Heelcatcher

I wish I was a better blogger. I wish I could produce short little snippets, gems of wisdom, or insightful commentaries on current events on a regular basis. But I realize I just can’t do it. One, I don’t have the time.  Being a husband, father, and pastor commands too much of my attention. Two, I can’t think and process things that fast. When I hear something on the news or read something in the paper, I usually let it simmer in my mind for several days/weeks before I really have anything to say. By that time, no one usually cares about the issue any more. And three, I am just not that smart.

But since I have some time to think and blog at this present moment, here are ten random thoughts that have recently run through my mind.

1. Our culture of instant news is producing a culture of rash reactions. We form opinions before collecting facts. We are pushed to respond tragedies before we even have time to grieve them. We are hungry for breaking news rather than for slowly cultivated wisdom.

2. Racism does exist…as well as sexism, elitism, egotism, ostracism, antagonism, and narcissism. Whether black, white, yellow, or red, the human heart will find a reason to justify self, form alliances for one’s own benefit, and separate from anyone who doesn’t fit one’s “camp.” This is called sin and it infects us all. Reconciliation comes not in reinforcing differences or reacting to injustice with injustice but in recognizing the commonality of our creation (Gen. 1-2), the universality of our sin (Romans 3:23), the impartiality of our God (Acts 10:34), and the necessity we all have for grace (Ephesians 2:8-9).

3. Our culture should not be surprised when we feed people a steady diet of “sex without limits” and then witness people abuse, betray, and use others for their own sexual gain.

4. To deny the existence of God or a spiritual world beyond our senses is also to deny the possibility of a mind beyond our physical brains. In which case, who cares what an atheist thinks?

5. The allure of sin is its ability to hide the hook under the bait.

6. A hunger for constant thrills is an addiction that leads to diminishing returns and increasing boredom with life. To find contentment and joy in the ordinary and the mundane is a gift from God (Ecclesiastes 5:18).

7. A society that devalues life commits suicide.

8. Our greatest problems are not political but spiritual. They are rooted in the human heart. Thus, the ultimate solutions will not be found in legislation but in salvation. This is more than just a cliche. There are really only two motivations for right behavior–fear of consequences or love for others. Law can only promote fear or, at best, entice people for selfish reasons. Only grace can promote love. When I experience forgiveness, I can forgive. When I am satisfied in God’s love, then I can share love with others. This is not to say that Christians should avoid politics. But it is to say that all things must be kept in perspective.

9. Christians who care foremost about truth should not forward emails without verifying that they are true.

10. No person–no matter how rich, innovative, powerful, or politically progressive–can defeat death. Death is the great equalizer. It is no respecter of persons. It brings finality to one’s life, separation to one’s closest relationships, despair to one’s dreams.  It is the one thing that should sober us, humble us, and awaken us to our need for a Savior, for One stronger than death. Only Jesus Christ lays claim to conquering death thus He alone is our only hope (Acts 2:22-36).

⁴⁵ “Who then is the faithful and wise servant, whom the master has put in charge of the servants in his household to give them their food at the proper time? ⁴⁶ It will be good for that servant whose master finds him doing so when he returns. ⁴⁷ I tell you the truth, he will put him in charge of all his possessions. ⁴⁸ But suppose that servant is wicked and says to himself, ‘My master is staying away a long time,’ ⁴⁹ and he then begins to beat his fellow servants and to eat and drink with drunkards. ⁵⁰ The master of that servant will come on a day when he does not expect him and at an hour he is not aware of. ⁵¹ He will cut him to pieces and assign him a place with the hypocrites, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. (Matthew 24:45-51)

How do we live in the “in between time,” the time between Christ’s first and second comings?

Regardless of how things turn out in the end, regardless of whether there is a rapture before, during, or at the end of the tribulation, regardless of whether Christ comes back today or 1000 years from now…we are called to be faithful and wise servants for Christ.

Servants. We are accountable to Christ. We are not our own. We have been bought with a price (1 Cor. 6:19-20). Our desire should be to please and honor the One who died for us. I should wake up each day asking the Lord, “How can I serve You today? How can I please You?”

Faithful. Paul says that as servants and stewards of Christ, we are called first and foremost to be faithful (1 Cor. 4:1-2). To walk with Christ consistently, day by day, in good times and bad, in sickness and in health, for richer or for poorer. And we are called to faithfully give food to Christ’s other servants at the proper time. I love that picture. Our simple responsibility is to give other people food to eat at the right time and in the right measure. I don’t think he is talking about physical food…though compassion for the poor is certainly a part of it. He is talking about giving people the word of God, the truth of God, the good news of Christ…at the right time…and in the right measure. A word aptly spoken is like apples of gold in settings of silver (Proverbs 25:11).

Wise. How do we give people the right food in the right measure at the right time? By being wise. By having our eyes opened by the Spirit to see as Christ sees. By training our minds to be discerning through active meditation and application of the word of God. Wisdom only comes through the daily practice of walking in the Spirit in line with the Word of God.

Such a faithful, wise servant is given charge of all of Christ’s possessions when He returns.

What is the opposite of a faithful, wise servant?

A servant who says in his heart, “I am not accountable. God will never see what I am doing. And if He does see it, then He doesn’t care.”

A servant who harms others in his relationships, who uses his words recklessly, who manipulates and uses others for his own advantage.

A servant who takes what God has given him (his time, resources, money, talents) and uses them solely for his own pleasure, who gets drunk on God’s time with other people who can care less about Him. “It’s all about me and gratifying my lusts while I can with whom I can.”

It is two separate ways of thinking, living, and relating. And the dividing line is my attitude toward Christ and His return. Do I believe Him? Do I trust Him? Do I long for His return? Do I desire to please Him so that I can look into His face with joy and satisfaction and hear Him say, “Well done, good and faithful servant!”?

Lord, capture my heart today. May I live this day for Your glory. May my words feed Your servants at the right time.

With the political season starting to heat up, it seems good to remember these words from the apostle Peter in 1 Peter 2:13-17.

¹³ Therefore submit yourselves to every ordinance of man for the Lord’s sake, whether to the king as supreme, ¹⁴ or to governors, as to those who are sent by him for the punishment of evildoers and for the praise of those who do good. ¹⁵ For this is the will of God, that by doing good you may put to silence the ignorance of foolish men— ¹⁶ as free, yet not using liberty as a cloak for vice, but as bondservants of God. ¹⁷ Honor all people. Love the brotherhood. Fear God. Honor the king.

Realize that when Peter was writing this letter, Nero was the emperor of Rome and Christians were facing increasing persecution around the world. If you were part of the church “scattered” around the Roman empire at that time (1:1), you probably would not have expected these words. And you may have been slightly annoyed at Peter for writing them.

Submit to Roman law and to the emperor and to any local governors. Why, Peter? Not because they are necessarily just and deserving of honor but because you are doing it for the Lord’s sake. This is the will of God. Does that mean that we never go against the rules or rulers of an unjust society? No. There are exceptions when we must obey God rather than man (Acts 4:19, 5:29). But these are to be rare exceptions not regular occurrences. Our default position as Christians is to submit and honor authority. Peter says that when we live with this kind of consistent, submissive behavior then by doing good you may put to silence the ignorance of foolish men. In other words we are more effective at transforming society and silencing our enemies when we seek to be respectful, honoring citizens rather than rebellious, obnoxious ones.

Now, in America, with a representative government, I believe that we as believers are called to be involved in the political process as salt and light. We are to do all we can to preserve liberty and seek justice. But we must still guard our attitude and our behavior as we participate. Respect. Honor. Submission. Civility. Grace. These must still be the guardrails and guidelines for our participation in society and our voicing of biblical truth.

1 Peter 2:17 sums up our duty as believers. It is a great verse to memorize and live out!

Honor all people. No exceptions. Democrat or Republican. Liberal or conservative. No matter what label a person has, we are called to honor them…not because of their viewpoints or actions but because they are made in the image of God. James reminds us that we can’t say we honor God when we regularly blast those who are made in His image. With our tongue we bless our God and Father, and with it we curse men, who have been made in the similitude of God. Out of the same mouth proceed blessing and cursing. My brethren, these things ought not to be so (James 3:9-10). Show honor to those you meet today. Everyone of them is created by God, loved by Him, and in need of Jesus Christ.

Love the brotherhood. We are to honor all people and to love those who are fellow believers in Jesus. In Christ, we have a family. We don’t always like our family members but we are called to love them. We are called to be patient…bearing with personality traits that irk us. We are called to be kind…using our words and actions to encourage our brothers and sisters and stir up love and good works in the body of Christ.

Fear God. And then don’t fear anything else! God is the sovereign King of the universe. He is in control. He is the giver of life and the taker of it. He is the judge and the evaluator of hearts. He is the good Shepherd and the loving Father. Trust Him. Follow Him. Worship Him. And put the rest of your fears in His hands.

Honor the king. Even a crazed lunatic like Nero. Whoa. You can’t be serious, Peter? C’mon, aren’t you the same guy who tried to chop the head off a Roman soldier when Jesus was arrested? Yep, but if you fear God and honor all people, then you are also called to honor and respect the king. God knows who he is. He can knock him off his chair of authority any time He wants. He can send him out into the fields to act like a cow for a few years if He wants (just ask Nebuchadnezzar!). So even if you don’t like the leader of the land, honor him for the office he possesses. And pray to God that He works in the leader’s heart to humble it if necessary and then to steer it onto the right path.

Lord, I can’t seem to obey any of these commands on a consistent basis. But help me to grow each day. May I show honor today to those I meet. May I show love to a brother or sister that crosses my path. May I fear You and not the anxieties of this world. May I honor Barack Obama and other political leaders even though I do not necessarily trust them or agree with their policies. Most of all, may I please You.

On October 1, 2011, Dr. Daniel Wallace, professor of New Testament studies at Dallas Theological Seminary, and Dr. Bart Ehrman, professor of Religious Studies at UNC Chapel Hill, had a debate over the trustworthiness of the New Testament. I watched the debate on DVD.

Both scholars agreed that the New Testament is the best attested historical document from ancient times. There are 5600 Greek manuscripts of the NT, 10,000+ copies in other languages, and enough NT quotes from the early “church fathers” to reconstruct the entire NT from their works alone. No other ancient book or writing comes close…nothing is even in the same ballpark.

But Dr. Ehrman has made a career out of attacking the historical reliability of the NT. Some of his books have even become NY Times best-sellers…for instance, Misquoting Jesus: The Story Behind Who Changed the Bible and Why and Forged: Writing in the Name of God – Why the Bible’s Authors Are Not Who We Think They Are. Dr. Ehrman’s skepticism and scholarly sarcasm toward God and the Bible plays well in our current culture.

Dr. Ehrman’s argument against the reliability of the NT stands on two grounds: 1) all we have is copies of copies of copies of the NT and 2) there are countless variations between the Greek manuscripts that we do have.

Dr. Wallace’s response answered both issues. 1) Yes, we have copies of copies but the evidence of the reliability of these copies is overwhelming. There are copies from the early centuries after Christ, copies from various places in the ancient world, and so many copies that all the readings of the NT can be compared and analyzed to find the most accurate reading. No other ancient manuscript can even come close to this much data. 2) There are so many variations between the manuscripts quite simply because we have so many manuscripts to compare. And almost all Bible scholars agree (even Ehrman) that the overwhelming majority of these variations (~99%) are either spelling errors, word order differences (which is common in Greek), or mistakes like missing letters or duplicated words. Only ~1% could be classified as significant and none of these affect one essential belief in Christianity.

That evidence wasn’t enough in Ehrman’s opinion. When asked by an audience member what amount of evidence he would need to convince him that the NT manuscripts were reliable, Ehrman replied, “If someone found 12 manuscripts dated from within a week of the writing of the NT then I would say that was strong evidence.”

But even if such a treasure house of NT manuscripts were found, I am sure the skeptic in Ehrman would still find something conspiratorial or doubtful about them.

Ehrman demanded absolute certainty. Wallace provided compelling evidence. And Ehrman was not impressed.

Ehrman would say things like “Dr. Wallace still has not provided absolute proof that we can trust the New Testament. How do we know that someone didn’t make major changes in the earliest manuscripts? Quite simply, we don’t.”

Wallace would respond along these lines. “If that is Dr. Ehrman’s criteria, then we have to throw out all that we think we know of the ancient world…everything. All of it must go. When we are dealing with history, we have to deal in the area of evidence not absolute proof.”

In Ehrman’s closing statement, he used an analogy that summed up his argument. He said something like this:

When it comes to the issue of trust, the burden of proof lies on the one who says that you can trust something. If a train full of people approaches a bridge across a great chasm, the person who says that the bridge can hold the train is the one who has to prove it. If there isn’t absolute certainty, then the train shouldn’t cross the bridge.

It was a good analogy…and Dr. Wallace chose not to address it in his closing statement.

But I kept thinking about it later.

There was one key missing element in Ehrman’s analogy…the reason why the train was going to cross the bridge. If the people on the train were simply on a leisurely trip, then, yes, crossing a bridge with only say 95% certainty of the bridge’s reliability would be foolish. But if the train was filled with people who were dying or in great jeopardy and the bridge was the only means to a hospital or to safety, then actually the burden of proof would lie on the skeptic who was shouting by the side of the tracks, “Don’t cross that bridge! It is too unsafe!” And if, upon questioning, that person could only offer, “Well, no one knows with absolute certainty that that bridge will hold you,” then it would actually be foolish to not cross the bridge.

In other words, Ehrman assumes that trusting the New Testament is the dangerous proposition and that staying a skeptic and having no belief in the reliability of the Bible–and hence, no belief in God, Jesus, or the resurrection from the dead–is the only safe place to be.

I would see it the other way around.

If there is no real God, no reliable Bible, no Savior named Jesus or no resurrection from the dead, then who cares whether we cross the bridge or not. All of us are going to perish anyway. Might as well go out with one last hurrah trying to cross a bridge that looks like it might lead to safety.

BUT if there is evidence that Scripture is reliable…that God does exist…that there was a man named Jesus who walked this earth and rose from the dead….then continuously critiquing the bridge and mocking the people on the train trusting it for salvation is the work of a scoffer not a scholar.

Especially when you die by the edge of the tracks.

I was convinced they were wrong. I was also convinced that they were incompetent.

In the past year, I have called the city tax office five or six times. Everything made sense to me. I moved to Baton Rouge in May 2010. Thus, I paid taxes in 2010 for a partial year. In 2011, I refinanced. My mortgage company paid a portion of my taxes at the loan closing. Thus at the end of 2011 I paid the difference. I had my HUD statements and even a cancelled check from my mortgage company to prove all of this.

But the city tax office kept telling me that I owed $800. No matter how many times and how many people I explained things to, the answer was the same, “Mr. Foster, your property tax balance is $800.”

I was irritated. Frustrated. Opinionated. “Can’t they hire anyone with half a brain down there? This is pathetic.”

But to their credit, even though those city workers were downright inept, they were still friendly.

“Mr. Steve, I will have Ms. Louanna look at it. She is the best at figuring out all these things.”

“Great,” I thought, “My best chances for resolution lie in the lap of some woman named after a cooking oil.”

But I didn’t say that. In fact, for the most part, I kept my composure. I am a pastor after all. And I believe that, in the end, persistence pays more dividends than rudeness. So I kept calling and collecting data to support my cause.

But then it hit me. While I was on hold with some obscure company in PA that handles loan closings, a dimmed out light in my brain suddenly flickered on.

“Wait a second. When I bought the house in 2010, the seller did not pay a partial portion of my 2010 taxes, they credited me that amount so that I could pay the full amount. And when I refinanced my loan, the mortgage company didn’t pay a portion of my 2011 taxes, they paid the taxes I still owed from 2010!”

I hung up the phone.

Those inept city workers were actually the ones who understood. I was the clueless one.

At first I laughed. Then I cried. I really did owe $800. And it would be more if I didn’t pay it by the end of the week.

The next day I took a trip downtown to make sure my taxes were paid before any additional penalties kicked in. After standing in line for twenty minutes…and fighting back the temptation to complain about the lack of quick service…I finally got to the counter with the worker who seemed to be taking the longest with her customers. She was the friendliest one…but she wasn’t Louanna.

As I paid my bill, I explained my story and apologized if she happened to be one of the workers that I talked to on the phone at some point in the past year. She understood my confusion and laughed with me as I talked about my boneheadedness.  Then she began to look more in-depth at my tax bill.

“Mr. Foster, you do owe the $800 but it doesn’t look like you have claimed the homestead exemption the past two years.”

“The what?”

“The homestead exemption.”

“How do you qualify for that?”

“Do you live in the home?”

“Yes.”

“Then  you qualify.”

She proceeded to explain how the homestead exemption works and how it would save me roughly $800 per year. Then she explained the process for applying for it.

“Why didn’t anyone tell me this before?”

“Well usually your mortgage company explains this but sometimes they don’t know or simply fail to let the buyer know.”

I guess mine was one of those companies.

By the end of the day I had applied for the homestead exemption and was assured that I would receive a refund not only for 2011 but also for 2010. What looked like an $800 bill turned out to be an $800 blessing.

I praised God.

And I appraised myself.

It is so easy to convince ourselves that we have it all figured out, that we have a handle on the facts and everyone else who disagrees with us is either stupid or incompetent. It is hard to be humble, teachable, willing to be corrected, ready to acknowledge our mistakes.

But we must.

One of the most repeated truths in the Bible is a simple one: God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble (James 4:6, 1 Peter 5:5, Ps 138:6, Prov 3:34, 29:23, Matt 23:12, Luke 14:11, 18:14).

And sometimes with the grace comes a homestead exemption.

¹⁷ Now Jesus, going up to Jerusalem, took the twelve disciples aside on the road and said to them, ¹⁸ “Behold, we are going up to Jerusalem, and the Son of Man will be betrayed to the chief priests and to the scribes; and they will condemn Him to death, ¹⁹ and deliver Him to the Gentiles to mock and to scourge and to crucify. And the third day He will rise again.” (Matthew 20:17-19)

Jesus continues his final trek to Jerusalem. Along the way, He senses the need to pull His disciples aside and again remind them about what is going to happen to Him in Jerusalem. This is His third crucifixion/resurrection prediction in Matthew (16:21, 17:22-23).

Mark’s gospel tells us that the disciples were both amazed and fearful as they approached Jerusalem (Mark 10:32). Jesus apparently told them these words to remind them that everything was under control. Yes, He would be betrayed and crucified but He would rise again. But Luke tells us that even after hearing these words, the disciples had no idea what Jesus meant (Luke 18:34). They probably assumed that Jesus was speaking figuratively. They just couldn’t process how the Messiah could be rejected and killed…and the concept of physical resurrection was not at the forefront of their thinking (cf. Mark 9:10).

Part of me wonders why the disciples just couldn’t get it. Jesus’ words seem so self-explanatory. So clear. But the disciples are like the rest of us. When you think a certain way, it is hard to hear anything contrary to your thinking. You fight it. Or you explain it away. A rejected, crucified Messiah was not in the disciples’ theology. They couldn’t process it. They couldn’t accept it. So they missed it. And by missing the concept of a crucified Messiah, they missed the hope and glory of a resurrected One as well.

It is a reminder to me that I have to keep my ears and heart open to the Word of the Lord. I am to be firm in my beliefs, established in the core truths of Scripture…but I am also to be teachable, moldable, always humble in my own limited perspective and hungry for God to expand my understanding. May I never get to the point where I think I have it all figured out. May I never get to the point that inwardly I take Jesus aside like Peter and say, “Lord, let me tell You how it should be.”

The other thought that strikes me from this passage is that God is in control. He is sovereign. While the chief priests and scribes will act on their own accord and the Roman soldiers and rulers will make their own decisions, they will ultimately act in accordance with God’s foreordained, foreseen plan.

For truly against Your holy Servant Jesus, whom You anointed, both Herod and Pontius Pilate, with the Gentiles and the people of Israel, gathered together, to do whatever Your hand and Your purpose determined before to be done (Acts 4:27-28).

I can’t really fathom that. It is beyond my comprehension. But in the mind of God both work together seamlessly, without contradiction, for His glory.

That should give me comfort. Whatever happens in this world, it is all within the plan of God. Nothing is beyond His control. And even when things look dark, look dire, look disastrous, God can somehow bring victory and glory out of it. Without the tragedy, there is no triumph. Without the fire, there is no refinement. Without the cross, there is no resurrection.

Well, 2012 has begun…and talk of the “end of the world” will certainly increase as the year goes on. The Mayan “Long Count Calendar,” which presumably began on August 11, 3114 BC (according to the best guess of some scholars), will come to completion 5125 years later on December 21, 2012.

Uh oh.

I guess if you are Mayan then this is your Y2K moment when you fear that all your stone calendars and utensils will stop working :>).

Actually I am impressed that the Mayans had such a calendar. They were a resourceful people. And if nothing else, they made sure that their civilization would be talked about 5000 years later. But to derive any other meaning from their Long Count Calendar is obviously hype-filled speculation. The Mayans didn’t have any idea what would happen 5125 years after their calendar began…nor did they care.

But there is something interesting behind all the speculation of the world’s demise. Something inside of us reminds us that our existence is fragile and that the world can not go on forever. Something tells us that the world will eventually end.

And I agree.

Just as the world began at a certain time, it will end at a certain time. The universe is not eternal. It has a beginning and it will have an end. We just don’t know when that end will be. Jesus makes it clear: But of that day and hour no one knows, no, not even the angels of heaven [or the Mayans], but My Father only (Matthew 24:36).

That doesn’t stop the speculation.

I remember reading George Orwell’s 1984 in 1984 and being disturbed at the thought of such an oppressive, intrusive government. Big Brother is watching! I remember being in Bible college and someone giving me 88 Reasons Why the World Will End in 1988. I was bummed that I wouldn’t graduate but glad that my Greek exam might not happen.

Then my first year in ministry in NJ (1999) I spent considerable time dealing with the Y2K issue. Some in the church had read Michael Hyatt’s The Millennial Bug and were stockpiling food and gas supplies and warning others to do the same. I had to remind people that it was wise to be prepared for any unexpected emergency but that fear, speculation, and excessive stockpiling were not to be our response.

Most recently radio preacher Harold Camping made the news for predicting the end of the world on May 21, 2011 and then adjusting it to October 21 when May 21 passed without instance. He quietly retired a few days later on Oct 24…probably 40 years too late.

So how do we respond to all this? How is the Christian to live in light of the “end of the world”?

We are not to be flippant as those who mockingly say, Where is the promise of His coming? Ever since our fathers died, everything goes on as it has since the beginning of creation (2 Peter 3:4).

On the other hand, we are not to be fearful Chicken Littles or dogmatic date-setters who quit our jobs and stand on a mountain waiting for the Lord to take us home (cf. 2 Thessalonians 2:2, 3:10-12).

I think 1 Peter 4:7-10 has the answer. It was back in 1999 when these verses really caught my attention. Ever since then they have been my “go to” verses whenever someone predicts the end of the world or when my own mind wonders how I should live in light of the return of Christ.

The end of all things is near. Therefore be clear minded and self-controlled so that you can pray. Above all, love each other deeply, because love covers over a multitude of sins. Offer hospitality to one another without grumbling. Each one should use whatever gift he has received to serve others, faithfully administering God’s grace in its various forms. (1 Peter 4:7-10)

The apostles lived every day in light of Jesus’ return. When Jesus ascended to heaven, they were ready for Him to return (Acts 1:6). Thus Peter lived with his eyes on the skies. But he also lived practically and reasonably, realizing that the return of the Lord, while imminent, could also be thousands of years later.

So since the end of all things is near (it could happen at any moment)…therefore (this is how to live)…

Pray with a level head. Peter doesn’t say freak out, act weird, and walk around with an end of the world sandwich sign. He says be sober-minded and self-controlled so that you can pray effectively. In other words, be observant. Be discerning. Be wise. Be aware of what is happening in the world and also be knowledgeable of Scripture. And pray for God’s glory to be manifested in whatever happens in the day-to-day events of life. God is ultimately in control so fear and panic do not need to dominate the mind of the believer.

Love with a forgiving heart. Instead of becoming obnoxious with people or cursing at the world, Peter says…above all other things…make love a priority. The Great Commandment doesn’t change whether Christ comes back today or 5000 years from now. We are called to love God with the totality of our being and to demonstrate that love by loving others as Christ has loved us. That is our calling…and it is to increase as we see the Day approaching not decrease (cf. Hebrews 10:25). So to live in light of Christ’s return means to live with short accounts. I don’t let any conflict go unresolved because I don’t want to face my Savior with a bitter heart over some petty offense.

Bless others with an open home. Instead of holing yourself up in a cabin in Montana with your shotgun and your MRE’s, Peter says open up your home…and do so without grumbling. Peter is writing to suffering believers who may have grown tired of helping others and just wanted to close up shop and isolate themselves for awhile. Peter says don’t do that…and also don’t help others from some kind of martyr’s complex or sense of duty. Be hospitable with joy. Difficult times may come in 2012. An economic downturn may happen. Persecution may increase. But regardless, we are to be a giving and generous people (as exhibited in an open home) ready to help our fellow brothers and sisters as needed.

Serve with willing hands. Finally Peter says don’t retreat and pull away from the local church, but instead become more involved, using whatever gifts you have for God’s glory. The body of Christ functions best when every believer is doing their part. The worst thing about end-of-the-world-date-setting is that it usually distracts people from God’s work and often creates division in a local church. If you look at those who bought into Camping’s predictions, you often see people who are uninvolved in a local church, critical of it, and eager to follow some kind of different movement. They are tossed to and fro by every wind of doctrine and easy prey for deceit (cf. Ephesians 4:14). Being part of a local church keeps me balanced in my thinking, accountable in my actions, and focused on relating to people who are different than me.

So that would be Peter’s advice for the start of 2012. Christ could come back this year. Maranatha! But whether He does or doesn’t, our calling as believers remains consistent.

Pray. Love. Bless. Serve.

With your eyes on the skies.

A friend’s dad died this week. Just like that. Literally in an instant. One minute he is breathing, living, relating to his family, shopping, planning for Christmas. The next minute he is in eternity. With God. But away from his family. At Christmas no less, the time that you want your family to be together, the time that you want to be filled with joy and peace, the time that you want life to make sense…if even for a moment.

As I thought about that this week, I realized that we often talk about the danger of a commercialized Christmas. Christmas turned into a money-making, spend yourself into debt, get more stuff commercial holiday…totally removed from the heart and meaning of Christ’s birth.

But there is another more subtle danger that is sometimes easier for us to fall into. A sanitized Christmas. Christmas turned into a Hallmark card with a milky white baby resting peacefully in a straw bed. Cute animals peering in adoration. Clean shepherds on their knees. A placid Joseph and Mary sitting next to their makeshift cradle. And halos sitting on everybody’s heads.

A beautiful picture. Idyllic. Peaceful. Serene. But is it real?

I think of Luke’s short comment about Jesus’ birth. And she brought forth her firstborn Son, and wrapped Him in swaddling cloths, and laid Him in a manger, because there was no room for them in the inn (2:7).

No room in the inn. A man with his pregnant wife on the verge of giving birth can’t find a place to stay. They were out-of-towners, arriving at a time when the small town of Bethlehem was overrun with people for the government census. Moods had to be strained. Space was limited. It was every man for himself. And Joseph arrived late to the game.

And so, stressed, tired, and probably scared to death, Joseph does the best he can. He finds an animal stall perhaps in a nearby cave. That is where his wife will deliver their first child.

I grew up with cows and chickens in the backyard. I know that where there are animals, there is lots of dung. Lots of flies. Lots of stink. We never gave a bath to our cows.

Mary goes into labor in a barn…with only her husband, the carpenter, to help her deliver.

Alone. Ostracized. In pain. And nobody seems to care.

There is no indication that Mary’s labor was easier because she bore the Savior of the world. The birthing process had to be painful. That was the curse of Adam’s sin (cf. Gen. 3:16). The One who would bear our pain brought pain on that night.

Joseph would be the only one to help Mary through her painful labor. With only the animals watching. And the flies buzzing around.

This baby would be born in the most unsanitized of conditions.

She laid him in a manger. After the delivery, Joseph scrambles to find whatever he can. Supplies were limited. He grabs a feeding trough, also known as a manger, dumps out the morsels of food and fills it with whatever clean hay he can find. The umbilical cord is cut with an old knife that he has in his bag.

She wrapped Him in swaddling cloths. Strips of cloth. Mary and Joseph have very few clean clothes but they take what they have and tear it into smaller strips so that they can wrap the baby tightly, warmly. The same process used to wrap a dead body is used to wrap their newborn baby. The baby who was born to die.

The first and perhaps only visitors that night (the wise men came much later) are a group of shepherds. Not the clean shaven guys with the nice white and blue robes and the cute little lamb in their arms. No, the rough guys who hadn’t bathed in weeks, if not months. Considered unclean by the Jews. Smelly. Outcasts. They are the ones who show up to welcome the child and provide some brief companionship and comfort to the new, tired parents.

Blood. Stench. Dirt. Dung. Flies.

Alone. Unwelcome. Ostracized.

Pain. Labor. Life…and reminders of death.

Not the picture that we normally have of Christmas. How would you paint that on a Hallmark card? What would it say on the inside? “Hope your Christmas is better than the experience of these people.”

But there is real hope in the unsanitized Christmas.

Jesus Christ was not born to make our world a little better, to make the winter months more bearable, to make life and death a little more tolerable. He wasn’t born into a world with a few problems needing improvement.

Jesus was born into a world of sin…a world of pain, sorrow, stench, betrayal, rejection, dung, flies, and death…a world separated from God. A world without hope. A world needing a Savior.

You shall call His name Jesus, for He will save His people from their sins (Matthew 1:21).

In the unsanitized Christmas we see two things.

We see sin. The cancer of creation. The rebellion from our Creator. The selfishness that courses through our veins. We have no room for God. We want our own way. We want God to bow to us. And all of creation groans under the weight of sin’s curse. The world is not the way it is supposed to be. We are not the way we are supposed to be. And death seems to have the final word.

And we see Jesus. “Jehovah saves.” God in the act of salvation.

His birth was God invading our world.

His death was God bearing our sin.

His resurrection was God conquering our enemy, death.

And His return will be God wiping away our tears.

Even the tears of Christmas…when we miss our loved ones the most.

I first heard about Tim Tebow from my parents. They told me about a homeschooler who was lighting up the high school football field near our hometown in FL. They said he was a solid Christian kid who played QB, ran like a fullback, and had a knack for winning…and that he had committed to go to the University of Florida to play football.

I didn’t care too much. I didn’t like the Gators. I was a Florida State Seminole fan–the Gators’ arch-enemy on the football field.

In Tebow’s freshman year at UF, the Gators made it to the national championship game. He was the back-up QB to Chris Leak but already the Gator fans were calling him “Superman.” He had come in sporadically during the season to score touchdowns, what every fan loves. His ability to run, pass, and bust through the line made him a triple threat at the goal line.

I thought that the whole “Tebow  craze” was way too premature. He had barely done anything on the field and the praise seemed to be destined for disappointment. Who can live up to that kind of hype?

Plus I still didn’t like the Gators.

But the next season Tebow won the Heisman Trophy as a sophomore and then another national championship as a junior. The Tebow craze in FL was growing rather than diminishing. And just about everyone in my family (parents, siblings, nephews, nieces) was talking about Tim Tebow and wearing #15 Gator jerseys.

At the time, my family lived in NJ and fevered interest in college football rarely crossed the Mason-Dixon line. It’s hard to get into college football when Rutgers is your state team.

But my four boys picked up on the Tebow mania and soon they were wearing #15 jerseys too. I didn’t mind. My interest in Florida State football had waned and I couldn’t help but root for a young man who seemed to have such a passionate and sincere faith in Jesus Christ. What better role model could you want for your kids?

And the more I read about Tim Tebow, the more I liked him. He was down to earth, liked and respected by his teammates, involved in charity and mission work, and a great football player. I had never seen a player with so much passion on the football field…and so much passion for Christ off of it as well.

Sports Illustrated ran a cover story about Tim Tebow in their July 27, 2009 magazine. The title was “You Gotta Love Tim Tebow” with the tag line: “He’s a Heisman Trophy winner and a two-time national champion, but the Florida quarterback will tell you he does his most important and rewarding work off the football field.” http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/vault/article/magazine/MAG1158168/index.htm

I read the article and was more impressed. Tebow was using his platform as a college football player to minister in prisons, do charity work overseas, and sponsor community service initiatives on campus. Not only was he involved in ministry himself but he was influencing his fellow teammates and the entire culture at UF in the same direction. No small feat.

I became a fan.

When Tebow was drafted by the Denver Broncos in the first round of the NFL draft, I listened to all the NFL analysts and pundits critique his ability to play QB and the wisdom of Josh McDaniels (Denver’s coach at the time) making such a move to get Tebow. Many analysts didn’t see Tebow as worthy of any more than a 3rd or 4th round draft selection. “He is better suited to be a fullback or a tight end than a QB” was the standard mantra. But there he was in the first round wearing a Broncos hat with Josh McDaniels vowing to play him as his QB.

Tebow didn’t play much until the end of his first season and by that time McDaniels was fired as coach of the Broncos. It seemed that the “Tebow experiment” would end in Denver and Tebow would pass into the night (no pun intended) as a back-up QB or a converted fullback on some other team.

Then this season happened. A Denver team 1-4 and dead in the water reluctantly gave the reins to Tim Tebow. Many believe that the real intent of the Denver coach and the GM was to watch him fail on the football field so that the Denver fans would come to their senses and stop chanting his name in the stands.The fact that Denver traded away their top receiver (Brandon Lloyd) after Tebow became the starter suggests that they had mailed in the season and were already looking to the next.

But somehow in the first game Tebow won…and then he kept winning even after getting pummeled by the Detroit Lions in his second game.

Every win was ugly…and somewhat miraculous (from a football perspective).

Here is the basic script. For 50 minutes of the game, Tebow looks terrible. He barely makes a first down and completes few of his passes. The critics on blog lines start making Tebow jokes and laughing at the idiocy of Tebow fans. Then in the last minutes of the fourth quarter, Tebow leads a feverish comeback where he runs stronger, completes more passes, and inspires his teammates to a higher level of play. When the final seconds tick off the clock…or when overtime ends…Denver somehow wins.

7-1 as a starter. Six straight wins. From last to first in their division.

I am sure it has been done before. There are other QB’s who have engineered fourth quarter comebacks. But something about the Broncos season has captured the attention of the media…and it primarily centers on Tim Tebow. The QB who isn’t supposed to be a QB. The college football player who isn’t supposed to be in the NFL. And ironically the young man who isn’t even supposed to be alive. Tebow’s mom was advised to abort him because he wasn’t supposed to be a normal, healthy baby. It’s a storyline that seems too good to be true…and a storyline that doesn’t excite the pro-abortion crowd who probably wishes that Tebow would just go away.

As a pastor, I try to keep sports in perspective. I know that, from an eternal perspective, winning a football game doesn’t matter. There are almost always believers on both teams and to pray for one team to win over another seems pointless and misguided at best.

But for some reason I am praying that the Broncos keep winning. It is not a prayer on the top of my list by any means…and to be honest I have never truly verbalized it in a prayer to God. It is more of an “unspoken request” :>).

More than anything I want to see Tim Tebow continue to use the platform of NFL football to point people to Christ, to minister to others, and to change the culture of the Broncos team, the city of Denver, and possibly many others in this sports nation.

Is that unrealistic? Is that weird? Is that taking sports too far?

I wonder…if God were to raise up a modern-day Dwight L. Moody or Billy Graham in our culture…if He wanted to use a person to capture the consciousness of the particular American society in which we now live…could He use a sports star, an NFL QB?

Maybe He wouldn’t because it would feed our already out-of-control sports addiction. Or maybe He wouldn’t because it would cause too many people to associate God’s blessing with winning a football game.  But, on the other hand, maybe He would. If God speaks in a language that we can understand, then maybe sports is the only language that many in our culture understand today. Maybe He would use a football player…just like He wants to use a pastor, a policeman, a politician, a plumber, or a parent…to be a powerful witness for Him.

Is it crazy to believe that God could use Tim Tebow to awaken a spiritual desire in the heart of a spiritually dead, distracted, and cynical society?

I can’t say…and won’t say…that God wants the Broncos to win or that He orchestrates plays on the football field to Tebow’s favor. But I can say that God wants His name to be proclaimed and His work to be accomplished and, if Tebow is willing to be used by Him, then God just may bless his efforts and multiply his impact…both on and off the field.

Whether the Broncos win or lose a football game ultimately doesn’t matter. Whether Tim Tebow  succeeds or fails on the football field ultimately doesn’t matter.  Only the life-giving message of Jesus Christ ultimately matters. And those who have a passion for Christ, as Tebow has, should pray that his influence increases, his integrity remains intact, and that his ministry field expands to the glory of God.

So that’s why I care about Tim Tebow.

Because, in Christ, we are on the same team.

I meant to write this post several months ago. I didn’t. So I am writing it now.

My oldest son, Nate, turned 13 this year. Besides making me feel old, it also was a reminder of the great responsibility that I have as a father to my sons. I only get one shot at this…and the time passes so quickly. I want to redeem the time and make the most of every opportunity (Ephesians 5:16).

One of the books that inspired and impressed me was Robert Lewis’ Raising a Modern-Day Knight. Lewis is the former pastor of Fellowship Bible Church in Little Rock and his book detailed some of the “manhood ceremonies” and traditions that he established in raising his sons. Lewis used a knight theme as a way to instill in his sons the ideas of honor, integrity, and bravery. I liked the ideas but just couldn’t get into the knight theme. No offense to King Arthur and his round table but I knew I needed to come up with my own ideas.

Here are the traditions and “rites of passage” that I have started and am doing with my sons. Since Nate is the oldest, he has become the “guinea pig” for them all. So far they have seemed to work and to leave a strong impression on him. Maybe there is something that you can take from them as well.

Yearly Birthday Dinner. About five years ago, I started taking my sons out for a special lunch/dinner on their birthdays. It is just my son and me. I let them pick the place to eat. When they were younger, they wanted to go to Chick Fil-A. Now their tastes are getting a little more expensive. Nate has chosen a Japanese steakhouse the past few years. During the meal, I use the time to hear their best memories from the past year, see how they are doing spiritually, and ask if they have any questions for me or issues with our parenting. Typically nothing major comes up but it at least opens up the door for future communication.

10-Year Old Night Out. On their 10th birthday, I wanted to do something a little more special so I decided to take them away for a night. Nate and I went away to a Christian retreat center (America’s Keswick in NJ) and spent the night there. Keswick has an Olympic size pool and other activities so I figured the two days together would be fun. But when we arrived, I found out that their pool and most of their other activities were closed since they only opened when large groups were staying on site. I thought the time might be boring for Nate but he didn’t mind at all. That night we walked around the lake together. We talked about God, life, sports, girls, and whatever else came up. Along the way, he took me by the hand and thanked me for being his father. I knew at that moment that the night away meant a lot more to him than I could have imagined. The next day we played the only two activities still available–frisbee golf and raquetball. We had a blast. As soon as we got home, Noah, my second son, asked where we were going on his 10th birthday. The precedent had been set.

On this 10th birthday trip, I take the time to have the “sex talk” with my boys. I use Carol Nystrom’s God’s Design for Sex series. We read through Book Two together and talk about it. I want my boys to understand the beauty of sex and God’s design for it. I also want them to know that they can talk to me about any sexual issue or ask any sexual question. The night away affords a great opportunity for this interaction.

13-Year Old Special Trip. While eating lunch one time with a friend, he mentioned that when his kids turned 13 he asked them where they wanted to go in the US and then he took them there for a special 2-3 day trip. The idea struck a chord in my mind. I knew the expense could be a challenge but, at the same time, I knew the potential benefits could be priceless (sort of like the Mastercard commercials). Out of curiosity one night when Nate was around 12 1/2, I asked him, “If you could go anywhere in the US, where would you want to go?” To my surprise, he said without hesitation, “The Grand Canyon.” That resonated with me because I wanted to see the Grand Canyon too!

I looked at my OnePass miles and I had enough for one flight. I checked into flights to Phoenix and the costs were reasonable. I talked with Liz and we decided to go ahead with the plan, knowing full well that in committing to take Nate where he wanted to go we were committing to three more trips with my other three sons.

When I told Nate we were going to the Grand Canyon, his eyes lit up.

Planning the trip with him was almost as fun as the trip itself. I was thinking that we would fly into Phoenix, drive to the Canyon, walk around exploring a little bit, and then come home. Nate had other ideas. He asked, “Can we go whitewater rafting?”

I wasn’t as wild about this idea. I am not an adventure seeker. I have been whitewater rafting on youth trips in Tennessee and in Costa Rica. I went more out of duty than out of joy. The last trip I was on in Costa Rica I was thrown out of the raft. Nothing bad happened as I went down the rapid on my tush but the whole experience made me inwardly vow that that would be my last whitewater trip.

Out of fatherly love I started to research whitewater rafting on the Colorado. I was almost relieved when I saw that there were no one day or two day trips on the Colorado River. But then I found a one-day trip with an Indian tribe called the Hualapai. The more I researched it, the more it looked perfect for what we wanted to do. I made the reservation (no pun intended).

Our trip was phenomenal…and God arranged so many things for us along the way.

We arrived in Phoenix on Monday and drove to Peach Springs, AZ on Route 66. We stayed the night at the Hualapai Lodge. The next day we went whitewater rafting. We were placed in a raft with a family from Northern Ireland. Come to find out they were a Christian family and their teenage children immediately hit it off with Nate. I couldn’t have planned a better whitewater experience…and best of all I didn’t fall out of the boat.

The next morning I planned a “rite of passage” ceremony with Nate. I like the concept of a bar mitzvah and wanted to reproduce it in a small way. I challenged Nate to be a LIGHT–a Leader with Integrity, Grace, Humility, and Truth. I talked about each quality and shared my hopes and dreams for Nate. I read to him what I wrote in my journal when he was born. We cried together and prayed together. I used two candles to symbolize the time. I had him hold his candle in the flame of mine and talked about how in his early years, he borrowed his light from us, his parents. Then I had him pull the candle away. Now as a young adult he needed to personalize his faith and make it his own. As parents, we could help relight his candle for awhile but soon he would be on his own. Together we poured the wax from our candles onto a LIGHT certificate that I made for him. I gave him a leather necklace with a star to remind him of being a LIGHT for Christ in this world.

About mid-morning, we left Peach Springs and headed back toward Phoenix. We stopped and swam at Slide Rock, drove through Sedona, and got to Phoenix in time to watch an Arizona Diamondbacks’ game. We didn’t even know Arizona was playing at home but we saw a billboard when we first got to Phoenix. I looked online, found cheap tickets on StubHub, and got us two tickets a row behind the left field fence. We didn’t catch a home run but at least the Diamondbacks won.

On Thursday morning we flew back to Baton Rouge.

Nate called it the best trip of his life. My prayer is that he will remember it the rest of his life.

I know I will.