Church

A few weeks ago, Mark shared this quote in a sermon: "I would rather light a candle than curse the darkness." Adlai Stevenson, a former governor of Illinois and twice a candidate for president, once used this quote in reference to Eleanor Roosevelt.  Only he took it a step further: "She would rather light candles than curse the darkness, and her glow has warmed the world." As Christ-followers, we are told to live among unbelievers in such a way as to "shine among them like stars in the sky as you hold firmly to the word of life" (Philippians 2:15-16). In other words, our glow should warm the world around us -- in our homes, around the neighborhood, and at work. My prayer for 2013 is that our church will become a glowing reminder of what God wants this world to be.

At Christmas time, one of the carols we often sing includes these words from Scripture: "peace on earth, goodwill to men." Since the beginning of recorded history (3,100 years), do you know how many years have been without war?  Only 286 years.  That amounts to approximately eight percent of recorded history.  During this same period of time, 8,000 treatises have been signed and broken. Our track record with peace is not so good. Even when you move from a global perspective to individuals, are we any better?  The answer is simple: no.  We experience interpersonal conflict, strife at work, hostilities at home.  Most importantly, apart from Jesus, we are not at peace with our Creator.  In fact, the Bible refers to our pre-Christian experience as being "enemies of God" (cf., Colossians 1:21). Through Jesus we can become friends with God.  That's the message of both Christmas and Easter.  The hostilities…

Much of John 5 is Jesus responding to the Jewish leaders who were criticizing him for performing miracles on the Sabbath.  More than miracles on the Sabbath, they were upset that Jesus was claiming to be the Son of God. Jesus launches into a discussion about authority and testimony.  His authority comes from God and God himself testifies to this fact.  In the midst of this, Jesus drops this line about John the Baptist: "John was a lamp that burned and gave light" (John 5:35). What a great depiction of the kind of life God honors. Not all lamps burn.  In ancient days, a lamp without fuel would be a dark lamp.  Today, there are lamps in my house that will only give light when they are plugged into the wall.  They may look nice, even decorative, but that's not what a lamp is for; a lamp is for providing…

How should Christ-followers respond to tragedies like the one that recently occurred in Connecticut?  What should be our response to a world that continually bears the scars of spiritual darkness? James Kelly once said, "I would rather light a candle than curse the darkness." There are some among us who have chosen to curse the darkness.  That's easy to do.  One doesn't need to look far to see the evidence of society's moral slide.  We have lived in the mud for so long that we no longer see the tracks. It's easy to blame "them."  Some of the purveyors of moral sludge are obvious targets and easily lend themselves to attack.  So, some choose to whine, complain, argue, boycott, or fight against the darkness. For a moment, it may make them feel better.  But does it make the world a better place? I'm not convinced that it does. Only light will dispel…

This past Friday started as a normal Friday for me.  I fixed coffee, went to a 6 am Bible study, and took the girls to school.  After that, I started on my thrift store circuit (I bought a Thermos!).  But this would not remain a normal Friday. Mid-morning I began to notice a few posts on Facebook about a school shooting in Connecticut.  At lunch, I fired up Google News on my phone and sat in stunned silence as I read the news about Sandy Hook Elementary.  I cut my thrifting short and went home to turn on the news.  The only way I can describe how I felt is this: heart-broken. That feeling hasn't changed much over the past three days. The question that always gets asked in these kind of situations is this: Where was God?  I understand where that question comes from.  It's the question a broken…