Saturday, July 7, 2012

Questioning


Most of us know that if we have questions about faith that we can go to the Bible and find answers. Sometimes it takes a bit of searching to find the correct answer but we know that the answers are there for us. The correct answer is not always the answer we want to find but there it is for us to deal with.

Some people are very surprised to discover that the Bible also can confront us with questions that we would rather evade. The Bible is capable of asking the kind of questions that slice through the protective veneer that we build up around us. As along as we evade these questions we remain spiritually immature and weak in faith.

Spiritual maturity and strength of faith develop out of the process of personally dealing with the difficult and often painful questions about life and faith. Do not be afraid to consider the hard questions about your faith. It is not being weak to ask any question that bothers us. It is instead the way to become stronger when we confront and struggle with our doubts, confusions, and lack of understanding.

Some people are afraid to ask questions about faith thinking that they will be showing doubt or lack of faith. God is not afraid of our questions and we should not be fearful either. For our faith to grow stronger we need to confront both the questions and answers that the Bible presents to us. A growing understanding of our relationship with God is available through constant Bible Study, Prayer and Reflection.

Friday, July 6, 2012

Demas Who?





Demas Who?  Demas was a coworker with the Apostle Paul. What an intoxicating experience it must have been to have worked with Paul in the early days of the Christian church. To actually be there at the foundation of the Christian Church would have been wonderful. The story of Demas starts out wonderful but unfolds in a sad way.

In verse 24 of Philemon Paul refers to Demas and others as "Fellow Workers" who send greetings. He is also given honorable mention in Colossians 4:14. However in II Timothy 4:10 Paul asks Timothy to come back because, "Demas in love with this present world, has deserted and gone to Thessalonica." How sad Paul must have been to write those last words on a friendship. A once exciting relationship became listless, superficial and finally nonexistent because of worldly distractions.

Some people are this way with their Church relationship. At first everything is exciting feeling the love of God and the love of sisters and brothers in faith. Then like Demas other opportunities begin to call them away. Occasionally missing worship at first then more often until they are hardly ever in worship. When that happens it's time for spiritual renewal. It is always good to begin anew, no one ever feels bad about renewal. Only separation makes you feel sad. We don't know what happened to Demas at Thessalonica, perhaps he rejoined the faith and helped make that congregation great. Who knows?

What really matters is your personal journey in faith. If you are a Demas, is it time for your spiritual renewal? 

Thursday, July 5, 2012

CHOICES




Life is full of choices some are important choices like getting married and some are not as important like what do I have for breakfast. Every choice that we make changes the course of our life to some degree. Marry the wrong person and life can be very difficult. Eat certain foods all the time and clog your arteries. Our choices are so often made with very little thought because we think of them as ordinary.

We are sometimes called upon to make a choice that will result in vital life changes. This kind of choices requires not only a lot of thought and careful planning but also a lot of prayer. When you consider making major changes do you spend enough time in prayer? Have you made God part of the process in directing your life? These are important questions that only you can answerer.

Moving from one state to another requires prayer. Getting married requires prayer. Changing your career requires prayer. Committing your life to Christ requires prayer. Joining a church requires prayer. Daily seeking the will of God for your life requires prayer. 

Wednesday, July 4, 2012

Life, Liberty and Pursuit





“We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness…”

These words for the Deceleration of Independence are often quoted on the fourth of July and should be.  They are declared to be our God given rights for all humans even though the “men” who wrote them thought of them as rights for only men and at that did not cover their slaves. Still it was a beginning for the idea of God given rights of individual people.

LIFE: We have the right to be born and live out our lives with out threat from the government. Life itself is sacred and should be protected. There are times when governments do take lives when a jury of our peers convict someone of murder or other capitol crimes and inflicts the death penalty.

LIBERTY: We have the right to move about at our own discretion with out hindrance of our government and to do as we please unless it interferes with the rights of other citizens. That right can be curtailed by the courts if we violate the law and are convicted of it.

PURSUIT: We have the right to pursuit of happiness but that does not mean we have to find happiness. We can look for it in what ever way we choose as long as we do not violate the law or the right of others in the process.

All of our God given rights are precious but come with responsibility for our actions in exercising them in a civilized society.  Lives were given in the past for the support of these rights and are being given even now. Let us dedicate our selves on the forth of July to preserve them for ourselves and our fellow citizens now and in the future.

Monday, July 2, 2012

Remembering A Dear Friend


Becky Ritter was a Hospice nurse and a really good friend of mine. I met her at a Chillicothe, Missouri community meeting and during our discussion she discovered that I was a minister and asked me some questions about the bible. I was about to start a new Basic Bible Study at First Christian Church so invited her to try it out. Becky said, “But I am not a member and I am not even a Christian.” I told her that it would be OK by me for her to attend and she did. About three-quarters of the way through the bible study She wanted to be baptized and she joined the church. Two years later this Hospice nurse had cancer and after a long battle died. Becky had a personality that infected people with joy even through her struggling last days of her fight with cancer.

I still miss my friend Becky and her awesome faith in God during her last days on this earth.