A Long Obedience in the Same Direction

I was saddened last week to read that Christian music artist, Ray Boltz has let it be known that he is a homosexual.  If the name doesn't ring a bell for you, he was well-known for his songs "Thank You,"  and "I Pledge Allegiance to the Lamb."

Apparently he has been struggling with this sin since his youth.  He came to Christ and hoped that would cure him, but he says although he married and had children the feelings have never gone away.  He broke the news to his family over 4 years ago, but has not gone public with it until a couple weeks ago.  He is now divorced from his wife and living a homosexual lifestyle. 

Especially discouraging is that this is not just something that he continues to struggle with.  He has apparently completely embraced it and deceived himself into believing it's okay.  In a recent interview he said,

If this is the way God made me, then this is the way I’m going to live. It’s not like God made me this way and he’ll send me to hell if I am who he created me to be … I really feel closer to God because I no longer hate myself.

There are a number of different ways we can respond to this and things to think about, but I have one particular thought I want to address.  It seems too many Christians, as they get older, fall headlong into some sin or another, or simply fall away from the Lord(can't think of any other specific cases offhand).  It's another clear reminder of how weak we really are and how much we need to keep clinging to our Saviour and to one another as believers.  We need to be constantly aware that the possibility is there for all of us to become deceived and fall away.  I cringe when I hear people say that it won't happen to them.  Being aware that it can happen is half the battle.

Eugene Petersen titled one of his books, A Long Obedience in the Same Direction.  He borrowed the phrase from Friedrich Nietzsche.  The Bible uses words like steadfastness, perseverance, faithfulness.  May we do our part and trust God to do His so that we can stay true for a lifetime.

Dave

The Christian Thing To Do?- Update

Well I've been back from vacation for a week now and this is my first post.  Not so much a time issue(although it has been busy), but more because I wasn't ready to update you on my gas station episode.  Finally I am.  I want to thank all of you who posted responses on my blog and on John K's, and also others I talked to face to face.

When it happened my immediate response to myself and to the attendant was, "What do we do now?"  She immediately replied that she didn't know what happened, but it was okay, not to worry about it.  I accepted that and gave her the $20.  

It wasn't until later when I had more time to process it that I started to wonder if I had done the right thing.  My greatest concerns were: 1. Did she have the authority to say it was okay?  2. Would she have to pay it herself?  3. What would Jesus do?  I likely should have gone back that day to check it out, but (excuses) we were busy getting ready to go away and I didn't think I'd have much chance of finding the store manager(this was a Safeway gas bar).  

Anyway I finally got back to the store today and talked to a manager.  I told him what had happened, and that I am a Christian and the pastor of the Baptist church and for that reason I wanted to be sure that this was looked after properly.  I told him that I was willing to pay.

The manager told me he had not heard anything about it(sounded like he thought he should have) and that he wanted to check into it with the gas bar manager.  Then he wondered aloud why he hadn't heard anything and if there might have been some cover up.  Now I'm feeling bad that I may have gotten someone in trouble by not dealing with it right away if that's the case. He thanked me, took my name and phone number and said he'd let me know.  

Perhaps I should have done something different to begin with but it is usual that I need some time to think things through.  I'm not great at spur-of-the-moment decisions.  Regardless, I can't change that now.  I believe I've done what I can now.  I'll let you know how it turns out.

I do want to address some of the comments you made before I sign off.  I disagree with the use of the verses from Romans 13.  I don't believe I legally owed the money or that it was stealing as I didn't try to get away with it.  I was told it was okay.  When I turn the situation around to look at it from the other end I ask, If you were the business owner that made a mistake would you expect your customer to pay for it?  I wouldn't and I don't think most people would.

On the other hand, I like what John K said about this being a great opportunity to be a witness for Jesus.  In the end I decided I would rather be on the side of grace rather than law.  I guess a verse that makes sense to me here would be to do unto others as you would have them do unto you.  Praying that God will somehow use this in my life, yours and the others involved.

Comments welcome!

Dave

The Christian Thing To Do?

I'd appreciate your help with something that happened to me yesterday.

We are going on vacation tomorrow.  The first leg of our trip is driving to Winnipeg, a four hour drive from home.  To get to Winnipeg we drive through a piece of Minnesota where I always gas up because it is much cheaper there than here.  I wasn't sure that I had enough gas to get us to the gas stop in Minnesota so I decided to get $20 worth of gas at our local gas station.  I could have run across the border to the U.S.A. here to get some.  It would have only taken 10-15 minutes, but I didn't want to bother with the border crossing and I didn't have enough U.S. money to get gas there and also on the way to Winnipeg.  So I was willing to pay an extra 30 cents a litre for the $20 I was going to get here.

The gas station here is full service so I told the attendant I wanted $20 of regular.  She set the pump then went off to help other customers.  A couple minutes later I realized the pump was still going and I quickly got out to shut it off.  It was just over $54.00.  The girl saw me get out and came running over to see that it had not stopped at the $20 she said she had set it at.

I was torn as to what to do; as to what the Christian thing was to do.  If I had wanted to fill it I would have gone across to get the cheaper gas.  Yet I did get much more than $20 worth of gas.

What would you have done?  What should I have done as a Christian?  Please give me your opinion and feel free to use Scripture to support your point if you like.

We are leaving tomorrow for 2 weeks vacation  so it is doubtful (a slight possibility, but doubtful) that I'll be blogging in that time.  I look forward to your advice on this issue and I'll let you know what I did when I get back.

Dave

A Quiet Place

Early mornings by the river, an eagle or pelican in flight, an occasional deer and a cup of Tim Horton's coffee;  These are some of the things that mark our quiet place.  My wife and I get up early about four times a week to take in God's creation, spend time catching up with each other, and reading and praying together.  We are presently reading a daily devotional about how God's Word has touched peoples' lives.  In the past we have read books on marriage, prayer and spiritual growth.

As much as we still rely on the TH coffee to help get us out of bed, the other elements are far more beneficial.  We continually marvel at God's creation.  We grow through time together.  We start the day with God.  

If Jesus needed to get away to a quiet place with His Father, how much more do we need it.  I realize it is probably not possible to get away outside the house if you have a young family.  You just need to do the best you can at home.  But if at all possible, find a special spot to meet with God.  I highly recommend it. 

Dave 

Youth Ministry in Small Churches and a Small Town

What can you do when you have a few teenagers, but no volunteers who feel skilled enough to lead a youth group and too small of a church to afford a paid youth minister? That concern has been on my mind and in my prayers for the year I've been pastoring at Bethel Baptist.

God has begun to work to answer our prayers. No, we haven't suddenly had a large infusion of money to be able to hire a youth worker. We haven't had a sudden influx of people wanting to become youth leaders. What we have had is a coming-together of a few pastors and a Canadian Sunday School Mission missionary to pray, talk, and dream. Three evangelical pastors meeting together monthly for encouragement and prayer were joined one month by Debbie, the CSSM missionary. Debbie and an advisory board working with youth in a neighbouring town had a desire to reach out to teens in our town's high school. With the support of the pastors, Debbie got going.

All of this led to several teens and adults from four churches coming together for prayer and planning over several weeks. So far this has resulted in the first joint Christian youth get-together in our town in a long time. The plan is to develop a core group of teens who love the Lord to reach out to youth in their school.

My role is not hands-on. Some good people have come forward from the churches to be on the front lines. I see myself as more of a cheerleader and interceder and if necessary, a resource person. But this is definitely one of the things I like about this small town. It is awesome to see Bible-believing churches and people coming together to serve the Lord and our youth! I'm pretty sure Jesus loves it too.

Dave

Baptisms

Our church witnessed three baptisms on Sunday. I love baptisms. I love to hear how God has worked and is working in peoples' lives. I love to hear the circumstances by which God brings people to faith in Christ. I love to see people making obedient choices in following Christ. I love being part of helping people take that step.

The first candidate was a young woman who came to faith about three months ago. It has been such a blessing to see her learn and grow. The other two were a couple of our teens. Again, it is so exciting to see young people make this decision. Both of these teen girls are faithful in attendance, love God and church and are active in serving in AWANA. It was time for them to make this public commitment.

To add to the adventure the baptisms took place in the Rainy River. I know many baptisms have happened in lakes and rivers, including at our church, but this was my first time. The afternoon was hot and very windy which was actually a great combination. We had a good turn out including friends and family from other churches and some who don't go anywhere. It was definitely a witness and a celebration! Praise God!

Dave

Starting in the Right Place

On our recent trip to the Minneapolis area I wrote down the directions in my usual point form way.  Hwy 53 -> Hwy 33 -> I35S ->  etc.  It worked out beautifully; no problems.

On the way back home I simply reversed the list of directions and expected smooth sailing.  Trouble is, I changed the starting point.  We stopped for breakfast at the IHOP near the Mall of America.  I noticed the day before that the 494E, a road we needed, was right near the mall.  After breakfast we got on the 494E and started looking for 100N.  After driving for a half hour I realized that something wasn't right.  We finally figured out that the entrance to the highway we had taken near the mall was already past 100N.  

We weren't exactly lost; we could have found our way from where we were.  The bigger problem was, we had given the same directions to our son and we had no way to contact him.  They had taken a slight detour to check out another store.  Feeling responsible, we travelled back the half hour and did all we could to find them, to no avail.  

It all worked out in the end and I was reminded just how important it is in the spiritual realm to start in the right place.  No matter how many things we may get right, if we don't start in the right place, with faith in Christ and putting God first, we will certainly lose our way.  And how much worse when we put others off course along with ourselves.  But as long as we have breath, we can get back on track by trusting the Lord rather than relying on ourselves.

Proverbs 3:5-6

Dave