There's a definite cultural/moral decay occuring around the world. From a personal perspective, as a Christian, it’s disturbing.
Why does it seem so difficult for so many people to at least acknowledge the trends in this country? Of course it’s even more difficult for people to develop solutions, though there are those who try.
What am I referring to? In the most obvious microcosm of the family unit I’m referring to this tendency towards the individual, at the expense of the family. I see this in almost everyone I know, myself included. It can be seen in the growing singles movement (which I’m a part of), both in and outside the church, the focus on self over family. The unwillingness to give up any perceived control to someone else, especially God.
What am I really referring to? Pride. Pride in the form of control. It’s an ever increasing perversion, though few would admit this, even if seen in themselves. There’s something so wicked about this. Think about this latest pandemic of pedophilia in this country? I’ve read or heard several stories on this topic. It truly has become a huge issue in this country and it’s not just the typical perverted looking types or even only men. Now very attractive young women and normal looking guys have entered the arena of pedophilia. Why?
As this country moves further and further away from God and our churches remain impotent, this country will continue on its journey towards destruction. It’s not a coincidence that as pedophilia has increased so has homosexuality, internet porn as well as a general disregard or at least indifference towards life. All but one of these have become cultural norms. How long before that one becomes acceptable? The more these activities increase the more they will become acceptable in our society and laws will eventually change to reflect this.
Its incremental nature is so insidious. It’s almost as if there is an intelligence or force behind it. Like someone or something is whispering in our ear. Our flesh is so easily led astray in spiritual warfare.
Genesis 3:4-5 "You will not surely die," the serpent said to the woman. "For God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil."
Luke 4:1-13
Of course our sinful flesh doesn’t need temptation to do evil
Romans 1:18-32
So what can anyone do about this? First, as an individual, we all have to look into the dark recesses of our hearts, admit that we are truly wicked, understand the need for real repentance and seek out Jesus Christ in this need.
Genesis 6:5-6, Genesis 8:21
We cannot control sin. It is sin which controls us, without Jesus Christ. The Bible teaches that we are either a slave of righteousness or sin. If righteous then in Christ, if sinful in the flesh.
Romans 6
If a slave to righteousness then we must continue in faith
Ephesians 6:11-13
Secondly, this issue of pride and control must be dealt with on the church level. How can the church combat pride, loneliness and temptation in a Christ like manner? Certainly not through phony positive clichéd advice, like “keep it in prayer”, "take it to the cross" and “God doesn’t approve of that kind of behavior”. Telling a person they have a bad gunshot wound and actually trying to dress the wound are two different things. Option #1: “Wow that’s a mighty bad wound you got there. Better get that taken care. See ya later”. Option #2: “That’s a bad wound. Please let me treat it and take you to the doctor.” Which is more prevalent and which is more Christ like? Unfortunately I fear Option #1 is far more prevalent.
James 2:14-17
If you’re a church leader and someone in your church confesses a sin to you, especially a sin which will ultimately destroy them and others, it is your obligation and duty, as a shepherd in Jesus Christ, to help that person. No you can’t save them, that’s the work of Jesus Christ alone, but at the very least you can direct them to someone more gifted in discipleship and counseling. Then you should think and pray long and hard about getting out of church leadership which involves any responsibility over others. Trust me; you don’t want this level of accountability before the Lord if you’re unable or unwilling to lead others to Jesus Christ, especially other Christians in pain and desperation. We need strong Christians who aren’t afraid to speak Christ’s truths directly and personally into our lives far more then a distant exegesis, whether spoken or written.
I’ve heard of situations in which different people confessed that they were struggling with pornography, adulterous thoughts, homosexual thoughts or even pedophilia thoughts to their church leaders and nothing was done except to tell these people they shouldn’t engage in the sin. The thing is these people did ultimately engage in these sins to the destruction of themselves, others and their families. These people wouldn’t have confessed their sins if they weren’t desperate for help on some level. These church leaders are just as responsible as the person who acted out their sin. We are our brother’s keeper! As difficult as it might be to read this, these sinners who committed such wicked sins, in our eyes, can still be forgiven. Their lives may be destroyed in this life, but their souls can still be saved. In fact because they were caught only demonstrates God’s mercy to the wicked by giving them the opportunity to repent and come to Jesus Christ for forgiveness. Is the same true of these church leaders who continually allow these people to go on with their lives with no intervention? Aren’t they just as bad as the people in James 2:16?
Again I point to the necessity for discipleship. Obviously one church leader is incapable of discipling more then a couple of people. This is when the beauty of delegating responsibility comes into play. A leader delegates not to get rid of a responsibility, but to better meet a need. This means if you must delegate you do it as if the person in need was your own flesh and blood. More accurately you treat the needy person as the personal property of Jesus Christ. You hand them off to someone you perceive has adequate maturity in the Lord and adequate experience and understanding. However, continue to hold up this weak brother/sister in prayer.
Brother/sister take an interest in your church body. Don’t be so quick to move around, if you can keep from it. Serve in the body as your gifts and weaknesses allow. Leaders take care of the sheep. All keep in the word, prayer & fellowship daily. Don’t be afraid to share the beauty of the gospel. Run towards Jesus, towards the Word, towards His beautiful bride, towards your family.
Thursday, April 27, 2006
Tuesday, April 25, 2006
The Insufficient God?
Has there ever been a time in your life when you wondered if there was a way you could help God do His work in your life? Maybe speed it up a little? Here’s an example: You pray for a spouse and read in the Bible that “it’s not good for man to be alone” (Genesis 2:18) or “if two lie down together, they will keep warm. But how can one keep warm alone? (Ecclesiastes 4:10-12). You feel in your heart a desire to be married and you feel God has promised you a spouse, or at least it shouldn't be contrary to His will. At this point it’s easy to be put into the temptation of justified or rationalized sin (in other words work outside of God’s revealed will). In order to accomplish God’s working in your life you must do something to help Him out because “He only helps those who help themselves”. This is how many Christians, in this case, end up committing adultery or fornication, especially with nonbelievers or worse actually marry a nonbeliever. All these actions are obviously contrary to God’s revealed will, however, easily rationalized through desperation or impatience.
*The revealed will of God is found in His Holy Bible
A prime example of someone trying to help God along or, more truthfully, justifying sin, is found with Abraham. Abraham had a promise from God and he believed God.
Genesis 15:1-6
However, though Abraham believed God, he didn’t understand Him at all or more likely he believed God wouldn’t notice or would excuse his indiscretion. Abraham justified his actions through the approval of his wife and supposed desire to fulfill God’s promise to him.
Genesis 16
So from this text it can be easily seen that Sarah desired a child, like most women of this time period. It can also be observed that she didn’t believe the Lord’s promise to Abraham; however, she knew Abraham’s expectation would be to have a son with her. Her honor was more at stake now then ever before in her life. So between Sarah’s unbelief and Abraham’s lust, sin entered into this situation. First with Abraham's adultery and secondly with Sarah's jealousy.
God then was more specific in the promise and outlined it to both Sarah and Abraham in chapter 18:
Genesis 18:1-13
It’s interesting to note that Sarah continued in her unbelief, Abraham questioned his (though directly to the Lord) and yet God still fulfilled His end of the covenant. He obviously didn't need any help from either of them. I also find it interesting that the maid servant (Hagar) believed and obeyed God without question.
So can, or rather will, God work His will in our lives despite our bad decisions or sin? Yes. However, there’s always a price. In this case Abraham played a part in the creation of some of Israel’s future enemies. To this day Israel is still paying the price for Abraham’s sin.
God doesn’t need our help for anything. He desires our love, obedience and trust, not our help. If you want to get married, have children or get a new job then give these desires over to God and pray that He will give you the patience and humility to carry on without. It’s not about what you desire. It’s about the glorification of Jesus Christ in all our lives.
*The revealed will of God is found in His Holy Bible
A prime example of someone trying to help God along or, more truthfully, justifying sin, is found with Abraham. Abraham had a promise from God and he believed God.
Genesis 15:1-6
However, though Abraham believed God, he didn’t understand Him at all or more likely he believed God wouldn’t notice or would excuse his indiscretion. Abraham justified his actions through the approval of his wife and supposed desire to fulfill God’s promise to him.
Genesis 16
So from this text it can be easily seen that Sarah desired a child, like most women of this time period. It can also be observed that she didn’t believe the Lord’s promise to Abraham; however, she knew Abraham’s expectation would be to have a son with her. Her honor was more at stake now then ever before in her life. So between Sarah’s unbelief and Abraham’s lust, sin entered into this situation. First with Abraham's adultery and secondly with Sarah's jealousy.
God then was more specific in the promise and outlined it to both Sarah and Abraham in chapter 18:
Genesis 18:1-13
It’s interesting to note that Sarah continued in her unbelief, Abraham questioned his (though directly to the Lord) and yet God still fulfilled His end of the covenant. He obviously didn't need any help from either of them. I also find it interesting that the maid servant (Hagar) believed and obeyed God without question.
So can, or rather will, God work His will in our lives despite our bad decisions or sin? Yes. However, there’s always a price. In this case Abraham played a part in the creation of some of Israel’s future enemies. To this day Israel is still paying the price for Abraham’s sin.
God doesn’t need our help for anything. He desires our love, obedience and trust, not our help. If you want to get married, have children or get a new job then give these desires over to God and pray that He will give you the patience and humility to carry on without. It’s not about what you desire. It’s about the glorification of Jesus Christ in all our lives.
She Blinded Me With Science
I also must admit that I'm a tech head. I thoroughly enjoy reading about technological advances, especially military and medical advances. The attached article is a military advancement. Pretty cool. It's amazing what they come up with.
Monday, April 24, 2006
Gun Control
I read this article and thought it was extremely cool. I'm a musician and love playing my Taylor 310CE any chance I get, which is never nearly enough. However, I'd love to play one of Cesar Lopez's electric gun guitars. Some folks would say he's crazy or stupid, but I think what he, and the other folks in his group, are trying to do and say is very cool and creative. I'd encourage you to check out the article attached to this posting.
Thursday, April 20, 2006
Miracles: The Unfaithful Bride in America
About a month ago a friend of mine informed me that one of her husband’s lungs collapsed. She also mentioned that this had happened before. Well her husband went to the hospital and they eventually re-inflated his collapsed lung. The problem is the lung continued to leak, so they had to insert a tube to prevent this lung from collapsing again. Needless to say she was stressing out about this and her husband was miserable.
Now my friend and her husband have been attending the same church for several years now. This church is a rather large Church of the Nazarene. I’ve also attended a Church of the Nazarene and I can attest to the very conservative nature of this particular denomination, very similar to Baptists in this regard. Her husband is a very conservative man as well and not prone to such drastic measures, as perhaps seeking out healing. Well, their church decided to have an altar call for anyone needing prayer. Now their church, in her memory, has never done anything like this before, but for some reason they decided to do it this time. Anyway, her husband decided to heed this call and so he walked up front to receive prayer. It is my joy to share that my friend’s husband was healed. They went into their doctor for a check up and found that his lung was no longer leaking. My friend’s husband was desperate, much like the folks Jesus and the disciples healed. They tried the medical community and they did what they could and helped, but they were unable to cure his medical condition. In his desperation he made the decision to seek out God in faith, for an answer, and he was healed in front of the entire church. What a great way for God to encourage His church to continue bringing their concerns and praises before His throne.
Do you believe in miracles? Do you believe in spiritual gifts? Do you truly believe God is sovereign? Why aren’t we being taught that miracles are still possible? Of course we all acknowledge miracles with our mouth because to do otherwise would be to deny much of the Bible, but I can’t remember the last time I saw an actual laying on of hands in prayer by the elders/leaders, nor can I even remember the last time I heard a sermon dedicated to this topic. I guess it’s viewed as too charismatic? Too kooky? Too unbelievable? We’re too smart and sophisticated to believe God would condescend to us in this way. Yet we believe God would condescend to us through the birth, life and death of Jesus Christ. Such a wondrous/miraculous act of love and faith that words cannot fully communicate and yet the effects reach throughout all of creation for all of eternity. Surely this is much more miraculous then a simple healing? Surely this is much more glorious to God then anything any of us could ever do or say. Then why do we believe in our hearts that God is incapable of or unwilling to heal the body? Hasn’t He already healed our hearts?
2 Timothy 3:1-5
Now I’m not writing about a desperate Santa-God/genie-God approach to healing. No I’m not referring to an “I’m a good Christian I deserved to be healed” approach. I’m trying to convey my belief that the gift of healing is nothing more, or less, then an act of worship and praise to our Father in heaven and an act of encouragement to the body. An act many Christians are missing out on.
James 4 in particular James 4:2-3
Of course as with everything it’s all about intentions. Why are you doing what you’re doing? Is the purpose of having an alter call to boost attendance or make someone look great in the eyes of others? Or is the intention to provide an opportunity for the church to praise and glorify Jesus Christ and seek Him out?
1 Peter 4:7-11
Miracles do happen, as can be witnessed anytime a new life is brought into this world. Jesus Christ raised Lazarus from the dead and He Himself was later raised from the dead. This miracle is on going in the salvation of the church.
Now my friend and her husband have been attending the same church for several years now. This church is a rather large Church of the Nazarene. I’ve also attended a Church of the Nazarene and I can attest to the very conservative nature of this particular denomination, very similar to Baptists in this regard. Her husband is a very conservative man as well and not prone to such drastic measures, as perhaps seeking out healing. Well, their church decided to have an altar call for anyone needing prayer. Now their church, in her memory, has never done anything like this before, but for some reason they decided to do it this time. Anyway, her husband decided to heed this call and so he walked up front to receive prayer. It is my joy to share that my friend’s husband was healed. They went into their doctor for a check up and found that his lung was no longer leaking. My friend’s husband was desperate, much like the folks Jesus and the disciples healed. They tried the medical community and they did what they could and helped, but they were unable to cure his medical condition. In his desperation he made the decision to seek out God in faith, for an answer, and he was healed in front of the entire church. What a great way for God to encourage His church to continue bringing their concerns and praises before His throne.
Do you believe in miracles? Do you believe in spiritual gifts? Do you truly believe God is sovereign? Why aren’t we being taught that miracles are still possible? Of course we all acknowledge miracles with our mouth because to do otherwise would be to deny much of the Bible, but I can’t remember the last time I saw an actual laying on of hands in prayer by the elders/leaders, nor can I even remember the last time I heard a sermon dedicated to this topic. I guess it’s viewed as too charismatic? Too kooky? Too unbelievable? We’re too smart and sophisticated to believe God would condescend to us in this way. Yet we believe God would condescend to us through the birth, life and death of Jesus Christ. Such a wondrous/miraculous act of love and faith that words cannot fully communicate and yet the effects reach throughout all of creation for all of eternity. Surely this is much more miraculous then a simple healing? Surely this is much more glorious to God then anything any of us could ever do or say. Then why do we believe in our hearts that God is incapable of or unwilling to heal the body? Hasn’t He already healed our hearts?
2 Timothy 3:1-5
Now I’m not writing about a desperate Santa-God/genie-God approach to healing. No I’m not referring to an “I’m a good Christian I deserved to be healed” approach. I’m trying to convey my belief that the gift of healing is nothing more, or less, then an act of worship and praise to our Father in heaven and an act of encouragement to the body. An act many Christians are missing out on.
James 4 in particular James 4:2-3
Of course as with everything it’s all about intentions. Why are you doing what you’re doing? Is the purpose of having an alter call to boost attendance or make someone look great in the eyes of others? Or is the intention to provide an opportunity for the church to praise and glorify Jesus Christ and seek Him out?
1 Peter 4:7-11
Miracles do happen, as can be witnessed anytime a new life is brought into this world. Jesus Christ raised Lazarus from the dead and He Himself was later raised from the dead. This miracle is on going in the salvation of the church.
Monday, April 17, 2006
Psalm 90
Lord, You have been our dwelling place in all generations.
Before the mountains were born
Or You gave birth to the earth and the world,
Even from everlasting to everlasting, You are God.
You turn man back into dust
And say, "Return, O children of men."
For a thousand years in Your sight
Are like yesterday when it passes by,
Or as a watch in the night.
You have swept them away like a flood, they fall asleep;
In the morning they are like grass which sprouts anew.
In the morning it flourishes and sprouts anew;
Toward evening it fades and withers away.
For we have been consumed by Your anger
And by Your wrath we have been dismayed.
You have placed our iniquities before You,
Our secret sins in the light of Your presence.
For all our days have declined in Your fury;
We have finished our years like a sigh.
As for the days of our life, they contain seventy years,
Or if due to strength, eighty years,
Yet their pride is but labor and sorrow;
For soon it is gone and we fly away.
Who understands the power of Your anger
And Your fury, according to the fear that is due You?
So teach us to number our days,
That we may present to You a heart of wisdom.
Do return, O LORD; how long will it be?
And be sorry for Your servants.
O satisfy us in the morning with Your loving kindness,
That we may sing for joy and be glad all our days.
Make us glad according to the days You have afflicted us,
And the years we have seen evil.
Let Your work appear to Your servants
And Your majesty to their children.
Let the favor of the Lord our God be upon us;
And confirm for us the work of our hands;
Yes, confirm the work of our hands.
Before the mountains were born
Or You gave birth to the earth and the world,
Even from everlasting to everlasting, You are God.
You turn man back into dust
And say, "Return, O children of men."
For a thousand years in Your sight
Are like yesterday when it passes by,
Or as a watch in the night.
You have swept them away like a flood, they fall asleep;
In the morning they are like grass which sprouts anew.
In the morning it flourishes and sprouts anew;
Toward evening it fades and withers away.
For we have been consumed by Your anger
And by Your wrath we have been dismayed.
You have placed our iniquities before You,
Our secret sins in the light of Your presence.
For all our days have declined in Your fury;
We have finished our years like a sigh.
As for the days of our life, they contain seventy years,
Or if due to strength, eighty years,
Yet their pride is but labor and sorrow;
For soon it is gone and we fly away.
Who understands the power of Your anger
And Your fury, according to the fear that is due You?
So teach us to number our days,
That we may present to You a heart of wisdom.
Do return, O LORD; how long will it be?
And be sorry for Your servants.
O satisfy us in the morning with Your loving kindness,
That we may sing for joy and be glad all our days.
Make us glad according to the days You have afflicted us,
And the years we have seen evil.
Let Your work appear to Your servants
And Your majesty to their children.
Let the favor of the Lord our God be upon us;
And confirm for us the work of our hands;
Yes, confirm the work of our hands.
Friday, April 14, 2006
Multi-mega-churches Part 3: Santa-God
I was listening to the news the other day when I heard an interview with Joel Osteen (senior pastor of Lakewood community church). Right on the heels of the recent Christmas controversy it seems we are now dealing with a similar controversy with Easter. Unfortunately I wasn’t paying a great deal of attention to the interview, but I picked up enough. Basically Joel answered all of the interviewer’s questions in a very positive Christianized way. From what I gathered Joel doesn’t seem to see any problems in America, with regards to spirituality. Of course the interviewer was obviously using very leading questions “Mr. Osteen, with movies like Passion of the Christ and other such things would you say America’s on a good spiritual road right now?” and of course Joel agreed. So I guess Hollywood and the media are the litmus test for Christianity in America?
I don’t know a whole lot about Lakewood, nor do I really care to. However, prior to writing this article I did visit their website and check it out. I noticed a lot of very successful, well off, beautiful people in leadership of that church.
From what I gathered Joel took over from his dad in 99. Prior to this he was a very successful business man working for the church in a TV/radio production capacity. So being that he’s the son of the previous pastor, a pretty boy with a pretty wife and successful in business makes him the obvious choice to pastor a church? What if Joel had been a missionary or a minister to youth or homeless folks or AIDS patients, a humble man who boldly encouraged others in Christ and stayed in the Word, the son of an ordinary man, would he still have been “chosen” to be a shepherd of Lakewood?
At any rate, the Word would seem to contradict Joel’s belief that we are in good shape with Jesus Christ or spirituality and how God blesses those He loves.
John 16
Where in the Bible does it say things will get better before they get worse? Things will only get better with the return of Jesus Christ. We will enter into a great period of persecution for believing in the name of Jesus Christ and many will fall away:
2Thessalonians 2:1-12
How can a pastor properly prepare the flock when he preaches a “name it claim it” theology and that everything’s fine? Also shouldn’t Christians, especially leaders, live more like Rich Mullins then Donald Trump? Living in wealth can certainly cloud ones judgement.
*For those of you who don’t know who Rich Mullins was; he was a very well known/successful Christian musician about 10-15 years ago. Unfortunately he died in a car accident in the mid to late 90’s. However, prior to his death he lived in a trailer on an Indian reservation and instructed his accountant to provide him with a $28k/year salary to live on and gave the rest of it away to different needy charities.
It seems many of us want beautiful charismatic speakers to be our leaders; whether in Washington or in front of us at church. It really makes no difference. Let’s face it we want people in authority who make us feel good about ourselves. We want them to tell us everything’s going to be alright. In our pride we certainly don’t want to acknowledge any fault and if we fully accept the fact that we are all sinners then we also have to also accept the blame. We have to in order to repent. Instead, we want to be told we’re safe, everything’s going to be alright and we’re going to be blessed, but it seems to me we want this outside of Jesus Christ.
We, as sinners, have to accept the blame for the wrong in this world. If we don’t then how can we truly repent? We have to accept that this world is fallen because of our sin and it won’t get up, without Jesus. There are biblical references to such wicked men who would fill our heads with lies about this fallen world. These men also told people everything was going to be alright. The people lost sight of their wretchedness and instead believed a lie told to them by false prophets. There was little to no repentance.
Amos 9:10
Jeremiah 5:11-13
Jeremiah 14:11-16
However, even with this knowledge, even though we accept that everything won’t be alright in this life. There is good news, but it’s not that we’re going to necessarily get a new car or house or relationship. There is the truth of the perfect lamb who takes away the sins of the world.
Romans 5
I would discourage anyone from allowing their minds to be filled with the poisonous lies that everything is alright and calamity won’t come. John16:33 I would also discourage anyone from putting people on pedestals. People like the big O, who rings the bells and sounds the alarms every time she gives something away. She has received her reward in full, but Christians should desire to receive our reward from the Almighty God, not the almighty dollar or from the praise of men who will turn to dust in a short time. When a rich man, or woman, passes away their possessions are given to another. We are only stewards of this world, that is it. We should only be keeping the seat warm until the true return of the king. To believe in ownership is to believe a lie and to live in this world under this lie. Instead we ought to daily give our lives to Jesus Christ and see our prosperity as an opportunity to glorify Him.
John 18:22
I don’t know a whole lot about Lakewood, nor do I really care to. However, prior to writing this article I did visit their website and check it out. I noticed a lot of very successful, well off, beautiful people in leadership of that church.
From what I gathered Joel took over from his dad in 99. Prior to this he was a very successful business man working for the church in a TV/radio production capacity. So being that he’s the son of the previous pastor, a pretty boy with a pretty wife and successful in business makes him the obvious choice to pastor a church? What if Joel had been a missionary or a minister to youth or homeless folks or AIDS patients, a humble man who boldly encouraged others in Christ and stayed in the Word, the son of an ordinary man, would he still have been “chosen” to be a shepherd of Lakewood?
At any rate, the Word would seem to contradict Joel’s belief that we are in good shape with Jesus Christ or spirituality and how God blesses those He loves.
John 16
Where in the Bible does it say things will get better before they get worse? Things will only get better with the return of Jesus Christ. We will enter into a great period of persecution for believing in the name of Jesus Christ and many will fall away:
2Thessalonians 2:1-12
How can a pastor properly prepare the flock when he preaches a “name it claim it” theology and that everything’s fine? Also shouldn’t Christians, especially leaders, live more like Rich Mullins then Donald Trump? Living in wealth can certainly cloud ones judgement.
*For those of you who don’t know who Rich Mullins was; he was a very well known/successful Christian musician about 10-15 years ago. Unfortunately he died in a car accident in the mid to late 90’s. However, prior to his death he lived in a trailer on an Indian reservation and instructed his accountant to provide him with a $28k/year salary to live on and gave the rest of it away to different needy charities.
It seems many of us want beautiful charismatic speakers to be our leaders; whether in Washington or in front of us at church. It really makes no difference. Let’s face it we want people in authority who make us feel good about ourselves. We want them to tell us everything’s going to be alright. In our pride we certainly don’t want to acknowledge any fault and if we fully accept the fact that we are all sinners then we also have to also accept the blame. We have to in order to repent. Instead, we want to be told we’re safe, everything’s going to be alright and we’re going to be blessed, but it seems to me we want this outside of Jesus Christ.
We, as sinners, have to accept the blame for the wrong in this world. If we don’t then how can we truly repent? We have to accept that this world is fallen because of our sin and it won’t get up, without Jesus. There are biblical references to such wicked men who would fill our heads with lies about this fallen world. These men also told people everything was going to be alright. The people lost sight of their wretchedness and instead believed a lie told to them by false prophets. There was little to no repentance.
Amos 9:10
Jeremiah 5:11-13
Jeremiah 14:11-16
However, even with this knowledge, even though we accept that everything won’t be alright in this life. There is good news, but it’s not that we’re going to necessarily get a new car or house or relationship. There is the truth of the perfect lamb who takes away the sins of the world.
Romans 5
I would discourage anyone from allowing their minds to be filled with the poisonous lies that everything is alright and calamity won’t come. John16:33 I would also discourage anyone from putting people on pedestals. People like the big O, who rings the bells and sounds the alarms every time she gives something away. She has received her reward in full, but Christians should desire to receive our reward from the Almighty God, not the almighty dollar or from the praise of men who will turn to dust in a short time. When a rich man, or woman, passes away their possessions are given to another. We are only stewards of this world, that is it. We should only be keeping the seat warm until the true return of the king. To believe in ownership is to believe a lie and to live in this world under this lie. Instead we ought to daily give our lives to Jesus Christ and see our prosperity as an opportunity to glorify Him.
John 18:22
Robots in Disguise
A friend of mine just sent me this article from the Onion. I have to share this. I love this type of geek humor and hey it's a Friday.
Monday, April 10, 2006
A Path to Encourage
From my observations the gift of encouragement seems to be severely lacking in the church, especially among men. Perhaps many of us men are lacking the confidence to encourage others? Perhaps this gift is perceived as a weakness and unmanly? Perhaps we’re all just too selfish and prideful to care? One solution is to get into prayer about it. The other is to read the word.
Unfortunately, from a sinful flesh perspective, God does what’s best for us and most satisfying to His glory, not what we necessarily want Him to do. I believe this means He will allow us to go through trials to mold us into the man or woman He wants us to be. There is no magic wand to fix us. If you don’t have the gift of encouragement, or worse, don’t even realize you’re lacking this gift, then you’re in for a wake up call as God begins to work on your sensitivity and love towards others. It’s interesting for me to observe that the folks I know lacking in the gift of encouragement the most, are also the most prideful. Conversely the most encouraging people I know are also typically characterized by humility.
Pride is such a wicked disease of the human. Why do we actually think we exist for any other reason then to glorify God? We aren’t great, we are dust in the wind, our perceived wisdom is folly to God and if we can’t love and encourage others then how well do we know our maker?
The book of Job is one of my favorite books of the Bible. This book was such a blessing to me during a difficult trial in my life about 4 years ago while I was unemployed. For the purpose of this posting, I’d like to focus briefly on the teachings of encouragement from this book.
The correct attitude:
Job 2:11-13
These above verses follow a biblical model of sharing in the pain of another. Sometimes words aren’t necessary to encourage.
Job 5
This chapter depicts a reproachful attitude by affluent friends towards the friend who is suffering, as if the source of the pain resides in the error of the persecuted (ie. kicking a man when he's down). I see this often with people who lack the gift of encouragement. The next time you feel led to reproach someone first determine if they are in rebellion and in need of admonishment, but do so lovingly. Admonishment should never be a knee jerk reaction. If it is then you are most likely in the wrong and should examine your own heart first before pointing out the speck in your brother’s eye. Putting the blame on the person under persecution is most likely a knee jerk/callous and sinful reaction. Think before you speak.
The following is Job’s reproach to the discouragement brought by his friends:
Job 6:14-15 & Job 6:21-30
This is not to say that Job wasn’t in the wrong with much of what he said, but God brought admonishment to him (through teaching), then justified him before his friends and condemned them, not Job.
Job 42:7-9
From this example in Job, Christians ought to be very careful how we approach those facing difficulties and trials in their lives. If you feel inadequate to encourage or don’t know how to deal with discouraged folks or feel led to reply to their pain with sarcasm or blame, then I have a very simple solution to follow: Don’t say anything. Just listen and perhaps say a prayer that God would encourage them. That’s it. Let God reveal their error, if any, to them, unless you’re willing to spend the necessary time to listen and truly understand the situation. Then you’ll be able to better understand their plight, encourage, perhaps challenge their thinking and offer advice to ponder.
The power of prayer in the midst of trials:
You might be surprised how effective a tool of encouragement prayer can be. Are you getting sick of or frustrated with hearing someone complain about their trial(s)? Try to ask them if you could pray for them right there and then. You will probably be surprised to find that they will relax, be appreciative or even stop complaining. Prayer is a great tool to help encourage those under trials (doesn’t matter whether you feel it’s truly a trial or not) to give their concerns over to the Lord (this really matters). This is especially a good tool if you don’t have the time to really learn more about someone’s problems, but yet feel compelled to help them. Simply taking the time and initiative to bring someone else’s problems before the Almighty is huge. This will help the other person to not feel the huge burden of their life on their shoulders and help them to focus on Jesus Christ as the author and perfecter of their faith. (Hebrews 12:1-3)
A little bit of love and time can go a long way.
Unfortunately, from a sinful flesh perspective, God does what’s best for us and most satisfying to His glory, not what we necessarily want Him to do. I believe this means He will allow us to go through trials to mold us into the man or woman He wants us to be. There is no magic wand to fix us. If you don’t have the gift of encouragement, or worse, don’t even realize you’re lacking this gift, then you’re in for a wake up call as God begins to work on your sensitivity and love towards others. It’s interesting for me to observe that the folks I know lacking in the gift of encouragement the most, are also the most prideful. Conversely the most encouraging people I know are also typically characterized by humility.
Pride is such a wicked disease of the human. Why do we actually think we exist for any other reason then to glorify God? We aren’t great, we are dust in the wind, our perceived wisdom is folly to God and if we can’t love and encourage others then how well do we know our maker?
The book of Job is one of my favorite books of the Bible. This book was such a blessing to me during a difficult trial in my life about 4 years ago while I was unemployed. For the purpose of this posting, I’d like to focus briefly on the teachings of encouragement from this book.
The correct attitude:
Job 2:11-13
These above verses follow a biblical model of sharing in the pain of another. Sometimes words aren’t necessary to encourage.
Job 5
This chapter depicts a reproachful attitude by affluent friends towards the friend who is suffering, as if the source of the pain resides in the error of the persecuted (ie. kicking a man when he's down). I see this often with people who lack the gift of encouragement. The next time you feel led to reproach someone first determine if they are in rebellion and in need of admonishment, but do so lovingly. Admonishment should never be a knee jerk reaction. If it is then you are most likely in the wrong and should examine your own heart first before pointing out the speck in your brother’s eye. Putting the blame on the person under persecution is most likely a knee jerk/callous and sinful reaction. Think before you speak.
The following is Job’s reproach to the discouragement brought by his friends:
Job 6:14-15 & Job 6:21-30
This is not to say that Job wasn’t in the wrong with much of what he said, but God brought admonishment to him (through teaching), then justified him before his friends and condemned them, not Job.
Job 42:7-9
From this example in Job, Christians ought to be very careful how we approach those facing difficulties and trials in their lives. If you feel inadequate to encourage or don’t know how to deal with discouraged folks or feel led to reply to their pain with sarcasm or blame, then I have a very simple solution to follow: Don’t say anything. Just listen and perhaps say a prayer that God would encourage them. That’s it. Let God reveal their error, if any, to them, unless you’re willing to spend the necessary time to listen and truly understand the situation. Then you’ll be able to better understand their plight, encourage, perhaps challenge their thinking and offer advice to ponder.
The power of prayer in the midst of trials:
You might be surprised how effective a tool of encouragement prayer can be. Are you getting sick of or frustrated with hearing someone complain about their trial(s)? Try to ask them if you could pray for them right there and then. You will probably be surprised to find that they will relax, be appreciative or even stop complaining. Prayer is a great tool to help encourage those under trials (doesn’t matter whether you feel it’s truly a trial or not) to give their concerns over to the Lord (this really matters). This is especially a good tool if you don’t have the time to really learn more about someone’s problems, but yet feel compelled to help them. Simply taking the time and initiative to bring someone else’s problems before the Almighty is huge. This will help the other person to not feel the huge burden of their life on their shoulders and help them to focus on Jesus Christ as the author and perfecter of their faith. (Hebrews 12:1-3)
A little bit of love and time can go a long way.
Wednesday, April 05, 2006
Escapism part 3: I Won’t Be Silent Anymore!
When was the last time you intentionally entered into a moment of silence, especially at church? When was the last time you didn’t feel too busy to have a real conversation with someone? To really listen?
My church observed communion this week. Communion’s a great opportunity to remember the high price paid for my sin. I think it’s a great opportunity to examine my heart and the wickedness of it and how far I really am from being able to be holy before the Father without Jesus Christ. I think it’s a great time for me to meditate on the words of Jesus Christ regarding this observance and finally to pray for forgiveness of my sins. One brief unique moment to honor a sacrifice made for my sins and rededicate my life to Jesus Christ. However, I find this extremely difficult to do while the worship band is thrashing away and the pastor, in an effort to keep the service on time, immediately prays and begins to teach, after the elements have been distributed. Think about it, why does the worship band have to play during communion or for that matter when the offering plate’s passed around? The answer is they don’t and I don’t think they should. I also don’t understand why the teaching couldn’t be shortened to accommodate a quiet time during and after the communion. Then as I thought about it, when was the last time I experienced a quiet time during any church service. I can clearly remember. It was about 7 years ago at the church I was attending while I was living in OH. The pastor of this church made it a point to institute a quiet time during and after the distribution of the elements. I found this to be such a great time of silent meditation and self examination. I miss this. Our hearts should be examined before observing communion and we ought not rush through it.
1 Corinthians 11:26-30
For as often as you eat this bread and drink the cup, you proclaim the Lord's death until He comes. Therefore whoever eats the bread or drinks the cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner, shall be guilty of the body and the blood of the Lord. But a man must examine himself, and in so doing he is to eat of the bread and drink of the cup. For he who eats and drinks, eats and drinks judgment to himself if he does not judge the body rightly. For this reason many among you are weak and sick, and a number sleep.
These words seem to indicate serious repercussions. Once again we gloss over the seriousness of words we are told will endure.
Matthew 24:35 "Heaven and earth will pass away, but My words will not pass away.
My point is that there is a necessity for quiet time, not only during our personal time with the Lord, but also our larger gatherings.
When was the last time you were in your car without the radio or the cell phone going? When was the last time you just sat by yourself and examined your heart? We allow so many distractions into our lives and yet somehow expect God to meet us in these distractions. We want answers from God, but are unwilling to really commune with Him. We look for God in all the wrong places and refuse to confront the uncomfortable reality of our fallen nature.
1 Kings 19:11-13
So He said, "Go forth and stand on the mountain before the LORD " And behold, the LORD was passing by! And a great and strong wind was rending the mountains and breaking in pieces the rocks before the LORD; but the LORD was not in the wind. And after the wind an earthquake, but the LORD was not in the earthquake. After the earthquake a fire, but the LORD was not in the fire; and after the fire a sound of a gentle blowing. When Elijah heard it, he wrapped his face in his mantle and went out and stood in the entrance of the cave And behold, a voice came to him and said, "What are you doing here, Elijah?"
Jesus Christ will ruin you to this world, if you’ll let Him. He’ll show you how to truly die to this world and raise you up again. We’re not called to be content with or find fulfillment in this life, nor are we called to run from this feeling, this hole in our very soul. Being ruined to this world leads to an inevitable conclusion and that is life is truly meaningless. Solomon, through the course of his life, learned this lesson all too well (Book of Ecclesiastes). Nothing in this world can satisfy and this includes mission work, marriage, work or any of the distractions and perversions of man. However you can find enough distractions in your short time in this world to fill it up and die without ever having faced this realization. You can’t get to the bottom of God’s deep waters without drowning in them. You can’t truly live without first dying. We can’t find joy, salvation, satisfaction or completion in anything other then Jesus Christ!
Stop trying to escape Jesus Christ through institutions or ministries or other things. God created all these things for His glory, which is always for our good. Be quiet long enough, be still long enough, be alone long enough, be focused on Jesus Christ long enough to allow Him to ruin you to this world. Is this a comfortable safe feeling, being ruined to the world? No, but I believe it leads to a place more beautiful then a sinner could ever imagine.
My church observed communion this week. Communion’s a great opportunity to remember the high price paid for my sin. I think it’s a great opportunity to examine my heart and the wickedness of it and how far I really am from being able to be holy before the Father without Jesus Christ. I think it’s a great time for me to meditate on the words of Jesus Christ regarding this observance and finally to pray for forgiveness of my sins. One brief unique moment to honor a sacrifice made for my sins and rededicate my life to Jesus Christ. However, I find this extremely difficult to do while the worship band is thrashing away and the pastor, in an effort to keep the service on time, immediately prays and begins to teach, after the elements have been distributed. Think about it, why does the worship band have to play during communion or for that matter when the offering plate’s passed around? The answer is they don’t and I don’t think they should. I also don’t understand why the teaching couldn’t be shortened to accommodate a quiet time during and after the communion. Then as I thought about it, when was the last time I experienced a quiet time during any church service. I can clearly remember. It was about 7 years ago at the church I was attending while I was living in OH. The pastor of this church made it a point to institute a quiet time during and after the distribution of the elements. I found this to be such a great time of silent meditation and self examination. I miss this. Our hearts should be examined before observing communion and we ought not rush through it.
1 Corinthians 11:26-30
For as often as you eat this bread and drink the cup, you proclaim the Lord's death until He comes. Therefore whoever eats the bread or drinks the cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner, shall be guilty of the body and the blood of the Lord. But a man must examine himself, and in so doing he is to eat of the bread and drink of the cup. For he who eats and drinks, eats and drinks judgment to himself if he does not judge the body rightly. For this reason many among you are weak and sick, and a number sleep.
These words seem to indicate serious repercussions. Once again we gloss over the seriousness of words we are told will endure.
Matthew 24:35 "Heaven and earth will pass away, but My words will not pass away.
My point is that there is a necessity for quiet time, not only during our personal time with the Lord, but also our larger gatherings.
When was the last time you were in your car without the radio or the cell phone going? When was the last time you just sat by yourself and examined your heart? We allow so many distractions into our lives and yet somehow expect God to meet us in these distractions. We want answers from God, but are unwilling to really commune with Him. We look for God in all the wrong places and refuse to confront the uncomfortable reality of our fallen nature.
1 Kings 19:11-13
So He said, "Go forth and stand on the mountain before the LORD " And behold, the LORD was passing by! And a great and strong wind was rending the mountains and breaking in pieces the rocks before the LORD; but the LORD was not in the wind. And after the wind an earthquake, but the LORD was not in the earthquake. After the earthquake a fire, but the LORD was not in the fire; and after the fire a sound of a gentle blowing. When Elijah heard it, he wrapped his face in his mantle and went out and stood in the entrance of the cave And behold, a voice came to him and said, "What are you doing here, Elijah?"
Jesus Christ will ruin you to this world, if you’ll let Him. He’ll show you how to truly die to this world and raise you up again. We’re not called to be content with or find fulfillment in this life, nor are we called to run from this feeling, this hole in our very soul. Being ruined to this world leads to an inevitable conclusion and that is life is truly meaningless. Solomon, through the course of his life, learned this lesson all too well (Book of Ecclesiastes). Nothing in this world can satisfy and this includes mission work, marriage, work or any of the distractions and perversions of man. However you can find enough distractions in your short time in this world to fill it up and die without ever having faced this realization. You can’t get to the bottom of God’s deep waters without drowning in them. You can’t truly live without first dying. We can’t find joy, salvation, satisfaction or completion in anything other then Jesus Christ!
Stop trying to escape Jesus Christ through institutions or ministries or other things. God created all these things for His glory, which is always for our good. Be quiet long enough, be still long enough, be alone long enough, be focused on Jesus Christ long enough to allow Him to ruin you to this world. Is this a comfortable safe feeling, being ruined to the world? No, but I believe it leads to a place more beautiful then a sinner could ever imagine.
Tuesday, April 04, 2006
Escapism Part 2: The Great (missionary) Escape
As I mentioned in my previous article, I definitely believe there’s a huge issue in the church regarding the perspective on marriage. As a single man I can relate to that lost feeling, especially at church. The feeling that something isn’t right or “what am I suppose to do with my life now (post-college)?” I believe in an effort to answer this question many Christian singles turn to a few different forms of ‘acceptable’ escapisms. One is marriage and another is missions work.
I believe much of this ‘lost’ feeling is natural to living in the sinful/corrupted flesh, separated from the relationship with God we were created for. The secular world, or weaker Christians, will get involved in premarital sex, drugs, partying, bars, clubs or even work as a means of addressing this lost feeling. Most Americans find escapism in more universally acceptable forms as well, such as TV, video games, internet, reading, cell phones or music. The problem is this huge hole we all have in our hearts, and the solution will never be found in any of these things. They are all, at best a distraction, the solution is full surrender to God, something impossible without Jesus Christ.
I don’t believe this lost feeling is a call to become a missionary in a foreign country. As a church we really need to define what a calling looks like before sending people packing to seminary or the mission field or even teaching our children. I’m not sure myself what a calling truly looks like, but I know it isn’t about filling a hole in our lives or finding an easy way out. I imagine it’s a lot easier to try to impact the life of someone who doesn’t know me or my culture or better yet possibly looks up to me just because I’m American, then the person sitting next to me at church or work who I may have no credibility with. If you can’t humbly & selflessly engage others where you are now, then why would you expect you could do it somewhere else? If you aren’t actively involved in spreading the gospel, pouring into someone else’s life or involved in a ministry why would you expect you would be able to in another country? Changing churches, locations or jobs doesn’t change the person. I believe becoming a missionary to a foreign country can be a form of escapism, under the wrong circumstances. I also believe working in a church ministry can be a form of escapism, but that's another article.
I believe one way the misguided church is addressing ‘the singleness issue’ is through foreign missions work. “Ok you’re not married, therefore most likely a non productive attendee, so how about we provide you with the vision (through videos, classes, books, seminars & testimonials) to be productive.”. Once again the church has circumvented the real issue to address the symptoms. Take a long hard look at this country of ours and the issues we are facing. What do we have; 11, 12 million illegal immigrants in this country, as well as millions of legal immigrants from other countries? America is a foreign missions field! God has brought the missions field right on our doorsteps. The church, however, seems simply too incompetent, or lazy, to really equip us to enter this missions field. It’s much easier to pack people off for a trip overseas and pawn them off on someone else, then to pour into them for real evangelistic work in America.
How about the issues of racism or homophobia rampant in our churches? Imagine if the churches of America stood up to love on people with different colors of skin or who have adopted perverted lifestyles? Imagine if the churches of America really stood up to love on poor or homeless people? Now imagine a real revival the likes of which this country has never seen. However, coming back to reality we see incompetent churches taking the easy roads by giving our single men and women (especially women) a passport of escapism out of this country to witness to people they most likely will not live life with for very long. One year, two tops? This isn’t living life with people. A real missionary has a passion, purpose and a vision to reach specific people groups. I personally know several missionaries like this and they’ve committed their lives to serving the Lord in foreign countries for as long as God will allow. They have a specific passion for the people they are living with and a fervent desire to see the people they’re working with come to a saving knowledge of Jesus Christ. This is a calling, not a selfish quest for purpose. Of course this isn’t to say God is incapable of working His glory despite the heart motivations of us sinners.
Now this isn’t to bash short term mission’s trips. These are a great way to support missionaries who need to build churches or distribute food or teach English or the like. It’s also a great way to become more sympathetic towards missionaries and more attuned to their needs. However, let’s not confuse encouragement/service work with true mission’s work, which is living life with people and showing them Jesus. I’m not saying one is better then the other. I’m saying we need to be realistic with ourselves and view ourselves with humility as we serve. Accept the gifts God has given you and encourage or serve or pastor or teach or evangelize in your own country or in foreign countries, but do it all hardily unto the Lord. Don’t make the same mistake Jonah made when he ran away from his life and God’s will.
I see no examples in the Bible of the apostles or disciples ‘testing out the waters’ before taking the plunge. In fact, I see just the opposite:
Joshua 3:13-16
And as soon as the priests who carry the ark of the LORD -the Lord of all the earth—set foot in the Jordan, its waters flowing downstream will be cut off and stand up in a heap." So when the people broke camp to cross the Jordan, the priests carrying the ark of the covenant went ahead of them. Now the Jordan is at flood stage all during harvest. Yet as soon as the priests who carried the ark reached the Jordan and their feet touched the water's edge, the water from upstream stopped flowing.
I don’t believe short term mission’s trips should be used as a ‘test’ for whether we ought to become missionaries or not. That’s not to say a desire wouldn’t grow from this experience. However, if it doesn’t then consider praying about giving more money to missions work or who you should specifically give money to or who you feel called to live life with right where you’re at.
I believe much of this ‘lost’ feeling is natural to living in the sinful/corrupted flesh, separated from the relationship with God we were created for. The secular world, or weaker Christians, will get involved in premarital sex, drugs, partying, bars, clubs or even work as a means of addressing this lost feeling. Most Americans find escapism in more universally acceptable forms as well, such as TV, video games, internet, reading, cell phones or music. The problem is this huge hole we all have in our hearts, and the solution will never be found in any of these things. They are all, at best a distraction, the solution is full surrender to God, something impossible without Jesus Christ.
I don’t believe this lost feeling is a call to become a missionary in a foreign country. As a church we really need to define what a calling looks like before sending people packing to seminary or the mission field or even teaching our children. I’m not sure myself what a calling truly looks like, but I know it isn’t about filling a hole in our lives or finding an easy way out. I imagine it’s a lot easier to try to impact the life of someone who doesn’t know me or my culture or better yet possibly looks up to me just because I’m American, then the person sitting next to me at church or work who I may have no credibility with. If you can’t humbly & selflessly engage others where you are now, then why would you expect you could do it somewhere else? If you aren’t actively involved in spreading the gospel, pouring into someone else’s life or involved in a ministry why would you expect you would be able to in another country? Changing churches, locations or jobs doesn’t change the person. I believe becoming a missionary to a foreign country can be a form of escapism, under the wrong circumstances. I also believe working in a church ministry can be a form of escapism, but that's another article.
I believe one way the misguided church is addressing ‘the singleness issue’ is through foreign missions work. “Ok you’re not married, therefore most likely a non productive attendee, so how about we provide you with the vision (through videos, classes, books, seminars & testimonials) to be productive.”. Once again the church has circumvented the real issue to address the symptoms. Take a long hard look at this country of ours and the issues we are facing. What do we have; 11, 12 million illegal immigrants in this country, as well as millions of legal immigrants from other countries? America is a foreign missions field! God has brought the missions field right on our doorsteps. The church, however, seems simply too incompetent, or lazy, to really equip us to enter this missions field. It’s much easier to pack people off for a trip overseas and pawn them off on someone else, then to pour into them for real evangelistic work in America.
How about the issues of racism or homophobia rampant in our churches? Imagine if the churches of America stood up to love on people with different colors of skin or who have adopted perverted lifestyles? Imagine if the churches of America really stood up to love on poor or homeless people? Now imagine a real revival the likes of which this country has never seen. However, coming back to reality we see incompetent churches taking the easy roads by giving our single men and women (especially women) a passport of escapism out of this country to witness to people they most likely will not live life with for very long. One year, two tops? This isn’t living life with people. A real missionary has a passion, purpose and a vision to reach specific people groups. I personally know several missionaries like this and they’ve committed their lives to serving the Lord in foreign countries for as long as God will allow. They have a specific passion for the people they are living with and a fervent desire to see the people they’re working with come to a saving knowledge of Jesus Christ. This is a calling, not a selfish quest for purpose. Of course this isn’t to say God is incapable of working His glory despite the heart motivations of us sinners.
Now this isn’t to bash short term mission’s trips. These are a great way to support missionaries who need to build churches or distribute food or teach English or the like. It’s also a great way to become more sympathetic towards missionaries and more attuned to their needs. However, let’s not confuse encouragement/service work with true mission’s work, which is living life with people and showing them Jesus. I’m not saying one is better then the other. I’m saying we need to be realistic with ourselves and view ourselves with humility as we serve. Accept the gifts God has given you and encourage or serve or pastor or teach or evangelize in your own country or in foreign countries, but do it all hardily unto the Lord. Don’t make the same mistake Jonah made when he ran away from his life and God’s will.
I see no examples in the Bible of the apostles or disciples ‘testing out the waters’ before taking the plunge. In fact, I see just the opposite:
Joshua 3:13-16
And as soon as the priests who carry the ark of the LORD -the Lord of all the earth—set foot in the Jordan, its waters flowing downstream will be cut off and stand up in a heap." So when the people broke camp to cross the Jordan, the priests carrying the ark of the covenant went ahead of them. Now the Jordan is at flood stage all during harvest. Yet as soon as the priests who carried the ark reached the Jordan and their feet touched the water's edge, the water from upstream stopped flowing.
I don’t believe short term mission’s trips should be used as a ‘test’ for whether we ought to become missionaries or not. That’s not to say a desire wouldn’t grow from this experience. However, if it doesn’t then consider praying about giving more money to missions work or who you should specifically give money to or who you feel called to live life with right where you’re at.
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