APOSTASY - excerp

 It doesn't take much effort to see that we live in days of surging apostasy. The fifth column is firmly entrenched in almost all the major denominations. More and more churches today are awash in a watered-down, doctrineless, soft-pedaling, anything goes, pop psychology, don't offend anybody, entertainment-oriented, permissive quagmire.

Or worse yet, many churches actively deny the essential truths of the historic, orthodox faith such as the virgin birth of Christ, the sinlessness of Christ, the inerrancy of Scripture, the atoning death of Christ for sin, the bodily resurrection of Christ, the necessity of personal faith in Christ for salvation, and the Second Coming of Christ to earth as King of kings and Lord of lords. For many today essential doctrine is an unimportant leftover from days gone by. It's seen as divisive and even destructive.

With this wrong belief has come its counterpart, wrong behavior. Sadly, sins that weren't even condoned by the most hardened sinners a generation ago are now being accepted as alternate lifestyles for professing Christians and even ordained leaders of the church.

The most degrading, unnatural vices are no longer called sin, but are even accepted and applauded. Romans 1:24-32 is sometimes called the "Stockyards of the New Testament." It describes the low level to which man can sink apart from God. Yet shockingly, individual churches and even entire denominations today are wading knee deep in the worst kind of moral filth described in this passage of Scripture.

Many of the mainline denominations are already ordaining open, non-celibate homosexuals to the pastorate. Recently, the Episcopal Church of New Hampshire elected the Rev. Gene Robinson to be the next bishop of the state. They did this in spite of the fact that he left his wife and children to live in an open homosexual relationship. Episcopalian leaders are defending him as a "holy man of God."

Most denominations that have not yet taken this step are actively debating it. What a tragedy this is! These kinds of issues should never have to be debated. God's Word is crystal clear on the subject (See, Romans 1:26-27; 1 Corinthians 6:9; 1 Timothy 6:10). But it seems as if it's just a matter of time until one by one the mainline denominations cave in to the pressure of the new tolerance on this issue and many others that clearly violate the teaching of the Scripture. The nature and extent of apostasy today is staggering.

As J. Dwight Pentecost, a noted authority on Bible Prophecy, says, "Abundant evidence on every hand shows that men are departing from the faith. Not only do they doubt the Word; the openly reject it. This phenomenon has never been as prevalent as today. In the period of church history known as the Dark Ages, men were ignorant of the truth; but never was there an age when men openly denied and repudiated the truth. This open, deliberate, willful repudiation of the truth of the Bible is described in Scripture as one of the major characteristics of the last days of the church on earth.

(Excerp from Will Man Survive (Zondervan Publishing House, 1980), p. 58).

ENTERTAINITIS - by mike stike

Some 25 years ago, Gayle and I were youth leaders at our church. We taught a one-hour youth class every Wednesday and Sunday evening. Every once in a while we'd have what we used to call a lock-in, where the youth would come to the church at 7:00 on a Friday night and not go home until the next morning. We'd play games and have fun, but we always had one or more lesson times as well. Sometimes these lessons might go on for a couple hours if the topic was one the kids were especially interested in.

And usually once a month, we took the kids on some kind of adventure bowling, roller skating, ice skating . . . I remember one time we even camped out overnight at King's Dominion. But no matter what fun event we went to, we always had a lesson, sometimes in the van on the way to the event, sometimes at the church before we went to the event, sometimes afterward.

I sometimes wonder if youth leaders today get as much cooperation out of their kids that Gayle & I got. Can you imagine getting a group of today's teenagers to sit still for two hours for a bible lesson? Many young people today come to youth group hoping to spend their time playing volleyball or listening to music or shooting baskets in the gym. The difference? Many young folks today have a disease. It's called entertainitis. This is not a new disease.

We can find it in our word for today from the Word of God from John 6:25, among the people who had just experienced the excitement of Jesus' feeding of the 5,000. When He left them to go across the lake, they wanted more. The Bible says, "When they found Him on the other side of the lake, they asked Him, 'Rabbi, when did you get here?' Jesus answered them, 'You are looking for Me, not because you saw miraculous signs but because you ate the loaves and had your fill.'"

When Jesus spoke to them about spiritual food, "They asked Him, 'What miraculous sign then will You give that we may see it and believe You?'" (John 6:30) By the time Jesus is finished talking to them about laying down His life, verse 66 says, "From this time many of His disciples turned back and no longer followed Him." Now, here was a crowd who was ready to follow Jesus as long as there was a good show - miracles, excited crowds, surprises, good feelings. But as soon as it got serious or demanding, they checked out. This may have been the first known case of entertainitis . . . an interest in following Jesus as long as it's easy to take, as long as it's fun.

I don't think many of us realize how shallow our faith is until we hear about Christians in other countries. They know how to pray powerfully and extensively. They're hungry, not for jokes and stories, but for solid Biblical teaching. They're interested in the substance of Christianity, not the style of the speaker. While we're having socials, they're having revivals! While we accept mediocrity, they're expecting miracles. We're a product of a media culture where the image changes every few seconds. But compared to believers in much of the rest of the world, we have a "Sesame Street" faith.

Now, the first step toward a cure of this disease is to recognize that we have a disease and want a cure. We need to retrain our hearts to look for the truth in a message, not the entertainment value; to look for the Bible in a song, not just the beat; to quit expecting speakers to do all the work for us.

Spiritual grown-ups will pack the auditorium for a sermon, not just for a movie or a concert. We need to remember that what we're involved in is a war, not a picnic. We need to commit ourselves to the spiritual discipline of being personally taught by God through Bible study every day. Dare to say, "Lord, deepen my shallow 'entertain me' faith."

Entertainitis is a serious disease to deal with. Remember what happened to the people who had it first. They eventually abandoned Jesus.
 

FOR THE LOVE OF SODOM - by steve gallagher

There is no question that Sodom was a sensuous paradise. Prosperity had allowed her people to indulge themselves in every carnal delight. “Arrogance, abundant food and careless ease,” characterized this great city of vice. (Ezekiel 16:49)

The same spirit that haunted the streets of Sodom is thriving today within the hearts of multitudes of evangelical men. Their very hearts, which have been designated as a temple of God, have instead become virtual houses of prostitution. How could this happen? The lives of Lot and his wife offer a clear illustration of how a person is led into Sodom and what happens to him there—and the judgment that is certain to befall him.

Enticed by the Spirit of this World

Things looked promising to Lot and his wife when they decided to accompany Abraham as he departed the wicked environs of Mesopotamia at the behest of the Lord. Lot must have had some sense about the great privilege and blessing it was to have such a godly man as his uncle. His decision to leave his homeland might be considered tantamount to putting his faith in God.

The two families left the city of Ur and made their way to the Promised Land of Canaan. Because of Abraham’s relationship with Jehovah, both families prospered. However, trouble began to brew when Lot’s herdsmen started arguing with those of Abraham. The strife eventually got so bad that the patriarch was forced to ask his nephew to branch out on his own. This should have served as a wake-up call to Lot and his wife. They should have shown the attitude of Ruth when Naomi told her to return to her own people. She told Naomi, “Do not urge me to leave you or turn back from following you; for where you go, I will go, and where you lodge, I will lodge. Your people shall be my people, and your God, my God.” (Ruth 1:16)

However, lying latent within Lot’s breast was a love for the pleasures and riches of this world. As he looked out over the fertile Jordan Valley, the life in God he had with his pious uncle was eclipsed by the opportunities that lay before him. The fact that Sodom and Gomorrah were extremely vile was of secondary importance to him; the benefits of such a union were too good to pass up—his religion would have to fit around his love of this world. Lot took a huge step away from the Kingdom of God by moving his family near Sodom. He probably justified his decision by the fact that they weren’t actually moving into the wicked city itself. But what he was failing to take into account was the powerful pull of this world, and where it would take him.

The enticement of the world is even more intoxicating for today’s evangelical. Multitudes of people who claim to be followers of Christ openly disregard sober warnings about flirting with the spirit of this world. Jesus said, “He who loves his life [in this world] loses it.” (John 12:25) John wrote, “Do not love the world nor the things in the world.” (I John 2:15) James said: “Whoever wishes to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God.” (James 4:4) Such clear-cut admonitions hold no weight for the person who considers the enticements of this world to be his rightful inheritance.

The Danger of Sodom

Dabbling in the world makes the Christian extremely vulnerable to the enemy. This became real to me on a prayer walk I took one day down a deserted country road. At one point in the road there was a little bridge crossing over a creek. As I looked over the railing, there lay a venomous water moccasin in the stream. It occurred to me that where I stood I was in no danger of that snake harming me, unless I got down into the water with it. This applies to us spiritually as well. As long as we keep ourselves out of the old serpent’s domain, there is little he can do to hurt us. Believers get bitten when they frolic in the enemy’s territory.

This is precisely what happened to Lot and his wife. They were safe when they were living under the godly leadership of Abraham, but once they struck out in self-will, they were at the mercy of the enemy. And it wasn’t long before a marauding army plundered Sodom and Gomorrah, carrying Lot and his family into slavery. Abraham gave chase and rescued them from the raiders.

This was the second wake-up call the Lord graciously sent to this foolish couple. They should have humbled themselves, acknowledged their folly, and showed their repentance by leaving Sodom once and for all. There was certainly plenty of room in Canaan for both families to live comfortably. Would not God have met Lot’s need and blessed him as He did Abraham? But Lot did not learn a needed lesson from this near tragedy. This time he moved his family inside Sodom’s protective walls, and remained there for another ten years, until the day the angels of the Lord came to judge that wicked place.

How many evangelical men, ignoring biblical warnings, have charged ahead in self-will, hell-bent on getting what they want, only to find themselves in serious spiritual trouble because of it? Before they realize what has happened to them, their hearts and lives have been plundered by the enemy. But God is extremely patient with His people and there will often be an “Abraham” who is sent to rescue the foolish person from some predicament in which he has become entangled.

Full Immersion

As is always the case, every Sodom must face the Judgment of God. The spiritual outcry against its wickedness becomes so great that the Lord must send destruction. Fortunately for Lot, his uncle was “standing before the Lord.” (Genesis 18:22) In fact, we are later told, he and his family were saved only because of the patriarch’s prayers. (Genesis 19:29)

The angels made their way into that bastion of perversion to locate Lot. Upon finding him, they urged him to leave NOW. He was so out of touch with what was happening that the Bible says “he hesitated.” The Hebrew word for hesitate means “reluctant to move.” Lot’s wife did not want to leave her beloved Sodom at all, and it seems Lot was leaving with great reluctance. Had it not been for “the compassion of the Lord” who directed the angels to seize their hands and drag them out of the city, they all would have been destroyed right then and there! (Genesis 19:15ff)

Once again we can see a direct correlation between what happened to this carnal pair and what occurs regularly in the lives of many modern churchgoing men. How many times has the Lord been forced to find a way to drag Christians away from some form of evil? Often it is only the prayers of loved ones that spare them from facing much greater consequences than they actually experience.

Once the angels got Lot and his wife out of the city, molten sulfur fell like a rain of fire utterly destroying Sodom and Gomorrah. Lot’s wife, even further from God than he was, lingered and looked back longingly, and the falling sulfur turned her body into a pillar of salt—a perpetual memorial to the love of this world. As is always the case, the heart had stayed with its treasure.

Up until this point, Lot and his wife had seemed identical in their decision-making. Both clearly loved what Sodom offered. They were equally willing to walk away from the life in God that living with Abraham afforded them. However, when God’s judgment came, the difference in their hearts became evident. Only the sifting processes of the Lord can separate wheat from tares. These two Old Testament figures represent two kinds of evangelical men who are involved in sexual sin.

Lot’s life serves as an illustration of the Christian who has gone astray from the Lord. In spite of the fact that he was a fool, Scripture affirms that Lot was indeed a believer. True, his folly cost him everything. All the possessions he had devoted his life to acquiring were buried under sulfuric ash. His wife was killed. He ended up living in a cave with his daughters. These girls had become so spiritually polluted from living in Sodom that they later schemed to get him drunk and seduce him so that they might bear children. Worse than any of this was the spiritual degradation he subjected himself to. He could have had the inner fulfillment and blessings that only come from one’s right relationship to God, but his love for this world brought him to ruin. He surely spent his remaining years in misery and regret.

I have seen the same thing happen to countless Christian men who traded their spiritual birthright for a temporal bowl of porridge. Yes, there was a time when, like Lot, they had put their faith in God and recklessly abandoned themselves to pursue Him with all their hearts. They burned in their first love for Jesus. But little by little they allowed the old worldly passions of life to re-establish themselves in their hearts. Before they knew it, their passion for the things of God had waned and they had become religious actors. When sexual temptation presented itself to them, they found that they had no spiritual strength to resist it.

The men represented by Lot’s wife are in even worse condition. The truth is that they have never even been converted to Christianity. They have had some kind of spiritual enlightenment. Their eyes had been opened to the unseen realm around them. They wanted to escape hell and to receive eternal life, but they were unwilling to surrender their hearts and lives to the Lord. They attended church, sang hymns and spoke the lingo so prevalent in the Church, but theirs was a false conversion. When it came right down to it, they were unwilling to let go of their lives and their beloved sin.

Scripture clearly indicates that God loves both of these men. It is His great love that causes Him to warn men to flee from the wrath to come. But each person has the right to decide for himself whether or not he really wants to obey God. One does not get the benefits of the Kingdom of God without submitting oneself to the rules of that kingdom.

The Lord is extremely patient in His dealings with sinners. He will withhold judgment for a long time in the hopes that a sinner will repent. (II Peter 3:9-10) But eventually—and only the Lord knows when a person has reached this point—the person crosses a line in his heart where he can no longer be reached by the prompting of the Holy Spirit. His conscience has become seared; his heart has become hardened. It is at that point, when the person crosses that line, that judgment comes swiftly… just like it did one day many years ago in the fertile region of the Jordan Valley.

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©2007 Pure Life Ministries

HOW MANY PASTORS NEVER GIVE... - by bill keller

How many pastors NEVER give those they   preach to an invitation to accept Jesus   Christ as their Lord and Savior?
Today, I must address what to me is the biggest problem in the church today, since it goes to the root of the churches greatest responsibility and that is to bring the lost to faith in Jesus Christ. I realize the church is to spiritually feed its members, to equip the saints for service, to be a place where Believers can find fellowship with other Believers, and where most followers of Christ serve Him. However, without question the most important job of the church is to reach out to the lost and hurting and to help lead people to the saving knowledge of Jesus Christ, the forgiveness of their sins, and God's free gift of everlasting life through faith in His Son Jesus Christ!

This is a message that has been percolating for several years now, and finally reached the boiling point in the past week during the various services held in memory of President Gerald Ford. While those memorial
services for President Ford led me to finally bring this word to you, its genesis was in the daily contact I have with thousands and thousands of people all over this nation and around the world, the first hand knowledge I have of tens of thousands of churches, and the spiritual malpractice well over 50% of pastors commit each and every Sunday.

Having started my public ministry in the great city of Chicago in 1992, I studied in great detail the life and ministry of D.L. Moody. One of my great honors early in my ministry was to preach on several occasions to the students at the Moody Bible Institute and preach a mid-week service at the great Moody Memorial Church. One of the events that greatly impacted the life and ministry of Moody was the night of the Chicago fire. It was Sunday night, October 8, 1871, and as Moody finished his sermon, he told the crowd who had gathered to hear him preach to evaluate their relationship with Christ and return next week to make their decisions for Him. That crowd never gathered since during the night the building they were meeting in was consumed by the fire and it would be months before they would find a new place to hold their services.

Moody would never again make the grievous mistake of sending those who came to hear him preach home without giving them an invitation to know Jesus as their Lord and Savior. The Bible proclaims that TODAY is the day of salvation. The Bible teaches that tomorrow is promised to NONE of us.  Moody was haunted by the question, how many people who would have been moved by the Holy Sprit to walk the aisle and give their life to Christ on that infamous October night, never did so and died in their sins, lost for all eternity?

Dwight L. Moody would not even recognize the vast majority of "pastors" today. Men, and now women, who preach a watered down message, using secular books for their references rather than the Bible. "Pastors" who stand in the pulpits of America and refuse to even deal with sin since it might offend people. The ones who make a mockery of Christ by condoning,accepting, and even glorifying gross sins like homosexuality and the slaughter of innocent babies. And what I am certain would break Moody's heart, "pastors" who preach Sunday after Sunday and NEVER give an invitation for those they are preaching to, to accept Jesus as their Savior by faith.

During the first 3 yrs of my public ministry, I preached in over 500 churches all over the nation. All types of denominations, racial and ethnic make-ups, churches with thousands and churches with less than 20. It was
during those years I had my first insight into how many churches rarely, if ever gave those who gathered on Sunday an opportunity to accept Jesus as their Savior by faith. Over these past 7 1/2 years of Liveprayer, in
dealing with literally tens of thousands of people first hand, thousands upon thousands of churches all over this country and around the world, I
would not hesitate to estimate that in well over 50% of churches, those who gather are NEVER given the invitation to ask Jesus into their heart and life by faith and become born again...NEVER!

I remember watching much of the memorial services held at various churches for President Reagan back in June of 2004, and then just this past week, watching all of the various memorial series held for President Ford. I heard one "pastor" after another speaking, waiting for just one, just one, to at least have the guts to tell those listening what Jesus said, "I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me." There was one who actually did cite that passage, but had the audacity to leave off, "No one comes to the Father except through me," I am sure afraid of offending someone in the audience. How offended will those people be when they die without Jesus and are spending eternity in hell because some gutless "pastor" refused to tell them the Truth?

I gave up hope long ago on seeing even one of these "pastors" with the world watching on these special occasions, actually doing what God has called them to do and sharing the Gospel. Simply telling the people that if you die without Jesus you will be lost for all eternity. My goodness, you have the "pastor" of the largest church in the nation who goes on television often and actually brags that he doesn't talk about sin and refuses to answer the most basic question of the Christian faith which is that faith in Jesus is the ONLY way men can be saved and those who choose to reject Him will be in hell. These men dishonor Christ and the Bible clearly says those who have taken on the mantle of leadership will be held to a much higher standard. God will hold them accountable one day.

This problem in the pastorate has all unfolded over the past 40 years. Most of the mainline denominations began to require their pastors to have a seminary education, but they did not state which seminaries. As the nation began to rebel against all authority in the mid '60s, that included rebelling against God and the Truth of His Word. Liberal seminaries popped up that denied the inspiration and inerrancy of Scripture. Men no longer needed to be "called" by God, simply complete the required education. I am convinced there is a percentage, larger than you night think, of "pastors" in this nation who are not even saved!

Once you reject the authority of the Bible, it opened the door to women "pastors," "pastors" who condone sins like homosexually and abortion, "pastors" who quoted secular books as well as books used by the false
religions of the world more than the Bible, "pastors" who refuse to deal with sin, and "pastors" who have never given an altar call or led a lost soul to faith in Christ in their life!

You also have "pastors" like Joel Osteen who have never even been to Bible college! It is no wonder he has no grasp of theology. He majored in broadcasting in college and ran his father's television ministry until
taking over as "pastor" after his father's death. Being a pastor is not like running the family business. You can't simply wake up one day and decide to be a pastor, though sadly many do. Let me ask you a question.
Would you want someone operating on your heart who has never been to medical school, but simply woke up one day and decided they wanted to be a heart surgeon? OF COURSE NOT! Yet people put their eternal souls in the hands of "pastors" every day who have never even taken a Bible college class!

Listen, I am not saying you have to have the alphabet following your name to be qualified to pastor a church. However, if you have truly been called, God will guide you to the formal theological training you need to at least properly preach and teach His Word. There is so much more that goes into it, but you have to have at least a basic theological education from a legitimate Bible school that holds the Bible to be God's inspired inerrant Word, representing Absolute Truth, and our final authority in all matters.

Anyone who answers the call of God to preach His Word has the fundamental responsibility of preaching the Gospel and leading the lost to faith in Jesus Christ. A pastor who ends a service without giving an invitation to accept Christ to those he is preaching to is committing spiritual malpractice, and as one of God's watchmen, God WILL hold them accountable for those who die and spend eternity in hell because they refused to tell them how to be saved!

I love you and care about you so much. I am going to make a very bold statement right now. If you are going to a church where you rarely, or even worse, never, hear your pastor give people the invitation to ask Christ
into their hearts and lives, you need to confront your pastor why not. There is NO reason not to. It is his job. In fact, it is probably the most basic and fundamental part of his job. If he did nothing else but that, he
would be fulfilling God's calling on his life. You need to hear his explanation for why he refuses to obey God, and then you need do pray if that is really the church God wants you and your family to be part of.

Also, the next time you are in church, look around you. Look at the people around you and ask yourself how many of those people are NOT Believers, who have never given their heart and life to Christ by faith. Ask yourself how many of those people will die and spend eternity in hell for their rejection of Christ. Pray for them to hear the Gospel clearly presented. Pray for them to allow the Holy Sprit to open their heart to God's love for them. Pray for them to surrender their life to Christ by faith and be saved.

Lastly, if your pastor is one of these pastors who never gives an invitation at the end of his service, forward this Devotional to him, or her, and pray they come under conviction. I already know I am going to take TONS of heat for this message. That is OK. I have to be obedient to God. I am almost certain you have NEVER heard a message like this before and never will again. People are too afraid to say what needs to be said. I can't stay silent because the eternal souls of men are at stake.

Those God has called and given the honor to preach, can be used by Him to bring many lost souls to faith in Jesus Christ. That won't happen by accident, it won't happen by putting on a great performance, it won't
happen by tricking them, and it won't happen because you made them feel good. The only way a person will get saved is if you love them enough to share with them the simplicity of the Gospel They need to admit they are a sinner and need a Savior and that Christ's loves them unconditionally and wants to have an eternal relationship with them.

It is the job of ALL Believers in Christ to share the Gospel with the lost. However, there is NO EXCUSE for any pastor to hold any type of service and not give those who attend the opportunity to ask Christ into their heart and life by faith and be saved!

In His love and service, Your friend and brother in Christ, Bill Keller   If I can help you in any way you can contact me through my personal email at:  bkeller@liveprayer.com

Liveprayer  6660 46th Ave. North   St. Petersburg, Fl 33709
 

INSTABILITY IN CHURCHES - by willetta

The atmosphere of the church world as a whole (at least in the states) is disgusting and shocking. Money, numerical growth, styles of worship (?), and personalities has become their god. Sound doctrine is laid aside. Seeker friendly is the battle cry while the world goes to Hell in a hand basket! There are few churches where old-time conviction still happens.

I'm reminded of the scripture that says in Matthew 13:58 "And he did not do many miracles there because of their lack of faith." But Jesus did not alter his message to please the crowd or to get a following! Again in John 6:66 "From this time many of his disciples turned back and no longer followed him."

We have no record of Jesus running after them to beg them to continue following nor does he adjust his message. There is often the argument that the message is the same, we just use different methods. Do we? Or is that just a cover-up for the change in the message as well? Paul said, 1Co 1:18 "For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God."�

I'm very aware that methods change but I would like to go on record that the method is not all that has changed. The message has as well. No longer are men called into account for sin. No longer are they challenged with the righteous requirements of God. No longer is the prospect of Hell because of rejection of Jesus and His sacrifice for sin even mentioned. The church is all about prosperity, and health, and God is a good God, and He is, but there is also a just side of God and He will not tolerate the rejection of His Son.

Jesus said, Lk 24:46-47 "... 'This is what is written: The Christ will suffer and rise from the dead on the third day, and repentance and forgiveness of sins will be preached in his name to all nations, beginning at Jerusalem.'"�

All to often Pastors are more concerned about the latest ball game score than they are the souls of men. Prayer meeting has given way to bible study that is little more than a light surfing of a few scriptures. Fellowship (food and coffee) has taken the place of earnest intercession before God. Call a prayer meeting and you are fortunate if three or four show up. Have a fellowship, with the tables spread, and you will have nearly everyone in the church show up and they'll even bring their friends. It says a lot about our priorities and our relationship with the Master.

Christians often know little to nothing about their bibles in spite of the bible studies publically presented. They expect the pastor and Sunday school teacher to spoon-feed them. How sad! Paul's admonition was this. 2Ti 2:15 "Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a workman who does not need to be ashamed and who correctly handles the word of truth." The purpose? Eph 4:14-16 "Then we will no longer be infants, tossed back and forth by the waves, and blown here and there by every wind of teaching and by the cunning and craftiness of men in their deceitful scheming. Instead, speaking the truth in love, we will in all things grow up into him who is the Head, that is, Christ. From him the whole body, joined and held together by every supporting ligament, grows and builds itself up in love, as each part does its work"
 

PASTORAL INTERVIEWS FOR A YOUNG COLLEGE STUDENT - by chris steele

I had tried to get a hold of a couple of Pastors who had crossed my path in my past and had influenced my life. As it turned out I was unable to get in contact with either of those men so I really had to put my trust in the Lord to bail me out of the hole I had made. I believe he has done just that, the Lord provided two pastors who sacrificed some time out of their schedules to help me out. The first Pastor granted me an interview through a friend of mine who serves as a pastor on his staff and has had nothing but amazing words to say.

His name is pastor Jerry Qualls. He is currently serving as senior pastor of Glad Tidings Assemblies of God in Virginia Beach. Pastor Qualls Has served in full time Ministry for Forty-three years and part-time for three years before that, what a testimony! I loved getting to hear this veteran man of God’s heart. I attended his church in Virginia Beach twice now and I really love what they are doing there.

Pastor Qualls is not afraid to tell it like it is and stepped on many people’s toes when he preached. I thoroughly enjoyed his sermon. I know it is not about numbers but the church is running between five and six hundred people. Considering the fact that they are still recovering from three pastors who have had to step down from their staff positions over the last year and a half due to moral failures, the church is showing signs of re-growth and regeneration. I talked with Pastor Qualls on Sunday afternoon on October 29, 2006, and by the end of our conversation I realized and so did he that all of these questions could be answered with a great more detail and we were short on time. I will try my best to share his heart as he did while reporting what he had to say in this interview.

Q1: As a pastor, how do you handle the constant, twenty-four an hour need of ministry?

A: In his reply he said that after spending a long time in the counseling field before he came to preaching here at Glad Tidings he had learned a valuable lesson. No one needs you in the middle of the night! Everyone can usually wait. If you can get bi-polar disorder patients to wait and even wait sometimes a week till their appointment then you can let any one else in your ministry wait. There is almost never a case where it requires a conversation in the middle of the night. The phone makes pastors far too available it is an invention that pastors need to learn to rule and not to let it rule them. I have learned to hang it up when necessary. You can train your congregation as to the appropriate times to call you so more headaches will be avoided. I was not ever on call twenty –four hours a day.

Q2: The most important thing you have learned in ministry?

A: How important my wife is! I can’t do it alone. She is absolutely critical. You need someone who will support you and give you constant strength, someone who will speak truth into your life. A pastor should never have to try to go for it alone.

Q3: How do you find time for your personal/ spiritual health?

A: First of all I try to have a date night every Friday night, I try to always make sure that I keep that night open and do not schedule items for this unless it can’t be avoided. I take time of regularly, I have found that I need that and I am much more peaceful when I can do this. The biggest thing I do for more time for myself is to never let my secretary do my schedule. Too Often some one will call and he secretary will schedule an appointment and since she schedules them in hour increments people expect an hour of your time. Most people do not need an hour of your time. As I mentioned about the phone before take the time to answer or reply to your phone calls talk to the person and find out what the real need of the situation is. Often I can handle the problem over the phone and in less than five minuets. I find out if it is a “TLC” need or a prayer request, or a complaint about this or that, or sometimes I have to say they need to come in for some counseling with me or even if I need to refer them to some one else. By taking time for a five-minuet phone call I avoid using up a half or full hour on something that only really needs an hour.

Q4: Do you have confidence to do the things in Pastoral ministry because of your past experience?

A: No any pastor can learn to be a great pastor over time. It is not always something that you can learn before you enter into ministry. But God will use these things in your past to prepare you for your ministry.

Q5: How have you dealt with ministry versus family time?

A: I was on National radio for the Assemblies of God for years and I learned that it is necessary to sometimes to step down from things here or there. I was the President of several committees and on several boards I helped start several ministries and even a college, Tidewater community college. I learned that I needed to make myself less available to some of those things that I was involved in and to make time for the family. I learned quickly that if your too busy for family then your too busy! You need to free yourself for at least one to two nights a week for just your family that is imperative. I learned that often because you start things you do not need to stay involved with that item till its over or you are. Learn to get involved do what the Lord has told you to do with it then walk away and let God use someone else for a while. Too often Pastors are insecure and they get too buy to try to make up for it. They have a need for recognition, and they will search for different ways to get it. If they are not getting it from a wife or are not feeling fulfilled in the ministry they will become more involved in more than they should to try to find recognition.

Q6: What is the most difficult thing in ministry?

A: Lust and boundaries. More pastors today are taken out of ministry by this issue than any other thing. I have a chart that I use for how to fall in love. It could also be used for how to have an affair. There are basically three steps: spending time together, sharing deeply, and getting together personally. If you do these things you could fall in love with a dog. Look at these things and you can see why pastors fall from the ministry.

Q7: What is your passion or vision for ministry in your current position?

A: I think it would have to be to motivate our people in our church for evangelism and missions. Most of al though I think I would really like people to have a great relationship with the Lord, and then to exhibit it in life to all they come in contact with.

Q8: What is the best way you have found to motivate people in ministry?

A: One word, personal, it could have two implications. First make it personal and then gather people to yourself if you have a vision for it, it will catch. Second if you can go out and personally ask and motivate someone it will never happen. The best way to get someone going is to do it one-on –one.

Q9: What is your belief on marrying a Christian and a non-Christian?

A: Simple, I wont do it! I will not go against the scriptures, not if I am knowledgeable. And I make sure I know them at least a little. I require at least 3 counseling sessions and I really like at least five. I will not marry them if they are not scriptural. I will marry non-Christians, and I will marry Christians together but I will not do it otherwise. I have turned down people in my church and had them leave. I have turned people down and had them go somewhere else and get married and they will pretty much always end up divorced.

Q10: What would be a piece of advice that you would give a pastor who was just starting out into full time vocational ministry?

A: he asked me if I really wanted him to answer that and of course told him I really did so paused and then answered. He said, they should have a second job! They should be able to face the hard decisions with out fear of their job. So they could speak honestly with out fear of where their next paycheck will come from! He continued that if we really want to get a good training for the ministry we should go and referee some sports and get used to making the hard calls. Those decisions that no one will like us for and some will even hate you for. This is a great preparation for the sometimes isolation and hard part of being a great pastor.

I was reluctant to give up the conversation at this point, however time required us to stop here. I was glad however that he did not want to do this interview over a game of racquetball; he is a world-class player that has won several tournaments and has beaten professional players. I was really amazed by his honesty and how profound his answers were. I was blessed to have this opportunity to speak with him, as he is very busy. He has a very active church and is actively involved in the community, the least of which is the radio show that he has that deals with all different aspects of life. He is a genuine man of God. I really enjoyed this experience.

The second Pastor that I interviewed was a great woman of God from a small church in Illinois. Willeta Pilcher was a pastor of Lynn Branch Church in Edgewood, Illinois. She has now gone into retirement after ten and a half years of service as the senior pastor at the non-denominational church. I attended this small country church out in the country a few years ago and it was an invaluable exposure to the old style, little old wooden church out on the hill. I have known pastor Pilcher for at least six years and I can assure you that you will never forget the experience of talking with her. I have always known her to tell it like it is and to say exactly what is on her mind and heart. Nothing is held back! When she says it, that’s it, no wavering or doubt about it. I cannot thank her enough for taking the time to talk to me on October 30, 2006. She has a heart for the Lord and a love for people in general. Her and her husband have pretty much always lived on a farm in Illinois, and raised children and grand children, and now great grandchildren. I was absolutely blessed to have the opportunity to talk with this great woman of God.

Q1: As a pastor, how do you handle the constant, twenty-four an hour need of ministry?

A: As the only pastor of the church I did not have a lot of choice in the matter, I just did it! When I was called I went. I was blessed in that the church did not require me to have office hours per say. I was allowed to do most of my work from the house, which was right beside the church. My door was always open and I did what was necessary. I had at least 30 people in the congregation and it was a lot of work to keep up with. When I started out I was the pastor of two churches and dealt with the problems and procedures of both, and God saw me through.

Q2: The most important thing you have learned in ministry?

A: Be sure of what your call is. If you are not sure of what God would have you do then you could be easily bent to the cry of the masses. You need to be a greet listener, and try to hear what the needs and desires of the congregation are but not at the expense of God’s will. At times I felt like my board was wiser than I was. So I learned to listen to wise counsel and take it to the Lord in prayer. It was hard to work everything out in this context though because her husband was on the board and she was trying to stay scriptural and yet obedient to God in her decisions.

Q3: How do you find time for your personal/ spiritual health?

A: Do not spend time on the non-essentials. There will be plenty of them that will come across your desk. Be diligent and find the things that are important for your time to be spent on. You need to learn to schedule time for families and for the things that are important to you, and then stick to your schedule. Know what things are the priorities in your life, in ministry and in the church and then don’t bend on them. You also need to train your congregation as to what you will and won’t do. Tell them that Friday nights are your family night for example and that you will only handle desperate emergencies on this night. Make a point of your time with your family then be an example to the rest of the families and fathers in your church.

Q4: Do you have confidence to do the things in Pastoral ministry because of your past experience?

A: Life with the Lord prepared me for the road I have traveled in ministry. If you walk this life with the Lord and are obedient to his will in your life he will prepare you for where he wants to take you in ministry. Nothing will ever completely prepare you for your experiences as a pastor. God will let you go through different trials to strengthen you so you can handle the tough times in ministry. When you can be vulnerable and open with your church but do it in a way that you are not going to share too much personal information. Use examples from the Bible before you use yourself.

Q5: How have you dealt with ministry versus family time?

A: This was really not a big issue for us. All of our children were grown and out of the house when I started my pastoral ministry. I am also married to a very easygoing person who would often be busy around the farm and those kinds of things while I was doing things for the church. Not to mention he was on the church board and actively involved in the church along side of men so there was complete understanding from him. That being said I tried to make sure there was always plenty of time for us as a family. Realize that there are people who take advantage of your time any time that they can. Women are notorious for constantly needing your time, and that is where you will need wisdom in counseling. Counseling is done by the wisdom of the Lord that is why your personal time with the Lord is so important.

Q6: What is the most difficult thing in ministry?

A: Dealing with conflicts within the church can be extremely difficult and extremely painful. I was a pastor of a small country church in a small community in Illinois. This community is known for its splits within the church. I took two churches at the same time. These churches were at opposition with each other. We worked with them and brought them together and God made it work. Conflict resolution is the most difficult thing. Pastors are going to have to make those hard decisions that a large percentage of people will not like. That is when you need the personal prayer time with the Lord to know how you should handle these difficult situations. Once you have worked through it with the Lord, be confident in your decision and stick with the Lord’s leading

Q7: What is your passion or vision for ministry in your current position?

A: Even though I have retired from ministry I still consider myself still consider myself active in ministry. The church where we go to now I am able to share in the conversations from my heart, knowledge, and ministry experience. I think it is a great service to share with others what the lord has taught me. My main form of ministry is that I have designed and run three different web sights that are developed for ministry to anyone who will stop by! One of them is designed for advice on parenting issues and raising Godly families. The other two sites are designed for two different approaches to the general public and not specifically to any certain group. One of these sites has had 135,000 visitors in about the Last year. It has been hard to minister to people that I cannot see but that is the ministry that God has given me to do and I really enjoy it! The last area is a small portion of counseling that I do at our church with the permission of our senior pastor.

Q8: What is the best way you have found to motivate people in ministry?

A: The senior pastor must be excited about the events that the church is being asked to become involved in. If the Pastor is excited their excitement will move from them and spread over the rest of the church the same thing could be said of apathetic support of any ministry. It also starts with the Pastor teaching the church the responsibility and importance of involvement in the local church and it’s ministries. More sermons on witnessing and being examples of Christian and caring living will lead to more people wanting to be more involved. The thrust of the Pastors ministry will become the thrust of the church.

Q9: What is your belief on marrying a Christian and a non-Christian?

A: I have a real problem with the whole idea. I would not do it! Just like marrying a homosexual couple is unscriptural so is marrying a Christian and a non-Christian. A pastor is no there to please people they are there to be a beacon of scriptural morality. We are to set the example always. Even if that means I would be put in prison or killed I would rather that then to ever fall from the Lord’s approval one bit. If the pastor is not strong in their convictions and vocal about them, then you can be sure the people in the congregation will not be.

Q10: What would be a piece of advice that you would give a pastor who was just starting out into full time vocational ministry?

A: Be a person of the Word of God. You are supposed to be saturated with it and covered by it. You will be tested in your knowledge of the word. It should be your goal to be a person of the word of God. The Lord can’t use a ship that is not in the water. Also you should be motivated to do things for God and his glory not for your own. If you are getting into ministry to get your personal glorification then you are getting into the wrong profession. It is a profession that requires a commitment to constant personal sacrifice. If you can beat your flesh down and glorify the Lord you will do far more for the Lord.

I loved the opportunity I had to talk with this awesome pastor of the faith. She has a heart for the Lord and his will and it was really neat to talk with her for this length of time. We talked about several other things and told her that she could not go home to be with the Lord for at least twenty more years so I could call her up and she could help me work through things in my pastorate. She laughed and said that she did not know about that. It was an amazing experience.

So what do I do with this information? I need to meditate on these issues and store them in my heart. It was really neat to get their point of view and to see that for the most part it lined up completely with the things I have learned from Dr. Hall over the past couple of years. I am excited to get out there and get my hands on the issues myself. I am however a little cautious and trying to see of I am really ready for all the things they talked about. I know that I need to be more diligent in my daily devotions with God, regardless of the time of morning I need to get up to do it! I also need to work on time management skills. God has divinely appointed these two and Dr. Hall to encourage and strengthen me in the areas I have had questions about. I do not think that I am completely revolutionized by any certain idea mentioned, but I am quickened by the weight of the responsibility that the pastorate holds. I am not ready for full time ministry as of yet, and I do not know if it is possible to be fully prepared but I am willing and completely trusting and leaning on God! God give me strength to serve for forty-five years faithfully in ministry. Lead me God, as I am a beacon of morality in the community in which you place me. Let me balance family and pastoral responsibilities as these two have. And let me stand at the end of time along side these warriors for your gospel!

 

RAISE YOUR HAND - by walt mueller

 Okay, this one might get me in some trouble. And it's all because I'm increasingly convinced we're doing something wrong in youth ministry. We've been chugging along thinking we've been doing it right. As a result, we continue to do it wrong because we think it's right, and in doing so, we're undermining the very work of the very God who we pride ourselves in serving. Are you confused yet? Let me explain.

What's prompted my thinking on this matter is a publicity piece I recently read regarding a self-described "youth evangelist" who touts his "success' by advertising the fact that he's led over one million kids to Christ. Sorry, I just can't take that too seriously. I wish I could, but I can't. To be fair, this isn't the first time I've heard claims like this.

My hesitancy to trust the numbers started way back in the late 1970s when, as a college student, I attended a conference where evangelist Tom Skinner was the keynote speaker. I can still visualize Skinner, a brilliant man whose passion was deep, talking about the waning influence of the church on American culture. In an effort to challenge us to take our faith seriously, Skinner asked a very thought-provoking question that has stuck with me since that day. "George Gallup's research tells us that 50 million Americans describe themselves as 'born again Christians,'" said Skinner. This was great news--until Skinner lowered the boom that rocked my simple and satisfying world. He soberly asked, "If there are 50 million born again Christians in America, where are they?" Skinner's thought-provoking question and the reality it exposed has haunted me for 25 years. I thought about it again when I read the youth evangelist's claim.

I'm guessing the "successful" youth evangelist has probably (or maybe) seen over a million kids walk forward or raise their hands in response to his invitation to "make a decision" for Christ. I'm in no position to judge his motives or the accuracy of his numbers. But I think we can, and should, question his--and our--quality control. Part of the problem lies in the very fact that we spend so much time counting up the numbers so we can judge our "success," validate the effectiveness of our ministries and look good when we report back to our supervisors and church boards. Rarely do we go back a year later to see if the raised hand yielded a radically changed life. If we did, our math would have to include a little less addition and a lot more subtraction.

The reason? We're too focused on getting kids' hands up that we don't offer a way for the one who raised the hand to learn about the necessity and shape of the changed life that should begin the minute the hand goes down. Or, even more troubling, we focus only on getting kids' hands up because our theology of salvation has failed to include a place for what happens after.

The result? Add up the numbers that are yours, mine and everybody else's. Pretty impressive, huh? Until we ask the same question Skinner asked over 25 years ago: "Where are they?"

That question should force us to ask ourselves some other questions. As parents and youth workers, we invite--and we should!--the kids we know and love to commit their lives to Christ. But are we taking the time to explain what a life of following Christ here on this earth is all about, how difficult it is and what it requires? Do we ever talk about the fact that following the God-man who bled and suffocated on the cross requires his followers to take up a cross of their own? Do kids know there's a life of integrating faith into every minute and every activity that's to be lived between the second their hand goes up and the second their heart stops beating? In order to come away with affirmative answers to each of these questions, we might have to rethink our understanding of conversion--that wrong thing that we've been thinking we've had right for so long. Perhaps if we understood conversion, then our ministries, our kids, our understanding of "success," our numbers and, most importantly, our world would look markedly different.

For too long youth ministry has been about getting kids "saved." I struggle with our definition of what it means to be saved and the methods we employ to get young people saved. In his thought-provoking book on conversion, Beginning Well, Gordon Smith says the church is guilty of thinking of conversion in "minimalist terms: What is the very least that a person needs to do in order to be freed from the horrors of hell and assured of the glories of heaven?" Dallas Willard calls this the "gospel of sin management," that belief that forgiveness alone is what Christianity is all about. It's a faith that has nothing else to do with the rest of your life. You've raised your hand, you've walked forward and now you're saved. And while it's probably not intentional, we then proceed to leave the impression that all there is to do now is to get on with life--until the next time you hear the invitation and say "yes" again--kind of like adding another rider onto your eternal life insurance policy.

For some, conversion is only about exchanging your one way ticket to hell for a guaranteed ticket to heaven--a ticket you cash in when life on this earth ends. Until then, you continue to live your life as you choose. Conversion has nothing to do with this life, except living with the assurance of heaven in the next. The result is there's nothing that requires your life on earth to be marked by anything that sets you apart from others whose hands have never gone up.

For others, conversion is about a change in destination when life on this earth ends--from going to hell to going to heaven--and then making every opportunity while you're still here to tell other people how to do the same. While along with your conversion comes a new responsibility to witness in a way that gets more hands up in the air, life on this earth is really about separating yourself out of this world to keep yourself from getting poisoned by this world, while focusing your hopeful gaze on heaven in anticipation of the day when your escape will be complete.

For both, the Gospel is not so much about how you live your life now, but about where you'll live your afterlife then. In other words, it's entirely possible there are 50 million self-described born again Americans, and we have no clue where they are--either because they blend in, or they've run away to hide. The real problem with the "saved" is that they don't understand "salvation."

It's time to understand and act on the fact that conversion is not just about belief, repentance, forgiveness and eternal life. Something else has to happen after someone accepts Christ as Savior. Salvation makes a person free from sin and a slave to righteousness. We are re-birthed people living every second of our new life on this earth under the reign of the King who has made us His own by calling us into His Kingdom. We are called into the joyful life of integrating the Christian faith and the Kingdom of God Jesus inaugurated and preached into all of life.

When we call young people to faith, we're not calling them out of the world and into heaven. Rather we're calling them to live God's will and God's way in the world. Theologian David Wells describes it this way: "True conversion is not an isolated experience but one that is related to a life of discipleship ... Discipleship belongs to and should follow from conversion the way that natural life belongs to and should follow from live birth ... And just as there is no discipleship without conversion, so there is no conversion without an ensuing life of discipleship that involves growth in moral maturity, a deepening faith, and loving service."

Believe it or not, Jesus didn't just come to save us from our sins. The way many of us have been raised makes this statement sound like heresy. But it's not. The real heresy is the belief that Jesus only came to save us from our sins. Think about this: when we pray the words, "Your Kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven," we are asking God to unleash His Kingdom through us as we live His will and His way in every nook and cranny of our lives and His world. True conversion reorders and transforms both the now and then.

I love how Charlie Peacock describes conversion and the place of the converted in the world: "The story of Noah and his family challenge the common misconception that the redemption story is about God's saving individuals out of the world. That idea reduces salvation to personal escape from the evil physical world to a blissful spiritual heaven. In reality, redemption history is about an ongoing story and process where people are saved in the world. The way they are saved out of the world is by God's choosing them for himself, removing them out of the world's ways, giving them his ways, and then leaving them in the world to continue the work he has assigned them."

My hope and prayer is that my story will be swallowed up by God's story. My prayer for my kids is the same. If that's what happens when the hands go down, nobody will be left wondering who they're to be where they are right now. That's what it really means to say, "Yes, I want to be saved." If that's the message we communicate in our youth ministries, when the kids' hands go down those hands will be getting right to work. And for the rest of their earthly lives, it will be impossible for the world to miss seeing where they are.

The Center for Parent/Youth Understanding grants permission for this article to be copied in its entirety, provided the copies are distributed free of charge and the copies indicate the source as the Center for Parent/Youth Understanding.
For more information on resources to help you understand today's rapidly changing youth culture, contact the Center for Parent/Youth Understanding.
 

STALE WORSHIP - by dr bill denton via crossties devotional

 “Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. 20 “But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys, and where thieves do not break in or steal; 21 for where your treasure is, there your heart will be also. -- Matthew 6:19-21, NASB95

The essence of worship is an unrestrained giving of yourself to your heart’s greatest treasure. One thing, above all others, will lay hold of your deepest affection and truest allegiance. As a Christ-follower, your passion for Him will find genuine pleasure in giving adoration, giving thanks, giving time and service, and giving attention throughout each day of your life. This is the beginning of worship. -- The New Rebellion Handbook, p. 13.

Jesus had it right. Your heart will be wherever your treasure is. A treasure is something we value, something we think important. Often, it is something we can’t do without. The truth is that we are emotionally tied to our treasures. A person can not easily abandon their treasures. They may be forced by circumstance or peril to give up something they treasure, but though they may not ever hold it in their hands again, they will hold it in their heart.

This applies to our worship of God. In fact, it may be that the single greatest problem with modern worship is that so little of it requires that we treasure God. Too much of what passes for worship is laid out for us, programmed, ritualized, formatted, performed. Nobody has to think or feel anything, just follow the script. Of course a laid-out worship on Sundays makes for an orderly hour so we can get our spiritual ticket punched, but it doesn’t necessarily do much to draw us close, move us deeper, or touch our soul.

Real worship doesn’t begin a moment after announcements are made, or with the first note of a song. It doesn’t begin with the first word of the Sunday morning prayer or with the preacher’s sermon. Real worship begins in the hearts of individuals, each of whom treasures God. Worship begins with the first breath of the dawn, the first glimmer of light waking sleepy eyes, and the first thought firing synapses in one’s brain. Worship begins inside. It cannot be forced upon a person, for if that person does not really treasure God, no amount of singing, praying or preaching will cause that person to worship. Worship, even corporate worship, is intensely personal. The worship of a whole congregation of people is the joint effort of the individual members treasuring God.

The question for us is something like this: “What do you treasure?” The answer to that question may surprise you. It’s not that we can only treasure God. There are a lot of other things that you might choose to value highly. But, if you’re going to worship God, you must value Him more than anything else. Anything! That’s what Jesus had in mind when he gave us the contrast of treasuring things on earth or treasuring things in heaven. Many things in this life may be valued, but not like that eternal treasure you lay up in heaven. That treasure is the one thing that must capture your heart like nothing else.

Sadly, many people who think of themselves as Christians, treasure a lot of things more highly than they treasure God. Watch the things that consume your time and your money. Those two measures are powerful ways to identify what you treasure in this life. Be aware of how powerful those things are that consume your time and money for they are the things that will rival God. If you consistently set God aside for whatever consumes your time and money, you might want to pay attention. Your worship might be stale.

-- Dr. Bill Denton, © Copyright 2008, All Rights Reserved    Received from: CrossTies Devotional

 

SUPER BOWL AFTER GLOW - by willetta

Ninety million people were glued to their television this past Super Bowl Sunday. As one secular TV announcer put it, “The faithful are sitting before their televisions to worship their idols this afternoon.” Even churches got in on the act. They canceled their evening service or scooted it up a couple hours so that the big game could be watched. Let it be clear, His time came first. But somehow it was a sort of “eat your cake and have it too” scenario.

Sanctuaries and/or fellowship halls were turned into stadiums with plenty of food and soft drinks. Beer served? Mercy no! Not in the church! Advertisements and half-time were edited and sanitized. [Hurrah! We Christian-ized football! But we forgot the fence ads.] A “short” devotional and/or sermon was given at half-time to give God His time again and to allow an invitation to be given for Salvation. Of course we made sure it fit into the time frame  allowed. The big game would re-start on time. To one side or in another room table games were in progress for those who weren’t interested in football.

Now I have no problem with football and/or table games parse... but when we shove our worship time around and turn our sanctuaries into stadiums to accommodate game time.... It says a lot about who we have become and what we will allow as the church of the living God. We seem to feel that if we add a little prayer and certain Christian activities to an event that it makes everything all right. But does it? I’m not asking the question to be super critical. And some will accuse me of being legalistic. But that is not my point. I just want us to ‘think’ about our motives. Are our motives what we tell ourselves they are?

“But, if we don’t, no one will come to the service,” is the reasoning behind the move. “And we are using it as a witnessing tool.” And as a former pastor... I understand. Service time was always down on Super Bowl Sunday. It was not hard to understand that some folk seemed to feel that throwing a pigskin around was more important than their spiritual life.

Oh, I know, they would take offense to that last statement but think about it. Isn’t that the unspoken message that is given to young people and children and even to some adults?

Excuses are given such as... “But that’s the only time it will be on TV and we ‘want’ to see the game.” Sure, but will we need to ask the Lord to delay the rapture until after the big game if he decides to come at that time?

We forget that there is a thought that circulates that “if I want something, I must have it and I need to do whatever it takes so that I can have it. Change my schedule, eliminate that which is least important (and it’s often spiritual things), let other things slide, whatever it takes...” The whole thought is... “If my flesh wants it... give it to me!” And our youth firmly believe it to be true. And why not? It is taught by the media every single day and we’ve all bought into the idea to a point.

Therefore... If I want something... give it to me now... charge it if you must but get it for me. If I want to go somewhere, get out of my way. If I want to see a certain TV program who cares what you want to watch. If I want sex, I must have sex whether I’m married or not. If I want something that you have it is my right to take it. And on and on it goes. Whatever I want I should have! Or so the message goes.

So... we give everyone a computer, TV, and Boom Box of their own. Not to mention the handhelds and Ipods etc. That way no one has to share or be considerate of anyone else. We have TV dinners and snack packs so that anyone can eat on demand. We are ALL catering to the flesh big time.

My question is this... “Are we doing ourselves a big favor by allowing the fostering of such ideas.”

Paul said: Rom 8:5 - 13 “For they that are after the flesh do mind the things of the flesh; but they that are after the Spirit the things of the Spirit. For to be carnally minded is death; but to be spiritually minded is life and peace. Because the carnal mind is enmity against God: for it is not subject to the law of God, neither indeed can be. So then they that are in the flesh cannot please God. But ye are not in the flesh, but in the Spirit, if so be that the Spirit of God dwell in you. Now if any man have not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of his. And if Christ be in you, the body is dead because of sin; but the Spirit is life because of righteousness. But if the Spirit of him that raised up Jesus from the dead dwell in you, he that raised up Christ from the dead shall also quicken your mortal bodies by his Spirit that dwelleth in you. Therefore, brethren, we are debtors, not to the flesh, to live after the flesh. For if ye live after the flesh, ye shall die: but if ye through the Spirit do mortify the deeds of the body, ye shall live.”

As I step back and review the evening (it was our first experience with a Super Bowl Sunday party) I’m troubled in my spirit and I confess I was two or three weeks prior to the event. I remembered the scriptural occasion when Moses went up on the mountain to receive the Ten Commandments. He was delayed on the mountain and the people were frustrated by that delay ....

Exo 32:5-10 “And when Aaron saw it, he built an altar before it; and Aaron made proclamation, and said, Tomorrow is a feast to the LORD. And they rose up early on the morrow, and offered burnt offerings, and brought peace offerings; and the people sat down to eat and to drink, and rose up to play. And the LORD said unto Moses, Go, get thee down; for thy people, which thou broughtest out of the land of Egypt, have corrupted themselves: They have turned aside quickly out of the way which I commanded them: they have made them a molten calf, and have worshiped it, and have sacrificed thereunto, and said, These be thy gods, O Israel, which have brought thee up out of the land of Egypt. And the LORD said unto Moses, I have seen this people, and, behold, it is a stiffnecked people: Now therefore let me alone, that my wrath may wax hot against them, and that I may consume them: and I will make of thee a great nation.” (1 Cor 10:1-13)

“But,” the cry goes out, “it’s not the same!” Isn’t it? There wasn’t a big golden calf but there was a big screen before whom all reveled before (took great pleasure in).

I also think of Lot and his family in the city of Gomorrah. God was about to destroy the city...

Gen 19:17 “And it came to pass, when they had brought them forth abroad, that he said, Escape for thy life; look not behind thee, neither stay thou in all the plain; escape to the mountain, lest thou be consumed.” ... Gen 19:22 - 26 “Haste thee, escape thither; for I cannot do any thing till thou be come thither. Therefore the name of the city was called Zoar. The sun was risen upon the earth when Lot entered into Zoar. Then the LORD rained upon Sodom and upon Gomorrah brimstone and fire from the LORD out of heaven; And he overthrew those cities, and all the plain, and all the inhabitants of the cities, and that which grew upon the ground. But his wife looked back from behind him, and she became a pillar of salt.”

“But,” the cry goes out, “it’s not the same!” Isn’t it? If the Lord had returned during the game, how many would have turned back to catch one more play and/or the score? Or would His shout and the trumpet blast have even been heard above the din? It’s a tough question but be honest.

It seems as though we are afraid to ask the hard/tough questions these days. Why? Are we afraid we might be convicted and have to give up something that we hold very dear? “But I like....” What’s that got to do with it? The drunkard “likes” his liquor. The druggy “likes” his drugs. The smoker “likes his tobacco.” The glutton “likes” his rich food. The shop-a-holic “likes” to shop ‘till they drop. The work-a-holic “likes” to work even if his family suffers.

When Jesus cleansed the temple there were those who were quite upset at His audacity. How dare He come into the temple and desecrate it with such behavior. Why, the children and people were shouting praises of all things.

Mat 21:12 -16 “And Jesus went into the temple of God, and cast out all them that sold and bought in the temple, and overthrew the tables of the moneychangers, and the seats of them that sold doves, And said unto them, It is written, My house shall be called the house of prayer; but ye have made it a den of thieves. And the blind and the lame came to him in the temple; and he healed them. And when the chief priests and scribes saw the wonderful things that he did, and the children crying in the temple, and saying, Hosanna to the son of David; they were sore displeased, and said unto him, Hearest thou what these say? And Jesus saith unto them, Yea; have ye never read, Out of the mouth of babes and sucklings thou hast perfected praise.”

Oh, but they were charging exorbitant prices for sacrifices and making money on the money exchange. We didn’t charge admission or anything like that.” I’m sure not all of them did but it is my understanding that some of the churches did charge admission for their event. Souvenir tables were set up. Food was on sale. Whether that was true or not, the world takes a dim view of churches having such events. It’s OK in your home and/or at the bar but churches must not unless they follow the guidelines set forth by the powers that be. The advertisers make money through advertising and for shame, churches edit them out. Therefore the copyright laws are violated. [The Super Bowl now says it is OK for churches to show the game.]

One lady was heard to remark, “I can’t help but wonder when they will bring out the money-changing tables.” I knew what she meant and how she felt. Their was something wrong with the whole event. Dare we call it what it was?

During the pre-game time where we attended a particular song was sung that normally moves the congregation to praise and worship before the Lord but not this time. As “Let the Worshipers Arise” rang forth with lively enthusiasm, something was missing. There were no tears of rejoicing, the Holy Spirit did not permeate the service, no one bowed at the altar in repentance. I for one felt empty. Could the reason have been that those of us who came came not to worship the Lord but to engage in a fleshly pursuit?

I for one had to repent!

 

THE BIBLE / THE BOY - charles e. branthoover

The well dressed man paused briefly as he passed by the church of stone;  His mind flashed back to a day long ago and he never felt more alone.

A tear tracked down his handsome face; then in anger he brushed it away;  He remembered the ladies pompous smirk as if it was yesterday...
He watched them build this very church; from the ground breaking to the last nail,  tho' just a dirt poor lad back then, he remembered it very well.

He marveled at the building's size; fancy cars that came and went;  The people in their fancy clothes, and he dreamed of the money they spent.

He still doesn't know what came over him, the day he stepped from the wood;  He remembered his dirty face and jeans and was shocked that really he could.

He walked to the fanciest car in the lot, and spoke to the lady so grand;  He simply asked for a Bible you see; she denied with a flick of her hand.

'Twas later he learned of the millions spent to erect this monument so great;   and he wondered at this Jesus God, who could leave him with such hate.

What kind of Savior was this man, who could fill the rich with joy;   Yet turn his back on the simple request of a dirty little boy?

Oh, church, I ask you here in rhyme, have we strayed from His Holy Word?
Do we now in our lust for grandeur close our ears that their cries can't be heard?

And Jesus said, "Doest thou love Me?"

"Feed My sheep!"

(Poem copyright 2000@ Charles E. Branthoover") 

THE EXPERTISE OF THE INEPT - by mike stike

We live in a culture that stands in awe of the expert. Because of this cultural deification of the expert, we are plagued by a persistent intimidation, a constant insecurity that shadows our every decision. Our self-confidence is eroded by a paralyzing uncertainty, a demoralizing hesitation that causes us to second-guess our ability to function in every area of our lives, whether it be parenting, religion, education, politics, morality, family issues, or what to cook for dinner.

Everywhere we look, there are experts: Experts on the family, experts on child-rearing, money experts, church growth experts, Bible experts, financial-planning experts, on the end times, theology experts, marriage experts, legal experts, moral experts, adolescent experts, parenting experts, medical experts, experts on dying, experts on counseling, and experts on experts. It's no wonder that most of us feel completely inadequate to do anything other than cook breakfast, and even then we wonder if we shouldn't check our menu with a dietician, a nutritionist, a vitamatician, and a chef.

Then we go to church, and we leave completely demoralized by the expert insights into the nuances of the original Greek and Hebrew, which are obviously out of our intellectual reach as lay persons; the clear and obvious principles of godly living that everyone should know, but of course, we don't know; the unending litany of success stories that make anything that has happened to us pale in comparison.

The worship band is so polished, the choir is so professional, the drama is so theatrical, and the multimedia presentation so state-of-the-art that we leave reaffirmed in our own incompetence. It is no wonder that you and I, the ordinary people of God, go to bed each night with a dull uneasiness, a gnawing ineptitude that is present when we drift off to sleep and there to greet us when we awaken in the morning.

We constantly hear complaints about the lethargy of the Church, the apathy of the congregation, the inactivity of the majority. Could it be that the unwillingness to perform by the many is a natural response to the flawless performance of the few?

Could it be that the authority of the expert has robbed the non-expert of any authority at all? Could it be that the unending parade of "heroes" has made it impossible to find the real heroes hiding in the ordinary and commonplace? It is time for us to reclaim the glory of the common, the power of the plain, the authority of the unpretentious.

It is time for us to reclaim the radical consequence of the Gospel which is that the weak, the broken, the fragmented, the suffering, and the non-experts are the authorities of the Church. The miracle of the Gospel is that "the lost" are the ones who show "the found" their lostness; it is they who minister to the ministers. It is the blind who expose our blindness, the lost who expose our lostness, the crippled who expose our handicaps, and the weak who expose our weaknesses.

There is an authority that each of us possesses that goes beyond words. It is the authority of our own conversion, the authority of our personal walk with Jesus, the authority of our past, the authority of our suffering, the authority of our failures, the authority of the nicks and bruises life has given us. Jesus has called us the Church. Our life in Him is a light, a grain of salt, a place where the integrity of the Gospel is visible and knowable and touchable. People really do see Jesus in us, and Jesus wasn't kidding when He said to His disciples, "Whoever receives you, receives me." Wow! Talk about authority! Talk about being an expert! The power of the Church is not in its super-preachers, or its mega-structures, or its large institutions. The power of the Church is in its individual people whose sacrifices throughout everyday life have an authority no expert can match.
 

THE SABOTAGED SABBATH - by james l snyder

 Sunday evening is the most underestimated and ignored opportunity of the church week. With drastically declining attendance, many congregations have simply given up on a Sunday evening ministry while others merely tolerate it. The major emphasis in most congregations is Sunday morning with everything else negligible.

It is a rare church, indeed, that has not succumbed to a deportment of defeat concerning this Sunday evening dilemma. A few courageous congregations have not given up. The results are some creative ministries that are blessing many and offering much to those willing to put earnest endeavor into it. The preeminent reason for this declining attendance is most congregations are guilty of sabotaging the evening service.

A contributing factor to the Sunday evening dilemma is the changing society around us. Our challenge is to meet needs. Before that can take place, however, we must define those needs and then devise the appropriate strategy. To do this it is essential that we get to know people in their environment. What was important a decade ago for many people, is no longer an issue.

There was a time in most communities when Sunday evening was dull with not much happening. In many areas "blue laws" restricted Sunday activity and forced businesses to close. Today few people know what "blue laws" are and most businesses operate seven days a week. Back then there was little to compete with the Sunday evening service at the local church. Today, for the average person who works all week, Sunday is a time for leisurely shopping and entertainment and amusement.

In many cases the church has failed to recognize that the American family has changed. Today's typical home is nothing short of a self-contained entertainment center equipped with TVS, VCR's, stereo's, and computers, to name a few. All of these keep people at home. There is even a home shopping network on television for people to purchase all sorts of items without ever leaving home.

The nice neat family package of a generation ago is fast disappearing while the church structure is still geared to that format. The church is usually a generation behind the times in recognizing the sociological changes in the community.

The average family is much more mobile than a generation ago. It is nothing for a family to move every three years. A spirit of restlessness pervades our society, even entering the Christian world. As a consequence, people are not becoming as involved in church as they normally would. It takes about two years to establish personal relationships.

Many congregations suffer from psychological burnout. The average church attendee has been on the roller coaster of one spectacular program followed by another to be followed by still another. The emotional letdown after a major program emphasis can devastate and drain a congregation with the dreadful effects lingering for years. Many are conditioned to respond only to some spectacular program or the performance of a religious superstar. Merchandising people rather than proclaiming Christ.

Possibly the largest contributor to the decline in the evening service is the low level of preaching these days. Many congregations are insisting on 20 minute sermons which shows just how poor contemporary preaching really is. There are other priorities and preaching is not really that significant of a thing.

Dr. A. W. Tozer, in his inimitable way, once observed, "Preachers today would rather give their congregations tranquilizers. . .I pray that I may be able to preach with such convicting power that my people will sweat! I do not want them to leave my services feeling good. The last thing I want to do is to give them some kind of religious tranquilizer--and let them go to hell in the relaxation."

Someone once stated at a writer's seminar that good evangelical writing would create an appetite for good evangelical writing. The same is true of the preaching ministry of the local church. The pastors are, in a sense, responsible for creating spiritual appetites among the congregation. This utter reliance of church leaders on methods and gimmicks has produced a generation that is erratic and restless. As a consequence many are unable to appreciate and enjoy the simple pleasures of the Christian life.

Sunday evening can be a significant part of the spiritual growth of the local assembly.
Perhaps the most innovated and difficult approach to the Sunday evening ministry is the small group. Small group ministries provide intimate relationships, interaction with other people and fellowship with other believers.

Traditionally the American church has three times when it comes together: Sunday morning, Sunday evening and Wednesday night. Some of the thinking has been that to develop a strong small group ministry one of those times must be forfeited.

There is a variety of directions to take with small groups. One is control from the pastor where he determines what the groups study. Usually the Bible study will focus on the previous week's sermon. Many churches do this with gratifying success.

The other is to let each group go on their own. Each group selects what they want to study. For the most part they will go to the Scripture, studying different books of the Bible. Current topics of interest out of books are also well received.

In time certain patterns develop, as far as the mechanics. Many groups meet Sunday night but take the last Sunday night of the month off. That is helpful because they know there is one Sunday off so the people are not leaving all through the month and can correlate their attendance. Many take the entire summer off.

Occasionally a small group ministry does well at the beginning but after a while dies down. Commenting on this one pastor said, "We simply leave them die."


"Our small group ministry," said one, "is geared very much to fellowship among believers as opposed to outreach oriented. The ministry that we strive for is one of encouragement and building up the individual believer."

Among some successful Sunday evening ministries is what some refer to as the Sunday Evening Family School. Instead of a traditional Sunday morning Sunday School ministry some churches are moving the Sunday School from morning to evening.

Realizing that the unsaved person will more likely attend Sunday morning this service is carefully developed and directed toward evangelism. The service may begin at 10:30 which allows people to sleep in on Sunday morning. Beginning with the invocation everything is geared for Sanctuary Evangelism Worship.

With that in place, the Sunday evening service is converted into a Family Bible School geared for Bible teaching and discipleship. This seems to be a more appropriate use of time, energy, and personnel in the often overtaxed and understaffed local church.

In some areas the traditional Sunday evening service is still thriving. Some would have us believe that the traditional service is long dead and buried. Such is not the case.

The traditional Sunday evening services that are prospering are doing so primarily because of the commitment of the pastor. It is not an easy thing to keep the Sunday evening service alive and interesting. The key lies with a pastor who knows and understands, not only the needs of the people in his church, but also what God wants to do in the lives of those Christians, and is willing to spend the necessary time to develop an effective ministry addressing those concerns.

In order for the Sunday evening ministry to be successful a detailed strategy is essential. By that I mean a statement of purpose for each service of the church should be meticulously drawn. This will take considerable time but the benefits of such effort will be evident in short time.

The average church attendee sees little difference between the morning and evening service. The reason may be that the leadership of the church does not recognize any difference. Clearly the objectives of each service should be understood by the leadership and effectively communicated to the congregation.

Some pastors are doing a excellent job on Sunday nights. Sure the crowds are smaller but that does not infer that the ministry is appreciably less significant. Jesus spent many hours alone with his twelve disciples. In fact, Jesus considered time spent with His Twelve to be a priority in his ministry. His teaching among the Twelve differed distinctly from his public ministry to the masses.

There are things that can be communicated on Sunday evening that would be out of place Sunday morning. For example. In many evangelical churches the Sunday morning congregation is composed of a variety of people. There are people attending who have been Christians for many years as well as people who only attend sporadically. Many are not converted to Christ, plus, there is the first time visitor. To meet all of these needs in one service is impossible. The older Christians probably are the ones coming out Sunday evening, while the others only attend in the morning. It would be disastrous to concentrate Sunday morning solely on the Christian and leave the rest alone. Those with successful Sunday evening services lean heavily toward evangelism in the morning service and deal with discipleship themes in the evening service.

If the pastor is not committed to a Sunday evening service, his attitude will be communicated to the congregation. The pastor usually puts his best time in the Sunday morning worship service which is usually better attended. What he is really saying is that numbers matter. If the crowd is large the service is important, hence, little effort is put into the "leftover" service on Sunday.

The morning crowd might be there largely from consuetude, the evening handful are more likely to be seeking God, and must be helped and heartened. The challenge of the contemporary pastor is to develop a spiritual ministry that will benefit his people and draw them out to a service. The church must get out of the entertainment business and get back to developing spiritual ministries. This is the sacred responsibility as pastor of the flock.

Rev. James L. Snyder
 

THE SLIPPERY SLOPE - by american decency association

 As we progress into the summer months, immodest dress - even in the church becomes increasingly evident and concerning. Why? Here are a couple of reasons.

(1) Because men are particularly visual, immodesty, even inadvertent immodesty, in church can trigger lustful thoughts. We are at church to worship a holy, loving God who came to set us free from the bondage of sin. To come to church and have women dressed immodestly is an insult to a holy God and thwarts the feeding of His people. Someone inquired recently, “Why do you just fight legal pornography?” The answer. We don't just fight legal pornography (Victoria's Secret, Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Edition, Cosmopolitan magazine, "Desperate Housewives" and many similar television shows, etc.) For a number of years in this ministry, our main effort was meeting with prosecutors and urging them to enforce the laws on the books regarding hardcore, illegal pornography.

It is true, however, that in recent years we have spent a sizable percentage of our time dealing with so called legal pornography. Why?

The Bible urges us to be led by the spirit. "As many as are led by the Spirit they are the sons of God." [Romans 8:14] When we are led by the Spirit of God, we are free from the bondage of pornography because the Spirit is having His way in our lives.

However, in a culture like America's with so much pornography coming at us from such a variety of directions, Satan schemes to draw us away from the Holy Spirit and tempt us into things that are in conflict with pleasing and honoring God.

Usually the temptation most readily available initially is the "legal" pornography.

As an individual begins to be tempted by sexual things of this variety there is a break down of the conscience, a sensual focus as opposed to a God-centered focus, a questioning of God's Word, ignoring more and more God's stirring within our conscience.

The slippery slope leads to bondage.

With the bombardment of pornography upon us today more and more succumb to the wiles of the devil.

This is accommodation, an acclimation to darkness.

As collectively we tolerate the trash of our day, it becomes legitimized and normative.

As we try to raise our youth in an increasingly pornographic world, the pornography to them is normal. Our families and society are left with the aftermath that comes with pornography: lust, desensitization,
accommodation, addiction and acting out.

The Bible says it so well: "I will place no wicked thing before my eyes." [Psalm 101:3a] It is only as we allow the Spirit of God to shape us and lead us that we will be able to be free of pornographic bondage and the lust of the flesh. See also: Job 31:1, Matthew 5:6, Heb. 12:14, Eph. 5:3

Why do we fight "legal" pornography? It's the slippery slope. "The wages of sin is death but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord." [Romans 6:23] Pornography destroys here on earth and eternally.


Immodesty in the church

Why does this issue generate so much concern?

As we progress into the summer months, immodest dress - even in the church becomes increasingly evident and concerning. Why? Here are a couple of reasons.

(1) Because men are particularly visual, immodesty, even inadvertent immodesty, in church can trigger lustful thoughts. We are at church to worship a holy, loving God who came to set us free from the bondage of sin. To come to church and have women dressed immodestly is an insult to a holy God and thwarts the feeding of His people.

(2) Immodesty establishes an ungodly example. “If Christians dress that way, it must be okay. I’m going to dress that way too."

(3) For godly mothers, the task of parenting is made that much harder because their daughters may want to wear "what everyone else is wearing." Parents are cognizant that immodest dress is not pleasing to God, yet when this issue is not addressed, it creates discouragement, heartache and confusion.

What are some solutions?

One person wrote, “... The reality is that the majority of women will not dress that way IF their husbands did not approve. ...”

Another person wrote, “Sometimes young women don’t know that men are visual. They need to be taught by mothers, fathers.”

Another commented, “... Our Youth Leader is directed to not only admonish the young people to dress modestly in church, but be an example every place. ...”

Still another wrote, “... Pastors need to speak up...Many women and girls no longer realize that it is offensive and
sinful...We are all so bombarded with immodesty everywhere we go...it is easy to be lulled into it......”

Another, “... The heart needs to change first! ...”

And yet another powerful and sad statement, “Thanks so much for your teaching about modesty! My men’s Bible study group talks frequently about controlling our lust, thoughts, and eyes. Yes, the problem and responsibility
are ours, but is it really reasonable for the women of the church to make it THIS difficult for us? The only place that I go on a regular basis where I am so overwhelmed by half-clothed women is CHURCH! How backward is that??? I want to run up to the microphone and yell “Yes, you’re beautiful, now go home and put on some clothes!”

And lastly another wrote, "... We all know men are visual and we all know how the Lord made men. .... The Bible says we are not to be stumbling blocks to another person’s spiritual walk. Wearing a clingy blouse or a short skirt might be contemporary to the styles of the times, but it is not appropriate to wear to church! Fellowship should be a safe haven for our brothers in Christ. A place where they can feel safe to come in and enjoy friendships with members of both sexes without having to avert their gaze so as to avoid lusting after a sister in Christ.

Ask a mature Christian sister if you are unsure if a particular article of clothing is appropriate or not."

American Decency Association
PO Box 202
Fremont MI 49412


[Personally, I'd like to suggest that godly women (and girls... even little ones) should dress modestly. The bible instructs us to do that and it doesn't qualify when or where. Even bathing suits may be modest without being frumpy!

I've had my husband remark (and remember he is 79 yrs old)... "I'm glad I had so and so to hide behind this morning in church. Why don't those women put on some clothes."

Think about it ladies. The men are responsible for their thoughts but you are responsible for your dress! Willetta]

WHAT SHOULD I CALL YOU? - by judy parker

 This is pastor appreciation month. Judy has written a poem just for pastor. WP

I just can't imagine being you.
How is it you do all the things you do?
Are there days you wish to step out of those pastor shoes?
Are there times you wonder if this battle you will lose?

Some of us call you Pastor or Brother.
Some of us just go and ask your mother.
Some are bold and call you by your given name

Some just call you the "preacher" of television fame

You are a servant, yet a warrior.
You are a defendant, yet a lawyer.
You are an orator strong and bold.
You are a listener to each of your fold.

You are a shepherd, yet a mere lamb.
You are a hero, yet a mere man.
You are the one we call when trouble is near.
You are the one who makes confusion seem clear.

You are a counselor to those with a broken heart.
You teach how to build up and how to tear apart.
You are an advisor to the strong and to the weak.
You are an encourager to the lowly and the meek.

To your family you are a husband, dad and son.
To your flock you are many things rolled into one.
In these lines I have only named a few of your roles
The most important of all, you are a winner of lost souls.

Judy Parker
October 15, 2004

An Open Letter to Pastors from a Pagan
I Have A Question To Ask You  -

Please allow this letter to speak to your heart. This letter was not written in anger. This letter was Annie's experience as she searched for Jesus Christ. Posting this letter is not intended to harm any one in any way. The purpose for posting this letter is to give insight into someone else's experience...and an opportunity for you to care.

Dear Pastors,

I am a Witch. I know that many of you think that I believe what I do because of a rebellious nature, but in reality, I follow this path because I have found something real. I have committed years to developing a spirituality that I can base my life on. However, I am beginning to realize that although it is real, it is not always fulfilling.

So, I have begun asking some tough questions, and I am giving this God of yours a second look. I have heard some amazing things about Him, and I have to wonder if they are true.

In search of answers, I have visited your churches. I have to admit that I am puzzled by what I have found there. I have sat in the pews hoping to gain knowledge, and instead I have walked away with only more questions.

In the first church I visited, I was met with shock and horror when you realized I am a Witch. Yes, I serve other entities, but what you failed to see was the fact that I was looking for your God. I did not come to your place of worship to disturb you. I came because, though you may not have been able to tell, I myself am disturbed. I have taken a great risk in entering your church, and I did not make that choice casually.

I’ve heard you teach that your God will accept anyone, but you yourselves looked on me with disdain. You told me that you could not speak with me because light is to have no fellowship with darkness. But unless I see this light, how would I ever be able to leave the darkness? If you cannot show it to me, then who will?

So I continued my search, in hope of finding those answers I crave. I was relieved to find a church that did not stare in horror when I entered. Your service was lovely, and I thought I had finally found a place where my questions could be voiced. Afterwards I listened as you spoke to your congregation of the building project and the goals that you have. You talked of donating your time to God’s work, but when I approached you later and asked if we could talk, you said that you had urgent plans elsewhere. As I watched you walk away, I heard you mention to a friend that you were in a hurry to leave for vacation.

I am impressed with your commitment to build a place of beauty for the worship of your God. But who will fill that building? The potluck dinners you mentioned are certain to draw a crowd, but what about those of us who are hungry for something more? I won’t be there, because your vacation was more important than taking the time to have a short conversation.

My next church experience was a bit different than the first two. I was able to slip into my seat unnoticed. Your sermon was about the fires of hell, and how all of those who God cannot accept will meet that horrific fate. Many others were moved to action by pure fear, but I felt nothing.

Your passion was obvious, but I found nothing helpful in the words you spoke. I believe there are consequences for our actions, but you have to realize that the threat of hell does not affect me as it does others. I live a hell on earth every day of my life. Even if that were not the case, I refuse to be forced into such an important decision by fear. So amid the terrified prayers of other seekers, I slipped out the door.

Eventually I found a church that seemed open and friendly. It was a little place, and I was immediately greeted with warm handshakes and several people introduced themselves. You knew what I was, and you were still kind. Quite honestly, I don’t remember what your sermon was about because I was still shocked due to the welcome I had received. So I came back the next Sunday, and again everyone was friendly. Each person I talked to was more friendly than the last, and a few gave me their phone numbers urging me to call if I ever needed anything.

Later in that week, the pain of my situation began playing it’s cruel games. I was desperate for some peace, but I didn’t know where to turn. So I picked up one of those phone numbers I had been given and made the call. I introduced myself, and was puzzled when the church member on the other end of the line seemed distant and detached. I plowed forward, hoping to connect with a fellow human being, but it was obvious the other person was disinterested in the conversation.

The situation repeated itself during two more phone calls, and it became apparent what was taking place. Your church people were more than willing to act concerned when there were others watching. It had been a contest of who could seem most Godly. But when the rubber met the road, and no one else was around to see, their true nature showed through. Helping the poor Pagan had become a sort of power struggle, a way to show who was the most pious. I am offended by this lack of respect and consideration.

So I have gone back to those entities that I serve, and they answered my call. It is a world where I know the rules, and they don’t change from day to day. They offer power and knowledge, but there is no offer of love. I possess strength and power and all the material possessions I could ever want; yet I have to admit that it is love that my soul craves. For a time, I can lock that desire away, but it haunts me. I still wrestle between wanting to know more about a God who claims to be All-Loving, and cursing Him for what I found in your places of worship.

If the people I have met there are His representatives, I want no part of Him. I am not naïve enough to believe that Christians are above being human, but your God inhabits your hearts, shouldn’t that be obvious?

It is likely that I visit one of your churches again someday. I have shared my experiences for your consideration, not so that you can offer an explanation, but because I wonder if you are even aware that your church has been presented in such a manner. I am looking to you for an example of your God, because I don’t know where else to look. If my search continues to turn up the same results, then I can only assume that your claims of God are false and I will look no further. I am prepared to accept that my questions have no answers, and that my search has been a failure… but I am still haunted by the thought that there must be something more to life than this. Will I find it at your church?

*based on journal excerpts of Annie Fintan, Refuge Ministries, while she was still a Pagan.