Category: Uncategorized

The American Chicken In Chittagong

 

Neal Pollard

Almost five years ago, I was sitting in an unlocked car with Ralph Williams on the streets of Chittagong, Bangladesh.  Our driver and a native preacher had gone into an alley to find some breakfast for us.  It was about 7:00 AM, and all at once hundreds of men in full Muslim attire, white caps and white cloaks or brightly-colored hats and basic-colored cloaks, began streaming past us.  As I saw them, and among them undoubtedly some clerics and an imam or two, I confess to having had an elevated heart rate.  I felt vulnerable and a bit unsafe, knowing I stood out with my comparatively pale skin and American clothes.  My Bangladeshi vocabulary is very sketchy.  I kept thinking that I could not do much to protect myself or my more elderly companion.

Have you ever felt vulnerable, alone, helpless, and afraid?  Perhaps it takes more than a vivid imagination and a throng of Islamic pedestrian commuters to invoke such feelings from you, but most all of us experience feelings of being susceptible, anxious, and even alarm.  David certainly did!

He wrote, “Be gracious to me, O LORD, for I am in distress; My eye is wasted away from grief, my soul and my body also. For my life is spent with sorrow And my years with sighing; My strength has failed because of my iniquity, And my body has wasted away. Because of all my adversaries, I have become a reproach, Especially to my neighbors, And an object of dread to my acquaintances; Those who see me in the street flee from me. I am forgotten as a dead man, out of mind; I am like a broken vessel. For I have heard the slander of many, Terror is on every side; While they took counsel together against me, They schemed to take away my life ” (Psalm 31:9-13).  Distress. Grief. Sorrow. Sighing. Failing strength. Wasted body. Reproach. Dread. Forgotten. Broken. Terror.

Perhaps you relate to that. A job loss. A failed relationship. Financial stress.  A fearful diagnosis. An accident. What do you do in the face of threats, trouble, and trials?  The rest of Psalm 31 answers that.  Trust in God (14), put your “times” in His hand (15), call upon Him (17), trust His provision (19-22), love Him (23), be strong, take courage, and hope in Him (24).  In a word, “God” is the answer.  But we must reach out to Him for that help.  When we do, we see our concerns in the clearer light of His power!

Psalm 15

Neal Pollard

Who may permanently pitch his tent on the holy hill of the Lord?
Who is the one that may stay, content, without harm or hurt or discord?
The one who with godliness walks and works, with truth upon his heart
A trustworthy person who wickedness shirks, who in evil takes no part
His tongue he watches and reins, his friends do not fear he’ll betray
From slanderous, evil speech he refrains, he avoids every disloyal way
His sense of right and wrong is clear, his word is ironclad,
His fear of the Lord his actions steer, he despises all men who are bad.
The innocent he carefully protects, he’s compassionate if he lends.
The hurting he never neglects, the downtrodden are his friends.
What happens to such a man, the one up on God’s holy hill?
Move him? No one can! He is entrenched in God’s  unchanging will!

“Beauty On The Outside Never Makes Up For Ugliness On The Inside”

Neal Pollard

The late Harvey Porter wrote the words that make up the title of this article.  He was commenting on Peter’s words to women in 1 Peter 3:3-4, where the apostle urges them, “Your adornment must not be merely external -braiding the hair, and wearing gold jewelry, or putting on dresses; but let it be the hidden person of the heart, with the imperishable quality of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is precious in the sight of God.”  While there are matters here that would seem to more naturally pertain to women–braids, jewelry, and dresses–there are principles in these verses needed by everyone.

First, your adornment must not be merely external.  Whatever you are doing to fight the “Battle of Time,” you are losing.  Even if you are aging gracefully, you are aging!  Eventually, there is nothing you can do about it.  How foolish to only pay attention to skin, hair, body, and wardrobe.  As the title suggests, we all know some handsome and pretty people who are repulsive beneath that shaky surface.

Second, your must properly adorn your heart.  We are not left to wonder how.  Peter suggests to Christian ladies the “imperishable” (that means it will last) quality of a gentle and quiet spirit.  That precludes boisterous, coarse, gossipy, bitter, hateful, vengeful, arrogant, cutting, and petty.  People of that variety are a dime a dozen, commonplace in a world of the externally-obsessed and internally-negligent.

Third, properly adorning the heart is precious in God’s sight.  I have only been in one beauty contest in my life.  The same is true for most of you.  If you have been in more than one, the one we are all contestants in is the most important of all.  How do you look in the sight of God?  He judges beauty at its deepest, truest level.  He is evaluating that “hidden person of the heart.”  There is no talent, evening wear, or other, similar segment.  He is simply looking at your heart and your spirit.  Adorn that well, and Peter says God deems that “precious.”  How do we look to God?  Isn’t that what matters?  Care about that, and we will win the only beauty contest that will matter in eternity.

The Family That Distributes Cocaine Together…

Neal Pollard

Family togetherness can be a good thing, but, obviously, not always.  The Lerma family in Grand Junction, Colorado, were not playing Scrabble, hiking, or watching Disney Movies together.  They were working together to bring two pounds of cocaine into this “western slope” community about every ten days or so.  They were arrested on Sunday, coming back from Denver.   Federico, wife Dolores, 19-year-old daughter Blanca, and a 16-year-old son were all implicated in the drug ring.  Blanca even took her 7-month-old child along for the car rides to transport the drugs (via Grand Junction Sentinel, 1/31/12).

It is unfathomable, unwholesome, unthinkable.  How parents could not influence, but encourage, sinful behavior is baffling to consider!  What were they thinking?

Extreme as it is, this family’s example should cause us to pause and consider what we do as a family when we are together.  Are we ever encouraging our children to miss worship and other regular assembly times in order to pursue other activities?  Do we watch things with them on TV or at the movies that are spiritually harmful?  What do we find humorous and entertaining?  Is it ever that which is not spiritually lawful?

We would never contemplate taking our young ones on a drug run, but where are we taking them?  Where will where we take them cause them to eventually go?  Fathers, as the spiritual leaders of the family (cf. Eph. 5:22-23; 6:1ff), God makes us accountable for our wives and children.  Let us rally them around only “whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is of good repute” (cf. Phil. 4:8).

ORAL HYGIENE (or “VERBAL SNIPERS”)

Neal Pollard

Routine teeth cleaning can be pleasant, but cavities, extractions, and root canals, from what I hear, are less than thrilling.  No matter how well you think you are doing with “home care,” the dentist will always have suggestions for how you can improve your “oral hygiene,” from flossing and regular brushing to avoiding certain types of food (i.e., sugary and staining stuff).

But, how is our spiritual “oral hygiene”?  Sometimes, we equate such with abstaining from profanity and vulgarity.  But, doesn’t God expect more?  Growing up in the church, I have preserved in my mind a “Hall of Fame” of people who have filled their speech and words with encouragement, truth, gentleness, and thoughtfulness.  They brighten the lives they touch, altering them for the better.  However, I have seen too many Christians in every congregation I can remember whose speech is rotten and decayed.  Ironically, they often are those who faithfully attend and are generally morally and ethically upright.  Yet, they have slipped the bridle off their tongue to the harm and detriment of others.

Neither one’s age, perceived position and importance, nor tenure in a congregation entitles him or her to riddle others with verbal bullets.  Insults, discouragement, destructive criticism, loveless rebukes, railings, and the like have proven stumbling blocks to many visitors, new Christians, weak Christians, or others who are spiritually vulnerable.  I cannot count the specific number of times I have tried to help these wounded ones pick up the pieces after razor-sharp comments made by thoughtless brothers and sisters who ought to know better.  The offenders may not have any idea of the havoc they cause, but I am certain that some will be shocked and astonished at the judgment.

Jesus taught that “the mouth speaks out of that which fills the heart” and “that every careless word that people speak, they shall give an accounting for it in the day of judgment. For by your words you will be justified, and by your words you will be condemned” (Mt. 12:34b, 36-37).  What do we think James means when he says that the tongue “is set on fire by hell” (Js. 3:6)?  The kind of speech referenced above is certainly not ignited by heaven!

Please consider that your speech is a direct reflection of the content of your heart!  Be mortified at the thought of a word of yours causing anyone to stumble and fall!  However important or unimportant you believe yourself to be, realize the potential harm or good you do simply by what you say.  Am I talking about your speech?  Well, ask if your speech is “with grace, seasoned with salt” (Col. 4:6), wholesome, edifying, needful, and gracious (Eph. 4:29)?  If it is not, please keep it to yourself!

Let us remember the words Will Carleton wrote in “The First Settler’s Story”:

Boys flying kites haul in their white-winged birds;
You can’t do that way when you’re flying words.
“Careful with fire,” is good advice we know
“Careful with words,” is ten times doubly so.
Thoughts unexpressed may sometimes fall back dead;
But God Himself can’t kill them when they’re said.

THE SWISS PARAGUAYAN

Neal Pollard

Moises’ Bertoni’s story is fascinating.  Born in Switzerland in 1857, son of a renowned lawyer, Bertoni was an idealist and an adventurer whose scientific passions took him first to Brazil and ultimately to Paraguay, where he and his wife raised their thirteen sons!  They suffered many hardships in the area known as Alto Parana, a department (like a region or state) featuring the Parana River.  When still living on the Brazil side of the river, it overflowed its banks and deluged the Bertoni home, destroying ten years of research on two continents.  Once in Paraguay, they faced pumas, jaguars, tapirs, monkeys, and anacondas.  He wrote, in an 1885 personal letter, “We have passed through all the difficulties that human existence can offer…villainy, the most absolute misery, freaky weather, hunger! We have born up under all of it, amazed at ourselves. We are not willing to give in…We are on the field of battle, and the fight offers only two outcomes: victory or death!”

Not surprisingly, Bertoni became an eminent figure in Paraguayan history renowned for his scientific research, agricultural advancement, publishing, environmentalism, and his work as an expert student the Guarani race of people who were his neighbors.  He suffered many disappointments and failures before succumbing to malaria in 1929, but his approach to the challenges of life proved him a fighter who persevered (some information via Mike Caesar, “Paraguay’s First Man Of Science,” 2002).

Though Bertoni was misguided in some of his pursuits, he exemplifies a principle we should all apply to our lives as Christians today.  Whatever difficulties and challenges we face, we must remember that we, too, are on the field of battle.  As he framed his work, how much more is ours a matter of “victory or death”?  Repeatedly, New Testament writers cast Christianity as a battle fraught with adversity (Rom. 13:12; 2 Cor. 10:4; Eph. 6; 1 Tim. 1:18; 2 Tim. 4:7; etc.).  Yet, this is the promised finale of the fight, that “you are from God, little children, and have overcome them; because greater is he that is in you than he who is in the world” (1 Jn. 4:4).  In the next chapter, John explains that we overcome by faith (1 Jn. 5:4).  Some day, unless Christ’s coming precedes it, physical death will overtake us, but, if we are faithful in Christ, we will experience eternal victory!

What Is God’s View Toward Homosexuality In 2012?

Neal Pollard

In 1998, Lisa Bennett, then a fellow at Harvard University’s Center on Press, Politics, and Public Policy in the John F. Kennedy School of Government, wrote a research paper on perceived prejudice in the press toward homosexuality.  She noted that immediately following World War II, “all the major religions condemned it as a sin against God and nature. Psychiatrists treated it as a serious mental disorder. Almost every state in the nation had a law against it, with many calling for a prison term for convicted homosexuals” (Bennett 2).  She credited Alfred Kinsey’s reports for revealing how much of what the Bible calls sexual immorality was being clandestinely practiced by Americans (though it has been widely noted that Kinsey skewed and manipulated his results to match his own, private agenda; opponents include the American Legislative Exchange Council, Margaret Mead, Karl Menninger, Eric Fromm, and a who’s who of Kinsey’s contemporaries in science and psychology).

Even in the last 30 years, attitudes toward homosexuality have changed dramatically. Gallup indicates that in 1977, Americans were evenly divided over whether or not homosexuality should even be legal (43% for and against).  In 1983, only 34% thought homosexuality should be considered an acceptable alternative lifestyle. In 1996, only 27% favored homosexual marriage (www.gallup.com/poll/108115/Americans-Evenly-Divided-Morality-Homosexuality.aspx).  These and similar findings are radically different in 2012.

Whatever the exact numbers are now, it is safe to say that many, many more Americans accept, if not embrace, homosexuality in our society than in the years immediately following World War II.  This cannot all be laid at the feet of one man, but at a few elite institutions.  One is higher education, where professors in academic isolation surrounded only by like-minded peers can pursue carnal theory and philosophy with seeming earthly impunity (i.e., free from consequences).  Incidentally, many of these professors have taken their places in seminaries and other religious graduate schools, softening and changing the positions of religious teachers and preachers across the religious spectrum.  Another is the media, whose message has long been an influencer and molder of thought rather than a reflection of it.  Its story-lines, role models, and biases continue to push the moral envelope.  Yet another is politics, where legislators, judges, and others pander to activists and special interest groups who pressure with money and power.

All of this is presented, not to argue for changing our positions on homosexuality or any other moral issue, but to help us take a look at the moral slide so many are riding.  No matter what percentage of Americans, academicians, politicians, or media types, call homosexuality or other sin natural, normal, and acceptable, God’s Word stands firm.  It will not change, for it is the expressed will of God.  In short, though God loves every sinner, homosexuality is, and forever will be, a sin (Rom. 1:24-27; 1 Cor. 6:9; 1 Tim. 1:10).

King Solomon’s Deadly Mistake

Neal Pollard

Laura Elliott, first grade Bible class teacher at the Cold Harbor Road congregation, was teaching my son Dale’s class about king Solomon’s three hundred wives and seven hundred concubines, about how not only was it wrong to have so many wives but how difficult it must have been for Solomon to keep up with all of their names. Laura tells me that Dale’s solution was simple: “Couldn’t he just call them all ‘honey’?” If only keeping up with their names was Solomon’s most serious task with regard to these women!

Reading 1 Kings 11, right off the heels of Solomon’s hosting of the Queen of Sheba and the extremely opulent exchange of gifts between them, we are impressed with an incredible flaw in Solomon’s character. Perhaps Ecclesiastes was written later enough in his life after 1 Kings 11 that he realized, with regret, the folly of such a lifestyle. Consider some things about Solomon’s deadly mistake.

First, his mistake was in whom he had such great affection (1 Kings 11:1-2). They were foreign women from nations with whom God explicitly forbad such fraternization! God knew that such worldly yoking would lead men to fall away from Him (cf. 2 Cor. 6:14; 1 Cor. 15:33). Be careful as to who is the object of your affection – choosing wrong is a deadly mistake!

Second, his mistake was in how he held them in affection (1 Kings 11:1-2). These women of the world were apparently beautiful and seductive. The word for “love” in these two verses speaks more to physical attraction and very little, if at all, to pure, spiritual love. It might be said that Solomon pursued these women from lust. From his own pen, he wrote of how dangerous such pursuit is (Prov. 5; 6:24-35; 7:5-27; etc.). To follow his example today is a deadly mistake!

Third, his mistake was in what his affection for them led him to do (1 Kings 11:3-10). It led him to worship the idols revered by these pagan women. It also led him to ignore God’s commands and even outright rebel against them! The natural consequence of following in his footsteps is the same today – a choice must be made. Choosing the path of sensuality prevents one from obeying God. Obeying God makes it impossible to, at the same time, pursue such a sinful path. Choose like he did, and you make a deadly mistake!

Finally, his mistake was in what his affection for them cost him (1 Kings 11:11). His pursuit of these women cost him the kingdom! God took it from him through the rebellion of Jeroboam and the folly of Rehoboam, his son.

Following Solomon’s example is costly! It will often cost one dearly – financially, socially, and physically. Lacking repentance, it will surely cost one eternally! Yet, so many are imitating Solomon’s deadly mistake!

May we take a page from inspiration and learn from Solomon’s deadly mistake.


MAGNILOQUENCE

Neal Pollard

It is a word seemingly requiring an unabridged dictionary. It means “employing impressive words and an exaggeratedly solemn and dignified style or using important- sounding words” (Encarta).  To use the word in a sentence, “The preacher magniloquently threw around words like ‘magniloquence.'”

The Bible places a great premium on the sort of words and speech we use (cf. Mt. 12:36-37; Col. 4:6).  Apparently, “big talkers” are not a novelty of today.  In fact, one finds a surprising number of contexts and discussions centering around such.  Peter warns of certain lawless individuals who speak “out arrogant words of vanity” (2 Pet. 2:18; cf. Jude 16).  Paul, warning of coming difficult times, included in the list of qualities making for such those who were boastful and arrogant (2 Tim. 3:1ff).  The same type characteristics show up in Paul’s condemnation of Gentiles’ sinfulness in Romans 1:30.  Many other texts indicate this same malady of mouth.

Certainly, these inspired writers seem to speak of something that goes much farther than even magniloquence.  Yet, it serves as a good reminder.  Why would we try to talk or act in some way to make us look important, smart, sophisticated, successful, or the like?  It may be a lack of common sense, failing to consider our audience.  It may be insecurity, compensating for other shortcomings.  It may ambition, trying to impress the “right kind” of folks.  It may be great intelligence, but it hinders great communication.

Let us be reminded that being pretentious, i.e., “making claims to some distinction, importance, etc.”–whatever form that takes–means failing to imitate Christ.  He called for humility and the avoidance of selfish ambition (cf. Rom. 2:8; Phil. 1:17; Js. 3:14,16).  We should be intent on lifting up Christ, not magnifying self.  May we make a conscious effort to let that attitude show up in our choices, our deeds, and our speech!

Paul’s Bundle Of Sticks

Neal Pollard

In Acts 28, after Paul and his shipmates survived a shipwreck and landed on Malta, the stranded passengers found themselves cold and wet in a strange place.  The natives, however, were friendly and built a fire for them all (Acts 28:2).  It is interesting that Paul “gathered a bundle of sticks and laid them on the fire” (3).  This was when Paul was bitten by an apparently deadly viper.  Somehow, in reading this part of Paul’s journey to Rome, I overlooked a fundamental fact that helped make Paul great.

Paul did his part.  When the others had built that fire, Paul was not content to let the others do it all.  He did his share.  Not only that, he did his share even at great, personal cost.  He did his share, though he might have rationalized that he had already done so much and been through so much.  Paul noted their unusual kindness and was made to feel very welcome, and he showed his appreciation in a tangible way.

You may be a busy, active servant of God.  You may have done much in the past for the cause of Christ.  Yet, think about how notable it is and inspiring to others, when you gather your own bundle of sticks to help the fire others have started.  It may be noted and remembered long after you are gone.

Blackout Christianity?

Neal Pollard

It is going to be harder today to find a quick answer to such questions as, “How did William Henry Harrison die?” or “What is the history of the easter bunny?”  For both questions, the top search engine result is the Wikipedia website.  Most know that they have chosen today, January 18, 2012, to protest some anti-piracy legislation better known as SOPA and PIPA.  The list of sites participating in what they call the “blackout” is very long, but none have more star power than the familiar, free information Wiki-sites.  Were I better informed about the particulars, I might articulate an educated opinion.  I will defer to others for that service.  My interest is in the way they have chosen to protest.  They are calling it “blackout Wikipedia.”  They have shut down their site and no one can use it for “research.”  As my friend Keith Kasarjian wrote earlier today, “With Wikipedia down, students all over the world are scrambling to figure out how to do real research.”

In John 8:12, Jesus called Himself the light of the world.  Matthew 5:14 says that we, as Christians, are the light of the world. But, Jesus, in Matthew five, says that we black out those lights (cf. 5:15).  Paul demonstrates how important it is for that light to be seen.  He says that in a dark, crooked and perverse world, Christians “appear as lights” (Phil. 2:15).  But, when we black out that light through compromise and conformation, no one will be able to find out the answers to the most important questions of all time and eternity.  We ourselves were called out of darkness into His marvelous light (1 Pet. 2:9). Paul says, “Walk as children of light” (Eph. 5:8).  How can we do that if nobody knows we have the light and are the light?

None of us would arbitrary chose a day to blackout our Christianity, but if we are not careful we can make such a decision our way of life.  God give us strength and courage to “put on the armor of light” (Rom. 13:12)!

 

A Precept, A Principle, And A Practice

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Neal Pollard

Whether we are preaching, teaching, or simply trying to engage in spiritual self-improvement in personal study, our approach to Scripture, to be profitable, should have three basic components for maximum effectiveness.  When we are studying a Bible book and engaging in proper interpretation, we will discover a precept.  A “precept” is simply a rule meant to regulate how to live and behave.   The very word appears 19 times in Psalm 119 alone.  God’s Word is full of precepts, God showing us how He wants us to live.  When our attitude is to see the Bible as God guiding us through earthly life toward a heavenly home with Him, our time in study will be so profitable.  Such an approach will also help us open our mind to see the heart of God.  Thus, from precepts flow principles.  These are the inspired truths of God that form the foundation for how we view the world and how we live in it.  The more we are in that word, the more influenced we are going to be by God’s precepts in determining our principles.  We will look to see how His word applies in our lives.  If all is as it should be, these principles find their way into our practice.  He tells us, we accept and understand it, and then we do it.  How profoundly simple!  The Bible is not an archaic volume best meant as a shelf’s dust collection.  It is a living, breathing book (Heb. 4:12).  It is an exegetical, explanatory, exercise manual.  We grow thereby (cf. 1 Pet. 2:2).

Sequoia Or Scrub Oak?

Neal Pollard

A few years ago I visited King’s Canyon National Park, home of “General Grant.”  General Grant is the second-tallest living thing on earth at 267 feet tall, 40 feet in diameter and 107 feet in basal circumference.  It has been called the “Nation’s Christmas Tree” as well as the nation’s only living National Shrine because it was dedicated to Americans who died serving our country during time of war.   It is hard to describe the sense of awe standing before the massive act of God’s hand.  Sequoias are said to be the largest living things on earth.  While California Redwoods grow taller, Sequoias grow larger trunks and wider branches.  In fact, the bark on a Sequoia can be four feet thick and they can grow up to two feet per year and live hundreds of years.

The scrub oak, on the other hand, makes quite a contrast.  It has prickly, dull colored leaves which are hairy on its underside.  The trees almost never grow higher than eight feet tall.  It is often referred to as a hybrid and is often thought of as much as a shrub as a tree.  Scrub oaks often combine together in “groves” to form brambly thickets.  The acorns are distinct for their hairy, warty and overlapping scales when they reach maturity.

The interesting thing is that one of the major species of scrub oak grows not far from areas where sequoias and redwoods can be found.  They are subject to the same general conditions, have access to the same nutrients, soil, and weather conditions.  Obviously, though, they are made of different stuff!

Now, a scrub oak cannot make a decision to be a sequoia.  That is pre-determined by God and His laws of nature and propagation.  But, we can choose what kind of person we will be.  We can be magnanimous, charitable, helpful, reliable, kind, and serving, the kind of Christian who builds and helps the church grow and be better.  Such a person makes a huge impact wherever he or she is planted.  Or, we can choose to be small-minded, petty, cantankerous, disagreeable, prickly, and contentious.  This kind of person is also known by his or her fruit, and the comparison between that fruit and a scrub acorn is compelling!  Whatever type of Christian you set out to be, you will be observed by those around you.  When you are thus observed, what will you be?  A sequoia or scrub oak?

What To Do When The Bull Takes You By The Horns

Neal Pollard

It’s one of those pictures where you are relieved to know that the people captured in a painful predicament survived and recovered just fine.  That way, you don’t feel guilty laughing at them.  In the October 2007 issue of Reader’s Digest (p. 109), there is an incredible picture from the running of the bulls in Pamplona, Spain.  What are the chances that one bull would be lucky enough to skewer brothers.  One either end of this bull’s rack are Americans that were, um, painfully caught.  The bull, literally, took them by his horns.  Even Hemingway would have to call this “poetic justice.”

It would be interesting to learn the etymology of the phrase, “take the bull by the horns.”  We know it is an encouragement to endure the risks in doing something bold, daring, and difficult.  It depicts bravery, bravado, and brazenness.

What happens when risk and daring backfire?  What about when you stick your neck out and your nearly lose it?  What about when your big dreams come to resemble a nightmare?

When the bull takes you by the horns, it hurts.  Though I don’t know this from first hand experience, I have seen the video footage and enough photos like the one in RD to believe it.  It hurts when you take that big risk (to invite a friend to church, to have a Bible study not end in baptism, to hand an olive branch to someone you’re at odds with and have the hand slapped, etc.).  Acknowledge that those who dare and do will sometimes know defeat.

When the bull takes you by the horns, it’s not usually fatal.  I have concluded it is the adrenaline rush of staring death in the face that gets these Type A’s into the narrow streets of Pamplona.  The dread of the goring is felt many more times often than the point of the horns.  If you’ve failed trying something big for the Lord, you may wrestle with being gun-shy.  Yet, ask yourself, “Did it kill me?”  If you are reading this, it obviously did not!  Try again!  Your next attempt may be your greatest.

When the bull takes you by the horns, learn from it!  When it comes to the running of the bulls, I’d say that the lesson to be learned is stay off the streets when angry bulls seeing a lot of red are turned loose there.  Perhaps another lesson is to run at least a step or two faster than the guy beside you.   But, when daring to do great things for God, learn from the mistakes and failures.  Let it instruct you.  Be wiser next time.  Try a different approach.  But, at all costs, do not stop doing your very best for Christ.

THE BEST PLAY WAS NOT EVEN ON THE FIELD!

Neal Pollard

Yesterday, professional football fans saw one of the most exciting, improbable victories in its history climaxed by the stunning first play from scrimmage in overtime when Tebow hit Thomas for a playoff, overtime record 80 yards in a playoff, overtime record 11 seconds.  Local play-by-play man Dave Logan’s call, which will likely go down in Bronco lore, captures how monumental it was for the underdog Denver team.  If you watch ESPN, there will be several highlights of passes, runs, and defensive plays.  However, without a doubt, the best play of the day happened up in the stands, almost on the front row in the seats at the 15 yard line.  The game was tied, 23-23, and it was about 5:45 P.M.  The outcome was completely unknown and very much in doubt.  The last minute of regulation, alone, was a pins and needles affair.  It was right about then that a Christian husband and father, a deacon in this congregation, told his son, “It’s time for us to go.”  The son, a huge Tim Tebow and Broncos fan, was curious as to why.  His dad explained, “We’ve got something more important to do.”

Wait a minute.  What is more important than seeing on the biggest sports moments in this town in years?  That father knew that the saints were assembling at 6:00 P.M., and he wanted his son to know that worshipping God was the highest priority.  Here is a father who is raising his son to enjoy and appreciate those normal “guy things” that will be a source of entertainment for this young man for decades to come.  But, he is also teaching him something infinitely more important!  Those earthly diversions and entertainments are subordinate to “kingdom matters” (Mat. 6:33).  This father was showing his son Who reigns on the throne of his heart.  I pray that this man’s example will influence us all to remember what really matters most in the end.

Thanks, Dean!  What a great “play”!

MISSED WHEN ABSENT (THE SEQUEL)

Neal Pollard

Some years ago, I wrote a Daily Bread article comparing the ecological crisis known as Colony Collapse Disorder (CCD), which in many places is causing the honey worker bees to disappear, to our hardworking church members whose absence makes all the difference in what gets done or does not get done in a congregation. I wrote:

“Think about how many in the church are like the honey bee.  They work almost undetectably, behind the scenes and unheralded.  Without them, however, much work would go undone.  Occasionally, these workers may get discouraged by opposition, unappreciation, and criticism.  In some instances, they may be prone to give up and ‘disappear.’  Yet, think about what happens to the life and work of a congregation that loses or lacks these quiet workers.  Bulletin boards aren’t decorated.  Kitchens aren’t cleaned.  Tract racks aren’t stocked.  Shut-ins and the sick aren’t contacted.  Cards aren’t sent.  People aren’t encouraged and new Christians and new members aren’t exhorted.  Visits aren’t made.  Individually, these workers may not be able to do much, but collectively their impact is huge!”

I ended by writing to those who are those hardworking, behind-the-scenes members, “We notice you, and we need you.”

I found it interesting that buried in today’s Denver Post is the probable cause of Colony Collapse Disorder.  Scientists in northern California think “a parasitic fly hijacks the bees’ bodies and causes them to abandon hives” (1/5/12, 11A).  The fly has been a known parasite in bumblebees (ibid.), but may now be the culprit decimating honey bee hives in the United States and overseas.

If that is true, what an illustration of a warning God gives His workers in Hebrews 12.  “Therefore, since we have so great a cloud of witnesses surrounding us, let us also lay aside every encumbrance and the sin which so easily entangles us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, fixing our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of faith…” (1-2a).  Be it discouragement, lack of endurance, personal sin, or some other “parasite” of faith and faithfulness, we must keep them away and fix our eyes on Jesus.  No matter what tempts us to veer off course or how difficult the challenge is to stay at the work, that is exactly what God wants us to do and what we must do!

WHAT DOES IT MEAN TO BE COMPASSIONATE?


Neal Pollard

Christians are called to be compassionate.  There is no denying that.  Colossians 3:12 puts compassion at the head of a list of eight important qualities God’s chosen are to “put on.”  Frequently, we see Jesus as a model of compassion (Mat. 9:36; 14:14; 15:32; 20:34).  The Samaritan in Jesus’ parable is upheld as exemplary for his compassion (Lk. 10:33).  Compassion is used to describe God’s dealings with us (Js. 5:11).

The problem can become what the world calls compassion as contrasted with what the Bible means by it.  The biblical meaning of the word speaks of the intense emotion of sympathy, even to the point of grief, that leads to the merciful treatment of the object of that compassion.  Compassion moved Jesus to heal and feed the crowds.  It moved the “Good Samaritan” to treat the wounds and pay for the medical care of the man left for dead.  God’s compassion moves Him to forgive us and bless us.

The world’s mistaken notion of compassion too often involves tolerating sin or compromising so as not to hurt the feelings of another.  Under the guise of compassion, too many basically “good” people are averse to condemning such sinful behavior as homosexuality, abortion, fornication, adultery, drunkenness, and the list of “such like” things is rather long (cf. Gal. 5:19-21).  Whereas the compassionate thing in such a case is to lovingly teach truth rather than validate wickedness, perhaps some are afraid of the negative backlash that comes from a courageous rebuke.  Compassion does not enable people to stay in unhealthy moral, ethical, economic, or emotional situations.  Compassion calls for sympathy, gentleness, and understanding, but that is not synonymous with endorsing evil.  It is antonymous!  Jesus was the king of compassion, but He was plainspoken about sin.  May we follow in His steps, being loving and merciful while staying true to God’s revealed standard.

Why Is Movie Attendance Falling?

Neal Pollard

Apparently, churches are not the only ones bemoaning falling attendance.  Amy Kaufman of the L.A. Times reports that only 1.28 billion people bought a ticket for a movie in the U.S. and Canada in 2011.  That may still like a huge number of patrons, but  it is the lowest number in 16 years. Those of us who rarely darken the darkened Hollywood houses would point to ticket prices, especially a cost to value comparison being woefully dissatisfying. Kaufman points to a disconnect between the industry and a new generation of movie-watchers.

I confess to knowing very little about marketing particularly this product.  But I wonder if there is another factor or two at play beyond economics and a generation gap.  As I heard the statistic about falling movie attendance first on radio news, my mind went back to a book my brother-in-law, Bud Woodall, gave to me 15 years ago.  It is called Five Lies of the Century and is written by David T. Moore.  Moore explores five myths of our culture, one of which is that “Entertainment Is Harmless.”  One of the media myths he explores is the idea that the media just gives people what they want.  Moore says, “If the media is really giving people what they want, then why are fewer people going to movies, concerts, and watching TV?…Seventy-eight percent of Americans go to two films or fewer a year. When they do go, it’s nearly always to see an exceptionally good film” (283-284).  He makes the point that in the 1980s, despite “G” rated movies far outperforming “R” movies, the industry increased production of “R” rated movies by almost 20% in that decade.

So, a generation later, people have patronized movies full of filthy language, irreverence, gratuitous violence, and sexual immorality of every flavor and kind.  Like a lesser drug loses its pull eventually, movies that titillate also desensitize much the way that lemons take the enamel off a tooth.  Movies have to push the envelope more and move the edge further.  This will work for a while, along with technological advances like 3-D and interactive theatre seats.  Perhaps, like someone living on a diet of fat and sugar, north American movie-goers are glutted with drug, sex, vulgarity, and profanity.  If the past is any kind of predictor, the majority will return after their hiatus.  May we, as Christians, not follow them.  Remember, the majority are on the wrong spiritual road (Mt. 7:13-14).

Excel Still More

Neal Pollard

As this year is still very new, you may be looking back at the your past and contemplating your future.  You may be the type that says, “I don’t ‘do’ resolutions.”  Perhaps it is silly to suddenly jump into healthier habits and aim for higher heights just because the calendar indicates that the new day is a new year, but there is biblical precedence for continual striving to do and be better.

Paul writes Thessalonica and twice urges them to “excel still more” (1 Thess. 4:1,10).  Reading the text reveals that this more excellent approach includes proper walking and pleasing God (1).  It includes practicing brotherly love (9).  It includes sexual self-control and purity (3-7). It is attached to such behaviors as industriousness and evangelistic example (11-12).  So, it takes in a wide variety of conduct that makes us better personally, morally, evangelistically, and ethically.

When you examine yourself this time next year, should the Lord allow time to stand, will you be living more excellently than you are today?  If not, does that thought satisfy you?  Don’t wait for January first, but don’t delay for any reason.  Get started today on becoming a better you.  This will benefit yourself, those around you, and the kingdom of God!  Who needs more incentive than that?

2011 in review

The WordPress.com stats helper monkeys prepared a 2011 annual report for this blog.

Here’s an excerpt:

The concert hall at the Syndey Opera House holds 2,700 people. This blog was viewed about 17,000 times in 2011. If it were a concert at Sydney Opera House, it would take about 6 sold-out performances for that many people to see it.

Click here to see the complete report.