ACCUMULATING SIN

Not long ago while mindlessly channel surfing, I caught a segment on Discovery Channel's "The Deadliest Catch," about crab fishing in the Bering Sea. One of the dangers they faced in was the accumulation of ice on the ship's gear. If it is not removed quickly, disaster can happen. Tiny drops of water, combined with freezing temperatures and wind can literally destroy a crab boat and its crew. It seems impossible the just little drops of water could have such an effect on a ship of many tons of steel. But, ignoring those tiny drops of water can have a deadly effect.

How often do we ignore the accumulation of little sins in our lives,… rationalizing them at first because everyone is doing it,… or it's so small,… or no one knows anyway. Still, seeds will eventually grow. You've probably heard or read the saying:

We sow a thought and reap an act;
We sow an act and reap a habit;
We sow a habit and reap a character;
We sow a character and reap a destiny.

Christ saved us to be transformed into the "new self"…a “new creation”… which reflects Christ’s love and light to a world so desperately in need of it. Ephesians 4:22-24 puts it this way: “You were taught, with regard to your former way of life, to put off your old self, which is being corrupted by its deceitful desires; to be made new in the attitude of your minds; and to put on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness.”  We simply must pay attention to our own sin (instead of being preoccupied with the sin of others), if we are to grow in Christ. We can’t allow the small sins accumulate in our life, because eventually, they will do their damage!

A final Biblical reminder from Hebrews 12:1-3: “Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith. For the joy set before him he endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. Consider him who endured such opposition from sinners, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart.

If you find yourself growing weary and losing heart, it may be time to "get out on deck" and check your "gear" to see if something dangerous is accumulating!

COLD IS GOOD FOR THE SOUL!

It’s is hard to believe that we are nearing the half way mark of the month of January and we in central Illinois have not had any measurable snow! We have had to suffer through a month of unusually warm temperatures…in Illinois…in January! But, according to the weather forecast we are expecting snow,… and with that we will be shocked back into the normal weather for us…c...c..c.cold!

Do you remember all that stuff we have to go through when it gets really cold? Do you remember having to open the cabinet doors under the kitchen sink, and kept the water dripping on all the faucets just to make sure that the pipes don’t freeze and you would be waterless in the morning. The joys of winter in central Illinois!

Cold does something to me emotionally. It makes me cautious. I find I am more careful about where and how I drive, just in case I get stranded in the cold. I am careful how long I stay outside, how far I walk, and what I wear. People living in the country have to make sure they have enough propane in the tank or whatever they use to heat their homes. It is not the type of weather to run out of heating fuel. The cold makes me very aware of my vulnerability and mortality. It makes me more prayerful. I pray just before I turn the key in the ignition that the car will start. I prayed for others on the road when it turns bad out. When we woke up the next morning and find our pipes intact, the furnace running and the light switches working, it’s a good place for a prayer of gratitude.

The cold brings to mind my dependence on God, and I cannot help but be thankful to Him. I realize that if I lived here a couple of hundred years ago, then the cold could have killed me. I am thankful I live with all the conveniences of modern times to keep me warm and protected from the cold. Many of the sicknesses and diseases that the cold brought on by cold are treatable now. That wasn’t the case in centuries past. When transportation was horse and wagon, and not a comfortably heated automobile, one risked one’s life to travel.

You could say that the cold is good for my soul. It makes me very thankful to God. It makes me grateful for what I have. It makes me more appreciative of friends. The cold even fosters community. There is nothing like finding occasions to get together for meals and fellowship when it’s too cold out to do anything else. It can be a great time for the church. Cabin fever can be a real malady. The cure is fellowship. It is community with one another. It is “koinonia”. The cold also encourages fellowship with God. Not for everyone of course. It keeps many away from church rather than bringing them out. But the cold has the opposite effect on me. It melts my heart and softens my soul. It strengthens my spiritual bond with God and others.

Don’t get me wrong! I will be glad to see the spring come! I will be thanking God for the muddy roads! But, for the season, I will practice the spiritual discipline of cold weather spirituality. They are predicting a wind chill of about 9 this Sunday. Sounds like perfect worship weather!

DEALING WITH PRIDE

Pride is a friend of so many of us. If Pride were a facebook page, it would have a gazillion likes. Unfortunately, Pride is not the kind of friend anyone would want. It seems to stick its nose into my business more than any other friend. The more I allow my feelings to be hurt, the more trouble I have keeping Pride silent and away from me. Pride wants what Pride wants when Pride wants it. Pride simply wants attention…it thrives on attention! Pride wants other people to notice. Pride is simply evil…it is an invention from satan! Pride is not reserved just for the rich and famous. Pride afflicts everyone, whether rich or poor. Pride takes advantage...every advantage possible. Pride actually makes your feelings hurt worse. I think Pride delights in making us hurt. So, why do we cherish our friendship with Pride so much?

To deal with Pride, I try to talk to God. I know God hears me in my Prideful times, at least on some level of knowing. Sometimes I "KNOW" God hears me… and sometimes I sorta know He hears me. But one thing I am sure of…the more I talk to God, the less power Pride has over me.

A PRAYER FOR CHRISTMAS MORNING

The day of joy returns, Father in Heaven, and crowns another year with peace and good will. Help us rightly to remember the birth of Jesus, that we may share in the song of the angels, the gladness of the shepherds, and the worship of the wise men.

Close the doors of hate and open the doors of love all over the world. Let kindness come with every gift and good desires with every greeting.

Deliver us from evil, by the blessing that Christ brings, and teach us to be merry with clean hearts. May the Christmas morning make us happy to be thy children, and the Christmas evening bring us to our bed with grateful thoughts, forgiving and forgiven, for Jesus sake. Amen

By Robert Louis Stevenson

TRINKET RELIGION

Okay, I’ll admit it, in the early years of my Christianity, I would spend countless hours in the Christian bookstore that was only a few blocks away from where I worked. I was so excited about my new found faith I just couldn’t get enough. I spent most of my time looking through the book section, but since I was still working in the retail business, I couldn’t help but be fascinated by that part of the store that should have had a banner declaring it the “Bible bazaar.” That special section was filled with pictures, posters, T-shirts…even some really bad ties for your pastor. There were plaques, wall decorations of every possible shape and size. There were toys, figurines, collectible items, bumper stickers, button, pens, dishes, and coffee mugs. I’m sure there were also some toilet seat covers with matching bath rugs if I looked hard enough to find them. On and on it went. Table after table, and shelf after shelf, just covered with every conceivable trinket imaginable. Almost every item had a scripture verse on it. Sometimes the connection made perfect sense. Other times it just simply seemed like someone had said to themselves, “I know. Let’s put a Bible verse on it. Christians will buy anything with a Bible verse on it.”

It’s been a good number or years since I left the marketing marvels of the retail business to answer God’s call to full time pastoral ministry, but, some things are just hard to unlearn. I remember taking part in an exercise called “Memorial Stones” along with a group of pastors. In the exercise we would write the address of a Bible verse that had an important impact on our life on a smooth stone. It was a moving exercise. But, I will have to confess that as I was making the drive back home from the meeting, I had a moment of genius run through my mind… I should produce a line of scripture stones… rocks with Bible verses! They could be “Bible Rocks”! I cannot begin to express to you my level of dismay when I realized that someone else had already beaten me to the idea.

Now, before I am inundated with comments about my brief fall into succumbing to the temptation of capitalizing on Christian trinkets, let me get to my point. I am just wondering if there is a problem with our society’s fondness for purchasing such Christian paraphernalia. Understand that the problem is not the item itself. I’m not saying you need to immediately get up from your computer and start throwing a bunch of stuff away. I think the problem is the philosophy. In a way, trinkets tend to minimize the power that is in the actual verse, and at the same time it lessens our personal sense of responsibility toward the Bible as a whole.

Let me explain it like this. A Bible rock in my pocket really does me no good at all, unless I am in daily relationship with THE Rock. A scripture verse hanging on the wall has little value if those words are not also inscribed on the walls of my heart. A coffee cup that encourages me to “have faith” cannot replace my need to BE a person of faith and faithfulness. Trinkets cannot replace the need for trust in my Lord and Savior. A cute figurine seldom serves as the seed that eventually grow into a mature faith.

Psalm 46:10 may well be one of the best examples of this. Without question, it is one of the most popular scriptures is taken from the KJV…. “Be still, and know that I am God;…” You can walk into any Christian bookstore and you can probably find it on at least a dozen different items. Now, here’s the issue for me. That scripture on a coffee mug might serve as a wonderful reminder, but it doesn’t possess any magical powers. The value of that word comes from its Source, not because it is repeated on a trinket. It’s power comes solely and completely from the Author of those words. If I separate the word from the Author, it loses its power, because HE is the Word.

The problem with spiritual trinkets is that after a while they can trivialize the truth. That phrase that once had such powerful impact when we looked at it only as a cherished part of God’s Word,…can become just another cliché. We can quote it (somewhat). It becomes a quick answer that we throw at the person who is wrestling with trouble and trials. But, does it have personal power? Does it have the life impact that it did when I wrote it as a scripture on a rock and shared how it impacted my life with other pastors? I guess what I am saying is that the danger is that some point along the way it’s meaning can become little more than background noise. It’s like the song you hear playing in the background at the grocery store. Instinctively, you find yourself singing along, but you’re not really paying any attention to the words.

I suppose that what I am trying to do is to remind us that God’s Word was intended to be much more than a pretty picture, or some ornamental knickknack. Again, the problem is not the item itself. I have them hanging in my house, too. But, God’s Word was meant to be a daily part of our lives. It is supposed to be read. It is supposed to be studied. It is supposed to be memorized. It is supposed to be obeyed and lived out in our day-to-day lives. Psalm 119 refers to it as a treasure that is supposed to be hidden away in our hearts. We can so easily fail in our regard for God’s Word. Too often the Bible has become just another decorative trinket in our homes. It sits on the shelf or table collecting dust. It lies buried in the bottom drawer. There is little wonder that we fall to pieces when tough times come upon us. How about we stop treating His Word as just another trinket. We need to recognize it as the treasure that it is…. and treat it as such.