Category Archives: Faith

So. Much. Hate.

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So. Much. Hate. We have all heard the outrageous statements ISIS and their sympathizers have made against Christians. They range from specific threats to general disdain for the people of our faith. Here is a brief sampling:

“I hope there is a backlash against Christians because Christianity, as practiced by most Christians, is not a religion of peace, and all of us who do live in peace should do whatever we can to defeat Christianity.”

“There is no such thing as a good Christian.”

 “We could end those Christians before they walk in… Let’s teach them a lesson if they ever show up here.”

Add to these many others statements that call for the destruction of Christians, the deportation of Christians, and the general mocking of our faith. It is disgusting.

There are two major problems with these statements:

1) They are dismissive, destructive, uncivil, and I’d say evil.

2) They actually weren’t said by ISIS types. They were said by Christians, about Muslims (not just the radicalized ones), and I just changed the words to disguise that fact.

If we would be horrified hearing these statements about our faith coming from terror sources, we had best take pause when our own people are saying this about another faith. It isn’t okay for ISIS and certainly is not okay for a Jesus follower.

Many will protest that this is all in self defense. Or that it is just the truth (I address that here). After all, we haven’t committed any acts of terror so we aren’t nearly as bad as they are. They are worse.

In the Sermon on the Mount Jesus says difficult things like, “You think you are good because you haven’t killed anyone, but if you hated them in your heart or cursed them or called them names, it is just as bad as murder.” And “You think you are pure because you haven’t physically had an affair, but when you lust after a person you are just as guilty.” (Those are paraphrases, read the real thing here.)

Jesus desires more from us than simply following the letter of the law. Sure, we haven’t killed anyone, but we’ve hated them and degraded them, and these things are not compatible with a Kingdom life. Hate may not be murder and lust may not seem like adultery, but we have devalued people made in the image of God and we are taking steps in the direction of the thing we wish to avoid and steps away from God.

So when we say things like were mentioned at the beginning (regardless of who it is about), we may not be terrorists in the physical sense, but we are guilty in our heart. These are hard words to write and hard words to live, but this is the way of the Kingdom. The Kingdom of God seldom works like the kingdoms of this world.

Out of the overflow of the heart, the mouth speaks. And Jesus is all about our heart. We may never cross the line into terror, but when our words cross the line, when our attitudes toward others cross the line, we have missed the point.

Jesus calls us to a radical love and a radical way of life so dedicated to God that even our words and our thoughts are godly. He calls us to such surrender that we don’t even speak or wish harm on our enemies. He calls us to a something so much better than the ways of earthy kingdoms.

Scripture says both fresh water and salt water cannot come from the same spring. Too often we want to be able to turn the fresh and salty on and off as we please. It cant work that way. If we are followers of Jesus our words are to be full of life, not venom. Peace and reconciliation, not discord and strife.

Let’s leave the destructive rhetoric and hateful hearts for the terrorists. These things have no place in the life of a Christian. Let’s not succumb to hate. Let’s not allow fear to drive us to unfaithfulness. Let’s be more like Jesus than like those who wish us harm.

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source: iStock via theweek.com

On Political Correctness

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Recently the idea of being politically correct has come under great scrutiny. One person in particular has launched a seemingly successful presidential campaign around the notion that political correctness is weakness and undermines our country.

I think most everyone is sick of political double speak. When someone tries to gain votes by skirting the truth, that doesn’t help anything. But much of what is being written off as too politically correct is more along the lines of taking care not to offend other people. Which I am not sure is a problem.

Maybe we are a bit too sensitive and overreact to things that used to be shrugged off without much thought.  Maybe we do need thicker skin. But maybe we need slower mouths and kinder dispositions too.

Maybe when we stop to ask what others are feeling and experiencing we improve ourselves. What if it is healthy for us to weigh our conversations and preconceived ideas and attitudes to see if they are selfish or inclusive? While I’m positive all of us could use a dose of maturity, perhaps much of what is labeled “politically correct” is not a sign of weakness but a sign of strength.

This isn’t a left/right/conservative/liberal issue. It is a human issue.

If mocking a person’s physical or mental limitations is applauded in a non-PC world, I want no part in that world.

If stereotyping and gross over-generalization of cultures and faiths and ethnicities is what our culture values, I want no part in that culture.

If the way we “Make America Great Again” is to say whatever comes to mind regardless of who is offended, I think we have different definitions of greatness.

We have a problem when we call people fat and ugly and losers without pause. Or when we refuse to use a filter and everyone else can just deal with it. We have a problem when we rebuff criticism because people nowadays are just too whiny.

These things are not politically incorrect. They are just incorrect.

Whenever people are mocked or ignored because of who they are or what they feel, we are in the wrong. Whenever people are dismissed because our experience doesn’t match theirs, we are in the wrong. Whenever we flippantly say, “I don’t care who this offends” we are in the wrong.

Instead we should give careful consideration to the words we use. We need to understand the gravity of the things that come out of our mouth and the environments we create. We should speak and act from a place that begins with others in mind, not ourselves.

We must start with seeing other people as, well, people. And valuing them for who they are right now. Even when we disagree. Even when we don’t understand. Even when it is easier to draw lines and pick sides and make fun.

Does that mean we never tell the truth? Never speak difficult words into someone’s life? Does it mean we never hold people accountable? Absolutely not.

But any time we hide behind “telling the truth” while degrading another person, our truth has little value. If our truth is not capable of helping or building up or making right, than it would be better for us to keep our truth to ourselves.

Perhaps the truth is best heard not in unfiltered language or knee jerk responses, but in seeking to understand who the other person is and where they are coming from. Maybe truth is most clear when the playing field is leveled. It is possible to hold strong opinions and specific values and disagree passionately while treating people with respect and common courtesy.

This is not weak or soft or whatever thing we are afraid of being when we say we no longer want to be politically correct. This is strength and selflessness and courage. This, I believe, is love.

This is the kind of world I want to play a part in. A world where people feel they belong, like they have a voice, like they have value simply because they exist. Because they do.

I believe when we give worth and consideration to other people we are not enabling them or coddling them or wounding them. I believe we are pulling up a chair at the table. We now sit eye to eye. We can have a conversation and break bread together. We can learn from one another.

When that happens we’ll be better for it. When that happens our language and politics and churches and dinner tables will be full of grace and truth. We don’t have to pick one or the other. Let’s do better.

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image source: kingkurtissmith.files.wordpress.com

All I want for Christmas…

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It is sometime in the late 80’s.  Maybe 1990.

The only thing I want for Christmas is a new Nintendo. It has the greatest graphics, the best games, and a Power Pad. A Power Pad, people.

I know we don’t have a whole lot of money, but that doesn’t stop me from asking for it. I tell Santa what to bring me even though I know he is only a seasonal mall employee. I tell it to my parents. More than once. I’m sure I make them feel guilty. But it is the NES and a little guilt has never hurt anyone. I need the Nintendo. I’m not positive but I feel like this may make or break my life.

And then The Day comes. Christmas morning. My brother and I come downstairs in our (probably matching) Christmas pajamas. We read the Christmas story to remind us that this day is all about Jesus, but I am too busy looking for Nintendo shaped boxes to be bothered by all that.

The gift opening begins. One of the first gifts I grab is a thin little box. Much too small for a Nintendo. It says, “Open Me Last.” About the time I find it my little brother notices that he too has an “Open Me Last” gift. It is a monstrosity, about as big as the living room or an elephant or the Titanic.

My heart sinks. There will be no Nintendo this year.

We open the remainder of the presents and (hopefully) I convincingly feign gratitude. I’m sure the Ninja Turtle toys will be awesome and the socks are needed, but in my young mind Christmas hinged on getting what I wanted. Disappointment reigns supreme. Maybe I am being selfish, but I’m really good at being selfish. It comes quite naturally.

When we have unwrapped all but the last two presents, my brother opens his mountain of a gift. It is a FischerPrice tool bench. He is ecstatic. Never happier. He dances. He hammers. This moment is most likely the inspiration for the hymn “Joy to the World.”

And my heart sinks even further. I am teetering at Grinch levels of despair. My brother gets exactly what he wanted and it is “The best Christmas ev-er!” and I get a tie box. I am sure it is filled with something lame and/or embarrassing. Like more underwear.

Reluctantly I undo the bow and the paper. I slip the lid off the box and inside I find a single piece of paper. I read something along the lines of “You have one more gift but you are going to have to work to find it.”

I perk up. I read the paper again. It gives a clue as to where I should look for my gift.

Suddenly, there is hope.

I run from the room and find another note. It sends me to another room and another clue. Room to room I run, eagerly in search of what might happen next. Each step of the way raises my expectations. Each leg of the hunt brings more smiles and anticipation. And then I open the kitchen pantry.

A Nintendo Entertainment System.

Santa, it turns out, came through. My parents are saints. Life is good. Christmas is saved. Praise God from whom all blessings flow.

Sure, my parents could’ve just wrapped the game system and put it under the tree. They could’ve left it with the other presents but they wanted to give me something more than just a game system. What they gave me was an experience. They gave me a journey.

And it was the experience and the journey that made that Christmas the most memorable I have ever had.

We would do well to remember that sometimes the journey is a gift.

We tend to know what we want and when we want it. When Santa, or worse, God, doesn’t come through for us how we demand expect we feel rejected. If you are anything like me that can be really frustrating. I tend to think I know best. I know what I need and life would go a whole lot smoother if I just got my way all the time.

But God knows better than that. Thankfully He doesn’t always give me what I want or operate on my time schedule. Thankfully He has much more perspective and insight into what is best for me even when I don’t see it.

So when I don’t get my way or when things seem off kilter or when life hands you a tie box, maybe we need to remember to enjoy the journey. Maybe the journey is the thing that matters more than whatever we find at the end. Maybe what we learn and experience along the way is of far more value to us.

My parents didn’t leave me clues in order to toy with me or drive me crazy, but in order to watch me run and laugh and search.

What if that is what God wants for us? To watch as we enjoy the journey we are on. Maybe there are things He is trying to teach us along the way. Maybe the process is more valuable to our development. Maybe it is in the waiting and the searching that we have the most growth.

Maybe we spend so much time hoping for Nintendos and wealth and security and acceptance and relationships and [inset whatever it is you desire here] that we miss out on what God is doing right now. We miss out on the life we have been invited to live with or without those things.

Hold on to the hope that what you are searching for may just be around the bend or at the next turn or come with the next sun rise. Maybe it comes in ways you never expect. Maybe it comes better than you ever imagined.

Don’t miss out on what is to come because you are so focused on what is not yet. Don’t miss out on what is happening right now because you are so focused on what you want to happen next. Don’t miss the joys and the laughs and the memories that can be made right here and now.

Life is a journey. And the journey is a gift.

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