What Do We Do When Christians Mess Up?

Interestingly, three stories appeared in the same week about Christian leaders who messed up. One is a coach who behaved hypocritically. Another is a televangelist living in a $7 million mansion who pays no property tax. He said God told him to “Minister this house to [your wife]. It is part of your prosperity.” And a third Christian leader faces a lawsuit. His accuser, terminated from the organization, claims blind allegiance to the leader is a stringent job requirement, and the leader spurned COVID-19 protocols in the workplace.

These kinds of “got ‘cha” stories get good play in the press; often it’s a way the media humbles the self-righteous, whether they be religious or political leaders.

But what should our reaction be when fellow believers stumble?

First, we must avoid gloating as a secular world might. The accusations are serious, of course, but it’s also true that we’re in the same family. We accept a new responsibility when we decide to follow Christ. We pledge to help our brothers and sisters in the faith, not to judge them. So we grieve.

Second, I think we must hold to the principle of accountability. There are consequences for inappropriate behavior. If one skirts the law, there are fines and other punishments. If one stumbles as a moral leader he or she may need to step aside for a season. So much of accountability depends on the offender’s attitude. Contrition goes a long way; obstinance complicates matters.

But another task we must do is to restore the fallen. The apostle Paul said, “Dear brothers and sisters, if another believer is overcome by some sin, you who are godly should gently and humbly help that person back onto the right path. And be careful not to fall into the same temptation yourself” (Galatians 6:1, NLT).

Restoration is a Christian alternative to gloating or shaming. Restoration doesn’t overlook an offense but finds a way around it. Restoration says to the offender, “You’re too valuable to cast aside. We’ll work with you to make you stronger, and then you’ll be able to help others who stumble.”

Henri Nouwen popularized the term, “wounded healer.” He said Christ “was wounded for our transgressions,” as Isaiah prophesied so long ago, and became our healer. Nouwen further argued that Christians who suffer, whether by loss, disease or bad choices, can be fitted for better and more effective service to others.

Dr. Charles Chandler founded “Ministering to Ministers” to encourage ministers who’ve experienced involuntary terminations. One feature of MTM’s retreats is the stories of those who’ve been through terminations sharing how they coped. Chandler often tells retreat participants, “Don’t waste your pain. Use it to grow stronger and to help others.”

The Disturber Of The Peace

In a seminary class the late Dr. Frank Stagg made a shocking comment: “We Baptists love Paul more than we love Jesus!”

After letting his word sink in, he continued: “Paul is the apostle of grace. He said we can’t earn salvation, only accept it. We read Paul and rejoice. But we read Jesus and get disturbed.”

Though his comments were made tongue-in-cheek, they contain great wisdom. Jesus came to Bethlehem and disrupted the lives of several people, including King Herod, the innkeeper, the magi, the shepherds, Joseph and Mary. All were busy when Jesus burst on the scene, forcing them to decide what course their lives would take in the future.

Though the prophet called him “the prince of peace,” Jesus continues his role as disturber of the peace.

He disturbs us in our sin. When Pilate killed some Galileans, and a tower fell and killed 18, Jesus told his disciples these weren’t the worst of sinners who died. “If you don’t repent, you’ll perish, too,” he said (Luke 13: 2-5).

Repentance is a radical turn to God. Jesus refuses to let us grow comfortable in a life of dishonor, nor does he want us to perish in unfulfillment. He stands before us and shouts, “Repent!”

Jesus disturbs us in our selfishness.

Once a distraught man asked Jesus to intervene in an inheritance case. He refused, and then took the occasion to speak another sobering word: “Beware of greed, for a man’s life isn’t measured by an abundance of things” (Luke 12:15).

Then Jesus told a story about a wealthy farmer who decided rather than helping others, he’d take his abundant harvest, keep it and live in splendor the rest of his life. Jesus called him a fool because he cared only for himself.

Jesus disturbs me when he tells me I can’t be greedy and godly, and that I must love people more than I love things.

And Jesus disturbs us in our social lives. He said we must love our enemies, bless them and pray for them (Luke 6: 27-30). This word goes against the grain of our human nature. When someone hurts us, our first reaction is to hurt them in return. But this cannot be.

Was Jesus talking about bullies? I don’t think so. Our parents taught us to stand up to bullies. Was he talking about war? I don’t think so. War is a sad reality in our world. I think he was talking about responding in love even when others are unlovely, which is what he did on the cross.

Jesus won’t allow us to be comfortable in disobedience. He disrupts the status quo and offers help to make us into better people.

Christmas Means God Is With Us

I decided to attend graduate school before moving to Kentucky for theological study. My college friends and I bade farewell in December, and in January I moved to Auburn University—my home for the next 18 months. Though on a campus of 25,000 students, I didn’t know a soul and felt very alone. It was not a pleasant time those first weeks.

Novelist John Steinbeck wrote, “We are lonesome animals, who spend all of our lives trying to be less lonesome.”

Our nation is plagued with loneliness. We’ve seen an increase in working remotely during the COVID-19 era. Many of those I know who work from home enjoy the convenience and don’t miss their commute, but it’s also true they become more isolated from workmates. One study found among “Gen Z”—those who are 21-26 years old—one half reported loneliness. Though more connected electronically than previous generations, “Gen Z” has been called “the loneliest generation.” One-third of high school seniors said they “often feel lonely.”

Many older people feel alone, abandoned by friends and family. Great Britain established the “Silver Line” network through which senior adults craving contact can call and talk with others.

We feel alone when sick or facing disease or surgery. We suffer alone in our pain.

Lonely people must take initiative and welcome others into their lives. We find nourishment in community groups, civic clubs and Bible study classes. One lady reported she joined a quilting club in order to teach others her skills. In a short while she found participants not only growing in skills, but lonely participants making new friends.

Lonely people may feel forsaken by God. In “The Rime of the Ancient Mariner,” Coleridge wrote, “So lonely ‘twas that God himself scarce seemed there to be.” But there’s no place on earth where God is not. We may feel alone because we build walls between ourselves and God, but we aren’t alone. God doesn’t cease caring for us. He made a way for our offense to be covered. The prophet Isaiah wrote, “We all went astray like sheep; we all have turned to our own way; and the Lord has punished him for the iniquity of us all” (Isaiah 53:6).

One of the messages of Christmas is that God took the initiative to deal with our loneliness. He sent his son whose name is Emmanuel, or “God with us.” God loved us enough to come to us as one we could see, touch and relate to. As a little girl said, “Jesus is a God with skin on!”

Now God invites everyone to come to him through Christ, the bridge by which we cross the abyss of sin and enter God’s family.

Money Matters

“Do you want cheese on that?” the disembodied voice asked from the drive-through speaker. It reminded me of another cheese incident several years ago.

The customer in front of me had a coupon and presented it to the lady at the counter. But he grew agitated when she rang up his order. “You charged me for cheese, and the coupon said ‘with cheese,’ he said. She patiently went over his charges and explained why the register was right. He would have none of this. I never fully understood his argument, nor why he was so concerned over what, she explained, was a ten cent differential. I should’ve contributed the dime to make him happy and to speed the line along.

Scripture says a lot about money. For good or ill it plays a large role in our lives. Our attention to it can be wise or foolish. We can be foolish to argue over ten cents at the hamburger counter, but we also can be foolish to spend on small things whose total over time can be a large amount of money.

Financial counselors speak the obvious to those in trouble with money: “You must manage your money and decrease your spending.” So they talk about small things that make a difference. Specialty coffee can cost several dollars per cup and eating out every day at work can amount to a big amount of money every month. And how many colas must we drink each day when water is free? As Dave Ramsey famously says, “rice and beans, beans and rice” can be a pretty nutritious menu when a family in debt is trying to save money!

Many struggle with impulse buying made easy with credit cards. Ramsey counsels not to use cards since the average family in America owes $5,525 in credit card debt, paying 18 percent or more interest. Responsible consumers use credit cards as a convenience and keep debt in check by paying the balance each month. But those who wrestle with the temptation to spend impetuously should listen to Ramsey and forego the cards.

King Solomon counseled we learn from the tiniest of creatures, the ant, who labors in the summer to prepare for the winter. We face future expenses such as an automobile, college education or a new roof, and it’s wise to set aside money every month in preparation.

Another way to spend wisely is to use our money as a thank-offering to God. Old Testament saints brought sheep as a sacrifice to the Lord; today we bring cash or checks to honor God and invest in his work. Jesus promised a special blessing to those who develop a life of generosity (Luke 6:38).

When Trouble Comes

I was at the dermatologist’s office for my semi-annual cancer screening, wearing the gown that’s open at the back. My phone buzzed. “Please call me,” my wife texted in all caps. I called to find “someone” had left the lights on overnight in her car and the battery was dead. In the midst of helping her decide what to do, the doc and her entourage came into the exam room. I explained apologetically that I needed just a minute.

“That’s fine,” she said. “Just stand still and I’ll start on your back.”

So while I completed the call, she began to probe my hinder parts with three female assistants looking on. I suppose it was no time for modesty as I dealt with the crisis of the dead battery and the potential crisis of precancerous spots!

The doctor wacked off two suspicious lesions that, fortunately, were benign, and a kindly neighbor pulled his truck into our driveway and jump started the car. So, we survived the crisis of the moment.

I thought how often trouble comes when we’re busy doing other things--trouble much worse than I experienced.

This happened in our church over the past months. A church member had a government agency show up at his business and declare he had to spend thousands of dollars for site improvements he’d not planned for. Another member went for a routine blood test. His doctor saw something he didn’t like and sent him to a specialist. Another person got a call that her mom in another state had fallen and needed brain surgery. A church staff member learned that a teen-ager in a former church was in an accident and died a few days later.

I’m sure every community of faith can recount seasons of difficulty.

In the midst of trouble we often feel no one cares about us. We may even feel abandoned by God. Phillip Yancey wrote, “Where Is God When It Hurts?”—a sentiment commonly expressed.

“Why is God letting this happen to me?” we think, and “What’s this all about? I’m trying to be the best person I can be.”

I frequently share Paul’s word in 2 Corinthians 1:4 at funeral services where families often feel this abandonment. Paul said in trouble we receive the “comfort of God.” We have the assurance that he cares for us whether we realize it at that moment or not.

Paul went on to say that we use the same comfort to comfort others in their time of need. Thus every experience of trouble is a stewardship. God gives us strength sufficient, and later we can confidently and lovingly share our testimony of endurance to encourage others in their trials.

I May Never Pass This Way Again

A denominational meeting took me to Decatur and Huntsville recently. We lived in Decatur 25 years ago before taking a career move to academia. The area has grown. Though many areas looked recognizable, such as the house where we used to live, so much of the city was unrecognizable. Facebook helped me remember being in Huntsville five years ago for another denominational gathering. I had someone take a picture of me and four college friends at the meeting, so this was a “memory” that appeared on the page. But I think the last time I was in Decatur was to assist with a funeral some 20 years ago or more.

 I’ve had several thoughts, or “musings,” as Dr. Birx described the speech of former President Trump. “He just says what he thinks; it’s musing,” she said.

 I thought of good work I was able to do. We believers know that what we do for Christ has eternal consequence. And what we do might not seem monumental at the time: a word of encouragement, a visit with a lonely senior adult, speaking a word of truth from God’s word or a prayer with the dying.

But I also thought of failures. I’ve made my share in ministry. We older ministers joke among ourselves about being “seasoned” in ministry. This comes about because of the mistakes we made! No Christian is “ten feet tall and bullet proof” as Travis Tritt sang. Every failure should tender our hearts for others who struggle (and I surmise that’s most of us). Our stumbles can bring about the compulsion to reach out to others in their discouragement and offer words of hope.

Another thought I’ve had is that I may never have opportunity to be in those places again. My work is in the Birmingham area and that’s primary. I may never have occasion again to be in places I’ve lived and served. There might be no reason to go, or work might keep me busy or death may come. No one knows the day nor the hour when the death angel will stand before us.

Quaker missionary Etienne de Grellet wrote the famous lines: “I shall pass this way but once; any good that I can do or any kindness I can show to any human being; let me do it now. Let me not defer nor neglect it, for I shall not pass this way again.”

Today is a God-given opportunity to do good—to “let our light shine” as Jesus said.

But today is also a time to refresh ourselves in God’s mercy. He promises “forgetfulness” when we come to him in repentance to ask his forgiveness for wrong choices we made yesterday.

Giving Is Part Of Thanksgiving

It’s called “cognitive dissonance” when our thought process is different from our life choices. For example, we know greasy cheeseburgers aren’t good for us, but we still enjoy them. And we know we need to exercise but won’t get out of the easy chair! Another example is our generosity.

“The Christian Post” released a study on Nov. 1 about the giving habits of Christians. According to the report, a majority of evangelicals believe tithing (giving ten percent of one’s income) is biblical, but about 13 percent practice tithing. Furthermore, about half of evangelicals donate less than one percent of their income annually.

Tithing was part of the law in the Old Testament. Though we’re hard-pressed to find it in the New Testament, we do find another concept: “grace giving.” That is, because of God’s life-changing love for me, I respond with gratitude. I give not because of the law, but because I’m compelled by love. I think most believers know this is true.

Thus, cognitive dissonance. We know the truth, but we don’t practice it. Perhaps we convince ourselves we don’t have enough to give, or the student loans and other bills are overpowering, or we promise that when we get an increase in salary we’ll do better.

Another finding in this survey is there’s “relatively little difference in average generosity levels between an evangelical  in a household earning $50,000 and in one earning $150,000.”

This belies the assertion that people give more when they have more. Jesus said, “He that is faithful in the least is faithful also in the much” (Luke 16:10). If we’re not generous in our current life situation, how could we expect God to bless us with additional wealth?

The survey found one more interesting fact; namely, evangelicals who attend church regularly give more to God’s work. This makes sense because it is in the church that we talk about giving as an act of worship, point to the ministry needs of our communities and have means of receiving and spending money for ministries and missions.

We had a pastor when I was a teen-ager who announced in the pulpit that he studied the giving records of the members. This is certainly inappropriate since giving is a confidential matter. He dug himself deeper when he said, “And some of you don’t pay your share of the light bill!” The pastor created resentment, of course.

We don’t give to God’s work to be seen and heralded by others, even the pastor. We give to God’s work from a heart of love in response to his love that changed our lives, and with the conviction that our money is well-invested when we spend it to help others.

On Being Bi-Musical

It’s been said most of us don’t graduate from the music we liked in college. True for me; I still listen to Herman’s Hermits, Anne Murray and the Carpenters. However, I found a new, less mellow band lately in an unusual way.

I talked with a pastor who visited a contemporary church in his city, and asked him several questions about his experience, especially the music. He said there was very little congregational singing, and it was more like a concert with the band playing and praise team vocalizing. When I asked him what the music was like, he said, “It was like the music you and I used to listen to.” When I asked him to be specific, he said, “ZZ Top!”

So I had ZZ Top on my mind when I found a television documentary about them. Theirs is an interesting story, and I downloaded one of their albums on my iPod for the first time. I was especially intrigued by their duet with Elvis on “Viva Las Vegas.” This combination is as unlikely a pairing as Tony Bennett and Lady Gaga, who had the best-selling CD in America in 2014 (and followed it with a second one).

Some who write about faith matters insist people shouldn’t have to abandon their musical comfort zone when they worship. Thus, they say, there should be Bluegrass gospel for some, country gospel for some, jazz gospel for some and rock gospel for others. A California church offers Hawaiian gospel.

I remember hearing one of these writers “diss” organ music. “Who listens to organ music on the radio?” he asked. And that’s a fair point.

But musical tastes evolve.

Composer Ralph Carmichael died a few weeks ago. He’s called the father of contemporary Christian music for his work in the 70s. Andre Crouch wrote in the same era. Their music seemed a little “edgy” at the time—worship with a beat. Now it’s more mainstream. The hymnal our church uses has a Carmichael song and five Crouch songs.

I’m of the opinion Christian worshippers should be eclectic, or bi-musical just as many are bi-lingual. We should be able to enjoy the great hymns in their traditional settings and worship music with various orchestrations, too. I think that’s where most churches are in my denomination. We can sing the classic hymn, “Immortal, Invisible, God Only Wise” with the organ, but we can also sing “I’ll Fly Away” or join in Hank Williams’ “I Saw The Light” with a guitar.

It might be a bridge too far for the churches I know to have rock gospel this week, though it might conceivably seem tame to the next generation if it shows up in their hymnals.

Great Church Fights

He became a good friend after a mutual friend introduced us. Once he told me his greatest struggle as a pastor.

“Every three or four years the deacons come by and say, ‘The church isn’t growing. We think you should go,’” he said. “How am I supposed to take care of my family and keep my sanity?”

At conferences over the years I met two pastors who’d been terminated three times. I can’t imagine the trauma of this.

A new study by LifeWay Research found that 69 percent of evangelical pastors admitted to conflict in their churches. This isn’t surprising; I thought it might be higher. Every church is made up of individuals with different perspectives, theology and needs, so conflict is inevitable, just like in marriage. Couples who say they’ve never had a disagreement are rare, and probably untruthful.

I remember only one man who insisted he and his wife never argued. He also insisted he’d gone on a double-date with Elvis Presley, so I didn’t know what to think of his claims!

The survey found higher incidences of conflict over proposed changes in the church, and over the pastor’s leadership style. Interestingly, theology and politics accounted for only 12 percent or less of conflicts. A denominational official used to insist 90 percent of church conflict wasn’t about theology, but about “who’s going to be the boss?”

Since church conflict is inevitable, the key is how we deal with it.

Jesus taught conflict management in Matthew 18, proposing three steps. The first is a private meeting between the two parties. Many conflicts could be solved there. It takes courage to go to another person and humbly seek forgiveness and restoration. The tendency we have in this early stage is to involve our friends, seeking their blessing and persuading them to be “on our side.”

The second step is to bring in others as prayer partners and encouragers. Often churches ask their deacons to assist if this step is necessary.

The final and hardest step is to bring the matter to the whole assembly, dismissing the offender if her or she isn’t repentant.

A church in our metro area did this a few years ago when a public official who lost his job due to moral indiscretion refused to repent before the Lord and his church. The man rebuffed their entreaties. The congregation felt their reputation as a church was impaired and regrettably took this drastic step.

LifeWay found that about 10 percent of pastors leave congregational ministry annually, so the attrition rate is relatively small. But leaving ministry due to conflict is regrettable and most often unnecessary.

I believe Christians of goodwill can find a way past church fights.

Should A Christian Celebrate Halloween?

Bob Harrington, the late "Chaplain of Bourbon Street," preached one night in Mississippi and advertised his sermon title in the local newspaper: "Three Places Where There's No Problem With Racism." This was in the civil rights era and our nation was fixated on the issue.

Hundreds came that night to hear Harrington. He touched on his announced theme only in the first paragraph of his sermon: "The three places where there's no problem with racism are heaven, hell and in the heart of a Christian." Then Harrington preached a gun barrel-straight gospel message.

"Should A Christian Celebrate Halloween?" is, likewise, poised to draw a crowd, but there’s no easy answer.

Some say Halloween is the "devil's night" and refuse to participate or let their children participate. Others say it's a harmless night of fun and see no problem with it.

I remember a boyhood Sunday School teacher who used to rail against race car driving.

"It's just like the Roman coliseum," he often told us. "People go there to see drivers crash and die!"

Unfair and harsh, to be sure, for us impressionable children, and he never explained his animosity. Many people claim racing as their sports hobby. We even have a block of American conservatives called "NASCAR voters." And at Talladega and other racetracks, Christians serve as chaplains and give away bottles of water to thirsty attendees.

There was a local pastor when I was in high school who came back from a Bible conference with new enthusiasm, telling his congregation that he'd thrown his TV out the back door. If they really loved Jesus, he said, they’d do the same thing. A few weeks later they threw him out the door!

TV is still here. There are vile things on it, of course, but there are also Christian programs sponsored by great churches and Christian networks, too.

If we couldn’t stop racing or TV if we wanted to, we probably aren't going to stop Halloween. So, how can we respond effectively?

Some churches have used the so-called "Judgment House" drama that seeks to communicate truth about death and eternity. Other churches provide on-site festivals or distribute gospel summaries or worship invitations that homeowners can give away with their Halloween treats. I've known Christians who've designed attractive Halloween gift packages and included a simple "God loves you" note. For a number of  boys and girls, this might be the only time they read such a positive message.

Rather than turning lights off or scowling at eager boys and girls that we don't celebrate Halloween, why not give a little treat--the equivalent of a cup of cold water in Jesus' name (Matthew 10:42)--and simply say, "God bless you"?

Diamonds In Your Backyard

A lady involved in Judson College campus ministry when I worked there began to commandeer students on Sundays to drive to Birmingham to a large church for worship. When the president of the school learned this, he reminded her of his oft-spoken admonition to staff and students that we “nurture our community.”

“There are wonderful churches here that welcome our students,” he said, “and our students can help these churches with their ministries.”

He was right, of course.

I was honored to serve two of those churches in my 15 years in Perry County. We were, by and large, a county of small-membership churches. At the time the 15 churches in my denomination had only two full-time pastors; the rest of us were bi-vocational. Every weekend professors and police officers and businessmen preached the word of God. One of my friends served two churches, and one served three. I never did understand the three church thing. He explained it to me once, but I thought how confused I’d be trying to remember if it were first or fifth Sunday or the Sunday after a full moon!

One of my colleagues, the late Hal Arnold, Judson professor of psychology, often asked me to fill in for him at Pisgah Baptist Church since they had early morning worship and were a few minutes away from the church I served. Hal called me one weekend from Florida where he was visiting family. He said the state mission board contacted him requesting disaster relief funds. The Tuscaloosa tornado devastated the city in April 2011, and the board needed extra funds to support ministries.

I conveyed the message to Pisgah and observed a bidding war. Someone suggested they give $1000, and someone suggested more. Before the discussion concluded, the church agreed to send a check for $5000. I drove to Pine Flat Baptist Church later that morning to conduct worship and said, “Let me tell you what Pisgah did!” I used this good example to encourage our church to give generously, too.

I’ve often suggested that the spotlight is not the validation for ministry. As a pastor I’m in the spotlight every Sunday, but most ministry in our churches is done outside the spotlight. Faithful Christians do what needs to be done without public acclaim.

In the same way, the size of the church isn’t the validation for ministry. Churches large and small are called to glorify God and serve others.

And we don’t have to travel far to minister in the name of Christ. As Russell Conwell said years ago, “Your diamonds are not in far distant mountains or in yonder seas; they are in your own backyard, if you but dig for them.”

The Keys To The Kingdom

One of my favorite movie quotes is from one of the Indiana Jones series. Someone asked Jones what he intended to do next amidst all the chaos of his exploits. He replied, “I don’t know. I’m making this up as I go!”

I’ve jokingly referred to this as my “life verse” since I’ve had so many situations in life without a handbook or YouTube video.

However, the disciples of Jesus didn’t have to make things up. Jesus took time to explain to them foundational principles as they took his life and teachings and built churches throughout the Mediterranean world (Matthew 16).

Apparently, there was much confusion about Jesus’s identity in the first century. Some said he was John the Baptist or Jeremiah raised from the dead. Others thought he was Elijah who came to announce the messiah as Malachi predicted.

But Peter spoke the affirmation that Jesus is the Messiah, the son of the living God. Jesus responded that Peter spoke the truth, and then made a promise that he would build his church on this truth. The “Pure Word” translation renders his promise, “You are Peter, small rock, but upon this Huge Rock I will build my church.” The church goes forward with the assurance that Jesus fulfilled Old Testament prophecy as the coming messiah and that he shares deity with the Father. Without such assurance our efforts would amount to feeble attempts, indeed.

Then Jesus promised the keys to the kingdom. Christian art is replete with pictures of Peter holding these keys, and folklore has Peter at the gates of heaven determining who comes in since he’s the gatekeeper. However, the original language paints a different picture. Jesus said, “You are Peter (second person singular), and I give you (second person plural) the keys to the kingdom.” Jesus gave these keys to his disciples. The promise is repeated in chapter 18 with another obvious reference to the work of his disciples.

The keys to the kingdom means that what we do on earth has eternal significance. We’re not just applying our meager human efforts to a time-limited cause. We’re doing God’s work. It will last forever.

This is inspired encouragement for a discouraged church.

The Covid pandemic has been a time when the entire world has been hampered and hindered, and the church hasn’t been immune from this. Most of us have seen suffering in our congregations, and many of us have lost good people due to Covid. Now we come out of the pandemic weakened but determined to fulfill our commission from the lord of the church.

Christ promised to partner with us in this significant work and assured us that our kingdom labor has timeless consequence.

Putting God To The Test

It was a bit unsettling to get her message on Facebook.

She sent a message asking me to call, but I didn’t see it that day. Then she sent a written message basically calling me to task. The president of a hobby club I’m in asked me to post something on our page, and I posted what he told me to say. She said it was false information. My first response was to “launch” and respond in kind. But for some reason Solomon’s word stuck in my head: “A soft answer turns away anger” (Proverbs 15:1). I responded kindly and offered to rewrite a sentence. She seemed satisfied with this. I do reserve the right to “launch” if she responds further!

Lately I read The Living Bible’s version of Psalm 34:8: “Oh, put God to the test and see how kind he is! See for yourself the way his mercies shower down on all who trust in him.”

Is it unspiritual to “put God to the test”? Many of us remember the word in Malachi 3 about testing God by giving faithfully, so this may not be an unusual concept. I began to think about how we put God to the test when we hear his word and try to put it into practice.

For example, Paul wrote in 2 Corinthians 5:4: “For the love of Christ compels us.” In other words, our motivation in all things should be the love God has shown us through his son.

It’s true we have many motivations to do things in our lives, but the Bible insists the highest motivation is love.

I must confess that sometimes I’m not motivated by love, and most of the time it’s when I’m driving.

A gentleman lately decided he wanted to turn right, but he was in a far left lane. He swerved in front of me, causing me to slam on my brakes, and then he swerved into the lane to my right causing another driver to slam on his brakes. If he had turned left, it would’ve been a simple thing to turn around in the supermarket lot half a block away and redirect himself. I didn’t feel love for him.

And often when other drivers “ride” my bumper I don’t feel love for them.  They’re obviously impatient and want to drive faster than the posted speed. I don’t often feel love. My sin nature encourages me to drive slower to irritate them!

But if Christ is to be lord of my life, he’s to be lord of my driving.

I need to put God and his word to the test. His word works. My life is better when I find myself in obedience.

Leading Like Jesus

I sat with an interviewing group a few years ago and fielded a bevy of questions. One caught me a bit off-guard.

"What kind of leader are you?" someone asked.

I think I gave a credible response, but I wish I'd been expecting the question and had the luxury to think through it.

Ken Blanchard wrote a book entitled, "Lead Like Jesus." As Christians, Christ is our highest model in all things. How did Jesus lead?

First, he instilled confidence in his followers. To a ragtag group of disciples he said, "You are the salt of the earth" and "you are the light of the world." These men were anything but world-class influencers, but Jesus saw their latent abilities and sought to inspire them to match their potential.

Leaders bring out the best in others. They coach team members to reach goals and to excel in their tasks.

I've heard parents do this. They say to their children, "You did a super job!" or "You're a wonderful helper!" Affirmation brings inspiration.

Second, Jesus gave his followers a clear task. In the parlance of modern business, he was a "vision-caster." And the vision was to take the gospel to the whole world. Think of this--a world without radio or TV, automobiles, telephones or printing presses. But the goal was clear.

Teachers of leadership today talk about the "elevator speech." That is, one should be able to share personal or organizational goals in 30 seconds, as though riding an elevator with another person and having only a short time to talk. Goals must be known and shared.

Third, Jesus spoke sternly when necessary. As Robert Schuller pointed out years ago, Jesus never called a sinner a "sinner." He called sinners "friends," but he called the callous religious leaders "sinners." It was this group who refused to listen and sought to marginalize Jesus. As one commentator noted, they were religious men, but their religion had "gone bad" on them.

Good leaders must sometimes offer criticism. It's part of the job, though a part few of us relish. If the team member did something willfully and deliberately bad, then the leader speaks sternly. If the team member made a simple mistake, the wise leader offers an honest assessment with suggestions for improvement.

One leadership teacher proposed the "criticism sandwich" in which the leader sandwiches the criticism between two compliments. This is a good way to prevent the offender from being unduly discouraged.

Fourth, a good leader, unlike Jesus, admits personal wrong. None of us is infallible and we do make bad calls from time-to-time. Wise leaders know that their credibility is enhanced when they own up to wrong and ask for another chance.

The Choices We Make

It was a short encounter that in retrospect didn’t make a lot of sense.

I was in the check-out line when a lady came into the store and asked to step ahead of me. She explained to the clerk that she purchased the wrong cigarettes for her husband, and she wanted to exchange them. She had just left, and the package was still sealed, she explained.

The clerk was uncertain what to do.

“We’re not supposed to take food products back after they’ve left the store,” she said. “It’s part of our Covid protocol.”

The clerk eventually acquiesced and exchanged the cigarettes. The store policy was sound, and should’ve been followed but, strangely, the customer was more concerned over losing a few dollars than over her husband putting carcinogens into his lungs. And I’m sure she was in danger of second-hand smoke if her husband used this “food product” at home.

Anyway, to protect the innocent the store location and employee will remain confidential!

The episode made me think of the unworthy choices we sometimes make.

Many of us seniors reflect on our choices. We look back to the time when our children were at home and wish we could relive those days. We often chose to do something other than spend extra time with them. Sometimes it was work-related and couldn’t be helped; especially those of us who were salaried and “on call.” But, of course, there were events or meetings we thought we had to be part of that might not have really needed us.

One of the benefits of grandparenting is that we’ve grown wiser. We push back and spend time with grandchildren and know this is one of God’s great gifts. We can have renewed influence for God and for good.

And I think the church has thought about choices in this year of Covid. Many of our priorities before the pandemic were worthwhile. Our church had several things planned for spring 2020 that were beneficial, but they had to be shelved during the shut-down. Now that we’re gaining more confidence in our regathering, I believe some of the things I thought were important really aren’t. Having people back and doing ministry together is more important than some of the rules we used to think we needed to enforce.

Jesus summarized priorities succinctly in a well-known verse. “Seek first the kingdom of God, and then everything else will find its proper place,” he said (Matthew 6:33, paraphrase).

If we humbly seek to please God and obey him by serving others in need, we demonstrate our choices are sound. The old adage declares, “Only one life, ‘twill soon be past. Only what’s done for Christ will last.”

The Wet Paint Brush Tour

It’s a ritual whenever our painter comes to church--the “wet paint brush tour.” He knows I need about 30 minutes with him and his wet brush to touch up the nicks and scratches incurred since his last visit. Our painter is gracious enough to do this for me. He laughs and tells me the nicks and scratches are what he calls “job security”!

As Tom Selleck’s “Jesse Stone” tells Dr. Dix, “I sense a parable.” Sometimes we need an entire paint job—a makeover—and sometimes we need only to deal with the nicks and scratches.

Jesus used another analogy on the night in which he was betrayed and arrested. He taught his disciples a valuable lesson when he served the Passover meal, and when he served by washing their feet. Foot washing was the job of a common servant after people walked dusty roads, and none of the disciples offered to do this. Jesus removed his outer robe, took towel and basin and did the deed. He then taught them (and us) to “wash one another’s feet.”

My mother grew up in a church that practiced foot washing in worship, but I don’t know that I’ve ever seen it. Most of us believe foot washing is a synonym for humble service.

Nonetheless, Peter initially refused the overture of Jesus, then he decided to ask Jesus to wash him all over. Jesus replied that one who had been washed (“bathed”) only needed foot washing (John 13: 8-10). That is, we’re cleansed when we repent of sin and trust Christ, but we also walk in the world and our feet get dirty. We need to take care of the dust (or the nicks and scratches in the former illustration).

The Apostle John told the story about foot washing, and he relayed similar truth in his first letter. He said, “If we confess our sin, he is faithful and just to forgive us” (1 John 1:9).

The word “confess” is a compound word in the original language of the New Testament. “Homo” is the word for “same,” as in “homo sapiens”—humanity is of the same species. “Logeo” is the verb form of the word “logos,” or word. “Logeo” means “to speak.” Thus confession is speaking the same thing as God.

In other words, when the Holy Spirit of God makes followers of Christ aware of wrong, we agree. We don’t hide our sin. We cannot hide sin from God anyway, so it’s foolish to try. We agree with God’s judgment, and we forsake our wrong. Confession is like the washing of dirty feet. We must do it every day. In this way we can remain spiritually clean before the Lord.

Hitting Home Runs On Sunday

It’s an old story about a preacher who felt prideful about his sermon that morning. At lunch he asked his wife, “How many really great preachers do you think there are?”

She responded, “I’m not sure, but there’s one less than you think!”

Every preacher knows times we feel we connected—we did a good job--and other times we feel we didn’t connect. In the latter case pastors joke at ministers meetings about having the “Monday morning blues.”

Communication theory calls it “feedback,” which means the audience lets us know how we’re doing, most often nonverbally on Sundays. They look bored or sleepy or puzzled. This is one reason eye contact is important. If some look unengaged, we know we’re not speaking clearly enough.

I suppose there are many reasons why we think we failed. One can be the length of the worship service. Sometimes people ask for five minutes and take 20 for their testimony or song, and the congregation is wearied. Sometimes a pastor himself is weary from a sleepless night. Or maybe he thought he’d do a better job conjugating that Greek verb than he was able to do.

Expounding scripture is a serious responsibility that demands humility. It could be our feelings of failure are a tool in the hands of God to teach humility.

Pastors themselves can purposely demonstrate humility with self-deprecating humor. This means the pastor doesn’t always make himself the hero in the stories he tells—"I said the right thing at the moment,” or” I made a great decision in an awkward situation.” Sometimes the pastor tells how he messed up. This kind of humor doesn’t offend others, and may encourage them.

Another way pastors demonstrate humility is with confessional preaching. This is a more modern approach since one can hardly imagine the classic preachers telling about having arguments with their wives or spending money foolishly.

Confessional preachers tell about their struggles as they try to grow in discipleship. It’s argued that this kind of preaching demonstrates the pastor is imperfectly trying to serve God, has areas of needed growth and deserves prayer support, as do all those listening to his sermon.

I heard Pastor Rick Warren in a conference and was helped by an observation he made.

“We don’t have to hit home runs every Sunday,” he said, “just consistent singles.”

This was a welcomed word from a famed pulpiteer.

The “bottom line” is that pastors should study, prepare and speak to the best of their abilities, and trust God to energize their messages with his presence and power.

Sometimes what we say can be great encouragement for others even though we may feel we fell short of the mark.

How Available Should The Pastor Be?

She came to class for the first time in many weeks. We chatted a moment afterwards. I assured her she was missed, and we always enjoyed having her in study and worship.

“I love our Sunday School class,” she responded, “but I really don’t like preaching.”

I stood a moment trying to look sympathetic and sweet, but didn’t she know the guy responsible for the preaching was me?

Surveys report several reasons people don’t attend church including Sunday work, family obligations and broken relationships with others. And according to malphursgroup.com, “I can get better preaching from a podcast.”

The latter reason is, no doubt, true. Some of the “big” preachers have research assistants and enough staff that they don’t have to do much pastoral care or administration. Pastors of normative-sized churches, in the midst of other needs in the membership, struggle with sufficient time to craft weekly sermons in obedience to Paul’s word that we “study to show ourselves approved unto God” (2 Timothy 2:15),

In my younger years I tried to follow the counsel of the late W.A. Criswell of First Baptist Dallas. He always told us to “give your mornings to God.” I tried to reschedule visits and phone calls until after lunch.

Sometimes this didn’t work.

We had a custodial couple at one church and the gentleman always wanted to talk to me for 30 minutes when he came to empty trash. I heard the same stories a lot. Henry was the treasurer at another church who signed checks on Thursdays. He insisted on bringing mine to me, which was a nice thing except he would draw back his hand after offering the envelope to me. He laughed at his prank and said, “You don’t want this, do you?’ He did this every week for seven years. And then he talked for 30 minutes.

Another pastor mentor told me he always worked with his door open. He said you needed to be available to people when they need you, not this afternoon or tomorrow. He was right, of course. I’ve tried to find middle ground in recent years. I guard study time, but look for unplanned opportunities to encourage those with business at the church, or when out running errands, for that matter.

Another thing I’ve found is that I can go to the office early in those busy weeks. I can get there at 6 if I try and then have several hours of uninterrupted study time. And, of course, with the advent of the computer pastors can study and write at night.

Pastors strive to create messages that are relevant and fresh, but also strive to be caring shepherds. It can be an uneasy balance.

On Public Confession Of Sin

Years ago revivals had “quitting meetings” when people vowed to quit smoking, drinking, playing cards or the like. Pastor Alex shocked his congregation when he came to the pulpit one Sunday to announce he was quitting X-rated videos. He’d come clean with his wife, he said, and they’d sought God’s forgiveness.

“And I want you to restore me to fellowship with God,” he said and sat down.

This was in the days of rental video stores. Netflix has a documentary called “The Last Blockbuster” about the last franchise in the nation. Now, sadly, one doesn’t have to find a video store to feed porn since three of the top 14 most visited websites in the nation are “adult” sites.

I can only imagine the atmosphere that morning in Alex’s church. He’d given them something they’d not expected, nor especially wanted to do. In fact, he was relieved of his job that day.

I’d received a call previously from the church when they were talking with Alex about the position. I told the caller I knew him as a committed Christian and a faithful Bible teacher. And his wife was as sweet as sugar. However, Alex had a secret sin I didn’t know.

Can the sin of pornography be forgiven? Yes. God’s grace is sufficient for every need.  We confess to God first of all and ask for his healing power.

But sometimes our bad choices affect others. The Bible teaches confession among believers: “Confess your trespasses to one another, and pray for one another, that you may be healed,” (James 5:16). And Jesus said, “If your brother sins against you, go and tell him his fault between you and him alone. If he hears you, you have gained your brother” (Matthew 18:15).

Jesus further talked about bringing a matter before the assembly if the erring brother was unrepentant. But what about Alex who was repentant and in full confession mode? I rather doubt any good purpose was served with his courageous, but impulsive, confession. I can imagine the heinous nature of this sin was more openly discussed in that city than the nature of God’s forgiveness.

Since he and his wife and God dealt with the issue, perhaps a better course was to find a counselor to ensure he faced down this sin, and a confidential support group, like Alcoholics Anonymous, to offer accountability. Alex could’ve taken a few days of vacation while he and his wife determined whether they needed to begin the process of moving to another church, or not.

It seems to me that public and specific confession of sin should be rare, and only if the mission, fellowship and reputation of the church is in jeopardy.

Praying From Prison

I used to share an acronym in New Testament class so students could remember Paul’s four prison letters: ECPP, representing Ephesians, Colossians, Philippians and Philemon. One day Amanda spoke up: “Every cool preacher preaches.” Forever after we used her nonsense phrase to remember the four letters.

However, prison is certainly not a cool place.

Just after we moved to Judson College in 1998 my long-time friend Eddie Smith called to tell me he’d been named chaplain at the Bibb County Correctional Facility in nearby Brent. Chaplain Smith gave me numerous invitations to teach and preach at BCCF. And I met Bob Hall at the prison who, at the time, directed the New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary’s Birmingham extension. Through Bob, I got to teach a bit for the extension, and got an invitation to do a week-long intensive study in oral communications twice at the Philipps State Prison in Buford, Georgia, where the NOBTS Atlanta extension has an associates degree program.

Since BCCF is a dormitory prison, Philipps was my first experience at a cellblock facility. My classroom was in the gym, but a kindly correctional officer allowed me to visit a cellblock. The two day rooms looked good, but the tiny, closet-sized cells gave me a claustrophobic shudder, especially when I saw the two and one-half inch steel doors.

The church traditionally teaches that the four prison letters were written in Rome. The late Dr. Dale Moody argued for their being written in Caesarea where Paul was for two years in the last chapters of the book of Acts. From Caesarea to Colossae was about 1,000 miles. From Rome to Colossae was about 1,300 miles.

We’ve all been in worship services in which the minister asked us to take a moment to pray for those sitting next to us. We can understand and visualize this. But what about praying for someone more than 1,000 miles away as Paul assured the Colossians he was doing for them?

Modern satellite technology helps us grasp this concept. A ground signal is sent skyward and received by an orbiting satellite. Then the signal is sent to a downlink receiver across the planet with no loss of signal, unlike the old radio and tv towers we used to use.

In prayer, we ask the Heavenly Father for his intervention in the lives of others. Thus we pray to the one who “sits on the circle of the earth” (Isaiah 40:22). He is above all his creation and watches over it. There is no distance in prayer since we can, and should, ask him to work in the lives of people who live in distant lands.

ECPP can remind us that “every committed person prays.”