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Sensitivity Training

1/13/2015 0 Comments

If there was ever a new church that struggled with its spirituality, it was the church at Corinth. Paul scolded them: And I, brethren, could not speak to you as to spiritual, but as to carnal, as to babes in Christ. [Read that: “you are acting like a bunch of big babies,” and you will get the picture.]   I fed you with milk, not with meat, for you were not yet able to bear it, no, not even now are you able, for you are still carnal, 1 Cor 3:1-3. We have a tendency to think of things sexual when we see that word “carnal,” but Paul tells us in the next phrase or two what it really means: “walking after the manner of men,” in other words, being physically minded instead of spiritually minded. He then spent most of that first letter telling them how to become more spiritually minded.
   Their struggle over spiritual gifts surely has to be the most obvious example. They actually rated them as to importance, using, of course, carnal measurements--the flashier and showier the better. So Paul spends most of chapter 12 telling them that no one is more important than anyone else. Everyone is useful in the body of Christ, and if any one of them was not there, something would be obviously missing. In chapter 14, when their sense of importance is leading to a confused and disorderly assembly because none will yield his “gift” time to another, he actually gives them specific instructions about how to order things, all of which are pure common sense if you have the correct object in mind, the edification of the church rather than the glorification of the individual. He even spells it out several times: if there is no edification, let them keep silence.
   And of course, there is the pitiful business with suing one another, letting things of this physical life effect how they dealt with spiritual brothers and sisters.
   Those poor Corinthians at whom we so often shake our heads are not the only ones with these problems. We are beset by the same weaknesses, and the same feelings. In fact, as I was reading and thinking about these things it suddenly struck me that almost any time I take an idle remark as a personal attack, it falls right into the same category.
   I believe there is such a thing as being sinfully sensitive. Think about it. How many times could Jesus have “gotten his feelings hurt” or “felt insulted?” You could make a list as long as an entire book in the Bible, but he did not allow his feelings to keep him from completing a mission that was more important than anything else in the world.
   When I commit myself to being his disciple, don’t I promise to follow his example? The problem with being too sensitive is that it causes me to stop what I am doing and spend time on nothing but myself, usually moping or pouting, or even beginning a campaign against the other person. Nothing anyone says to me or about me, or that I might even possibly construe to be about me, is an excuse for setting myself up as more important than my mission as Jesus’ disciple. As a mature Christian, those things should roll right off me, because my concern is God’s glorification, not my own. That is what spirituality is all about. And if we cannot even begin to get a handle on it here, why should we be allowed to live in that exalted state for an Eternity?
   Something to think about as we interact with one another today.

Do nothing from rivalry or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves, Phil 2:3.The vexation of a fool is known at once, but the prudent ignores an insult, Prov 12:16.

Dene Ward

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The Best of Both Worlds

1/12/2015 0 Comments

When my mother raised us, she always said, “I’m not running a restaurant. You get what I serve,” and what she served was always fine with me. I don’t recall a single bad meal. Even recently I heard a television cook reminisce about coming to dinner as a child and eating what was put in front of her, so my family wasn’t weird, and neither was I when I followed suit as an adult. It was as much about finances as anything else, but it certainly helped teach a few things, like, you don’t always get what you want in life and be grateful for whatever there is.

But once in awhile I tried to please everyone as much as possible. If the main dish was one boy’s favorite, then dessert was the other boy’s favorite. It was the best of both worlds for them—a favorite entrée and a favorite dessert.

Recently I have come up with a dessert that has to be the best of both worlds. I haven’t decided whether to call it a cheesecake brownie or a brownie cheesecake. It has two layers: a brownie bottom, and a cheesecake top.

So, if you like chocolate and cheesecake, you can have both in one piece. If you want chewy and smooth and creamy this is the dessert for you. If you like chocolate and vanilla, this is even better than Neapolitan ice cream. It’s even part convenience food and part “from scratch.” The brownie layer is a mix and the cheesecake layer is all homemade. A friend told me it’s perfect for her and her husband. He has celiac disease, so he eats the gluten-free cheesecake layer and she eats the brownie layer. Like I said, the best of both worlds.

Now try to convince your neighbors that as a Christian you have the best of both worlds. All they can see is what you can’t do and how much you sacrifice in time, energy, and types of entertainment. Especially if all you do is complain about what you can’t do, ruing the messed up weekends, the missed ball games and picnics, what else do you expect? You are supposed to make your life look like something they will want, not something they will hate.

So perhaps we should start by convincing ourselves. We don’t have to go to church; we get to assemble with our spiritual family. We don’t have to dress differently; we get to look like decent, classy people instead of prostitutes. We don’t have to give up drinking and smoking and drugs; we get to keep our dignity, breathe clearly, and preserve as many brain cells as possible. We don’t have to give up revenge and gossip; we get to get along with people and stay out of trouble. We don’t have to watch our language; we get to look like intelligent people with a real vocabulary. We don’t have to give up status and money and things; we find our joy wherever we are in any situation—we have learned in whatever circumstances we are “to be content,” Phil 4:12, and contentment equals happiness.

God does not expect us to be miserable in order to earn Heaven. Being a Christian is not a horrible life. It is a life of joy, a life of fulfillment, a life of health, a life of spiritual wealth. I have more family than any of my neighbors. One of them was amazed at the food brought during my surgeries, at the women who cleaned my house and the teenagers who raked the yard after Keith had a stroke. If I ever need help, I don’t have just one person to call, I have a whole list.

My marriage is intact and happy. My children are happy, productive citizens, and servants of the Lord to boot. We don’t have money problems because we don’t love things and don’t need luxury to be satisfied. We don’t have legal problems because we are honest and law abiding. We don’t lose our faith over our illnesses and disabilities because we have something far better in store for us.

Which leads us to the next world. If this life has been good—not perfect, for how could it be in a cursed world—the next one will be nothing short of amazing, an inheritance incorruptible, and undefiled, and that fades not away, reserved in heaven for you,1 Pet 1:4.

God promises us a “best of both worlds” life, far better than a “best of both worlds” dessert. But He doesn’t make you eat it. He gives you a choice. You can have this world and the next if you do it His way. Otherwise, this one is all you get.

For bodily exercise is profitable for a little; but godliness is profitable for all things, having promise of the life which now is, and of that which is to come, 1 Tim 4:8.

For the recipe accompanying this post, click here.

Dene Ward

Do You Know What You Are Singing?

1/9/2015 0 Comments

“Wonderful Love of Jesus”

“Wonderful Love of Jesus” is an early 20th century hymn I remember singing often as a child. But I must admit, I never knew what in the world was “lying around” when we sang “in vain in high and holy lays.” Even as a musician who knows that a “lay” is a song, it took me decades to actually associate that with this hymn and understand what it meant.

A “high and holy lay” is a sacred song, what we would call a hymn. Even with that tidbit of knowledge it takes a little thinking to make sense of that first verse.

In vain in high and holy lays
My soul her grateful voice would raise,
For who can sing the worthy praise of the
Wonderful love of Jesus?

It is impossible for human voices, even singing the holiest songs they can compose, to praise the love of Christ as much as it deserves. All our efforts are “in vain.” That’s what it means.

How can it have taken so long for me to figure it out when the scriptures are full of the same thought?

Praise Jehovah. Oh give thanks unto Jehovah; for he is good; For his lovingkindness [endures] for ever. Who can utter the mighty acts of Jehovah, Or show forth all his praise? Psalm 106:1,2.

You have multiplied, O LORD my God, your wondrous deeds and your thoughts toward us; none can compare with you! I will proclaim and tell of them, yet they are more than can be told. Psalm 40:5.

My mouth will tell of your righteous acts, of your deeds of salvation all the day, for their number is past my knowledge. Psalm 71:15

Oh, the depth of the riches and wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are his judgments and how inscrutable his ways! “For who has known the mind of the Lord, or who has been his counselor?” “Or who has given a gift to him that he might be repaid?” Rom 11:33-35.

As you can see, it isn’t just the love of God we cannot speak adequately of, but also His wisdom, His righteousness, and His mighty works. If ever there was a hymn of humility it is this one. We feeble mortals cannot even begin to fully comprehend any of the Godhead, yet they have an amazing love for us, a love that cannot be praised as it deserves. We do so “in vain,” yet our gratitude continues to compel us to try, and so we do with songs like this one. It may be “high and holy” but it is not equal to the task.

Yet now that I know what I am singing, I can hardly wait to sing it again.

[That you] may have strength to comprehend with all the saints what is the breadth and length and height and depth, and to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge, that you may be filled with all the fullness of God. Eph 3:18, 19.

Dene Ward

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The Lifeline

1/8/2015 0 Comments

What shall we say then? Shall we continue in sin, that grace may abound?

Even as early as the writing of Romans 6, Paul was concerned about those who would abuse the incredible gift of the grace of God. Since more sin required more grace to cover it, he feared they would use that as an excuse to sin yet more so they could have more grace (5:20,21).

We still abuse that grace today in much the same way. We misunderstand the purpose of grace, using it to make our lives easier than we have any right to expect. If grace is there to cover our imperfections, we really don’t have to try so hard, do we?

Grace is not a safety net; it is, instead, a lifeline. Picture your life as climbing a mountain, a not un-Biblical metaphor, I think. When things get tough, when I tire and want to quit, too many times I just let go, expecting God—requiring Him—to catch me when I fall. That is not the way it works.

The Lord came down to make the climb with us. He climbs at the head of the line as the leader, the one who has successfully made the climb before us; hooked to each of us with a lifeline. When my hand slips, when my foothold crumbles beneath me, that line of grace will help me once again gain control as I swing against the face of the mountain, sometimes bouncing hard before I get a new handhold or toehold and can begin the climb again, bruised and sore from my experience. If I become so tired I don’t think I can make another step, he will hold out a hand and give me a tug, or even have his Comforting Cohort give me a much-needed kick in the rear. What he will not do is tell me to just give up, unhook myself, and fall.

You see, the safety net we often see below is not God’s grace; it is not a respite Christ has offered to help us out. Satan is the one holding that inviting net. He is the one who tells us that we can’t do it, that we are only human and will never make it to the top. When you give up and say in your misery, “This is just the way I am, I can’t help it,” he is the one who says, “Of course you can’t help it. Quit trying so hard. Unhook yourself and fall into this comfortable net. I won’t let you be hurt, banging against the rocks of life like He does.”

Don’t be fooled. That net is, in fact, a net. It will trap you with its comfort, its assurance that you are not to blame, and if you are not careful, you will never even start the climb again, much less make it to the top.

God never promised us lives of ease. What He promised was help, enough help to make it through the rough spots. He will hold out His hand and pull, but if you unhook yourself from the lifeline of grace, you have lost the only hope you have.

What shall we say then? Shall we continue in sin, that grace may abound? God forbid. We who died to sin, how shall we any longer live therein?... Let not sin therefore reign in your mortal body, that you should obey the lusts thereof: neither present your members unto sin as instruments of unrighteousness; but present yourselves unto God, as alive from the dead, and your members as instruments of righteousness unto God. For sin shall not have dominion over you: for you are not under law, but under grace. Rom 6:1,2,12-14

Dene Ward

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The Upside-Down Spigot

1/7/2015 0 Comments

We usually make two camping trips a year, one to a north Georgia park in the early fall, and another to a Florida park in mid-winter. But this past year we ventured out to a north Alabama state park. We chose Buck’s Pocket State Park because it was small, and not on a lake—less touristy in other words.

Alabama maps are an adventure in themselves. If there had not been a sign for the park at every intersection we would never have found it. Once we left the major state road, even the numbered county roads were not on the map, at least not the ones we needed. We went past one “county road,” complete with number and sign, that was merely a one lane red clay road. Another was gravel, and another just plain dirt. Our road kept getting skinnier and skinnier, but at least it was paved the whole way. Finally we turned in and drove down, down, down into the pocket that "Buck's Pocket" is named after.

Alabama parks are definitely different from Georgia and Florida parks--not as many rules for one thing. The rangers in the other parks drive around several times a day to keep an eye on things. They also keep regular hours in the office. Not so in Alabama, at least not that one. We had to catch ours whenever we wanted ice or had another question, and we did not catch him to pay until the second day. He never came after us, even though we had filled out a registration form and shoved it through the little slot outside the locked door. I guess he trusted that we would return to pay, and truly, most campers are honest folks.

There were no numbers on the sites, nor were they marked so that you knew exactly where yours began and ended. Some of them had two tables, which did not help you figure out the logistics. We finally went by the electric boxes--only one of those per site.

Then there was the water spigot. Usually it stands up in the air about three feet, and you just put your pots or dishpan or measuring cup under it and turn it on. These were down on the ground, pointing up at an angle! This would not have been a problem if we were in an RV or pop-up and just wanted to attach the hose that allows for running water. But we were in a tent. We needed to fill up pots and tubs and bowls. We had to set them about three feet from the spigot, and turn it on. The water arced up and out and, if we were lucky, we had put the receptacle in the right place to catch the water! Meanwhile, it splashed all over our feet and clothes, and created a mud puddle where it missed. Finally after several neighbors left, we found one spigot up off the ground a couple of sites over, and used it.

Those upside-down water spigots reminded me of the way we go about trying to improve our lives as Christians. Somehow we think that if we just read the scriptures and pray every day, we will improve. I suppose we will improve some. The scripture is powerful enough to work no matter how randomly it is spread around. But don’t we want a bit more efficiency in our improvement? I want to grow to be a better person as quickly as I can. Don’t you?

How do we set about to lose weight? We pick out the things we will and will not eat. We plan an exercise regimen. We know which parts of our body need the most work and choose exercises that will carve away the fat and mold the muscles beneath it in exactly those areas. How do we learn new skills? We learn facts and procedures, and then drill, drill, drill ourselves in practice.

But how do I plan to improve as a Christian? Every day I read a chapter, any chapter, and then pray a generic prayer. Then at the end of the day when I have once again failed in the same old ways, I pray for forgiveness. Where is the progress in that? Wouldn’t it be better to decide exactly where I need to improve, to choose passages that have to do with that very thing, examples of people in the scriptures who dealt with it, then analyze myself, why I have that problem and what I should do to avoid it? Wouldn’t it be better to pray specifically about it, rather than, “Help me grow Lord?” Why are we so smart in worldly things and so dumb in spiritual ones?

For me the problem is pride. It hurts my ego to say, “I need to be better about ______.” So probably the first thing I should do is work on that pride. What about you? Don’t splash yourself with muddy water as you haphazardly spray away your time with scriptures and prayer. Take good aim, and make the most of the Help we have been given.

For whom he foreknew, he also foreordained to become conformed to the image of his son, that he might be the firstborn among many brethren; and whom he foreordained, them he also called; and whom he called, them he also justified; and whom he justified, them he also glorified, Rom 8:29,30.

Dene Ward

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The Ad Man

1/6/2015 0 Comments

Have you noticed the number of commercials and advertisements for weight-loss products, nicotine patches, fitness equipment, and gym memberships? The ad man is not dumb. This is the first full week of resolutions. It happens every year.
   Just think about the grocery flyer you see each week. This month we see specials for diet foods. February it will be chocolate, strawberries, and roses, and in March it will be corned beef and cabbage. Candy, eggs, ham, and legs of lamb will top the list in April. May through August will feature ribs, ground beef, steaks of all sorts, hot dogs, potato salad and baked beans—typical summer cook-out fare. Then September will devote a whole page to notebooks, paper, and pencils. And you know what the fall brings—chili beans, apples, turkeys, cranberries, sweet potatoes, and standing rib roasts. And we all buy most of that “in season” don’t we? Then we load our carts with salads, yogurt, and Lean Cuisines on January 1, and begin the whole sequence all over.
   They have us pegged. They pay attention to our habits. They even know when a trend is about to start so they can cash in from the beginning. Low fat gave way to low carb, and now the buzzword is “organic.” It seems to me that labeling food “organic” is a bit redundant, but that’s another topic.
   If men can figure us out that easily, why don’t we understand that our adversary can too? He knows what will tempt us the most and when it will, and he is persistent. We can get rid of him for a time, resist the Devil and he will flee from you, James 4:7, but he will always come back and try again. Just like those ad men, he uses the things he knows will work, and is never afraid to branch out and try a new tack.
   When you pick up that flyer in the Thursday paper, use it as a reminder to be careful. Our lives are an open book, in more ways than one.

For this is the love of God that we keep his commandments, and his commandments are not grievous. For whosoever is begotten of God overcomes the world, and this is the victory that overcomes the world—our faith. And who is he who overcomes the world but he who believes that Jesus is the Son of God, 1 John 5:3-5.

Dene Ward

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An Observation about Giving and Receiving

1/5/2015 2 Comments

Today I have a short observation to share with you. We all know that “it is more blessed to give than to receive,” but no one is going to be blessed if there is no one out there ready to receive! It should go without saying that I am not talking about people who go around with their hands held out, but I learned a long time ago that anything that should go without saying probably needs to be said anyway, so consider it said. Now to today’s point…
   I hear people ask you, “Is there anything I can do for you?” I know what you are going to say because I have said it too: “No. We’re fine.” A lot of times we aren’t fine, we’re just too proud to accept help, or we have the mistaken notion that humility involves sitting quietly in the background without complaint, even when we are in desperate need. If we do ask for something it’s only, “If it isn’t any trouble.”
   Brothers and sisters! God expects us to sacrifice for one another. He expects us to generously give to those in need and serve those who are afflicted. Indeed, He expects me to go to a lot of trouble for you—it doesn’t count as sacrifice if it isn’t trouble. I can’t do that if you won’t let me. You can’t do that if I won’t let you.
   When people ask what they can do for you, tell them! It may go against your grain to accept help, but you need to get off your high horse and let God bless those givers by your willingness to receive. In fact, it may be more than your physical needs they are meeting. It may be just what you need spiritually—a recognition that you actually need someone else’s help.
   Your turn to help will come. It has probably already come, again and again for years, which is probably the reason you find it so hard to turn the tables and accept it now that you need the help. Accept it, not just gratefully, but graciously too. This is, in fact, another way you can give to others—both the pleasure of helping someone and the blessing God promises to the givers. Don’t deny them that blessing with a stubborn refusal to admit you need help.
   May I just paraphrase 1 Cor 12? “If all the world were givers, where would the receivers be? If all the world were receivers, where would the givers be?” It happens to us all sooner or later. When your turn comes, be generous enough to allow others the same blessings you have been receiving as a giver for years.

And let us not grow weary of doing good, for in due season we will reap, if we do not give up. So then, as we have opportunity, let us do good to everyone, and especially to those who are of the household of faith, Gal 6:9,10.

Dene Ward

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The Quota System

1/2/2015 0 Comments

I have heard it all my life and never noticed the problem until recently. “Do one good deed every day.” How many New Year’s resolutions have you heard that include that phrase? How many times have you heard people talk about trying to better themselves by doing “one good deed every day?” How many speak as if they are proud of that very accomplishment?
   Then it struck me. One good deed a day? That is supposed to make me a good person? One? Hey! If I get it done by 8 or 9 in the morning, I don’t have to worry about another one, right? If I do 5 today, I can take the rest of the week off. I’m not expected to work on the weekends surely. Something is terribly wrong if we think doing one good deed a day is a wonderful accomplishment for a Christian.
   Depart from evil, and do good; Seek peace, and pursue it. Psalm 34:14
   Trust in Jehovah, and do good…Depart from evil, and do good; Psalm 37:3,27.
   I know that there is nothing better for them, than to rejoice, and to do good so long as they live. Eccl 3:12.
   But I say unto you that hear, Love your enemies, do good to them that hate you, Luke 6:27.
   But to do good and to communicate forget not: for with such sacrifices God is well pleased, Heb 13:16.
      And let us not be weary in well-doing: for in due season we shall reap, if we faint not. So then, as we have opportunity, let us work that which is good toward all men, and especially toward them that are of the household of the faith. Gal 6:9,10.
   Let love be without hypocrisy. Abhor that which is evil; cleave to that which is good. In love of the brethren be tenderly affectioned one to another; in honor preferring one another; communicating to the necessities of the saints; given to hospitality. Bless them that persecute you; bless, and curse not. Rejoice with them that rejoice; weep with them that weep. Be of the same mind one toward another. Render to no man evil for evil. Take thought for things honorable in the sight of all men. If it be possible, as much as in you lies, be at peace with all men. Avenge not yourselves, beloved, but give place unto the wrath of God: for it is written, Vengeance belongs unto me; I will recompense, says the Lord. But if your enemy hunger, feed him; if he thirst, give him to drink: for in so doing thou shalt heap coals of fire upon his head. Be not overcome of evil, but overcome evil with good. Rom 12:9-10, 13-21.
   Do I really think I can overcome evil with one good deed a day?
   Christians don’t work by the quota system. They know they should be looking for good things to do, as well as reacting in good ways to things done to them, all day long, every day. Yet even that is not enough to repay the debt we owe for our forgiveness.
   I think we need to stop counting.

Dene Ward

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Friends of God

12/31/2014 2 Comments

Today's post is by guest writer Keith Ward.

To have friends, one must be a friend. I have had a little success with this axiom of interpersonal relationships, but I am not a good practitioner. I became more concerned when I considered that Abraham was called the friend of God (James 2:23). How does one act to become known in truth as God’s friend? Developing friends takes time; one must have time to listen, time to help out, time to “be there,” etc. How can one do these things for God?
   On one occasion, Jehoshaphat called Abraham “thy friend” as he prayed for God’s help (2 Chron 20:7). But, of more significance, God himself referred to “Abraham, my friend” (Isa 41:8). Does it not send thrills through your soul to consider the possibility that God might refer to you in that way? Friendship is a two-way street. We can readily understand what God did for Abraham, but find only question marks when we consider what Abraham might have done for God.
   I think I might be described as a good servant of God, but friend? How do I move up to that level?
   Friends do more than obey; friends do more than ask. Abraham talked with God, he did not just make requests.
Abram complained to God because he did not have offspring and God responded with clarification of the Promise and renewal of the covenant. They talked back and forth. When God came down in person to promise Isaac, Abram laughed and proposed that Ishmael be the one (17:22).   Rather than smite him, God reiterated the promise. Abram then expressed his faith by circumcising himself and his house.
   Later, when Sarah laughed, she evidently did not know the guest was God, but by the time Abraham spoke on behalf of Sodom, he knew.   He bargained with God, not as an equal but as one who had the right to so speak plainly. And God honored his pleas, and as a friend, went beyond them to rescue Lot from destruction.
   Yet, Abraham did not presume on his friendship to think he could disobey. When God said, “Go offer,” he went and only the hand of his Friend kept him from fulfilling his obedience. Friends do great deeds for their friends.
   So, today, how do I become a friend of God? Just praying the standard prayers is clearly insufficient. That is just asking/thanking. Where is the exchange that comes with friendship? To love the Lord with all my heart and soul and might involves more than an act of teeth-gritting determination to will it so. Being a friend involves much more than simple obedience. I must like God. More than worship him; more than obey him, God wants me to like him. He is not coming down to man’s level, he is asking me (and you) to step up and to consider him and to like him and be his friend.

Keith Ward

The Car Seat

12/30/2014 1 Comments

A few years ago we traded cars. The new one had a few new gadgets on it. You can raise and lower the driver’s seat, as well as pull it forward or push it back. You can position the steering column up or down, in or out. Unfortunately I had not yet learned how to do that the first time I climbed in to drive when Keith was at work.
   Instead of sliding onto the seat, I fell into a hole. If the seat was not actually sitting on the floorboards of the car, it was close. As I tried to slide my legs under the steering wheel, I realized that it was practically resting on the seat. I sat for a minute fumbling around, and never found the right button, knob, or lever to fix anything. Needless to say, my driving experience that day was far from relaxing. Every time I got in, I fell in, squeezed under the steering wheel, and then spent the entire drive doing pull-ups on it so I could see where I was going.
   All of that is because Keith is nearly six inches taller than I, and apparently his favored driving position is sitting on the floor with his knees up around his ears. That is why they make those seats movable—no two people are the same size and shape, and we all have our own definitions of comfort.
   We tend to forget that with one another in the church. Depending upon when we first came into contact with the gospel, and the background we brought to the baptistery, we are all in different places in our faith and understanding. While the New Testament strongly hints that God has put a timetable on our learning (“when by reason of time you ought to be teachers”), it may not be my place to judge your progress. True, if one has been a Christian forty years and still craves the milk of the word rather than the meat, there just might be a problem, but most of my impatience with my brothers and sisters has little to do with circumstances so obvious.
   The job of the priest under the old law was to bear gently with the ignorant and erring for he himself also is compassed with infirmity, Heb 5:2. Aren’t we all called priests of God under the new law, (1 Pet 2:5)? And Paul says to the weak I became as weak so that I might gain the weak, 1 Cor 9:22. He did not look down his nose at one who did not yet have his knowledge and comprehension of the plan of God through the ages.
   When the church is growing spiritually and has reached a point that change in its traditions becomes expedient for the progress of the gospel, some people have problems with it. They are stuck in a place where traditions in their minds have become laws. It becomes more difficult for them to change those things. Are we patient in our teaching?   Do we make ourselves “weak” by understanding how difficult this is for them, and so guide them along with compassion?
   Mind you, we are not talking about changing the rules of the road or even how a car operates. You must still drive on the “right” side of the road. You still have to press the accelerator to go and the brake to stop, but some of us shift gears smoothly and automatically, while others need to do it manually, slowly and methodically, one gear at a time.
   I usually see all those cars that impatiently pass me a little further down the road. Sometimes they sit on the shoulder with another car behind them, flashing its blue lights. Other times I quietly pull along side of them at the next stoplight as we both obey the law, idling in our separate lanes. So he got there ten seconds ahead of me—big deal. We both followed the rules and ended up in the same place.
   We must patiently show one another how to move the car seat so we can all more easily see down the road, so none of us is left sitting in a hole, awkwardly doing pull-ups on the steering wheel, trying to see where he is going.

We who are strong have an obligation to bear with the failings of the weak, and not to please ourselves. Let each of us please his neighbor for his good, to build him up. For Christ did not please himself, but as it is written, the reproaches of those who reproached you have fallen on me, Rom 15:1-3

Dene Ward

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