Rest for the Weary

Having just spent half of Thanksgiving driving up to Traverse City (to my in-laws) and back, I am reminded that during the Christmas season we often find it very difficult to actually take time to rest from our labors.  Genesis 2:2 tells us, "By the seventh day God had finished the work he had been doing; so on the seventh day he rested from all his work."  This was the first occassion that illustrates the need to take a break from our labors.  That same principle was enshrined in the Ten Commandments alongside such staples as "do not murder", do not commit adultery", "do not steal", etc. which tend to get all of the attention.  Yet purposefully taking the time to REST was so to God that it was included.
In the modern world, we're connected 24/7 to our jobs and our social networks so much so that many people never really rest at all.  I know that many people may laugh at the notion of disconnecting themselves in order to have some peace and quiet, but that is precisely what God has commanded us to do.  During holidays we become so fixated with all of the things that need to be done (many of them useful or worthy tasks) that we don't allow ourselves to experience the purpose of the holy day that we are commemorating.
Christians have traditionally used Sunday as our day of rest, but I know from experience that many Americans don't even pause from their yardwork, shopping, texting, sports, or anything else in honor of the Sabbath that God took when he finished his labor.  As a pastor, Sunday is actually my busiest day which forces me to find time on another day to obey God's command to rest, but it's a command, not a suggestion.
If you're one of those people who feels the need to fill every waking moment with some task or other, don't.  Take the examle of our God's rest to heart and schedule (if you have to) some time this Christmas to REST.

The End of the World as We Know it

It seems that mankind has a never ending thirst for rumors and speculation about the end of the world.  Since we are the only species on this planet that can contemplate our own existence and see that it has a possibility to not continue it should seem odd that we're perpetually dispelling such myths.  My wife and I enjoy a good disaster flick, Independence Day for example, but man has been fascinated about this topic since long before the motion pictures came along to give it special effects.
Why is it that we can't seem to put an end to such speculation?  The minute one deadline passes (like Y2K), another pops up (like 2012).  The minute one crisis is averted (Nuclear Winter) another comes to the fore (Global Warming).  What is it about humanity (in general) that ensures that such speculation always finds an audience?
The answer is relatively simple.  Because we are aware of our own personal existence, and because we have reasonable concerns about what will happen to us when we die, we seek out comfort and hope through religion (or philosophy) to assure us that it will be ok.  For Christians, we have our hope in Jesus Christ, a hope that is secure and a promise that we can count on.  Others may find some comfort in the Eight-Fold Path or the Five Pillars (Buddhism and Islam), but they won't find the Hope that can quite the anxiety of their hearts.
This quest for assurance, and fear of the future is simply writ large when it comes to humanity as a whole.  Millions of people throughout the world are hopelessly looking for some sort of answer to their own personal need and as such are willing to listen to those who predict an end to this struggle even if it means that they begin to believe that we are all doomed (at least that would solve their problem too).  Each time one of these false doomsayers is proven false, another pops up with a "new" scenario to find ever willing listeners.
By the way, it's a waste of time to argue the folly of such ideas, the improbability of them actually adds to the appeal (When logic and reasoning haven't led to answeres, people will embrace the illogical and the unreasoned)
What does the future hold?  How will this world end?  Take a look at Revelation if you want the visions that the Apostle John saw, just don't ask me to explain all of them.  There is at least one thing that I'm confident to say I understand about those future prediction though: "'Now the dwelling of God is with men, and he will live with them.  They will be his people, and God himself will be with them and be their God.  He will wipe every tear from their eyes.  There will be no more death, or mourning, or crying, or pain, for the old order of things has passed away."

Where two or three are gathered...

We had a small crowd at First Baptist of Palo today; all the men were gone trying to shoot deer, and several of the women other non-shooting reasons for their abscence.  I was asked before the service started if I wanted to "save" my sermon for next week and just have a prayer/song service instead.  I have nothing against spending time with prayer and singing, but to me, it just doesn't seem right to not share what I've prepared from the Word of God.  It doesn't really matter that this person or that person wasn't there for the message, (although at times I'm hopeful for a "good" crowd when a message has particularly moved me during my preparation of it) because the message itself comes from God and is for His people.  This isn't some mystical thing, I'm certainly not claiming to "hear" what God wants me to preach, but the work that I do in preparation for each Sunday's worship service is work that is for the people.  They don't have the time or training to study God's Word in the depth that I do, so I use the God-given talent that I have to share with my fellow Christians what I've learned from the Bible during that particular week. 
As such, when I was asked if I wanted to "save" the sermon, I declined.  It may be a bit odd to give a message when so many of our regulars were missing, but the Word of God has its own power.  Who knows?  Perhaps one of those who were there received a blessing from this message that was timely for her this week (I can use her, all the men ran off in their orange and cammo).  As a pastor, it isn't for me to decide that a particular message isn't necessary.  That's why I try to work my way through the Bible in a systematic way; to ensure that virtually no portion of Scripture is left behind without being preached (I do "skip" passages such as geneology lists, or perhaps something repetitive that we've just covered a week or two ago, for example). 
Does it really matter to me that I had a small audience this morning.  Yes, but not for the reason that most people would think.  I don't need to be heard by a large crowd, but I certainly hope that as many people as can be will hear what God's Word has to say.  Save my sermon?  Nah, I'll be working on another one real soon. 

Does being married help when you work for God?

I was reading in the paper (yes, I still read an actual physical paper) that the Catholic Church has made some clarifications to the policy of accepting married Anglican priests who want to convert.  Of course, Catholic priests are forbidden to marry, and so it's a bit odd when people encounter a priest who is married (because he used to be Anglican).  The Pope's spokesman insisted that this would have no bearing on the continuing policy of requiring priests to be celibate in the Catholic Church.
Which raises the question; does being married make it easier or harder to minister to God's people?  As far as I'm concerned it was never an issue.  Paul may have seen the positive side of being free to do whatever he felt the Lord wanted of him, but I knew from my teen years that I was not the kind of guy who would be happy alone.  I'm content to sit and read a good book or take a run by myself in the woods, but I always knew that I needed someone to share life with.
That doesn't really answer the question though.  Does being a husband first and a pastor second make being a pastor easier?  In my experience it does, and the reason is simple.  I've learned more about patience, kindness, gentleness, humility, forgiveness, hope, trust, love, etc. etc. from my marriage to my beautiful wife Nicole (she insists I always refer to her here as "my beautiful wife Nicole", just kidding, no really she does) than I have from all of my friendships and family.  Why is this?  I can't walk away.  I know that some people in a marriage take a break when they're having trouble (a fight or disagreement, or just getting on each other's nerves), but Nicole and I have never been that way.  I can't go to sleep if one of us is upset with the other.  I can't watch TV or do anything relaxing if I know that Nicole and I have a problem that is unresolved.  Perhaps not everyone would appreciate that, but I've learned so much from the need to sort through our problems.  I've learned to set my emotions aside and consider what is in the best interest of my wife; I've learned to ignore petty things and focus on building for the future; and I've learned to put my ideals into practice no matter what I may or may not want to do (molding character by doing the right thing first regardless of motives and letting that build toward the right motives).
Has it been easy?  Not really.  My ongoing job saga has made life difficult for my wife and caused trouble, and financial pressure weigh on me far more than they would if I was concerned with only my own needs.  But it's worth it.  How could I minister to my flock if I can't first minister to my wife?  How could I preach loving kindness if I'm not practicing it at home during the week?  And how could I endure the ups and downs of working for the Lord if I didn't know that my wife's love was a constant that I could always fall back upon?
Does being married make being a pastor easier?  It has made me a better Christian and a better man.  I'm pretty sure I needed to be both of those to be the pastor that God wants me to be.

Inside the Heart of Darkness

No offense to Joseph Conrad, but we don't need to travel to the dark reaches of the globe anymore to find the evil that is in man's heart.  We were shown it once again this week with the cold-blooded murders of American soldiers at Ft. Hood by one of their own comrades.  The news media and investigators will be obsessed in the coming days with answering the question of "Why?"  Why would someone snap and go on a murderous rampage.  The same question was asked after the Virginia Tech killings, the same question after Columbine.  Culprits will be found who "missed the signs" and scapegoats will be blamed (as they were after the others).  But what was the real cause of this inhumanity?  Rebellion against God.  Rejection of the Truth that all men are brothers because we have the same father.  The placing of selfish motives or ideals above regard for the lives of others.
This is a familiar path, we've been down it so many times before.  The heart of mankind is dark.  In this darkness, even the basic notion that the lives of others are to be respected can be, and is, lost.  It should only takes another father beating his child to convince us of this Truth, and it should only take glance at a Hitler or a Mao to convince us that we will never fix this problem on our own.
The heart of man is dark; self-help is not the answer; Hinduism is not the answer; Scientology is not the answer; Buddhism is not the answer; Islam is not the answer; materialism is not the answer; secularism is not the answer...
There is an answer, there is a Gospel, there is salvation from our sin through the resurrection of Jesus Christ.  Every other solution, every other cure, is a fraud. 
Our prayers go out to the men and women of the Army who have bravely defended the freedom that Americans enjoy each day.  God bless you all.