Or The Good Stewardship Jar.
Or The Quit Wasting Money On Stupid Crap Spoiled Children Of God Jar.
Whatever you want to call it, here's my idea:
Get a big freaking jar. Pray that you resist temptations to throw money away by buying junk on a whim, as we have been so trained to do in our overindulgent culture that is all about comfort and security. Take that money, in cash, and attach a note to it that indicates the date and the crap you didn't buy. Continue this until you're dead or the Lord returns.
At the end of every year, give the money away and get blessed for having helped someone instead of spending on junk you obviously didn't need anyway.
Now, please, don't for a minute let me sound like I'm on my high horse coming down on "everyone else". In my B.C. days I wasted a ton of money on all kinds of selfish whims, and I've done my fair share of that after coming to Christ as well. I think I'll try this jar thing in my home and see how it works. Hopefully well! :-)
Grace and Peace
Monday, December 21, 2009
Bankruptcy Or Divorce, Only $200!
I saw a billboard on the way back tonight that said the following:
Bankruptcy or Divorce, $200
That's just another sad commentary on the state the world is in, where there is enough demand for both of these things to warrant posting a huge advertisement on the side of the freeway.
Don't care to practice good stewardship of the money you've been given and pile up debut? Forget that the wicked borrow and don't repay. Forget God's Word, just declare bankruptcy, quick and cheap!
Wives, don't care to submit to your husbands as to the Lord? Husbands, don't care to love your wives as Christ loves the church? Forget God's Word, just get divorced, quick and cheap!
Now I realize that what the Bible says doesn't matter to unbelievers, and we live in an unbelieving world. But for my brothers and sisters in Christ, let's never adopt the same attitude and heart as the rest of the world, where we can so lightly toss aside important principles given to us by our maker.
Good stewardship in all things IS important. We are not to get over our heads in debt and should make every effort to repay whatever debts we do have.
Confession, forgiveness, reconciliation, and restoration ARE important. God HATES divorce. Even when there are biblical grounds for it, such as sexual immorality, it is not a requirement. It is a LAST RESORT.
Let's all stay strong in the Word and let it stay strong in us, lest we get swept up by the beliefs of those that don't.
Grace and Peace
Bankruptcy or Divorce, $200
That's just another sad commentary on the state the world is in, where there is enough demand for both of these things to warrant posting a huge advertisement on the side of the freeway.
Don't care to practice good stewardship of the money you've been given and pile up debut? Forget that the wicked borrow and don't repay. Forget God's Word, just declare bankruptcy, quick and cheap!
Wives, don't care to submit to your husbands as to the Lord? Husbands, don't care to love your wives as Christ loves the church? Forget God's Word, just get divorced, quick and cheap!
Now I realize that what the Bible says doesn't matter to unbelievers, and we live in an unbelieving world. But for my brothers and sisters in Christ, let's never adopt the same attitude and heart as the rest of the world, where we can so lightly toss aside important principles given to us by our maker.
Good stewardship in all things IS important. We are not to get over our heads in debt and should make every effort to repay whatever debts we do have.
Confession, forgiveness, reconciliation, and restoration ARE important. God HATES divorce. Even when there are biblical grounds for it, such as sexual immorality, it is not a requirement. It is a LAST RESORT.
Let's all stay strong in the Word and let it stay strong in us, lest we get swept up by the beliefs of those that don't.
Grace and Peace
Saturday, December 19, 2009
Satan Claus?
Tonight, I rant.
I'm in a bit of a mood right now for a lie in which I have partaken for the sake of limiting arguments. That lie is about a fat guy in a red suit. I seem to hate that guy more and more as time passes. My feelings toward him go up and down, but tonight they're not particularly good.
Whatever the origins of the Santa lie may be, today for me he just represents the world's Christmas. That overindulging and materialistic corruption of something that is supposed to be focused on the Lord Jesus Christ, yet seems to have him completely missing from the picture. The Lord of Lord and King of Kings is replaced by trees, snowmen, wreaths, bells, candy canes, lights, and this dude with his pet reindeer.
Now I see nothing wrong with some traditions like decorating the tree, putting your presents under it, making special treats, and so on. Those can be some fun family moments -- as long as they don't take away from the truth of Christ coming into the world.
What bothers me about Santa is that he's, plain and simple, a big fat lie. We tell our children that there's this magic man that flies around giving children toys. That's pretty stupid. What kind of lesson does that teach? Parents think its funny to lie to their kids? Yay. How could that possibly help when you try to tell them the truth about other things?
You know what's a better lesson? Mommy and Daddy gave you these presents because they love you. They give much because they've been given much by our great and glorious God, especially the greatest gift of all, which is salvation through the Lord Jesus Christ.
Start adding extra crap around the truth and eventually the truth gets really hazy. I wonder if its coincidence that Santa and Satan have the same letters in their names. Interesting.
End rant. I'm done.
I'm in a bit of a mood right now for a lie in which I have partaken for the sake of limiting arguments. That lie is about a fat guy in a red suit. I seem to hate that guy more and more as time passes. My feelings toward him go up and down, but tonight they're not particularly good.
Whatever the origins of the Santa lie may be, today for me he just represents the world's Christmas. That overindulging and materialistic corruption of something that is supposed to be focused on the Lord Jesus Christ, yet seems to have him completely missing from the picture. The Lord of Lord and King of Kings is replaced by trees, snowmen, wreaths, bells, candy canes, lights, and this dude with his pet reindeer.
Now I see nothing wrong with some traditions like decorating the tree, putting your presents under it, making special treats, and so on. Those can be some fun family moments -- as long as they don't take away from the truth of Christ coming into the world.
What bothers me about Santa is that he's, plain and simple, a big fat lie. We tell our children that there's this magic man that flies around giving children toys. That's pretty stupid. What kind of lesson does that teach? Parents think its funny to lie to their kids? Yay. How could that possibly help when you try to tell them the truth about other things?
You know what's a better lesson? Mommy and Daddy gave you these presents because they love you. They give much because they've been given much by our great and glorious God, especially the greatest gift of all, which is salvation through the Lord Jesus Christ.
Start adding extra crap around the truth and eventually the truth gets really hazy. I wonder if its coincidence that Santa and Satan have the same letters in their names. Interesting.
End rant. I'm done.
Friday, December 11, 2009
Grace
You know, looking back at my life before I knew Jesus Christ, I think I could do the "saved by works" thing. Really. I wasn't so bad of a person like all those child molesters and rapists out there. I'm good enough.
Nevermind that I wasted my time every night playing videos games and watching pornography.
Nevermind that I didn't give any of my time or money to help other people.
Nevermind that my prayers to God all thanked him for my family, my life, my job, and my friends -- but instead of every caring what God's will was, I justed wanted him to keep me rich and comfortable.
Nevermind that I would do "nice" things for my wife now and then, but all too often only to get what I wanted.
Nevermind that I was looking for happiness in all the wrong places and coming up empty.
Nevermind that I often had in my heart way too much worry, or sadness, or anger, or fear, or anything else that wasn't peace and wasn't joy.
Nevermind that I led a selfish and sinful life and was proud of it and being able to revel in how much time and money I was able to waste on nothing.
Nevermind that my long term goal was to "enjoy" life as much as possible before I died.
But at least I wasn't like those other wicked people, right? Right? Nope. Wrong.
Thank God for grace. Thank God that my salvation was not, is not, and never will be dependent on my own efforts, because the best I could ever do comes up infinitely short of what God requires. Thank God that Jesus came into this sinful and broken world and paid the price that we could never pay.
Thank God that all he requires is belief in his son, Jesus Christ. That sounds too easy, doesn't it? But that's it. That's what the Bible teaches. In my own experience, and that of many others, the moment you truly believe in the saving power of Christ and turn to him, you are transformed from the inside out. That moment is a catalyst for a new life of joy and hope.
The only real questions to ask are "What does belief in Jesus Christ look like?" and "What's my response to it?"
Grace and Peace
Nevermind that I wasted my time every night playing videos games and watching pornography.
Nevermind that I didn't give any of my time or money to help other people.
Nevermind that my prayers to God all thanked him for my family, my life, my job, and my friends -- but instead of every caring what God's will was, I justed wanted him to keep me rich and comfortable.
Nevermind that I would do "nice" things for my wife now and then, but all too often only to get what I wanted.
Nevermind that I was looking for happiness in all the wrong places and coming up empty.
Nevermind that I often had in my heart way too much worry, or sadness, or anger, or fear, or anything else that wasn't peace and wasn't joy.
Nevermind that I led a selfish and sinful life and was proud of it and being able to revel in how much time and money I was able to waste on nothing.
Nevermind that my long term goal was to "enjoy" life as much as possible before I died.
But at least I wasn't like those other wicked people, right? Right? Nope. Wrong.
Thank God for grace. Thank God that my salvation was not, is not, and never will be dependent on my own efforts, because the best I could ever do comes up infinitely short of what God requires. Thank God that Jesus came into this sinful and broken world and paid the price that we could never pay.
Thank God that all he requires is belief in his son, Jesus Christ. That sounds too easy, doesn't it? But that's it. That's what the Bible teaches. In my own experience, and that of many others, the moment you truly believe in the saving power of Christ and turn to him, you are transformed from the inside out. That moment is a catalyst for a new life of joy and hope.
The only real questions to ask are "What does belief in Jesus Christ look like?" and "What's my response to it?"
Grace and Peace
Monday, December 7, 2009
Pa Rum Pum Pum Pum
Man, I love the song Little Drummer Boy! What a good song!
I like it because that's me, the drummer boy. That's you if you know Christ. We come before him, knowing he's a king. Not just a king, but THE king, come to earth as a little baby, made poor. And when we come before him, we know we have NOTHING to offer him. We don't come to him going "hey Lord, look at what *I* can do for *you* because I'm so righteous, so good, so holy, so whatever." No, we come with our pockets turned out and dirt on our face. We got nothing and we know it.
What does the drummer boy do next? Plays a song on his drum. We play the drum too you know. We play the drum every time we help feed the hungry in Jesus' name. We play the drum every time we clothe the naked in Jesus' name. We play the drum every time we comfort someone in need in Jesus' name. We play the drum every time we lift up the name of Jesus Christ and God the Father. We play the drum whenever we're walking in the Spirit and doing the good works that have been laid out for us to do and whenever we're praising our great God and Savior.
We don't play the drum because it saves us. We don't play the drum because we're obligated. We don't play the drum grudgingly with a heavy heart. We don't play the drum because some dude told us to play it. We don't play the drum because we're greedy for some kind of material reward or because we fear what will happen if we don't play the drum. No, we play the drum joyfully for no reason other than the reason, and reward the drummer boy got:
The king of kings and lord of lords smiled at him.
Ain't nothing better than God smiling down at you. We just need to remember it!
Grace and Peace
I like it because that's me, the drummer boy. That's you if you know Christ. We come before him, knowing he's a king. Not just a king, but THE king, come to earth as a little baby, made poor. And when we come before him, we know we have NOTHING to offer him. We don't come to him going "hey Lord, look at what *I* can do for *you* because I'm so righteous, so good, so holy, so whatever." No, we come with our pockets turned out and dirt on our face. We got nothing and we know it.
What does the drummer boy do next? Plays a song on his drum. We play the drum too you know. We play the drum every time we help feed the hungry in Jesus' name. We play the drum every time we clothe the naked in Jesus' name. We play the drum every time we comfort someone in need in Jesus' name. We play the drum every time we lift up the name of Jesus Christ and God the Father. We play the drum whenever we're walking in the Spirit and doing the good works that have been laid out for us to do and whenever we're praising our great God and Savior.
We don't play the drum because it saves us. We don't play the drum because we're obligated. We don't play the drum grudgingly with a heavy heart. We don't play the drum because some dude told us to play it. We don't play the drum because we're greedy for some kind of material reward or because we fear what will happen if we don't play the drum. No, we play the drum joyfully for no reason other than the reason, and reward the drummer boy got:
The king of kings and lord of lords smiled at him.
Ain't nothing better than God smiling down at you. We just need to remember it!
Grace and Peace
Friday, December 4, 2009
Keep Who In What?
I think we should move when we celebrate Christ's birth.
Really, how many people are actually honoring Christ on "Christ"mas anyway, despite what many people claim the day is truly about anyway? Maybe we say a prayer or two. Maybe we reading something from the Bible. Maybe we sing some songs. But then what do we do? Demonstrate gluttony at the dinner table? Overindulge our children with gifts that they don't really need, many of which will find their way to the donation bin or the trash heap? Pretend that we have something meaningful to say to people we don't see the rest of the year, so we can have some false sense of "relationship" or "fellowship"?
I argue that very little of what we do on this holiday has anything to do with what we as Christians are supposed to be celebrating on the day bearing the title of our savior, Jesus.
I've had this picking at my brain for a little while. Then I went on two rides at Disneyland that amplified it -- The Haunted Mansion and It's A Small World -- all decorated for "Christmas". I knew it was going to be the world's version of Christmas, but at first it still really bugged me. A bunch of Santa crap, decorations, food, and presents. None of that has anything to do with what Christmas is supposed to celebrate.
About halfway through the Small World ride, I realized something. You can't keep Christ in the middle of that kind of Christmas. I actually thought "hey you bozos, where's the nativity scene here" -- but no, our savior doesn't belong among all that foolishness, to be cheapened and brought down to that level. It would be more of an insult to my God and Savior to slap a Christian's Christmas in the center of all that pomp.
Now there are those who want to take "Merry Christmas" and turn it into "Happy Holidays" because they are offended by Christ. There are many of us who are Christians who absolutely hate this and want to hold fast to the name of the holiday. But how well do we hold on to the purpose? Anything sacred about it has been so completely mixed up with this secular rich western idea of Christmas that it seems so difficult to get any real meaning out of it. Let's just cut our losses and let the world have their "holiday" of glitz, overindulgence, and commercialism, and pick a new one that can have real meaning for God's people who want to actually celebrate the incarnation of his Son Jesus Christ.
I realized that no one, including myself, is going to seriously campaign for another day to celebrate the birth of Christ on. We'll just go on as usual, saying that Christmas is about Christ and then not really making the day itself about him. Let's just stand up and be honest about this one day of the year, and then do our best to celebrate Christ's birth, death, and resurrection every day of our lives in our thoughts, words, and actions -- without feeling the need to claim this one day as something any more sacred in lifting up the name of Jesus.
Nehushtan!
Grace and Peace
Really, how many people are actually honoring Christ on "Christ"mas anyway, despite what many people claim the day is truly about anyway? Maybe we say a prayer or two. Maybe we reading something from the Bible. Maybe we sing some songs. But then what do we do? Demonstrate gluttony at the dinner table? Overindulge our children with gifts that they don't really need, many of which will find their way to the donation bin or the trash heap? Pretend that we have something meaningful to say to people we don't see the rest of the year, so we can have some false sense of "relationship" or "fellowship"?
I argue that very little of what we do on this holiday has anything to do with what we as Christians are supposed to be celebrating on the day bearing the title of our savior, Jesus.
I've had this picking at my brain for a little while. Then I went on two rides at Disneyland that amplified it -- The Haunted Mansion and It's A Small World -- all decorated for "Christmas". I knew it was going to be the world's version of Christmas, but at first it still really bugged me. A bunch of Santa crap, decorations, food, and presents. None of that has anything to do with what Christmas is supposed to celebrate.
About halfway through the Small World ride, I realized something. You can't keep Christ in the middle of that kind of Christmas. I actually thought "hey you bozos, where's the nativity scene here" -- but no, our savior doesn't belong among all that foolishness, to be cheapened and brought down to that level. It would be more of an insult to my God and Savior to slap a Christian's Christmas in the center of all that pomp.
Now there are those who want to take "Merry Christmas" and turn it into "Happy Holidays" because they are offended by Christ. There are many of us who are Christians who absolutely hate this and want to hold fast to the name of the holiday. But how well do we hold on to the purpose? Anything sacred about it has been so completely mixed up with this secular rich western idea of Christmas that it seems so difficult to get any real meaning out of it. Let's just cut our losses and let the world have their "holiday" of glitz, overindulgence, and commercialism, and pick a new one that can have real meaning for God's people who want to actually celebrate the incarnation of his Son Jesus Christ.
I realized that no one, including myself, is going to seriously campaign for another day to celebrate the birth of Christ on. We'll just go on as usual, saying that Christmas is about Christ and then not really making the day itself about him. Let's just stand up and be honest about this one day of the year, and then do our best to celebrate Christ's birth, death, and resurrection every day of our lives in our thoughts, words, and actions -- without feeling the need to claim this one day as something any more sacred in lifting up the name of Jesus.
Nehushtan!
Grace and Peace
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