Stuck in the Past

I’ve been doing a lot of introspective thinking lately (too much, if the truth be told). Doing so has made it clear to me that I have become stuck in my thinking. Furthermore, my being stuck revolves mostly around the past – nursing and licking old wounds that should have been healed long ago and holding on to old hurts and bad habits that should have been jettisoned before now. Meanwhile, God says in the Bible: "Forget the former things; do not dwell on the past. See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it? I am making a way in the desert and streams in the wasteland.” (Isaiah 43:18-19). God has new things in store for us; he wants to give us new ideas and take us to new places; he wants us to do new things and meet new people. Meanwhile we remain stuck in the old. Why? Mainly because we choose to be stuck. Paul makes that clear when he talks about choosing to press into the future and not be stuck: “I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me. Brothers, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.” (Phil. 3:12-14).

I realize not everyone is stuck in their thinking right now like I am, but there is a pretty good chance that someone reading this post is. If so, put those bad experiences behind you. Forgive those who have wronged you. Let go of the past – move on! God says he is “making a way in the desert and streams in the wasteland.” In that dry barren place you are in right now God is showing you a path to get on – a new way to proceed and he’s bringing refreshing streams of water to quench your thirst. God has new goals for you, new things for you to do, and you won’t be able to do a single one of them if you remain stuck in the past. What’s written below is found all over the Internet and commonly attributed to T.D. Jakes. I’m not sure if Jakes said it or not, but it is a powerful message – one that bears repeating here.

LET IT GO by T. D. Jakes

There are people who can walk away from you. And hear me when I tell you this. When people can walk away from you, let them walk.

I don't want you to try to talk another person into staying with you, loving you, calling you, caring about you, coming to see you, staying attached to you. I mean hang up the phone.

When people can walk away from you let them walk. Your destiny is never tied to anybody that left. The bible says that, “They came out from us that it might be made manifest that they were not for us. For had they been of us, no doubt they would have continued with us." (1 John 2:19)

People leave you because they are not joined to you. And if they are not joined to you, you can't make them stay. Let them go. And it doesn't mean that they are a bad person it just means that their part in the story is over. And you've got to know when a person's part in your story is over so that you don't keep trying to raise the dead. You've got to know when it's dead.

You've got to know when it's over. Let me tell you something. I've got the gift of good-bye. It's the tenth spiritual gift, I believe in good-bye. It's not that I'm hateful, it's that I'm faithful, and I know whatever God means for me to have He'll give it to me. And if it takes too much sweat I don't need it.

Stop begging people to stay...LET THEM GO!!!

If you are holding on to something that doesn't belong to you and was never intended for your life, then you need to...LET IT GO!!!

If you are holding on to past hurts and pains...LET IT GO!!!

If someone can't treat you right, love you back, and see your worth...LET IT GO!!!

If someone has angered you...LET IT GO!!!

If you are holding on to some thoughts of evil and revenge...LET IT GO!!!

If you are involved in a wrong relationship or addiction...LET IT GO!!!

If you are holding on to a job that no longer meets your needs or talents...LET IT GO!!!

If you have a bad attitude...LET IT GO!!!

If you keep judging others to make yourself feel better...LET IT GO!!!

If you're stuck in the past and God is trying to take you to a new level in Him...LET IT GO!!!

If you are struggling with the healing of a broken relationship...LET IT GO!!!

If you keep trying to help someone who won't even try to help themselves...LET IT GO!!!

If you're feeling depressed and stressed ...LET IT GO!!!

If there is a particular situation that you are so used to handling yourself and God is saying, "Take your hands off of it," then you need to...LET IT GO!!!

Let the past be the past. Forget the former things. GOD is doing a new thing and it's time to release and let go of the old...LET IT GO!!!

Get Right or Get Left...think about it, and then LET IT GO!!!

If God brings you to it, He will bring you through it.
Happy moments, praise God. Difficult moments, seek God. Quiet moments, worship God. Painful moments, trust God. Every moment, thank God.

Missed It!

Okay, so last night I decided to watch a little of the Steelers-Titans game after I got home from a meeting. I got all comfy on my sofa and watched the game from half-time on. Near the end of the game I began to feel a little sleepy. The game was great though; it was a tough toe-to-toe battle and the score was knotted at 10-10.

The game goes into overtime. I get sleepier. So sleepy that I get up and go get something to eat (that's my excuse anyway). I get back from the fridge just in time to watch the Steelers win the toss for the sudden-death OT period. I watch the kick-off. Then I wake up and the news is on.

I didn't find out who won until I turned on my computer this morning. What's with that? How could I sit there for two hours and then miss the most important 2 minutes of the game simply because I nodded off?

I suppose that happens to many of us. We are vigilant; we persevere; and then we falter at the crucial moment all because the "spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak." Perhaps that's what is happening on Sunday mornings when I see folks nodding off while I'm preaching. Maybe next time I should go get something to eat sooner when I'm watching a good game. Maybe I should make sure my parishioners get fed something more spiritually nourishing on Sunday mornings. Perhaps I have put you to sleep reading this. Zzzzzzzzzzz

Yikes! Giant Spiders!

So much for blogging regularly (see my August 17 post). At any rate – I just got back from a dove-hunting trip to one of my favorite places in the world, my cousin’s farm in Bassfield, MS. Actually I spent most of my time down there bush-hogging, which is one of my favorite farming duties. I must have cut 25 acres of grass!

The hunting wasn’t bad either. I only got in one day of hunting because the season opened the day before I returned home. The hunting was poor in the morning, but we did pretty well in the afternoon hunt. The birds weren't flying in our field, but a friendly neighbor allowed us to come and shoot with them. I got 5 birds using 37 shells which is not too bad when it comes to hitting those little gray rockets.

The real excitement on the trip was my encounter with several really scary-looking spiders found in the Mississippi woods. I have been there several times but I had never seen one of these monsters before this trip. My cousin’s property is laced with wonderful lanes that run through pine thickets. We use them for driving four-wheelers and golf carts through the woods. On Friday morning I decided to take a walk using these lanes as my walking track. Sounds peaceful and scenic, doesn’t it? Well it was until I happened upon what South Mississippians call a “Banana Spider.” The spider’s real name is the golden silk orb-weaver spider (genus nephila). Apparently they are found throughout the world in temperate climates. And believe me, they are huge! I saw several that were as big as my hand (honest!). They also weave impressive webs that completely spanned the 6-8 foot lanes I was walking down. What's more, the webs were often head-high; perfect for catching an unsuspecting human. Well... actually they use their beautiful webs to capture all kinds of bugs and insects. An unsuspecting victim flies down the only path available to it, down the lane, and straight into a camouflaged death trap. Scary stuff. In fact, after I almost walked into two or three of the webs I finally turned around and headed back out of the woods the same way I came in.

According to some research I did on the web (pun intended), the spiders I encountered are not particularly poisonous but they do have a nasty South American cousin that is highly lethal. They also did not seem very aggressive. But let me be perfectly honest with you; I didn’t actually get close enough to tell if they were poisonous or aggressive. All I can say about them is they were huge and I would not want to walk into one of their webs, especially at night.

Discipline and Committment

I recently was reading Ed Stetzer's blog (EdStetzer.com) and ran across a post on a new book by Steve Addison called "Movements that Change the World." This book is about church movements and how they have changed the world. In the book Addison identifies what he calls the top five characteristics of dynamic movements, one of which is what he calls, "commitment to a cause."

I loved Addison's description of this particular characteristic. He points out how for good or for evil, history is made by people committed to a common purpose. Nothing changes unless people care deeply and are willing take action. The prime example of this, of course is Jesus himself. Jesus had high expectations of his followers. So high, that some of them walked away.

Addison tells an anecdote about one of my heroes of the faith, John Wesley, who founded the Methodist movement. It seems that after Wesley visited Bristol, one of his "Societies" was started there. By the time Wesley returned to Bristol months later the Society had grown to 900 people. But by the time he left 143 of them had been removed for various reasons: among them wife-beating, smuggling, and drunkenness. Addison's point: Wesley led a disciplined movement; one that changed the world and quite possibly helped avoid a bloody revolution in England like the one they had in France.

Without discipline there is no church. As much as I hate to talk about discipline, and enforce it, and sometimes even tip-toe around it, there can be no church without the boundary of church discipline. R. Albert Mohler, Jr. had this to say about church discipline: "No longer concerned with maintaining purity of confession or lifestyle, the contemporary church sees itself as a voluntary association of autonomous members, with minimal moral accountability to God, much less to each other." Mohler, who is President of Southern Baptist Seminary, goes on to say, "Put simply, the abandonment of church discipline is linked to American Christianity’s creeping accommodation to American culture." It seems the main concern today is not to offend. If we raise the bar of commitment, or if, heaven forbid, we ask people to actually live their lives differently from their non-believing neighbors, who knows what they will do; they may even leave! Meanwhile, much of what Jesus, Peter and Paul and others had to say was very offensive, especially to our sensitive modern ears which are more attuned to everyone's right to have their cake and eat it too.

Of note is the fact that the terms ‘disciple’ and ‘discipline’ share the same root. It is only through "discipline" that "disciples" are made. A disciple is one under the teaching, training, coaching, and authority of another. Discipline is the means by which God’s people are trained in godliness: “For the grace of God that brings salvation has appeared to all men. It teaches us to say ‘No’ to ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright and godly lives in this present age” (Tit. 2:11-12).

Bottom line, there is a great deal of unhappiness, distress, and trouble in the world because of our 'all-too-frequent' failure to control our tempers, appetites, passions and impulses. Sadly, this is often just as true inside the church as it is out in the world. Churches that neglect discipline do so to their peril. Doing so is to surrender to the spirit of this age. Discipline and commitment are never pleasant or easy, but things worth doing seldom are.

Blogging - or the lack thereof...

Wow - it has been a long time since I last blogged. Believe me, I have my reasons, and none of them are pretty nor am I proud of them. With everything going on in our lives right now (my family, my church, and so on) honestly, my main goal has been to simply put one foot in front of the other, just trying to "keep on keeping on."

A good friend loaned me a book that has helped a lot in this regard - "Believe That You Can" by Jentezen Franklin. I have to admit that after watching Franklin on television (TBN - the "purple hair people) and after hearing him speak once (at a funeral) I never thought he would "have my ear." But his words have been encouraging me like words straight from the Lord; at least in the way that he has addressed my situation.

I will be back on the blogging bandwagon shortly. Thanks for your patience.

Loved This - You Will Too

In this video megachurch pastor Craig Groeschel is the "victim."

You will love it - it's hilarious!

Book Review: Family Driven Faith by Voddie Baucham

I just finished reading Family Driven Faith by Voddie Baucham, a book whose self-proclaimed goal is to “equip Christian parents with the tools they need to raise children biblically in a post-Christian, anti-family society” (from the cover).

In this book Baucham argues forcefully from Deuteronomy 6 and Ephesians 6 that Christian parents have failed and continue to fail to bring their children up in the “training and instruction” of the Lord (Eph. 6:4).

I agree with Baucham in general – who can argue with statements like, “Turn off the TV, and hand your kids a book” (p. 103), and “Raising godly children is not a matter of luck; it is a matter of work” (p. 105). The author is absolutely right in insisting that if Bible training and spiritual formation was done in the home as God intended we would begin to see multi-generational faithfulness and less children and youth walking away from the faith when they grow up.

Unfortunately Baucham, like many others of his ilk, insist on insulting everyone within earshot as they try to pound their point home, including parents who choose to send their children to public school, parents who allow their kids to attend church youth groups, and well-meaning and godly pastors and youth leaders who are doing their best in a very difficult environment. Statements like, “How does a father raise his son to respect young women and protect their purity only to send him off to the youth building with exposed midriffs, low-cut tops, and skin-tight jeans?" (p. 182) are low blows to pastors, churches and youth groups that I simply cannot abide with. Baucham has this angry tone through most of the book and, honestly, a “holier-than-thou” attitude where he acts as though his interpretations of Scripture are the only ones that count.

For instance he critiques others for misapplying and misinterpreting Scripture, then proceeds to do the same thing himself. For example, in arguing against public education, Baucham quotes 2 Corinthian 6 about not being yoked with unbelievers. This passage from Paul is clearly about marriage and yet Baucham has conveniently misapplied the text to blast public education.

Baucham also shoots himself in the foot in his argument that home school groups should be embraced by the local church because they are a great field for evangelism. After arguing throughout the book that parents should home school their children because home schooling is more effective at training up our children in biblical ways, the author says, “More than half of the parents who homeschool their children in this country are not Christians” (p. 209). If more than half are not Christian as Baucham claims, why on earth is homeschooling such a vast improvement over public education?

Baucham also sees fit to blast churches who hire pastors who are “unfit” according to the author. Sure, there are pastors and churches that are making huge mistakes chasing culture and the latest fads instead of searching Scripture to see what God has said, but what about the dedicated men and women who are doing their best in what is an increasingly hostile and faithless arena? Would a sentence or two lauding these tireless servants have been too difficult?

In the final analysis, I totally agree with the author that we must always do our best to promote a biblical view of marriage and family, a biblical worldview in general, and a biblical definition of “success.” There is no question that many of the problems we face today would go away if fathers took their spiritual responsibility in the home seriously. In Baucham’s words, “No amount of money, toys, or fringe benefits can replace a godly father” (p. 155). And yes, I agree with the author that motherhood is a noble occupation (Prov. 31). Would in home worship and catechism study be helpful and effective in raising up godly children? Absolutely! Is the “pull of prosperity” (p. 149) deadly to our faith? Absolutely!

But, do I think the answer to the tailspin the evangelical church is in today is to simply do away with age-segregated learning environments including youth groups, Sunday-School classes and small groups? Would that solve our problems overnight? Not hardly. The problem is much deeper than that. Like many authors, Baucham falls prey to the error of "if you are a hammer, then everything looks like a nail." Baucham pounds his “family worship is the answer” hammer to every nail he sees, whenever and wherever he sees it, and he sees it everywhere. Voddie, the enemy is not public education or youth group or Sunday school. Let’s don’t throw out the baby with the bathwater in our rush to fix things!

The church’s role is to partner with parents to help children grow in the knowledge and admonition of the Lord. No church that I lead will ever forfeit that role. But we are also not willing to sacrifice even one child on the altar of “we told you so” when parents default on their part of the equation. We will take each child and help him or her; we will do our best to help parents develop a biblical view of parenting and their most important task as parents, to transmit their faith to the next generation.