I recently ran a reminiscence of being so different in high school that a teacher gave me a special poster to celebrate it.  Somehow my parents taught me to be different and not care that I was different.  One reader made the comment on this blog's Facebook page, "We cannot teach our children to be different if we don't learn the lesson first," and now that I think of it, that may have been the key for me.  My parents thought nothing of being different.  If you were a disciple of Christ, that's how you lived.  And so I fell into it quite naturally.  Unfortunately many of my brethren must not have been taught that.
            The recent political campaigns have nearly made me ill.  Seeing Christians spew out unverified rumors, innuendoes, sarcasm, threats, blatant disrespect, and just plain nastiness, all in the name of standing for the truth, appalled me.  I wondered what our first century brethren might have thought about the whole thing.
              Did you know that first century Christians in a world even meaner than ours (though by less and less everyday), often gave themselves away because they did exactly what no one expected them to do?   They were kind to those they disagreed with, including idolaters.  They assisted and served those in need, even those who would later turn them in for being Christians—an illegal activity.  Scorn, ridicule and disdain were not a part of their vocabulary or lifestyle.  They were different because they followed a Savior who was different, one who "when he was reviled, reviled not again; when he suffered, threatened not, but committed himself to him who judges righteously," 1 Pet 2:23.  THAT is what it means to be different.
            If you have been struggling to conform yourself to that image, maybe it's time for a little more effort.  You may have finally learned to speak kindly, even to the unkind and unfair among us, when it is face to face.  But how are you doing when it is not a "person" but a car you are railing at?  How do you do when it's a faceless voice on the phone?  How does your pen react when some impersonal corporation has treated you unfairly?  How does your keyboard click when you are posting a diatribe against whatever political side you deem evil at the moment?  In all those cases, someone—an actual person--is noticing how you behave, even when you think your identity is hidden.  Think about it for a minute—Facebook posts your name and picture at the top of every one of those angry posts.
            We recently did some painting in the house.  I went to the paint department of the local home improvement store, picked out a color card and handed it to the man to mix my paint.  When the paint went up on the wall, I was sure it was darker than the card I had chosen.  But when I laid that card up against the wall, it completely disappeared—it was exactly the same color.  It blended right in.  Sometimes we are nothing more than a color card at the paint store.
            I am supposed to be different from the average Joe, even the relatively good citizen out there.  I am supposed to act (not react) as a follower of my Lord.  I am supposed to be willing to suffer wrong or even loss to show that difference. 
          If being a Christian does become illegal someday in this country, I should be giving myself away by my kind words, by my willingness to yield rather than argue, and by my acts of compassion even to those who do not deserve it. I am not supposed to be blending in with all the other pagans, disappearing like a color card from the paint store into a wall of humanity who are a perfect match.
 
Beloved, I urge you as sojourners and exiles to abstain from the passions of the flesh, which wage war against your soul. Keep your conduct among the Gentiles honorable, so that when they speak against you as evildoers, they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day of visitation. (1Pet 2:11-12)
 
Dene Ward

In the past few years people have done things for me that I could not even have imagined.  They have cleaned my house, they have put up my garden produce, they have brought meals, they have taken me to the doctor over and over and over, putting about 120 miles on their cars each time.  They have shopped for me and then conveniently forgotten how much I owe them.  They have walked up to me and in the midst of a hug slipped a hundred dollar bill in my pocket to help pay for surgeries, medicines and medically necessary trips that were not covered at any percentage by insurance because they were too “experimental.”  Many, many more have told me that they get down on their knees and pray for me every day, and many of those knees are frail and aching.
            What do you say to people like that?  What can you do for people like that?  “Thank you,” seems so lame. 
            And what can we do for God and Christ?  Most of us understand that nothing will repay the debt we owe Them.  That is what grace means—you receive mercy you don’t deserve and cannot repay.  Then why do we still act like our “service” is indeed plentiful payment for our salvation?  Why do we question our trials as if God is letting us down “after all we’ve done?”
            Just think for a moment about the absurdity of this:  God had the power to create the complexities of this vast universe; Christ is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation; for in Him were all things created, in the heavens and upon the earth, things visible and things invisible, whether thrones or dominions or principalities or powers; all things have been created through Him, and unto Him; and He is before all things, and in Him all things consist, Col 1:15-17; and so, dear Father and Jesus, because of all that, I will try real hard not to sin today.  That is my idea of service?
            God deserves all of me, not just a few little commandments I try to keep.  He deserves my service everyday, not just on Sundays.  He deserves my heart, not just my outward posture.  When I give myself to God there should be nothing leftover for me or anyone else.
            And He deserves this even when things in my life are not particularly good.  God is the Creator, He is the Almighty, He is the Ruler of the Universe.  That is why He deserves my service, not because He has been good to me.  We truly do not stand in awe of God if we think otherwise.    
            Today, think about the power of God and what it should mean in your service to Him.
 
Ascribe to the LORD, O heavenly beings, ascribe to the LORD glory and strength.  Ascribe to the LORD the glory due his name; worship the LORD in the splendor of holiness. The voice of the LORD is over the waters; the God of glory thunders… over many waters.  The voice of the LORD is powerful; the voice of the LORD is full of majesty. The voice of the LORD breaks the cedars; the LORD breaks the cedars of Lebanon.  The voice of the LORD flashes forth flames of fire. The voice of the LORD shakes the wilderness. The voice of the LORD makes the deer give birth  and strips the forests bare, and in his temple all cry,  "Glory!" The LORD sits enthroned over the flood; the LORD sits enthroned as king forever. Selected verses from Psalm 29.
 
Dene Ward

I think maybe I have discovered something that will help me a lot.
            The best cup of coffee is not the four-dollar, imported-from-some-exotic-place, freshly roasted, even more freshly ground cup you get at that boutique coffee shop.  The best cup of coffee is the one you drink from a cracked ceramic cup in front of a campfire on a chilly morning, the smell of bacon mingling with the smoke from that same wood fire and the vapors of the coffee, maybe even a few drops of bitter oils floating on top of it because the propane camp stove is harder to control and sometimes the coffee comes just a little too close to a simmer.  When you are cold, nothing tastes better than something warm. 
            Even tomato soup from that red and white can tastes pretty good.  It doesn’t matter if the seasoning is not well-balanced (too much sugar and salt and little else).  It doesn’t matter if there is no complex depth of flavor, just candied tomatoes and tin can.  Those niggling little details make no difference to you at that moment.  It’s warm and you appreciate that.  If you have never been truly cold, so cold that your insides quiver and you can hardly make your hands work and keep your mind functioning, you have never tasted a truly good cup of coffee or a good bowl of soup, no matter how much either cost you, or how many gourmets raved about it.
            So why will that help me get through life?  Just think about this:  How do people who have a terrible disease, or who have experienced one calamity after the other, or who are unfairly oppressed for their beliefs, or who come within inches of death, still smile and laugh, still enjoy life and keep their faith?  Because when you have a REAL problem, suddenly you understand what is important.  You are able to find pleasure in the little things.  You can feel joy in watching a sunset.  You can find happiness in seeing children play.  You can experience contentment in even just one moment of normalcy. You can enjoy peace in the company of those who love you, even if they are not perfect.  Suddenly their imperfections become insignificant.
            I cannot think of any instance where griping is anything but a sign of ingratitude.  When we whine about the inconsequential things, when we complain about the traffic, the weather, the petty grievances against others and the annoyances of life, then maybe we need a catastrophe to wake us up to what really matters.  Sadly, that is often what it takes to get our priorities in order.  Some things are just more important than others but, just as it takes a nearly hypothermic person to enjoy what he might ordinarily consider a mediocre cup of coffee, it often takes a disaster to force us to recognize how blessed we truly are. 
            We could be even happier if we did not always have to learn that the hard way.
 
Behold, what I have seen to be good and fitting is to eat and drink and find enjoyment in all the toil with which one toils under the sun the few days of his life that God has given him, for this is his lot.  Everyone also to whom God has given wealth and possessions and power to enjoy them, and to accept his lot and rejoice in his toil -- this is the gift of God.  For he will not much remember [brood about] the days of his life because God keeps him occupied with joy in his heart Eccl 5:18-20.
 
Dene Ward

"We have to open our minds wide enough to risk hearing what we do not want to hear.  For we have been taught to come to the Bible for solace.  Does not Paul himself write of "the encouragement of the scriptures" (Rom 15:4)?  So naturally we cherish the hope that through our Bible reading we shall be comforted; we have no wish to be disturbed.  Hence we tend to come to it with our minds made up, anxious to hear only the reassuring echoes of our own prejudice."
John Stott, Authentic Christianity

"If you are going to do it that way, we might just have to leave."
            I suppose everyone has heard this one if they have been a member of the church for more than a few years.  In fact, I have been a member of many different congregations and have probably heard it at least that many times.  Let me clarify the situation on this occasion:  nothing unscriptural was being put forward and it was clear that everyone else was happy with it.  Yet a couple of families wanted things done differently and  threatened to leave if they did not get their way.  One of the elders said, "Then I will hold the door for you as you go." 
            If that sounds harsh to you, understand that the people who said this were known for their stubbornness and their desire to run the church their way.  Why anyone would not realize how childish this sounds a la "I will pick up my toys and go home," is beyond me.  Giving in to people with this attitude means we are allowing the weak to run the church and I do not for a minute believe God meant for that to happen.  In fact, He says that the strong should give in to the weak, which is utter genius.  Just which side is willing to admit they are weak? 
            Unity should be on the mind of every strong, mature Christian.  Be at peace among yourselves, Paul tells the Thessalonians (1 Thes 5:13).  He tells the Ephesians they should be eager to maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace (4:13).  Do you want to be righteous?  A harvest of righteousness is sown in peace by those who make peace, James 3:18.  Do you want to save souls?  Jesus prayed that they may be one…so that the world may believe, John 17:21.  How can any Christian raise a ruckus about something that is merely a matter of opinion and preferences and think he is a follower of Christ?
            Rather, we should all be willing to give when we see that most want things done a certain way, assuming it is not sinful, and not push our own agendas.  Paul even told the Corinthians they should be willing to "suffer wrong" in legal matters rather than ruin the reputation of the Lord's body by divisive behavior, 1 Cor 6:6,7—even if it cost money or property!  Surely a matter of opinion is an easier thing to give up than that.
 
And above all these put on love, which binds everything together in perfect harmony (Col 3:14).
 
Dene Ward

Four letters, “weight allowance.”  I have seen it in crossword puzzles so many times that I automatically write in “tret,” even though I have no idea what it is talking about.  Finally I looked it up.  Tret is (or was?) the weight allowance given to buyers of certain commodities, usually four pounds per hundred, to make up for deterioration during transit and impurities like sand and dust.  So if they order one hundred pounds, they actually receive one hundred and four, the idea being that they will have at least one hundred pounds of product in that one hundred and four pounds. 
            That made me think about grace.  God supplies what we lack in perfection because of our sin.  Only the ratio is backwards—I am sure He allows at least one hundred pounds of grace for every four pounds of our faith and obedience, probably far more.
            We also make such allowances for each other.  When we know someone has been through a rough time, it is easier to take their snappy comment with equanimity.  When we love as we ought, our love covers a multitude of sins, 1 Pet 4:8. 
            However, the need to make allowances for things like that should eventually disappear as we all grow to maturity in Christ.  Shouldn’t a man who has been a Christian forty years no longer be watching and waiting for the Bible class teacher or preacher to make a comment he can raise a fuss about?  Yet how many times have I heard young preachers told, “It’s just old brother So-and-So.  That’s just the way he is.”  Why is he still that way?  Hasn’t anyone told him how much he hurts people with that behavior?  I wonder how many young preachers were expected to make so many allowances for so many things that they just gave up preaching.  Why doesn’t anyone make allowances for them?
            Is old sister So-and-So still managing to take offense at everything anyone says and jumping on them with both feet?  Hasn’t anyone told her that she is wrong to treat people that way?  Oh yes, I know what they will hear back, but we are not doing her any favors to let her keep on this way.  The Lord certainly won’t make allowances for it.
            But the larger question for me is this:  are people continually making allowances, “tret,” for me?  Am I the one causing consternation, making people walk on eggshells around me, and stealing everyone’s pleasure with my bad attitude?  God’s grace works for people who are trying their best to do right and still fail, not for those who make a career out of bitterness, criticism, and cynicism and expect everyone, including God, to just accept it..  My “tret” should become smaller and smaller as I mature as a Christian, leaving infancy behind and becoming full-grown. 
            Where do I stand today?  A 50 year old baby is no longer cute, and to take the grace of God for granted in such a way must surely be an abomination to Him.
 
For if we go on sinning deliberately after receiving the knowledge of the truth, there no longer remains a sacrifice for sins, but a fearful expectation of judgment, and a fury of fire that will consume the adversaries.  Anyone who has set aside the law of Moses dies without mercy on the evidence of two or three witnesses. How much worse punishment, do you think, will be deserved by the one who has spurned the Son of God, and has profaned the blood of the covenant by which he was sanctified, and has outraged the Spirit of grace?  Heb 10:26-29.
 
Dene Ward

Today's post if by guest writer Lucas Ward.
 
Lev. 23:2  “Speak to the people of Israel and say to them, These are the appointed feasts of the LORD that you shall proclaim as holy convocations; they are my appointed feasts."
            When I reached this passage in Leviticus, I realized that I didn't know what convocation meant.  I had always read past the passage, assuming it meant "worship service."  I decided to look it up to be sure.  It turns out that convocation means "the act of convoking" according to Webster's Dictionary.  Sighing, I then looked up convoke.  It doesn't mean worship service at all.  A convocation is when people come together, a time of coming together.  So in Leviticus 23, when Moses is giving God's instructions on all the feast days, he is emphasizing that these are times when the nation was to come together and worship God as one.  The Sabbath was a holy convocation for each community.  On the Passover they came together to remember being freed from slavery in Egypt.  On the feast of weeks they came together to offer the first fruits of their harvest to God.  On the Day of Atonement they came together to fast, instead of feast, as they remembered their sins against God.  On the Feast of Booths they came together to celebrate God's care for them.  Ever—single—time--God ordered a day of worship, He wanted His people to come together to worship as a group.
            This is a principle that clearly carries over to the New Testament.  The early church "attended the temple together" to hear the Apostles' teaching (Acts 2:42, 46).  They "gathered together to break bread" (Acts 20:7).  We are told to exhort one another (1 Thess. 5:11) and admonish one another (Rom. 15:14), which clearly implies being together enough to know what exhortation and/or admonishment is needed.   As Christians, we are called the family of God and the word "brethren" is used of Christians at least 135 times in the New Testament.   A family defined by how we love each other (John 13:35) will naturally be together as much as possible, especially when worshipping the Head of that family. 
            Simply put, we cannot be the church that God intended, nor worship in the way He demands, if we never come together.  Streaming services may be a wonderful way to help those who are legitimately homebound, but if we are able we need to be getting up and joining our brethren in "holy convocation" as we worship together.  After all, how can I stir my brethren up to love and good works (Heb. 10:24) if I never see them?  The early Christians came together to worship even though if caught the Romans would put them all to death.  Surely we can brave a pandemic with a 98% survival rate!  And if we do wind up being part of the unlucky 2%, aren't we really the more fortunate for the chance to go home early? 

Hebrews 10:24-25  "And let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works, not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near."
 
Lucas Ward

“Stop acting like a child!” has become a staple line of many arguments.  Yet one time, Jesus said the very opposite. 
            Verily I say unto you, Except you turn, and become as little children, you shall in no wise enter into the kingdom of heaven, Matt 18:3.  Unfortunately, whenever this event in Jesus’ life comes up in Bible classes, we totally ignore the context and instead start listing all the wonderful qualities of children.  By the time we have finished, it’s a wonder we can’t find dozens of passages telling us to act like children instead of dozens telling us to grow up!  Till we all attain unto the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a full-grown man, unto the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ, Eph 4:13. Worse than that, we miss the point Jesus is making.
            Look what was happening immediately before.  The Twelve were arguing about which of them was the greatest in the kingdom.  Surely that had something to do with Jesus’ admonition.  
            The verse after the one we all quote so often specifies, Whosoever shall humble himself as this little child…(v 4).  What was it about this particular child?  He had no status or rank, no wealth, and nothing to offer in worldly terms at all.  All he did was come the minute he was called and trust the one who called implicitly.  Don’t you think that made those men squirm in embarrassment at their previous behavior?
            Then Jesus went on to add,   But whoso shall cause one of these little ones that believe on me to stumble, it is profitable for him that a great millstone should be hanged about his neck, and that he should be sunk in the depth of the sea, v 6.  Here He included those metaphorical children who would come to Him with the same humility and trust.  How we treat them determines our fate as much as how we live our lives, or even how we worship or where.
            Do you think the early disciples did not need this lesson?  Besides their constant bickering about who was the greatest, those early churches had arguments about who had the greatest spiritual gift and who should get the most “floor time” with his gift, 1 Cor 12-14. They bragged about which preacher baptized them, 1 Cor 1.  They showed off their wealth in bringing so much Lord’s Supper that it constituted a braggadocio feast instead of a memorial supper, 1 Cor 11.  Their women had to be reminded not to dress up to show off their wealth, 1 Tim 2.  They were told that how they received guests into their assembly could condemn them as easily as committing adultery or murder, James 2.  Clearly, personal humility and acceptance of others regardless of rank was a lesson they needed from the beginning. 
            Why was that important?  Because, as Jesus tells the sheep in that great parable of the judgment in Matt 25, when they wonder how they had served the Lord by feeding, clothing, and visiting him, he answers them this way, Inasmuch as you did it unto one of these my brethren, even these least, you did it unto me, Matt 25:40.  Any time we reject a brother because we think we are better than he, whether because of wealth, education, race, or anything other consideration, we are rejecting the Lord for the same reason.
            So the next time this passage comes up in Bible class, let’s see if, instead of listing all the sweet things our children do, we can actually get the lesson Jesus intended from it.  It’s a whole lot more important than we seem to think.
 
 And he took a little child, and set him in the midst of them: and taking him in his arms, he said unto them, Whosoever shall receive one of such little children in my name, receives me: and whosoever receives me, receives not me, but him that sent me, Mark 9:36,37.
 
Dene Ward

No one really knows why this day started, National Pickle Day, but I think increasing pickle sales may well have been the root of it.  With the encouragement of the Pickle Packers Association it was first celebrated in 1949.  Today, Americans consume over five million pounds of pickles a year, so maybe it worked.
            We planted our first garden 46 years ago.  Even though Keith had been brought up with gardens, we were both tyros, especially considering the climate we were in, different from either of our childhoods.  He set me up with all the equipment I would need, and most of which I still use all these years later:  canners, mason jars, jar lifters, lids, rings, funnels, sieves, lime, vinegar, canning salt, and cookbooks, I had them all.
            One of the things I knew I wanted to make was a batch of dill pickles.  I love dill pickles.  I could eat a whole jar.  So I looked all over for recipes and found one that was fairly easy.  I did exactly as the recipe said and one afternoon in July lined my shelves with a dozen pints of dill pickles.  The recipe said to let them sit a few weeks, as I recall, so I did, and had not gotten around to trying them yet. 
            Finally we had company one evening and Keith grilled some hamburgers.  The perfect meal for my pickles, I thought, and proudly set them on the table.  I made a point to put the Mason jar on the table so our guests would know they were homemade.  Too bad for me as it turned out.  Keith’s pal took one bite of pickle and tried very hard to keep his face from screwing up, but not entirely succeeding.
            “Wow!” he finally choked out.  “These are DIIIIIIILLLLL pickles.”
            I took a bite myself and resolved not only to toss the recipe but every jar in the pantry.  The recipe had called for four tablespoons of dried dill seed per pint.  That’s one-fourth cup, people.  After all these years of experience, I would have looked at that recipe and immediately known something was off, but then I was a newbie and didn’t know any better.
            Ah, but we make the same sort of mistakes as Christians.  But solid food is for the mature, for those who have their powers of discernment trained by constant practice to distinguish good from evil. Heb 5:14.
            I learned from my mistake with the pickles and tried again, and again, and again, until I finally got it right.  But I would never have gotten it right without all that practice.  That’s what it takes with the Word.  No, it doesn’t take a college degree to understand the Bible and knowing exactly what to do to begin your relationship with Christ is pretty simple, but the Word of God is a profound book.  If all you do is read a chapter a day, you are missing 90% of its power.
            I have seen too many young people, especially those “raised in the church,” spout off simplistic definitions and explanations and think that’s all there is to it, completely missing the depths that can be plumbed with some diligent work.  I’ve seen too many older Christians who have relied on those one-dimensional catch-phrases instead of growing to the height they should have after all those decades as a Christian that they are so proud of.  And I have seen too many old chestnuts that are patently wrong passed from generation to generation. 
            If reading Hebrews 7 doesn’t send you immediately back to Genesis 14 and Psalm 110, if seeing the word “promise” doesn’t make you instantly check for a reference to the Abrahamic promise, if reading the sermons in Acts doesn’t make you realize exactly how important it is to know the Old Testament, you have not been “exercising your senses” in the Word. 
          Please be careful of anything that sounds too pat, that makes arguments based on simplistic definitions or the spelling of English words (“Godliness is just a contraction of God-like-ness”).  Do not repeat anything you did not check out with careful study yourself.  And if you are still quite young, please check out your understanding with someone who is not only older, but well-versed in the Scriptures, and be willing to listen and really consider.  Do you know who I have the worst trouble with in my classes?  People who were “raised in the church.”  They are far less likely to even consider that they might be wrong about something and to change their minds than a brand new Christian, converted from the world with a boatload of misconceptions.
         You cannot know too much scripture.  It is impossible to be “over-educated” in the Word.  The more you know, the more motivation you will have to live up to your commitment to God, the better person you will be, and the fewer embarrassing mistakes you will make when you open your mouth.  Practice, practice, practice, or making pickles will be the least of your worries.
 
…put on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge after the image of its creator. Col 3:10
 
Dene Ward

I imagine we could all sit around telling stories for hours about the misheard lyrics our children sang before they learned to read along in the songbook.  I will never forget the day Lucas asked his song-leading grandfather (Papa) to sing, "He whispers the peas to me."  Or the day I was standing in the kitchen and heard his sweet little voice singing, "When the roll is called under the water."  His little brother had his own versions of the standard hymns.  One day as we were wandering through the produce department at the grocery store he said, "Mom, sing the song about the sandals."  "The sandals?" I asked, running through familiar hymns in my head as quickly as I could.  "Yes," he said, "all other ground is sinking sandals."
            All of those are favorite stories, but I was reminded recently of one I like even better.  As usual, I was working on something while my two toddlers were playing, and just as usual, they were singing.  Lucas, at 3, could carry a tune and had a larger range than most toddlers his age, a direct product, I think, of growing up hearing a capella music several times a week.  He had been humming along and suddenly I heard, "No tears, no tears up there.  Sorrow and planes, we'll all have fun."
            I was still blinking my eyes in surprise when he asked, "Mommy, what are sorrow and tears?  They must be bad guys, right?  Because they don't get to go to Heaven."  That little guy could teach us all a lesson or two.
            First, he didn't just sing—he thought about what he was singing.  Maybe he didn't get the words right, but he got what he understood.  He knew he was singing about Heaven so "We'll all have fun," made perfect sense to him.  And evidently, he had enjoyed that plane ride he had been on a couple of months earlier, so planes in Heaven made sense too.
            Second, when there was something he didn't understand, like "sorrow" and "tears," he figured something out about them with just a little logic.  They won't be in Heaven so they must be bad, and when you are a three year old boy who loves Superman, "bad" means "bad guys."  Then he asked someone else to make sure he was right.
            And third, he was thinking about what he sang long after the worship had ended. 
            Surely, I don't have to spell out the lessons in this one.  Do you know what you are singing, which is the title of this little series I have written for several years now?  (You can find them all in the archives under Music.)  Do you think about the songs you have sung to worship God?  Do you keep on singing them, even after you leave the meetinghouse, and perhaps sing them with even more understanding?
            If a three year old can, surely we can too.
 
Sing praises to God, sing praises: Sing praises unto our King, sing praises. For God is the King of all the earth: Sing ye praises with understanding (Ps 47:6-7).
 
Dene Ward