Mission Confusion and Clarification

It seemed like such a good idea at the time. It turned out to be one of the biggest mistakes I ever made. Although I was far from being a leader at the time, it also turned out to be a defining moment in my life that helped shape my thinking about leadership and staying true to mission.

As a college student in 1975 I worked the swing shift in a Eugene, Oregon sawmill. I took my place at the bottom of the food chain, in a system of position and power based upon seniority and hierarchy. The guys referred to me as the “cleanup boy,” a belittling term that I endured because I earned a whopping $4.50 an hour, while the minimum wage in 1975 hovered a little over $2.00 an hour. My job required me to clean the mechanic’s shop and equipment. Having grown up on a farm, I was used to cleaning up after livestock, so I figured this could not be much different, besides the smell of sawdust beats the aroma of manure any day.

In addition, I knew how to operate tractors and machinery. Working in the sawmill expanded my operating portfolio as I drove forklifts of all sizes, log trucks, and assorted heavy equipment for the purpose of combatting their grease and grime with a steam cleaner. The work was dirty, noisy, physical, and sometimes monotonous. I took my responsibility seriously and made it my mission to keep everything as clean as possible. At times that seemed like a never-ending task because the mechanics and various machinists working in the shop knew how to make a mess, and never cleaned up after themselves.

One night I completed my regular tasks, and set to work organizing and cleaning up one particular storage area of the machine shop. A large pile of old metal parts seemed to be taking up a lot of space, gathering dirt, and making it difficult to keep the area clean. My muscles ached as I hauled the heavy metal components out to the dumpster where they would soon be deported as scrap. Looking over the newly cleaned up area, I beamed with a sense of pride in my work, believing the foreman would be pleased when he arrived in the morning at my initiative and hard work.

Arriving at work the next afternoon around 3:00 pm, I was not surprised when one of the mechanics told me the foreman wanted to see me right away. I could barely contain my enthusiasm at the prospect of a word of commendation, or maybe even a raise, promotion, or bonus. Upon arrival, the sour look on the foreman’s face soon took the wind out of my sails. “What did you think you were doing by hauling all those parts out to the dumpster last night?” he boomed.

“Well, I just got tired of cleaning up around that mess, so I thought I would get rid of all that junk,” I stammered.

“That pile of junk, as you called it, contained parts necessary to keep this sawmill in operation in case of a breakdown. You threw away about $20,000.00 worth of parts last night! It’s a good thing one of the mechanics noticed after you left last night, and lugged everything back in. If those parts had still been in that dumpster when it got hauled off this morning, you would be fired right now!”

Luckily, he was a Christian man, and knew I was a theology student, so he had mercy on me. Even though I did not lose my job, my mind reeled at the implications of my good intentions gone awry. Using my wages at $4.50 an hour, it would have taken me nearly five thousand hours to pay for my mistake. Twenty thousand dollars was a lot of money back in 1975, when you could buy a nice home for not much more than that in our area.

I thought I knew my mission, to clean up my part of the mill. But that particular evening I suffered from mission confusion, thinking that I was doing a good thing, while I was actually destroying the potential operation of the entire sawmill. The conversation with the foreman provided clarification. After that, I left the big decisions to the foreman, and asked before tackling a project that seemed like a good idea to me at the time.

The bigger mission of the sawmill, of course, did not center upon my role, as important as it might have seemed to me. The bigger mission involved keeping the entire organization operating efficiently so lumber could be produced, creating the raw materials for construction, building homes and industry. Keeping the larger mission in perspective requires perspective. Without that perspective, a cleanup boy might think his mission was just to clean up messes left by his fellow workers, and fail to realize that he was actually helping to make it possible for houses to be built, and the economy to flourish.

Without a view of the bigger picture, it is possible to lose sight of your purpose and true mission. The custodian of the church might view his job as cleaning rooms, picking up trash, or vacuuming the carpet. In light of the bigger mission, he could be an integral component in helping guests feel welcome in a clean and inviting environment, facilitating an openness to receive Christ.

Even amongst church leaders, mission confusion abounds. Some believe the mission of the church is tradition, to preserve their particular doctrinal statement or denominational affiliation. Others believe their mission revolves around numbers, maintaining and exceeding metrics for buildings or budgets. Still others view their mission as relevance, expanding programs, technology, and ministries to an ever-widening and diverse audience. Some point toward churches that experience explosive growth as they aim at the constantly moving target of popular culture. There are always those who believe the church’s mission finds its best expression through social justice, or community organization and development. Then there are those who believe the church is all about worship, as they define it. And many are the churches that believe their mission to be the defense of truth, or their version of it, at any cost.

Please indulge me as I invite you to peruse the following mission statements or slogans, gleaned from a few minutes surfing the internet for church websites. It seems a bit lengthy, yet it illustrates the point. Feel free to pass quickly through the bulleted points to the text below. While there are several familiar themes, I think you will agree no actual consensus appears to exist amidst quite a bit of confusion:

• Our church is called to proclaim the Gospel of Christ and the beliefs of the evangelical Christian faith, to maintain the worship of God, and to inspire in all persons a love for Christ, a passion for righteousness, and a consciousness of their duties to God and their fellow human beings.

• Love God. Love others. Serve the world.

• Developing fully devoted followers of Christ.

• Our mission is to sow "the Seed of Hope," Jesus Christ, in the hearts of many here and to the ends of the earth. Our context is the emerging post-modern culture. Post-moderns have rejected the "trinity" of modernism: reason, nature and progress-and the church that is built on it. Lacking a metanarrative, post-moderns turn to a sort of primitive tribalism, or bury their pain in technology or consumerism.

• Our mission is to carry the gospel, the sacraments, and God's love and fellowship to the unchurched, the alienated, and the excommunicated (the church's homeless).

• Reaching out to the World...Preaching to the Unsaved...Teaching the Saved to Serve.

• To yield to the wind of the Holy Spirit blowing through our mist, allowing it to change us into the image of Christ, thus making us the loving people God would have us to be.

• Christian, in our beliefs... Methodist, in our approach... Episcopal, in our organization.

• We strive to be an "open-door" church, actively reaching out and welcoming all persons. A Great Place For Your Family!

• First Church especially focuses upon those who are seeking a "new beginning," and those who want to become more "Christlike," and want to learn more about living a "holy life," and for those who are yearning to grow in "love and compassion," and the building of "family relationships."

• Where faith and adventure meet!

• To preach the gospel of Jesus Christ and to meet human needs in His name without discrimination.

• To teach, preach, and baptize all who will heed "The Word".

• To courageously represent the kingdom of God through witness, discipleship and service to others.

• To worship God as we evangelize the world, and provide a place of fellowship to equip the believer for service to God and man.

• The goal of our mission is to introduce all who can be reached to our precious Lord Jesus, whose return to rapture His Church is so imminent.

• To increase our love for God and to help meet the needs of humankind by "Loving God with all our heart, with all our soul, and with all our mind, and to love our neighbor as ourselves

• We are a church that is committed to Christ and his Word.

• We are a church where we "Exalt the Savior", "Evangelize the Sinner" and "Equip the Saint"

• To make Christ known to the world through a loving, growing, giving and serving group of committed people who are connected in small groups.

• "The Word of God is our focus."

• A church that strives to be a beacon of light in our community

• The Church that understands that people don't care about how much you know, until they know how much you care

• Our purpose here is to reach as many people with the good news of Jesus Christ as possible through: Relevant and challenging messages from our pastor - An exciting atmosphere of praise and worship during our services.

• We are a full Gospel church that believes everything the Bible states. We believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God. We preach and teach the truth. We have the desire to see souls saved.

• Our mission is to save, educate and liberate humanity for Jesus the Christ by sharing the Gospel Message, teaching the Bible, and living in the power of the Holy Spirit.

• Where everybody is somebody and Jesus is Lord.

From the pleasantly simple to the painfully complex, churches struggle to define their mission. How do you synthesize twenty-seven New Testament books containing thousands of verses into a simple mission statement, proclaiming the main thing? With the variety of churches and Christian organizations, is it possibleto define the mission of the church organically?

The Oxford English Dictionary defines organic as, “relating to, or derived from living matter.” The word comes from the Greek organikos, “relating to a tool or instrument.” Organize and organization also stem from the same root word. Although this organikos is not found in the New Testament, we do find familiar themes of building, tools, and workmanship. Something organic derives from something living. Paul expresses our connection to Christ, “For we are God's workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.” (Ephesians 2:10 NIV) The Greek word for workmanship, poiema, conveys the idea of craftsmanship, something organically fabricated, like linen cloth.

Perhaps the best mission statement for the church is an extrapolation of the one Jesus provided just before his ascension. Long known as “The Great Commission,” the words of Matthew 28:18-20 indicate our co-mission with Christ—providing explanation and substance for the “good works” Paul mentioned that “God prepared in advance for us to do.”

“Then Jesus came to them and said, ‘All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.’" (Matthew 28:18-20 NIV)

There is nothing new here, expositors wrestle with this text and preachers expound on its urgency on a regular basis, as they have done for all the centuries since Jesus first uttered the words. Yet the profound simplicity of these words convey an uncomplicated, organic message for continuation of the church, our true mission for organic growth, coming directly from the living Head of the church.

Personally, I shy away from simplistic approaches and do so throughout this book. Our modern and post-modern tendencies to discover linear solutions and offer a one-size fits all “how-to” solution cannot find basis in scripture. So we try to make texts say what we want them to say, in order to come up with a program or process for disciple-making. Yet I cannot escape the fact that Jesus’ organic commission can provide a steady and sturdy skeleton upon which our spiritual formation depends. We all look different on the outside, but we all look very similar within. That is a picture of the church in our diversity, yet having a structure framed by Christ himself. For those of you looking for an outline, here it is, alliteration and all:

EMPOWERMENT (vs. 18): Notice the words of Jesus, “all authority. . .therefore go. . ..” We cannot begin to think about accomplishing God’s mission without God’s authorization and power. Just as the disciples needed the upper room experience, so we need the empowerment of the Holy Spirit to actively engage our culture, touch people, and be the church Jesus desires us to be. What could be more organic than a connection to the source of life?

EVANGELISM (vs. 19): “make disciples, baptizing them. . ..” The same Holy Spirit that compelled the 120 disciples to move from the Upper Room to the streets invites us to move from our safe inner circles to where the people live in our context. This involves proclaiming the Gospel, the evangel, the good news—using both words and deeds. At various times the church has turned the good news into either an argument, a political profile, a creed to recite, or a polemic for a particular theological perspective. The simple truth remains that the Gospel is best conveyed as good news, in a personal conversation between two or more real people. Encountering people and building relationships with them is natural, not staged or forced. The early church grew, not because of programs, or crusades, or organizational skills. It grew because it was organic.

EDUCATION (vs. 20a): “teaching them to obey. . ..” Notice the emphatic use of the strong words by Jesus, obey and command. There is nothing prescribed or enforced about the method of teaching or style of ministry, but we are expected to educate others. How did people learn at the time of Christ? They learned by watching and listening. A disciple or learner was an apprentice, in close relationship with a mentor. There are those who will point to the Greek word didasko (teaching, vs. 20a) to indicate a particular didactic style of teaching. However, it is clear that Jesus used a variety of methods to teach, based upon the need for information and condition of the learner. We have an obligation to teach, and content is more important than the style of delivery. The very task of educating all types of people in all settings with the most important message requires a more fluid, organic approach.

EXPERIENCE (vs. 20b): “surely I am with you always. . ..” The continued presence of God within the community of believers and in the lives of individual believers may provide the very best antidote to skeptical or apathetic individual objections to faith in Christ. Cerebral protestations to the Gospel or even toward the idea of theism find themselves usurped by personal experience. When the church recognizes that part of our mission involves taking Jesus with us into the marketplaces and private spaces of our lives, we will influence others toward faith in him. People took note of the early believers and recognized that “they had been with Jesus.” (Acts 4:13)

The writer of Hebrews tells us that, “without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him.” (Hebrews 11:6 NIV)

How could a return to these simple organic concepts Jesus so clearly explained help us reach into the lives of people who otherwise will persist in their unbelief? What if we truly loved the world as much as God does, and edited our mission statements in light of these truths? What if we examined our personal mission in the same light? We may discover that our core values and mission change when we learn the true value of those things we might ordinarily throw away.

©2011 Don Detrick

Pilgrims and Thanksgiving

During these hectic holiday preparation days, it is easy to forget the true meaning of Thanksgiving as celebrated in the United States of America. The loud voices of political correctness often drown out the voices of those Pilgrims who risked everything for a new life in a new world. While we may have a general idea about Pilgrims and their funny clothes and odd habits, we often fail to remember that they were real people, and faced tremendous hardships and adversity with amazing faith and strength of character. Even politically correct authors, like Sarah Vowell, in her recent interesting book about the Puritans, The Wordy Shipmates admits her admiration of them for their faith, tenacity, and perseverance.

On August 1, 1620, the Mayflower set sail from England. It carried a total of 102 passengers - all of them seeking freedom – primarily religious freedom. Of those 102passengers, 34 of them were children. According to the Mayflower Compact that they all signed, they undertook their voyage "for the glory of God and the advancement of the Christian Faith."

The grueling journey to the New World took 66 days in a ship no larger than a basketball court. Planning to arrive in northern Virginia, a storm at sea blew them off course. And when the Pilgrims landed at Plymouth, Massachusetts on November 11th, they found (according to William Bradford's detailed journal) a cold, barren, desolate wilderness. There were no friends to greet them, he wrote. There were no houses to shelter them. There were no inns where they could refresh themselves. But they did not despair. Their first act when setting foot upon land was recorded by Bradford:

"Having thus arrived in a good harbor and come safe to land, they fell upon their knees and blessed the God of heaven, who had brought them over the vast and furious ocean, and delivered them from all the dangers and miseries thereof, and permitted them to again set their feet on the firm and stable earth.'"

During the first winter, half the Pilgrims died of starvation, sickness, or exposure. Six died in December, eight in January, seventeen in February, and thirteen in March. Thirteen of the eighteen wives died; only three families remained unbroken. Bradford's young wife drowned when she fell overboard. Yet when the Mayflower returned to England in the spring, not one of the remaining Pilgrims went with her. They were dedicated to their God and the freedom to worship Him as they wished. Like the Pilgrims, we must learn that:

Psalm 92:1 says, “It is a good thing to give thanks unto the Lord. . ..” In Scripture, we see that God blesses things that are good. From the beginning of creation, we witness this pronouncement “and God saw that it was good.” (Genesis 1:4) God then blessed His “good” creation. (Genesis 1:28) It follows then, that if “it is a good thing to give thanks unto the Lord,” then God will bless a grateful person.

The Bible has a lot to say about thanksgiving, mentioning it nearly 140 times. In the book of Psalms alone, we are told over 30 times to “be thankful” and "give thanks unto the Lord.” Psalm 92:1 says, "It is good to give thanks to the LORD, And to sing praises to Your name, O Most High." Nineteen out of the twenty-seven books of the New Testament mention the need for thanksgiving. 1 Thessalonians 5:18 says "In everything give thanks, for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you."

A few years ago, Jodi and I visited Plymouth, Massachusetts. We spent an afternoon at Plimoth Plantation (www.plimoth.org), the re-creation of the original colony of Pilgrims. There, in the original setting, surrounded by people playing the part of Pilgrims, I gained a better understanding of the hardships these people endured. Although they were not wealthy members of the ruling class in England, they left behind security – homes, jobs, and families - to pursue a dream: To find a place where they could put down roots, raise their children, and worship God according to the dictates of their own conscience, not according to the mandates of the King of England.

The word “worship” comes from the Old English words for “worth-ship,” meaning “the ascribing of worth, worthiness, or honor to a person, place or thing, ardent devotion; adoration.” Worship truly flows from a heart of gratitude. The liberty to worship God freely, according to your own convictions, has been a fundamental right of our citizens since the Pilgrims landed at Plymouth Rock. To them, worship was a good thing. They valued the ability to worship God more than the security of home, even if it meant traveling through the perilous ocean to a wilderness land filled with unknown dangers.

The Mayflower II, built in the 1950’s and now docked in Plymouth Harbor (you can take a virtual tour at http://plimoth.org/features/mayflower-2/journey/), is an exact replica of the original Mayflower. At first glance, it is not easy to imagine that such a small vessel could hold a cargo of supplies and over 100 passengers while crossing the Atlantic. While aboard this summer, I couldn’t help but think about the hardships, the seasickness, the storms, and unknown danger lurking ahead of those Pilgrims in 1620. It must have been terribly difficult to maintain an optimistic outlook and express gratitude. But since worship was so important to them, it is not surprising that one of their first acts after landing at Plymouth Rock was to make the following declaration:

“May not and ought not the children of these fathers rightly say: 'Our fathers were Englishmen which came over this great ocean, and were ready to perish in this wilderness: but they cried unto the Lord, and He heard their voice, and looked on their distress. Let them therefore praise the Lord, because He is good, and His mercies endure forever.'”

Billy Graham wrote, "Giving thanks to God for all blessings is one of the most distinctive marks of a true Christian. A heart that is attuned to God naturally pours out thanksgiving. Some things the believer thanks God for are material blessings, the people in your life, His promise of presence and care in the midst of trials and even persecution, salvation, and His continued presence and power in your life."

Weeds grow without effort. But if you want a beautiful bouquet of flowers, they must be planted and nurtured. You must cultivate the soil, keep the pests away, provide proper nourishment, and pull the weeds. That’s the way it is with gratitude. Like weeds in our hearts, taking things or people for granted comes naturally. But gratitude must be nurtured. As we mature in our faith, we learn to appreciate the Lord and others who have blessed us. That appreciation will result in our verbal expression of thanks.

The author G. K. Chesterton (1874-1936) said "When it comes to life, the critical thing is whether you take things for granted or take them with gratitude."

In Vermont a farmer was sitting on the porch with his wife. He was beginning to realize how much she meant to him. It was about time, because they had been married for forty-two years. She had been such help, a very willing worker. One day as they sat together, he said, "Wife, you've been such a wonderful woman that there are times I can hardly keep from telling you."

When we think of the first thanksgiving celebrated by the Pilgrims, we assume it occurred during the first year of their residency here. In fact, we know they did have a 3-day feast in the fall of 1621 where wild fowl and venison were served. A letter by Edward Winslow is the only surviving description of the event itself. The hard winter months that followed brought extraordinary suffering and even more deaths to the small band of Pilgrims.

But the first real extended thanksgiving celebration took place a full three years after their arrival in 1620. Those three years were filled with much hardship, toil and suffering. Their days were spent combating sickness, drought, inner conflicts, and the elements. But it wasn’t all bad news. The Indians had taught the settlers how to plant corn, fish for cod, hunt for game, and skin beavers for coats. They had planted gardens, built a blockhouse for their protection, houses for their own comfort, and a meetinghouse to worship God.

Just when things seemed to take a turn for the better, they again got worse. In the summer of 1623, a drought threatened to destroy their vital crops. So the colonists prayed and fasted for relief. When the rains came a few days later, disaster was averted, and their crops were saved. Not long after, Captain Miles Standish arrived with staples and news that a Dutch supply ship was on its way. Because of all these blessings and answered prayers, the Pilgrims held a day of thanksgiving and praise. This 1623 event appears to have been the origin of our Thanksgiving Day because it combined a religious and social celebration. It was a time for expressing gratitude to God and sharing with their native American, Indian neighbors. Governor Bradford made the following proclamation:

"Inasmuch as the great Father has given us this year an abundant harvest of Indian corn, wheat, peas, beans, squashes, and garden vegetables, and has made the forests to abound with game and the sea with fish and clams, and inasmuch as He has protected us from the ravages of the savages, has spared us from pestilence and disease, has granted us freedom to worship God according to the dictates of our own conscience.

Now I, your magistrate, do proclaim that all ye Pilgrims, with your wives and ye little ones, do gather at ye meetinghouse, on ye hill, between the hours of 9 and 12 in the day time, on Thursday, November 29th, of the year of our Lord one thousand six hundred and twenty three and the third year since ye Pilgrims landed on ye Pilgrim Rock, there to listen to ye pastor and render thanksgiving to ye Almighty God for all His blessings."

The provisions for that thanksgiving feast included: "twelve tasty venisons, besides others, pieces of roasted venison, fruit pies, roasted wild turkeys, plums, nuts, grapes, corn, popcorn, vegetables of all types, fish, roast pork, etc. But before all this, the first course was served: on an empty plate in front of each person were five kernels of corn. . .lest anyone should forget" (the hardship of the previous winters.)

We should never forget our heritage as Americans, regardless of the diversity of our backgrounds. In fact, our diversity can celebrate the fact that many of our ancestors, whether from Europe, Africa, Asia, the Americas, the islands of the sea , or parts in between, endured suffering, so we could enjoy prosperity. Moreover, for followers of Jesus Christ, we should never forget that we are citizens of a greater kingdom, without natural or civic boundaries. We have a lot to be thankful for. With those realizations, we will never take our blessings for granted.

Born with neither sight nor hearing, Helen Keller (1880-1968) could have become a bitter recluse. But the persistence and love of her teacher, Anne Sullivan, reached through to her heart. Helen Keller's gratefulness to God for what she had been given made her one of the most influential women in the history of the world. She said "So much has been given to me, I have no time to ponder over that which has been denied."

Helen Keller was deaf and blind from an early age. But she saw and understood more than most people with all five senses. Many people fail to recognize God’s blessings and presence in their lives. Those who have been helped the most are sometimes the most ungrateful.

Benjamin Rush (1746-1813) was an American patriot and signer of the Declaration of Independence. He was a physician, educator and politician. He worked relentlessly for the abolition of slavery and the humane treatment of the mentally handicapped. His insight into the human condition is revealed in this quote: "I have found the least gratitude from those families in which I had performed the greatest services."

Sometimes, oddly enough, the opposite is true. Because sometimes it is people who begin life with a real deficit, (like Helen Keller: physically, socially, or in life circumstances), that are the most grateful to God and others when blessings do come their way. If you’re born with no ability to communicate, and someone gives you the gift of speech, you are grateful. If you are born without the ability to ever walk, and a surgeon’s skills change that, you appreciate every happy step you take. If you are born into a “family” that isn’t a real family, but a nightmare of abuse, and someone takes you into their loving family, you never take that privilege for granted, like the rest of us sometimes do.

Let’s never forget “it is a good thing to give thanks unto the Lord, and to sing praises unto His name.” Always remember gratefulness produces peace, faith, contentment, and a positive attitude. We can cultivate a thankful spirit by trusting God, and learning lessons from the pilgrims, Helen Keller and others about being thankful. But we need to develop thanksgiving in our own hearts, in our own time, in our own circumstances. Difficult circumstances are occasions for us to grow better or bitter. We grow better with a thankful spirit and a heart that is grateful to God.

The thankful heart enjoys blessings twice - when they're received and when they're remembered. The thankful heart will overflow with blessings given and received. May you have a blessed Thanksgiving!

Here are some suggestions to help this be your best Thanksgiving holiday ever:

This Thanksgiving week:

• Do a word study on thanksgiving and reflect on the meaning. Find every verse you can about being thankful in the Bible, or quotes from others on the topic.

• Count your blessings, especially as you meet with family and friends this week.

• While visiting with family, discuss how God has protected, provided for and preserved your family through the years. How many family members have memories of God’s guiding Hand?

• How many generations back can you trace your heritage? Were there people of faith in your family’s past? Even if there are negative circumstances in your family heritage, can you find blessings there to be thankful for?

• Choose to give thanks. Decide to express gratitude "in all circumstances" (1 Thessalonians 5:18)

• Thank someone everyday for his or her positive influence in your life.

• Memorize Psalm 92:1 and 1 Thessalonians 5:18.

HURTING PEOPLE NEED HEALTHY GUIDANCE

“This experience has really opened my eyes to the realization that many people are hurting. I just never noticed it before.” My friend was commenting on her new awareness. She had spent two weeks by the bedside of a loved one in the trauma intensive care unit of Harborview Medical Center. As we prayed and talked over her feelings, I was again reminded how much hurting people need healthy guidance. The healing, therapeutic touch or word of a friend provides immeasurable comfort and relief.

The church should be a center for healing, encouragement and help. Unfortunately, some people are hindered, rather than helped by their experience in church. For example:

Well-intentioned people who speak or act without thinking. “Just get over it” is not good advice for a person in the grieving process. Working through the stages of grief takes time and God’s help. Nor does it help to say, “I know just how you feel.” The reality is, nobody knows exactly how another person feels. You may have endured similar circumstances, and can share your story when the time is appropriate. But it seems trite to compare your situation to the grieving person’s.

False assumptions. You might tremble at the prospect of jumping out of an airplane without a parachute. But what if I told you the airplane was sitting on the ground?

You might believe that every person who has cancer dies from it. But you would be wrong. Many cancer survivors can testify to healing through both Divine and medical treatments. The reality is that every single person will die from something someday. Our false assumptions can keep us from moving forward with hope. They can also hinder the grieving process or reaching a place of acceptance and healing.

Simplistic answers and wrong beliefs. A hurting person is often confused and questions everything. In the process, they can come to the wrong conclusions about their circumstances. Often they will try to find a simple answer when a hundred complicated ones would not explain their predicament. Have you ever had these thoughts or has anyone ever said to you:

· "You must have done something to deserve this." While our actions or sins do have consequences, your own personal circumstances or loss may not be attributable to your own personal choices. To always believe so is a serious mistake that Job’s comforters made.

· "The devil is behind this. . .." In Job’s case, the devil for certain was behind his trouble, yet God still permitted it. The devil is not personally responsible for every problem we face. Sometimes we suffer loss and people die of old age. The Bible tells us we may battle the world, the flesh and the devil. Chasing demons is not the answer when working through grief or loss. “Spiritual warfare” will do little to ease your suffering when a tragedy occurs or a loved one dies. God, Scripture, a caring friend, and time will help immeasurably, though.

· "You must not have enough faith." This is an old line, and one that could be applied to every person listed among the “heroes of faith” in Hebrews chapter 11 – for they all suffered losses in many different ways, yet they all had great faith!

· "You must be out of the will of God.” The truth is, we can reside in the very center of God’s will and still be in a real pickle! Scripture is full of stories about God-fearing people from Joseph to the Apostle Paul who were doing God’s will and suffered anyway.

· “You can’t trust the medical profession, you know. If you will buy my remedy you will get better.” The fact is, God often provides healing in a variety of ways, and He certainly does use people in the medical profession. Luke, the author of the Gospel that bears his name as well as the book of Acts in the New Testament, was a physician! Anecdotal information or testimonies are not always helpful to a hurting person, because the experience of another person, no matter how wonderful, might not be the experience of the next person. What worked for one might not work for another.

Ultimately, our trust must be in the Great Physician to heal spirit, soul and body. Jesus once used mud to heal blindness (John 9:6). But He doesn’t want us to market the curative powers of “healing mud.” Instead, He wants us to trust in the Healer who applied the mud.

With God’s help and with our help, hurting people can become healthy people. The church should be a catalyst for making it happen. What do you think?

Keep Christ in Christmas!

In December of 1965 I was about to turn eleven years old and a fifth grader at Dundee Elementary School in Dundee, Oregon. It was a tradition for the fifth grade class to recite the Christmas story from Luke 2:1-14 in the annual school Christmas program. Harold Wilson, our teacher, instilled in us a belief that our recital of these fourteen verses from the King James Version would be the highlight of the evening’s festivities.

So at the appointed hour, the school gym, where hours before we had played basketball or “red rover,” became a nativity scene. With anxious parents looking on from their folding chairs in neatly formed rows on the floor, we took our places on the stage. Although I have many memories of Sunday School and grade school Christmas pageants where I alternately played a shepherd, wise man, or Joseph while wearing my bathrobe and sandals as a costume, none stand more clearly in my mind than that particular night as we stood before that audience. Hours of memorization paid off as we began to recite the familiar words, “And it came to pass in those days that there went out a decree from Caesar Augustus that all the world should be taxed. . ..”

As we finished with, “Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men,” the audience rose to their feet with thunderous applause. Mr. Wilson beamed, our parents glowed, and we were all thankful that we had completed our assignment without missing a word. Looking back, that evening was a highlight of my young life. I had quoted many great authors from that stage—Lincoln’s Gettysburg Address, Patrick Henry’s “the war inevitable” and various works of prose and poetry. But none seemed as inspiring as quoting from the greatest story ever told.

Even the knowledge that the event would soon culminate in a visit from Santa Claus, played by Mr. Vinson, our school janitor, who at 120 pounds was a skinny substitute for the real thing, did not stem my enthusiasm and sense of accomplishment at that moment. The reward for all the students was a coveted sack of candy, which Santa Claus distributed to all participants. Inside the brown paper bag was an obligatory inventory that included an orange, a few walnuts and hazelnuts (Dundee was known as the “nut capital of the USA” in those days!), a peppermint candy cane, assorted hard or ribbon candies that stuck together and nobody ever liked, and a few jelly/gummy orange slices. If you were lucky, you received a bag that contained the most cherished prize: one or two delectable mounds of flavored sugar, covered with chocolate. Maybe I’m just sentimental, or given to nostalgia, but the warm feelings from that evening fill my heart to this day.

It was no secret that Mr. Wilson was a born-again Christian and a member of the First Baptist Church. Nor was it a secret that he was an excellent teacher, devoted to his craft and to his students. I knew him as an engaging teacher, a caring coach, a volunteer vacation Bible school leader, and a man that impacted my impressionable young life by showing me that the world was bigger than the humble environment of our family farm.

I remember the bulletin board he prepared for our school that year. In those days it seemed fashionable to abbreviate Christmas as "Xmas". Mr. Wilson would have none of that. In capital letters his bulletin board message boldly proclaimed "Keep Christ in Christmas." No one protested or ridiculed—at least not publicly. Deep in our hearts, we knew that the message was true. Christmas is a celebration of the birth of Christ, not just another “happy holiday.”

A lot has changed since then. The freedom to express his Christian faith that Mr. Wilson enjoyed as an American educator has slowly eroded over the last forty-three years. Most would agree that the erosion of that freedom has coincided with an erosion of values. Courts and school boards in many jurisdictions have decided it is illegal for public expressions about the real meaning of Christmas, and that is a shame.

The fact is, you really can't remove Christ from Christmas. After all, it is His birthday. It would be politically incorrect to try to distance most holidays from the birthdays they commemorate. For example, to celebrate Martin Luther King, Jr. Day without a discussion of his life, death and accomplishments would be unheard of in the twenty-first century.

Jesus Christ was a real person cutting a far wider swath in history than any contemporary human being. We even count the years on our calendar from His birth. So why shouldn't we allow the historical details of his birth, life and death to be publicly proclaimed? D. James Kennedy wrote:

"The truth is this: Had Jesus never been born, this world would be far more miserable than it is. In fact, many of man's noblest and kindest deeds find their motivation in love for Jesus Christ; and some of our greatest accomplishments also have their origin in service rendered to the humble Carpenter of Nazareth."[1]

For the past thirty some-years, our family gathers around the tree on Christmas Eve. These days, that circle includes our children and two granddaughters, sometimes accompanied by other assorted family members and friends. Before opening our presents, our traditions include my recitation of the Christmas story. Those timeless and familiar words from Luke’s Gospel entered my mind in 1965, but they also entered my heart. They never left my heart, and I hope they never do.

About twenty years ago I wrote a similar article on this theme that was published in The Pentecostal Evangel. I sent a copy of it to Mr. Wilson, thanking him for the impact he made on my young life. Later I met with him and we reminisced about those days. Since then, we’ve lost track of each other. I’m not sure if he is still living, but if he is, I’d like to say, “Thanks, Mr. Wilson. Thanks for taking an interest in children and devoting your life to helping them learn and become better citizens and better people. Thanks for helping us remember to ‘Keep Christ in Christmas.’” It was good advice back then, and it is good advice today. In fact, it always will be.

[1]Kennedy, D. James What If Jesus Had Never Been Born? Nashville: Thomas Nelson, Inc. 1994, introduction.

(c)2008 Don Detrick

Divine Destiny

The tissue of the life to be,
We weave with colors all our own.
And in the field of destiny,
We reap as we have sown.
~ John Greenleaf Whittier (1807–1892)

Without a sense of purpose or destiny people who possess tremendous potential often flounder. For Christians, discovering our gifts and calling should be a priority pursued with careful, prayerful thought and preparation. 2 Peter 1:10 says, “. . .my brothers, be all the more eager to make your calling and election sure.” (NIV)

A person can begin the process of finding his or her destiny at any point in life. It is never too late, as we learned from the late George Dawson, an African-American whose grandparents had been slaves. George started working full time as an 8 year old and never had a chance to attend school. He didn’t learn to read until he was 98 years old. For the next five years, he got up nearly every day to attend remedial education classes. He continued to learn until his death at age 103 in 2001. He said, "Every morning I get up and I wonder what I might learn that day. You just never know."[1]

Rather than waiting until you are 100 years old, it is far better to start early in your pursuit of God’s purposes. When a young person seeks and finds God’s will, he or she has a lifetime to fulfill God-given dreams.

When Jesus looks at a man, woman, boy or girl, He sees not only who that person is, He sees who they can become. He sees not only the liabilities in a person; He also sees the possibilities.
Once someone came upon Michelangelo chiseling away on a huge, shapeless piece of rock. When asked what he was doing, the sculptor replied, "I am releasing the angel imprisoned in this marble."

There is potential for greatness in each of us. In fact, it is our Divine destiny. We must give control of our hopes and dreams to the Master Sculptor, Jesus Christ. When we do, His strength and power transforms us to release the Master’s greatness through us.

A. B Simpson wrote, “God is preparing His heroes; and when the opportunity comes, He can fit them into their places in a moment, and the world will wonder where they came from.”

[1] REMEMBERING GEORGE DAWSON1898 - 2001 at http://www.readin.dcccd.edu/dawson/dawson.htm

Pleasure and Pain

The older I get, the more aware I become that life brings with it a balance of joys and sorrows, pleasure and pain. With anxiety comes hope—so grows our faith. And every time I discover an answer, I also discover another question. But of one thing I am certain: Whatever happens, God is still in control and He will see us through! I base that statement on both the promises of the Bible and my own personal experience.

Paul wrote 2 Corinthians as a defense of his ministry and apostleship. Even after coming to Christ, his was not an easy life. He explained to the Corinthian believers:
We do not want you to be uninformed, brothers, about the hardships we suffered in the province of Asia. We were under great pressure, far beyond our ability to endure, so that we despaired even of life. Indeed, in our hearts we felt the sentence of death. But this happened that we might not rely on ourselves but on God, who raises the dead. (2 Corinthians 1:8-9 NIV)

Do you catch the drama and trauma Paul is describing here? He was under stress and pressure – so much so that the New Living Translation says, “We were crushed and completely overwhelmed, and we thought we would never live through it.” (2 Corinthians 1:8b NLT)

Have you gone through hard times? Then I suggest you read Paul’s description of his perils in 2 Corinthians 11:23-30. He was shipwrecked, beaten and jailed (among other things) for his faith in Christ. While your suffering may be very real, reading about Paul’s problems can help put your pain in perspective.

You can make it through difficult experiences the same way Paul did. He trusted in God’s faithful provision to be in control and see him through:

(God) Who delivered us from so great a death, and does deliver us; in whom we trust that He will still deliver us. . .. (2 Corinthians 2:10 NKJV)

Do you notice how Paul covers all the bases here, past present and future? God always has been, is, and always will be in control. He will see you through.

It is hard to imagine, but six years ago this month, my Dad went to be with the Lord. Back then, while waiting near my Dad’s bedside we heard the joyful sounds of children just outside his window. You see, the nursing home was located right next to a day care center. Just a few feet away from where my dad was struggling to take his final breaths, children were blissfully playing.

Dad was about to leave behind his worn out 86-year-old body and enter into the joys of eternal life. Several times he said, “I’m crossing over. It’s my time and I’m ready to go.”

And several times I asked, “Dad, are you in pain?”

“Not at all,” he replied. I think the anticipation of heaven’s pleasure was greater than the
pain of death.

It reminded me that life is full of both pleasure and pain. And we can’t truly appreciate one without the other. It’s kind of like our experience of leaving behind yesterday and welcoming today. Whatever it holds, God is in control and He will see us through!