On your knees
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“O Lord, hear my prayer, listen to my cry for mercy; in your faithfulness and righteousness come to my relief.” Psalm 143:1
Nothing secular
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As Christians, it is so easy to think that God has nothing to do with secular things. I sometimes think we even like to think that God is only involved with Christians and Christian activities so we can get on with our secular lives and not bother Him with what we are doing in the world that He might not approve of. But this fails to recognize that God is in the world already with a mission to reach people with the good news of his love. Isn’t that pretty silly? We’re in the world, trying to see how much of it we can get away with, and God is in the world, too, in the process of saving it!
We need to get more of God’s view of the world, and a good place to start would be to realize that He is not willing for any to perish, even those who we might wish would at least disappear. Ever think of the fact that for God, there is nothing secular? Think about it. How could anything be secular to God? There is only one world and it is God’s. It might be pretty messed up, but it is His world just the same. Like the hymn says, “This Is My Father’s World.” And the reason it is His world is that He made it and filled it with people He loves.
That means it is a sacred thing to be in the world, because the world is full of sacred people, every one, a reflection of God’s image — every one, someone He died for. That sounds like a pretty holy world to me. So forget your “secular” job or those “non-Christian” friends that can so easily annoy you. Try not to even thinking of anyone as a non-Christian. Think of everyone as people whom God loves and died for. And think of yourself as on a mission to love them too.
God is up to something in the world today. Let’s find out what that is and be about His business.
Worry
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“Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.” Philippians 4:5-6
More on those sticky bumper stickers
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by John Fischer I wish that for just one time you could stand inside my shoes
Then you’d know what a drag it is to see you. - Bob Dylan
Some of our readers had difficulty with yesterday’s Catch where I pointed out how a “Honk if you love Jesus” bumper sticker might likely be interpreted by those outside the church or Christian circles as something different than what we intended. For one thing it can come off more like an inside joke for believers that leaves everyone else out, and only serves to strengthen the wall between Christians and non-Christians. If I don’t want to honk my horn, does that mean I don’t love Jesus? That’s the implicit message.
First let me make clear that the bumper sticker thing is just a metaphor to get us to think about what our messages mean to others. Our activities and behaviors in front of a watching world mean something very different to non-Christians than they do to us. Whenever we put anything in the public eye, we need to seriously take into consideration how those outside the church will interpret it. Truth is, we don’t do nearly enough looking at ourselves while standing in other peoples’ shoes.
My preference for the message “Honk if you love cheeses,” an ad I saw for a local wine and cheese deli, is due to the fact that it pokes fun at the inside joke, and by poking fun at ourselves, we can get a lot farther down the road of building bridges with those on the outside.
As to making fun of other Christians… my intent was to make fun of Christians as a Christian. It’s like a black man making fun of blacks, or a Jew making fun of Jews. You are making light of something that you realize is a part of you — even an error with the way you are perceived — for the sake of diffusing what might be a hindrance to dialogue. It’s like saying to the world: “You are right to see us as distant and judgmental because… well, to be truthful, we are. I admit that is one of our big problems.” By admitting this, we call the objection before anyone has a chance to use it against us.
And then there was the very humorous piece a couple of you sent about the lady with her brand new “Honk if you love Jesus” bumper sticker proudly displayed, standing at an intersection blocking a long line of cars because she failed to see the light turn green. She’s so out of touch with the people behind her that she thinks all their honking and screaming and arm waving is an overwhelming response to her invitation to love Jesus, so she just sits there and basks in the glory of it all, until, just before the light goes red, she finally crosses the street, waving back at all her newfound friends. It’s a great joke, but it’s also a way of seeing what can happen if we don’t really pay attention to someone else’s point of view.
The Truth
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The existence of God
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First, “mom” struggled, pushed and gave a near super human effort to bring the child into this world. After all that pain she was all smiles when she saw the face of her newborn son. Second, that child had not been breathing air for 9 months but as soon as he came forth, he began breathing and crying, clearing his lungs.
Third, he began to nurse immediately and looked into the eyes of his mom as if to know he was already loved. Fourth, everyone (mom, dad, grandma, grandpa and auntie) instantly loved this 8 pound miracle the second we laid eyes on him. Fifth, he had all his fingers, toes and seemed completely healthy and ready to be loved and nurtured by mom and dad…but now while on the outside.
The point I am trying to make is having witnessed the birth of our grand child, how could any human being deny the existence of God. How could all these wonderful and miraclous events take place if there was no master plan and purpose for all of us. And to think that this was only one of hundreds of thousands of births all around the world that God blessed today.
I am overwhelmed with the thought of God being in control of all of this. HE is so far beyond my ability to comprehend HIM. And yet this All Knowing. All Powerful, Magnificent God who created me and the heavens and the earth Loved me enough to allow HIS only SON to suffer and die so that I could spend eternal life with HIM. What have I done to deserve such Love?
Praise to you O Lord. Glory be to Father, the Son and the Holy Ghost as it was in the beginning, is now and ever shall be world without end, Amen.
Mouth
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“The mouth of the righteous brings forth wisdom.” Proverbs 10:31
Help each other be good
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“My command is this: Love each other as I have loved you. Greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends.” John 15:12-13
Why Worship?
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by John Fischer I will worship God today because it is good and right to do so.
I will worship God today, not because of what it will do for me, or because it is popular, or because it is Sunday, or because I like the worship music, but for the simple reason that I was made to do this. To worship God is what I am here for.
Worship is not an asset. It is not an added benefit to my life like working out or taking vitamins. Nor is it a secret formula that will add a deeper dimension to my life. Worship is the air I breathe. It is the blood pumping through my veins. It is the cells in my body that reproduce and keep me alive for this. Everything else I do is extemporaneous. To worship God is the root of my being.
I understand why, but it is not necessarily good that worship has become a trend—a seminar that pastors attend to learn how to do it better. Music directors are now worship leaders, and this is all well and good, but it can also be demeaning to worship if we end up thinking that this is all worship is: the latest idea that will get more people to come to church.
Remember the pet rock craze? Or canned air? Or rain in a jar? Or anything else so basic that someone tries to make a buck off of packaging, in a clever way, what everyone already has for the taking? In the same way we risk the danger of belittling worship by marketing it or using it as a means to an end. No one needs to sell worship to anyone. Worship is the end. The Westminster Catechism calls it the “chief end” of man. That’s another way of saying it is the most important thing we were created to do. And if it’s that important, then it is accessible to everybody, all the time.
The Lord our God is one God, and we will love him and worship him because of who he is and who we are. It is good and right to do so. It is arrogant not to do so. We are his creatures; he is the creator. We are the sheep of his pastures; he is the shepherd. We are mere people; he is God. To do anything but worship him is to inadvertently put us in his place, and I don’t think anyone in his or her right mind really wants to be there.
Jesus Risen
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