Archive September 2008
Cursed by Code
Great news! The blog is back to running normally on Internet Explorer. Two great readers, Tim and Richie, came up with the solution independently. It seems that some some bad HTML code got inserted into my post on nothing to fear but fear itself. I copied the brief excerpt from FDR’s address from the website I listed. When I cut and pasted the excerpt, I would imagine that I brought over some formatting code along with the words. Internet Explorer seems to be a bit touchy about things like that and froze up. Try Firefox, folks! Once clued in to the cause of the problem, I eliminated the offending code and things were back to normal immediately.
This little episode kind of reminded me of life itself. We all seem to have areas of life where there is some offending code lurking beneath the surface, out of sight and interrupting life’s normal flow. It may be deep hurt, some bitterness, a bad habit, a character flaw or just plain old sin! We may look in the mirror and think things are normal. Others, though, see a flaw that to us is still invisible.
Ignoring or denying the problem doesn’t solve anything. The only solution is to become aware of the problem and cut it out. It’s often hard for us to see our own corrupted code, but this is why we need each other. This helps me understand a bit better what Jesus said in the Sermon on the Mount.
And why beholdest thou the mote that is in thy brother’s eye, but considerest not the beam that is in thine own eye? Or how wilt thou say to thy brother, Let me pull out the mote out of thine eye; and, behold, a beam is in thine own eye? Thou hypocrite, first cast out the beam out of thine own eye; and then shalt thou see clearly to cast out the mote out of thy brother’s eye. Matthew 7:3-5
Sometimes it’s the hardest task of all to see our own offending corrupt code. Thanks for the help and thanks for your patience while this techincal difficulty was resolved. More later!
The Mysteries of Technology
Technology can be a wonderful tool except, of course, when it doesn’t do what you want it to do. Let me offer a word of explanation to the faithful readers of this blog about why this blog may not look to you the way you think it should.
Last week I was talking to my father on the phone and he said that my blog look different. He couldn’t see the sidebar or the masthead and there was no way to leave comments. I was in a hurry running from point A to point B and told him that it looked fine to me earlier that day and that he probably had his browser set to some funky setting that caused it look differently.
Sorry Dad! Forgive me! You were right; I was wrong. So many of you are good to comment and interact and I had not heard from anyone for several days. Today, it suddenly dawned on me that I am a cyber-minority. I use Firefox as my browser, not Internet Explorer. So, curious as to what happened to you people, I opened up the blog in Internet Explorer. Lo and behold, it was just as my dad had described – right there on my own computer!
A quick email to our IT department and they confirmed that they were seeing the same thing. So, please forgive us as we try to figure out why Internet Explorer has suddenly decided to truncate my blog. Bear with us and our brilliant IT staff should have things back to normal as soon as possible.
Retreat Update
As we mingle and talk here at the retreat, all of us as leaders are very excited about the recent changes in service times and format and the new classes being offered. The feedback has been positive, and we are encouraged that this will enable us to do a better job of making community accessible in the church and facilitating people connecting to God, the church and to each other.
This morning, Ron, who leads our First Connections and People Ministry shared some thoughts from Mark 9 where a man had brought his demon-possessed son to Jesus’ disciples while Jesus, John, James and Peter were up on the Mount of Transfiguration. The disciples were powerless to help. Ron’s very transparent application was how we are often faced with people who have such serious problems that we are overwhelmed. He also took us down further in the text where Jesus taught that “this type” comes out only by prayer and fasting. Ron had a great thought – prayer is connecting to God and fasting is disconnecting from the world. We are all blessed and challenged by his words.
Here are some of the take-away thoughts that came to my mind as I listened and as we later interacted together about this passage:
- Seeing people with great problems come to our church is answer to prayer! We have prayed to do a better job of reaching those who are not reached. That people are seeing the lives of others transformed and coming to check it out themselves is great! Aren’t these the type of people we are supposed to reach?
- I love Jesus’ response to those who complained that his disciples had not been able to help this father and his son. He said, “Bring them to me.” We don’t have to do something, build something or try ourselves to fix the broken lives of other people. We can’t! We couldn’t even fix our own lives. Our job is to bring people to Jesus, not to us or our church as though we are the ones who have some magic bullet. Our job is to point them to Jesus.
- Here’s what we can do – we can learn to be more sensitive to hurting people, go out of our way to understand what they are dealing with and be patient with them as God begins to work transformation in their lives. We have no power in ourselves to solve people’s problems, but we can sure do what we can to keep the pathway to Jesus cleared from obstacles. Too often churches put obstacles in the pathway to Jesus instead of clearing them out.
- We can be a safe place and a non-judgmental environment for fallen people to connect to God, but we never have to compromise the truth of scripture, the power of our own choices and their consequences, both good and bad. Who we are is a combination of God’s sovereignty, our environment and genetic makeup, and the choices we make. The only element over which we have control is our free will to make choices. We don’t have to go through life as victims.
- Because of that same power of choice, not everyone is going to be made whole. Some people want a magic solution but don’t want to make the right choices to allow God’s power to work transformation in their lives. Not even all those who came to Jesus came away fixed. The rich young ruler, for example, went away sad because he was not willing to follow the counsel Jesus gave him. It’s also interesting to observe that Jesus didn’t chase him and beg him as he walked away.
- Balance – God is answering prayer by bringing us people with great problems and great needs, but he is also bringing some absolutely wonderful and amazing new people to our church who simply have it together! That’s great, because we need all of them to help us reach out to those who need help.
Retreat!
It’s late and I’m tired, but I thought I had better let you know what was up since you haven’t heard from me for a couple of days. Today all of our pastors and their wives met here at the Lake of the Ozarks for a retreat. We manage to stay pretty busy and it’s not often that we all get to be together. So, we are going to have a blast. We met over lunch today, relaxed this afternoon and ate dinner. Afterwords we watched a good video sermon by a pastor from Phoenix teaching on God’s grace and called “Truefaced.” Good stuff!
I’ll try to let you know I’m alive, but we will be here until noon on Wednesday. So, if you don’t hear much from me you’ll know why. Having a good time and loving it!
Who Said It? “The Only Thing We Have to Fear Is Fear Itself”
You have probably heard those famous words in the title of this post, but many people have no sense of their context. I have heard them attributed to Winston Churchill. Churchill said many memorable things, but this particular quotation is not one of them. Others still associate these words with the desperately dark days of the Second World War, even though they may not be sure who said them.
Actually, Franklin Delano Roosevelt is the source of this famous quotation, and it had nothing to do with the war. He made this statement as part of his first inaugural address in 1933 in response to the very depth of the Great Depression.
I am certain that my fellow Americans expect that on my induction into the Presidency I will address them with a candor and a decision which the present situation of our people impel. This is preeminently the time to speak the truth, the whole truth, frankly and boldly. Nor need we shrink from honestly facing conditions in our country today. This great Nation will endure as it has endured, will revive and will prosper. So, first of all, let me assert my firm belief that the only thing we have to fear is fear itself—nameless, unreasoning, unjustified terror which paralyzes needed efforts to convert retreat into advance. In every dark hour of our national life a leadership of frankness and vigor has met with that understanding and support of the people themselves which is essential to victory. I am convinced that you will again give that support to leadership in these critical days.
In such a spirit on my part and on yours we face our common difficulties. They concern, thank God, only material things. Values have shrunken to fantastic levels; taxes have risen; our ability to pay has fallen; government of all kinds is faced by serious curtailment of income; the means of exchange are frozen in the currents of trade; the withered leaves of industrial enterprise lie on every side; farmers find no markets for their produce; the savings of many years in thousands of families are gone.
Yet our distress comes from no failure of substance. We are stricken by no plague of locusts. Compared with the perils which our forefathers conquered because they believed and were not afraid, we have still much to be thankful for. Nature still offers her bounty and human efforts have multiplied it. Plenty is at our doorstep, but a generous use of it languishes in the very sight of the supply. Primarily this is because the rulers of the exchange of mankind’s goods have failed, through their own stubbornness and their own incompetence, have admitted their failure, and abdicated. Practices of the unscrupulous money changers stand indicted in the court of public opinion, rejected by the hearts and minds of men.
Happiness lies not in the mere possession of money; it lies in the joy of achievement, in the thrill of creative effort. The joy and moral stimulation of work no longer must be forgotten in the mad chase of evanescent profits. These dark days will be worth all they cost us if they teach us that our true destiny is not to be ministered unto but to minister to ourselves and to our fellow men.
Interesting, huh? I was astounded to read this address in light of the events of this past week. I would encourage you to read the full address. It’s not that long and you can access it here.
There are several thoughts running through my mind that I share with you here in no particular order. Maybe you can add to the discussion yourself, or email this to someone who is paralyzed by fear.