THE WAY THEY DO MY LIFE

The young woman is clearly in distress. She has come to me for counsel. I have no absolutes for her. Whenever I share, I do my best not to tell people what they ought to do no matter how much I want to give advice rather than counsel (yes, there is a difference); everyone has to take responsibility for the decisions they make. This will not happen if the decision they make is based on what I tell them to do. I can only point the young woman to God’s word, encourage her to seek His face, and clear away the clutter and distractions so that she might clearly hear what He has to say.

It frustrates me to see the negative situation in an individual’s life and yet not be able to take hold of it and make it right for all the parties involved. It burdens my heart to see pain in a person’s eyes and realize I have no power to take it away. It makes me so angry to know the heartache people inflict on others even as they name the name of Christ and profess to love Him with all their heart, mind, soul and strength. In the words of Marvin Gaye, it “makes me wanna holler……” I feel so ineffective and impotent even as I am also absolutely sure that God can, and will, handle every sin committed against us if we will absolutely trust Him for the outcome.

Yes, there are times when I do muse on, and trip over, Romans 8:28 – “And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.” My humanity wants to know why I must wade my way through the bad to get to the “all things work together for good,” part. Why can’t it always be good all the time because I love the God who is good all the time?!

I turned on the radio just as the radio bible teacher was saying, “Relationships take patience and perseverance,” his point being that we must press our way through those prickly patches in any relationship with patience and perseverance. In other words, we cannot jump ship because my spouse is not right; my mother gets on my nerves; my children have lost their minds; my co-workers drive me crazy; those church members irk me, etc., etc., etc.

Do you know that God has a sense of humor? Well, He does, and I know it because He sent this message to me on the heels of my conversation with the young woman, just as I was thinking, “Everyone has a right to peace and harmony in their lives; why can’t we just cut bait and run?” Not only was I thinking it; I was seriously considering sharing this "message" with her.

Patience and perseverance are two words that can be anathema in this “I WANT IT NOW!” society. I cannot even remember the last time I was in a bible study, or heard a sermon, about patience and perseverance. James’ declaration, “Count it all joy,” is just one big irritant when I can see nothing in my life for which to be joyful. Patience and perseverance in this chaos called life? Are you kidding me? Seriously, God, patience and perseverance in this quagmire of a relationship in which I now find myself stuck?

The Truth: Running from adversity and conflict in relationships does not solve problems, but compounds them. Patience and perseverance are the keys to relational transformation.

7Be patient, then, brothers, until the Lord's coming. See how the farmer waits for the land to yield its valuable crop and how patient he is for the autumn and spring rains.
8You too, be patient and stand firm, because the Lord's coming is near.
9Don't grumble against each other, brothers, or you will be judged. The Judge is standing at the door! 10Brothers, as an example of patience in the face of suffering, take the prophets who spoke in the name of the Lord. 11As you know, we consider blessed those who have persevered. You have heard of Job's perseverance and have seen what the Lord finally brought about. The Lord is full of compassion and mercy. 12Above all, my brothers, do not swear—not by heaven or by earth or by anything else. Let your "Yes" be yes, and your "No," no, or you will be condemned. James 5:7-12 (NIV)

~From “Five Lies That Ruin Relationships: Why a Change in Scenery Rarely Improves the View” ~Chip Ingram/Living On The Edge Radio Broadcast, October 2011

The only way I will learn to be patient and to persevere in times of adversity is to be patient and persevere in times of adversity. This may sound like circular reasoning, but it is fact, hard and cold. Just as I learned to drive by driving, just as I learned to cook by cooking, just as I learned to do anything by doing it, so it is with patience and perseverance in those upside down relationships. We may never reach perfection, but we should at least try. We must kick to the curb the idea of convenience, comfort, and no challenge in this life-journey. I am not saying this will be an easy or challenge free process. I am saying that we must begin to trust Him who is still able to do more than we can ask or think, one day at a time, one step at a time, one moment at a time.

Patience and perseverance, now that's a thought!

Indiana Megachurch Pastor Tim Stevens Says "Saved & Born-Again" Should be Removed from Church Vocabulary

Indiana megachurch pastor Tim Stevens recently wrote a blog post asking readers, “Does the Word 'Saved' Bother Anyone Else?” Stevens, who is the executive pastor at Granger Community Church, said he's annoyed at the word "saved," especially when used among Christians to describe someone who has made a commitment to follow Jesus Christ for the rest of their lives. Apparently he also has a problem with the phrase "born again." Um, we are all adults here, we know exactly what the phrase "born again" means. Not a physical birth but a spiritual one. We are becoming so politically correct it's sickening.

Stevens told The Christian Post that he also has a problem with the phrase “born again.”“I have similar hesitations with ‘born again’ probably because it’s also an insider term,” Stevens said. “'Born again' for the world at large is somewhat of a misunderstood term.” Stevens, also author of Pop Goes the Church: Should the Church Engage Pop Culture?, says that he often writes blog posts about what has been on his mind for a while and in some cases, it helps him seek answers from others. Source

He realizes that he may be offending many Christians by taking this position. Read his entire blog post here: http://www.leadingsmart.com/2011/08/does-the-word-saved-bother-anyone-else.html

Bart Ehrman, Former Fundamentalist, Debunks the Bible, Says Most of the New Testament is a Forgery

I came across a very interesting article on CNN's website in which Bart Ehrman says he's not the anti-Christ, but strives to debunk the Bible. His latest book is "Jesus Interrupted." He is a professor of religious studies at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and is a biblical sleuth whose investigations have made some people very irate, as has Dan Brown, the author of "The Da Vinci Code" and "Angels & Demons," which I am currently reading. In his latest book, "Jesus Interrupted," Ehrman said Christianity has never been about the Bible being the inerrant word of God" and "Christianity is about the belief in Christ." His insight has fallen on fertile ground in some circles, as evidenced from the fact that he is now a regular fixture on the History Channel, the Discovery Channel, CNN, BBC and National Public Radio, talking about Christianity. He maintains that at least 19 of the 27 books in the New Testament are forgeries. That's pretty heavy-duty stuff, but one has to pause and ponder the biblical truths as we know them today. His message has resonated with me, in large part, because I feel that there are parts of the Bible that the early church deliberately ommitted. This does not mean I don't believe in God and want a deeper Chrisitian relationship with my Lord and Savior. It just means there are so many more things that we have not been told.

While there are detractors to Mr. Ehrman's findings, there are also others who feel that he has forced them to confront tough questions about the Bible in front of their congregations. Pastors need to wrestle with the Bible's claims and seek to interpret them for their congregants, rather than gloss over everything. The reality is that no one accepts everything in the Bible. People pick and choose what they want to believe. Take Sarah getting pregnant in her old age and Noah building the ark to house two or every animal. How big was that ark, since we literally have millions of different species, or even the resurrection, for that matter. What do you wrestle with?

Ehrman backs his arguments with a deep knowledge of the culture and history of the New Testament world. He's written 20 books on early Christianity and is an authority on ancient manuscripts used to translate the Bible. His claims, though, take on some of Christianity's most sacred tenets, like the resurrection of Jesus. Ehrman says he doesn't think the resurrection took place. There's no proof Jesus physically rose from the dead, and the resurrection stories contradict one another, he says. He says he doesn't believe the followers of Jesus saw their master bodily rise from the dead, but something else.

"My best guess is that what happened is what commonly happens today when someone has a loved one die -- they sometimes think they see them in a vision," Ehrman says. "I think some of the disciples had visions." Ehrman says he immerses himself in the Bible, though he doesn't believe in its infallibility, because it's the most important book in Western civilization. Source: CNN

Some Christians may feel that Mr. Ehrman views are a threat to Christianity, but on the contrary. There is nothing wrong, as President Obama has said of the abortion issue, for us to have a constructive dialogue. The New Testament is a very important body of work. Look beyond the resurrection and you will see that it teaches you how to grow spiritually and live with others. I was baptized in 2000 after going through a dark period in my life. I found strength by leaning on the word of God and I found answers to many of the issues I confronted then in the Bible. I believe in the power of prayer and that it can literally move many of the mountains in our lives. Though I have questions about the veracity of some of the claims in the Bible, I believe we didn't just appear out of thin air. There is a power greater than we can ever imagine that made all this possible.

I am reminded of a childhood game in which you whisper in the ear of one person and tell them to pass it on. By the time it gets to the last person in that room, what has been said is completely different from the first statement uttered. The Bible is of an oral tradition and I believe that some things were lost in translation through the years. Though I struggle with the issue of the resurrection, the flood, the Virgin birth and Sarah getting pregnant in her old age and that the early church deliberately omitted many things from the Bible, the message is still the same. We must love one another, live a decent and honorable life, give to those less fortunate and have a deep and abiding faith in God.

Rev. Jay Scott Newman, S.C. Priest Tells Parishioners Who Voted for Barack Obama, Not to Take Communion

Rev. Jay Scott Newman, a South Carolina Roman Catholic priest has reportedly told his parishioners that they should refrain from receiving Holy Communion if they voted for Barack Obama because he supports abortion. He said that supporting him "constitutes material cooperation with intrinsic evil." Wow, so Barack Obama is the scourge of the Catholic Church. What a bunch of hypocrites. It's okay to sweep the numerous incidents of child molestation under a rug, but it is okay to vilify Obama for his views.

The Rev. Jay Scott Newman said in a letter distributed Sunday to parishioners at St. Mary's Catholic Church in Greenville that they are putting their souls at risk if they take Holy Communion before doing penance for their vote.

"Our nation has chosen for its chief executive the most radical pro-abortion politician ever to serve in the United States Senate or to run for president," Newman wrote, referring to Obama by his full name, including his middle name of Hussein.

"Voting for a pro-abortion politician when a plausible pro-life alternative exits constitutes material cooperation with intrinsic evil, and those Catholics who do so place themselves outside of the full communion of Christ's Church and under the judgment of divine law. Persons in this condition should not receive Holy Communion until and unless they are reconciled to God in the Sacrament of Penance, lest they eat and drink their own condemnation." Source: Breitbart

This really crazy. During the 2008 presidential campaign, many bishops spoke out on abortion more boldly than four years earlier, telling Catholic politicians and voters that the issue should be the most important consideration in setting policy and deciding which candidate to back. A few church leaders said parishioners risked their immortal soul by voting for candidates who support abortion rights.

According to national exit polls, 54 percent of Catholics chose Obama, who is Protestant. In South Carolina, which McCain carried, voters in Greenville County—traditionally seen as among the state's most conservative areas—went 61 percent for the Republican, and 37 percent for Obama.

"It was not an attempt to make a partisan point," Newman said in a telephone interview Thursday. "In fact, in this election, for the sake of argument, if the Republican candidate had been pro-abortion, and the Democratic candidate had been pro-life, everything that I wrote would have been exactly the same."Source: Breitbart.

This priest is way off base. Let me remind the religious fanatics of the fact that God chooses the people he wants to lead. For example, wasn't Moses a murderer? David, an adulterer? Mary Magdalene, a prostitute? I could go on and on. This priest is way off base and acting beyond his authority. His actions are selfish and will be of great cost to those parishioners who supported Mr. Obama, a right they are afforded under the Constitution. President Bush is a devout Christian, but he went into war in Iraq on a lie. I don't hear any religious people being vocal about that. Father Jay Scott Newman, stick to your job of winning souls for Christ, not turning people away.

Rev. Jay Scott Newman, S.C. Priest Tells Parishioners Who Voted for Barack Obama, Not to Take Communion

Rev. Jay Scott Newman, a South Carolina Roman Catholic priest has reportedly told his parishioners that they should refrain from receiving Holy Communion if they voted for Barack Obama because he supports abortion. He said that supporting him "constitutes material cooperation with intrinsic evil." Wow, so Barack Obama is the scourge of the Catholic Church. What a bunch of hypocrites. It's okay to sweep the numerous incidents of child molestation under a rug, but it is okay to vilify Obama for his views.

The Rev. Jay Scott Newman said in a letter distributed Sunday to parishioners at St. Mary's Catholic Church in Greenville that they are putting their souls at risk if they take Holy Communion before doing penance for their vote.

"Our nation has chosen for its chief executive the most radical pro-abortion politician ever to serve in the United States Senate or to run for president," Newman wrote, referring to Obama by his full name, including his middle name of Hussein.

"Voting for a pro-abortion politician when a plausible pro-life alternative exits constitutes material cooperation with intrinsic evil, and those Catholics who do so place themselves outside of the full communion of Christ's Church and under the judgment of divine law. Persons in this condition should not receive Holy Communion until and unless they are reconciled to God in the Sacrament of Penance, lest they eat and drink their own condemnation." Source: Breitbart

This really crazy. During the 2008 presidential campaign, many bishops spoke out on abortion more boldly than four years earlier, telling Catholic politicians and voters that the issue should be the most important consideration in setting policy and deciding which candidate to back. A few church leaders said parishioners risked their immortal soul by voting for candidates who support abortion rights.

According to national exit polls, 54 percent of Catholics chose Obama, who is Protestant. In South Carolina, which McCain carried, voters in Greenville County—traditionally seen as among the state's most conservative areas—went 61 percent for the Republican, and 37 percent for Obama.

"It was not an attempt to make a partisan point," Newman said in a telephone interview Thursday. "In fact, in this election, for the sake of argument, if the Republican candidate had been pro-abortion, and the Democratic candidate had been pro-life, everything that I wrote would have been exactly the same."Source: Breitbart.

This priest is way off base. Let me remind the religious fanatics of the fact that God chooses the people he wants to lead. For example, wasn't Moses a murderer? David, an adulterer? Mary Magdalene, a prostitute? I could go on and on. This priest is way off base and acting beyond his authority. His actions are selfish and will be of great cost to those parishioners who supported Mr. Obama, a right they are afforded under the Constitution. President Bush is a devout Christian, but he went into war in Iraq on a lie. I don't hear any religious people being vocal about that. Father Jay Scott Newman, stick to your job of winning souls for Christ, not turning people away.