Take heed that you do not your righteousness before men to be seen of them; else you have no reward with your Father who is in heaven, Matt 6:1.

            We all know that doing the right thing for the wrong reason will get you nowhere with God.  Every action, especially right ones, must be motivated by an unselfish desire to serve either God or His children. 

            We in the church are bad about equating “faithfulness” to assembling with the saints.  When was the last time you heard discipline being practiced for anything other than “forsaking the assembling?”  Unfortunately, a good many who do assemble are doing so for the wrong reasons.  In fact, their reasons for assembling might very well be more a sign of unfaithfulness than staying at home would have been.

            Complaints about the service are a good indicator.  The songs are too slow or too old or too boring.  The prayers are too long or too cliché-ridden.  The sermons are interminable or step on too many toes or they are given “in the wrong tone of voice.”  This brother didn’t speak to me, that sister hurt my feelings, and the elders ignored me.  The building is too cold or too hot, and then there is the always popular, “I didn’t get anything out of the services today.”

            Let’s take a look at that passage about assembling.  Let us consider one another to provoke unto love and good works, not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together as the custom of some is, but exhorting one another and so much the more as you see the day drawing nigh, Heb 10:24,25.  Why is it that we assemble?  “To provoke one another to love and good works.”  And how do we do that?  By “considering one another.” 

            That same Greek word is used in Luke 6:41, And why do you behold the mote that is in your brother’s eye, and also in Luke 20:23, But he perceived their craftiness… “Considering” one another obviously takes some effort and more than a little thought.

            So what are we supposed to be doing while we sit on those pews?  We should not be rating performances like a judge at a talent show.  We should not be waiting to be entertained.  Instead we should be “considering” one another, “beholding,” or looking to one another, “perceiving” the individual needs of each one.  Does this sister need special encouragement this week?  Does that brother need a reminder?  Is the family next to me in the midst of a crisis?  What can I do this week to help them?  The family that usually sits across the aisle is missing.  I need to find out why.

            Assembling for the wrong reason is just as bad as praying for the wrong reason, giving for the wrong reason, or even being baptized for the wrong reason.  Assembling is a gift, yet another opportunity to build one another up, not just for two or three hours, but all week long.  If I don’t do my part, seeking to find ways to help others instead of concentrating on my own likes and dislikes, I will have no reward with my Father who is in Heaven.  In fact, I might as well stay home.
 
But speaking truth in love, we may grow up in all things into him, who is the head, Christ; from whom all the body fitly framed and knit together through that which every joint supplies, according to the working in due measure of each several part, makes the increase of the body unto the building up of itself in love, Eph 4:15,16.
 
Dene Ward

The first recorded gladiator fight occurred in 264 BC when three pairs of slaves were chosen to fight at the funeral of a prominent Roman citizen.  What a strange way to mourn, I thought, only to discover later that Julius Caesar arranged for 320 gladiator fights at the death of his daughter Julia. 

            Gladiator fights became common entertainment.  50,000-80,000 spectators usually attended.  Admission was free.  The actual money was made in gambling on the fighters.  Slaves and prisoners of war were trained as gladiators, and the Roman courts could sentence criminals to “death fighting.”  Eventually free men enrolled as gladiators, some for the glory and some for the money to pay their debts.  Even some of the emperors were said to have been former gladiators, so that position could lead to political advancement as well. 

            The life of a gladiator was full of risk.  Not only could they be killed by another gladiator, but all prospective gladiators had to swear an oath and enter a legal agreement to submit to beating, burning, and death by sword if they did not perform as required.  Life must have been desperate for those who entered it willingly.

            The last gladiator fought on January 1, 404 AD, over a millennium and a half ago.  What startled me, though, was one of the reasons given for the rise of this type of entertainment.  Gladiator fights were seen as a way to appease the gods and avert disaster in the Roman Empire.
 
            To appease the gods?  Here you have yet again a big difference
between Jehovah God and manmade gods.  Our God hates fighting among his children.  Here are six things that the LORD hates, seven that are an abomination to him: haughty eyes, a lying tongue, and hands that shed innocent blood, a heart that devises wicked plans, feet that make haste to run to evil, a false witness who breathes out lies, and one who sows discord among brothers, Prov 6:16-19.

            Seven times in the New Testament He is called the “God of peace,” and Jesus said in his most famous sermon, Blessed are the peacemakers for they shall be called the children of God, Matt 5:9.  How did he tell us the world would recognize us?  [I pray] that they may be one…so that the world will believe that you have sent me, John 17:21.  Getting along with one another can actually create faith in unbelievers.

            Over and over in the New Testament the disciples are told to “be at peace,” to “avoid things that gender strife,” and to be longsuffering with one another.  Peace would be the defining mark of this brotherhood, not the constant wrangling that often mars manmade organizations. 

            The only fighting we participate in is a spiritual warfare against the Adversary.  Otherwise we are to be a peaceful people who call attention to ourselves only by the good we do to others, not the evil, and by our goodwill to one another despite our differences.  All the way back to the apostles, Jesus expected people with huge ideological differences of opinion to get along.  Matthew the publican and Simon the Zealot would never have eaten a Passover meal together until they both professed allegiance in something and Someone far bigger than their opinions.

          James makes it very clear in his epistle exactly where fighting comes from.  When we turn ourselves into gladiators against one another, when others of us watch from the sidelines, egging each one on and enjoying the battle, it is clear that our loyalty is to a master other than the Prince of Peace.
 
Who is wise and understanding among you? By his good conduct let him show his works in the meekness of wisdom. But if you have bitter jealousy and selfish ambition in your hearts, do not boast and be false to the truth. This is not the wisdom that comes down from above, but is earthly, unspiritual, and demonic. For where jealousy and selfish ambition exist, there will be disorder and every vile practice. But the wisdom from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, open to reason, full of mercy and good fruits, impartial and sincere. And a harvest of righteousness is sown in peace by those who make peace, James 3:13-18.
 
Dene Ward
 

Part 7 of a continuing Monday series.  If you have not been with us, you really need to backtrack and read the first 6.  Even if you have been, with a week off, it might help to reread at least the last couple.

            Remember those stop signs you made last week?  Run and get it before we start.  You are really going to need it this week.  And more than that you will need to be willing to examine what you truly believe and the words and phrases you commonly use. 

            First let me ask you this:  why do you pray?  Believe it or not, there is a theology out there that does not believe God will change His mind if you ask.  Now don’t be so quick to judge.  The word they use is “immutability,” which we often use ourselves, and which is NOT a Bible word. 

            First, let’s look at a few passages.  Will our prayers indeed influence God?

            In his discussion of the coming destruction of Jerusalem Jesus said, “Pray that your flight not be in winter or on a Sabbath,” Matt 24:20.

            He also says, “Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives, and the one who seeks finds, and to the one who knocks it will be opened. Or which one of you, if his son asks him for bread, will give him a stone? Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a serpent? If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father who is in heaven give good things to those who ask him! Matt 7:7-11.

            And he told them a parable to the effect that they ought always to pray and not lose heart. Luke 18:1.

            Jesus seemed to believe our prayers would make a difference in God’s actions.  The word “immutability,” though, means “beyond the ability to change.”  Add that to the word “omniscience,” also a word not found in the Bible, which means “knowledge of everything past, present, and future, and therefore never surprised,” and you get a doctrine that says since God knows everything, then He knows the best course of action and the right thing to do and any change would mean He had made a mistake.  That is mainstream theology.

            STOP!  You are sitting there getting ready to say, “Yes, but---“  Don’t.  Just listen, and more important, read what God has to say about Himself.

            In those days Hezekiah became sick and was at the point of death. And Isaiah the prophet the son of Amoz came to him and said to him, “Thus says the LORD, ‘Set your house in order, for you shall die; you shall not recover.’” Then Hezekiah turned his face to the wall and prayed to the LORD, saying, “Now, O LORD, please remember how I have walked before you in faithfulness and with a whole heart, and have done what is good in your sight.” And Hezekiah wept bitterly. And before Isaiah had gone out of the middle court, the word of the LORD came to him: “Turn back, and say to Hezekiah the leader of my people, Thus says the LORD, the God of David your father: I have heard your prayer; I have seen your tears. Behold, I will heal you. On the third day you shall go up to the house of the LORD, and I will add fifteen years to your life. I will deliver you and this city out of the hand of the king of Assyria, and I will defend this city for my own sake and for my servant David's sake.” 2Kgs 20:1-6.

            And I[God] thought, ‘After she has done all this she will return to me,’ but she did not return, and her treacherous sister Judah saw it. Jer 3:7.

            “‘I [God] said, How I would set you among my sons, and give you a pleasant land, a heritage most beautiful of all nations. And I thought you would call me, My Father, and would not turn from following me. ​Surely, as a treacherous wife leaves her husband, so have you been treacherous to me, O house of Israel, declares the LORD.’” Jer 3:19-20/

            And they have built the high places of Topheth, which is in the Valley of the Son of Hinnom, to burn their sons and their daughters in the fire, which I did not command, nor did it come into my mind. Jer 7:31.

          And have built the high places of Baal to burn their sons in the fire as burnt offerings to Baal, which I did not command or decree, nor did it come into my mind-- Jer 19:5.

          They built the high places of Baal in the Valley of the Son of Hinnom, to offer up their sons and daughters to Molech, though I did not command them, nor did it enter into my mind, that they should do this abomination, to cause Judah to sin. Jer 32:35.

          STOP!  You’re about to do it again, I know you are.  You are trying to explain away the plain statements of God about Himself.  What you are doing is trying to make an incomprehensible Being comprehensible to a human mind and that is the ultimate irreverence.  Guess what?  We are not finished yet.  This one will knock your socks off:

          He said, “Do not lay your hand on the boy or do anything to him, for now I know that you fear God, seeing you have not withheld your son, your only son, from me.” Gen 22:12.

          STOP!  Someone out there is thinking, “Are you trying to say…” I (and the teacher I sat under last summer) are not saying anything.  God is.  Do not tell God what He means to be saying and then call it respect.

          There are many, many times in the Bible that God says, “If.”  This one may be the most famous:

          Then the word of the LORD came to me: “O house of Israel, can I not do with you as this potter has done? declares the LORD. Behold, like the clay in the potter's hand, so are you in my hand, O house of Israel. If at any time I declare concerning a nation or a kingdom, that I will pluck up and break down and destroy it, and if that nation, concerning which I have spoken, turns from its evil, I will relent of the disaster that I intended to do to it. And if at any time I declare concerning a nation or a kingdom that I will build and plant it, and if it does evil in my sight, not listening to my voice, then I will relent of the good that I had intended to do to it. Jer 18:5-10.

          Here is the conclusion of all this; God always bases His action on men’s behavior.  And that means not everything is set in stone.  Even God says so.  When you try to push these un-Biblical words on people and define them so strictly, then you wind up with doctrines never taught in the Bible.  And when you do, you wind up with things that are totally inexplicable, like the following passage.

          David knew that Saul was plotting harm against him. And he said to Abiathar the priest, “Bring the ephod here.” Then David said, “O LORD, the God of Israel, your servant has surely heard that Saul seeks to come to Keilah, to destroy the city on my account. Will the men of Keilah surrender me into his hand? Will Saul come down, as your servant has heard? O LORD, the God of Israel, please tell your servant.” And the LORD said, “He will come down.” Then David said, “Will the men of Keilah surrender me and my men into the hand of Saul?” And the LORD said, “They will surrender you.” Then David and his men, who were about six hundred, arose and departed from Keilah, and they went wherever they could go. When Saul was told that David had escaped from Keilah, he gave up the expedition. 1Sam 23:9-13.

          Oops!  God said something was going to happen and it didn’t.  Why?  Because men’s behavior changed what happened.  When we force things on our understanding of God, we always get into trouble.  Better to let God tell us how He acts and thinks, and keep from putting both our feet into our mouths hip-deep. 

          Keep your stop sign handy.  There is more to come.
 
Dene Ward

I am a crossword puzzle enthusiast—a cruciverbalist, but that is not the extent of the word games I enjoy.  One of my favorites involves making as many words as possible out of one larger word—not anagrams exactly, which use every letter of the word and are small in number, but using the letters of the word only as many times as the original word uses them and making as many other words as possible, three letters or larger, not counting plurals, past tense, or other obvious derivatives. 

            For example, how many other words can you make out of the word “jealousy?”  Sea, use, you, soul, say, aloes, lose, louse, yea, seal, joules, lea, sole, jay, lay, say, soy—and that’s just off the top of my head typing as fast as I can.  But how about this one—joy?  Seems a little ironic, doesn’t it, that you can make joy out of jealousy?

            A lot of people get those two mixed up.  In times where we should be “rejoicing with those who rejoice,” we find ourselves feeling just a tinge of jealousy.  Why did he get that promotion and not me?  Why is she being lauded from the pulpit and not me?  Why do people run to them for advice when I am just as smart/experienced/knowledgeable/ wise, etc.?  And that green-eyed monster gradually takes over, turning us into its willing minion.  We can easily think of reasons that other person does not deserve this and spread it to whomever will listen, causing us to ignore our own blessings, steeping ourselves in ingratitude that gradually becomes bitterness, not just against the other person, but at life in general. 

            Elizabeth is the best example I know of someone who got it right.  She took what could have been a cause for jealousy and changed it into a cause for joy.

            Zacharias and Elizabeth had made it to old age without having children.  According to Lenski, Elizabeth was probably looked down on as someone who had somehow displeased God—that was the general attitude toward barren women.  Finally, after years of waiting, probably with a multitude of prayers, Zacharias came home with the good news—albeit written down, since he could no longer speak:  “We are going to be parents!”  And not only that, but this child will be special—he will be the promised Elijah spoken of in Malachi.

            Then lo and behold, six months later, along comes her teenage cousin with even better news.  She too, is pregnant, and is blessed to bear the Messiah.  What?!  Elizabeth has been waiting for decades.  She is older and wiser.  She has been the faithful wife of a priest, and borne the ridicule of an ignorant culture, blaming her for her own misfortune.  And she gets the Forerunner while this child who has scarcely lived long enough to even be considered faithful, who is fertile (in this culture the family would know her menstrual history) and will probably (and ultimately did) bare more than half a dozen children, this girl gets the Messiah?  How fair is that?

            But Elizabeth had the grateful attitude and the abiding Messianic hope of a faithful child of God.  In those days Mary arose and went with haste into the hill country, to a town in Judah, and she entered the house of Zacharias and greeted Elizabeth. And when Elizabeth heard the greeting of Mary, the baby leaped in her womb. And Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit, and she exclaimed with a loud cry, “Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb! And why is this granted to me that the mother of my Lord should come to me? Luke 1:39-43.

            Not only is she excited for Mary, she humbles herself before a younger woman, one with far less experience and far less service on her record—she simply hadn’t lived long enough to do much yet.  And her joy?  It was not a feigned, polite joy, but a joy so overwhelming that “the babe leaped in her womb for joy” v 44.  I am told that “leap for joy” is one Greek word, the same one used in verse 40, quoted earlier.  It is a sympathetic joy.  In other words, Elizabeth was so moved with joy that it caused her unborn child to move within her.  Every mother understands how her own emotions can affect her unborn baby, in the last trimester especially.  Elizabeth’s joy for her young cousin was that deep and moving.  Jealousy never entered her heart for a second.

            How does that match with statements like, “He gets to lead singing more than my husband;” “My husband hasn’t been asked to teach in a long time;” “How can he be an elder when my husband is just as good as he is and no one has asked him.” 

            Oh yes, it happens.  And it should not.  If we are all members of the same body, then if one member suffers, all suffer together; if one member is honored, all rejoice together. 1Cor 12:26. 

            Love “envies not” 1 Cor 13:4.  When you do envy, you do not love as you are commanded to.  Jealousy and envy are works of the flesh (Gal 5:20,21).  Those who practice them “will not inherit the kingdom of God.”  Check yourself on this.  Has your speech given you away?
T
            oo many of us get this backwards.  We rejoice when bad things happen to others and weep when good things happen to them.  What about you?
 
If we live by the Spirit, let us also keep in step with the Spirit. Let us not become conceited, provoking one another, envying one another. Gal 5:25-26
 
Dene Ward
 

Cursed be the day on which I was born! The day when my mother bore me, let it not be blessed! Cursed be the man who brought the news to my father, “A son is born to you,” making him very glad. Let that man be like the cities that the LORD overthrew without pity; let him hear a cry in the morning and an alarm at noon, ​because he did not kill me in the womb; so my mother would have been my grave, and her womb forever great. ​Why did I come out from the womb to see toil and sorrow, and spend my days in shame? Jer 20:14-18.

               I can remember times when Keith knew he had to confront someone, either about their lives or their teaching.  I remember how quiet he became before he left the house, how pensive he looked, his inability to eat or laugh or even smile, and the amount of time he kept to himself in a back room with the door shut, praying. 
           
            A preacher’s job is not an easy one.  Look at Jeremiah in the passage above.  This man was vilified, threatened, imprisoned and virtually kidnapped all because he preached the message God sent him to preach.  And he knew what was coming—because it always has come since the days of Noah’s ridicule to now.  Especially now, when the world, and often the brethren, have deemed that the worst crime of all is to hurt someone’s feelings by telling him he is wrong. But a man who has dedicated himself to the Word of God cannot turn from his God-given mission.

            The Spirit lifted me up and took me away, and I went in bitterness in the heat of my spirit, the hand of the LORD being strong upon me. Ezek 3:14.  God told Ezekiel from the beginning that his was a hopeless task.  The people would not listen.  They would be “hard-headed,” and to help Ezekiel, He would make him just as stubborn as they.  But still he did not want to go.  He went “in bitterness of spirit.”  Yet this man, of all the prophets to God’s people, was probably the most successful.  Pay attention:  success does not make it any easier.  It was years before Ezekiel was respected by his countrymen, and then only after he was proven correct by the fulfillment of his prophecy.  In all the years before he was a nutcase, a lunatic, at best a fanatic who was woefully misled. 

            Amos was flat out told to leave.  “Go home, you country bumpkin and preach there.”  And Amos replies, “Hey!  This wasn’t my idea…”
Then Amos answered and said to Amaziah, “I was no prophet, nor a prophet's son, but I was a herdsman and a dresser of sycamore figs. But the LORD took me from following the flock, and the LORD said to me, ‘Go, prophesy to my people Israel.’ Amos 7:14-16a

            Of all places for God to send this unsophisticated southerner, the urban capital of the northern kingdom, where people lived in luxury and only listened to prophets who praised them really stretches the understanding.  But God knows what we need better than we do, and those folks needed a plain-spoken man of justice whose objectivity might possibly reach a few.

             So let me leave you with a couple of thoughts.

            When the preacher comes to see you, or when he simply preaches a tough sermon that steps on your toes, be kind.  He is not “out to get you.”  He does not want to hurt your feelings.  What he wants to do is obey His God and save both your soul and his.  It was not easy for him to say, or preach, what he did.  Give him the benefit of a doubt.  Appreciate what he went through before he even got there, and the fact that he cares enough about you to say anything at all.

            And remember—this isn’t just the preacher’s responsibility.  It’s yours too.  Brothers, if anyone is caught in any transgression, you who are spiritual should restore him in a spirit of gentleness. Keep watch on yourself, lest you too be tempted. Gal 6:1.  If you are a child of God, you will be putting yourself on the line too.  Just remember what it cost you as you fulfilled the mission when the preacher stands in the pulpit.  He does it every Sunday, and every other day of the week when you are not even aware.
 
My brothers, if anyone among you wanders from the truth and someone brings him back, let him know that whoever brings back a sinner from his wandering will save his soul from death and will cover a multitude of sins. Jas 5:19-20
 
Dene Ward

The first thing we had to do in my freshman music theory class was to memorize the types of melodic curves and find examples of each.  Talk about 101—if you used the note heads in the music as a connect-the-dot drawing, you had the shape right there in front of you.  You want a “falling line?”  The first line of the Habanera from Carmen is a perfect example.  You want a “bowl?”  Sing “Joy to the World.”  How about a “rising wave?”  Chopin’s Nocturne in E flat fills the bill.  All the other curves are just as easy to identify.  Even if you cannot read the music, you can do it.

            I have been thinking about melodic line a lot lately.  I think it has something do with some of those modern hymns we sing.  You know the ones.  You rumble down in the bottom of your range where you have absolutely no power at all for the whole verse, then immediately jump to the top of your range for the chorus, where the only way you can sing it (if, like me, you are getting long in the tooth and your range is the only part of your body that is shrinking) is to screech.  I have developed my own term for those songs—it’s a “grovel then soar” melodic curve.

            As a general rule, I am not crazy about those songs because they are so difficult to sing safely, but in a never ending search for ways to get the most out of them, I have decided that at least they remind me of my life before and after Christ.  You wallow around in the pit of sin until you finally reach the point that you know you need help.  So you fall prostrate before a Lord who offers you mercy and yes, you grovel before him because you have finally lost all that pride.  Then, because of his grace and your gratitude, you soar.  You soar over the sins that used to mire you down, you soar over the god of self that kept you pinned to this physical life, and eventually you soar with your Savior to a better place forever.  No more wallowing, no more groveling, no more weights to tie you down; you are free to skyrocket as high as you let your Lord take you.

            In music, this works best when the distinction is greatest.  The lower the “groveling” notes, the more the “soaring” notes affect the listener.  I am afraid it works best that way in your heart as well.  If you don’t realize how low your sins have sunk you and how much you need the Lord, you will never soar as high as you should.  That Pharisee who stood in the synagogue thanking God for how righteous he was never really understood how much he needed mercy.  So, Jesus sadly says, he went home unforgiven.  We, also, are prone to think we deserve salvation, especially when we have been Christians for awhile, especially when we have “grown up in the church.”  It shows when we question God for the pain in our lives, when we fail to preach to any but those we think “deserve” our attention, and when we refuse to forgive others for the wrongs they have done us.

            So use those difficult songs as I do.  The next time you sing them, remember:  You aren’t forgiven until you repent.  You cannot soar until you grovel.  And you won’t do that until you recognize your own need for mercy. 
 
But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ--by grace you have been saved--and raised us up with him and seated us with him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, so that in the coming ages he might show the immeasurable riches of his grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus, Eph 2:4-7.      

 Dene Ward

We started last winter with a nearly empty woodpile—not a good thing when you depend on wood heat, even in Florida.  So Keith has spent several weekends cutting deadfall from friends’ and neighbors’ property.  Since he no longer has the live-in help he had for 20 years, it has taken him far longer than ever before.  Do you want to know how he stays in such good shape?  Just rely on your own brawn to heat the house one winter and you will see why he can still outwork most men half his age.  Once he cuts it and hauls it back to the house, he still has to split it.  Even working a little every evening after he comes home from work, much remains to be done, and he hasn’t even started stacking it on the racks.        

            So I decided to help out.  I work a half hour several mornings a week, moving the wood to the first rack.  Much more and I might be endangering what little health is left in my eyes due to bending over and lifting.  Seasoned wood is fairly light and, in two months, a little at a time—in this case, very little--I have managed to safely move several stacks of wood to the first rack.  It also gives me a little outdoor time with the dogs, and a little more exercise than an elliptical machine.

            Yet I could have moved much more in the same amount of time if I had not had to be so careful.  Real wood from real trees is not perfectly shaped and sized.  It has knots, it has stubs from limbs chopped off, and it is often curved at odd angles.  When I put a log on the stack, I have to carefully push on it, moving my hand sidewise to see if anything will cause it to shift.  The last thing you want is for the whole pile to fall down on you when you take one log off the top.  It is almost like putting together a puzzle, finding just the right piece to fit in the spot the last couple of logs made, but because it could be dangerous to be careless, you take the time to do it right.

            That’s the way it is when God fits us all into his church.  None of us is perfect by any means.  None of us will suit everyone’s notion of the ideal Christian.  Some of us have knots.  Most of us have stubs where we cut off our past sins.  Yet God expects us to fit ourselves in, to fit each other in, no matter what we think of each other.

            Surely none of us has had a Saul walk into his meetinghouse to “place membership.”  This was a man who laid waste the church, entering into every house, and dragging men and women… to prison Acts 8:3.  He both shut up many of the saints in prisons, having received authority from the chief priests, and when they were put to death… gave [his] vote against them, Acts 26:10.  He persecuted the church of God, and made havoc of it, Gal 1:13.  Maybe you can, but I cannot say I would have easily accepted him if my family were among the tortured and dead.  It would have taken a lot of faith, a lot of strength, and a lot of help from others for me to hug the new Christian and welcome him with open arms.  It would have taken someone like Barnabas to get me past it.  And when he was come to Jerusalem, he assayed to join himself to the disciples: and they were all afraid of him, not believing that he was a disciple. But Barnabas took him, and brought him to the apostles, and declared unto them how he had seen the Lord in the way, and that he had spoken to him, and how at Damascus he had preached boldly in the name of Jesus, Acts 9:26,27. 

            We look at those people who managed to accept a former enemy, and not only accept him, but support him and his work, and for some reason we cannot accept a man because we don’t like his sense of humor?  Because we think he is a little rough around the edges?  We cannot accept a woman because she doesn’t have our definition of “class?”  Because she has an odd belief or two?  God expects us to accept one another.  He is the one who adds to the church, not we.  Maybe we need to carefully fit people in, finding mentors who can help, just as Barnabas helped Saul, but that doesn’t mean we just ignore new Christians because they don’t suit our standards. 

            Paul told the Roman brethren, May the God of endurance and encouragement grant you to live in such harmony with one another, in accord with Christ Jesus that together you may with one voice glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.  Therefore welcome one another as Christ has welcomed you, for the glory of God, Rom 15:5-7.  I think it is strongly implied that if we do not welcome each other, God will not welcome us either.

            God is stacking his wood pile, carefully fitting each of us into the places where we belong.  We do not have a choice who our spiritual family is.  We must learn to ignore things that rub us the wrong way, instead of assuming the Divine role of deciding who can and cannot be our brother. God expects us to fit together like a jigsaw puzzle, perhaps for us to even lop off a corner to make another fit.  He accepted us that way, and every brother deserves that consideration from us.
 
I am a companion of all who fear you, and of those who keep your precepts, Psa 119:63.
 
Dene Ward

The majority of my piano students stayed with me through their senior year of high school.  Since I expected few if any to become performers (only one actually makes his living that way these days), I rewarded each with a senior recital, their only chance to feel the adrenaline rush of performance and the exhilaration of applause.  Formal attire, printed programs, a reception, and every performance experience including introductions, intermissions, curtain calls, and enough audience plants to ensure the need for an encore.

            From my own experiences I gave them helpful advice on things I knew they would never think of otherwise.  No hand or arm jewelry, no long, floppy sleeves, no long dangling earrings—you’d be amazed how much motion you can get in those things.

            Carry a small absorbent cloth when you go out, something you can wrap your hand around easily, and keep it on the piano bench next to you, on the side away from the audience.  Nervous hands can sweat more than you ever dreamed possible.

            Practice bowing.  A perfect performance can be marred by a beautiful young woman who looks like one of the plastic birds perched on the edge of a cup bouncing its beak up and down into the water, or by the loopy, big-eyed look of a young man trying to watch the audience while he bows--always make your eyes find the floor space between your feet to avoid that.

            Practice with your formal clothes on, including jewelry and shoes.  Pedaling can turn into a nightmare with the wrong shoes, and jackets that are tight across the back can impede motion and ruin a beautiful piece of music.

            The last two weeks, always practice your pieces in the order you plan to play them.  It can be disorienting when you are already nervous and an ear that is used to one order suddenly hears it all in another.  During the last week, close every practice session with one complete run-through, never stopping for an error, but training yourself to cover the best you can.

            Finally, have at least two dress rehearsals, including walking on and off (in the same direction you will that night), bowing, taking curtain calls, and announcing an encore.  Professional performers don’t need these things, of course, but once-in-a-life-timers do.  The silliest things can trip you up if you are not prepared for them.

           Wouldn’t it be great if we had dress rehearsals for life?  We could try out different ways of handling problems and choose the best.  We could correct our mistakes or find clever ways to hide them.  We could plan ahead for every possible eventuality and even choose the order of events.

            No, we don’t get a run-through.  We seldom get second chances.  Most of the time our mistakes are open for all to see, and we must live with the consequences.

            But there is a life manual and there are good people to advise you.  It is not always necessary to learn things on your own—which usually means “the hard way.”  In fact, the Bible says only a “fool” insists on learning in that manner.  Smart people listen to those who have been there before.  They can tell you that a clunky shoe can slip off a pedal with a noisy thunk in the middle of your soft, cantabile passage.  They can warn you about heavy cuff links clicking on the keys.  They can remind you to always make sure the hem of your formal gown is NOT under your heels before you stand up! 

           Actually, they will be telling you about other things—things which can make your life a whole lot easier if you will just listen.  It’s the closest thing to a dress rehearsal you will ever get.  Make good use of it.
 
The way of a fool is right in his own eyes, but a wise man listens to advice. Where there is no counsel, purposes are disappointed; but in the multitude of counselors they are established. Listen to advice and accept instruction, that you may gain wisdom in the future, Prov 12:15; 15:22; 19:20.
 
Dene Ward
 

One year the state music teachers’ convention was held in my district.  Somehow I found myself in charge of the name tags and the registration desk.  Since I did not know most of the people, my standard greeting was, “Welcome to Gainesville.  What’s your name please?”  Then I riffled through a couple of shoeboxes containing the laminated name tags that we hung around our necks.

            The second afternoon a man in his thirties came bustling up to the desk.  His expensive suit was sharp, and probably custom tailored since it fit his rounded figure without a pull or pucker anywhere.  He was well-groomed and carried a leather portfolio that also bespoke of money.  Not your typical music teacher, I thought.  Most of us are clean and tidy, but few of us dress like lawyers.

            He stood before me, but couldn’t be bothered to actually look at me.  Instead, he looked around at the passersby and intoned, “And do you have a name tag for me?” in a deep, full-of-himself voice.

            “I don’t know,” I answered.  “Who are you?”

            Then he looked at me—with an incredulous, wide-eyed stare.  At last lowly little music-teacher-me had gotten his attention.  When he told me his name, I managed to keep a straight face.  He was one of the university professors who also performs on the concert stage.  He had won some international competitions.  In fact, I recognized his name, I had just never seen him in person. 

            That afternoon when the rush had calmed at the table, I told a couple of my friends about my faux pas.  They both laughed.  “Good,” they said.  “He needed that.”

            Do we need something similar?  The Proverb writer says it like this:  Do you see a man who is wise in his own eyes? There is more hope for a fool than for him, 26:12. 

            Why is it we think so well of ourselves?   Paul reminded the Corinthians, For who sees anything different in you? What do you have that you did not receive? If then you received it, why do you boast as if you did not receive it? 1 Cor 4:7.  So you have a gift for speaking, for singing, for teaching, for welcoming visitors—any special ability.  You wouldn’t have that gift if God hadn’t given it to you, so what are you bragging about?

            Why is it we feel so compelled to remind people of our successes?  Why must we pat ourselves on the back whenever the opportunity arises, recounting all our various experiences as examples of wisdom for all to learn from?  We couldn’t have done any of it by ourselves.

            Sometimes those things are used as excuses.  Maybe I didn’t do well this time, but in the past you should have seen all I did for the Lord.  Or, I know I shouldn’t be bragging, but no one else seems to notice what I’ve done. 

            God notices.  Who else should we care about?  Let the one who boasts, boast in the Lord. For it is not the one who commends himself who is approved, but the one whom the Lord commends, 2 Cor 10:17,18.

            I think this happens most with age.  As older men and women teaching the younger, we must be careful how we come across.  It isn’t an episode of “This Is Your Life,” where we can boast about all the wonderful things we have done in the past, careful to leave out the bad examples, of course.  It’s about edifying and encouraging others.  That attitude must always be with us.

            Don’t worry if people don’t know who you are and what you have done.  God holds the name tags, and he won’t have to ask who you are.
 
For by the grace given to me I say to everyone among you not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think, but to think with sober judgment, each according to the measure of faith that God has assigned. Rom 12:3
 
Dene Ward
 

Saul/Paul of Tarsus Yesterday at 8:00 am:
            Hoo boy! Time for another day among people who don’t even care about God.  Why did this mission get put off on me?

Saul/Paul of Tarsus Yesterday at 12 pm
            Well, we got run out of another synagogue.  On to the next town, but I haven’t had a decent meal in three days.  And can anyone please find me the nearest Stella-cerva coffee bar?

Saul/Paul of Tarsus Yesterday at 3 pm
            Did you hear what Proditor of Seleucia did to us?  How can he claim to be on our side and speak out against us like that?  It’s hard enough what we must bear without a traitor among us.  No one understands what it is like to have this job and what it demands of you.

Saul/Paul of Tarsus Yesterday at 5 pm
           The government and everyone in it is corrupt.  I can tell you a few things I heard when I was in prison.  The guards talked to one another all the time and all we prisoners overheard everything.  One time…(See more)

Saul/Paul of Tarsus Yesterday at 7 pm
            Here is more proof of what I have been saying about those Roman senators.  Go to this link to see for yourself: http:Allpoliticiansshould(bleep).  (Sorry about all the foul language you have to navigate, but this is really good.)

Saul/Paul of Tarsus Yesterday at 9 pm
            The end of another long day and little to show for it.  I am not sure I can take much more of this.  Surely twelve hours a day is enough to give to this thankless task.

Saul/Paul of Tarsus 12 hrs ago
            Here we go again.  And I had little sleep because John needed some counseling at 2 am.  Seems he is not sure he can handle any more.  What a wimp.  So now I have to write two epistles and get together a new synagogue sermon on little if any sleep at all because of his selfish waste of my time.

Saul/Paul of Tarsus 10 hrs ago
            Now what?  Have you all heard the latest from Corinth?  Can’t these immature brats get anything right?  It’s not about me, me, me, people.  In fact, maybe the few of you who are on my side need to head across town and start a new congregation.

Saul/Paul of Tarsus 8 hrs ago
            What?  No comments on that last one?  Surely you see how wrong they are.  If you do, let me hear from you!

Saul/Paul of Tarsus 6 hrs ago
            Oh, so now I am being too harsh?   True believers won’t let something like this pass without comment.  If you are real Christians, copy and paste this to your page.  We’ll find out who is truly faithful to God.

Saul/Paul of Tarsus 5 hrs ago
           Here’s a fun pic of me and the guys taking a quick dip down at the river.  We’d already gotten wet baptizing people, so we just chucked the robes and had a good time.  Everyone deserves some fun! : )

Saul/Paul of Tarsus 4 hrs ago
            Here I am trying to spread the Word as hard as I possibly can and all I get is criticism.  Really people.  Someone find me an Stella-cerva coffee bar ASAP!  I won’t get through this ordeal without one.

Saul/Paul of Tarsus 3 hrs ago
            All right.  I’ve had it.  I am a Roman citizen.  I do not deserve to be treated the way they are treating me.  Everyone meet me at the agora at dawn tomorrow and we will show this government exactly what we think of it.

Saul/Paul of Tarsus 2 hrs ago
            I am so tired.  No one has to put up with the things I have to put up with.  Can’t you all take care of yourselves for a change?  Do you really expect love and encouragement from someone who has so little and has sacrificed so much?  It’s not fair!

Saul/Paul of Tarsus 1 hr ago--
          Was that really necessary Peter?  After all, you are a Gentile-hating hypocrite.  Keep your criticisms to yourself.

Saul/Paul of Tarsus 30 min
            Nearing the end of another 12 hour day and I did not accomplish a thing.  Does anyone have any idea why?
 
            If there had been such a thing as social media in the first century, Paul would never have used it in those ways.  So why do I see these sorts of things from people I know are Christians?  Why do I see whining and “poor little me?”  Why do I see diatribes against brothers and sisters?  Why do I see posts designed to cause an uproar, and the writers then sitting there all day to gloat over it?  Why do I see people railing against the government they are supposed to obey and respect whether they agree with it or not?  Why do I see pictures of Christians in scanty clothing, doing questionable activities and passing along items with crude and vulgar language on nearly every line?  And why do I see idlers who cannot seem to get anything profitable done because they are posting all day long?

            If Paul were alive, how would he use social media?  Just look at his epistles, the social media of his day.  He edified.  He encouraged.  He counseled.  He commended brothers and sisters to one another.  Yes he did rebuke, sometimes harshly, but even then with the design to save souls not to exalt himself.  Yes, he did talk about some of his ordeals, but the percentage was minuscule and always with the purpose to teach and admonish.  Yes, he did ask for prayers, not because he deserved them but so he could continue to preach the gospel.  Yes, he did pass along personal information and requests (“Bring me the parchments,” etc.), but always with a humble attitude, not as a petty tyrant abusing his authority.  He never for a minute sowed discord among brothers.  Instead he told us all to do as he did:  be willing to take wrong for the good of the gospel.  His sacrifices were willingly given and never resented.  He knew others sacrificed as well and never put himself above them, even though he probably could have.

            So maybe we should consider this:  If Paul wouldn’t post it, maybe we shouldn’t either.
 
Whether therefore you eat, or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God. Give no occasion of stumbling, either to Jews, or to Greeks, or to the church of God: even as I also please all men in all things, not seeking mine own profit, but the profit of the many, that they may be saved. 1Cor 10:31-33
 
Dene Ward