Do you remember the children’s nursery rhyme that starts with, “Sticks and stones may break my bones…?” What you soon learn about that rhyme is that it isn’t true. Words can hurt and they often do.

They are the wicked lashes of whips that rip the flesh from our emotional backs and leave us scarred for life. They form chains that bind us down and hold us captive to accusations and lies. Because of them, we construct prison walls to keep us safely out of reach from people for our protection. We gather them up and build our own arsenal of verbal weaponry to use on any who we feel threaten us. Words most certainly can hurt you.

This is why James wrote, “Speak and act as those who are going to be judged by the law that gives freedom” (2:12). The law that gives freedom is the law of love. Love demands that our words be gentle and kind. Love desires that our words and actions be compassionate and merciful. Of course, those who know me are screaming, “How can you say such things? You spout unkind, fierce, rude, judgmental political comments all the time.” I have to say this is sometimes true.

However, when I rail politically, it is generally not personal, but rather ideologically. For example, when I hate on the New York Yankees, it’s not personal, I don’t know any of them. But I hate what they represent in my world, from my own point of view. I am not trying to win converts to my side on these things, I’m cheering my own team. A cheerleader at a ballgame is not there to convince the opponents fans to change allegiance. Cheering our side inspires. I want people who agree with me to make some noise!

I have a couple of friends who are strongly in the camp of the political opposition from my own. Though they disagree with me, argue and challenge me, we do not attack each other personally. Mike and Bruce are good people who think different than I at times, that doesn’t make them Philistines. I don’t treat them, nor do they treat me, with disrespect.

Love calls us to realize that our words and actions will be judged by our own hearts and by the hearts of those who hear our words and receive our actions. Remember that love judges both our words and our actions. I hope I do better this week than last.

telemicus out

In the movie, Passion of the Christ, Jesus falls and Mary comes and kneels down beside him. Jesus looks at her and says, “See mother, I’m making everything new.” This phrase is from Revelation 21:5. This Sunday is Easter. As I was thinking about what I should speak about this week to our church the Word came to me, “Tell them I’m making everything NEW!” No, I didn’t hear a voice, but I heard it loud and clear.

The book of Hebrews is partly about the ways in which Christ is better than anything that came before him. He is better than Moses, He is a better High Priest, He is a better sacrifice, He is better than angels. He is better than the Law and provides a better covenant. He grants better access to the Father and offers a better rest. Jesus death on the cross gave all of humanity something better.

But beyond the elements of our religion, Jesus gives us the opportunity to live new lives. On that Sunday morning when the stone rolled away like the doors at the Target store and he walked out a free man, everything changed for us who belong to Him. “Yet to all who received him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God” (John 1:12).

When we enter into relationship with him, He forgives us, for everything, for good. We enjoy the depth of His teachings. We mature in Him. We walk in and with Him by the Spirit. We have the capacity for holiness. We are no longer slaves but free! We are not under law, but grace. We are not illegitimate, but adopted into the family of God. We are not under the curse, but the blessing. We have peace with God. We have comfort in sorrows. We have family by faith. Because of Him, we can face the horrible, forgive the unforgivable, believe the impossible, endure the unbearable and overcome the insurmountable.

The Old Book says, “His divine power has given us everything we need for life and godliness through our knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness” (2 Peter 1:3). Oh He truly does make everything New! The thing that is most incredible to me about all of this is when a person allows Christ to change their heart. When the heart of stone becomes soft and teachable, when bitter becomes forgiving, when closed becomes open, when wounded becomes healed, when anger becomes happy, when hateful becomes loving—this is Him making us new.

telemicus out

I wish I were different. I’m not good at acting or sounding religious. I don’t say spiritual things and if on occasion I do, it seems about as natural as wearing scuba flippers on a bicycle. I’m certainly a believer, but I don’t think I’m good at it. I pray, but those prayers do not resonate with confidence. It seems to me I rarely know what God really wants. How should I know! He’s God and I’m as far from that as anyone should want to be.

Folks like me are honest with Him. When we mess up, we say so. We apologize, ask forgiveness and state our plan for changing. We beg when desperate. We know when things are totally in His hands. It seems like He says, “No” to me a lot. I’m not complaining. He is just and his judgments are right. I’m just explaining how I feel about all this. Those who never struggle with the “No’s” baffle people like me. Those who have a grand faith really break my heart, because I feel so weak and inadequate in their presence.

Have you ever struggled with the idea that some of God’s children that are simply not favored? (Some of my strong friends would say, “This is why you experience these tough times.) Perhaps—but I don’t resent God for being who He is or feeling the way He does. I believe He loves me, forgives me, saved me and will invite me into heaven when this deal is over. I belong to Christ. What else can I say?

I believe that God is good and capable of anything He wishes to accomplish. If He says no to any of His children, it’s because it suits His purpose and is best. The Old Book says, “Love does not seek its own.” I love Him, so I do not make demands. I pour out my prayers and trust He will do right by me. And when I beg for His help, like the dad in Mark 9, I say, “If you can, please help me.” Then He tells me, “All things are possible for the one who believes.” At that moment, I fall at His feet and proclaim, “I do believe, help me overcome my unbelief.” (vs. 24).

I don’t have great faith; but my doubts aren’t about God, His righteousness, grace or power. I struggle with my own stumbling faith; that my needs or desires matter to Him. I’m a dad. I know what it’s like when your child asks for things that are not what is best. It breaks my heart when things happen in life, that we can never understand on this side, and perhaps even the next. So, like that other dad who professed his faith in Jesus, but just as passionately begged for help to overcome his unbelief, I fall into the arms of a Father who understands me and is utterly trustable.

telemicus out

I don’t care for sappy spiritual talk. I’m not one of those “Praise Jebus” types, (that would be those who “talk Jesus” but don’t really know him.) I am sharing my weak and struggling heart on this. I don’t always readily turn to prayer. I pray and I trust as best I can, but I rarely feel that God heard me and that he is on my side. I wish I felt different. I believe He is good, just, holy, and righteous. If there is a shortcoming in the relationship, I have no doubt that it is mine.

That the country and the world are in a bit of a mess economically is clear. The solution does not lie in the ideology of the Republicans and Democrats. The solution is with God. We have to listen to God and what he says about His judgments. We are studying Hosea in our Sunday morning Bible class. Our country is nowhere close to as wicked as Israel was when Hosea prophesied. But we have repeated many of their mistakes in our relationship with God.

So what needs to happen? We who have knowledge of God need to attack the ignorance of our people about God and his character. In Hosea’s time, the spiritual leaders of the people were involved in all forms of wickedness and did not help the people come to know God. He said, “my people are destroyed from lack of knowledge. Because you have rejected knowledge, I also reject you as my priests; because you have ignored the law of your God, I also will ignore your children” (Hosea 4:6).

When God’s people were in trouble, they called for help from neighboring nations like Egypt and Assyria instead of from God. But He said, “—he is not able to cure you, not able to heal your sores” “Then I will go back to my place until they admit their guilt. And they will seek my face; in their misery they will earnestly seek me” (Hosea 5:13 & 15). So we need to ask God for help; not Congress, not our politicians and not Hollywood or horoscopes. It is God who heals and provides.

He needs to hear from our hearts. We need to teach our children to cry out to Him as well. Crying out in misery or fear is not the same as crying out from our hearts. God said, “They do not cry out to me from their hearts but wail upon their beds” (Hosea 7:14). The children of Israel were crying out, but it was about their misery, it wasn’t about God.

I’m not overly spiritual. But I know this, our problems extend far beyond the politics of the country. We need to increase our knowledge of God. We need to look for help only from God and he needs to hear our longing and dependence on Him and not simply for relief in tough times. I am a positive person. I don’t think we are headed for disaster or we are nearing the end. There are plenty of prophets of doom. (Those clowns should join a circus and earn an honest living.) I’m simply saying we need to listen to God about this and seek him with our hearts. It’s going to be all right. He has everything under control.

telemicus out

In a preview clip from the new Daniel Craig film DEFIANCE, there is a line that has sort of hung on to me since I saw it. The movie is the true story of four brothers who defied the Nazi army during World War II. The Bielski family live in the area called Belarus. When their parents and other family members are killed, Tuvia Bielski (Daniel Craig) and his brothers hid in the forest.

In time, a small group of Jewish refugees joins them in hiding. This little band of resistors survives as best they can and the group continues to grow. The Bielski Partisans become a significant pain for the Nazi’s. The regime offered 100,000 Riechmarks for assistance in capturing Tuvia. The Bielski group lived in the forest for more than 2 years and at the end, the little group numbered more than 1200.

I want to take my son to see this film. He needs to hear the stories of those who stand against tyranny, oppression and hate. We live in a time when some people think that you can talk and reason with irrational hate filled people who have no agenda beyond the destruction of their enemies. The Bielski Partisans were lovers of freedom. They didn’t want to fight, but fight they did.

Caleb mentioned a few days ago, that he had a friend that was “anti-war”. I took the opportunity to explain that everyone should be anti-war. But there are times when wars must be fought. Evil exists and it doesn’t listen to reason and compromise. When a thing is evil, (racism, violence against innocence, lawlessness, etc.) then we must face it and defeat it. We cannot make deals with it.

So what was the great line that so grabbed me? Tuvia is addressing the people in the forest and he says to them. “Everyday that we live in freedom is an act of faith.” This is true in the political sense of course. But it is also true spiritually. The message of Christ and the gospel is a message of freedom.

The Old Book says, “It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery” (Galatians 5:1). He set us free from sin, death, self-justification, law and the judgment of others. Does sin still attack us, does death still claim our loved ones, do we still get caught up in “doing enough” to be worthy, do we still become rule focused, do others still try to convince us that we don’t measure up? Of course, but we are free from it all in Christ and he wants us to live free… Every day that we live in freedom is an act of faith.

telemicus out

I guess I’m a small man – in terms of character. I’m gracious when I lose at sports. But when I, or my side, suffer loss in the arena if ideas, I am not so gracious. Ideas and philosophies regarding politics or any other area of life that lends itself to good and bad or right and wrong these are positions we hold on principle. In matters of opinion, everyone has a right of course. However, if we hold positions based on heart-felt beliefs and principles we should not blow them off simply because our side lost.

During his concession speech, I didn’t want to hear McCain talking about how wonderful The One is. I wanted to hear him say congratulations and that’s it. Then I wanted him to say to the over fifty-six million people who supported him, “I promised to fight for you and when I get back to Washington I plan to do everything in my power to promote and defend the ideas of conservatism and the constitution we believe in.” But he didn’t side with the people – he sided with The One and promised to work with him. That takes a bigger man than me.

Tell me – should we forget the vitriolic horrible things that the left said about the current President as if they didn’t mean it? They did mean it! Every time they called him stupid, they meant it. Every time they called him a liar, they meant it. Every time they accused him of being a traitor, they meant it. And even when they made plans to accuse him of war crimes, they meant that too. The One achieved a victory on Tuesday by beating the current president without mercy on the campaign trail. He made Bush the sole scapegoat for everything that happened in the last eight years. It is an empirical fact that the democrats are responsible for the mortgage collapse. Yet The One waltzed across the country and daily hung it around the Presidents neck while Bush, and the Republicans remained silent.

The President came out yesterday with all the class in the world and expressed nothing but graciousness to The One promising to extend every courtesy and help in the transition. It takes a bigger man than me. I would probably send him a note, leave the keys to White House at the security gate, and call it good.

Jesus sent the disciples out into the world with the message of the Kingdom saying, “And if any place will not welcome you or listen to you, shake the dust off your feet when you leave, as a testimony against them” (Mark 6:11).  Was he being a bad sport, a sore looser, a small man or was he standing on principles that are beyond compromise? You may say, “Well the principles of the Kingdom are more significant than political opinions.” This is true only to the degree that ones political beliefs are opinion based on preference rather than belief based on principle.

For many, the sacredness of the Constitution and the Sanctity of Human Life, just to name a couple, are issues of principle and not opinion. There are times when the cause is bigger than opinion polls and our own reputation with the opposition. But perhaps to understand the value appeasement and capitulation it simply takes a bigger man.

telemicus out 

Well the geniuses in Washington have decided that we need yet another Stimulus Package. The money they sent earlier this year apparently wasn’t enough. The 700 billion was for the bankers, but now they think they need to give US (the people) some money too. They hope we will use the money to buy or “invest”. Do you see that if we use the new stimulus to buy and invest, then the Wall Street banker types are getting the money again?

The tedious Barney Franks (a primary player in the mortgage fiasco) said yesterday that the time is right for deficit spending adding, “There are plenty of rich people that we can tax down the road to get this money back.” This is the most insane thing I’ve ever heard out of a politician. These people are planning and proclaiming before the election that they intend to raise taxes.

The One says only the top 5% will see a tax increase. The other 95%, we will all get a tax break. But about 40% of those who earn a paycheck don’t owe any tax at all. (Social security payments are not the same as income tax.) Now we understand that those who don’t make enough to owe any taxes will be getting a refund. Meaning – they plan to take from the producers and give to those who do not produce. This is socialism. It is not American.

We try to teach our kids to be responsible people. We want them to work hard, be smart, and pull their own weight. Sometimes they make bad decisions and they need our help to get out of tight spots. It’s altogether proper to do that. But there comes a time when we stop bailing them out. If we continue to rescue them, we soon become enablers of their foolish decision-making. A time always comes when we have to say, “No.” They call this tough love.

It’s time to show some tough love to Washington D.C. They need to learn to live on a budget. The American people are not heartless. We have always been willing to help those in need. Americans are good and compassionate people, but we are tired of rip offs and political con artists. We don’t need another stimulus package. We need responsibility, wisdom, respect and restraint. We need a leader who will find the people responsible for the mess we are in and insure that they are removed and unable to ever be in a position to do this again.

In the parable of the Talents, Jesus said, “Well done, good and faithful servant! You have been faithful with a few things; I will put you in charge of many things. Come and share your master’s happiness!”  Matthew 25:21 They have not been faithful in these things. We should not allow them to have charge over even more. Vote against socialism that would spread the wealth of the workers to the idle hands of takers. Be wise Americans when you vote.

telemicus out 

When I was doing youth ministry, one of the questions parents asked me regularly was, “How do I keep my kid from getting in with the wrong crowd?” The question stretches into the world of celebrity, pro sports, business – yes and even churches. The wrong crowd will always poison the waterhole of character.

In the wrong crowd, there is always an Influencer. He (or she) will often suggest the actions that he will not do. He (or she) will talk a degree of crazy that is seen as funny or exciting. Often one or more followers in the crowd will take the initiative of stupidity and do it. The Influencer will never accept responsibility for their actions and will point at followers and say, “I didn’t tell them to do it.” In any crowd – look at the character of the Influencer and you will find the character of the crowd.

If you have a child that shows the character of a follower, it is critical that you develop in them a strong sense of what is good and evil, right and wrong. It’s rare that a true follower becomes the Influencer. Therefore, your teaching must be purposed, consistent and pervasive. For a follower, all moments are teaching moments. With a character based on high moral values, the follower will find an Influencer of that same character to follow.

When a person “gets in” with the wrong crowd, it doesn’t take long to see the influence of the crowd on a person who was of moldable character. Paul wrote, “Do not be misled: Bad company corrupts good character” (1 Corinthians 15:33). That corruption is not accidental. The Enemy is always seeking to “kill, steal and destroy” lives. This is why character matters – it determines destiny.

When a person seeks a position of leadership, whether in an organization, business, politics or a church, he or she is inviting an examination of their conduct, words, character and even relationships. We all encounter people of weak character in life. We make evaluations about them. Sometimes by simply meeting a person, we can sense that they are not good. Others hide the reality of their character, but eventually, the force of truth smashes the wall of deceit and exposes them.

One test of character is how quickly we cut ties with those who prove themselves to be without honor. I heard Donald Trump yesterday talking about what a great guy Howard Stern is. He said that the radio/T.V. persona is not who he really is. But you see, we are not allowed such duplicity as to have one set of morals publicly and another in private. Jesus said, “For out of the overflow of the heart the mouth speaks” (Matthew 12:34).

The wrong crowd; those who influence our belief system, who sway our actions and nudge us in the direction of their own interest; these poison the waterhole of character. The wrong crowd will not poison a person of noble character. This person will examine associates, sever relationships and maintain integrity of soul. The evil Influencers will hold no sway. “For the Lamb at the center of the throne will be their shepherd; he will lead them to springs of living water” (The Revelation 7:17). 

telemicus out

You gotta be kidding me. A Democratic labor leader, Cecil Roberts, said a couple of weeks ago, “I used to be a community organizer and I’m in good company; Martin Luther King was a community organizer. Listen, Sarah, Moses was a community organizer and yes, Jesus was a community organizer.”

This was a slap at Sarah Palin.

Jesus was NOT a community organizer. He was a revolutionary. From the moment of his birth, he upset the world. Check out The Revelation chapter 12. In the spiritual realm and the physical, there was an effort to destroy this baby. He lived within a political system poisoned by power and yet he did not organize protests. He did not run for office or a seat with the elders. He did not seek to be a scribe. He went about doing good.

His enemies criticized him for not being religious enough, made fun of his faith, and insulted him by questioning his ancestry. They falsely charged him with blasphemy; they accused him of being demon possessed and of using the devils power. They hated him like no one else.

He lived within a religious system that was corrupted by power and hypocrisy. Yet he did not organize a new branch of Judaism. He went to synagogue and worshiped according to the law.  He honored teachers as a boy and challenged them from his teens until his death. His life inspired the godly and convicted the unholy. His love endeared him to the people. Yet he resisted and even refused to become a community organizer (King). He called people to DO good not to organize.

His teachings were radical. Among them… He openly called God, “Abba” the most intimate of terms and taught others to do the same. This revolutionary act ushered in a new way of relating to God. He taught his followers a radical new way to live; to love their enemies, to do good to those who hate, to serve those who are demanding, to give and not expect a return, to be holy beyond the law, to sacrifice self for the good of others, to turn the other cheek, and to be kind to the rude.

Some call him a pacifist. These people don’t really know him. He took the time to make a whip and then used it to drive people out of His Father’s house who were turning it into a Super Center instead of the Temple of God. And this was not a one time event, but perhaps a habit. They hated to see him coming. Yet he acted alone. He didn’t even organize his own followers to do these things. He called us to stand for good and righteousness and for our Father.

Jesus’ declared a new level of morality. He demonstrated dignity toward women. He upheld the sanctity of marriage and the value of family. He modeled forgiveness, but beyond that, he modeled a refusal to pass judgment when society demanded it. He fed the hungry, healed the sick, and rescued those oppressed by the Enemy. In the end, He faced the horrors of hate in his physical body. He bore the weight of the sins of the world on his own soul. He faced the greatest shame and deepest loneliness that a human has ever known and yet forgave his oppressors and loved his own to the very end.

Jesus was not a community organizer, he was a radical, revolutionary savior. He changed the world forever. “No one ever spoke the way this man does” (John 7:46).

telemicus out

This is my mom and my Aunt Mary. Mary is near the end of this life’s journey. I don’t think it has been an easy trip for Mary. She endured the absence of her husband for many years of active duty in the military. She worked to care for her son and her mother. I remember her being an angry woman when I was a boy. I had no idea of the crushing weight that the stress of adult life could place on a person. I wish that I had been more understanding of the adults I’ve known who struggled under the load of life. That note of regret brings me to what I really want to share this week. 

One of the burdens that Mary talked about in her last days is a fear that she might not make it heaven. On the contrary, she seemed convinced her itinerary included a warmer climate. She’s a believer. My dad baptized her some years ago in our home. But like many of us, she knows the reality of her own sin and struggles with far more clarity than she knows the depth of God’s forgiveness and the extent of his love. 

The Old Book affirms the security of the believer. I used to tell my students, “You are not sort of saved – you are good and saved. Your salvation is not precarious, dangerous, tentative, perhaps, maybe or iffy. It is bought by blood and guaranteed.” We need to have confidence in the One who saved us. Paul wrote, “Yet I am not ashamed, because I know whom I have believed, and am convinced that he is able to guard what I have entrusted to him for that day” (2 Timothy 1:12).  

Brennan Manning wrote, “When we trust God it may mean more than when we say we love Him.” Our salvation is not about our performance or religious acts, keeping laws or rules, or doing more good than evil. It is fully based on the relationship we have in Jesus Christ. All that we do in life that is good, is an expression of God’s presence in us and our love for Him. We all know that we don’t have massive quantities of good in us… but we have Him in our hearts and that is the source of all that is good. 

Don’t focus on your failures or weakness. Focus on the goodness of Christ, His noble heart, His love for you and His desire to see you saved. Do what is right and good because you love Him. And in those moments when the enemy calls back to your mind all the wickedness of your broken heart – run with abandon and dive into the arms of your Father and trust that he can handle it all and loves you anyway. Relax Mary . . . He’s got you covered. 

telemicus out