How many crooks use their smarts to embezzle funds at work or con people out of their savings? Even though there are many videos out there showing dumb crooks doing stupid things (such as robbing a gun store), how many successful schemes never get detected?

Sin has affected every part of our being, including our minds. Luther called it the “bondage of the will,” arguing that we are unable to choose God or what is right on our own power.  Luther’s Small Catechism puts it this way: “I believe that I cannot by my own reason or strength believe in Jesus Christ, my Lord, or come to Him. . . ” Likewise, Reformed theologians called our mental sinfulness part of the “total depravity” that sin has caused, in which every part of us, including our minds, is affected.

So then, what do we do? Do we give up and say, “Well, that’s just human nature. I might as well not try to do better”? The answer is, “No.” Even though Scripture recognizes our shortcomings in mental ability and sinfulness, it still commands us to look to the Lord and focus our mind on him and his will. Colossians 3:2 says, “Set your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth.” Philippians 4:8 reads, “Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things.”  Paul warns in 1 Corinthians 14:20, “Brothers, do not be children in your thinking. Be infants in evil, but in your thinking be mature.”

When I graduated from high school, my parents gave me a little book which bore a title taken from the King James Version of Proverbs 23:7, “For as he thinketh in his heart, so is he.” Their point was to encourage me to think right thoughts, so that I might have a better life and one more in keeping with God’s commandments. In other words, I could overcome my inherent limitations by focusing on the good and striving for it.

That was good advice, which I will strive to follow more now, and which I will commend to you as well. Let us follow the advice of the song, “Turn your eyes upon Jesus, look full in His wonderful face; and the things of earth will grow strangely dim, in the light of His glory and grace.”*

And with that thought and song in my mind, good night!

Now may the Lord bless you and keep you, the Lord make his face to shine upon you and be gracious to you, the Lord lift up his countenance upon you and give you peace. Amen.

Read: Philippians 4:4-8, Romans 7:21-25, Romans 8:5-6, Colossians 3

*from The Heavenly Vision, by Helen Howarth Lemmel

Rise and Rejoice!

When I get up each morning (unless I sleep until noon) I usually listen to the radio during my morning ablutions. My preference is talk radio shows on the AM dial, which can be entertaining and, at the same time, help me keep up with the news. Unfortunately, they can also be discouraging, as the hosts and guests tend to focus on the problems we face in our country and world. The problems can be the actual developments – bad news – or the disagreements and arguments about those developments which seem to divide our country and its people. A person can come away from those talk shows feeling down about what the future may hold for us all.

Well, last Saturday I turned on the radio again, only to find the AM dial to be a wasteland of infomercials, you know, the kind that are structured to sound like real news stories or interviews, but are really just advertisements for some product or service. There’s nothing wrong with companies using such programs to sell their wares; I just don’t want to listen to them. And so, yesterday I switched to the FM dial, planning to listen to some music.

After scanning the available frequencies I finally settled on a station that was playing classic Christian hymns: songs like “Crown Him With Many Crowns” and “Holy, Holy, Holy.” I was enjoying the music while I shaved, trying not to cut myself while singing along with my resonant, bass voice. Then, one of the songs ended, and the announcer identified the program as “Rise and Rejoice.” I liked that phrase.

This is not an endorsement of that show, which is found on the Family Radio network, because I haven’t had the chance to listen to their commentaries and teachings enough to vouch for them. What I am endorsing is the concept that as Christians we should “rise and rejoice,” that is, begin each day by rejoicing in God our Savior.

This was a good reminder to me that my Christian walk is about more than doctrinal statements or theological study. Such things are good and necessary, but I have been too focused on believing and articulating the “right” beliefs, that I have sometimes forgotten to thank God for what he has done and rejoice in knowing him and his grace. As I considered this call to rejoice, I thought about the ways in which rejoicing is beneficial to me and to everyone who come into contact with me. So, what is so good about rejoicing?

It is commanded in Scripture. “Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, rejoice!” (Philippians 4:4); “And you shall rejoice before the Lord your God in all that you undertake” (Deuteronomy 12:18); “Glory in his holy name; let the hearts of those who seek the Lord rejoice!” (1 Chronicles 16:10 and Psalm 105:3). Because Scripture commands it, we rejoice whether or not we feel like rejoicing. It is like generosity, forgiveness, and service: we do those things because they are right for a Christian to do, regardless of any special giftedness or desire to do them. We owe it to God to rejoice in him.

It follows the example of Christ himself. Luke 10:21 tells us that Jesus rejoiced: “In that same hour he rejoiced in the Holy Spirit and said, ‘I thank you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that you have hidden these things from the wise and understanding and revealed them to little children; yes, Father, for such was your gracious will.'” Christ was righteous in his act of rejoicing, and he set an example for us to do the same.

It is a positive way to begin each day. If we were to get up and take a long car trip, we would make sure we had a full tank of gas before starting out. Likewise, a good breakfast helps us have the energy and nutrients needed to face the day ahead. How much more should our spirits be focused on God before we do anything else? Think of the difference it would make to face the day’s challenges knowing in your heart that God loves you and has already blessed you greatly! Instead of starting out glum (thanks to the news), we can start out refreshed and encouraged, ready to face whatever lies ahead.

It is a counter to the unending stream of bad news that assails us. It is easy to become glum when we are constantly bombarded by stories of crime,  war, injustice, terrorism, and political squabbles and lies. But when we consider what God has done for us through Jesus Christ, how can we not be uplifted? We have a loving God who made us, redeemed us and reconciled us to him though we were his enemies, and who has prepared a place for us in heaven for all eternity to come. How great is that! Plus, even in this life he has given us gifts, and works through us to bless others. Isaiah 16:10 gives us good reasons for rejoicing: “I will greatly rejoice in the Lord; my soul shall exult in my God, for he has clothed me with the garments of salvation; he has covered me with the robe of righteousness, as a bridegroom decks himself like a priest with a beautiful headdress, and as a bride adorns herself with her jewels.” Our rejoicing is based on the objective facts of what God has done for us.

It puts reality into true perspective. If all you hear are the news media (whatever political slants are favored), you come to define the world around you – in fact, all of reality – in political or sociological terms. Your priorities become what the news tells you is important, and you are subject to their manipulations. You find yourself running to and fro, following one person and angry at another, only to switch when new stories come out. But if you turn off the chatter and listen again to God through his Word, you come to realize that no matter what happens around you in the visible world, there is an invisible reality in which God works. As the Nicene Creed says, Christ is the Creator of  things, “visible and invisible.” The hymn, “This is My Father’s World,” says, “That though the wrong seems oft so strong, God is the ruler yet.” We would forget that truth if all we saw, heard, and thought were limited to the secular media. What is real and true goes so far beyond what the world says is so important.

It blesses others around us. We can see how rejoicing lifts our spirits and “centers us” on what is important and real in this world and beyond. But beyond us, the impact of our rejoicing can have a dramatic and beneficial effect on other, as well. When we are uplifted and encouraged, our joy can be contagious. Even among nonbelievers, it helps them to interact with someone who is happy; how much more so among other believers, when our rejoicing reminds them of their own blessings in Christ.  When we rejoice, we are witnesses to Christ for those who don’t know him yet (“You are my witnesses” Isaiah 43:10), and encouragers for those who do but are having tough times or are even wavering in their faith (Hebrews 10:24-25). To not rejoice is to deprive our fellow Christians of something we owe them.

It glorifies God and helps fulfill the 1st Commandment. One of our sinful tendencies, if not the greatest one, is our tendency to look anywhere except God when it comes to recognizing our blessings. We thank other people, the economy, our education and training, our own abilities, our “connections,” luck (“our lucky stars”), or something else, when it comes to finding the source of the good we have in life. “I earned it!” we think, forgetting that God gave us the life, the abilities, and the situations which have blessed us. Luther reminded us of this in his explanation to the First Commandment, saying, “For even though otherwise we experience much good from men, still whatever we receive by His command or arrangement is all received from God,” and “For creatures are only the hands, channels, and means whereby God gives all things.” When we recognize and rejoice at what God has done for us, we are recognizing him as God above all other so-called gods of money, possessions, pride, and nature. We see the Creator, and not the creation as the source of all good things.

So, then, I encourage you to follow my lead in rejoicing at the start of each day – in song, in prayer, and in the Scriptures. I am sure I will forget to do so some days, or be distracted by various things (such as the smell of breakfast cooking – another reason to rejoice!). But if we consider all his benefits, how can we not rejoice in God our Savior?

Now may the Lord bless you and keep you, the Lord make his face to shine upon you and be gracious to you, the Lord lift up his countenance upon you and give you peace. Amen.

Read: Isaiah 43, Philippians 4