There is this tendency in people to desire originality. We want to be smart enough to figure out our life without other people’s help. We feel our way along and try to do the best we can in every situation.

Well, one of the benefits of being in the Church is that we have a community of people to draw upon. We can learn from our own experiences along with the experiences of others. Through the years I have tried to learn from the people in the Church. I ask a lot of questions and try to learn from the failure and success of others. Here are some of the areas I have sought guidance:

1. Spiritual growth
Find a few people who really know their Bible and ask them questions about how they read. Talk to people who have meaningful prayer lives and discover how they pray. We are surrounded by people who serve, give and love with great intensity. How do they do it? What can I learn from them?

2. Marriage
Spend time with people who have had long happy marriages. You can have relationships with couples your own age, but seek the knowledge of those older and wiser.

I would suggest you talk to people who have had your similar life experience. For instance, people who might have had to deal with a spouse who travels just like you. I love talking to people with four children, especially if they had four boys. How did their marriage survive the parenting years? What did they do to make time for themselves?

You also need to have some open conversations with people whose marriages failed. What happened? What would they do differently?

3. Parenting [or Grand-parenting]
Evaluate what your parents did right with you. The hard part is that their weakness will probably be your weakness. Keep the good and be aware of the bad.

Talk to people whose children have grown up to be believers as adults. Many people just emulate what the parents around them are doing. I want to know what people did who raised Godly children and they remained that way as adults.

Also have honest conversations with people whose children have drifted away from the faith. What do they think happened? What would they do differently?

These are just a few of the areas I try to learn from the generation before me. We are part of community called the Church so that we have support, encouragement and can share in a large pool of knowledge. You don’t have to reinvent the wheel. Ask, talk and learn.

The Bible describes the devil as the “Father of Lies.” When he lies he is simply speaking his native tongue. He distorts the truth and it changes people for the worse. Unfortunately some people believe his lies. Here are ten of the most common lies I have heard in no particular order:

1. I’ll do it tomorrow
The Bible is very clear that we are never promised tomorrow. Some things should not be put off another day.

2. It won’t happen to me or my family
All of us want to think we are immune to sin, struggle and defeat. The hard truth is that most individuals and families will eventually encounter something they never thought possible.

3. The Church is here to serve me
While I believe the Church can be an enormous blessing to the lives of people, it only comes when people start serving others.

4. A little sin won’t hurt
Sin separates us from God and one another. It always leaves a residue of ugliness we can not wash out. We may understand this tomorrow or it may take 20 years but it always hurts in some way.

5. Everything I feel is right
Frequently we want to judge truth by how it makes us feel. If we feel it deeply, then it must be true. We feel this way about issues, about ourselves, about others and even about faith. Truth is truth no matter how it makes you feel

6. The Bible is hard to understand
Taking time to read it is the hard part. The more time you spend reading it, the more simple it is to understand.

7. We are smarter than every generation before us
We feel this way about things like science but it spills over into our ethics and spiritual thinking. Our vast knowledge of the world some how makes us deep people with deep understanding. Rarely is that true.

8. People do not see through my excuses
In 20 years of ministry I have heard excuses for everything. I don’t really believe you, no one does. Yet we keep using them instead of facing the truth.

9. Someone else will do it
We know the needs of teen mothers, the homeless, at risk children and hundreds of other people. We know someone else will help one day soon.

10. No one cares about me
People will sometimes quit Church and when I contact them they tell me that no one cared about them. Then I start a series of probing questions. Did you come early to Church or stay late? Did you invite people over to your house? Did you accept any invitations for anything? Quickly I discover that the truth is no one knew this person. They never opened themselves up to anyone. They wanted relationships while living in a box of impenetrable secrecy. People want to care but we often do not let them. That is a different from saying that no one cares.

I know there are other lies people believe everyday. Little deceptions and distortions that cloud how we see God, other people and the world in general. One job of every believer is to be continually searching for the truth. Only when we know the truth shall we truly be set free.

I have heard it over a thousand times. I have probably said it over a hundred times. “I am just a sinner saved by grace.” It is a true statement. There is the truth of Romans 3:23 that “all sin and fall short of the glory of God.”

The problem that this is not the primary titled given to believers in the New Testament.

Followers of Jesus are called Christians. We wear the name of Christ. Like a new bride taking the name of her husband we have changed our identity to align with Christ. That new name is used three times in the New Testament to describe the Church.

Most frequently in the Bible the believers in Jesus are called saints. By my count there are 45 times the New Testament calls the followers of Jesus saints. Because of the Catholic faith using the term to describe people who lived long ago, we as modern believers do not use the title very much. Biblically it means one who has separated themselves from the world and been set apart for God. That basically means we have rejected the sin of the world and are trying to live our lives for God.

We are not just sinners saved by grace. We are saints set apart for God.

One name is an ugly description of where we were in life. The other is a proclamation of where we are going in the future. One is a statement of our failure. The other a declaration of our victory in Jesus. In one word picture we are grabbed as a valuable item from the trash. In the other word we are a valued item that is placed upon the shelf. One can be used as an excuse to stay dirty. One is motivation to clean yourself up.

Don’t get me wrong. I still believe I am a sinner and I am saved by grace. But that is not all I am. I am a saint set apart for God. I never want to lose sight of my value in God’s eyes or make excuse for my sin. I may not be perfect but in Jesus my failures do not define me.

Over the past couple months I have felt my life slowly coming unraveled. I have watch my dad’s health rapidly deteriorate, my mom has been sick, my oldest son is getting ready to leave for college, the attendance at the Church I serve has been way down, ministries are struggling and a dozen other little things have gone wrong.

As a result I can feel myself getting more and more negative. The glass is half empty and it is because someone is too lazy to fill it full or someone has simply taken the rest from me. I am daily battling anger, loneliness, depression and apathy. My basic instincts are to withdrawal and quit. Throwing in the towel is often the quickest and easiest solution.

With these feelings growing inside of me I am trying to make an intentional effort to stay positive. I am going to try to refocus my life on some of the good things. I admit this is a daily struggle and I wanted to share what I am trying to do to stay positive.

1. Focus On God
I think one of the biggest reasons I struggle is because I take my eyes off of Jesus. When the mountains seem big, I have to remember that my God is bigger. His ways are not my ways and his plans are different from my plans. For me this is a matter of worship. I need to be more focused during Sunday worship, I need to listen to more worship songs and I need to quiet my soul from all of the technological distractions.

2. Pray
I know this is the Sunday School answer to everything, but it is usually the right answer. Give your problems to God and allow him to take the negatives and turn them into positives.

3. Remember the Blessings of God
While things can seem difficult at times I am reminded of all the good things God has given me. My life is filled with loving parents, a beautiful wife, four great boys, great Church leadership, financial resources and I live in a country of plenty. Sometimes we just need to count our blessings.

4. Flip Everything Over
Every negative experience often has a positive on the other side, we just need to flip over our thinking. My dad may be failing but I am thankful that he has lived 81 years and always been a part of my life. His sickness has brought me closer to my mother. God has been teaching me compassion and a love for senior citizens. The glass may just be half full.

5. Connect with People
As an introvert I tend to enjoy my privacy. When I struggle I feel like pulling away from people even more. I would rather suffer in silence alone than bother anybody. God is teaching me to open up and bring people into my life rather than push them away. Other people can be a source of joy and support.

While I am sure the dark clouds of life will remain over my life for a little while longer, I am also sure that God can take this rain and grow some beautiful flowers. I can either take this time to help them grow or I allow it to ruin my life. I am asking God to teach me and use me during this time. If you are struggling, I pray God does the same for you.

I have spent the past week taking care of my dad. Right now he is just a shell of the man he was before two strokes impaired him. While he spends time napping each day I have been walking around the house looking at pictures and pieces of memorabilia. It all has me thinking about the lessons he has taught me through my life.

1. It’s never too late to change
He did not become a Christian until the age of 33. The second half of his life was spent serving Jesus and growing in his walk with him. I did not know him before he became a Christian. I do know that his life after Jesus showed that he truly made Jesus the Lord of his life when he became a Christian.

2. Involvement is Important
As a child I have memories of my dad playing silly games with a group of teenagers at our house. It wasn’t till I was older that I understood it was a Church youth group. He went on to be a Church usher and then deacon and finally an elder. He has taught Sunday school, lead the Church and been involved in dozens of ways in the local Church. I don’t know that I have ever heard my dad teach or even seen him in a leadership meeting, but I knew he was there. His involvement left an impression on me through the years and still does today.

3. Love Your Family
I have never doubted my dad’s love for me. He has cheered me on, supported me, given me more than he should and told me he loved me regularly. They not only took care of all three of us as kids but also into our adult lives. Even on this trip where I came to take care of him he slipped two fifty dollar bills into my hand. Of all the words and phrases that have escaped his capabilities since the stroke, “Love you” is not one of them.

4. Connect to Other Christians
Mom and dad have been longtime members of one Church. They have attended the same Sunday School class for years. They have gathered with groups of other Christians to play cards on a Friday night each month for as long as I can remember. They were a part of the Church’s Seniors Group. Through the years they have developed some deep relationships with other believers who are supporting them through their current struggles.

5. Finish Strong
The last 14 months have not completely reflected my dad’s commitment to the Lord. He had to give up teaching. Slowly he became less involved and right now it is real difficult for him to even attend Church. But the weekend that his first stroke hit he was still planning to teach Sunday School. He taught right up until the age of 80. He was a Church elder up until the age of 76. I know that if he were able, he would step up and teach this Sunday. I know he would step up as a leader if he thought he were needed. His commitment is as strong at 81 as it was 20 years ago.

As I walk around dad’s house I saw a lot of things. He has collected all kinds of antiques, lots of pictures and paintings along with a lot of junk. When he is gone there will be numerous items to go through, but those will not be his legacy. His life will be measured by the impact he had for the Lord.

Maybe the bigger question is, “What will your legacy be?”

A caricature is defined as “a picture, description, or imitation of a person or thing in which certain striking characteristics are exaggerated in order to create a comic or grotesque effect.” You have probably seen a caricature drawing in political cartoon.

Unfortunately caricatures are not limited to thought-provoking cartoons in newspapers. They are also represented in pictures, stories and cartoons that fill the internet. Politicians are one of the most frequent people groups that are caricatured, but Christians are probably the second most popular.

There are several portrayals that I am tired of seeing –

1. Uneducated – The idea is that most Christians are not very smart. They reject science they don’t read and they generally reject good reason.

I have never found this representation to be true. Most of the people I have served are college educated and very knowledgeable people. In fact, most of them know about their religion, a little about other religions, about history, psychology, philosophy and politics. Most pastors I know have multiple degrees and continue to take classes until their ministry ends. The majority of Christians I have encountered read, study and discuss so that they continue to grow.

2. Mean – The idea is that many Christians are hard-hearted with little tolerance of those who disagree with their beliefs.

Most of the Christians I know are the kindest people in my life. The donate time at food pantries, homeless shelters and numerous projects for the benefit of others. The share their money, their food and even their time. They are the first to show up after a tragedy and the last to leave when others are struggling. Christians are typically the kindest and nicest people I know.

3. Crazy – This view comes from the belief system that Christians posses. They have a belief rooted in the teachings of the Bible. The Bible does contain stories that are hard to accept. There is a story with a talking snake along with one of a talking donkey and there a stories of numerous miracles that are hard to explain.

While they are hard to explain to people, believing them does not you crazy. In fact, almost everyone I know believes in something greater than the physical world. I know people who have belief in fate, destiny and Karma. Some people even believe they affect their favorite team by the shirt they wear, the position of their hat or some other strange superstition. Maybe crazy is in the eye of the beholder.

I grow weary of the ongoing caricatures of Christian. Most of them are the blown up pictures of just a few random individuals or groups. Part my life is spent proving the skeptics wrongs. I hope you will join me in showing these people that their picture of Christians are wrong, not only with our words but with our actions.

As a child I saw the world as a place filled with hope, love and wonder. Somewhere along the way my view of the world changed. My heart slowly began to turn to stone toward others. It may have been the result of seeing too many news stories about the evils of people. It may have been the result of too many ugly experiences. It might have been the result of the selfishness of my own heart taking over.

I am not sure how it happened. I am not really sure when it happened. But in retrospect I can see that by the time I graduated high school my heart had grown hard toward other people and the struggles they faced. Most of my world was really just about me. I thought I had the world figured out and I didn’t understand why other people had not come to the same conclusions at which I had arrived. I now picture myself like a stone with jagged edges that could be used only to hurt others.

Through the years God has taken me on a journey to soften my heart and smooth out my edges. Losing my best friend softened me to the loss of loved ones. Failing in ministry has made me sympathetic to the people who finish last. Marital struggles changed my views of love and commitment. Having children made me give up my hard selfish ways. Helping my parents in their old age has changed my view of senior citizens.

Over time the rough edges have been smoothed down. My hard heart is slowly becoming soft.

I don’t know if this is everyone’s story, but it is my story. I sometimes think that part of God’s grace is allowing me to live long enough to become more Christlike.

Over the last two weeks I have repeatedly seen articles and blogs posted on the internet that use the Bible. Each time someone was trying to prove why we should not really listen to the Bible. They quoted some random Old Testament verses and said, “See, no one believes that anymore.”

Each time I read these articles the hair stood up on the back of my neck. They were like fingernails running down a chalkboard. The Bible was misinterpreted, misapplied and ultimately misunderstood. My biggest fear is that people are listening to these articles as accurate. People are believing total misrepresentations of the truth.

So on behalf of all Bible believing Christians let me say, “Beware of bad Bible.” Just because someone can quote the Bible doesn’t mean they really understand it.

Let me also give you one huge rule for understanding the Bible: CONTEXT IS KING

Whenever you hear a verse of scripture then ask yourself, “What is the context of that statement?” Here a few questions to help clarify that initial question.

1. Was it said in the context of the Old or New Testament? As Christians there is a huge difference between the two. Jesus fulfilled the Old and started the New. Our understanding of an Old Testament law is far different from a statement made by the Apostle Paul to the Church in one of his letters.

2. What type of literature is it? This is the question of genre. Was it history, law, a letter or was it poetry or wisdom literature? Different literature must be handled in different ways

3. What is the context of the surrounding verses? Lifting one line out of a paragraph can violate the original meaning. Sometimes this doesn’t matter especially in places like the Proverbs but in other places it is essential.

4. Does it fit the story of the whole Bible? Taking one line out of one book can also be misleading. The Bible is 66 books – 39 Old Testament and 27 New Testament. We need to make sure that the words of one book align with the words of another.

I believe that the Bible is not an overly complex book. What makes it difficult for most people to understand is that they have not read it in context. To understand a verse completely you need to read the whole paragraph, but also the whole book. Then not only the whole book, but also the whole Testament. Then not only the whole Testament, but also the whole Bible. Unfortunately that takes a lot of time and effort that most of us do not want to give. The sad result is that we listen to everyone who tries to explain it to us even if they are doing a lousy job. We must always beware of people using bad Bible, knowing the context will help us do that.

We are one week away from Father’s Day. Every year I spend this week preparing a program and a sermon that will happen on this day. Also, every year my mind turns toward my dad. This is especially true as my dad’s health is failing daily. He is rapidly losing weight and strokes are taking their physical toll. Every day may be the last one with my dad.

While my mind turns to my father and the program for father’s day I am reminded of the enormous impact that a father has on the life of his children. For today would you allow me to share a couple of ways that fathers can influence their children for God.

1. Pray With and For Your Children – Spend time talking to God about your children. Spend time talking to God with your children. You do not have control over their lives so ask the God who is in control to help you, guide you and protect them.

2. Model Faith – Read, learn, grow, serve and give. Your children will imitate your faith. Hear that again! Your children will imitate your faith. If you don’t read as an adult, they won’t. If you don’t grow, serve, give and show them what faith looks like as an adult, they will not know the way or go the way.

3. Attend Church – Demonstrate the importance of worship. Show them the value of other people with similar faith. Allow them to be taught by others who might know more than you. Point them toward other people’s faith to underline what they are seeing in you.

4. Avoid Worldliness – Children not only see what you do, they also see what you do not participate in. They hear that you do or do not use cuss words. They see what you do or do not drink. They see the ways you do or do not treat your spouse with love. They see the movies you do or do not watch. They know what is going on in your life. Your words may tell them one thing but they know if it aligns with your life.

5. Lead Christian Endeavors – Show your children the importance of doing things for God. Not just the importance of action but the need for leadership. The world is very confused about leadership and we need men who are willing to step up and move forward in faith. We need men who do not shy away from difficult answers, decisions and actions. Be a Christian who has strength and grit in a time when so few have it.

I know I have not had a perfect father. I know I have not been a perfect father. I do try to do better everyday. I hope and pray that all fathers are trying to do the same. May the Lord bless you on this journey as a parent.

This Sunday – June 12 – I will be launching a new sermon series at Adrian Christian Church. It is a four-week series based off of the life of an Old Testament judge named Samson. The sermon series is focused on men and the issues they face. Hopefully it will apply to those who love them and those who raise them.

This Sunday I will look at the issue of lust in the life of Samson. It will be an adult topic and I will not sugar coat the truth. Be ready.

Hope to see you Sunday.

June 12 “When Strong Men Are Weak”
June 19 “Emotions of Strong Men” (Father’s Day)
June 26 “Small Steps Toward Big Destruction”
July 3 “Failing Forward”