Happy Veterans Day (a little late)

I know this post is post-Veterans Day, 11-11-09. However I would still like to say a great big, hearty thank you to any and all veterans who may be reading this or run into someone who does read this. So please pass my thank you on to any veteran you know and give them one of your own would you?

Why do I think veterans deserve our gratitude? Well, it is not because I am veteran of the USMC. I do not and would not go around begging people to appreciate me. Either they do or they don’t and that’s up to them. Besides if I had to pull it out of them would it be real gratitude anyway? Most of the time people think pastors and churches are so pro-military because they fight and die to give us the freedom to worship God. Well, that’s part of it, even though some of those freedoms seem to be in jeopardy right now. All though that is not the whole or even the biggest reason because quite frankly I am going to worship God and spread His truth no matter what the government and the laws may say. So whether I have the freedom to worship or not is going to change my devotion to God.

My main reason for appreciating the military is because of the warrior himself/herself. I served with some might fine individuals and my guess they would have been fine people even without the military. However there is one thing they did by joining the military that not all fine people do. They loved me enough to put their life on the line for me. They have put or are putting their life on the line for my freedom, security, and safety everyday. Some did/do it over here, and some over there. Some did in peace time, some have/are doing it during war/conflict. Whether peace or war time; whether stateside or abroad; they all have handed their fellow Americans a blank check with their signature on it and a letter that says this check is payable up to and including my very life! How can you not appreciate that?!

I remember a few years ago seeing a man by the name of Dave Roever(SP?) speak at a Promise Keepers conference. Dave has a few body parts missing and is severely disfigured from an explosion while serving in the Vietnam War. At this conference Dave asked all the Vietnam vets to stand and be thanked for their service to their country. After his message I saw Dave at his ministry booth and I went to speak to him. I told him how much I appreciated his service to country and now his service to God. I also told I was disappointed in something in his message. I told him that I was sorry that he, a Vietnam vet, had to ask his country to thank him and them for what they had done to protect us. I told you already that vets do not like to ask for gratitude; but also do not like to see our brothers be disrespected and unappreciated either because we know what they went through for their fellow Americans.

By the way, Jesus had something to say about that, John 15:13, “There is not greater love than to lay down one’s life for one’s friends.”(NIV)

When Pancakes Go Wrong

Ya know; some days were just not made for writing. Several weeks ago there was one of those days. I could not come up with anything to write about. Then the moment I stopped trying, God sent it to me in an e-mail. Now before you go off the deep end, I am not saying that God literally e-mailed me. The e-mail was from my Mother-in-law, which in some ways is like being e-mailed by God! Just kidding, Mom. Ok, maybe not. Anyway; this e-mail that I received was titled “Pancakes.” If you have read my article for a while then you know that I like to make pancakes. My kids love it when I make them. (no offense honey, they love yours too!) Since this story is about a kid trying to make pancakes for his mom and dad and I make pancakes and have kids I thought, “Perfect, I’ll use it.” Here is that e-mail written by somebody else, no not my Mother-in-law either.

Six year old Ethan decided one Saturday morning to fix his parents pancakes. He found a big bowl and spoon, pulled a chair to the counter, opened the cupboard and pulled out the heavy flour canister, spilling it on the floor. He scooped some of the flour into the bowl with his hands, mixed in most of a cup of milk, and added some sugar, leaving a floury trail on the floor which by now had a few tracks left by his kitten. Ethan was covered with flour and getting frustrated. He wanted this to be something very good for Mom and Dad, but it was getting very bad.

He didn't know what to do next, whether to put it all into the oven or on the stove and he didn't know how the stove worked! Suddenly he saw his kitten licking from the bowl of mix and reached to push her away, knocking the egg carton to the floor. Frantically he tried to clean up this monumental mess but slipped on the eggs, getting his pajamas white and sticky.

And just then he saw Dad standing at the door. Big crocodile tears welled up in Ethan’s eyes. All he wanted to do was something good, but he made a terrible mess. He was sure a scolding was coming, maybe even a spanking. But his father just watched him.

Then, walking through the mess, he picked up his crying son, hugged him and loved him, getting his own pajamas white and sticky in the process!

That's how God deals with us. We try to do something good in life, but it turns into a mess. Our marriage gets all sticky or we insult a friend, or we can't stand our job, or our health goes sour. Sometimes we just stand there in tears because we can't think of anything else to do. That's when God picks us up and loves us and forgives us, even though some of our mess gets all over Him...

But just because we might mess up, we can't stop trying to 'make pancakes' for God or for others. Sooner or later we'll get it right, and then they'll be glad we tried....

I was thinking and I wondered if I had any wounds needing to be healed, friendships that need rekindling or three words needing to be said, sometimes, 'I love you' can heal & bless! Remind every one of your friends that you love them. Even if you think they don't love back, you would be amazed at what those three little words, a smile, and a reminder like this can do. Just in case I haven't told you lately.... I LOVE YA!!! And never stop 'making pancakes.'

This is a great illustration of what John Wesley meant when he talked about unintentional sin. We do not always intend to make a mess but sometimes we do anyway; and sometimes we know we are going to make a mess and we still do it. Not everything we do is okay and will be swept under the rug with no consequences, but whatever your situation and no matter how you got there; if you will stop in the middle of it and cry out to God He will love you and forgive you through it all. The mess may still be there but at least now you have help to clean it up and the love of the helper!

Childlike faith

Have you ever noticed how children usually don't worry too much about what other people around them think about them? The just do what makes them happy no matter what other people think or say. But some where along the way they are taught dignity and become little adults. Afraid to express themselves because of what others may think. This usually causes adults to refuse to share their story of how the gospel has affected them due to fear of what others may think. King David though danced before God's Throne (Ark) in his underwear and when his wife chastised him for it he said, "I will be even more undignified than this!" Maybe David was living out that childlike faith that Jesus spoke of. So today's question, "Is there a connection between David's "shameless" display and living a childlike faith?" Watch this video and you tell me.
http://www.tangle.com/view_video.php?viewkey=34e48adc68421ed33467

Daddy's Shoes

Our children either make us old or they keep us young. I guess it depends on whether you are pessimistic or optimistic. It is kinda like the whole, “is the glass half-full or half-empty” thing. I remember someone asking my Grandpa from Oklahoma about the glass and in his typical OK cowboy simplicity he responded, “Well, it depends.” “What do you mean by ‘it depends’ grandpa?” “Well, are you filling the glass or drinking it? If you are filling it up then it is half full, if you are drinking it then it is half empty.” That makes sense but it misses the point of the question for us overly complicated thinkers. So are your kids keeping you young or are they making you old? I guess grandpa wasn’t too far off because it depends or whether you are raising them to be self-sufficient, thinking adults; or are you forcing them to be little carbon copies of yourself and get frustrated when they step one step outside of what you want for their life?
Anyway, that isn’t what I wanted to talk about at all. I just somehow got off on a rabbit trail that almost doesn’t connect at all to the main trail. No matter how you look at your kids one thing is for sure, they’ve changed your life in ways that will never be the same. One way they do this is they teach us stuff all the time. “Wait, that sounds backwards. I thought we were supposed to be teaching them!” Well, we are; but if we stop long enough to watch them they can teach us some amazing stuff without even trying. They can even teach you stuff by trying to if you take the time to ask them about their school work. Have you seen the stuff they are learning in elementary school? I am learning from my kids’ homework. I thought I was a pretty smart guy until I started helping my kids with their homework, geesh! If you ever fantasized about being on “Are You Smarter Than a 5th Grader?” then just help your third grader with their homework, you will give up that dream!
Anyway, back on the main trail. Our kids can teach us a lot about life and our relationship with God if we would just watch them. After all the parent/child relationship is one way that God uses to describe our relationship with Him. The other day I was in the kitchen getting myself and our elementary kids some breakfast before school and work. My two year old was playing with my shoes on the floor beside the table. She put her feet in them, stood up, and tried to walk across the room. She didn’t even get one step before she fell on her face. She got up and tried again. She fell again. Now she is getting frustrated and after one more failed attempt she is full-blown mad! But she is not mad at the shoes, she is mad at me! They were my shoes and I should make them so she could walk in them, so she is mad at me. We do this to God sometimes don’t we? We try to play God in our own lives. We take over God’s role then we get mad at Him because we can’t make it work or because He won’t make it work for us. Here’s a newsflash; we aren’t God! Only God is God. We can’t even pretend to be God much less do His job, or wear His shoes. Those are some big shoes to fill. So why should He make it work for us when we steal His job? When we tell Him we don’t need Him and we can do it ourselves why should He step in and make it work when we have wrestled or lives away from His plan and tried to plan our own lives?
God tells us in Psalms to “be still and know that I am God.” He wants us to stop taking over His job and stop playing God in our lives and in our world. He wants us to just relax and trust Him to be God. Trust that what He does in our lives is what is best for us and if we try to take it from Him we are going to hinder ourselves and hurt ourselves far more than if we just let God’s plan run its course. God is sovereign enough that He will give up control to us if we insist, but He would rather that we wear our own shoes and let Him wear His. God has plans for you and for this nation/world. His plans are to prosper, not to harm. So if it hurts for a while then that is best for us. Change and growth can be painful but after the pain the improvement makes it worth it. So let Daddy wear His own shoes. Oh yeah, also pay attention to your kids. They can teach you a lot, after all, the Bible says “that a child shall lead them,” but only if those are the shoes God made for the child. Talk to me, david.pastorrock1@gmail.com

Fed Up

Several months ago I wrote things that frustrate me. I guess the guys at Go Daddy.com and Madison Avenue didn’t get that memo. Apparently they do not subscribe to the Albion New Era or read this blog. I expressed frustration over advertisers using sex to sell a product or service. Last night while watching the Super Bowl, my home was invaded by ads that should have been put on DVD and rented out of the adult room at the neighborhood video rental store instead of on prime time television while nearly every household in America would be watching. I mean, many of today’s commercials must have been written and filmed by the same guys who are used to making short films that people have to drive behind a big wooden fence (to hide that they are even at this place) then go into a dilapidated building and drop a quarter in a machine to watch. As a matter-of-fact, that should be the only way some of today’s commercials should be available. It is ridiculous how bad it has gotten that in the name of freedom people are allowed to air on national TV, pornography under the guise of advertisement.
You know, I used to think my parents were being old fuddy-duddies when they complained about this stuff, but now I realize that they were just feeling the same way I feel now. I am fed up with the total lack of regard for the people in this country who have morals and values. I am sick and tired of advertisers thinking that because I am a man I can be lured into buying what they are selling through my pants! Listen up Madison Avenue! You are about to here from a real man; “I can not be bought through an appeal to my man organs! As a matter-of-fact, the only thing that happens to me when you resort to such cheap, easy, and untalented advertisement is to send be to one of your competitors who does not use this stupid tactic to get my attention!” Yes I said untalented! When a company uses this king of promotion it tells me one of two things are wrong with this company. Either the marketers that work for them are so untalented at writing ads that they can not write an ad that sells me their goods by actually & only showing me what their goods do and can do for my life; or their goods are really of no good or value to me anyway and if it is something that I need, their quality is so low that it would be a waste of money for me to invest in it. Either way, I don’t want to send my money to such a sub-par company.
Two of the worst commercials I saw last night were from Go Daddy. They were so raunchy in fact that they couldn’t even show the ending of them on television. To see the endings one would have to go their website, which I refuse to do. The most disturbing thing about it to me is that Go Daddy is where my church purchases our rights to our website’s domain name. It is time for our church to find a different company to supply our needs in that area. Actually I have already gotten the ball rolling on doing just that. I am really disappointed that a certain female athlete would be associated with those commercials. Here is a young lady who has a chance to make a very positive influence on girls everywhere because she has risen to a level of success in an industry that has traditionally not been easy for women to excel in. She could be a picture of how determination and hard work can pay-off for girls when they follow their dreams. Instead she is an inspiration to get successful then get trashy because, hey I am successful now and no one can tell me what to do anymore! I wonder how she is going to feel when she has to explain to her sons or daughters why mommy did such a thing but she doesn’t want them to do it? I wonder how the owner of Go Daddy would feel if that was his mom, sister, wife, or daughter being exploited like that?
1 Thessalonians 5:22 says to stay away from all evil or appearance of evil and Proverbs 10:10 says that “People who wink at wrong cause trouble, but a bold reproof promotes peace.” It is time for believers across this nation to stop supporting any kind of evil. Get away from it as far as you can. Don’t patronize businesses that use evil and inappropriate methods to manufacture, transport, or sell their goods. Stop winking at trouble by saying, “Well, it’s not me that’s doing it.” According to God it is you if you wink at it. Stop saying, “Everybody does it and I can’t get it anywhere that they don’t.” That’s not true, and if it becomes true then we need Christian business owners to step up. Go one step further like Proverbs 10:10 says and tell these companies you are sick of it and are going elsewhere (I will because I know they won’t see this paper). If enough people do this they will listen. Especially if enough men will be man enough to not let those ads work on them and say so to the companies. They will get the picture. I don’t remember who said it, but they said, “All evil needs to thrive is for good men to do nothing.” That couldn’t be any truer these days.
An otherwise great game was marred by these ads. Talk to me, david.pastorrock1@gmail.com

Shades of Grey

Man, it has been a long time since I posted! I am sorry but I have two things to blame it on; me and myself. I get too busy sometimes and when I am not too busy I am too lazy. So I blame me for getting too busy and myself for being too lazy. Anyway, as a follow up to the Vote the Bible I had written an article in response to a question posed to me from that article. (In case you did not know, I write a weekly article for my local newspaper and this blog is usually that week's article) Here is the article I wrote in response:

“I do not believe there is black and white, just shades of grey.”-a quote for the 80’s movie Soul Man. This line was spoken by a Caucasian lady who was trying to “date” the main character whom she thought was African-American. As it turned out he was really Caucasian himself he had simply taken an overdose of tanning pills so he would qualify for an African-American scholarship to Harvard Law School. Later in the movie this same lady was trying to date a Native American and she said, “I do not see red and white, just shades of pink.” As the movie went on the main character meets and falls in love with the young lady he had beat out for the scholarship and she was African-American. She was also a single mother with little income and had to work at the school cafeteria to be able to still go to school there. Through this he gained a new appreciation for the hardships some people have to go through to build a better life but he also learned that when it comes to morals and ethics, there definitely is black and white. Meaning, there certainly is right and wrong and doing wrong isn’t made right just because it benefits the one doing it.
An earlier article about “Vote the Bible” brought some pretty good responses. One response in particular was from a very good friend of mine. I love it when this guy questions my writings or talks because it always forces me to think deeper than I had. I also love it because he does it in a very loving manner and isn’t arrogant or nasty about it. I like to think that we are both this type of friend for each other. I hope anyway that I give him plenty to think about in his spiritual journey.
Anyway, here is his response:
“It's a tough one man. I mean, if I'm going to be a critical thinking (meaning if I'm going to throw some seminary blah-blah at you), which interpretation of the Bible should I vote according to? Which denominational lines should I vote along? I know what you're saying. But I think the one problem with the argument of "vote the Bible" is that the Bible can speak a lot of different ways to a lot of different people. However, if that's what you're saying - listen to the individual way God speaks to you through the Bible, even if everyone doesn't get the same message from God - then I'm all for it. Hopefully I can still be your friend. ;o)”
Here was my response back:
“Thanks for the comment and forcing me to think deeper than I have. I understand how the Bible can say different things to different people. I mean let's face it, the Bible is grey in a lot of areas. In those areas it is up to the individual to determine their own personal black & white positions. I have little problem with folks taking grey areas of scripture and making them b & w for themselves as long as they aren't nasty about pushing their personal b & w on others. However, there are also a lot of b & w areas in scripture and I always have a problem with someone taking a b & w biblical issue and making it grey to suit their self. And it is there in the b & w areas of scripture that should be the standard by which we hold others, especially our leaders. There are also lots of directives or qualifications, if you will, for leaders in scripture and the intentions of the blog/article are to encourage people (one) to vote, and (two) to use God's b & w qualifications for leaders to make their decision. In the grey areas, I am always all for people listening to the way God speaks to them individually because I believe the grey areas are left grey for the individual ways God created us to come shinning through for His glory. Yes; we can still be friends and even ‘brothas from another motha!’ Love you man!”
While there are a lot of grey areas in scripture and this leaves open the door for someone to make it a black and white issue and force it on others; the real danger is when someone takes a black and white issue in scripture and tries to make it a grey issue in order to justify their own depraved desire. When God says this is the way it is then that is just the way it is and no amount of pretty language can change that. It is too late to use this logic on how to vote for America this year but it can be used in another vote; the vote that determines how you live your life. Do you want to live your life in a grey fog of uncertainty all the time or do you want the clarity of knowing right from wrong and living it everyday? The choice is yours! Just let me caution you on the grey, the problem with a grey fog is that you usually don’t know what is out there in it until it is too late and you have already hit or can’t avoid it.

Vote the Bible

Bill Hybels once said, or maybe it was Rick Warren or Dr. Dobson, or Chuck Swindoll or someone else with a higher pay-grade than mine. I don’t recall who said it but that doesn’t matter. I just remember someone telling me recently that they heard a preacher say, “Just vote the Bible.” I wish I could remember who said it so I could give credit where credit is due but suffice it to say that it is not original to me. Truth-be known it isn’t even original to the guy that the other guy heard say it. It really is original to God. Ecclesiastes 1 says that there is nothing new under the sun.
God gives lots of direction on what to look for in leaders in His Word. In Genesis 1:26 He makes man in His own image so we should look for a leader who projects the image of God. Proverbs 29:18 says we need people with vision or we will perish; but not just any ‘ol vision; God’s vision. At their core our leaders need to be people who carry the image of God and share God’s vision for His people. Exodus through Deuteronomy has lots to say about what to look for in leaders as God was organizing Israel into a nation during this time; a nation of tribes, elders, judges, and Moses mentoring Joshua to take over as the national leader. The Old Testament if full of the ups and downs of leaders, the mistakes they made, the victories they won, and how choosing on superficial things such as appearance, speech, status, etc. is dangerous. Basically the OT says of choosing leaders: if someone honestly seeks God’s guidance on who to choose for a leader, He will reveal His intentions. Jesus taught that a leader is to first be a servant. No one is born into leadership. They must first be a servant if they are to become a leader and even once a leader they are still to be servants because leaders are there to serve those they lead not make those they lead serve them; that is dictatorship not leadership. 1 Timothy 3 lists the moral qualifications of a spiritual leader. Remember that all leadership and authority is established by God so every leader is a spiritual leader, the only question is, “Which spirit is the leader following and leading us to follow?” Good or bad, every leader is a spiritual leader.
So for this election, don’t worry; “Just vote the Bible.” Some would say that moral issues are really non-issues and that the real issues are the economy, war, healthcare, etc. I say why can’t moral issues be the issue to me? I have the right to vote based on any issue I want and if the morality of a candidate is an issue to me then it is an issue! I’m tired of the “intellectuals” of the world telling us Christians that we are ignorant and our issues don’t matter then turning around and complaining about the ethical and moral failures of our leaders! Maybe if they would stop telling Christians to shut-up and if they would start voting on morality and ethics with us then the moral crisis in our country’s leadership would go away! Moral issues matter to me! 2 Chronicles 7:14 says that if we would just humble ourselves, admit we don’t know-it-all, seek Him again, and give up our immorality then He will heal our nation. It doesn’t take a long look at America’s morality to see that we need some healing. As for the “issues” I am not worried about them because according to Luke 12:22-34 they are the non-issues. Those things are not truly in the hands of the candidates, they are in the hands of God. God provides food, shelter, clothing, and health/life. What else do we really need to survive? How much of our “needs” are really luxuries that we have grown dependent upon?
Because I have faith in God I can be at peace about this election and simply vote the Bible. If you want to vote the Bible then maybe this should serve as a challenge to you to study it and see for yourself what God has to say. Don’t assume you already know it or take your pastor’s word for it, see it yourself. I am not endorsing one candidate or party over another here; I am simply endorsing God’s Word and discovering whether or not a candidate truly carries His Word. God’s endorsement is the only endorsement that really matters. Simply vote God’s Word and all else will fall into place regardless of who gets elected. And it could be God’s plan to allow leaders in that will usher in the beginning of the end. If that is the case then it must be God’s plan; so what do His believers have to fear or worry about?
Talk to me david.pastorrock1@gmail.com