Stand Up

If we as Christians hope to change the direction that our country is rapidly going in, we need to stop acting scared and start standing up for what we believe in. Christians and in particular pastors and church leaders are going to have to make a decision. What really matters to us, our comfort or our beliefs? For far too long we have been afraid to really speak and act on what we believe. We have been happy to lead our comfortable, quiet, politically correct lives out of the sight of anyone who may criticize us. We have allowed our country and our churches to be taken over by people whose beliefs and values are very different from ours. It is time for all of us who truly put our faith in Jesus Christ, to stand up, stand up and speak, stand up and vote, stand up and act out in faith.

The stealing of America

I continue to be amazed at how quickly and easily Americans are giving up their rights, how quickly they are turning from what has made America great. When you stand back and look at what has happened over the past year it is almost breath taking. We went from a very long sustained period of economic growth and prosperity to………. the end of the world as we know it? I mean really what has changed? Well for one thing we have elected both a president and congress that are bent on taking the America we have known, the America our founders dreamed of, down. You laugh? You think I am over stating their aims? You think perhaps "we are all Americans and in the end we all want what is best for America"? Really? I guess what I would ask of you and of our leaders is, who's America are you interested in seeing the best for? The one our founders dreamed of, or the one liberals have been pushing us towards for decades, a socialist America where Government is the answer for everything. Look at how quickly they are moving. They understand that this is an unprecedented opportunity for them, an opportunity that may never come again. Look at the fear and panic they are spreading. Why? Why are our leaders standing up and shouting "fire" in a crowded theater? I will tell you why, because they are determined to change this country forever. Liberals always prey on the weak, always. It is what gives them their power, and right now they have most of America and the world weak and scared. The question is: are we smart enough to see this for what it is? Are we smart enough to stand against the tide and say no?

Liberals and Poverty

What bothers me about liberals is how "compassionate" they think they are and at the same time just how judgmental they are of other people who do not share their views. You often hear them talking about how their hearts break for the downtrodden and outcast and then in the very next breath accusing Americans of being "greedy" and uncaring. They are quick to talk about how we need to "spread" the wealth around to those less fortunate, but just who's wealth are they talking about? Very rarely is it their own. I am not doubting that they are sincere in their caring, what I do question are their solutions and the judgmental way they treat those who do not agree with them. All too often liberal solution seems to involve villainizing the "wealthy" and forcing "greedy" Americans to pay for their social programs, either through higher taxes or outright confiscation of wealth. Rarely do I see them taking personal responsibility for the problems and reaching into their own pockets to help out. If they truly believe in helping others as passionately as they claim to, why don't they fund the programs on their own? Why not give till it hurts out of their own pockets? Why sit in judgment on those who very well might be quietly doing more for the down trodden then they could ever imagine. There is real poverty in this world and we as Americans can do a much better job of finding solutions for it, however, forcing people to pay for solutions does not get at the root of the problem. The root of the problem is that we live in a society that no longer values life, a society that has walked away from God, a society very much created by these same bleeding heart liberals. If liberals truly believe they have the right answers and that the rest of us are just greedy and self centered, let's see them start by redistributing some of their own wealth first. But no, that won't happen because it is much easier to spend someone else's money than to have to sacrifice yourself and spend some of your own.

Treasure

As I sit here watching this county's economy continue to slide and in particular the financial markets, I can't help but wonder, where is my treasure? To be certain, a good deal of my families assets are in our home and the stock market, and my manufacturing business is certainly affected by the economy, so I am not immune to the normal human worries about financial safety. But if I am to take my relationship with Christ seriously and if I am to take God at His word, my treasure should be in heaven and everything I own here on earth should belong to God. God is not losing money because the financial markets are in decline, He is not worried about it, nor is He surprised by any of it. If I am truly His servant here on earth, I should not be either. This does not take away my responsibility to be a good steward of what He has entrusted to me, it does however change my perspective on it.

Modern Christianity

I have been reading through the book of Acts recently, mostly because it is the book we are reading as part of our prayer group at work. I chose the book of Acts because more than any other book in the New Testament it shows what life was like for the early Church Fathers and believers. Every time I read Acts I cannot help but reflect on how different life was for them, the persecution, the beatings, even death, all for the name of Jesus. The amazing thing is that it was not a surprise to them and it wasn't something they feared, in fact, they actually rejoiced in it. It makes me wonder whether our idea of Christianity is all wrong. We live a very soft, very comfortable Christian life, particularly here in the US, and we seem to seek churches with a message that this comfortable life is ok. That in fact this comfortable life is better than ok, that it is actually a sign of God's blessing on us. If this were true, what are we to make of the early Christians? Better yet what are we to make of Christians in China or Darfur, who are being persecuted and killed even as I write this? Is their persecution a sign of God's displeasure with them? I think not, I rather think our whole notion of what Christianity is and what God's blessing is, is distorted and just plain wrong. Much of the Gospel preached in this country is designed more to "tickle" our ears and increase donations and attendance then it is to teach real Christianity. God does not care about physical comfort and possessions in this life. That is not what His blessing is about. God cares about people who are willing to sacrifice their will, their desire, and their comfort, even their very lives for His sake and for His purposes. We American Christians need to wake up to that fact and start living lives that reflect true Christianity, only then will we begin to live lives of true blessing.

Outreach and Private Business Part 3

It is easy to say that our outreach as Christians is ineffective and needs to change, but how do we begin to approach that change in the real world? How do we recreate our outreach and "welfare" model in a way that truly lifts people out of their circumstances? More importantly, how do we do it in a way that attracts people to Christ? Because ultimately what will truly change people's lives is a right relationship with Christ, in the end, life circumstances do not matter, what matters is our relationship with God. I believe the real future of outreach lies not in the various governmental programs, not in Christian outreach institutions, not in churches or even radio ministries, although there is a place for all of them. I believe the future of Christian outreach lies in private industry. Specifically private industry owned or run by Christians. Private industry both modeling and funding outreach thru internally generated cash flow, perhaps even employing their own "missionaries" to go out in to the field on a local and global basis to set up indigenous programs that will in time lift people from their life of spiritual and physical poverty into a self sustaining life of physical and spiritual growth, growth that leads them to Jesus Christ. I believe the solution to these problems rests on the people of God taking personal responsibility for leading lives that are honoring to God. The people of God need to rise up and take on the responsibility of leading the world to Jesus Christ through their actions and their words. That means taking Christ seriously not just on Sunday, not just with your Christian friends, but bringing it right into the work place. It means encouraging businesses, in particular private businesses, run or owned by Christians to step up and run their business in a Christ honoring way. It means taking the notion of outreach and Christian service seriously. The economic engine of this country, even in this down turn, could truly change the world, if Christians would just start living their faith. There is a big movement among progressive "Christians" and "Christian" Universities towards "Social Justice", many have made this their primary focus. But "social justice" without a right relationship with Christ is useless and can often border more on socialism then true Christianity. Unfortunately this movement often villainizes and condemns the very economic engine and people who could truly lead us to a more effective way to help those in need. Instead of villainizing them we should be encouraging them to live lives that are honoring to Christ. Capitalism is not evil; in fact capitalism is much more closely aligned with Biblical truths then socialism. The Bible preaches personal responsibility and in fact suggests that the people of God should work for what they get, not expect the government or others to provide for them, and that we as individuals should be looking out for our neighbors.

Outreach and Private Business Part 2

My personal opinion is that the way we view outreach, whether it is done through nonprofits, missions work or governmental programs, needs to change. All these organizations tend to become like companies, companies with employees, executives and boards, and even thought they may start out with all the best intentions, they eventually become more interested in the survival of the entity than in the mission they were originally founded for. Even the way most local churches do their outreach is ineffective and perhaps even counterproductive to their cause. All these organizations, nonprofits, local churches, radio ministries and in a way even the government are competing for the same dollars, reaching out to many of the same people in a way that makes all of them ineffective and in a very real sense makes them almost seem to be greedy for money and notoriety, more interested in promoting what they are doing then really having an impact. There seems to be little or no coordination between any of the organizations. In addition we are training a generation of young people who tend to look at the "mission field" as a career. A career funded by generous well meaning people's donations. What happened to Paul's concept of actually working for what you get? What happened to his concept of not being a "burden" to anyone? I am not saying there isn't a place for the people of God to support God's work financially; I believe there is and that it is an important component of Christian growth. What I am saying is that we as Christians need to look long and hard at what we are doing with our outreach resources and why. If you step back for a minute and try to listen to and reflect on what message is being given, whether it is "missionaries" going door to door looking for support, or radio ministries constantly in need of addition funds, or churches with huge budgets always looking for more, far to often the message seems to be, we know what is best and we need your money to do it. The message of how desperately the world needs Jesus Christ almost gets lost. It is why I believe our whole concept of what outreach is needs to change. The question is, how do we change it?

Outreach and Private Business Part 1

The whole area of Christian outreach is one that continues to confuse me. We are the wealthiest nation on earth and even the poorest people here in the US would be considered rich in the rest of the world. We spend billions of dollars as a nation both through governmental programs and non-profit outreach, trying to "help" people in need, yet the problems only seem to grow worse. In addition, when you begin to understand and truly see the breadth of the problems, it seems almost overwhelming. The more these organizations do, the more handouts they give, the more it seems that people become dependent on them, and people who are dependent on other people or the government, never develop a real sense of self worth. They eventually become bitter and resentful, people need to feel and believe they have a hand in solving their own problems. The "welfare" type solutions just don't work. The real way to help others is to give them a hand-up, not a handout. To develop a program where the people you are trying to help are part of creating the solutions, where they are being allowed to develop long term social economic solutions that work within their particular community. In addition, it needs to involve a component that allows them in turn to "reach out" to those who are less fortunate than them. If we could integrate an outreach component to the outreach we are doing it would radically change the way all of us look at need.

Our New Presidents First Official Interview

Does anyone find it odd that the first official interview granted by President Obama is with the Arab TV network Al-Arabiya? Not to mention that in the interview he trashes past US policy towards the "Muslim" world, commits to repairing those mistakes and talks about his "upbringing in Indonesia. Indonesia? I thought he was raised in Kansas! These Muslim Countries he is worried about reaching out to are some of the most barbaric, backwards countries in the world. Their record on human rights and in particular women's rights is abysmal. Women in these countries are almost treated like property; they have no real rights at all. And yet I am sure all of Obama's sheeple from women's rights groups to celebrities will applaud his bold move. What are we coming to.

Christian Churches, Morality and Politics

Now that the election is behind us and our new president is in office, there is a nagging question that keeps bothering me; why is it that so many Christian Churches are afraid to stand up for what is right? Whether it is issues such as abortion, homosexuality, appropriate dress and behavior towards the opposite sex, or many other issues, in the context of an election, it seems like most supposed conservative Bible based churches have elected to stay mute. I would go even further and say that most Christian churches (my own included) have elected to stay mute on those subjects even outside an election. That they have bought into this whole idea of "political correctness". It is almost as if most churches are more concerned and afraid of what the world might think and than they are about what God might think. Even more, it almost seems they are more concerned with attendance and financial support then they are about standing up for what is right. At the same time, the more liberal "Christian" churches are becoming more and more outspoken about their liberal stance on those same issues, not just preaching their beliefs from the pulpit but even taking it to the media. Many "Black" Churches even go so far as inviting high profile politicians to preach from their pulpits DURING ELECTION TIME!!! And no one seems to think twice about it. For some reason it is only conservative Christians that this false adherence to "Separation of Church and State" seems to apply to. Then again, Christ warned us that we would be persecuted by the world so perhaps it should not be a surprise. However, what does surprise me though is how easily conservative Christian leaders fall into the trap, how easily we have done this to ourselves. If we aren't willing to stand up for the truth even amongst ourselves how will we ever stand up for it out in the world?

The Sheeple of Obamanation

Is anyone as alarmed as I am by the absolute adoration President Obama is getting from both the press and a substantial part of the American population? "News" people and commentators are almost gushing in their praise of a man who has yet to do anything; a man whose very beliefs are opposed to all America is founded on. Celebrities by the score stood with tears in their eyes looking up in worshipful awe at a man who has little or no concept of what real sacrifice and the "American Dream" are about. Ordinary people by the millions, listened with rapt attention as this man and his followers ridiculed and condemned the very fabric of what makes us great, while promising them they would "level the playing field" by taking from those that have and giving it all to them. This is a man who promises "Change" and inclusion while promoting one of the most biased and divisive agendas in the history of our country. This is a man who promises "Openness and transparency" while bullying anyone who asks too tough a question and practically closing the White House to any real scrutiny. How can so many people have been duped? Are Americans really that dumb? Have we truly become a nation of sheeple? It just seems like Americans can no longer think for themselves, that Americans have become so accustom to the comforting arm of big brother government taking care of their problems that they are almost gleefully giving away their freedoms. And what of our military? Has anyone stopped to think about how dangerous a world we live in? Is this really the time to become a "friendlier more gentle" nation? There are people out there who would gladly cut our heads off and parade them in front of a cheering world. Is this really the time to worry that some of their "human rights" are being violated? As far as I am concerned they gave up their rights when the towers fell. Not to mention President Obama's stand on the unborn, he has barely had time to sit at the desk in his new office and he has already issued executive orders allowing the funding of abortions in foreign nations. My fear is that we have started down a road that will be very hard to return from, a road that will ultimately lead to the end of America as we have known it. I pray that I am wrong.