Hope for Life Blog

50 hours in airplanes and airports and then another 12 hours in a van, going to the countries of Malawi and Tanzania in East Africa takes a lot of time from Abilene, Texas.

Herald of Truth, the mass media ministry I’m associated with, has worked in those areas for almost a decade, but this was my first trip to the African continent. It was last July, summer in Texas, winter in Africa, but it was warm in both locales.

During my nine day visit I experienced a number of things: policemen in Malawi toting weapons asking for a ride to their headquarters about five miles away, bicycles as transports for almost everything, friendliness of the people, security for an African president with military vehicles and mounted machine guns on all sides of the presidential entourage, Tanzanian traffic police pulling us over and asking for money because they were thirsty, Americans especially are seen as the super rich, and a Africans hunger to fill both bodies and souls.

Thus I would like to offer some BO, Brant’s Observations, derived from my visit to the African continent.

In General:

1. We Americans whine too much! We gripe about everything that’s not convenient for us, while the rest of the world waits and endures long lines, basic food staples being in short supply, and houses which lack electricity and plumbing.
2. Related to one. While the American government system and culture may be messed up by the politicians and bureaucrats it’s still the best on earth and it’s time those of us who live here thank God and those who came before us for paving the way for us.
3. Compared to those I saw, spoke with, worked with… we are rich!!! And almost arrogantly we consume more than our share of the world’s resources.
4. We assume everyone lives just like we do. We may recognize the fallacy of that thought but we act like it is true. This thought was described in the 1958 political novel The Ugly American by Burdick and Lederer. We think everyone has our advantages, thinks like we do and should act like we do. But it is we who are most privileged of the world’s population.
5. Sandals and flip-flops are fashion statements in America but in Africa they are a much sought after necessity.

In Religious Aspects

1. While most of the world moves to a “post Christian” model, in Africa there is a hunger to know about God and Jesus.
2. American churches are more concerned with taking care of their own than being witnesses to nonbelievers and others. 80-90% of the average church budget is related to internal things: minister salaries, building payments, utilities, lawn care. Outreach to non-believers is 10-20% of that same budget.
3. American churches have moved away from evangelistic campaigns or evangelistic mission trips, replacing them with service projects like building homes or hosting medical clinics. While these activities provide good things—if we don’t tell them in whose name we come, what makes us different from other organizations? We should all do things in the name of Jesus, not “the _____ _______ church.” In Africa, probably because they have very little in material resources, the churches there talk a lot about Jesus.

My trip was not that unusual from what others experience when they too go to Africa, but for me the perspective was eye opening and priceless.

Which of my BOs to you agree with? Which do you disagree with? Most importantly tell us Why.

When I was in college, I sang in the school choir. One year, we took a tour that included stops in New Mexico. Traveling through the state, we paused to visit the Carlsbad Caverns. There’s one moment from that tour that stands out in my mind. The guide offered to allow us to experience total darkness. She turned out the lights, leaving us in such blackness that we could not see our hands in front of our faces.

That’s the kind of darkness that existed in the beginning, when God created everything. The Bible says, “The earth was without form and void, and darkness was over the face of the deep.” (Genesis 1:2)

Think about that time, then picture the moment when a divine voice shattered the void with the cry: “Let there be light!” Can you imagine the wonder of that moment, when divine light bursts forth into the blackness of the shapeless universe?

The apostle Paul says that that moment is relived in each of our lives when God shines his light into our hearts. “For God, who said, “Let light shine out of darkness,” has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.” (2 Corinthians 4:6) This incredible light, the light of the glory of God, the light that burst forth in creation, now shines in us.

Paul goes on to tell the Corinthians that God has put this light in “jars of clay,” meaning our human bodies. Then he reminds them that these jars are slowly falling apart! However, the treasure that God has put inside those jars grows more precious every day.

We forget about this. We focus on the human side, the mortal side, the part of us that is aging and deteriorating. When we do so, we forget the wonder of the light that God shines into our hearts.

God wants to take your “jar of clay” and make it into a treasure. He wants to take the light that pierced the primeval darkness and place it inside of you.

Do you choose to be the light of the world? Or will you remain a part of the darkness? Will your value come from your aging physical self or from God’s light within you? It’s your choice.

I discovered this the day I tried to print a document that had all the titles in a gray border.  I tried three times, and every time I got all the black and white but none of the gray.  I know that by now some of you have figured out that my color cartridge was out.  Correct, though I still cannot figure out why you need a color cartridge for gray.  This experience also reminded me that this is how some people think Christianity is.

They believe that we live our lives by some ironclad list of do’s and don’ts.  There are people who think that is what the Bible is – a list of rules, everything being black and white.  This leads to some wrong assumptions about Christianity.  There are those who think they could never follow such a list so why try.  Others think the Bible is not relevant because it does not have a black and white list for every situation in today’s world.  Then there are those who try living Christianity by a set of rules and just get frustrated because they cannot find the rules or cannot follow the ones they do think they have found.

This is not Christianity.  The Bible is not a list of rules.  We are not expected to memorize hundreds of rules so we will know what to do in every situation.  That would not require any emotion, just a photographic mind and strong willpower.  Christianity is a matter of the heart.  Yes, Jesus does ask us to live a lifestyle different than the world around us, and he gives us guidelines to know how to do that.  Let me share the three most important.

1.  Love God with everything you have.  Jesus said this was the greatest command.
2. Love your neighbor as yourself.  Jesus said this was the second greatest command.
3. Follow the steps of Jesus.  The Bible says Jesus left us an example so we could follow in his steps.

These principles will help you decide what to do in any situation you encounter as a Christian.  And these principles are about love.

Blessings,

steve

There is an old joke about a witness in a burglary case. The defense lawyer asked John, an elderly man: “Did you see my client commit this burglary?”

“Yes,” answered John, “I plainly saw him take the goods.”

The lawyer questioned John again: “John, this happened at night. Are you sure you saw my client commit this crime?”

“Yes” said John, “I saw him do it.”

Then the lawyer confronted the old man: “John listen, you are 80 years old and your eyesight probably isn’t too great. Just how far can you see at night?”

John replied, “I can see the moon… how far is that?”

I spent two summers in Long Beach, California, working with a church there. One thing that comes to mind when you think about that area is the traffic. Trying to navigate my way along the crowded streets was quite intimidating to this West Texas boy. Since I was spending much of my time looking for places that I had never been to, I had to concentrate on street signs and house numbers as well as deal with the traffic.

Toward the end of that first summer I realized that, if I would just raise my eyes a bit, there was a beautiful view of the mountains near Los Angeles. The view had been there the whole time; I just hadn’t raised my eyes to see it.

The apostle Paul wrote to a group of Christians in Rome: “For his invisible attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world, in the things that have been made.” (Romans 1:20) An ancient Hebrew poet wrote in the book of Psalms: “The heavens declare the glory of God, and the sky above proclaims his handiwork.” (Psalm 19:1)

If you’re not seeing God’s hand in the world around you, maybe you just need to raise your eyes a bit. The evidence is there for all to see.

That is what the ad said:  getting a motorized wheelchair for your loved one is as easy as one, two, three.  Not only that but it would be cheap or perhaps even free.  What my father-in-law heard was that it would be easy to get your free motorized wheelchair if you need it.  He needed it, so he and my wife set out to get this free and easy chair.  I am not sure how lots of paperwork, including the visit to the Doctor to get his assessment and then to a therapist to get his endorsement, is considered easy.  That took several weeks and at least three appointments plus the paperwork.

The chair did end up being free.  It just was not easy.  And of course, if you want to transport it you need a power lift on the back of your vehicle.  Not included.  Not easy.  That lift then requires a hitch added on to the vehicle.  Again, not part of the deal.  Not easy.  Maybe what they meant and what we expected did not match up.  It took quite a bit of time and what we considered significant expense to secure the free and easy motorized wheelchair.  But Grandpa is thrilled.  He is able to go places on that chair easier and pain free.  Great decision; we just did not understand the cost.  If we had, we would have done it anyway.  The benefit is worth it.  We just wish we had known the true cost in time and effort up front.

So I wonder if we Christians mean something different than what non-believers hear when we talk about the free gift of salvation through Jesus.  Salvation is God’s free gift, but that does not mean it is easy.  Jesus himself said if we want to follow him we must deny ourselves.  He said if we wanted to find our life we must first lose it.  The decision to follow Jesus is described as a death.  And if you follow Jesus you will be persecuted by a world that does not know him.  The Bible gives much advice on how to live in a hard world full of trouble and trials.

Free does not mean easy, but it is so worth it.   

Blessings,

steve

It still haunts me, not the question but my lack of a profound cure-all answer.

He sat across from me, tears on his cheeks and desperately asking the question. His choices had messed up his life, the lives of his family, the lives of other families and his friends. Now a year after everything hit the reality fan, after seeking forgiveness, trying to put the broken pieces back together, coping with the consequences of the sin, he was hanging on, but barely. Still adrift in anger, doubt and pain he looked me in the eye and begged me to tell him, “What do I do now?”

I wanted as desperately as he to have THE magical answer, offer the concise cliché that implies wisdom, thought and experience.

But all I could offer was “I don’t know, but survive one day at a time and it will get easier.” Pretty weak words to a guy whose fingernails on the tight rope of life are slowly being pried loose.

David, the King of Israel, is the example of adultery, murder, lies, and poor parenting, yet whom God thought enough of to claim that he was a man after God’s own heart. (ISam 13:13-14 and Acts 13:22)

And while David says, “My sin is always before me,” (Psalm 51:2) he is also attributed as saying “Your word I have hidden in my heart that I might not sin against you.” (Psalm 119:11) If you know the story of David, his choices had consequences to the end of his life. I assume there were days when he asked “what do I do now?” Yet, in spite of his actions he was still a man after God’s own heart as he struggled each day.

I know that my friend has God’s word in his heart. I know he will grasp, crawl and struggle. I know I will continue to walk with him, inadequate though my answers to his desperate questions may be. I know he and I, as frail human beings, will always desire to be men after God’s own heart.

So how would you have answered by friend?

To what source of inspiration would you have suggested he go?

I think they were suffering a bit of post-Easter depression. Not the kind that comes from too many chocolate eggs or lack of sleep from going to a sunrise service. No, this was the real thing.

Peter and the other apostles had lived an emotional roller coaster that few of us can imagine. Their beloved Teacher, the one they thought was going to be king, had been arrested and killed. Then, a few days later, they learned that He had risen from the dead! They saw Him, ate with Him, then were told to go to Galilee to wait.

It was during that wait that I think they got the blues. Or, if not that, they at least got bored. So Peter suggested they do what they had always done before meeting Jesus: go fishing.

Chapter 21 of the gospel of John tells us how they worked all night without catching anything. A few weeks before, they had been part of the big show. They were the disciples of the Great One, the Maestro, the Messiah. Now they were spending all night throwing nets into cold, dark water, without anything to show for their efforts.

That’s when Jesus showed up on the shore. That’s when everything changed. That’s when one command from His lips filled their nets to the breaking point and almost capsized their boats. That’s when Peter and the others knew they were back in the presence of the Risen Lord. Jesus had come to meet these Galilean fishermen at the place they knew best.

How far is it from the temple in Jerusalem to the banks of the Sea of Galilee? It’s the same distance as it is from church on Sunday to the office on Monday. It’s the distance from Holy Communion to lunch out of a bag. It’s the distance from Easter bonnets to oil-soaked coveralls.

Special religious days can be nice for recharging our batteries, but the Christian life is lived out 24/7, both in holy places and on dirty streets. God comes to meet us anywhere and everywhere. He doesn’t just wait for us inside a church building on Easter Sunday. He’s willing to be there with us, every day of the year.

Jesus came to tell the apostles that it was okay for them to be fishermen. He also came to remind them that they had been called to be fishers of men. God wants to come and make your job a calling, to make your employment a vocation. He wants to make every day a holy day, and every place a sanctuary.

The day we call Easter comes once a year… but today and every day can be just as special! Let God transform your ordinary into something high and holy.

My wife and I were watching television the other night and the show was set in a hospital.  It had a strong storyline; the doctors were all very caring and even good looking.  But something just did not seem real to me.  It wasn’t that I have never been in a hospital.  I have had lots of family and friends who have been in the hospital and the sets looked real enough.  It was not that I do not know caring Doctors.  I do.  I know lots of them in fact.  I even know some good looking Doctors, though not as many as the show had.

I watched the television doctors speak to the lonely family member sitting by themselves in the waiting room.  I saw them be the one their patient turned to when they were scared and emotionally vulnerable.  I even watched while these actors sit in the room with a patient because they had no one else.  And that’s when it hit me.  That was what seemed so unreal to me.  I did not relate to the loneliness or the pain of having no one with you in a time of crisis.

My experience has always been one of waiting rooms full of family and friends; of visitor sign-in sheets full of names, and lots of support.  I see many people asking what they can do, baby sitting children, bringing food when people are released, crying together, holding hands, praying together.  But I know there are people who are alone in those times.  They do not have the support groups I am used to seeing.  So I began to wonder why.

It is not that I or my friends are nicer or more popular than other people.  It is that I am part of a community of faith that believes we are family.  So we show up for each other.  We help each other.  We care for each other.  I am there for them.  And they are there for me.

So it leads to the question:  who will be at the hospital with you? 

Blessings,

steve

I opened the door to my hotel room, heaved a sigh, and thought to myself: “All hotel rooms look alike.” Immediately, the correction came to mind: “No, they don’t. You’ve stayed in a wide range of hotel rooms.”

That second thought, of course, was correct. I’ve stayed in some very nice hotel rooms. I’ve stayed in some that were a bit frightening. I’ve stayed in filthy hotel rooms; I’ve stayed in luxurious ones. I’ve had entire suites to myself; I’ve stayed in rooms that would have been dwarfed by my dogs’ house.

So why had I thought they all look alike? It didn’t take long for the answer to come to me: a hotel room is just space. It can have a couch and a television and a bed and a desk… and still feel completely bare. When I’m by myself, a hotel room feels empty, no matter how elegant it is.

Humans were made for relationships. When God created the world, He saw that the whole creation was good. Until He noted one thing: “It is not good that the man should be alone.” (Genesis 2:18) What was the first thing that was out of place in creation? Loneliness.

We were made to be in relationship with one another. We were made to be in relationship with God. In fact, God’s plan is that we be adopted into His family. The first chapter of John says, speaking of Jesus, “But to all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God, who were born, not of blood nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man, but of God.” (John 1:12–13)

The apostle Paul wrote, “You are all children of God through faith in Christ Jesus, for all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ.” (Galatians 3:26–27) Jesus opened the door for us to become children of God, to have a permanent relationship with our Creator.

The apostle John saw that as something to be celebrated: “How great is the love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! And that is what we are!” (1 John 3:1)

In this world, we can sometimes feel alone. But we never have to actually be alone. We have a loving God who wants to be our heavenly Father, who wants to make us His children. He wants to make it so that we are never alone.

I was recently at breakfast in Nicaragua and my co-worker, who is fluent in Spanish, was discussing our order with the waitress.  I was so proud of how much Spanish I was learning because I understood almost every word spoken.  By watching the body language of both participants I was able to fill in the blanks.  I proudly explained that I had understood the conversation and knew what we were going to eat and what was not available that morning.  Except that I got it all wrong.  I had heard the words, but I missed out on the context.  And the few words I missed were apparently crucial to the meaning of the conversation.  Some words were not used in the way that I thought they were.  Evidently, I could not read body language either.  I knew most of the words, but I understood almost nothing of the conversation.

Just like when people who are not Christians think they understand what it means to live as a believer.  They hear words like church, forgiveness, grace, and baptism and they think they understand.  But these words can only be understood in the context of our lives.  They need to see us caring for each other, crying with each other, and helping each other see Jesus to understand church.  They have to know our stories of what God has done in our lives to understand forgiveness and grace.  They need to hear our “before and after” testimonies to understand baptism. 

Sometimes they misunderstand our body language.  They see marriage problems and think we are hypocrites.  We see those same problems as laboratories of grace and reconciliation.  They see our weaknesses and think Jesus does not change lives.  We see those weaknesses and wonder how much worse we would be without Jesus.  Some people think life is lived in a past tense.  We believe life is lived in a present tense and will only get better.

So if you think you know about us Christians, I would invite you to go behind the words and see the context of our life. 

Blessings

steve