Ruby likes to send out an annual letter to family and friends. We assume most of them would like a refresher course on how we look, so we include a picture of ourselves. Read it all
relationships
Entitlement That Leads to Bitterness
"I deserve better" will make me bitter.
Tuesday after supper, Ruby and I were chatting about feeling entitled and deserving — an at-home follow-up to the pastor’s theme Sunday morning. She had raised the subject, wondering what I would say on the subject of entitlement.
Then later in the evening as I did the second of my twice daily ear-diaper changes, I got to thinking about the subject of bitterness since it comes up in today’s printed text (for our adult Sunday School lesson).
I thought about things that provoke in me a rising of bitterness. It easily happens when… Read it all
The Bait of Satan
Your response to offense will determine your future, temporally and eternally.
Last year I listened to a sermon preached in a little church in Texas. I was so impacted by it, I shared it with a friend. The message is “The Bait of Offenses” (preached by the now-late Mervin Graber).
Not long after, my friend was in the book section of a thrift store and saw this book title: The Bait of Satan (by John Bevere). Curious by its similarity to the sermon title, he pulled it off the shelf and saw it addressed the same subject. So he bought it. And read it. And loaned it to me.
I was so impressed by the message that I read the book. Wow! Before long, my friend’s wife found another copy of the book in a thrift store. She bought it and my friend gave it to me for Christmas or my birthday.
You can listen to the sermon version “The Bait of Offenses” at my Anabaptists website. I urge you to do so. Please.
The rest of this post is more about the book as well as some excerpts from it. Read it all
How to Respond to Treachery in the Church
A determination to show love, forgiveness, and grace
What I say to treacherous, deceitful Brothers in Christ:
- I love you.
- I forgive you.
- I don’t see you as my enemy.
- I don’t trust you so much.
- My trust is available for you to win back.
I want to say those five things consistently, dependably, and truthfully from my heart. Amen.
How to Write a Hard Letter
Tips and illustrations for composing a difficult email, SMS, blog, tweet, or status update...
The current issue of World magazine arrived in our mail today. I looked at the photos on the table of contents page, matching them up to their articles. Then I looked at the two-page spread with photos and quotes and stuff. Then I looked at the two articles in the back.
The last article didn’t interest me enough to read it. (Sorry, Marvin!)
But the next-to-the-last article (yes, I’m a Seu fan, I confess), I read. Until I got to this line: Read it all
Seven Things You Can Do to Cast Down Gentile Power in the Church
How to rein in an unbiblical reign in your congregation
“Ye know that they which are accounted to rule over the Gentiles exercise lordship over them; and their great ones exercise authority upon them” (Mark 10:42).
That’s what I call Gentile Power.
“Power. Authority. That’s pretty heady stuff! Too often, those who have it want to preserve it, and those who don’t have it want to acquire it.” (Mark Roth, c. 1994)
Gentile Power infects churches, church committees, and church boards. That’s because it infects disciples. Even disciples of Jesus. Read the context and background of the verse above if you doubt me.
Over the weekend I finally posted an article I wrote on this subject. In it I mention five categories of people according to their response to or perception of this evil. I also offer seven options for the consideration of those weighing their response to such use of church authority.
Along the way, I ask:
You have… You have… You have… But that person — minister, chairman, whoever — continues to use his position as license to exercise Gentile Power.
What are you supposed to do?
I eventually offer the challenge to choose between two other options. Then I advise:
Choose well.
You’ll pay dearly for either one.
But only one will reward you handsomely.
You’ll pay dearly for either one.
But only one will reward you handsomely.
I invite you to read my full article (Gentile Power in the Church) then come back here and extend the discussion below.
If Jesus Is the Christian Woman’s Lover…
Who is my lover?
Some of my sisters in Christ believe they have a sensual dimension to their relationship with Jesus. They even use sexually suggestive language in speaking of it.
I think the Christian woman with such a perspective gets there by using the Bible like this:
- When I became a Christian, I became part of the universal church.
- Jesus is the bridegroom of the church.
- The Song of Solomon graphically depicts a very sensual relationship between a man and a woman — romantic, passionate, sexual.
- The Song of Solomon pulls back the curtain on the relationship between Jesus and the church.
- Jesus wants me to have that kind of relationship with Him.
If you are a woman who sees Jesus as your Song of Solomon lover, please answer my simple question:
Who is my lover?