Three men spent 10 minutes trying to pry open our locked mailbox before moving down the street to tamper with the others.  Eventually, they headed back down to a house at the end of a street that had a separate garage/workshop and proceeded to break into the structure.  It appears that they were also here the night before trying to get into another  garage/workshop at the house next door to that one.

These men obviously had firm convictions and were intent on performing this criminal activity.  And…..they were illegal aliens.

Yes, that’s not the politically correct term, but it’s the accurate term.   I’m tired of dancing around it.  These guys were probably trying to get into our mailboxes in order to confiscate identity information — (in order to steal our identities).  They were trying to break into the neighbor’s workshops to secure tools so they could find work here in the States.  Illegals don’t usually carry their own tools over the U.S. border — so some of them steal ours.

While legal/illegal status is not a criteria for crime across the board per se, the fact is that in our part of the world, crimes committed by illegal immigrants are seen frequently.  There are substantial reasons Arizona and other border states are trying to be tougher on those who commit these crimes.  Their citizens are suffering at the expense of illegal aliens who have no conscience in regard to their new host.

In the end, we suffer tremendously when crime against our citizens is ignored in the name of  being “politically correct.”  How silly to talk about undocumented workers when the term is more accurately stated as illegal aliens.  They aren’t even immigrants yet.  An immigrant is going through the legal process of becoming a citizen.  No, those who choose to cross our borders illegally are foreigners in a foreign land.  They do not possess it yet, thus they are aliens.

Even those who cross the border with no criminal intent have already committed a crime.  They are here illegally.  Sometimes I just want to say, “duh” to this one.   You just can’t sugar coat the words to make them sound more palatable.

I’ve been to Africa and I’ve been to South America.  I’ve seen real poverty in villages so small and far away that it takes hours to reach them.  I’ve sat inside of a Maasai hut with nothing but a dirt floor and a log bench sitting one foot off the ground inside of the enclosure.  Thus, I have a deep sense of awareness and compassion for those who have true needs, like food and medicine.

Here’s the conundrum.  Why do Americans think that everyone needs to live like us?   Why do we measure the standard of another person’s definition of wealth by our own culture?  While some in other cultures may envy our way of life, many overseas scoff at us, partially because of our wealth and partially because of their own fallen nature and self-envy.

I’ve seen very happy people who live in third world countries, unhindered by the need to possess wealth.  Most of the people I met who possess this kind of happiness have a very different reason for their state of mind — an eternal hope in Christ Jesus, who is our only true hope. 

Christians should know that the heart is evil to the core until the Lord changes the inclination of that heart.  (Gen. 6:5)   Knowing this, we should understand that by encouraging those in poverty to desire and crave physical wealth beyond true need and a true reality for their lives can be hurtful to them.  Sometimes it can empower criminal activity.  After awhile, the searing of their own conscience doesn’t matter any more to their heart.  Some will become like the employers they work for, men and women who pay substandard wages just because they can get away with it.  I am not convinced that the end result of a social justice cause is served well when the conscience of new arrivals choose to violate the justice they know exists in their own hearts.  Imagine having to live with that kind of guilt — a guilt that must remain hidden in one’s heart.  The cost is too high.

No one, more than myself, wishes that I could change the world for each and every person on the planet.  I do what I can to help those in need by sponsoring children and supporting world relief organizations.

However, those of us in a position to help need to be thoughtful in this endeavor.  How do we help them best?  If we bring down and topple our own economic system by overloading it with people we cannot afford to support physically here in our country — people who choose purposely not to go through the process legally — then we will no longer be in a position to help anyone at all.  Out of necessity we will have to focus inwardly, putting all of our effort into making a personal living in the here and now instead of having the ability to help those in true need across the globe.

Everyone loses when justice is not properly administered fairly and across the board.  Justice is important in a fallen world.  God, through common grace, has imprinted this concept of justice on all men, so no one is innocent when they choose to do something illegal.  Not even those in poverty can claim innocence when they choose to commit a crime against another human being.  There is no excuse that can be used to justify an illegal activity of crimes that are committed against innocent people, sometimes the very people who have a heart to help those in true need.

So today, inwardly I am seething — for various reasons.

1. I am frustrated that we were personally attacked by these men.  We live in the SW part of the country and we are hit the hardest by this hurricane of criminal activity caused by the influx of illegals into our states.  Illegals arrive here first before they traverse into other parts of the country.  Soon some of them begin to steal employment from our own citizens, even our identities.
2. Our own liberal-minded citizens try to justify this criminal behavior and say that these are jobs that our own citizens refuse to take.  I beg to differ.  I have many friends who would take any job they could find right now. When unemployment in our country is at record-breaking percentages (as it is right now), most people will accept a job in a field they would not normally consider.
3. For instance, construction and landscaping jobs are difficult to find by our own, qualified residents.  Why?  Because employing illegals is cheap.  Most illegals are hard workers and will accept inferior wages.  These facts are sad on several levels.  Employers in these fields should be ashamed of themselves for thinking it is acceptable to employ illegals in order to achieve a higher profit margin.  Illegals should be ashamed of taking a job away from a citizen of a country who lives here legally.
4. But here’s the one that really angers me.  The apathy in our country regarding illegal immigration is buried under the false pretense of pity towards the poor.  This self-pietistic attitude of compassion is not only going to cripple our economy, it will end up hurting both current and future immigrants to our country.  By killing our economy through over-taxation (in order to supply funds for school and health programs for illegals) with the intent of helping millions of illegal aliens who live within our borders, we will not have served them well.  We will have sent the message that justice and integrity do not matter in a country that was founded on liberty and justice for all citizens.  All legal citizens.  In regard to illegal alien status, anyone may become a citizen — if they go through the legal process to do so and can meet the qualifications set before them under the legal justice system.

Real compassion does not ignore justice for the whole.  Real compassion does not teach those in poverty that crime against others is acceptable.  Real compassion teaches that justice is applied for everyone.  Not only does justice allow a country to function well and thrive, but it creates an atmosphere of trust in which to live.  Legitimizing crimes against others in the name of social justice is just about one of the stupidest things I’ve had to watch evolve in this generation.

For those who want to come to our country, come!  But please, do so legally.  We wish we could support all of you, but the reality is that we simply cannot.  Perhaps you can be inspired by our forefathers, who worked hard to sculpt a nation that thrives on the principles of justice and opportunity for its citizens.  Perhaps you could be the one to try to effect real change in your country of origin.  I’m not saying it will be easy to do; I know many of you live in crime-ridden, corrupt countries.  But then nothing worthwhile is easy to do.  Even legal immigration is not easy to do, but it’s the right thing to do.

We always want the easy way out, even if it means breaking into the homes of others for personal gain — even if it means stealing another person’s identity for personal gain — even if it means ignoring justice and decency.

We do not serve those trying to enter our country well if we send out the message that crime against others is acceptable in order to escape the grasp of poverty.  It is not a means to an end — it is violence and injustice towards the very people who have a heart to help — and have helped.  We do this out of generosity, not out of an entitlement mentality.

Finally, our citizens pay a huge portion of their personal taxes to support programs to help illegals while they are in our country.  That’s a huge part of the problem.  It legitimizes illegal activity by the very fact that we support it through our taxes.  I wonder what our national and state deficits would look like if we cut support to extraneous programs which encourage illegal alien activity to flourish?   I have a feeling debt reduction would come much more quickly, freeing up legitimate funds to help the poor both here and abroad.  The burden of tax relief on the private citizen would help to free personal funds to help those charities across the world which do such a great job on social justice projects.

Simply stated?  It’s time to stop digging our own grave.

1st Image by: Nesster
2nd Image by:  Fab W

I wanted to listen to one song in particular:  Lord I Run to You.  That one was my baby on the keys.  It wasn’t just the song I wanted to remember, it was the young man singing the song.

Here’s how it works up on stage in a large mega-church.  The band does a sound check before the first of many services that day (and it’s usually both Saturday and Sunday.)  Then we are sequestered off-stage to await the countdown clock to tick away for our grand entrance, after the smoke machine is pumped up and ready to go — after the lights are set and ready to swirl around the stage — after the cameras and operators were ready to be all over our faces and hands. I remember a one particular cameraman crawling around behind me to get an angle shot of me and wondered what the people sitting out there “worshiping” thought of him crawling on his back on the stage behind me — just to get a cool angle for them to observe while they “worshiped.”

Behind the stage were couches for us to lounge on, food to eat and drinks to stay hydrated — it was a regular party back there.  After all, we were the band.  We were in charge of something important.  Worship.  We never sat out in the congregation.  We couldn’t have made our grand entrance in time after the sermon if we sat with the rest of the body.  I never felt comfortable with that.  We watched the sermon on a TV streaming live video back to us – that is, if the band wasn’t distracted with all that was going on backstage.

This particular young man had everything going for him.  He was a respected doctor – lived in a beautiful home on acreage — had 5 young, beautiful children and a great wife.  He grew up in a very close, loving family in another state that he loved very much.  He was handsome and had a great voice.

Often, we would sit backstage and talk about various topics.  Theology wasn’t something that was discussed often at this church, but occasionally, the Lord came up as a part of casual conversation.  When he talked about his family back in North Carolina, we shared a certain camaraderie with each other because we had grown up within 30 miles of each other back east.  He always appreciated my playing and made a point to thank me for accompanying him in a way that he could both follow easily and enjoy.  I didn’t think much of it — it’s just what I did.

I know he loved the Lord, but my heart is sad as I remember him because I never got the impression that he knew God in a way that explained God as our only hope to him — that gave him complete assurance of his standing with God.  The reason I say this?  He often appeared downcast and pensive, in a strange, overly thoughtful kind of way.  When he hung with the leadership, he put on a smiling, happy face of gleaming white teeth and gave everyone the appearance of having it all together.

Every Sunday he was scheduled to sing he would hype up his emotions, put on a serious, worshipful facial expression, and raise his hands upward to sing as the lights moved back and forth across the stage, centering on him in the main spotlight.  You could tell he enjoyed those moments immensely, especially when he had chosen the song.  He usually didn’t show up on the other Sundays.  I have to be a little easy on him here — he was a doctor, after all.

This particular song was one of his very favorites.  If you know the lyrics to this song, you’ll know that it is a song that cries out to God in a very real, needful sense.  He sang it on more than one occasion and it was a favorite at the church — enough so to be put on the CD.

Not long after this song was recorded, this young man decided to move his family back to North Carolina so that they could live near his roots — his beloved family.  He was ecstatic.  We wished him well and were happy for him.  We told him we would miss him.

A year or so later, he was dead.  He committed suicide.

What would cause a Christian man who had everything the world had to offer to take his own life?  To leave 5 young children (one a babe) and a beautiful wife to fend for themselves in this world without him?  I really don’t think he suffered from deep depression.  I simply think that he didn’t understand the immense hope he had in Jesus.  I don’t believe he thought it was real.  I think that the church environment we were a part of nurtured a false hope in his heart by representing the gospel as something we always have to work at to do better — to serve better — to give our best to God each and every moment of life.  It was always something we had to work hard to do.

When the body of Christ you belong to is devoid of sound doctrine, many people fail to understand that the reality of their hope is in Christ!   Not in our works.  Not in ourselves in any way.  Yet, our hope is real!  It is not imagined!  Scripture, when understood carefully and thoughtfully through a sensible lens of interpretation, has the ability to soothe the troubled heart in a way that gives real life answers.

I’m not saying that depression is not a real disease and that Christians do not suffer from true depression.  Obviously, it is real — both mental and physical — and many people suffer terribly from it.  However, I don’t believe this was the case for this young man.  I think he wanted to know God more deeply but was searching for God in all the wrong places — like the rest of us were at that time — at a church that failed to give him the surety of hope that is in Christ.  Instead, they served us a me-centered gospel that put so much pressure on him to perform that he must not have felt he could live up to such an expectation of the world.  I also think he felt the same way I did — that as a band, we were almost treated as idols.  Anyone who has read anything in the Old Testament might sense that idolatry isn’t a good thing — it isn’t a good thing at all.  My guess is that it hurt his heart as much as it did my own.

He wasn’t the only one.  Our lead electric guitar player died from a drug overdose of painkillers during that same time-frame.  He was young in his faith theologically and the flimsy promises of self-help theology that this church constantly promoted did nothing to give him the real hope the gospel message to cope with his pain.

This church was famous for presenting a segment during the service called, “My Story.”  This segment showcased a very nice person or couple who were invited to share “their story” — their story about how X Church had changed their lives.  The stories were always dramatic and intriguing.  But it was never the blood of Christ that changed their lives — it was the influence of X Church on their human lives.

Two excellent musicians.  Two amazing people.  Dead way before their time — at their own hands.  And countless others I will never know.

So that’s why I want to share Heidelberg Catechism Question #1 and #2 with whoever is reading this post.  Our Reformed congregation is encouraged to memorize this one.  When you read it, you will see why.  It gives us true hope.  I am firmly convicted that when one takes the time to understand God’s Word in a real, coherent way, they will understand their real hope in life.

1. Q.  What is your only comfort in life and in death?
A.  That I am not my own (1)
but belong — body and soul
in life and in death — (2)
to my faithful Savior Jesus Christ. (3)

He has fully paid for all my sins with his precious blood, (4)
and has set me free from the tyranny of the devil. (5)
He also watches over me in such a way (6)
that not a hair can fall from my head without the will of my Father in heaven. (7)
In fact, all things must work together for my salvation. (8)

Because I belong to him,
Christ, by his Holy Spirit assures me of eternal life (9)
and makes me whole-heartedly willing and ready
from now on to live for him. (10)

2.  What must you know to live and die in the joy of this comfort?
A.  Three things:
First, how great my sin and misery are (1)
Second, how I am set free from all my sins and misery (2)
Third, how I am to thank God for such deliverance. (3)

Notice that everything we learn is heavily backed up by Scripture systematically.  The Catechism continues in additional questions to explain all of the important doctrines of the Bible, but imagine if you really knew (based on the passages that supports these questions) that our only hope is in Christ and that He makes us able to live for Him!  That He has given us our lives to enjoy to live, glorifying the Father.

It would do all of us well to remember to pray for people we know who might be like these two young men.  Take the time to get to know the people at your church.  Love them.  Nurture them in the faith if you understand it well.  Pray for them.  Assist them.  After all, we are the body of Christ.

Both beautiful images by:  Martin Heigan (creative commons license)
Website:  http://anti-matter-3d.com/

I took a moment to marvel at this thought, not only to marvel, but to exhale a long breath of deep, heartfelt gratitude for God’s faithful goodness to me.  I took a moment to observe how this fact, (that I now attend a gospel-centered church — a real covenant body of believers), has changed my heart, my pace, my rest, my view on culture and politics, my perspective on just about everything.  I see and feel everything in a more balanced way.

I remember the plague of pressure — the need to conform varying opinions within the churches we attended in the past.  There was never a clear doctrinal statement, perhaps a ‘vision statement’ or a ‘mission statement’ — but no clear doctrinal statement.

There is no need for this confusion anymore.  The people in our church share a common Confession.  Doctrine that has been handed down through the ages has been preserved and passed down through the generations and I no longer feel the need to worry about whether someone is teaching me correctly.  I have confidence that what I am being taught is true.

That alone has made a huge difference in my life because over the years, it was obvious that there was a complete watering down of doctrine with most evangelical churches, which does nothing more than allow a confused garden of both flowers and weeds to flourish together in what should have been a carefully weeded family.

How amazing it is to sit under a pastor who faithfully prepares well-planned, exceptional sermons so the body can be fed the nourishment we need so greatly!  What a blessing to receive nourishment after living in an evangelical wasteland!  Not only do I hear expositional sermons in the morning (we are going through Acts right now), but we drink in rich doctrine in the evening service.  In Sunday School, we study deep topics like Covenant Theology.  It’s important to know what you believe and why you believe it,wouldn’t you say?

I especially enjoyed this past Sunday’s morning sermon, based on Acts 12, called A Holy War.  Not only did our pastor speak to the adults intelligently, he engaged the children and youth of our congregation in the discussion, not making ridiculous assumptions that children are unable to learn the deep things of God; not assuming that they cannot sit still long enough to listen and learn; not believing that they aren’t interested in learning about God; not being worried that they might disrupt the service.

Actually, the children in our church are a pleasure to have in our service.  They have learned how to sit and be respectful because they have practiced it.  Discipline is good for all of us, adults and children alike — especially when the world is so undisciplined and chaotic.  Doesn’t it make you wonder when you see that same sort of undisciplined and chaotic life in the church?

My heart was sad for a moment as I remembered the children’s church programs in that other world — where the children are sequestered behind locked doors — out of sight of the covenant community  — encouraged to play/party instead of learning the most precious things of God.  Most of those churches did attempt to teach the very important “Jesus Loves You” message.  But they never went any further.

I remember my own youth.  I remember learning to read musical intervals through the hymnal so that I could sing all parts while my lips proclaimed sound doctrine within its music.   I truly believe this is one reason I am a good musician today.

One of the things I love the most about this church is listening to our children (and adult congregants) sing the Psalms and the great hymns of the faith with their young lips.  I know, like me, that they will remember the words to these songs.  Long after the repetitive, no-content choruses fade away, our children will remember that our God is a Mighty Fortress – a bulwark never failing!

At our church the pastor personally catechizes every one of our youth by using the Heidelberg Catechism, which is centuries old.  That means we have a consistency of doctrine at our church.  That means our kids will have the opportunity to understand the very foundation of Christianity through the teaching of sound doctrine by the time they go to college.  By the time they’ve been through junior high school, they’ve had a basic apologetics course.  These kids amaze me.  They know more about the Christian faith at the age of 16 than I did when I was twice their age.

There is no way you could miss hearing the gospel proclaimed at our church.  As I sit in this quiet service, I marvel as the means of grace pours over our entire covenant body of believers.  That term means of grace was foreign to me in that other world.  I now see my faith through the lens of covenant and understand that the worship service is a covenant renewal ceremony of sorts.  God speaks and delivers; we respond in faith and repentance. (1)  God’s means, not our own.

Now I know that I cannot exist without it.  That’s why my heart felt such a heavy weight for so many years.  I was mal-nourished — not because I wanted it that way, but because most contemporary worship services are mere replicas of the very culture in which they do not belong.  We are exiles and pilgrims in this world and yet, the contemporary church diligently tries to design their worship services to be just like the world.  The result?  Thousands (and probably more) of confused, less-than-hopeful Christians.

The journey to get here was long, painful and often disappointing, but I wouldn’t trade it for anything in the world.  Many of our friends labeled us “church-hoppers,” even some of our closest of friends.  That means there was pain in the journey and loss, as well.

I finally realized that those who labeled us “church-hoppers” did so to sooth their own consciences.  The truth is that many of them wanted to find a church like ours, but 1) they thought they could stay and fix their broken one (I would pray this would be possible);  2) they didn’t think there was anything better out there; and 3) they didn’t want to leave their friends/social setting so they pretended the poor teaching and submission to culture was acceptable and honorable to God.  Oh, how the mind lies to our hearts!

If I could say anything to someone reading this that understands the angst of the heart that longs for God:  Don’t settle.  God is faithful to those who long to know Him.

So, I’m in awe this week — not because I attend a perfect church.  I don’t.  I’m in awe because God has been faithful to provide the strong, biblical teaching that my heart longed for — along with a community of like-minded souls — blended into one covenant body beloved of God.

I’m also in awe this week because I have finally escaped the grasp of pasteurized, homogenized, and sanitized Christianity — and it feels so, so, so good.

One of the texts our pastor used this weekend comes from 1 Peter.

Having purified your souls by your obedience to the truth for a sincere brotherly love, love one another earnestly from a pure heart, since you have been born again, not of perishable seed but of imperishable, through the living and abiding word of God;  for

“All flesh is like grass and all its glory like the flower of grass
The grass withers, and the flower falls,
but the word of the Lord remains forever.”

And this word is the good news that was preached to you.
1 Peter 1:22-24 

I would ask you:  Is this the good news that was preached to you last Sunday?

(1) from Dr. Michael Horton’s book, A Better Way:  Re-discovering the Drama of Christ-Centered Worship, pg. 25

Both beautiful images by:  Martin Heigan (creative commons license)
Website:  http://anti-matter-3d.com/  

I know.  I’m strange.  I’ve noticed over the years that constant “noise” clutters my mind with so much debris that I can’t think clearly.  It’s like a pandemonium of overwhelming sensory confusion that causes my body to stay tense, never allowing it to relax and rest.  Never allowing it to think.

It’s not just the noise; it’s the pace.  The quickened pace of NYC is astounding.  People high-tailing it on the concrete-jungle sidewalks, not even aware that they bumped so hard into you that you almost tripped over the person sitting right on that same sidewalk.  Lines moving so fast into the subway train that they almost appear like a blur to the naked eye.  Eye contact?  Don’t even think about it.

Our ever-evolving generation seems to foster and cherish a pace of life that is impossible to keep up with.  We wonder why we are tired all of the time.  We wonder why our children are tired after participating in the school play, the track team, the debating team, piano lessons, club volleyball, church youth group — all at the same time.  Heaven forbid that we dare to put our cellphone down for even a minute.  For most people under the age of 45, it’s like they are glued to the palms of their hands.

Many seem to enjoy this constant, droning noise.  They seem to thrive on setting a pace for their lives that leaves little time for the quiet — for rest — for mere thinking.

I can’t seem to get a handle on this kind of lifestyle.  When constant noise or steady activity reaches its tentacles of bedlam deep into my life, I find myself longing, almost panicking to escape to the quiet.   To the real.  To open space.  I think the reason it suffocates me so is that I now recognize the value of silence.

There is a price to be paid for our choices.  Living every day filled to the brim with noise and activity is almost guaranteed to produce fruit that is diseased and malnourished.  When you are too tired, you can’t think.  When there is too much noise, you can’t think.  Thinking does require effort, after all.  And thinking cannot be over-rated.

It’s quite sad to think that our society has evolved into a non-thinking entity of perpetually tired, worn out souls.  I wonder if it has something to do with the innate need to feed our self-esteem and self-interests, as if our self-worth will shrivel up and die if we don’t keep feeding it goodies.  It’s like we’ve been infected with a contagious virus that is slowly taking its sweet time to kill us.

I think it cripples us.  I think these distractions serve as a convenient, self-inflicted tool to ignore matters of the utmost importance.  They serve as vehicles which distort reality, turning our lives into something unreal  — perhaps sensational, but of no real consequence.  While these things may satiate our sense of adventure, they do nothing to nurture the mind, and if the mind is malnourished, it won’t be long before the heart and soul wither and die.

I have a feeling, if the current pace and noise of our society continues in the manner it is evolving, the legacy we leave to future generations will indeed be bleak.  If we always choose to participate in the noise while denying the quiet, the heart and mind never learn how to manage and cherish the things that really matter — God, family, life and loving others.

I also have a feeling, that when it comes time to breathe that one, solitary last breath, those who have allowed both constant noise and hectic pace set the tone for their lives will have no clue about eternity.  If they haven’t taken time to know the One who created them — the One to whom they will return (those who have heard His voice) — then their last breath will be shallow, indeed.

When we consider that God has instructed us to love Him with all of our heart, all of our strength, all of our soul and all of our mind, we seem to forget the mind part.  I find it ironic that this is the piece that seems to get left out.  I find it much easier to love God with my heart, strength and soul when my mind is thinking clearly and rationally — when I have confidence in what my mind has learned.  I find it much easier to love others when I know about the God who loves others.  In order to know, I must be quiet and learn.  I must learn to appreciate silence.

I am convicted now, more than ever, that we need to slow down and think on that which is from above — that which is stored in heaven for the believer — instead of the things that beckon us to follow so deceitfully.  For where your treasure is, there your heart is also.

If then you have been raised with Christ, seek the things that are above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. Set your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth.  Colossians 3:12

Further, when the noise and busyness clutters our mind to the extent that we no longer see nor appreciate the beauty and simplicity of mountains, blue skies, ants, slugs, dirty faces on toddlers, an elderly man suffering from Alzheimer’s, the new growth of spring, the wonder of an infant as he discovers everything new for the first time — when we can no longer feel the pain of others who suffer in unimaginable ways, then we might as well hang a colorful sign around our neck that says, “Completely and Thoroughly Self-Centered.”   I think that is what excessive noise and activity does to us.  It focuses everything on “me.”  It ignores others.  It fails to love our neighbor as ourselves.

Lump together millions of busy, noisy, self-centered human beings and the world loses big time.  Nations lose big time.  Political systems lose big time.  Families lose big time.  Churches lose big time.  Doctrine loses big time.  Babies big

This isn’t the kind of heritage I wish we would pass on to future generations.  My fear?  They will inherit an even louder noise and a faster pace that will be impossible to shut off.  And in the shuffle, God will be shoved to the bottom of the heap.

There’s an old German proverb that says:  Silence is a fence around wisdom.  Wisdom is to be desired. 

There’s another unknown saying that says, When all the noise is gone, there is only God.  The question is:  Will you know who He is?  Will you recognize Him because you’ve quieted your mind and life enough to know Him well?

These beautiful images are by Martin Heigan (Creative Commons License).
His website:  http://anti-matter-3d.com/

While some academicians/laity in the Christian realm strive for a consistency of language among believers, others who are not so inclined often fall in love with the creativity and satisfaction of renaming doctrines, perhaps in an attempt to express personal feelings or merely for the enjoyment of designing everyday language to be something uniquely their own.  Perhaps it is also an attempt to make theology more ‘accessible.’   Maybe they just like the ‘edgy’ sound of said cliches.

Often, certain words or phrases are said so often that they literally become a part of the culture of the church at large, thus becoming a permanent part of what some might consider to be a necessary spiritual vocabulary of sorts.  You know, like if you don’t say these words, you really aren’t enlightened enough to fit in with those who are really ‘filled with the Spirit.’

Call me opinionated and perhaps even obstinate if you will, but I prefer accuracy and clarity as opposed to opinion and dumbed-down creativity, at least where doctrine and matters of the church are concerned.  Black and white is much more favorable than ethereal and mystical.  Opinions often distort.  Creativity can possibly weaken and destroy coherence if we stretch it too far.  And really, I happen to think that people, when given the opportunity to think — to learn to think well — can rise to the occasion and do so.

For instance, I was speaking with a Christian friend recently when the term ministry of reconciliation came up in the conversation.  This phrase is just one of a plethora of Christianese-isms that exist in contemporary church culture today.  This particular term, ministry of reconciliation, is one of many buzz words in evangelical and charismatic circles which infers that we, as Christians, have a responsibility to reconcile others to Christ.

But is that what is really taught in scripture?  Can we as a human being reconcile another person to Christ?  Even if we try hard?  Even if we pray hard?  Even if we care very deeply?

As is often the case, a coined term such as ministry of reconciliation has become distorted from its original context.  The text used for this phrase comes from 2 Corinthians 5:18-21.   Here’s how a misunderstanding of doctrine can happen:  well-intentioned, loving Christians jump on a word or concept found in a single verse.  In this case, verse 19 appears to proclaim that the ministry of reconciliation has been entrusted to us.

It’s true, as verse 20 says, that we are supposed to be ambassadors, but the point at which a well-meaning intention becomes a flawed ideology occurs when we take one thought out of context of the entire passage.  We are so naturally inclined to think that our efforts, our desires, and our specific intentions are able to change the heart of another by our own effort and merit, so we naturally jump on the “me” bandwagon.  In this case, our humanness attempts to assure us that we will be successful in changing the heart of another person by acts of our will or presenting our very best effort to God — especially if we practice the ministry of reconciliation.  We even convince ourselves that one day our efforts will be successful based on other passages taken out of context.

When we pull one little verse out of context, it is not long before an entire theology and ‘ministry’ is built around a solitary catch-phrase.  To understand what this particular passage says from a more theologically-centered perspective, we must first look what is said before verse 20.  In addition, the passage must be put into context with other passages in scripture on this topic so that a systematic theology can be built on collective passages as a whole.  This process creates sound doctrine and everyone benefits from sound doctrine.  Here is the context:  (2 Corinthians 5:11-21)

11 Therefore, knowing the fear of the Lord, we persuade others. But what we are is known to God, and I hope it is known also to your conscience. 12 We are not commending ourselves to you again but giving you cause to boast about us, so that you may be able to answer those who boast about outward appearance and not about what is in the heart. 13 For if we are beside ourselves, it is for God; if we are in our right mind, it is for you. 14 For the love of Christ controls us, because we have concluded this: that one has died for all, therefore all have died; 15 and he died for all, that those who live might no longer live for themselves but for him who for their sake died and was raised.

16 From now on, therefore, we regard no one according to the flesh. Even though we once regarded Christ according to the flesh, we regard him thus no longer. 17 Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come. 18 All this is from God, who through Christ reconciled us to himself and gave us the ministry of reconciliation; 19 that is, in Christ God was reconciling the world to himself, not counting their trespasses against them, and entrusting to us the message of reconciliation. 20 Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ, God making his appeal through us. We implore you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God. 21 For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.

Always watch out for the ‘therefores.’  That means something was said prior to the ‘therefore.’  The first therefore follows a section of scripture which speaks of our future heavenly dwelling — that place our hearts groan for and long to possess.  Because the Holy Spirit has guaranteed this future home for us, we are encouraged.  Because of this hope, we long to please God.  The second therefore follows a declaration of who we are in Christ; that if we are passionate about our salvation, it is only because Christ has died for us and was raised from the dead on our behalf — because of his action, not our own.

Within that framework we can now see the context:

• We know God.  Thus, we revere (fear) Him.  (Meaning we are believers.)
• What we are is already known to God.  (Thus, boasting is not necessary.)  From other passages we know that God already knew us from before the foundation of the world and chose us before time to be His children.  He’s known us for a very, very long time and His plan was already established for us.
• The reason we are so passionate about our Father is because we understand that Christ has already died for his people.  His chosen people.
  
• We are new creations if we are in in Christ.  However, Christ does the creation, not us.
• All of this (including our new creation) is from God, who through Christ reconciled us to himself and gave the ‘ministry of reconciliation’ to us.  (Meaning…Christ God has already reconciled us to himself.)
• Still, God uses us as ambassadors of the gospel message.
• Here is the crux: For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.  (Only God makes reconciliation possible.  We can be ambassadors but we are not the reconcilers.)  Romans 5:10 and Colossians 1:22 help to explain this further.  This is the gospel message, that constant thread of salvation we read throughout all of scripture.

So the focal point of this passage is that God has already reconciled us to Himself through Christ.  Certainly, we are encouraged to boldly share the message but we must not assume that our actions are the instrument of reconciliation — we must not assume it is our ministry which saves a soul.   With gratitude we proclaim this joy to our friends and to the world, but the message we proclaim is the gospel, not the fact that we are the ones who are are reconciling others to Christ.

This is only one instance of many we are exposed to within the contemporary church.  It is so easy for simple theological concepts to become twisted when we use the language of Christianese.  Sub-cultures develop and almost seem to force their way into our lives as truths when in fact, they are distorted.  That is why I believe it can be dangerous to use this kind of language. Unless you take the time to accurately understand a Bible passage such as this one in context, you can apply a phrase such as ministry of reconciliation to anything.

So it is my opinion that we should desire to teach an accurate message using consistent, theological language.  It is safer to use terms that can be found in theology books and dictionaries — terms that can be easily defined. Sometimes that means we have to put forth a little effort to understand these terms, but the end result is that we will understand sound doctrine and in turn, pass on sound doctrine to future generations.

We should avoid twisting and contorting words to make them suit our own desires, because  the truth is that the implications of the mind of man are deceitful at best.  Here are a few more examples of Christianese-isms I have observed.  There really are too many to put into a small blog post.

• “God led me to do this or that.”  or  “God hasn’t released me from this yet.”  (I would have to ask, “How do you know God led you to do this?  Is it based on scripture or your feelings?”
• “God has promised us this or that.”  (I’ve noticed that this or that is rarely defined.  The same test applies:  “How do you know what God has promised?”)
• “I feel convicted to do this or that.”  (I would ask, “Why?”)
• “I made a decision to let Christ into my life.”   (I would ask, “Was it your decision or God’s?)
• “I’m so blessed.”  “Bless you.”  “We are so blessed.”  “Have you been blessed today?”  (These colloquialisms aren’t really so bad if you understand that God is the source of all true blessing.  These words become distorted when we make claims that God has to live up to and then proceed to label them as blessings.)
• “I had a word from the Lord.”  “Has Christ spoken to your heart lately?”  (I would ask:  “Does your word from the Lord agree with sound, doctrinal exegesis of scripture?  And how do you know this word came from the Lord?”)
• “I feel the Spirit movin’.”  (This one is so ethereal I could comment on it in a multitude of ways.  Just be sure you understand the Holy Spirit and his role as defined by scripture not by your personal desires.)
• “Let’s do intercession for them.”  “We know we have the power.”  (Intercession is what someone does for you because you obviously can’t do it.  The power for what?  Only the Holy Spirit can intercede and we have no power on our own.)
• “Let’s speak life over it.”  (Only God gives life…not your words nor your prayers.)

Funny — every one of these phrases points to me and every one of these phrases has the potential to harm someone by misleading them away from sound doctrine and pointing to the human involved instead.  Even easy-sounding words like grace and faith fall prey to inaccurate definitions.

I often wonder how outsiders view the evangelical world.  Do they view it as crazy and misinformed or do they view it as possessing a people who know what they believe and can articulate it with intelligence?   It was easy for me to identify the falsity and flimsy of these kinds of phrases as I visited various evangelical churches.  It was almost as if the people who spoke like this were afraid they would not be considered as  super-spiritual Christians — and they wanted desperately to fit in with that super-spiritual crowd at their church.

But — the Bible says we won’t fit in.  We shouldn’t desire to be cultural at all.  At our best, we should long to be counter-cultural.  The truth is that we are exiles and sojourners on this planet right now, longing for our future Kingdom where truth will never be distorted again.  That is our future hope.  We must be patient and we must be faithful to what God has revealed to us — and only what God has revealed.

Me?  I’d rather hear the technical terms.  Amillennialism; Justification; Sanctification; Salvation; Glorification; Sin; God, Jesus Christ; Prayer; the Church Fathers; Theology; Augustine; The Apostle’s Creed; The Belgic Confession; The Heidelberg Catechism; Covenant of Redemption; Covenant of Grace; Covenant of Works — and on it goes.  Real, sound, theological words, phrases and concepts.  Word devoid of hype and emotion but full of content and truth.

Such words are more meaningful to the heart who longs to know God.  I think this is why I love the world of Reformed Theology so much.  I have noticed that for the most part, within its circles there is an avoidance of the trap of Christianese — not that this is done perfectly, but that in general, Reformed Theologians prefer to use real terms for real theology in the real world.  For me, living in the world of sound theology has become an oasis of refreshment and encouragement.

So many times we focus and thrive on our feelings.  Don’t get me wrong.  I’m not belittling feelings.  However, in order to help ourselves get beyond our flawed feelings, a little substance goes a long way.  I guess that is why it is hard for me to trust those in Christian circles who have mastered the smooth-tongued artistry of Christianese.  It has never felt real to me, nor does it feel genuine.  It often feels like that person has a deep need to put on the appearance of being spiritual for the sake of others.  It feels forced and unnatural.  If we mistakenly learn from people who suffer from the disease of Christianese, then we risk our own, accurate understanding of God.  We may be captured and taken hostage into a land of nebulous nothingness and I don’t think that is what God intended at all for His beloved.

How genuine to recognize our humanness and accept our limitations, choosing substance over feelings!  This makes it possible to trust in a sovereign God whose plan has already been accomplished!  That — is the true assurance of our faith. 

Images by gnucksx (Creative Commons license).

This Sunday, I had one of those experiences that not only grab your heart but they reinforce a precious message.  We have a young man in our congregation who is recovering from a severe brain injury due to a horrible accident.  His recovery has been very slow and tedious, causing family members to reconstruct their entire lives to revolve around his recovery.  That, in itself, has been a compelling scenario to witness as part of the body of Christ.  Faithful family and church members loving the least of these.  An inspiring event to witness.

This Sunday — as I sat at the piano like I normally do — from the back row, I was able to hear this young man recite both the Lord’s Prayer and the Apostle’s Creed louder than anyone else in the congregation.  He didn’t miss one single word.  His voice may have been slurred to some extent, but I understood everything he said and there is no doubt in my mind that he said it with intention and understanding.  When you consider the depth of his injury, this is an startling observation indeed.

A previous incident concerning this young man also comes to mind.  Our pastor is never remiss in proclaiming the tenets of the gospel through his preaching each week.  One Sunday in particular, he was explaining the depth of our sin, and this same young man exclaimed out loud, without inhibition, “that’s me…that is me!”  How precious is the recognition of our sin!

As I recall these two incidents, it has occurred to me that this is the very explicit reason that I am so grateful for a consistent liturgy in our worship service.  I am so grateful that the gospel is preached within every sermon — within every context of every Bible passage that we study.  Because of the consistency of this unique aspect of the Reformed community, this young man has been able to memorize the very gospel message.  The very tenets of the faith are being deeply planted within his injured brain.  He has been able to absolutely understand the depth of his sin and the sure way of salvation because of this consistent and faithful witness presented in our liturgy.

I am able now to recognize and appreciate the immense benefit that this kind of worship service offers its members, not only to this young man, but to our children and our entire covenant community, as well.  The point has been driven home to me that God uses specific means to spread the gospel.  Those means include the repeated preaching of the Word by a solid, educated preacher who humbly understands his calling, as well as the repeated administration of the sacraments of baptism and the Lord’s Supper, which are a constant repeated reminder of God’s promises to both our children and our own, hopefully-maturing adult souls.

Some may not understand that God has ordained specific means for His grace.  (I know that I did not understand this concept in the general world of evangelicalism.)  Sometimes I think that people innocently enough presume that they can design a worship service of their own creation and that because their motives were sincere, it will surely be acceptable to God.  The fact is:  God has already told us what He desires of our worship.  He has already told us what is acceptable and what is not.  The worship service is about receiving from Him and so often, we think it is about what we offer to Him.

Some may think that God’s way is monotonous and mundane.  Some may find it distasteful  because it does not appeal to either our emotions or our personal desires for a worship ‘style.’  Some may presume that our efforts in some way trump God’s prescribed means.  Some just may not know.

But I would ask — is is all about personal desire?  Is it really about personal preferences within the church, by either laity or leadership?

At first, it was uncomfortable for me to think of giving up my personal preferences in worship, (especially since I am a musician) but the truth be known, today I would say that it has never been easier.  The fact is:  it never was about my feelings or desires in the first place, even though I could have sworn it was.  If it becomes all about me, then the end result is that I give up sound teaching for my personal feelings, and though God does care about my feelings, I believe He is much more interested in our accommodation of His means — means which constitute His plan, not our own.

Today, I think I finally get the fact that worship is not all about me.  It is not something designed for my own conversion experience, nor is it designed for any of my well-thought out plans for worship.  It never was.  How blessed it is to rest from these kinds of thoughts.  True rest is found for the heart when we let a sovereign God carry out His plan and His intention.

Sometimes we forget that the body of Christ is made up of a huge variety of people.  Thus, there will never be enough different ways to satisfy the personal desires of each and every person who has an opinion in church about the practice of the church.  And seriously, going off and starting yet one more church that proclaims to fix all the ills of the church (or running away from church) is never going to work.  Instead, it fragments what God constituted as beautiful and necessary.  Yes, church is necessary, it is not optional.  We are, after all, a covenant people who covenant with God to meet together as the body of Christ.

I love that our service is counter-cultural, and in doing so, has maintained a solid integrity in our worship.  The constant, steady liturgy we use in the Reformed Church (URCNA) eliminates the need for personal preference and instead focuses on the gospel, so that all may hear and plant its truths into their hearts –just like this young, disabled man in our congregation.  This consistency is for the mentally challenged.  For our children.  For the adults.  For everyone.

Because sin reigns so freely in our hearts, dominating it as if it were an enduring, ever-morphing virus, we may always have to confront the desire to acquire for personal preference.  But sound liturgy, in its consistency, does not foster the fertile soil of our idolatrous heart.  And that is a very good thing.

Our consistent liturgy also prevents any violation of the conscience of another person, but instead, faithfully instructs and faithfully implants the very essence of salvation into those who are listening via God’s means, not our own.  God’s means….not our own.

The irony in it all is that sometimes the ‘least of these’ teach us valuable lessons about what is important in this life.  We should listen more. I am grateful for this young man for the reminder he has been to me.

Our pastor quoted something from Dr. Michael Horton this past Sunday.  I think it is worth repeating:

We have a particular God (Father, Son, and Holy Spirit);
A particular way of salvation through a particular mediator (Jesus Christ);
through a particular means – preaching the gospel;
with particular sacraments of Baptism and the Lord’s Supper.

This particular God is your particular father and he sent his particular son to earth
at a particular place and time to save a particular group of sinners
from all their particular sins (sin nature, and guilt),
to a particular salvation, adopting them to be his particular people
–  his particular family . . .  to be his particular children.
It is this particular God whom we are particularly privileged to address as ‘our Father.’

Image by Lawrence OP (Creative Commons License)

The Gift

More years ago than I care to remember
My Mama sat next to me on the piano bench.
An unused switch in her hand prompted the completion of practice time.

Her eyes belied her true intent, for cruelty is what I saw.
Now I wear those same time-worn shoes of experience.
I see behind the eyes that flared with determination.

The determination to give me what she could never have.
The ability to compose and perform the music she saw living in my soul.
The music that came from the generations before her.

Many have praised my gift.  Many remark on my talent.
Years have passed since the tender threats on my behind were spoken.
I never understood them, but now I know.

She gave me the gift.  The gift of music.  The dance of my soul.
She knew I had it.
The longing in her own soul knew its worth.

She knew it was much more than a talent.
Much more than an art.
It was a reaching deep within and giving something of myself to God and others.

Well, Mama, this is my way of saying thanks.
Thanks for the threats, the lessons, and praise.
The courage to see the music in me.

So now you have no one but yourself to thank
When I follow the deepest yearnings of my soul.
You know what I’m going to do?

I’m going to get a horse.
And not only will my grandchildren sing and play music from their heart,
They’ll look out on the western sky and breathe the freedom of the pinon-scented air.
And……they’ll do so from a saddle, if you please.

To Mom, with love
Christmas, 1999

Gracey with my mother (Pearl)

The last part of this poem may not make sense to some who read this, but to those who knew my mother, they would know that she was not a fan of any animal — any species.  Yet, somehow she had given birth to an animal lover.  There were many times I made her touch my animals, being the evil daughter that sometimes rises out of nowhere to torment those she loves the most.  This photo explains her reaction!

Sure enough, my prediction came true and not long after I wrote this poem, I bought Gracey, my beautiful buckskin mare.  Sadly, Gracey died a few years ago and my grandchildren will never get to ride her.  It was the intent of my heart to turn Gracey into a grandchild-friendly horse — when that day arrived when I had a grandchild.

But that doesn’t mean I can’t still ride in a saddle on occasion (although a rented horse is not nearly as fun) — or on an ATV — up in the mountains I love so dearly.  Mama loved Carolina, but her daughter loves the Rockies.  God, music and writing connected our souls.

Mama, you were a wonderful mother and I am so grateful for all of the sacrifices you made all throughout my life.  There is no doubt in my mind that the choir of heaven rejoices you are there.

This bread is moist and easy to slice.  It is low in carbs and high in nutrition.  Even though I cannot do dairy, for some reason this recipe works for me (and I have absolutely no dairy tolerance.)  My nutritionist said this one was OK — don’t ask me why.

Lois Lang’s Luscious Bread

•  2.5 cups blanched, ground almond flour….(Note, I have successfully used almond meal, which is not blanched.  The blanched almond flour will give it a finer texture but costs more than almond meal.)
• 1/4 – 1/3 cup melted butter, preferably grass-fed
• 1 cup dry curd cottage cheese (press down as you measure).  I like to use a brand I buy at our local Natural Grocer called Kalona Supernaturals.  There is no need to press any liquid out of this brand of cottage cheese and the granules are fine enough to mix easily with a mixer.
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 3 eggs
• 1/4 teaspoon salt

Preheat oven to 350-375 degrees.  Mix all ingredients together with a mixer.  The original recipe calls for a food process, but I have found if you have a good mixer, this is adequate.

Grease a 4 x 8 loaf pan generously with butter and coat bottom with ground almond flour.  Shape loaf.

Bake at 350-375 degrees for about 1 hour until lightly browned on top.  I have found it is easy to undercook this bread.  Be sure you have thoroughly tested doneness before removing from the oven.  Do not cut bread while warm.  It needs to firm before cutting.

As I mentioned, you will find differences between almond meal and almond flour, but you will just have to experiment and decide on your preference.  This bread is great toasted and lathered with fresh raspberry jam!

Sometimes these reflections are good ones.  Things such as remembering the awesomeness that was my mother.  The way she cared for those she loved.  The way she persevered with an abundance of joy though God had dealt a difficult hand for her.

However, those reflections have to be combined with the remembrance of times in her life when things were not well, nor happy.  Things she had inflicted upon herself.  Things which affected the lives of others, including those whom she loved dearly.

In the end these are but reflections, for Mama has won the victory.  She fought the fight well, even with the twists and crooked turns in her life, and now rests securely with her Heavenly Father.  Nothing could give me greater peace because I know her soul is well cared for — and that I shall be reunited with her one day.

However, it’s those other earthly annoyances that come to mind as the heart continues through the grieving process.  The senselessness of everyday banter.  It is not long after that final spade of dirt is laid into place that we are thrown back into the world of the living, and it can be such a vicious, self-centered world.  So much confidence in this generation.  So much knowledge.  So many opinions.  So much heart and soul directed at changing the world, mostly for the knowledge of knowing they had a hand in it.

I think, if I were to talk to my mother today, she would remind me to reflect on the things that are important.  The things of God.  She would tell me to continue to be deeply committed to the Lord she loved so much and she would remind me not to worry about  compromising with others who might ridicule my faith — as if their heads were on so much straighter.  She would point to me and say that it is God who is sovereign in all things, and not man — even though man tries so hard to be sovereign in their respective lives.  She might tell me that one day we will all die, as she has, and she would hope that I would know with confidence that God has prepared a better place for His beloved — and that includes me.

Until we are confronted with these things in real life, it is so easy to skirt over them.  It is so easy to become a philosophical, secularized connoisseur of  the world around us — including the theological world.  But the world is fallen in every way.  Only God remains.  And I have discovered that if I allow the misguided thoughts of others to drag me down the slippery slope they don’t even know they are on, then I will not have learned the lessons of my mother.

Perhaps God puts mothers like mine in our lives to teach us more about Him.  I would like to think so.  I would have to say my mother was the most courageous woman I have ever known, and while she may not have the theological understanding that her daughter has, there is complete assurance in my heart that God has chosen her to be His child.  The assurance of this peace in my own heart is overwhelming today as I thank God for her presence in my life.

There are a plethora of stories I could tell, and maybe I will tell them later.  But for now, Mama is out of pain and healed completely from the ills of this world.  The rest of us have to continue through the battle.  Today, I am able to thank God that He has placed me in a church where I can rest in the knowledge that I am being taught well.  It is my safety net and my comfort.  While others might think I am sticking my head in the sand, they would be more than wrong.

Another thing Mama taught me?  Don’t worry about those who decide to make war with you because in the end, the victor has been chosen by God anyway.  And it’s not any one of us human beings in the first place.

It is so freeing to the heart to live in this kind of simplicity of conviction.  While I spend the last years of my life digging deep into the theology of God (which has more rewards than I can express), I can also rest in the integrity that when I speak, I speak truthfully, as God would desire.  My heart knows that that the motive of my heart, even when misunderstood, is always seen clearly by God.  Mom taught me to be honest, and so shall I be.

Today, I miss you, Mama.

Image by Lawrence OP (Creative Commons License)

This video is a response to a recent viral video called “Why I Hate Religion But Love Jesus.”  The young man is responding to the plethora of doctrinal errors in that original viral video.

While I won’t point you towards Lutheranism (as he does in the video) because of some theological differences between Lutherans and the Reformed faith, the basics he mentions in this video are spot on.  That’s because we share the foundation of the faith as one body.

This video is worth watching for the purpose of learning how to discern doctrinal error and to encourage you away from easy-believism.

Free-stylin’: = Jesus