Nature

With homosexuality being accepted and displayed at every turn, it is increasingly difficult to hold to the truth that it is wrong.  When you take a stand against homosexuality, it seems the only response you receive is an indignant “Who are you to judge?”  It is almost eaiser to give in and keep quiet; and I don’t like that option. As an aside, most of us don’t judge, but instead are fearful for the judgment from God to those who disobey.

For those who would say: It’s in their nature, they were born that way.

I say: We all have our own “nature” that we must battle. We simply cannot go around doing what is in our nature if it is wrong.  It is in my nature to be angry and intolerable of incompetence, stupidity, and selfishness. I was born that way. However, that does not mean that I can allow myself to berate and insult every person who has no common sense, or anyone who doesn’t know which direction to turn to go from West to North, no matter how much I may want to. 

Paul says “I die daily”.  We need to overcome these natural instincts that are wrong.

Who do you Trust?

I have trust issues.  I have never denied this and, in fact, am rather open about it.  Trusting anybody is nearly impossible for me and I used to wonder why.  Reality is, well, it’s reality.  We are not perfect and, eventually, people let you down.  Society today is overwhelmed with divorces, murders, and offensive content that trusting your own spouse is not an option.  This week I found just how rampant trust issues are.

 I had the opportunity to speak with a young woman whose personality and thought processes mirrored my own.  She said everything I thought.  As I listened to her, I thought about how sad it is that so many woman have these issues.  I thought about all the things that bring these to light.  Everywhere you turn something is thrown at you to make you prettier, younger looking, thinner, or something else that will make you more attractive to the other gender.  And I thought about how unfair it is that this young woman said she wanted to get married and have a family, but probably never would because she did not think she would ever find anyone she would trust enough.  13 years ago, that was me.  That was what I thought. 

I was able to tell her that without my trust in God, I would not be able to trust anyone enough, either.  When things get tough, I pray and then talk things out with my husband… in that order.

Why Faith: Pastor Gary

Hebrews 11:6 says, “without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him.”

I am a magnet for religious discussions. It drives me nuts. As a matter of fact I don’t often tell people I meet I’m a pastor, because I know what will happen next; my new friend will start asking me questions or telling me why I’m wrong about the way I believe something because their great aunt, who is now dead, was told once by someone that is a pastor, or priest, or one of those religious types…. Then I get to answer for someone that has been dead for 20 years that said something that no one can remember. However, the thing I hate most is people telling me that all religions are the same and that they are all right and as long as you believe in something you are O.K. I could never understand how Jesus can say he is the only way to get to heaven, and the great Buddha, Siddhartha Gautama, can say that there is no heaven, and they both be right.

The other day I was reading a book on religion and I came across something that made me say Eureka. O.K. I didn’t really say Eureka, it was more like, I see now. The book made the statement that all religions are made by people seeking to alleviate guilt. I don’t agree with the statement, but I realized that is why people say all religion is the same. If all religion is simply for the purpose of making ones life better, then anything you believe that makes your life better is a good thing, and as long as you are better because of your religion and I’m better because of my religion, then both are right.

The tricky part of that is; what if there really is a God and that He is a rewarder of them that seek Him? What if He is a jealous God that doesn’t want to share the affection that is His with other false gods? What if He rewards evil and sin? Although I can’t say God created a religion, I know he opened a door for a relationship. This relationship may have blossomed into a religion, and there may be many false religions made by man, but God is looking for those that will believe He is. Place your trust in Him and know that He will reveal Himself to you.

Compassion v. Beliefs?

I am vocal in my belief of the sanctity of marriage.  When I hear people complaining about their spouse, I always try to turn things around to the positive side. Or I point out how wrong it is for them to complain about what they are complaining about…

 I am currently working with a woman who is contemplating a divorce; gathering information and “processing” the situation.  Her complaints stem from her husband’s job.  He is an over-the-road truck driver and is away a large portion of the time.  My first question to this woman was “Was he a truck driver before you were married?”  My thought being that if she knew that he would be away from home that often before she was married, this is a sign that perhaps she thought he would change.  This is a bad way to start a marriage.

 The path she is choosing is not one that I can condone.  However, I can only limit contact and conversation with her;  I cannot completely avoid either.  And should I?  As a person, I feel compassion and sympathy for her when I hear her speak of 14 years of marriage about to end.  I want to comfort and be a friend, yet I don’t want to condone a divorce. 

 This is an issue common to working in a secular position.  In being compassionate, even if I state that I do not believe in divorce, would my actions be saying this is okay?  I pray that God gives me the words to say, and in the meantime, continue to reaffirm where I stand so this does not become so commonplace that it becomes acceptable to me.

Marriage now appears to be “just something you do.” Divorce is easy to obtain. Most people do not realize how it affects others around them.  This woman missed a day of work, Valentine’s Day.  While I don’t recognize this day, many do, and this was not a day she wanted to be in public.  This affected all of us at work as we all had to take our turn filling in her position throughout the day.  This is not a private matter.   It affects us all.  “This world we live in is interconnected.” (taken from “Private Life” 1/14/0   

Suggested reading: http://soulsharborofrockford.wordpress.com/2008/01/14/private-life/ 

Matthew 5:28 and Common Sense.

I was at a small get-together of sorts and the topic of discussion had swung around to a movie just released on dvd and video. I have not seen the movie. I do not wish to see the movie. I hope I never have to watch the movie. Anyway, a member of the group asked a male member of the group if he had seen it; he had. Apparently, he didn’t like the movie too much. His response was something very close to “I think it’s only redeeming quality was that the lead girl was really sexy.” At which time both his wife and I stared at him, dumbfounded at how openly he said it.

Ready?

That was just inconsiderate. Outright rude. This is a guy who is not religious, but spends so much time worrying about being a good guy.

Those of this world think ”Hey, he thought some girl was hot. So what?”; it was inconsiderate. Let me put it this way. Say you are an attorney and you are defending some guy on a criminal case. You lose. You’re standing in the courtroom when the judge announces a life sentence. You turn to your client, who is now going to rot in jail and say, with a laugh “Oh man, I lost so bad! You are so going to jail!”

Yes, that is my comparison, and I stand by it. Let’s not forget Matthew 5:28 says “But I say unto you, That whosoever looketh on a woman to lust after her hath committed adultery with her already in his heart.” That should be enough, but since it is sadly not when dealing with the world, let’s think about this…

I was unhappy and uncomfortable and I’m not the one married to him.  How must his wife have felt?  These type of comments are damaging and hurtful and nobody seems to want to stand up and say it is not right. His wife said nothing. When did we decide that this is acceptable behavior? When did we decide that we would stifle legitimate feelings because “everyone does it?”

My brother says “If you want to be happy with what you have, stop focusing on everything else. Focus on what you have.” (Yeah, I know, other people have said it too, but he’s the one that I listened to.) It’s more than a nice saying, it’s true; I speak from experience.

 As though the rest of the world had not damaged us enough while we were growing up, we now allow our spouses to contribute.

Don’t be afraid to say this is not right. You never know whose life you will make a difference in. You never know who you will help to realize that this is not how it has to be; and in the end, you may even save a marriage, even if it is by helping a person realize that they don’t have to marry someone who lusts after others before they are married.  It will certainly help you realize the person you want to be.

Private life

We live in a world that wants to be private and individual, yet our private lives influence more people than ever before. I have heard the phrase, “what I do in my private life is none of your business.” This isn’t true. What a person does in their private lives influence a lot of other things. The world we live in is interconnected. My case is made stronger in the fact that you are reading this blog right now. You either appreciate what is written here or you are hating it, but it is having an effect on you.

First of society pays for much of what is deemed acceptable behavior behind closed doors. It is a fact that heavy drinkers are more prone to have accidents or to have costly medical expenses. Likewise a chain smoker is more likely to have costly medical expenses. I have yet to meet a Bible believing Christian, that is Christian in deed and not word, be on disability as a direct result of being a Christian. Yet, I have met many people that are wards of the state because they practiced their ‘right’ to drink whenever they wanted. There is a price to pay for these social ills that many Christians call sin. It is a fact that what you do behind closed doors does affect the rest of society. Medical costs and taxes are just one example of what all of society has to pay because many people believe that what they do behind closed doors doesn’t matter.

The second approach we make is on the lines of the spiritual life. There are some that don’t believe in God or live according to His ways, but for those that claim to be Christian and feel they can live life without any restrictions this claim of spiritual consequences should grab your attention. I have a phrase I use a lot while preaching. I say that we shouldn’t ask Gods’ permission, but ask His will. We shouldn’t say to ourselves, “I can still; it won’t send me to hell,” but we should ask ourselves, “does God want me to do this.” I can do all things, but not all things are expedient. This mornings message was on a man named Achan. Achan had a right to do what he did, but he was commanded of God not to. Because of Achans’ wrongdoing 36 men died. What you do in private does matter in public.

To listen to this mornings message go to www.soulsharborofrockford.com and listen to “What you do in private matters- 1/12/08