“I am the true vine, and my Father is the husbandman. Every branch in me that beareth not fruit he taketh away: and every branch that beareth fruit, he purgeth it, that it may bring forth more fruit.” (John 15:1-2)
Is it just me, or do we all seem to accumulate stuff at a dizzying pace? For example, every year we buy several rolls of wrapping paper for our Christmas presents, and we always have some left after the season. Then after Christmas, wrapping paper goes on sale for 90% off, so we pick up a few more rolls for next year at such a great price. Then during the year, there are special events such as birthdays where more wrapping paper is purchased to fit the theme of the event. We store all the extra paper we don’t use in the basement closet, and the supply just keeps growing. I have enough wrapping paper to open a small boutique. You have probably heard the line that some guys give to a girl about promising her she would be dripping in jewels and furs and all sorts of lavish riches if she will just be his girl. “Honey, if you marry me, I promise I will buy you the moon!” If you ever actually do buy the moon for her, bring it to me. I can wrap it for you.
Shoestrings are another item that multiplies. You cannot buy just one pair of shoestrings. They package them in sets of two pairs because selling one is too cheap and makes no economic sense for the company. So you use one pair and put the other one away for later, but by the time you need the second pair, you have completely forgotten where you put it, so you buy two more pairs. There are actually twice as many pairs of shoestrings in the Universe as there are pairs of shoes.
Sometimes we need a good purging of the stuff we accumulate. Unfortunately, it usually occurs when we least expect it and outside our control. A good spring cleaning often results in a garage sale or a huge pile at the curb for the trash man, but we have to be prompted to do that, and it is often difficult to motivate ourselves to part with our treasured belongings. I am sure most of us have seen episodes of the “Hoarders” program on TV. I hope no one is that bad, but I would say that virtually everyone reading this would not miss most of the stuff they have, myself toward the top of the list. Look at my office and you will see a mountain of papers and other items that mean something to me but not to anyone else. When I finally go home to the Lord, virtually everything I have will be set out at the curb and find its true meaning as it bio-degrades into dirt.
We can see an object lesson of this in nature. In this part of the country, we get hit at times with ice storms in the winter. It is one thing to get dumped on with a foot of snow, but an inch of ice is far worse. The snow just falls through the trees and lands on the ground. But ice clings to the branches and covers every square inch. The weight of the ice on the branches will then bring them crashing to the ground. It is almost surreal to sit at home at night and listen to the neighborhood creak and groan under the weight of the ice. The slightest wind rocks the limbs and you hear the continual crack and thud of branches hitting the ground. You only hope the bigger ones don’t fall on the house. When the weather finally clears, the sound of chainsaws fills the air as the clean up takes place. The result is not pretty at the time, but a couple of years later, it reaps a reward. The older weaker branches have given way to stronger fruit bearing ones.
Sometimes God has to send a storm in our lives to get us to bear more fruit. Our mission and purpose in life is to reach others with the gospel of Jesus Christ. Our things are a very important part of that process. You cannot reach this culture if you are homeless and destitute. No one will believe that your God can care for them if he is not caring for you. But don’t let your stuff get in the way of your fruit. When the next “storm of life” purges some of the things you think are so indispensable, stop for a moment and thank God for it. The fruit of the next season will make it all worthwhile.
Saturday, December 31, 2011
Friday, December 23, 2011
Black Friday
“And he said unto them, Take heed, and beware of covetousness: for a man's life consisteth not in the abundance of the things which he possesseth.” (Luke 12:15)
This year’s mad-house day of shopping was filled with more crazy events perpetrated by people who have way more dollars than they have sense (pun intended). I am sure most of you heard about the lady who pepper sprayed her fellow shoppers arguing over some item they were all trying to buy. Then there were the fights in the parking lots over those who were cutting the line at 3am trying to get ahead of the others. Of course, the worst one was a couple of years ago at a WalMart in New York when an employee was trampled to death, and yet the shoppers all went about their business as if nothing happened, and then actually got mad when the Police closed the store temporarily to deal with the tragedy. It just makes you wonder sometimes what is going on in the hearts and minds of the populace.
I know they call it “Black Friday” because it is the time of the year when the retailers finally get “in the black” for their yearly budgets. But I am beginning to think there is another undertone of the name to signify the “darkness” that befalls some of our fellow humanoids on this dirt ball on that day. Maybe they should call it “Green Friday” in honor of the cash. But the name has been around long enough now that it has stuck. But every time I hear the term “Black Friday”, I can’t help but think of the spiritual darkness that is often connected to the pursuit of things. Of course, whenever a preacher starts on one of his rants about materialism, it often results in the hearers tuning him out. They think he is advocating that we all live in a tent and eat dirt just so we can all be right with God. Christianity is not a vow of poverty. God takes care of his children. The Bible tells us that God “…giveth us richly all things to enjoy.” (I Timothy 6:17) Jesus said he came to give us life (eternal) and abundant life (temporal) in John 10:10. There are many exceptions to the rule, but generally speaking, a believer in Christ can expect a life filled with blessings and provisions from his benevolent Father in heaven. The problem is that we expect them in the temporal realm first, with no thought for the “spiritual blessings in heavenly places” that are far more valuable (Ephesians 1:3).
As we approach yet another holiday season, we will see another attempt by man to satisfy himself with the stuff of this world. Within reason, there is nothing wrong with that. In fact, it is a sin not to enjoy the things God gives you. We go out of our way to provide for our children during this time of the year, and that is important. They need to know that we love them. You cannot buy your children’s love, and they need you more than they need your things. At the same time, just saying you love them at Christmas without backing it up with a couple of toys would ring rather hollow in their ears. It is a difficult balance. But think about the gifts you received 10 years ago. At the time, you thought they were just perfect. You said, “Oh, thank you! It is just what I needed!” Today, virtually every one of those gifts rests in a landfill.
You have certainly heard the line, “He who dies with the most toys wins.” That statement should be modified to say, “He who dies with the most toys is still dead.” Where will he be in eternity? Do your loved ones know Jesus Christ as their Lord and Saviour, and not just as the little baby in the manger? It is their decision, and you cannot force it on anyone, but have you told them? Have you lived your life as close to the book as possible so that they do not have justification for rejecting Christ based on your testimony? This year’s Christmas gifts will not last. God, the Bible, and the souls of men are the only things that will last for eternity. Go ahead and invest in the things that this season moves us to do, but make your real investments in the things that will outlast all of them. Give the gift of life to a lost world through our Lord Jesus Christ.
This year’s mad-house day of shopping was filled with more crazy events perpetrated by people who have way more dollars than they have sense (pun intended). I am sure most of you heard about the lady who pepper sprayed her fellow shoppers arguing over some item they were all trying to buy. Then there were the fights in the parking lots over those who were cutting the line at 3am trying to get ahead of the others. Of course, the worst one was a couple of years ago at a WalMart in New York when an employee was trampled to death, and yet the shoppers all went about their business as if nothing happened, and then actually got mad when the Police closed the store temporarily to deal with the tragedy. It just makes you wonder sometimes what is going on in the hearts and minds of the populace.
I know they call it “Black Friday” because it is the time of the year when the retailers finally get “in the black” for their yearly budgets. But I am beginning to think there is another undertone of the name to signify the “darkness” that befalls some of our fellow humanoids on this dirt ball on that day. Maybe they should call it “Green Friday” in honor of the cash. But the name has been around long enough now that it has stuck. But every time I hear the term “Black Friday”, I can’t help but think of the spiritual darkness that is often connected to the pursuit of things. Of course, whenever a preacher starts on one of his rants about materialism, it often results in the hearers tuning him out. They think he is advocating that we all live in a tent and eat dirt just so we can all be right with God. Christianity is not a vow of poverty. God takes care of his children. The Bible tells us that God “…giveth us richly all things to enjoy.” (I Timothy 6:17) Jesus said he came to give us life (eternal) and abundant life (temporal) in John 10:10. There are many exceptions to the rule, but generally speaking, a believer in Christ can expect a life filled with blessings and provisions from his benevolent Father in heaven. The problem is that we expect them in the temporal realm first, with no thought for the “spiritual blessings in heavenly places” that are far more valuable (Ephesians 1:3).
As we approach yet another holiday season, we will see another attempt by man to satisfy himself with the stuff of this world. Within reason, there is nothing wrong with that. In fact, it is a sin not to enjoy the things God gives you. We go out of our way to provide for our children during this time of the year, and that is important. They need to know that we love them. You cannot buy your children’s love, and they need you more than they need your things. At the same time, just saying you love them at Christmas without backing it up with a couple of toys would ring rather hollow in their ears. It is a difficult balance. But think about the gifts you received 10 years ago. At the time, you thought they were just perfect. You said, “Oh, thank you! It is just what I needed!” Today, virtually every one of those gifts rests in a landfill.
You have certainly heard the line, “He who dies with the most toys wins.” That statement should be modified to say, “He who dies with the most toys is still dead.” Where will he be in eternity? Do your loved ones know Jesus Christ as their Lord and Saviour, and not just as the little baby in the manger? It is their decision, and you cannot force it on anyone, but have you told them? Have you lived your life as close to the book as possible so that they do not have justification for rejecting Christ based on your testimony? This year’s Christmas gifts will not last. God, the Bible, and the souls of men are the only things that will last for eternity. Go ahead and invest in the things that this season moves us to do, but make your real investments in the things that will outlast all of them. Give the gift of life to a lost world through our Lord Jesus Christ.
Tuesday, December 13, 2011
Raking Leaves
“We then that are strong ought to bear the infirmities of the weak, and not to please ourselves. Let every one of us please his neighbour for his good to edification. For even Christ pleased not himself; but, as it is written, The reproaches of them that reproached thee fell on me.” (Romans 15:1-3)
We have reached that time of the year when our yard work chore consists of picking up all the dead stuff that the trees decided to bequeath upon us. Mine always hits me just after coming home fromBelize. Our annual trip is usually during that stretch when the bulk of the leaves fall. So I leave for the tropics with about 6 leaves on the ground and experience 95 degree weather, and return home to an immediate blast of 30 degree days and 6 billion leaves to deal with. It is such a shock to the system and such a huge load that I usually have to tackle it in tiny segments of an hour at a time. The biggest problem is that of the 6 billion leaves I have to deal with every year, no more than about 50 of them are actually mine. We have a small redbud in the front yard that produces a few, then the rest of them are from the neighbors. Across the street and on both sides are huge trees, and for whatever reason, it seems the leaves all gravitate to my yard. I guess the position of my house and the fall wind currents work together to create massive mounds of dead rotting decaying foliage on our property. I sometimes feel like gathering them all up and sorting them into their various “tree DNA” piles, then knocking on their doors and delivering them back to their rightful owners. But that would be a lot more work than what I have to do now, and a whole lot less neighborly.
Quite often we get “dumped on” with things in life that are not our fault and not our doing, yet we still have to deal with it. In these moments, we all cry out, “Not fair!” Life is never fair. In fact, the word “fair” is never used one time in the Bible in the context of “just or equitable”. Our first parents saw to it that we would be continually plagued with injustices when they chose to rebel against God and sin. Since then, the rest of us live in a world full of sin, and you contribute your fair share to the cause just like everyone else does. Sometimes, the “leaves” of your sin fall on your neighbor’s lawn, and they have to clean them up. Other times, you reap the consequences of the actions of those around you. And you can’t fall back on the old adage that “it will all even out in the end”, because it really won’t on this side of eternity. There will never be an “evening out” of the fall leaves at our house. Our one puny little tree will never produce enough to offset the many monster trees of our neighbors. Even if we cut all of theirs down and planted a forest in our own yard, we have 18 autumn seasons in the books at this house, and we could never catch up. It is just part of life. God told us in Galatians 6:2, “Bear ye one another's burdens, and so fulfil the law of Christ.” When you think of it, the “inequity” of life actually has a bit of a benefit because it forces us to rely on each other at times. God made us as social creatures. He said it is not good for us to dwell alone. The fact that I have to clean up after others and they have to clean up after me can serve to draw us closer together. You learn some great qualities of life like longsuffering and grace that cannot be learned from books. They have to be learned from the experiences of life that work together to mold our character in the image of our Lord.
Speaking of being dumped on, there is no greater example than the Lord Jesus Christ. The Bible says, “For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him.” (II Corinthians 5:21) My yard gets dumped with too many leaves, but at least a few of them are actually mine. Jesus “knew no sin”. Yet he “bare our sins in his own body on the tree” (I Peter 2:24) so that we could have eternal life. The next time we are tempted to complain about something that is “not fair”, remember what he did for you. Then go tell someone about it so they can experience his grace and forgiveness as well.
We have reached that time of the year when our yard work chore consists of picking up all the dead stuff that the trees decided to bequeath upon us. Mine always hits me just after coming home fromBelize. Our annual trip is usually during that stretch when the bulk of the leaves fall. So I leave for the tropics with about 6 leaves on the ground and experience 95 degree weather, and return home to an immediate blast of 30 degree days and 6 billion leaves to deal with. It is such a shock to the system and such a huge load that I usually have to tackle it in tiny segments of an hour at a time. The biggest problem is that of the 6 billion leaves I have to deal with every year, no more than about 50 of them are actually mine. We have a small redbud in the front yard that produces a few, then the rest of them are from the neighbors. Across the street and on both sides are huge trees, and for whatever reason, it seems the leaves all gravitate to my yard. I guess the position of my house and the fall wind currents work together to create massive mounds of dead rotting decaying foliage on our property. I sometimes feel like gathering them all up and sorting them into their various “tree DNA” piles, then knocking on their doors and delivering them back to their rightful owners. But that would be a lot more work than what I have to do now, and a whole lot less neighborly.
Quite often we get “dumped on” with things in life that are not our fault and not our doing, yet we still have to deal with it. In these moments, we all cry out, “Not fair!” Life is never fair. In fact, the word “fair” is never used one time in the Bible in the context of “just or equitable”. Our first parents saw to it that we would be continually plagued with injustices when they chose to rebel against God and sin. Since then, the rest of us live in a world full of sin, and you contribute your fair share to the cause just like everyone else does. Sometimes, the “leaves” of your sin fall on your neighbor’s lawn, and they have to clean them up. Other times, you reap the consequences of the actions of those around you. And you can’t fall back on the old adage that “it will all even out in the end”, because it really won’t on this side of eternity. There will never be an “evening out” of the fall leaves at our house. Our one puny little tree will never produce enough to offset the many monster trees of our neighbors. Even if we cut all of theirs down and planted a forest in our own yard, we have 18 autumn seasons in the books at this house, and we could never catch up. It is just part of life. God told us in Galatians 6:2, “Bear ye one another's burdens, and so fulfil the law of Christ.” When you think of it, the “inequity” of life actually has a bit of a benefit because it forces us to rely on each other at times. God made us as social creatures. He said it is not good for us to dwell alone. The fact that I have to clean up after others and they have to clean up after me can serve to draw us closer together. You learn some great qualities of life like longsuffering and grace that cannot be learned from books. They have to be learned from the experiences of life that work together to mold our character in the image of our Lord.
Speaking of being dumped on, there is no greater example than the Lord Jesus Christ. The Bible says, “For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him.” (II Corinthians 5:21) My yard gets dumped with too many leaves, but at least a few of them are actually mine. Jesus “knew no sin”. Yet he “bare our sins in his own body on the tree” (I Peter 2:24) so that we could have eternal life. The next time we are tempted to complain about something that is “not fair”, remember what he did for you. Then go tell someone about it so they can experience his grace and forgiveness as well.
Monday, December 12, 2011
Giving Thanks
“Thanks be unto God for his unspeakable gift.” (II Corinthians 9:15)
We all recently held our annual Pilgrim’s Feast where we tie on the feedbag and stuffed ourselves silly more than the turkeys we devoured. By Thanksgiving afternoon the tryptophan kicks in and most of us are fast asleep in front of the football game. I have it even worse. Every year on this day, I actually have to eat two dinners. That has been a ritual I have had to endure for the last 27 years that I have been married. We do dinner in the early afternoon with my side of the family, then I have to follow that up with another one with Vicki’s side of the family later that evening. It is real suffering for Jesus. Although I do the cooking at home and can quite humbly??? say that I am good at it, I have never cooked a whole turkey in my life. That has always been covered for me by others in the family (both sides). Both dinners have their own unique tastes. On top of the turkey, my mom’s Cole slaw is awesome, and the candied sweet potatoes are to die for. This year my dad made me a tub of chicken liver paté as well. I could eat that stuff 3 times a day and then dream about it at night. Then for the evening course, there is nothing quite like the stuffing and turkey gravy at the in-laws along with the fresh homemade rolls, the broccoli cheese casserole, and the best pumpkin pie west of theMississippi. It is one of my favorite days of the year. I even have a special plate used only on a couple of special occasions every year like Thanksgiving and Christmas. It is a huge rectangular divided plate like you would find in a cafeteria with about 6 or 7 different sections so I can pile it on without any of the various items touching each other. I like my food portions separate. That way I can enjoy each uniquely distinct and wonderful taste experience without having it all jumbled together. It is truly a palette pleasing extravaganza of epic proportions. My mouth is drooling again just thinking about it.
Most families will stop right before the dinner to say a quick prayer of “Thanksgiving” just before diving in to the feast, which is all fine and wonderful. Even those who really don’t spend much time with God at any other time of the year will at least try to acknowledge his blessings on that day. As the “pastor” in the family, I am always called upon to say the blessing. But most of us thank God for our stuff instead of for the things that really matter. We have become such a self-indulgent society that we complain over every little “issue” that does not suit our fancy. Paul discusses in II Timothy chapter 3 the “perilous times” that will come upon the earth in the “last days”. We certainly live in them right now. This is one of the prophetic passages in the Bible dealing with our times, and it cites “unthankful” as a key component of the apostasy we live in today. We can see it manifest in our society. Those on the receiving end of society’s care are camped out complaining, protesting, and demanding even more. Unruly children whine and throw temper tantrums to get what they want, and parents feed that spirit by giving in to it. An endless parade of so-called “reality” television shows us just how “little” we think we have, when the true “reality” is that we are blessed beyond our wildest dreams. Our airwaves are filled with personalities who are famous because they are famous, and they feed our unthankful spirit worse than almost anything else in our society. We now have “reality” shows that portray the most extravagant and ridiculous pampering of children I have ever witnessed. Our childhood should be one with fond memories and blessings, but when spoiled rotten brats spend over $100,000 on a birthday party for their spoiled rotten brat children, and then pollute our airwaves with the incessant whining about how every little detail wasn’t perfect, it is all I can do to not throw a brick through the set. All that would do is make me have to buy another one.
Be thankful that the only begotten Son of God chose to shed his blood for your sins. With a home in heaven guaranteed because of that, you have nothing to really complain about. The worst thing that could ever happen to you is to die and go to heaven. A heart that gives gratitude to the Saviour makes life worthwhile.
We all recently held our annual Pilgrim’s Feast where we tie on the feedbag and stuffed ourselves silly more than the turkeys we devoured. By Thanksgiving afternoon the tryptophan kicks in and most of us are fast asleep in front of the football game. I have it even worse. Every year on this day, I actually have to eat two dinners. That has been a ritual I have had to endure for the last 27 years that I have been married. We do dinner in the early afternoon with my side of the family, then I have to follow that up with another one with Vicki’s side of the family later that evening. It is real suffering for Jesus. Although I do the cooking at home and can quite humbly??? say that I am good at it, I have never cooked a whole turkey in my life. That has always been covered for me by others in the family (both sides). Both dinners have their own unique tastes. On top of the turkey, my mom’s Cole slaw is awesome, and the candied sweet potatoes are to die for. This year my dad made me a tub of chicken liver paté as well. I could eat that stuff 3 times a day and then dream about it at night. Then for the evening course, there is nothing quite like the stuffing and turkey gravy at the in-laws along with the fresh homemade rolls, the broccoli cheese casserole, and the best pumpkin pie west of theMississippi. It is one of my favorite days of the year. I even have a special plate used only on a couple of special occasions every year like Thanksgiving and Christmas. It is a huge rectangular divided plate like you would find in a cafeteria with about 6 or 7 different sections so I can pile it on without any of the various items touching each other. I like my food portions separate. That way I can enjoy each uniquely distinct and wonderful taste experience without having it all jumbled together. It is truly a palette pleasing extravaganza of epic proportions. My mouth is drooling again just thinking about it.
Most families will stop right before the dinner to say a quick prayer of “Thanksgiving” just before diving in to the feast, which is all fine and wonderful. Even those who really don’t spend much time with God at any other time of the year will at least try to acknowledge his blessings on that day. As the “pastor” in the family, I am always called upon to say the blessing. But most of us thank God for our stuff instead of for the things that really matter. We have become such a self-indulgent society that we complain over every little “issue” that does not suit our fancy. Paul discusses in II Timothy chapter 3 the “perilous times” that will come upon the earth in the “last days”. We certainly live in them right now. This is one of the prophetic passages in the Bible dealing with our times, and it cites “unthankful” as a key component of the apostasy we live in today. We can see it manifest in our society. Those on the receiving end of society’s care are camped out complaining, protesting, and demanding even more. Unruly children whine and throw temper tantrums to get what they want, and parents feed that spirit by giving in to it. An endless parade of so-called “reality” television shows us just how “little” we think we have, when the true “reality” is that we are blessed beyond our wildest dreams. Our airwaves are filled with personalities who are famous because they are famous, and they feed our unthankful spirit worse than almost anything else in our society. We now have “reality” shows that portray the most extravagant and ridiculous pampering of children I have ever witnessed. Our childhood should be one with fond memories and blessings, but when spoiled rotten brats spend over $100,000 on a birthday party for their spoiled rotten brat children, and then pollute our airwaves with the incessant whining about how every little detail wasn’t perfect, it is all I can do to not throw a brick through the set. All that would do is make me have to buy another one.
Be thankful that the only begotten Son of God chose to shed his blood for your sins. With a home in heaven guaranteed because of that, you have nothing to really complain about. The worst thing that could ever happen to you is to die and go to heaven. A heart that gives gratitude to the Saviour makes life worthwhile.
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