Thursday, 27 May 2010
When A Father’s Heart Has Turned To God 
Last month’s article was about the disciplining of our children’s hearts. Only when we do this will our children become true warriors for God. But how do fathers reach the hearts of their wives and children? We must have our hearts turned toward God and “Keep (our) heart with all diligence, for out of it spring the issues of life” (Proverbs 4:23). We must understand that it is through Christ that our hearts are turned toward our families (Malachi 4:4-6, Luke 1:16-17), and we must have a genuine, heart-relationship with God. Only then can we understand and care for the hearts of our families.
It is interesting to note in Malachi 4:4-6 that fathers turning their hearts to their children (and home) was going to be the sign of the times with respect to the Son of God coming down from Heaven. In addition, it is the dad’s heart that was turned first. So what does it mean for us as men to turn our hearts to family and children? It is very similar to a person’s repentance in Acts 2:38. It means to take a step back, re-examine our lives, determine if we are living according to God’s will or our own, and changing our minds for the better.
How many of us fathers do not have our hearts turned toward God, home, and family? I have been told that an American father spends an average of six minutes per day with his children, 35 seconds of which is undivided attention. While more time spent with family does not equal a stronger heart bond, only with time will a heart bond be formed. We see God outlining this family plan in Deuteronomy 6.
Our wives and children must know that they are special to us and that they are made in God’s image. We fathers must admit that those whom God has entrusted to us get some of their sense of worth based on how we interact with them. We must dedicate ourselves to this to counter the many in society who see wives and children as a burden. I don’t care for jokes made about large families—you know, with more than three kids, as if such could ONLY be accidental and not joyfully deliberate. The American culture with its urbanization, industrialization, transportation, consumerism, and feminism (along with other issues) has contributed to fathers losing the hearts of their children and wives by turning fathers away both directly and indirectly. These things can cause families to think and act like disconnected individuals. They are separate people with separate goals living in the same house, instead of one united family striving together toward Heaven.
Men sadly cultivate this weakness when their time is spent in pursuit of their own goals and dreams, when their families are pushed to the side, or when they are engaged in their own forms of entertainment and enjoyment to the neglect of their families. It is also cultivated when we lose our temper, become enraged, or try to control through intimidation (Colossians 3:21, James 1:19-20). So many times it appears that our own pride and selfishness causes this splintering of families.
Have we lost the hearts of our wives and children and have yet to realize it? How can we know? The answer is simple: Where do they turn when they hunger for attention, or seek guidance and counsel? Do they come to you Dad? Do they speak unkindly of you in public to their friends or relatives or with respect? Do they come to you seeking God’s answers because they see Him living in you? Do they ask you to pray to the Father in Heaven for them?
Our role as fathers is in no way to replace God as He is their Heavenly Father, but it is our responsibility to exemplify God and live our lives according to the standard and pattern set out in Scripture. If we are unsure how to do this, we simply need to reread the descriptions of the crucifixion and study Ephesians 5:23-33 where the relationship between Christ and the church is related to a man and wife. Then we must apply those principles in our families.
I want to say one last thing: The very writing of this article has helped to remind me of what I want for my family. It helped me to refocus and redirect my life towards God and home. I hope it will do the same for you.
Posted on 05/27/2010 2:58 PM by David W. Longley, DO
Thursday, 27 May 2010
Having looked into the tearful eyes of parents whose children have abandoned the Faith, I have learned there are a million miles between our children “going through the motions” in reference to their spiritual lives versus our children possessing hearts that dictate their actions. In this column, I plan to share with you what I hope to instill in the hearts of my own children and those whom I love.
It is refreshing and a blessing that young children are color blind. Spend a few minutes at a local park and watch small children playing together—they don’t notice skin color. Children are quick to accept and quick to identify their new playmate as a “friend,” but slow to notice color. Sadly, by age 7-10, children begin to notice, as witnessed by changes in behavior. Whether this perception is initiated from parents or other children is not clear, but these “differences” are sometimes translated into how they treat one another.
This difference often becomes more noticeable in adults—sometimes even within the church. Sadly, some congregations remain deliberately segregated. While we preach about diversity and everyone having a special role in the body of Christ, we may not always promote or celebrate diversity—because for many it is not comfortable. It would be a shame if pulpits heralded messages about loving all people, while dark hallways echoed the sounds of racial slurs and jokes. It is possible for Christians to use terms like “brothers and sisters in the faith,” while treating individuals of different color like “step-families.”
Teens will see this dichotomy if they hear people promoting equality while they witness deliberate segregation in the church. They will listen and know that the words of Christians don’t necessarily match their actions. Perhaps through the years many congregations have been mentally labeled “hypocrites” by teens who find this behavior repugnant.
Here’s what I intend on teaching my children about skin color and racism.
There is no question that the Bible teaches there is only one race—the human race. God created mankind in His image and in His likeness (Genesis 1:26-27). Humans were the pinnacle of His creative activities. The Bible clearly states that all of the lineage of humanity came through one woman, Eve. She is defined as the “mother of all living” (Genesis 3:20). Never forget that we are all related—going back first to Noah and his family (Genesis 7:7,13; 1 Peter 3:20), and ultimately to Adam and Eve (Genesis 2).
Whatever the color of someone’s skin, remember that he has a soul that is precious to God. Never forget that God desires all men to be saved (1 Timothy 2:4). During your life you will hear individuals—even Christians—begin conversations by saying, “I’m not racist, but…” But what?! Paul declared, “There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is neither male nor female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus. And if you are Christ’s, then you are Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to the promise” (Galatians 3:28-29).
When David—one of your favorite Biblical heroes—was about to be anointed the next king, we learned in reference to his brother, “Do not look at his appearance or at his physical stature, because I have refused him. For the Lord does not see as man sees;for man looks at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart’” (1 Samuel 16:7). I pray that you will do likewise and look inward instead of outward.
There may be times you hear Christians whom you admire of one color or another utter hateful generalizations against people of a different color. I encourage you not to give ear to this kind of talk. One wonders if these individuals secretly believe (or hope) that there will be a Heaven for each individual race? Never forget Christ is the Savior of all people—no matter what their skin looks like. Do what you can to bridge mankind together. Don’t allow the hypocrisy of others to turn you away from your Creator. I pray that you will teach your children that there really is only one race. While you don’t remember it today, there were many nights that you were rocked to sleep with me or your mom singing, “Jesus loves the little children, All the children of the world, Red and yellow, black and white, they are precious in His sight. Jesus loves the little children of the world.” Live it and pass it on.
Love,
Dad
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Posted on 05/27/2010 2:56 PM by Dr. Brad Harrub
Thursday, 27 May 2010
Counseling without a Ph.D.
A member of our congregation revealed to my husband that she had been sexually abused as a child. He didn’t feel comfortable counseling women about sexual abuse, and encouraged me to talk with her. I complained about my lack of training. He insisted my past experience qualified me to counsel her, since I had found healing in the Scriptures.
My first counseling session involved simply listening to her, sharing my experience, crying, hugging, and sharing some Scriptures. I prayed and encouraged her to find her own “medicine” from the Bible. Soon there followed other women who revealed similar past hurts. Some hadn’t told a soul in thirty or more years! It was soon clear that this one “session” was not enough.
Statistics say that 1 in 4 women have been sexually abused in their lifetime {http://www.prevent_abuse_now.com/stats.htm#Allegations}. There is a great need for prepared counselors. Yes, this often falls to the preacher’s wife, but others can do it. Any faithful Christian in the congregation can fill this void. Galatians tells us to fulfill the law of Christ by bearing each other’s burdens (6:2).
I began to study the Scriptures to find more that would help these women in need. Here is what I discovered.
1. Anyone can be qualified to counsel.
2 Peter 1:3 says we have been given “...all things which pertain to life and godliness.” Do we believe that? If we do, the answers to life’s problems are in there. We must search the Scriptures for the answers. We can be God’s workmen, “thoroughly furnished unto every good work” (2 Timothy 2:15; 3:17). Life is not without troubles and strife for any of us. God is the Creator and He knows the trials we go through. Help can be found within His life manual.
2. She needs to know she is not alone.
There are women included in the Scripture who were abused. They are likely mentioned with a purpose to teach of the evil in this world. Two are Dinah in Genesis 34 and Tamar in 2 Samuel 13.
3. She needs to know she is guiltless in this matter.
Often an abused woman feels guilty as if she committed sin herself. Sometimes her abuser even tells her so. God was very clear in the Law of Moses about this: “But if a man find a betrothed damsel in the field, and the man force her, and lie with her, then the man only that lay with her shall die; But unto the damsel thou shalt do nothing, there is in the damsel no sin worthy of death...” (Deuteronomy 22:25-27, KJV). We are no longer under the Old Law, but this plainly shows God’s thoughts on the matter.
4. She needs a Savior’s love.
It is difficult for an abused woman to feel worthy of love, especially the love of God. Remembering daily that Christ died for her helps her to feel special, but it may take some time for the words to sink in. Hold her hand and pray with her, asking God to help her see Christ’s love.
5. She needs a Father’s love.
There is a story of a little girl who had cut herself. For whatever reason, the doctors could not administer anesthesia. The girl looked at her father and said, “Will you hold my hand? I think I’ll be okay, if you just hold my hand.” In my own trials, I would pray and picture myself curled up into my Father’s lap with His arms around me. It is a wonderful feeling to feel protection as a child of God.
6. When her abuser asks forgiveness, she needs to forgive and let go of anger.
Forgiveness is a serious matter. Jesus included it in His model prayer and told a parable about the punishment of an unforgiving servant, finishing with: “So likewise shall My heavenly Father do also unto you, if ye from your hearts forgive not every one his brother their trespasses” (Matthew 18:35, KJV). It is important to forgive others. It is a choice that often takes time. As we go through life, we may think we have finally forgiven that person, but then a situation arises and anger will reappear. We must choose again to forgive and pray for strength. It is significant that Jesus says, “Until seventy times seven” (Matthew 18:22).
7. She needs to know the power of prayer.
A friend counseled me by quoting Jesus‘ words, “But I say unto you, Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you” (Matthew 5:44). He challenged me to pray for my abuser. At first it was difficult to even mention his name in my prayers, but it wasn’t long before my anger was replaced with genuine concern over his welfare. I wanted him to become a Christian and know God’s forgiveness. Prayer changes things (James 1:6).
8. She needs to help others.
The New Testament has many Scriptures that tell us that we should “bear one another’s burdens” or “admonish one another.” Jesus told the parable of the Good Samaritan that reminds us to help our neighbor in need. For the woman with the wounded heart this is especially necessary. It is easy to keep the focus on herself and “wallow” in self-pity (or a gallon of ice cream). At some point she must come to a place where she’s firmly planted on God’s solid rock and can reach down to pull someone else up from the depths of despair.
This article is just a bit of all that God has to say to hurting women. I pray that this is a beginning to help you be prepared to help those around you.
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Posted on 05/27/2010 2:54 PM by Dawn Pasley
Thursday, 27 May 2010
The Book’s the Difference
The Scopes “Monkey” Trial of 1925 could not have happened without the influence of Fundamentalism. When I use this word with an uppercase F, I refer specifically to an American religious movement that rallied behind a series of publications known as The Fundamentals (1910-1915). A total of twelve inexpensive volumes covered a variety of topics ranging from the inerrancy of Scripture to the doctrine of atonement. A further defense of premillennial dispensationalism set Fundamentalists apart from other conservative groups. At its core, however, the movement rose up in opposition to theological liberalism.
Critics and outside observers portrayed Fundamentalism as a militant struggle against social progress.[i] On this interpretation, for instance, the anti-evolution movement of the 1920s was seen as an attack on modern science that had nothing to do with the merits of Darwinian theory or its ethical implications.
This way of understanding the conservative impulse within Christianity was exported to militant Islamic movements after World War II. One popular definition from sociologists Jeffrey Hadden and Anson Shupe characterizes generic or global fundamentalism as “a proclamation of reclaimed authority over a sacred tradition which is to be reinstated as an antidote for a culture that has strayed from its cultural moorings.” [ii] Alienation was supposed to link these seemingly disparate groups. Just as conservative Bible believers felt isolated by the arrival of the modern scientific paradigm, so Muslims felt isolated by the arrival of the modern secular state.
There are at least two major problems with the Hadden-Shupe thesis. First, American Fundamentalism was, for the most part, a religious movement. Concerned believers set their sights on the rising tide of secularism within their own community of evangelical Protestants. They took their Fundamentals to be an antidote for a church that had gone astray. Influence on culture was only a secondary goal.
A second and larger point is that the language of Hadden and Shupe’s definition masks a critical difference between American Fundamentalism and militant Islam. Fundamentalists were certainly instrumental in creating Tennessee’s anti-evolution legislation, which in turn triggered the Scopes Trial. The act prohibited teachers from presenting anything contrary to “the Divine Creation of man as taught in the Bible.” This certainly looks like an attempt to reinstate a sacred tradition, but it was done within the context of an existing political structure. Militant Islam, as witnessed in the Iranian Revolution of 1979 and the attacks on 9/11, has an entirely different approach.
Moreover, essays in The Fundamentals were written by people committed to rational argument and empirical science. Only a very narrow segment of Fundamentalists could possibly fit the stereotype of anti-intellectual radicals seeking to plunge Western civilization into a theocratic dark age, and yet this is precisely the goal of militant Islam.
We need only compare The Fundamentals to Sayyid Qutb’s Milestones (1964) to appreciate the difference between these two movements. Both publications were meant to serve as manifestos for their respective faith traditions, and yet their diagnoses of what went wrong and their prescriptions for change were light years apart. From within the overwhelmingly Muslim nation of Egypt, Qutb argued for the violent overthrow of its secular government. And that was only the beginning. Qutb’s writings continue to have had a profound influence on the Muslim world.
Exporting the “fundamentalist” label to these post-colonial Islamic movements might have seemed compelling at one time, but only on the shallowest of levels. Here were people who loved their Qur’an and wanted it to play a larger role in the life of ordinary Muslims. Did this not resemble the back-to-the-Bible movement of the 1920s? It soon became apparent that the jihadists wanted so much more. Nonetheless, their motives and methods were pinned on Bible-believing, church-going groups in America. If radical Islam sought the collapse of liberal Western democracy then, by mere dint of labeling, conservative Christianity must pose a similar threat. Both movements could now be demonized as religiously motivated threats to the progressive agenda.
The reluctance to mark a distinction between conservative Christianity and militant Islam stems from a refusal to take their respective texts seriously. The New Testament and the Qur’an (and the supplementary hadith) embody diametrically opposite views on the role of violence in religion and the role of religion in society. The Book really does make the difference.
[i] George M. Marsden. Fundamentalism and American Culture, 2nd edition. New York: Oxford University Press, 2006, p. 4.
[ii] Jeffrey Hadden and Anson Shupe. The Politics of Religion and Social Change. Paragon House, 1988, p. 111.
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Posted on 05/27/2010 2:52 PM by Trevor Major
Thursday, 27 May 2010
The Media’s Downward Spiral
When it comes to distrust of particular professions, attorneys may receive the brunt of many jokes, yet there are few industries thought less of than our nation’s press. From television to radio to other forms of media, the level of distrust and lack of confidence in the media is perhaps greater than any time in recent history. The inspired psalmist reminds Christians where to place their trust: “For You are my hope, O Lord God;?You are my trust from my youth” (Psalm 71:5). While the media continues the spiral out of control, our Lord remains steadfast.
According to a recent poll conducted by the Pew Research Center for the People and the Press, less than 1 in 3 Americans believe that news organizations get the facts straight when reporting the news. In 1985, when the initial survey was conducted, 55% of people believed news stories to be accurate. This near 50% decline in the trustworthiness of news outlets ought to be of concern to those in the news industry. The sharp decline is most certainly part of the driving force behind an increasing number of Americans obtaining their news and information from alternative sources (talk radio, blogs, & various Internet sites). In fact, viewership of the network newscasts from the three major networks continues to drop such that it may be a matter of time before those newscasts will be eliminated from the daily schedule.
The same study found that 60% of Americans believe the news media to be politically biased and question the ability of the press to investigate and report in an independent manner. Thus, when reports are made questioning political policy or issues of importance to Americans, there is an underlying belief that data may be modified or massaged to put forward a particular viewpoint.
While Americans have had at least a slight distrust of the media and its motivation at times throughout our history, this unparalleled level of distrust has arguably been caused by a number of major changes taking place in the industry. The Pew Center recently found that for the first time more Americans get national and international news from the Internet than from newspapers. While television remains the dominant source by which Americans obtain national and international news, those citing the Internet as their primary source of this news have doubled over the past five years. If this trend continues, the Internet may overtake television as the major source for national and international news within the next three to five years.
The rise of the Internet and its impact on this issue of distrust in the media cannot be overstated. With the click of a mouse, people can have access to the same data and information as news agencies and can examine and scrutinize the data. This analysis can then be sent to practically anyone--or to millions of individuals for that matter--instantaneously. Because of this technology, we have seen a number of newspapers and networks called out for manipulating stories and, in some cases, the complete fabrication of stories. Perhaps as technology continues to evolve and the news media is further scrutinized, news agencies and reporters will be forced to enhance their fact checking so as not to be embarrassed by false information.
Another critical factor in the decline of trustworthiness of the media may be the perception that the media are unduly influenced by powerful persons and groups. The Pew poll found that only 20% of Americans believe the media to be independent of these persons and groups. Nearly twice as many Americans believed the media to be independent from powerful persons and groups in 1985 when the survey was first conducted. These persons may be influential in the arena of business or politics and may also include the corporate interests of the major news organizations (Boards of Directors, major shareholders, etc.).
Without question, the news media is experiencing rapid change. Newspaper circulations and readership levels have been and remain in a steady decline as more Americans obtain “instantaneous” news via the Internet instead of “outdated” news via the newspapers. What may occur due to the distrust of the media and more Americans seeking their news via the Internet is the extinction of several major newspapers. We may also see news organizations in America, as they have in some parts of Europe, admit to being of particular political viewpoints and place within their news stories opinions along with the facts.
Whether or not the traditional media can regain its prior trust among Americans remains to be seen, but there is no question that the media has an uphill climb to reach the level of trust it once had in the minds of Americans. Christians should always hold fast to what the prophet Isaiah declared: “Trust in the LORD forever, ? For in the Lord Jehovah is everlasting strength” (Isaiah 26:4).
Source: “Press Accuracy Rating Hits Two Decade Low.” The Pew Research Center for the People and the Press. http://people-press.org/report/543/
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Posted on 05/27/2010 2:50 PM by Chad Stafko
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