tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-22238052804985245652024-03-14T11:48:41.568-07:00Catch the WindDavid Ryserhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08514963161762663473noreply@blogger.comBlogger91125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2223805280498524565.post-49163549377621249832013-06-17T11:34:00.001-07:002024-01-29T20:05:34.815-08:00The Death of a Dream: What Now?<br />
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<br />
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
By David Ryser</div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">If
you ever see a turtle on a fencepost you can know that it didn’t get there by
itself.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></i>(Allan Emery)</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
One of my dreams died today.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Although this death is somewhat painful for me, it is
not unexpected.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Dreams don’t die all at
once…they can take a long time to die.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>And this dream has been on life support for several years.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Today it was time to pull the plug.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
My dream died quickly and
peacefully in its sleep.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
Now, my dream is not the only dream
that has ever died.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The Bible is full of
stories about people with God-given hopes, aspirations, and ambitions who have
experienced the death of their dreams.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
The story of Joseph is one such
example.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Joseph had two dreams through
which God revealed to him that he would rule over his father’s household.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Typical of God, He did not reveal to Joseph
the details of the difficulties through which the dream would come to
pass.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Before the dreams were fulfilled
in Joseph’s life he was sold into slavery, was falsely accused of sexual
assault, and was imprisoned.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
It’s bad enough to be in
prison.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It’s even worse to be a slave in
prison.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
Finally, Joseph was released from
prison 17 years after he was sold into slavery.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>He was promoted to second-in-command over all of Egypt.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He was given great wealth and married into a
prominent family.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Life was great for
Joseph, especially the first several years of his reign.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Many years later Joseph was reunited with his
family, and the dreams God had given to him were fulfilled.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
But somewhere along the line,
Joseph had forgotten about the dreams.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
It was not until his brothers bowed
down before him that Joseph remembered his dreams.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Perhaps over time the dreams faded from
Joseph’s memory…because his life had turned out so differently from what he had
imagined…and Joseph had simply moved on from them to carve out the best life he
could live.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
But although Joseph forgot his
dreams, he never forgot the God Who had given them to him.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
Moses also had a dream.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Although he was brought up as the son of
Pharaoh’s daughter, Moses was raised by his birth mother.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He knew who he was and what he was destined
to do.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This dream so burned in him that
he killed for it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>When things went downhill
after the murder, Moses fled Egypt
and lived his life as a shepherd for the next 40 years.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>During this time, Moses’ dream…like the dreams
of Joseph...eventually died.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>When God
appeared to Moses in the desert and resurrected his dream, Moses…unlike
Joseph…remembered the dream God had given to him.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
But he no longer wanted it.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
So the stories of Joseph and Moses
contain some similarities and some differences.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Both men had God-given dreams.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Both men experienced the death of their dreams over time as their lives
took unexpected turns.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Both had moved on
with their lives after the death of their dreams…their lives were not wasted
mourning over their dead dreams.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Both
had their dreams resurrected and fulfilled by God in the end, but by then
neither cared.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Joseph had forgotten his
dreams, but embraced them when they came to pass.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Moses remembered his dream, but tried to
reject it when God breathed new life into it.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
And neither man forgot the God who
gave the dreams to them even after their dreams had died.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
I have read the stories of people
who have suffered the death of God-given dreams and experienced the joy of
having their dreams resurrected by God and given back to them.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I know people who have had the same
experience.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Many…if not all…of these
people drew closer to God (although not without wavering at times) through the
process of dying to their dreams.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Through it all they remained…or became…steadfast lovers of Jesus who
compared to the joy of knowing Him did not care about their dreams (whether
forgotten or remembered) by the time God breathed new life into their dreams
and fulfilled them.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>God is able to
resurrect dead dreams.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
Resurrection is a wonderful
thing.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But it comes with a price.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
You see, there is no resurrection
without death.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Resurrection by
definition requires death.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Resurrection
is being raised from death to life.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In
order to be resurrected, a person must first experience death.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>For a dream to be resurrected, it must first
die.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
There are no shortcuts.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There is no Plan B.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
So now I sit with a dead
dream.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And trust me, I know a dead dream when I see one.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’m not
particularly devastated by this loss because I still have everything that
matters…I still have Jesus.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And I have
the rest of my life before me filled with endless possibilities as I
contemplate where to go and what to do from here.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I have a great excitement and
expectancy…without expectation…about my future.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
And I have not forgotten the God
who gave me the dream that has died.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
Does this mean that God will
resurrect my dream and give it back to me?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I don’t know.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And I don't care.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
Responses to this article are
welcomed.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You may contact the author at <a href="mailto:drdave1545@yahoo.com">drdave1545@yahoo.com</a> </div>
David Ryserhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08514963161762663473noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2223805280498524565.post-34195275716020232562013-05-28T07:56:00.002-07:002013-05-28T13:41:02.087-07:00Live Now: Edit Later<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
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<br />
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
By David Ryser</div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Pray
I never die till I pass away.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Pray I
never die lost in yesterday.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></i>(From
the song <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">I’m a Wannabe </i>by <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Metanoya</i>)</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
My friend Tim and his family
recently traveled through one of their favorite places in the country.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They were enjoying the scenery and taking
pictures to record the memories of their vacation.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>While driving through a particularly majestic
place, Tim noticed that members of his family were busy reviewing the pictures
they had taken earlier in the trip and deciding which photos to keep.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Concerned they would miss the beauty of their
current surroundings, Tim encouraged his family to experience and enjoy the view.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
He said, “Live now.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Edit later.”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
The last ten years of my life have
been spent largely in a time of intense introspection.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This has not been due to some narcissistic self-absorption
on my part; but rather, it has been a time of revelation and healing.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>God has walked with me through my past in
order to prepare me for my future…a future He would not even allow me to speak
with Him about during most of this part of the journey.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’ve heard it said that God is called I AM
because He is a God of the now, not a God of the past or of the future. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I once listened to a preacher say that God is called
I AM because He is in the present, not in the past (making Him I WAS) or in the
future (making Him I WILL BE).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It made
for some really good preaching.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
And like a lot of what we call good
preaching, it’s a bunch of baloney.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
The truth is that the omnipresence
of God means that He is not only every<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">where</b>,
He is also every<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">when</b>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>God is inside of time…past, present, and
future…and He is also outside of time.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>And all at the same time.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The
reason we typically connect with Him in the present is not because <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">He</b> is not in the past or the future, it
is because <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">we</b> are not in the past or
the future.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
Usually.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
What about when God takes us by the
hand and leads us back into our past?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>(Or
when He shows us our future?)<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I can say
from experience that we are very much connected with God…what He is showing to
us and saying to us…when we walk together into the past.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
One should never confuse connected
with comfortable.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
A walk with God through the past
can be a wonderful and redemptive…if often painful…experience filled with insight
and renovation.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I have discovered that
the past can be a marvelous teacher.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But
the past can also become a terrible prison where a person can become trapped
for years in a cycle of remorse and shame.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>At some point healing should come.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>The season of intense introspection and death to self comes to an end,
and a season of restoration and resurrection replaces it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We return to the present with expectancy about
our future.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
“Live now.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Edit later.”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
Tim’s words rang out in my spirit
when I heard them.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It was as if God was
speaking to me about an imminent change of season in my life.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>No longer would I concentrate on where I had
been.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>My attention has turned to what He
is saying to me in the present.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’m
living more in the moment while at the same time experiencing a renewed
excitement about where my journey with God will lead me next…without being unduly
concerned about where my destination is or when I will arrive.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
It’s a great way to live.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
And I plan to experience this
season to the fullest.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>To see the sights
and hear the sounds.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>To take in all God
is showing me.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>To listen to all He is
saying to me.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>To sing along with the
song He is singing to me.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>To walk down
the path He has laid down for me.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>To
laugh.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>To love.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>To dance.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
For as long as this season lasts.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
Because I know that as time passes,
there will come another season of editing…a season where that which is unwanted
and no longer needed will be removed.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>But that is then, and this is now.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>This is the time for me to embark on the next adventure.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>To see and experience new things and make
some new memories.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>To take a few “pictures”
along the way.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It’s the season to live.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
I’m going to live now…and edit
later.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
Responses to this article are
welcomed.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You may contact the author at <a href="mailto:drdave1545@yahoo.com">drdave1545@yahoo.com</a> </div>
David Ryserhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08514963161762663473noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2223805280498524565.post-31828967618304462472013-05-21T17:28:00.003-07:002013-05-27T09:18:31.997-07:00A Bird in the Hand is Worth: More than Me?<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
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<br />
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
By David Ryser</div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Scars remind us of where we've been. They don't have to dictate where we're going.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></i>(A line from the television series <i>Criminal Minds</i>)</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
Jesus asked a lot of stupid
questions.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>These questions litter the
gospels.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>For example, Jesus was touring
the temple one day and wandered into a pool area where dozens of sick and
infirm people were waiting for the stirring of the water so they might be the
first into the water in order to be healed.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Jesus walked over to one of these people and asked him, “Do you want to
be made well?”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
What?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Of course the man wants to be made well!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This is why he’s at the pool to begin with.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>What a stupid question!</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
Another time Jesus was walking down
the road when a blind man cried out asking for mercy.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Jesus called the man over and asked him,
“What do you want Me to do for you?”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
Duh!</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
What did Jesus expect the man to
say?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The man was blind!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Was he going to ask Jesus to cure some warts
he couldn’t get rid of?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>What a stupid
question!</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
I found myself considering the
gospels with an eye to spotting stupid questions posed by Jesus.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I was reading along in the 12<sup>th</sup>
chapter of Luke and came across a question posed by Jesus (in verse 24) asking, in effect,
“Are you worth more than a bird?”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
Enough, already!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>What a stupid question…or is it?</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
I had the opportunity to work
Jesus’ question into a conversation recently.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I was talking with a friend and asked her, “Are you worth more than a
bird?”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Without hesitation she answered,
“No.”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
So maybe this isn’t such a stupid
question after all.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
What makes people…even Christian
people…feel so valueless that they believe they are not even worth the price of
a bird?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The obvious answers are easily
identified.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I know people who have experienced
horrific abuse, torment, violence, violation, rejection, abandonment, betrayal,
loss, and disappointment in their lives.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I understand how they might battle feelings of inferiority and
worthlessness.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
But what about someone like
me?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>What’s my excuse?</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
I was raised…and occasionally
“reared”…by loving and godly parents.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I
was provided for, nurtured, and properly disciplined.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>My parents took me to church and taught me
about God.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We prayed together as a
family every night before bedtime.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I was
never mistreated in any way.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>My parents
are still living. I have spoken with both of them by phone in the last month
and expressed my love & appreciation for them.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I suffered no life-altering traumas as a
child…not even so much as a broken bone or devastating mental shock.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
So why would someone like me
struggle with thoughts of inadequacy and valuelessness?</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
In my case, emotionally immature
spontaneity and social awkwardness…traits that still plague me to some degree
until today…combined with a hypersensitivity to perceived criticism and an
over-developed fear of embarrassment, caused me to react inappropriately to
even the most loving correction.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I was
unable to distinguish doing bad from being bad.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>To me, being corrected for doing wrong was indistinguishable from being
told there was something wrong with me.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>In a tactic that goes back to the Garden of Eden, I attempted to hide
from my shame.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
Hiding didn’t work in Eden.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It doesn’t work now, either.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
To make matters worse, I came of
age in the late 1960’s and early 1970’s.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>This was a time of great social & societal upheaval in the United States.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Parents were concerned for their children in
ways that were unimaginable in the past.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Drug abuse was rampant.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Parents
were told that children who were withdrawn/hidden might possibly be using
illegal drugs.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
I was withdrawn and hidden.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>My parents were concerned.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’ll let you guess how that played out.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
So from whatever source, each of us
experiences a sense of inferiority and worthlessness to some degree.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And we attempt to combat these feelings using
a variety of tactics…some more proactive/passive and conscious/unconscious than
others…to compensate for this perceived lack of value.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
And it pollutes every good thing we
do.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
I recently had a conversation with
a pastor in which he was extolling the virtues of one of the ladies in his
church.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I agreed with him that she is a
wonderful person.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She is a generous
woman who gives liberally of her time and labor, in part because she is
especially spiritually gifted for service.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
But there is a dark side to her
serving.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
This dear woman also serves out of
a need to be valued.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She needs to know
she is loved, treasured, cherished, prized, esteemed, admired, appreciated, and
approved.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We all need these things.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But our quest to obtain them can cause us to
exercise even our legitimate, God-given gifts out of our own need.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We serve in order to be loved instead of
serving because we are loved…and there is a big difference between the two.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
And it never ends well.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
We want to feel loved and
valued.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Instead, we end up feeling
frustrated and unfulfilled.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We do good,
but for the wrong reason.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And when
people do not respond with appreciation for the good we do, our resentment
toward them can boil over into anger and might damage…or even
destroy…relationships.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Out of our own
woundedness, we wound others.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Having sought
to do good, we are surprised to look behind us only to see the carnage of
broken lives and relationships in our wake.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>No decent person wants to harm anyone, so now guilt and shame enter the
picture.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>What a mess!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Is there any way out of this?</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
There is no way out.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But there is a way in.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
The Bible has a lot to say about
being in Christ.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And religious people
pay a great deal of lip-service to this truth.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>But being in Christ is not simply a nice theological theory; it is a
precious reality that can be experienced by each and every child of God.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It may help to know that the term “in Christ”
(and “in Jesus’ name” for that matter) is based in part upon a common
mistranslation in our English Bible.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In
these instances, the word commonly translated as “in” is the word έις which
should never be translated as “in”.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It
should always be translated as “into”.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>There is a word for “in” (εν), and it is used whenever the writer wants
to express the concept of “in”.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
So who cares? <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Into. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>What does it matter?</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
It matters because we treat “in
Christ” as positional truth rather than as an experiential reality.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And we use Ephesians 2:6 to legitimize this
religious hogwash.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We do not live in the
reality of being in Christ because we do not expect to experience it in this
life.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And that’s regrettable because
Jesus has invited us into an intimate relationship with God as beloved/valued
children…in this life.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“In Christ” is a
place…not a position.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“In Jesus name” is
a place…not an incantation we add at the end of a prayer request in order to
make our prayer more effective.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And
these both refer to a place to which we have been invited by Jesus Himself.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Now.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Not when we go to heaven, but right now.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
So what’s stopping us from going
there?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Are we not worth more than a
bird?</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
Responses to this article are
welcomed.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You may contact the author at <a href="mailto:drdave1545@yahoo.com">drdave1545@yahoo.com</a> </div>
David Ryserhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08514963161762663473noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2223805280498524565.post-87776058595629756482012-09-15T10:27:00.000-07:002012-09-28T07:25:00.584-07:00Slave or Master?By Karen Ramsey<br />
(Used with the author’s permission.)<br />
<br />
“On the day you were born your umbilical cord was not cut, you weren't bathed and cleaned up, you weren't rubbed with salt, you weren't wrapped in a baby blanket. No one cared a fig for you. No one did one thing to care for you tenderly in these ways. You were thrown out into a vacant lot and left there, dirty and unwashed—a newborn nobody wanted. And then I came by. I saw you all miserable and bloody. Yes, I said to you, lying there helpless and filthy, "Live! Grow up like a plant in the field!" And you did. You grew up. You grew tall and matured as a woman, full-breasted, with flowing hair. But you were naked and vulnerable, fragile and exposed. I came by again and saw you, saw that you were ready for love and a lover. I took care of you, dressed you and protected you. I promised you my love and entered the covenant of marriage with you. I, God, the Master, gave my word. You became mine. I gave you a good bath, washing off all that old blood, and anointed you with aromatic oils. . .” (Ezekiel 16:4-9, MSG).<br />
<br />
Recently I read two articles by Dr. David Ryser. The first was entitled “Lover or Prostitute?” The second was part 2 of the first article. In the first part, he discusses the journey from being a prostitute (one who has to be paid for his/her services) to being a lover of God (serving and loving God without conditions). In the second article, Dr. Ryser talks about how, after he’d wrestled through that conflict, God turned things around by stating, “I’m not a prostitute, either. (If you haven’t read either or both articles, they are the first two posts on this blog) I mention those articles because they were the precursor to how God next turned me upside down. I was chewing on the ideas Dr. Ryser presented, and trying to process the revelations they brought.<br />
<br />
As I was praying and setting myself for real heart-searching and repentance, God stopped me short by saying, in a nutshell, “I’m not a rapist, either.”<br />
<br />
I didn’t even have a response for that for several long moments. I was almost afraid to have one, because I knew Daddy was getting ready to deal with some deeply-rooted things.<br />
<br />
Finally, I took a deep breath and set myself to open up to whatever He wanted to do. But when I looked up at Him, what I saw stopped me short once again. He was looking back at me with tears running down His face.<br />
<br />
Suddenly I was seeing myself through His eyes, and we were watching vignettes from the past scroll by. I watched His heart break as He watched me try to relate to Him the same way I had learned to relate to others in my life.<br />
<br />
A vicious incident from childhood involving a neighbor set my life on a destructive path that lasted long into my adulthood. Over and over again, from my teens into my 30s, I entered into relationships with people who were selfish at best and dangerous at worst.<br />
<br />
As we watched these scenes pass by, God began opening my eyes to what was going on inside of me during that time: I was terrified that my control over my body would be stolen again, yet I didn’t know how to choose people that wouldn’t do so. I wasn’t even sure there were such people, although I longed to find even just one.<br />
<br />
The only solution I could find was to give myself away so I couldn’t be stolen from again. Submission became the way I maintained control, not gave it up: “I’m going to give in to your desires, regardless of my own feelings, so that the decision remains mine.”<br />
<br />
Unfortunately, it didn’t work out the way I wanted it to. All I really wanted was love and relationship; but what I ended up enduring was so distasteful that I turned to whatever methods of numbing my mind and body I could just to get through it. By the time I was in my 30s, I was entangled with people who weren’t satisfied being given what they wanted to take. Others only found pleasure when they were inflicting pain. The claws of perversity, violence, and control that had pierced me as a child were only being driven deeper and gaining more power. After more than 20 years I’d ended up back in the place I’d worked so hard to escape, but with those added decades of time spent cementing these relational patterns in place.<br />
<br />
It was after a couple of very bad years that I finally turned to God. He swept right into my life and instantly began healing me. I found a church that, among other things, moved powerfully in spiritual warfare. I was immediately drawn to that aspect of God.<br />
<br />
I spent two years running hard after the Warrior. I remember times He tried to come to me in other ways, as Father or Beloved, and my gut reaction was to slam the door in His face. Because I’d lived with warfare, violence, and striving most of my life, I was comfortable with it. Anything else terrified me.<br />
<br />
Finally, He had to get direct with me. A while back He said, “If you don’t let Me love you, you aren’t going to make it.”<br />
<br />
Love – now that’s an interesting word. That’s all I was looking for from the beginning, but my experiences taught me that the way to please someone was to let them use me any way they wanted. Pain was to be expected, and possibly enjoyed. I’m realizing now that they were lessons that gave me a fearlessness I felt was useful in battle, and a pride in how I would throw myself at His feet willing for Him to do or ask anything. Yet now He has said He wants something different – something more. And I have to ask myself – do I even know what love is?<br />
<br />
I am on a journey, of which this encounter has become a part. God is trying to show me that opening myself up to let Him do whatever He wants to do to me is not the same thing as opening myself up to His goodness. He doesn’t want to rape me. And when I tell Him it’s ok for Him to use me and throw me away, I’m not submitting – I’m really slapping Him in the face. Because what He’s longing for is a relationship with me.<br />
<br />
I’d be lying if I said I’ve totally gotten a handle on this. It’s opened up some painful things, but I know it’s bringing healing to those things, as well. In the past, I gave myself away because I didn’t dare trust; now He wants me to learn trust first. It’s a dance I’ve never known, and honestly hoped at times to live my Christian life without. But I’m realizing that is because I had no idea what it was He wanted to give me. The Lover is wooing me now, and with such gentleness that I think I may actually be able to reach out and grasp the hand He’s extending towards me . . .<br />
<br />
Responses to this article are welcomed. You may contact the author at ramseyk.kr@gmail.com<br />
<br />David Ryserhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08514963161762663473noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2223805280498524565.post-5830705882688737902012-08-12T06:23:00.003-07:002024-01-29T19:44:11.810-08:00"Look What I Found!": Blind Squirrels and Spiritual Truth<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
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<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
By David Ryser</div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Even
a blind squirrel finds an acorn sometimes.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span></i>(Proverb)</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
I do a lot of driving, both on my
job and in my personal life.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Driving is
not exciting to me…and I suppose it’s best that way.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“Driving” and “excitement” are two words that
should probably never appear in the same sentence.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In my experience, excitement while driving is
almost always a bad thing.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But driving
can be boring, which poses its own risks.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>So I look for ways to keep myself mentally engaged while driving.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
I particularly enjoy reading church
building marquees.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
There are lots of opportunities to
read church building marquees.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Church
buildings are everywhere… like pubs (and for the same reasons).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Reading the marquees, I often muse about the folks
who gather in these buildings…and why they do.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>What sorts of people attend the services?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Do they love Jesus?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Do they even know Him?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Does Jesus attend their church meetings?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Would I be welcomed in their services…and for
how long?</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
I’ve come to suspect that the
message on a church building marquee says a lot about the people who meet
inside.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
Many messages I read on church
building marquees are…to put it politely…religious tripe.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Many others are merely advertising of some kind.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I suspect that the latter is less harmful
than the former.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Few people are harmed
by advertising.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Far more are poisoned by
drinking the religious bilge served in the average church service.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
But I digress.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
My current favorite example of a church
building marquee message that encourages me to stay out of the building at all
costs is one I saw in a small rural town.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>The sign reads:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>IF YOU DON’T HAVE
THE BREAD OF LIFE, YOU’RE TOAST.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I must
admit that my first reaction was to laugh.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>A part of me found the sign to be quite funny…if somewhat
counter-productive…and it amused me.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
After all, if you’re going to
engage in religious buffoonery, at least have the decency to be entertaining.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
But what kind of message does this
send to people?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Much of what is
communicated in Christian evangelism…by whatever media…seems to portray God as saying,
“Love Me…or else.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Or else what?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Or else I’ll curse you?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Cause you to be sick?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Harm you, your family, and your
children?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Burn you forever in the fires
of hell?</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
Who can resist such an
invitation?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Doesn’t this just make you
want to run into your heavenly Daddy’s arms?</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
Jesus never…ever…not even
once…issued such an invitation to people.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>He did encourage them to meet and relate intimately with the Father.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>A Father who desperately loved them.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>A Father who wanted very much to fellowship
with them.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>A Father who would not reject
them, but who would receive them with gladness into His embrace.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
It’s been my experience that it’s
not necessary to threaten a person in order to persuade them to love someone
who loves them this much.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
So I don’t find much truth on
church building marquees.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And when I do,
I often suspect that it’s an accident.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>For example, I was driving past a church building recently, and the
message on the marquee read:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>NEED A NEW
LIFE?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>GOD ACCEPTS TRADE-INS.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I found the message clever, and was about to
pass it out of my thinking.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
And then the truth of the message
exploded in my spirit.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
You see, too many Christians…myself
included…tend to view our faith as a spiritual automobile repair.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Our car (life) is broken, so we take it into
the mechanic (Jesus) who repairs (“saves”) it and returns it to us with an
admonishment to drive more carefully (live the “Christian life”) and maintain
it more diligently (develop robust spiritual disciplines) in the future.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This sounds good, but is found nowhere in the
Bible.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
The Christian life is less like a
car repair, and more like a trade-in for a new car.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
With a trade-in, a person takes
his/her old car (old life) to the dealer (Jesus) and exchanges it for a new car
(new life).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Ownership of the old car is
relinquished to the dealer, and the previous owner forfeits all future rights
to it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Signs away the title.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Turns in the key. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Walks away from the old car and begins to
drive the new car, never to own or drive the old car ever again.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
This is Paul’s view of the
Christian life.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
Especially in his letters to the
Ephesians, Philippians, and Colossians, Paul presents the Christian faith as an
exchange of life.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We die and receive
Christ’s life.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We trade in our old man
for the new man.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We no longer live out
of the old life; but rather, we walk in the newness of Christ’s life.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And as the seed of Christ’s life which has been
planted in us takes root and grows, it displaces our old life and we
progressively come out of the spiritual darkness into God’s light.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We live “in Christ” (a term found dozens of
times in the Epistles), and Christ lives in us.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
God not only accepts trade-ins, He
welcomes them.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
So now I’m left wondering if the
people who worship and fellowship inside of this church building are living
in…or are even aware of…the truth expressed on their building’s marquee.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It’s one thing for a blind squirrel to
stumble across an acorn, but this good fortune does the squirrel no good unless
it recognizes the acorn as an acorn.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Otherwise, the squirrel will mistake the acorn for a rock…or some other
inedible object…and kick it aside and resume the search for food, never
realizing how close it came to enjoying the feast that it was seeking.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
Religion is a lot like that
squirrel.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
I probably will never go into that
church building.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I don’t even remember
where it is.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But as I went on my way,
the message on the marquee continued to ring in my spirit.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
NEED A NEW LIFE?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>GOD ACCEPTS TRADE-INS.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
Responses to this article are
welcomed.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You may contact the author at <a href="mailto:drdave1545@yahoo.com">drdave1545@yahoo.com</a> </div>
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<![endif]-->David Ryserhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08514963161762663473noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2223805280498524565.post-8888765932843882772012-04-19T06:15:00.001-07:002024-01-29T19:37:43.529-08:00The Empty Theater: Playing to an Audience of One<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
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<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
By David Ryser</div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>See, when you’re a little kid,
nobody ever warns you that you’ve got an expiration date. One day you’re hot
stuff and the next day you’re a dirt sandwich.</i> <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;"> </i>(Jeff Kinney)</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
“Look at me!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Look at me!”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>What is it about young children that causes them to clamor for
attention?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Children seem to need
attention desperately. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’ve known some
of them to misbehave simply to get attention…the kind of attention that any
rational human being would seek to avoid.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I can only conclude that attention is like any other form of publicity.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
I’m told there is no such thing as
bad publicity.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
Children…and some religious
professionals…crave attention.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They have
a need to be seen.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They have a need to
be heard.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They have a need to be
acknowledged as important.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
In short, children need to be
valued by someone…by anyone.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So do
adults.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And one of the most common ways
that we measure our self-worth is by how many people pay attention to us.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
So we pursue attention.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We prefer positive attention.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But we will settle for negative attention if
we must.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
And the more attention the
better.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The more people who see us, the
better.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The more people who hear us, the
better.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The more people who attend our
church….</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
Well, you get the idea.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
The problem with using fame as a
means to measure our value is that fame is fleeting.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>One day we are the center of attention.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The next day, we are yesterday’s news.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If you want to know just how easily you can
be forgotten…and how quickly...simply become a religious professional.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
And then leave the ministry.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
Of course, this dynamic applies to
everyday life as well.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We seek to be
valued and admired by all kinds of people…spouses, other loved ones, employers,
co-workers…even by people we don’t know.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
If we are noticed, we believe we
have value.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If we are ignored, we feel
worthless.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
This can be quite a roller-coaster,
mentally and emotionally.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Life is full
of these ups-and-downs.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Even Jesus was
not immune to this reality of life.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He
experienced anonymity in His early life.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>He experienced fame later in His life.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>He was well-received.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He was
rejected.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>His message and ministry were
enthusiastically accepted.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>His message
and ministry were opposed.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He preached
to large crowds.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He had hundreds of
disciples.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>His preaching also caused all
of these disciples…except twelve…to leave Him.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
And even those twelve abandoned Him
when He needed them the most.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
Reading the gospels, I am struck by
how Jesus behaved in the good times and the bad times.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He didn’t seem to be influenced by how
popular He was…or how unpopular.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He
remained steady when He was opposed, and even slandered.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He did not seek fame or approval…with one
notable exception…and did not fear disapproval and rejection.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
So what was the exception?</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
Throughout His life and ministry,
Jesus was concerned only with the approval of His Father.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He ministered by doing only what He saw the
Father doing and saying only what He heard the Father saying.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He was unmoved by the approval or disapproval
of people, but was very responsive to the Father’s pleasure.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
Jesus played to an audience of One.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
Jesus heard the applause of the
Father when the crowds accepted Him.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Jesus heard the Father’s applause when the crowds rejected Him.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The religious leaders and religious people
never did accept Him (there’s a lesson in this, I think).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Jesus even heard the applause of the Father
when His closest friends abandoned Him.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
So what about us?</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
Do we hear the Father’s
applause?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Do we go about our daily lives
in tune with what the Father is doing and saying…and how He is responding to
what we are doing and saying?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>No matter
what is happening around us?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>No matter
what people are saying about us?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Whether
or not people are paying attention to us?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Whether or not people are approving of us?</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
And if not, then why not?</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
I’ve given this quite a bit of
thought because for the longest time I suffered from a peculiar form of
Attention Deficit Disorder.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Specifically, I felt I wasn’t getting enough attention from people…a
deficit of attention…and strived mightily to get it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>When anyone suggested to me that I should seek
to satisfy my need for attention and sense of being valued from God, the
religious part of me would acknowledge that I ought to do so.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But I was always unable to pull it off.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
Why?</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
My problem boiled down to my lack
of knowing God and the failure of the religious system to teach me how to know
Him.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In fairness, it was foolish of me
to expect my religious leaders to teach me how to know and love God. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They had no more idea of how to know and love
God than I did.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I believe most of them
wanted to know and love Him.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So did
I.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But God wasn’t real to us.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>None of us had experienced Him…His presence
in a real and tangible way…enough to connect with Him, much less be intimate
with Him.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So we would acknowledge that
we needed to get our sense of self-worth from God and for His approval to be
enough for us, but experienced neither.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
How can we play to an audience of
One without any awareness of His presence in the theater?</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
We can’t.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It was not until I experienced God’s presence
and began to walk in an intimate relationship with Him…and became secure and
confident in that relationship…that I was able to live for His pleasure alone,
not moved by the opinions and the approval/disapproval of others.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Now I am able to hear Him when the theater is
full and when it is empty.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I have
learned to play to an audience of One.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
And that has made all the difference.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
Responses to this article are
welcomed.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You may contact the author at <a href="mailto:drdave1545@yahoo.com">drdave1545@yahoo.com</a> </div>
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<![endif]-->David Ryserhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08514963161762663473noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2223805280498524565.post-75395832086145182472012-03-02T10:32:00.003-08:002024-01-29T18:01:46.135-08:00Abiding in Jesus: A Lesson from the Teensy-Weensy Spider<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
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<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
By David Ryser</div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">…apart
from Me you can do nothing.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></i>(Jesus
of Nazareth; John 15:5c NASB)</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
I am often amazed, and sometimes dismayed,
by what passes for news these days.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>For
example, right now I am sitting at my desk looking over a news story about a
spider with a detachable penis.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
I am not making this up.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
The male orb-web spider has a
detachable penis.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Now, I would not
particularly care to have one of these.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>But as it turns out, this is a handy thing to have if you are a male
orb-web spider…because an intimate encounter gives the female orb-web spider a
howling case of the munchies.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And the
preferred post-coital snack of choice for the female orb-web spider is the male
orb-web spider.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So the male spider is
able to leave his genitalia behind to finish the job (which it does…without him
being attached to it) while he, hopefully, scampers a safe distance away from
the female until her hunger subsides.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
So having a detachable…functioning…body
part is a great blessing for the male orb-web spider.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This does not, however, work so well for the
Body of Christ.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
I cannot count the number of times
I have read John 15:5.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And I shudder to
think I may ever have preached from it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Never has the last part of this verse impacted me as it has of
late.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Jesus is not joking when He says,
“apart from Me you can do nothing.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>How
could I have missed that?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Because for a
good part of my Christian life, I did attempt to bear spiritual fruit apart from Him.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I tried to work for Him, to accomplish great
things for Him, and to live my life for Him.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Imagine my surprise when I discovered that nowhere does the Bible
command me to do anything for God.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
Part of the problem is our poorly
translated English Bible…and poor translation leads to poor interpretation…and
every version has serious problems.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
In several translations, the last
part of John 15:5 is rendered, “without Me you can do nothing.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This leads us to conclude that with Jesus we
can do anything.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But the Bible never
says this…not in Greek, anyhow…and it flies in the face of what Jesus is
teaching in the first part of John 15.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>The picture here is not of a vine that is not with us.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The idea is not that we branches could bear
all kinds of fruit if the vine were alongside of us.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
And yet, how much preaching have we
heard about how we can accomplish great things for the Kingdom of God
with Jesus at our side?</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
Rather, the illustration Jesus uses
is that of a branch that has been detached from the vine.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And the word translated “without” (χώρις) in
some of the most popular English versions of the Bible, is better translated as
“apart/detached from” as it is in the NASB and the NIV.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Just try to tear off a grape branch from the grapevine
with your bare hands sometime.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You will
discover the branch is an outgrowth of the vine…so much so that if you attempt
to tear off the branch, it will shred the vine all the way to the root.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
Grape branches cannot be torn
off.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They must be cut off.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
And if the branches are cut off
from the vine, the life of the vine will not flow through them.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Not only will the branches bear no fruit,
but they will also die. We are delusional if we think that we are going to produce and
manifest the fruit of the life of Jesus apart from an intimate connection with
Him...apart from His life flowing through us.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
This theme is repeated throughout
the New Testament.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Paul uses the picture
of the body (us) connected to the Head (Jesus).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Imagine Paul’s reaction if we were to suggest to him that a body part
could go out and accomplish anything for the head while detached from the head.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Jason Henderson illustrates the absurdity of
this kind of thinking by using the example of a talking hand arguing with the
head about wanting to go out and do something great for the head.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The head tries to convince the hand that it
just wants the hand to be an expression of its life, and to be as active…or
inactive…as the head desires at any given time.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
This can turn into quite an
argument.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Ask me how I know.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
A body part that is detached from
the head is not going to do anything useful for the head.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>A body part detached from the head is not
merely dysfunctional.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>A body part
detached from the head is dead.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
Or religious.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
Instead of us trying to do
something for God while detached from His life, Paul presents the Christian
life as our being crucified with Christ and raised up into the newness of His
life.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Rather than us doing things for
God, Jesus lives through us.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>His life
flows through us.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We abide in Him, and
His life in us produces fruit.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
The phrase “in Christ” (or its
equivalent) is found hundreds of times in the New Testament.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Religious professionals tell us we are
positionally in Christ from the time we pray a salvation prayer…also referred
to as the sinner’s prayer…but that we might not experience the intimacy of that
relationship until after we die.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
This thinking/teaching is so
fundamentally flawed, I don’t even know where to begin to tear it apart.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
For one thing, the
salvation/sinner’s prayer didn’t even exist until 200 years ago.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>How did Peter, James, John, Paul, and the
others become Christians if they didn’t pray “the prayer”?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>For another, “in Christ” is a place, not a
position.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It is a present reality.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The New Testament expresses this clearly…and
often…but we fail to see it, partly because of bad religious teaching.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I
cannot help but suspect that those who tell us we cannot expect to experience a
vibrant, intimate relationship with Jesus in this life are only telling us this
because they are trying to cover up the fact that they themselves do not.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
But the Bible does not teach
this.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Matthew 7:22, 23 tells us clearly
that we will enter the Kingdom
of God, or be rejected,
on the basis of whether Jesus has ever been intimate with us…while we are alive
on this earth.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
If anyone has a hope of being
accepted on the basis of what they have done for God, the people described in
Matthew 7:22 are those people.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But according
to the Bible, the issue is whether Jesus “knows” (γινώσκώ) us, not what we did
for Him.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Knows us…experientially and
intimately.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Now…not in heaven…but now.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
So let’s abandon the preposterous
notion that we can be anything or do anything apart from an intimate connection
with Jesus.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We can no more live apart
from Him than a branch can live apart from the vine.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We can no more function apart from Him than a
body part can function detached from the brain.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>It’s impossible.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
Unless you’re a spider penis.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
Responses to this article are
welcomed.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You may contact the author at <a href="mailto:drdave1545@yahoo.com">drdave1545@yahoo.com</a> </div>
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<![endif]-->David Ryserhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08514963161762663473noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2223805280498524565.post-2681963083510951352012-03-02T08:18:00.002-08:002024-01-29T19:29:17.177-08:00Intimacy without Familiarity: Religion's Version of Knowing God<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
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<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
By David Ryser</div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">The
dysfunction of the Church is that it has become a group of people who are in
Christ living as though they were not, trying to get a group of people who are
not in Christ to behave as though they were.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span></i>(Tim Speer)</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
A friend of mine recently sent me
an article that, in part, is a shining example of the religious mindset when it
comes to our relationship with God.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The
main premise of the article is that the Church has been taken captive by a
belief that “the Church” is defined as a building (with its attendant rituals
and activities) rather than as a group of believers.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The author correctly observes that Jesus said
He would build His Church, but we have attempted to build it for Him rather
than simply to love Him and others.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In
so doing, we have stolen the Church from Him.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>And then we, in turn, allowed the enemy to steal the Church from us.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The author then exhorts us to turn back to
God.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
So far, so good.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
But toward the end of the article,
the author issues a warning/caveat/disclaimer that is all too common in
religious writings.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>What is this dire
warning?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We are cautioned not to become
too familiar with God lest we lose respect for Him as the all-powerful Creator
of the universe.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In fact, the author
claims to “see too many people who are too familiar with God.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I find this to be an interesting claim
because I don’t know anyone who is too familiar with God.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I know people who are not at all familiar
with God.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>These people are
religious-minded people…both believers and unbelievers…who hold God at arm’s
length and relate to Him as though they are on the outside of the relationship
looking in.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And I know people who are
familiar with God.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>These people are
passionate lovers of Jesus and are intimate with Him.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And they respect Him.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
How can you have intimacy without
familiarity?</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
Intimacy without familiarity is an
absurd notion.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>How absurd?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I dare you to apply this concept to your
relationship with your spouse.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Go to your
spouse and utter the following affectionate speech:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“I love you.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I love you like I love no other.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I love you passionately.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I want
to be intimate with you…body and soul…so that we are one in every way.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But I don’t want to become too familiar with you
for fear that I will lose respect for you.”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
What?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Can you imagine how your spouse would react
to this?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And is there any way you could envision
that your spouse would react positively?</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
There is a reason this sort of drivel
does not appear in romantic greeting cards.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
The fact is, there is no genuine intimacy
without familiarity.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And religious
writers who suggest we can have intimacy with God…and then caution against
familiarity with Him…are likely neither intimate nor familiar with God.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They’re merely religious.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Religion depends upon maintaining a distance
in our relationship with God.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It has a
vested interest in keeping us separated from God and relating to Him as though
He was an abusive Father whom we must fear…and appease…in order to win His favor.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
This kind of fear is central to the
continued existence and success of religion.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>And someone who is intimate and familiar with God is a threat to
religion…and to the religious.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
Jesus had this problem back in His
day.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He modeled and taught an intimate…and
familiar…relationship with His Father.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>And religious people hated Him because of it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They called Him a blasphemer because He
called Himself the Son of God, thus making God His Father.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Jesus demonstrated the love, compassion,
mercy, grace, and works of the Father.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>He claimed to know the Father…in an intimate and familiar way…and
religious people hated Him.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
They hated Him enough to murder
Him.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
Is this religious spirit the same
spirit that compels religious writers to caution believers against becoming too
familiar with God?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I hope not.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I hope that this is merely a holdover from
the religious training we’ve all received.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>As we transition from religion to Jesus, it is not uncommon for us to
retain religious notions and patterns of thought even as we are moving toward
an ever-increasingly intimate relationship with God.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>These fall away as we get nearer to Him, and
it is unfair to judge too harshly someone who is in transition.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
We lovers of Jesus are all in
transition.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
So it can be difficult to know if
someone is in transition or merely a shrewd businessperson who sees an
opportunity for gain in jumping aboard the loving-Jesus bandwagon.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The latter can discern what God is saying to
His Church and see an opportunity to profit from the “loving Jesus fad” in some
way.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So they preach and write about
loving Jesus without really understanding what it is to live in intimacy with
God.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They trumpet the need to be
intimate with God, but are not comfortable about being familiar with Him.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So they admonish us to be intimate with God,
but not to get too familiar with Him.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
I am not without compassion for
these people.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I was one.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I remember one day, as I was in the pulpit
preaching, having the thought: <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“Here I
am speaking for God, and I don’t even know Him.”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
This was not my happiest moment in
the vocational ministry.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
Jesus lived in intimate, and
familiar, relationship with the Father.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>And He respected the Father.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>There is no hint that Jesus’ familiarity with His Father caused Him to
disrespect His Father in any way.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The whole notion
is ridiculous.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I don’t know anyone who
is in an intimate relationship, even with another person, who is not also familiar
with them.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And I know of no one who is
in an intimate and familiar relationship with another person who does not
highly respect that other person.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
How could this be any less true of
our relationship with God?</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
Toward the end of His ministry,
Jesus revealed to His disciples that God was as much their Father as He was
Jesus’ Father.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In His last conversation
with His disciples, Jesus invited them into the same relationship that He had
with the Father.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Not a similar
relationship.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The same
relationship.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The identical relationship
that Jesus had enjoyed with the Father (and the Holy Spirit) from eternity
past.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He prayed that His disciples…whom
he now called His friends…would be one with God and with one another in the
very same way that He and the Father were one.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
Intimate?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Yes.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Familiar?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Absolutely.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Disrespectful?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Never.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
It is a biblical and experiential…for
some of us…fact that we have been invited into an intimate relationship with
God.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>As we grow in intimacy with Him, we
also come to know Him more and to become more familiar with Him.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This intimacy and familiarity with God never
causes us to be disrespectful toward Him. It is not disrespectful to God for us
to enjoy Him as He enjoys us.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
So we should not be made to fear
intimacy and familiarity with God.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We
were created for both.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We must not allow
religious people to tell us that we should have intimacy with God without
familiarity.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Intimacy without
familiarity is not genuine love.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Intimacy without familiarity is the love of the prostitute and the gold-digger.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
And I am neither.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
Responses to this article are
welcomed.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You may contact the author at <a href="mailto:drdave1545@yahoo.com">drdave1545@yahoo.com</a> </div>
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<![endif]-->David Ryserhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08514963161762663473noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2223805280498524565.post-73398808071665506682011-11-09T13:00:00.000-08:002024-02-07T07:35:20.699-08:00Interpreting Scripture: Our Greek-ness is Showing<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
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<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
By David Ryser</div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Anamorphosis
(noun): A distorted image that only takes its proper form when viewed from
exactly the right angle or in an “unconventional” way.</i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
The mother shooed her two young
boys outside on a beautiful spring morning.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>These active tots had been cooped up in the house for several days, and
they were about to drive mom crazy.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She
thought that some time outdoors would be good for them…and for her.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>As the boys played outside, she busied herself
inside the house…enjoying the peace and quiet.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>After what seemed like only a few minutes had passed, she could hear the
boys yelling at one another.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She went
outside and began to scold the boys for fighting.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The older boy looked up at her, confused.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
“But we weren’t fighting, mommy,”
he said.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“We were playing Church.”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
There are more than 30,000
Protestant denominations.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>All are agreed
that salvation is by grace through faith in Jesus Christ.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And all agree that the Scripture is the final
authority in all matters of faith and practice.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>So why are there so many denominations?</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
Because they can’t agree on what
the Scripture says.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
And their disagreement over what
the Bible says is not caused by a lack of biblical scholarship.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The Bible has been translated into virtually
every language on earth.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In an effort to
make the meaning of the scriptures clearer, several modern-language versions
of the Bible have been marketed within the last 50 years.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Bible
Colleges and Seminaries
number in the hundreds of thousands.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Some
of the most brilliant minds in the world have dedicated their lives to biblical
archaeology and language study.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There
are strict rules for biblical study to assist the believer in the search for a
deeper understanding of spiritual truth.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
We have all of the tools.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We are not stupid.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So why can’t we agree on what the Bible says?</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
One problem in western
Christianity…and in those cultures unfortunate enough to have been influenced
by western Christianity…is that we are Greeks.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>And by this, I mean that our way of processing information has been
greatly influenced by ancient Greek thought. All of us who have been raised and/or
educated in a western culture…regardless of our ethnicity or heritage…think
like Greeks.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And this can cause us some problems
when we attempt to interpret the Bible.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
Because God is not a Greek.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
And when scriptures that are inspired
by a non-Greek God…and written by non-Greek people, I might add…come in contact
with the Greek mind, there will probably be some difficulty as a result.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Among other things, we Greeks believe that
there is only one correct way to interpret any particular scripture and apply
it to our lives.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We claim to be
believers in objective truth (defined as that which is absolutely and
universally true regardless of our encounter with it), but then interpret biblical
truth through our own personal religious, cultural, societal, and experiential
lenses.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
Then we argue over which of these
subjective interpretations is objectively correct.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That’s how we get more than 30,000 versions
of the same truth.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Frankly, I’m
surprised that there are so few.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
When a verse or passage in the
Bible lends itself to more than one interpretation, we Greeks seem unable to
consider the possibility that both interpretations might be equally valid.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>(If your head spun while reading that last
sentence, then you just might be a Greek.)<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Let us consider the following example:</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
In Matthew 13:44-46, Jesus speaks two
short parables (or, more accurately, two similes) concerning the Kingdom of Heaven.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>He tells about a pearl merchant who finds a pearl of great price and a
man who finds a treasure in a field.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Both men sell all they have…the former to buy the pearl, and the latter
to purchase the field...in order to obtain the treasure.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
And now the argument begins.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
Are we the man who finds the
pearl/treasure (Jesus) and values Him so much that we give all we have to
obtain Him?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Or is Jesus the man who
finds the pearl/treasure (us) and values us so much that He pays the ultimate
price to purchase us?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I have heard both
versions preached as truth.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
But they can’t both be true…can
they?</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
Actually, they could both be
equally true and valid.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’ve had the
Holy Spirit quicken both of these interpretations in my spirit at different
times of my life.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I have been awestruck
by the preciousness of Jesus and determined to obtain an intimate relationship
with Him regardless of the cost because He is the only One who is worth what I
will pay for Him.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And I have been brought
to tears to know that He loves, cherishes, and values me so much that He would
pay the ultimate price to invite me into the relationship that He and the
Father & the Spirit have enjoyed from eternity past.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
Both of these are true.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Both are consistent with the full teaching of
Scripture.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Both have been a comfort and
a blessing to me at different times in my life.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Jesus does not offer the definitive interpretation of these little
parables/similes.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
So which interpretation did Jesus
have in mind?</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
I’m not convinced Jesus had any
interpretation in mind when He spoke these words.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He always did what He saw the Father doing,
and He always spoke what He heard the Father speaking.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I don’t know that Jesus needed much
explanation or clarification before revealing the works and words of the Father.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If the Father was doing and/or saying
something, that was good enough for Jesus.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Do you really think Jesus knew everything that was going to happen…and
be taught…as the result of the Holy Spirit leading Him one day to look for figs
on a tree when it was not the season for figs…and then to curse the tree when
(duh!) there weren’t any figs on it?</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
Oh, please!</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
So now we are left to deal with
differing interpretations of Matthew 13:44-46…and I assure you there are many
more examples of this sort of thing in the Bible…and to decide which is the
objective truth.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Or we can put aside our
Greek-ness and give up on the idea of objective truth defined as a body of
information and correct interpretation.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>How about we simply adopt the Bible’s definition of objective
truth?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>According to the Bible, ultimate
truth is a Person…Jesus Christ.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Then how
about we let the Author of the scriptures quicken them to our hearts so that we
see them in whatever light He wishes for us to see them at that particular moment?</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
This kind of subjectivity drives
Greeks crazy.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
But relationships are subjective by
their very nature.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Some time ago, I was
teaching a class attended by two sisters.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>When the topic of subjectivity in relationships…including our
relationship with God…came up, they shared their experience of their
father.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>One sister was the eldest child
and was dutiful, respectful, and somewhat detached from her father.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The other sister was the baby of the family
and had a much more familiar relationship with her father.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She called him by his first name and would
often jump up into his lap and crawl all over him.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The elder sister would never dream of doing
either of these things.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Both sisters
felt loved and accepted by their father.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Both remember him fondly.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But listening
to them talk about him, a person would think that they were speaking of two
different men.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
So which one was the real man?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Which was the real father?</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
Only a Greek would ask such
questions.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
Responses to this article are
welcomed.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You may contact the author at <a href="mailto:drdave1545@yahoo.com">drdave1545@yahoo.com</a> </div>
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<![endif]-->David Ryserhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08514963161762663473noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2223805280498524565.post-75383613643237660762011-10-29T08:35:00.000-07:002013-05-24T16:14:24.933-07:00For Whom the Bell Tolls: Working God's Graveyard Shift<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
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<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
By David Ryser &
Martha Paterik</div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Awake,
you who sleep, Arise from the dead, And Christ will give you light.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></i>(Ephesians 5;14b, NKJV)</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
Martha is one of my favorite people
in the world.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There are a lot of reasons
for this.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Martha is a passionate lover
of Jesus.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She knows Him…really knows
Him.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And she thinks.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I just love being around thinking Christians.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
I especially appreciate them
because of their scarcity.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
Recently Martha shared with me a
conversation she had with her mom.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Somehow they got to talking about church cemeteries.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>At one time, it was common for churches to
have cemeteries on their property.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This
is not so usual anymore, and for a lot of reasons.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Martha suggested that the reason churches no
longer have cemeteries outside of the church building is because all of the
dead people are on the inside of the building.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Her mother graciously pointed out that not all of the people in the
church building are dead.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Martha agreed,
but noted that in the days of church cemeteries not everyone who was buried was
dead either.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That’s why a string was tied
to the body and attached to a bell above ground.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
If the person had been buried
alive, the movement of the body would cause the bell to ring.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
But there’s not much point in
having a ringing bell to signal life if there’s no one around to hear it
ring.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So someone would stand the
“graveyard shift” and listen for the ringing of the bell…just in case they had
buried a live one by accident.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Upon hearing
a bell ringing, the one standing by would summon assistance and reassure the
one untimely buried that help was on the way.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Then the graveyard shift worker would assist in unearthing the one
buried alive and set them free.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
Martha’s next words exploded in my
spirit.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">So,
Doc, how many bells will you hear…the next time you step into a church?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>How many bells does God hear?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>How often is Jesus calling an untimely buried
person out of the tomb of church?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If you
can’t resurrect the whole graveyard, then at the very least unbury the ones
still alive in it.</i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
And I was reminded of Tom.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
Years ago, Tom stood the graveyard
shift at a church that was renowned for its coldness and unfriendliness.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He would greet people with a smile, a kind
word, and a hug.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>A big hug…a
squeeze-the-air-out-of-you hug.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>People
would stand in line to be greeted by Tom.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Several people confided to me that the only reason they attended that
church was because of Tom.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He made them
feel valued and loved.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
When Tom finally left that church,
he was greatly missed.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
I typically do not attend a
traditional religious service on Sunday.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>This is not a secret.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So
occasionally I talk with people who do attend a conventional church service,
and they feel the need to explain…usually apologetically…why they do so.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Many are getting very little out of the experience,
but feel God is calling them to stay.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>And they don’t know why.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They are
frustrated.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They want very much to
leave.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>As we talk further, they usually
realize that they stay in their church because their friends attend there.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Or they feel compassion for the people in the
church and want to minister the love of Jesus to them…like Tom.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
They are working God’s graveyard
shift.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And it can be hard work.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
It’s hard observing people you love
slowly die from exposure to the religious system week after week.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It hurts to see the light in their eyes dim
and eventually extinguish.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>To watch
their strength and passion ebb away to nothingness.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>To look on as they strain and claw for the
last little bit of life on their way down to spiritual death.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
But someone needs to be there to
hear the bells…and to assist in unearthing those who should not be buried.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
Maybe God is calling you to be that
someone.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
If so, then let me encourage you to
be faithful to that calling without apology.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I have endured some misunderstanding and criticism for not attending a
traditional church service.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Surely you
can endure those who ask, “Why are you staying in <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">that</b> church?” </div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
Maybe now you have an answer to
their question:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“I’m listening for
bells.”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
And while you’re listening for
bells, you may also hear Martha’s words ringing in your spirit as well:</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Let
it not be said of us that we walked by a ringing bell without taking
notice.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Let us not be ones who left
behind those to claw their last bit of life on the casket/pew.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You mentioned seeing the life slowly dying in
the eyes of people trapped inside a church; the light slowly extinguishing like
a candle burning away the last bit of oxygen.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>What is sad is that they are in church because it is supposed to be the
place the Breath of His Life is found.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>So they come week after week breathing in a poisonous gas that is slowly
killing them.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Is it not a more vile
crime that we have tricked them with the false promise of God and delivered
nothing but a slower, more insidious poison than the world was offering?</i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Stand
the graveyard shift…stand the inglorious job of listening for life.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They are dying for life…they are dying for
the Breath of His Life.</i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Hear
the bells ring, Jesus.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The people are
dying for the life that You bring.</i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
Responses to this article are
welcomed.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You may contact the author at <a href="mailto:drdave1545@yahoo.com">drdave1545@yahoo.com</a> </div>
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<![endif]-->David Ryserhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08514963161762663473noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2223805280498524565.post-84709272853096366992011-10-27T19:52:00.000-07:002024-01-29T19:04:58.995-08:00Lessons from an Ahteist Stand-Up Comic: A Reflection<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
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<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
By David Ryser</div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">If
all the world’s a stage…where does the audience sit? <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></i>(George Carlin)</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
When I was a young man, George
Carlin was my favorite comic.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Carlin was
everything I was not.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He was hip.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He was cool.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>He was edgy.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He was
irreverent.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He was profane.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
Okay, I was irreverent and profane,
but I wasn’t any of those other things.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
And Carlin was hysterically funny.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And shocking.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>And poignant.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Simultaneously.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He made you laugh and think at the same time.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He delighted and horrified audiences with his
comic routines such as “Seven Words You can Never Say on Television.”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
Carlin was also a self-described
atheist.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
Now let us put aside for the moment
the fact that atheism is an absurdity.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Atheism is preposterous.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There is
no such thing as an atheist.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>An atheist
is not someone who does not believe in God.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>A person who does not believe in God is simply an unbeliever.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>An atheist is someone who declares…as an
undeniable fact…that God does not exist.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>In order to be an atheist, one would need to know everything and have
been everywhere; otherwise, it would be possible for God to exist outside of
the “atheist’s” limited experience.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Once
this possibility is admitted, the person is no longer an atheist.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
If you must know everything (be
omniscient) and have been everywhere (be omnipresent) in order to be an atheist, then the only person who
can be a genuine atheist is God.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
It may come as a surprise to many
that George Carlin was raised in church.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>He also was educated at a parochial/religious school.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He was taught the basic tenets of the
Christian faith both at home and at school.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Carlin was not a self-described atheist because he had never heard about
Jesus.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He was a self-described atheist
because he <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">had</b> heard about Jesus.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
Perhaps I should explain that.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
Over the years, I’ve had the
privilege to talk with a number of people who claim to be atheist.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I have found these people to be thoughtful
about why they’ve concluded there is no God.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>They are open about their quest for the God they could not find.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Most were genuine seekers of God at one time.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
And all of them were raised in
church.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
Some were abused by the religious
system…or by religious people…in various ways.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Some stopped believing in a God they could not please, no matter how
hard they tried.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Some lost faith in a
God that did not answer their cries at a time when they really needed Him.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Some could not believe in a fire-breathing
tyrant who would brutally murder His own Son to prove His love for them.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Some could not grasp the concept of a loving
God who is eager to cast them into hell if they misbehave or fail to appease
Him in some way.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In short, they could
not believe in a God that doesn’t exist.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
If believing in a God that doesn’t
exist is atheism, then I am an atheist.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
Because I have found that these
same people are very open to hearing about the Jesus of the Gospels.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They respond positively to the Jesus I
know.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And I wonder if George Carlin
would have wanted to meet Jesus if someone who knew Him…who represented Jesus
accurately in word and deed…and knew George…would have offered to introduce
them?</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
Our misrepresentation of God by bad
theology and bad living has turned more people away from Jesus than all the
demons on earth.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
I am often struck by all of the
scriptures in the New Testament, especially in the epistles of Paul, where the
apostle encourages the people of God to live righteous lives.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Unlike the preaching in our churches, Paul
does not command Christians to live uprightly so they can secure their place in
heaven.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He wants them to live
transformed lives so that people will see God at work in them and respond positively
to Him.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>When the people of God live
sinful…or religious…lives, it misrepresents God.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Unbelievers get a false image of God and His
work, and they reject both.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
Imagine the early believers’
reaction when Paul said to them, “the name of God is blasphemed among the
Gentiles because of you” (Romans 2:24; cf. 1 Timothy 6:1 & Titus 2:5).</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
So when I saw the quote by George
Carlin, my mind turned to all of these things…eventually.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Actually, my initial response was simply to
answer the question:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“If all the world’s
a stage…where does the audience sit?”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
They sit in the pews.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
Responses to this article are
welcomed.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You may contact the author at <a href="mailto:drdave1545@yahoo.com">drdave1545@yahoo.com</a> </div>
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<![endif]-->David Ryserhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08514963161762663473noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2223805280498524565.post-78563981076763703242011-10-26T06:25:00.000-07:002013-05-24T16:11:53.051-07:00Signs & Wonders?: I Wonder....<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
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<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
By David Ryser</div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">What
am I missing here?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>What do [things like]
feathers and gemstones have to do with the fruit that Father is looking for?
The only reason I can think of is that after 50 years of the Charismatic
renewal we are so bankrupt in spirit that we need the baubles to reassure us
that He is really available to us. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></i>(Mary
Watkins)</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
A number of years ago, there was
quite a stir within Pentecostal/Charismatic circles caused by a woman whose
ministry featured feathers (dove’s feathers or angel’s feathers, according to
whomever was relating the story) that would be found on the floor after
meetings in which she was ministering.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>People were excited about this “supernatural move of God.” <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The woman was in much demand as a conference speaker.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This religious scam crashed to earth after a
well-known evangelist exposed the fraud behind the manifestation.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It seems this woman would sprinkle feathers
on the floor prior to her meetings.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Video evidence supported the evangelist’s claims, and the feathers were analyzed
and determined to be goose feathers.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
The evangelist who exposed the
deception received numerous letters and phone calls (in the days before e-mail)
from all over the country.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>People were upset.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But not with the woman.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>With him.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>He had ruined their religious fantasy…and they were furious!</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
Hell hath no fury like a Christian
whose religious delusion has been dashed.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
Now I want to be crystal clear
about one thing:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I do not have a problem
with supernatural manifestations of God’s presence and power.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I do not seek them, but I’m not offended by
them.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I have seen God manifest Himself mightily
in awesome displays of His authority.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Undeniable miracles and healings.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Prophetic words that went to the core of a person’s life and transformed
them radically.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I have been privileged
to be used by God to minister all of these things.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
And because I know how ministering
God’s genuine power can become a snare to me, I don’t have time to worry about
the fake stuff.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That’s why I’m not particularly disturbed by phony
(or even by counterfeit) manifestations.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>These false things tend to sort themselves out over time.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The fruit is bad.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The fraud is ultimately exposed.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I am far more concerned about our unrighteous
response to an authentic move of God where genuine signs and wonders are in
evidence.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
There are several examples of this
principle in scripture.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>A couple of them
come readily to mind.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
During Elijah’s last day on earth,
Elisha steadfastly refused to leave his side (2 Kings 2:1-15).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>As the time approached for Elijah’s
departure, the old prophet asked his young apprentice what he wanted.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Elisha asked for the double portion…the
inheritance of the eldest son…of the spirit that rested upon Elijah.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Elijah prophesied that this request would be
granted, but only if Elisha saw him as he was leaving.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
Easier said than done.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
Because just prior to Elijah’s
departure, there appeared to them a fiery chariot drawn by horses of fire.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They came from in front of them and passed
between the two men.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And as they did,
Elijah was taken up to heaven in a whirlwind.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Ignoring the fiery chariot and horses, Elisha kept his eyes steadfastly
focused on Elijah and saw him as he departed…and received his mentor’s
anointing.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Had he allowed himself to be
distracted by the spectacular manifestation of the fiery chariot and its horses,
he would have lost sight of Elijah.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And
let there be no mistake:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The fiery
chariot and the horses were sent by God…not by the devil.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So why did God send them?</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
To test Elisha’s heart.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
When Jesus was on the earth, He
revealed the Father through His teachings and with various signs and wonders.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>These manifestations were genuine…they were
from God.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The miracles and healings
Jesus performed attracted the attention of Herod who sought to see Him (Luke
23:8a).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But the reason Herod wanted to
see Jesus was because he wanted to see Jesus perform some spiritual tricks for
him (Luke 23:8b) and not because he was seeking God.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Jesus refused even to speak with him, so
Herod mocked Jesus and sent Him back to Pilate for execution.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
Herod failed his heart test.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
And what about the Samaritan ex-sorcerer,
Simon?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>(Acts 8:5-24)</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
When God shows up in a place, and
among a people, He reveals Himself…often through miracles, signs, and wonders.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>These workings of God serve to reveal who He
is.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They reveal His heart.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But they also reveal our hearts.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>How do we respond to what God is doing?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Do we receive these things as a love-gift
from a beloved Father, or Lover?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Or do
we fall in love with the gifts themselves?</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
My new friend, Mary, shared a
vision she received from God on this subject.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>The vision…and her comments on it…are worth considering.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">I
saw a bride dressed in an absolutely gorgeous wedding dress.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She was gorgeous herself too.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She had gems on her dress, in her hair,
necklaces and bracelets and rings…all very beautiful, almost impossible to
describe the beauty and glory.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I knew
that she was passionately loved by the one who had given her all the stuff.</i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Then
I saw that she was looking at all the jewels and gifts upon her and around her
and had begun to admire the gifts, herself and to completely forget her
lover.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I saw her lover standing off to
the side, grieving, not devastated, just sad at the inner heart that had been
revealed.</i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Then
I saw the bride turn around so her back was to me.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I saw that her beautiful dress was soiled by
the product of her own flesh (if you get my meaning).</i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Ever
since then, I have been very wary of seeking or focusing on
manifestations.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I passionately seek the
inner miracles that help me to be more open to Him, to surrender more to Him
for transformation, to become more like Him.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I know that I need more than anything else to be conformed to His image,
to become more like Him, His love, His patience, His compassion, His
wisdom.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I do not take my transformation
for granted for a minute.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I am too aware
of the lack in me.</i></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
A sober reminder, don’t you think?</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
I am grateful for God’s genuine signs
and wonders.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But I’m also careful how I
respond to them.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I allow the wonders to
cause me to be in awe of the One that I love and wonder at His goodness.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And I remind myself that the signs are just
that…signs.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Signs are not our
destination.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Signs point to our
destination…Him.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If we stop at the sign,
thinking we have arrived, then of what use is the sign?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If we are duped by our response to the sign
into believing that the sign is our goal…and stopping short on our journey into
God’s heart…then we might have been better off without the sign to begin with.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
So what can we do?</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
The fact is, we serve a living
God.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Because He is living, He is working
in the world and in the lives of people.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>This includes signs, wonders, and all sorts of supernatural activity.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This is normative Christianity.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It is not without risks…especially if our
hearts are bad…but God is willing to take the risk.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He continues to bless, heal, deliver,
prosper, comfort, guide, and provide for us.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>He loves us…passionately and relentlessly…and without regard to our
worthiness, or our possible unfaithfulness.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
Therefore, I have come to a
decision regarding my response to signs, wonders, and all kinds of supernatural
manifestations.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I have resolved to
gratefully receive, embrace, experience, and enjoy all of God’s gifts…including
signs and wonders…and to stay madly in love with the Giver.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
Responses to this article are
welcomed.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You may contact the author at <a href="mailto:drdave1545@yahoo.com">drdave1545@yahoo.com</a> </div>
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<![endif]-->David Ryserhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08514963161762663473noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2223805280498524565.post-62369024325211902322011-10-01T10:48:00.000-07:002013-05-24T16:10:51.338-07:00Jail or Church: Can I Think About It?<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
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<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
By David Ryser</div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">When
we’ve lost a sense of belonging in God’s kingdom or the feeling of closeness to
the King, we may look to religion for answers.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span></i>(Andrew Farley in <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">God Without
Religion</i>)</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
I am sitting at my desk, reading a news
article about a small community where criminals are given the choice between
jail and church.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>No kidding.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Nonviolent first-offenders have the option of
being released from jail if they go to church every Sunday for a year.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The success of this program rests upon the
hope that the prisoners will become “productive citizens” through church
attendance.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
And the inmates will need to take
good notes while in church because they are required to write about the service
each week.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
So the alternatives are clear:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Jail or church?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Church or jail?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Jail or church?</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
Hmmmmm….<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Tough choice.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
Responses to this article are
welcomed.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You may contact the author at <a href="mailto:drdave1545@yahoo.com">drdave1545@yahoo.com</a> </div>
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<![endif]-->David Ryserhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08514963161762663473noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2223805280498524565.post-16937264825765378762011-09-20T16:20:00.000-07:002024-01-29T17:50:37.952-08:00The White Elephant: A Church-Inspired Fairy Tale<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
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<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
By David Ryser &
Ralph Ray</div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Religion
(noun):<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>A return to bondage.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The word is traced to the Latin </i>re <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">meaning “again” and </i>ligare <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">meaning “to bind.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></i>(Andrew Farley, in his book: <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">God
Without Religion</i>.)</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
Once upon a time there was a flourishing
and blissful kingdom ruled by a wise and benevolent King.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The King took every opportunity to bless,
nurture, protect, and provide for His people.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>The people lacked for nothing and enjoyed intimate fellowship with their
King.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The King loved His people…and they
loved Him.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
It could have gone on like this
forever.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
But one day an evil sorcerer came
into the kingdom.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This wizard was the
sworn enemy of the King and hated everything about Him.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The sorcerer despised the King, His kingdom,
and everyone in the kingdom.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Seeking to grieve
the King, the sorcerer used his enchantments to turn the hearts of the people
against their King.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They rebelled
against the King.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They rejected His
lordship…and His love.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
The heartbroken King reluctantly
accepted the decision of His people and went into exile.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
The kingdom was plunged into
darkness.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The sorcerer oppressed the
people and abused them unmercifully.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>This once happy and prosperous kingdom became a place of misery and
squalor.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The people were forced to serve
the sorcerer’s every whim.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And they were
cruelly punished if they failed to please him in any way.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
Over time, many of the people
forgot about their exiled King and the blessings of His kingdom that they had
once enjoyed.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
But the King had not forgotten
about His beloved people.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He yearned to
be reunited with them.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He frequently communicated
with those…however few…in His kingdom who had not fallen under the enchantment
of the evil sorcerer.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He promised that He would send a Deliverer to
them.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This Deliverer would come to His
people and demonstrate the King’s love for them…and for all of the people.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He would defeat the dark magic of the
sorcerer and begin to turn the hearts of the people back to their King.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He would commence to reestablish the former
kingdom and then turn it over to His people so that those who had once been
oppressed would themselves become instruments of liberation for the rest of the
people.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
It was a good plan.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And it would have worked.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
One day the Deliverer came into the
kingdom and began to undo the sorcerer’s enchantments.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Those who loved their King received the
Deliverer with open arms.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Some others…who
heard the Deliverer’s words and saw His deeds…also turned their hearts back to
the King they’d forgotten.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The sorcerer
was incensed!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He, and those who aligned
themselves with him, attempted to subvert the work of the Deliverer.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But their efforts were of no avail.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The Deliverer outmaneuvered and confounded them
at every turn.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
Then, having taught His people how
to carry on the work of reestablishing their beloved King’s kingdom, the
Deliverer left them for a time to prepare for a triumphal entry back to the
kingdom upon the sorcerer’s eventual…and inevitable…defeat.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
The revolution began.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
The struggle was fierce.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The Deliverer’s people were badly
outnumbered, but they began to turn the hearts of the people back to the King
using the strategies and the methods the Deliverer had given to them.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The King aided them in their fight by
providing them with what they needed to accomplish the work that the Deliverer
had given them to do.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
The sorcerer fought against them
with all of the weapons at his disposal.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>He first tried to ridicule and belittle them, but could not dispirit
them.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He imprisoned and executed several
of their leaders, but this strategy also proved ineffective because their
leaders were not like those of the sorcerer.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Their leaders were everywhere!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>The older and more mature among them would teach the others the ways of
the Deliverer…with great demonstrations of power. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And they were not afraid to die.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Their blood was like seed…the more of it that
fell to the ground, the more of them that were produced.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
Then the sorcerer had an idea….</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
He offered the followers of the
Deliverer a truce.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And it was so much
more than just a ceasefire.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The sorcerer
agreed not only to stop the opposition and persecution, he even promised to assist
them with their efforts to restore the kingdom of the King.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Because the job of reestablishing a kingdom is
hard work…even without opposition… the sorcerer offered to the Deliverer’s people
the services of a white elephant.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
What a magnificent creature!</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
The white elephant was big…it was
huge!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And strong.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And smart.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>And seemingly able to do the work of reestablishing the King’s kingdom
without much effort on the part of the Deliverer’s people.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The sorcerer even supplied a large group of
handlers who were trained to be experts in the care and feeding of the white
elephant.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The Deliverer’s followers were
only required to pay for the elephant’s upkeep…along with the salaries of the
handlers…and to perform any menial tasks requested by the handlers to assist in
contributing to the well-being of the white elephant.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The Deliverer’s people enthusiastically embraced
the sorcerer’s proposal.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
And this arrangement worked great!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>For awhile.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>And then it didn’t.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
You see, the white elephant the
sorcerer gave to the Deliverer’s people was a baby elephant.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The more the handlers fed the elephant, the
larger it grew.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And the more they cared
for it…and pampered it…the lazier it became.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Over time, the elephant did nothing but eat.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And grow.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>And sleep.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Maintaining the white
elephant required an increasing flow of resources…in time, energy, and
money…from the Deliverer’s followers.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In
addition, more handlers were required to oversee the feeding and coddling of
the ever-expanding elephant, so the salary burden on the Deliverer’s people
greatly increased as well.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
It finally reached the point where
all of the people’s resources went simply for the white elephant’s upkeep.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
When the Deliverer’s followers
questioned the handlers concerning the extreme cost of maintaining the white
elephant…along with an accompanying complaint of how little, if any, work the
elephant was accomplishing…the people were reminded that the handlers were the
elephant experts (also known as <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">clergy</i>)
while the people were untrained and unqualified (also known as <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">laity</i>) in feeding and caring for
elephants.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
Properly chastened, the Deliverer’s
people continued… submissively…to provide for the white elephant.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
So the work of reestablishing the
King’s kingdom went undone.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The white elephant
required an increasing supply of food and nurturing, while producing
nothing.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The Deliverer’s people no
longer had the resources to put toward the work of reestablishing the King’s
kingdom because they were putting all they had into the maintenance of the white
elephant.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
There was only one thing the people
could do.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They appealed to the King.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
They fervently petitioned (one
might say “prayed to”) the King for more provision to pay for the upkeep of the
white elephant.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The King’s refusal to
grant their request was communicated in a short, tersely-worded reply.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
The note read:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">If you
had needed an elephant to reestablish My kingdom, I would have given you one</i>.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
Responses to this article are
welcomed.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You may contact the author at <a href="mailto:drdave1545@yahoo.com">drdave1545@yahoo.com</a> </div>
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<![endif]-->David Ryserhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08514963161762663473noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2223805280498524565.post-68790602949611206992011-07-03T20:09:00.000-07:002013-05-24T16:08:30.634-07:00The Plaster Mold: A Religious Fable<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
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<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
By David Ryser</div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">And
no one puts new wine into old wineskins; otherwise the new wine will burst the
skins, and it will be spilled out, and the skins will be ruined.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But new wine must be put into fresh
wineskins.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And no one after drinking old
wine wishes for new; for he says, “The old is good enough.” <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></i>(Jesus of Nazareth, Luke 5:37-39 NASB)</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
There once was a man who, while
shopping at an Arts & Crafts store, came across a plaster mold that was on
sale at a deep discount.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He examined the
mold closely, but could not determine what shape the mold might produce.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Being a curious sort, the man decided to
purchase the mold intending to pour hot wax into it in order to see what the
result might be after the wax had cooled.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
So the man bought the mold and took
it home.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
Taking the mold into his workshop,
the man proceeded to melt some cheap wax over a low flame.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Then he poured the melted wax into the mold
and waited for it to cool.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>When the wax
had cooled and hardened, the man popped the wax out of the mold and onto his
workbench.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
He looked at the formed wax…and
gasped!</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
Staring up at him from the table
was the face of a gargoyle!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It was
ugly!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Hideous!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Fiendish-looking!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The man was repulsed by the wax image, so he
destroyed it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Then he began to consider
how he might change the figure produced by the mold into something beautiful.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
And he had an idea.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
“I know what’s wrong,” he
thought.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“The problem is that I used an
inferior wax the first time.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So he
resolved to use a higher quality of material on his next try.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He purchased some more expensive wax, melted
it over a low flame, and poured it into the mold.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>As the wax cooled, the man eagerly
anticipated the beautiful image that the mold would produce as a result of this
effort.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
The wax cooled and hardened.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
The man popped the wax out of the
mold.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Looking up at him from the table
was the face of a gargoyle!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>A gargoyle
as ugly as the first!</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
In fact, the faces were identical.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
Determined to produce a thing of
beauty from the mold, the man decided to switch the material he would pour into
the mold on his third try.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So he procured
some inexpensive plastic, melted it over a low flame, and poured it into the
mold.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The plastic cooled and
hardened.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The man popped the plastic out
of the mold.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
Another gargoyle!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Identical to the first two!</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
The man was disappointed, but
undaunted.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He made several more attempts
to produce something beautiful from the mold…using plastics of higher quality (and
greater cost) each time…but the result was always the same.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In the end, an ugly gargoyle face stared up
at him from the table.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
Finally the man conceded defeat.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
“The materials I have been using
are not good enough, not pure enough, not valuable enough,” he reasoned.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“If I would use silver or gold, the mold
would produce a thing of beauty.”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
And then, because the man had
neither silver nor gold, he hung his head…and he wept.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
The moral of the story:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It doesn’t matter what move of God you put
into the religious system…the power, the people, the hearts, the anointing, and
the giftings…because as soon as the move cools and hardens, what is left will look
exactly like the old religious system--the system is incapable of producing
anything else.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
Responses to this article are
welcomed.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You may contact the author at <a href="mailto:drdave1545@yahoo.com">drdave1545@yahoo.com</a> </div>
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<![endif]-->David Ryserhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08514963161762663473noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2223805280498524565.post-28636690403798480172011-07-02T08:24:00.000-07:002011-07-02T08:40:48.633-07:00I Want...by Arla Speer (used with the author's permission)<br /><br />I'm torn. I want more ... and less - more relational interaction and less "church".<br /> <br />I love the amazing ability of Papa to flood me with the effects of His love during a worship service or during a road trip or a walk where He and I are the only ones around. I know the external setting does not determine His "appearance". For He is not just around me. He is in me.<br /> <br />This romance is not dependent on what I am or what I can bring to it. He is much more than that. There are layers and layers of what I do and positions that I hold but when all of that is stripped away and I am just naked, that is the me He wants to spend time with. He doesn't want all my "stuff". He just wants me. The naked me who has always been all He has ever wanted. All He has ever needed. His beautiful beloved. <br /> <br />I'm torn. I don't know that I want to sit in a group of hundreds of people anymore listening to someone disperse a bunch of theological information no matter how entertaining it is. I want more. I want to make an impact at the "temple" I attend. And I may actually be in a place now where I could do that by giving away what I have acquired over the last few years.<br /> <br />But, how? Is it possible there? What would that look like? Why am I still there? What are my options? Am I ok with not going to church? I think I am becoming more and more ok with that. No. It's actually more than that. I almost feel a release from going to church, which is freeing and a little scary at the same time only because I know Papa. The struggle is seeing all those people desperately seeking God - some of them deep in His presence and others fighting the One they are seeking in the only place they have been led to believe that He is - at church.<br /> <br />I want real connections. Moments in time where Papa puts His finger on situations and changes lives forever bringing life out of death. <br /> <br />Do I want too much?David Ryserhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08514963161762663473noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2223805280498524565.post-73482615983412681282011-05-05T21:54:00.000-07:002024-01-29T17:37:59.421-08:00"The Pastor has No Clothes!": A Modern Religious Allegory<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
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<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
By David Ryser</div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Nothing
is more dangerous than blind people who are certain they see clearly.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></i>(Fil Anderson)</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
Once upon a time, there was a
pastor of a small church who had big dreams.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>He ministered in a church made up of good people who loved Jesus and did
their best to honor Him. They genuinely cared for one another and actively
served in the church.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They listened
attentively to the pastor’s sermons and sought to apply these lessons to their lives.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
And the little church began to
grow.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But the pastor wanted more.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
The pastor wanted a big
church.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He wanted a big ministry.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Most of all, he wanted to be on
television.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In short, he wanted to be
noticed.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
Because he had been ignored and
passed over for most of his life.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
So this pastor decided that if his
small church was ever going to become a big church…and if his ministry was ever
going to be a successful and influential ministry…both the church and his
ministry needed to operate as if both were big and successful.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
And if he was ever to be on
television, he needed to look good.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
So the pastor began to dress in
expensive clothes.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>After all, clothes
make the man…or so they say.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Over time,
the pastor’s clothes became the centerpiece of his ministry.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They gave him confidence.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Confidence bred charisma.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The pastor’s charisma drew more people to the
church.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
But it still wasn’t enough for the
pastor.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
Then one day a tailor came to the
church.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>After attending a few Sunday
morning services, the tailor introduced himself to the pastor.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>After complimenting the pastor’s clothing,
the tailor offered to make a special suit of clothes for the pastor.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This suit would be a special suit.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>A prophetically-made suit.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This spiritual suit would be the most beautiful
suit the pastor had ever seen.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Because
it was a spiritual suit, only those who were spiritual would be able to see it.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
The tailor promised that the suit
would be ready to wear on Pentecost Sunday.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>And since Pentecost Sunday is a celebration of the Church’s birth, the
pastor’s new suit would be known as his Birthday Suit.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
The pastor was so excited!</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
The tailor was soon put on the
pastoral staff of the church and given an office.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The office contained a desk, a chair, a work
area with a mannequin on which would hang the Birthday Suit while it was being
made, and a bookcase containing new and expensive…and unread…Bibles and
theological books.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
The pastor would visit the tailor
every day to check on the progress of the Birthday Suit.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The tailor would point to the mannequin (Also
called a tailor’s dummy…ironic, don’t you think?) and describe the beautiful
Birthday Suit hanging on it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The pastor
could not see the suit…for none existed…but his insecurity over being thought
unspiritual caused him to gush and fawn over the suit as though he saw it
clearly.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
And then the big day arrived.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
As the pastor walked onto the
platform wearing his Birthday Suit, the congregation gasped.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They had been told of the suit and eagerly
anticipated seeing it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But this was not
exactly what they had expected.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The suit
was beautiful!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And very special…since
only those who were spiritual could see it.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
And the pastor’s Birthday Suit
certainly added some jiggle to his wiggle as he began to minister that morning.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
But in the middle of his sermon, a
small child spoke up and said, “The pastor isn’t wearing any clothes!”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The people looked at the child, and then at
the pastor, looked again at the child, and back at the pastor.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
Then they began to laugh.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
“Silly child,” they said.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“The pastor’s clothes are beautiful!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You just can’t see them because you are too
young.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Other children insisted that the
pastor was naked, but were also disregarded because of their immaturity.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Those adults with childlike hearts joined in
saying that the pastor was unclothed, but they were ridiculed as unspiritual
and rebellious.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
Eventually the contention over the
pastor’s Birthday Suit grew to the point where it needed to be dealt with.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So the children and those adults who were childlike in
heart were asked to leave the church.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
Those who remained in the church,
clamored for the tailor to make Birthday Suits for them as well.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So he did…beginning with the church
elders.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The people marveled at how each
Birthday Suit was unique in appearance.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
In truth, some of the Birthday
Suits looked like they could use a good ironing.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
Over time, the tailor made a
Birthday Suit for each member of the congregation.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He went on to author a best-selling book
entitled <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">The Tailor-Driven Church</i>.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>His renown in the Church world increased
along with his financial portfolio.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The
people in the congregation wore their Birthday Suits to church…with pride…each
Sunday.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
And the pastor?</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
Well, the church is still
small.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Attendance decreased quite a bit
when the children and the childlike in heart left.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The pastor never did get his television
ministry.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Something about a stupid FCC
rule against wearing your Birthday Suit on broadcast television….</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
And until the day the church died,
the members of the congregation couldn’t understand why no one wanted to join
them.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
Responses to this article are
welcomed.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You may contact the author at <a href="mailto:drdave1545@yahoo.com">drdave1545@yahoo.com</a> </div>
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<![endif]-->David Ryserhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08514963161762663473noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2223805280498524565.post-70274091438310012602011-05-02T05:06:00.001-07:002024-01-29T17:31:28.957-08:00Guarding Our Hearts: From Whom?<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
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<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
By David Ryser &
Arla Speer</div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">In
the thirty-three years of Jesus’ life on earth, not one time was He ever
controlled or manipulated.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Why? Because
He never gave anyone access to the place in His life where someone else had the
power to control Him.</i><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>(Mike Fehlauer).</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
Over the last few weeks, our
ongoing conversation about whether God guards His heart…and what this means for
us…has taken on a life of its own.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We
discovered fairly early on that flattery is one big thing that Jesus guarded
His heart against.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And in guarding His
heart from flattery, Jesus was able to resist the pressures put upon Him to
become distracted from walking in intimate relationship with the Father and
doing the work He was given to do.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
Like Jesus, we should guard our
hearts against being manipulated by flattery.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
And it is equally wrong to give
flattery as it is to receive it.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
Jesus never flattered anyone at any
time.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And there were occasions when a
little flattery could have helped Him.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>It might even have saved His life.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Jesus didn’t make any powerful and influential friends when He called
the religious leaders hypocrites, vipers, blind guides, whitewashed tombs, etc.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Do you suppose Herod was pleased
when he heard that Jesus had called him a fox?</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
I think not.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
So what have we concluded about
flattery?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>First, using flattery to
control people is wrong.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Second, using
flattery in an attempt to influence God is stupid.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Third, allowing ourselves to be flattered is
dangerous.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
Jesus guarded His heart against
flattery…both receiving and giving it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So
should we.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
Jesus guarded His heart against the
excessive influence of people in a number of other situations as well.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He always guarded His heart from His
enemies.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It’s a relatively easy thing to
do.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Your enemies do not wish you
well…that’s why they’re called enemies.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>But what about your friends?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>What
about those who love you and have your best interests at heart?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>What about those who try to influence you to heed
their well-meaning advice for your own good?</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
Jesus had this problem.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
Jesus had to guard His heart from His
followers.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In John 2:23, for example, the
Bible tells us that many believed in His name while He was at the Passover
feast in Jerusalem
early in His ministry.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Verses 24 and 25
record Jesus’ curious reaction to this newfound popularity.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>John tells us that Jesus did not commit
Himself to these followers of His because He knew what was in them.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And what was in them was what is in all men
(and women)…including us.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
Remember, it was Jesus’
followers…not His enemies…who tried to make Him king on more than one occasion.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
Jesus had to guard His heart from
his friends.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In Mark 8:27-33, we read of
an occasion when Peter received a revelation from God concerning the Person of
Jesus.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Jesus praised Peter and then
proceeded to reveal to His disciples/friends the work that the Father had given
Him to do and the things He would suffer in accomplishing that work.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Out of concern for His well-being, Peter took
Jesus aside and began to rebuke Him.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Jesus’ response was to strongly scold Peter…even calling him an
adversary.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
Paul had a day like this also (Acts
21:10-14).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He had to rebuke friends who
were admonishing him without knowing God’s will for him.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
And what about Job?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He not only had to guard his heart from his
friends…he had to guard his heart from his own wife!</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
Jesus also had to guard His heart
from His family.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In Mark 8:20-35, we
read of a time when Jesus’ family came to speak to Him because they feared He
was losing His mind.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>When told that His
mother and brothers were asking to see Him, He pointed to those listening to
Him and called them His family because they were seeking to do God’s will.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
How many times did Jesus have to
withdraw Himself from the multitudes in order to spend time alone with the
Father?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>To clear His mind and His soul
from the influence of people… people who loved Him?</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
And why is it that on the (at least
three) occasions where Paul commands believers to avoid certain people (Romans
16:17, 18; 1 Corinthians 5:9-11; 2 Thessalonians 3:6, 7, 14, 15), the people
they are commanded to keep away from are other Christians?</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
It was because Jesus found His
significance (sense of worth & value) and His security (safety & provision)
in His relationship with the Father that He was able to guard His heart from the
things and people that would distract Him from either His Father or His work.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
We would be well-advised to do the
same.</div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
By the way, guarding our hearts is
not the same as closing or hardening our hearts.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We can guard our hearts from people and yet
care very deeply for them.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>How else are
we going to speak the truth to one another in love?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>To do this, we cannot be overly fearful about
causing some discomfort at times.</div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
Guarding our hearts…without hardening
them…is especially important in parenting.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Good parents discipline their children with guarded hearts.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So does God. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
God guards His heart from His
children.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And He commands us to do the
same.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Loving parents discipline their
children (Proverbs 13:24; 19:18; 22:15; 23:13, 14).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And they discipline their children without undue
regard to their whining and crying about it (Proverbs 19:18, KJV).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We all know children who have been destroyed
by “soft-hearted” parenting.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We call
them “spoiled” for a reason.</div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
So we discipline our children…even
when it is hard for us to do so…for their own good.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Children do not always understand why we are
training them.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We explain as best we
can, according to their capacity to comprehend.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>But we train them either way.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
And so it is with God.</div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
Being transformed into God’s image
is not always…or even usually…pleasant.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>It involves facing a lot of things about ourselves that we’d rather not
face.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And it requires us to die to
ourselves and our own desires when they come into conflict with God’s will and
His commands.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We are tempted to cry,
whine, and complain when being disciplined by God.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I don’t know about you, but God turns a deaf
ear to me when I am upset regarding being disciplined by Him.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
I know He hears me.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He just chooses to ignore me.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
Because He loves me and is doing
what is best for me.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Whether or not I
understand what He is doing.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Whether or
not I appreciate what He is doing.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Whether or not I approve of what He is doing…or how He is doing it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I imagine He would prefer that I simply trust
Him enough to submit to His discipline without turning into a Drama Queen.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But He loves me enough to work in me…and
discipline me…without undue regard for my feelings about it.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
God loves and values me so much
that occasionally…when necessary…He will guard His heart from me for my own
good.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
Don’t you just love the way He
loves us?</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
Responses to this article are
welcomed.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You may contact the author at <a href="mailto:drdave1545@yahoo.com">drdave1545@yahoo.com</a> </div>
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<![endif]-->David Ryserhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08514963161762663473noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2223805280498524565.post-27844872181114607082011-04-13T12:54:00.000-07:002013-05-24T16:04:53.132-07:00Guarding Our Hearts: From What?<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
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<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
By David Ryser &
Arla Speer</div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Above
all else, guard your heart, for it is the wellspring of life.</i><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>(Proverbs 4:23, NIV).</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
It began innocently enough as a
discussion of Proverbs 4:23 among friends.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>It was great fun sharing our insights about the subject of guarding our
hearts…until someone asked the question:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>“Does God guard His heart?”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
Good question…too good.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>A question that good will kill a
discussion.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You could’ve heard a gnat
sneeze.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
Does God guard His Heart?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We’d never thought about it before.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
And the question is worth thinking
about.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Especially if you believe, as we
do, that God Himself is our example in life.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Our model of behavior.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It is His
character that is being formed in us as we walk in relationship and fellowship
with Him.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We are being transformed into
His image as the Holy Spirit works in us.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
Does God guard His heart?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And if He does, from what and/or from whom
does He guard it?</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
One of the primary reasons Jesus
came to earth was to reveal the Father.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>To see Jesus was to see the Father, and to hear Jesus was to hear the
Father’s words (John 14:7-10).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Jesus is
our example of a human being walking with God and doing His works on this earth,
led and empowered by the Holy Spirit.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
Did Jesus guard His heart?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>From what?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>From whom?</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
Actually, He did.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And one thing both the Father and Jesus guard
their hearts against is flattery.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In
Isaiah 29:13a, God rebukes the people of Israel because they draw near to
Him with their mouths, but remove their hearts far from Him.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This is a perfect description of
flattery.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Flattery is dishonest.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Flattery is manipulative.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The purpose of flattery is to get something
out of someone by pretending to put something into them.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We do it with people.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We do it with God.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
When either figures out what we are
doing, they do not react well to it.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
In John 3:1, 2, Nicodemus comes to
Jesus by night and begins his conversation with Him by appearing to praise
Him.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Praise and flattery look very much
alike.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Praise puts something into
someone.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Flattery, as previously noted,
seeks to take something out of them by pretense.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Jesus cut Nicodemus’ gush-fest off at the
knees, and immediately got to the heart of the matter.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
Flattery is wicked.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Flattery is evil.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Flattery has selfish motives that drive it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Flattery can be dangerous…if a person receives
it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
All of us want to feel loved,
accepted, and valued.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>These are good
things, and we need them.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We are born
with these desires, and they are intended to be met through a personal and intimate
relationship with God.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>When we attempt
to receive these things outside of our relationship with God, we are
susceptible to the flattery of man.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And
when we allow ourselves to be flattered, we open ourselves up to be
manipulated, taken advantage of, and even mistreated.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
My experience with a spiritually
abusive church began when I allowed myself to be flattered.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Because I believed I was loved…accepted,
admired, and valued…I allowed myself to be used.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>My gifting and anointing were
merchandised.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This is typical of an
abusive, utilitarian church.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You are
valued as long as you are of use.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If you
cease to be useful…for whatever reason…you are discarded.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
And when you are no longer functional,
you are tossed aside like a broken toy.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
This sort of thing doesn’t only
happen in church.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It occurs in the
workplace.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It occurs in families.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It occurs among those who consider themselves
friends.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It causes our relationships to
be unhealthy…or even toxic…because it is counterfeit intimacy.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
We should…like Jesus…guard our
heart against flattery.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
Because Jesus guarded His heart
against flattery, He was able to guard His heart from other things that
people…or the devil…tried to maneuver Him into as well.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Jesus guarded His heart against the desire
for physical comfort/provision (Luke 4:1-4), power (John 6:15), messiahship
without rejection & suffering (Luke 4:5-8; Luke 22:42), personal safety
(John 11:7-15), approval of man (John 2:23-25), fame (Mark 4:1, 35; Mark
1:34b), acceptance by the social and religious elite (by accepting outcasts and
refusing to see…or speak to…Herod, among many examples), expanding His ministry
beyond His calling (John 12:20-22), and other things too numerous to mention.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If Jesus had allowed Himself to be flattered,
He would have pursued these other things…things that would have distracted Him
from His relationship with the Father and the work He was sent to do.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
But there was no place in Jesus’
heart for flattery.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The only words He
ever longed to hear were, “This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well-pleased.”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
So what about us?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>What do we yearn to hear?</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
And from whom?</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
Responses to this article are
welcomed.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You may contact the author at <a href="mailto:drdave1545@yahoo.com">drdave1545@yahoo.com</a> </div>
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<![endif]-->David Ryserhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08514963161762663473noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2223805280498524565.post-35829267128768934472011-04-09T14:06:00.000-07:002013-05-24T16:04:02.579-07:00Taking Responsibility: Overcoming Spiritual Abuse<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
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<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
By David Ryser</div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">We
live in a world that awards love and respect on the basis of possessions,
accomplishments, and reputation.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></i>(Fil
Anderson)</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
The events…or more accurately the
non-events…of the last several years of my life are driving some of my
Christian friends crazy.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They occasionally
ask me what I’m doing for God.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>What am I
doing with my life and the gifts that God has given me?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They have even suggested that I am failing
God and wasting my gifting and anointing by not actively pursuing a ministry of
some kind.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
Maybe I’m reading the wrong version
of the Bible.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In my Bible, I’m not
commanded to pursue ministry.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’m
commanded to pursue God.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
Anyhow, this season of my life has
been a time characterized by dying to self, falling more in love with Jesus,
and allowing the Father to form Christ in me so that His life will flow out of
me and touch people.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Not real sexy
stuff, spiritually speaking.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Most
Christians don’t seem too impressed by it.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
Maybe if I referred to it as an
extreme spiritual makeover….</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
Recently I’ve experienced a
breakthrough emotional healing.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Prior to
this, I had been tormented by painful memories of my past failings.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>My shame over these events caused me to hide
myself and live behind a mask.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This kind
of living is hard on relationships…even my relationship with God…because it’s
hard to have an honest relationship with me when you can’t even see the real
me.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
And honesty and transparency are
necessary ingredients for intimacy.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
Now the shame is gone.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So my conversations with God are more
honest.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Actually they might be better
described as less diplomatic.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It’s
difficult to communicate hard truths to someone when you have to walk on
eggshells around them.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Once God took
away my shame, He could now speak plainly to me about my shortcomings without
being a diplomat about it.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
And this in itself has led to other
breakthroughs.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
For example, I have for the past
several years been working to resolve some lingering resentments stemming from
having been a member of a spiritually abusive church.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Whenever I’ve tried to talk to God about how
I’d been wronged and what rotten rascals those church leaders were, He has
steadfastly refused to listen to me.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Once He shut me up by saying about these leaders, “You wouldn’t have
done half as well with half as much.”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
Needless to say, I wasn’t too
pleased with this answer.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
As it turns out, God always wanted
very much to help me resolve the hurt, anger, and bitterness I was
experiencing.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But I couldn’t handle what
He needed to say to me yet.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So He
continued to work on me until I came to the place where we could talk about
this.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>When the shame was gone, God could
speak into this place in my life.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And I
would listen to Him.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
What did He say?</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
Well, He lovingly pointed out that the
one big reason I was in a position to be abused in that church was because of
flaws in my own character.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Specifically,
He said, “You were abused because you were for sale.”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
And He was right.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
I sold myself.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I sold myself for title, position,
recognition, and admiration.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I welcomed
the flattery…thrived on it…and believed I was loved and valued.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The leaders of the church did not make me
like this.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I was like this when I got
there.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They simply took advantage of it.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
I was a spiritual prostitute.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And they bought me.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And I got screwed.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Prostitutes get screwed.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It’s an occupational hazard.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
And I didn’t even get to keep the
stuff I sold myself for!</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
I have no one to blame but
myself…and that’s good news.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It’s good
news because the whole point of God bringing this to my attention was to give
me insight into the cause of my hurt and to transform my character in this
area.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In the process, I have become
aware of this potential hazard in my life and the means to overcome it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This provides me with some immunity to
spiritual abuse because I now receive my sense of being loved and valued
through my relationship with my heavenly Father.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>When I’m walking with God…experiencing His
love and approval…man’s flattery and manipulation no longer have a place to
hook onto me.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
And this transformation of
character that protects me from spiritual abuse also makes it possible for me
to overcome the temptation to manipulate and abuse others. It’s a win-win deal.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
Yea, God!</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
Recently I received an e-mail from
a friend who was particularly in touch with God’s love for her.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She described not only feeling loved, but the
things God had done during the course of the day that made her feel valued,
special, and loved.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She summed up her
experience with God that day by saying, “I not only love that God loves me, I
love the way He loves me.”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
I know the feeling.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;">
Responses to this article are
welcomed.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You may contact the author at <a href="mailto:drdave1545@yahoo.com">drdave1545@yahoo.com</a> </div>
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<![endif]-->David Ryserhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08514963161762663473noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2223805280498524565.post-84582545357276084462011-04-04T21:30:00.000-07:002024-01-29T17:15:08.923-08:00"Are We There Yet?": Life in the Religious Ark<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
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<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
By David Ryser &
Martha Paterik</div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">If
we’re called to walk on the water, then why do we need an ark?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></i>(Mark Squires)</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
These things always seem to begin
innocently enough…just before they spin hopelessly out of control.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>My friend Martha had run across the term
“sacred desk” referring to the pulpit.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>She’d never heard this term before and was somewhat bewildered that
anyone would call a piece of furniture sacred.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
And I was reminded of my
grandfather.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
My grandfather was a dairy
farmer.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>At the time of the evening
milking, the cows would be herded into the barn and locked into stalls to be
milked.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Behind the cows, a trough was
cut into the floor.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The trough was
needed because the cows were not barn-broken.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>As the evening wore on, the trough filled with cow waste.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
As useful as this trough was, I
never heard my grandfather refer to it as the “sacred trough.”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
Referring to the pulpit as the
“sacred desk” makes about as much sense as calling my grandfather’s muck-trough
the “sacred trough.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>After all, both are
pretty much full of the same thing.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
I explained to Martha that the
pulpit is the Protestant version of the Catholic altar.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It can…and has…become just another fixture of
religious idolatry.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Pick your poison.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Martha noted that religious people have done
much the same thing even with biblical objects.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
She mentioned the term “ark.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And I experienced a religious flashback.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
Years ago, I was sitting in the Sunday
service at a church whose pastor strongly preached commitment to the Kingdom of God.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>By “Kingdom
of God” he meant his
church, which was growing increasingly unhealthy.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>On this particular morning, the speaker was
proclaiming that this local church was the modern day version of Noah’s ark.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This “ark” was the only place of safety in a
world that was becoming increasingly unsafe.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>We needed to get into the ark.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
And stay in.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
I can’t decide if this preacher’s
declaration is more arrogant or stupid.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>It’s a big dose of both.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>For one
thing, it is absurd to assert that any local church is the only place…or even
the best place…where a person can be safe in Christ.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>What about the almost 8 billion people on the
planet who don’t even know this particular church exists?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And are there no other Christian fellowships
where Jesus is Lord?</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
For another thing, is any ark
intended to be a permanent dwelling place?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>What if Noah…and the people and animals with him…had stayed in the ark and
never left it?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Would they have been
safe, secure, and blessed?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Or would they
have died of hunger, buried in their own waste?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>And what about the world they were supposed to populate and subdue?</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
The ark-church is no
different.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If we are ever going to make
a difference in the world…advance God’s kingdom in the earth…we must leave the
ark.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This is something that should be
encouraged by church leaders…not discouraged. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
So what about the people who leave
the ark-church?</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
I eventually left it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So did Martha.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So did several other people over the
years.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Some before us.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Any exodus from that local church was treated
as a departure from the Christian faith.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>They had “left the ark” and were at risk.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We were sternly charged not to follow their
example.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
So just when did the word <i>ark</i> come to be a synonym for the word <i>prison </i>anyhow?</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
Others have continued to jump ship,
so to speak.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Those of us who left before
them have made the effort to get in contact with some of these people and
encourage them that there is life outside the ark.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’ve remarked that the question is not so
much whether there is life outside of this ark-church as whether there is life
inside of it.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
Martha’s response is instructive.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
“I guess the real question is which
ark?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The ark of Noah’s day carried all
that represented life in it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They were
fed and kept safe until it was time to be sent out into the world and carry
that life to it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>No one [ever] mentions
a regular trek back to the boat.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It had
served its purpose, now it was time to go out.”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
Wow.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
And then she went on to reference another ark…the Ark of the
Covenant. Unlike the pulpit, if any piece of furniture could be called “sacred”
it would be the Ark of the Covenant.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She
noted: <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“It had a thing that represented
life (manna), the miracle staff of Aaron, and the stone tablets.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The glory of God even rested on or above this
ark.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But He doesn’t anymore.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>God has left the box, so to speak.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He wants us to take His Glory into the world,
to be His Glory.”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
You see, both of these arks had been constructed at God’s
direction.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And both of them had a
purpose…for a season.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>When their purpose
was fulfilled, both were emptied.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And
the world was benefited because what had once been in the arks was now released
into the world, engaged with it, and bringing life to it.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
And in the end, Martha accurately sums
up the fate of both of these biblical arks:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>“[B]oth arks were mighty tools of God in the time they were needed; but
at the risk of killing sacred cows, neither would be too effective today.”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
I don’t know about you, but I think
sacred cows make great steaks.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
Responses to this article are
welcomed.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You may contact the author at <a href="mailto:drdave1545@yahoo.com">drdave1545@yahoo.com</a> </div>
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<![endif]-->David Ryserhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08514963161762663473noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2223805280498524565.post-13288868948490781562011-03-18T11:00:00.000-07:002024-01-29T17:08:03.951-08:00Thanks for the Memories: Gratitude for God's Least Appreciated Gift<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
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<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
By David Ryser</div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Forgiveness
based on forgetfulness is a Christian version of a frontal lobotomy.</i><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>(Don Allender)</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
For the longest time, I have been
taught that forgiveness is synonymous with forgetfulness.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This teaching has caused me more harm than I
could ever imagine.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And my ultimate rejection
of it has brought me healing beyond my wildest imagination.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
I have been reading Fil Anderson’s
wonderful book, <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Breaking the Rules.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></i>One of the main themes of the book is the
subject of memory.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Specifically, the
Bible has a lot to say about remembering (and remembrance, and other related
words) in regard to both God and man.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
Sometimes the things remembered are
good and pleasant.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>At other times, the
memories are bad and painful.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
Both are a gift from God.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Memory itself is a gift from God.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
Without memory, we could not learn
and develop.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We could not build on our
successes and learn from our mistakes.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
We embrace good memories and savor
them.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Memories of a beautiful sunset or
a majestic vista.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Recalling the loving
words or the touch of a loved one.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The
laughter of our children and grandchildren.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Memories of people we’ve loved who have passed away.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The companionship of good friends.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>My favorite sports teams winning the championship.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
I just love a good memory.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Don’t you?</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
But not all memories are good.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Some are bad.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Some are painful.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Memories of
abuse or abandonment.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Memories of when
we were treated unfairly or were misunderstood.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Times when we were betrayed or disappointed by others.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
And what about the regrets and
remorse for the things we have done?</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
Memories of embarrassing myself by
my behavior or by the way I have treated other people.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>People I have let down or hurt.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>People I have betrayed or manipulated for my
own gain.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>My shortcomings as a friend, a
parent, or a spouse.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
Even these memories are a gift from
God.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
We need to understand this if we
are going to get the benefit from bad memories.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I tend to shy away from bad memories because they’re painful.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And I’m not a big fan of pain.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Neither is American Christianity, whose
religious snake-oil salesmen peddle a religion that tells me these bad memories
are an attack of the devil (or some such nonsense) and recommends rebuking or
fighting them in some other way.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
Usually this involves using the
name of Jesus as some kind of magic word.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I’ve discovered that rebuking a work of God in my life…even when I use
Jesus’ name…is a colossal waste of time.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
Because it was God who was bringing
the painful memories back to me.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And I
needed to embrace them so I could learn the lessons from them that I needed to
learn.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Memories of things done to me
typically manifested the pain associated with them as anger, hatred or
bitterness…or all three.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Dealing with
memories of things said or done to me were relatively easy to deal with,
especially since I’d never suffered the kind of abuse some have experienced in
life.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>For me, dealing with these
memories simply required forgiveness.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
Forgiveness, not
forgetfulness.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I still remember, but
without pain.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
The memories that continued to cause
me pain…pain so strong that I fled from them…involved my treatment of
others.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>God kept bringing them up, and I
kept running from them (usually by refusing to think about them and cramming
them back into the box I kept them in…out of sight, out of mind).</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
But God wouldn’t let up.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He was trying to give me a gift.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
Because if I didn’t face these
memories…and resolve them…I would fail to learn the lessons from them. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I would be doomed to repeat behaviors that had
caused hurt and harm to others.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And if
there was anything I wanted more than to avoid pain, it was that I wanted to
stop causing it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Because I kept hurting
people.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I didn’t mean to.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I didn’t want to.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But the carnage of hurt people and destroyed
relationships continued to pile up behind me as I walked through life.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
I wanted it to stop.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I wanted desperately to break this
pattern.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But I didn’t know how.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I sought God about it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>As I read Fil’s awesome book, the answer
finally came to me.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
Remember.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
So I decided to embrace the bad
memories.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Embrace the pain.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And the feelings of shame.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Accept bad memories as a gift from
God…because they are.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
And then God and I took a stroll
down Memory Lane.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The memories came flooding back.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I experienced them and saw the lessons I
should have learned from them.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
And the pain and shame were gone.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
The pain and shame are still
gone.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Do I have remorse or regrets?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Yes, plenty of both.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Do I experience sadness when I remember some
of these things?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Yes.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But there is no pain or shame.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I am free to explore these memories and
receive the transforming power of God that will result in changed behavior and
no more harm done to others.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
Will I be perfect at this?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Probably not.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I’ll likely do or say something stupid…hurt someone…and need to ask
forgiveness.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But I believe my life will
be more about healing others than about harming them from now on.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
And I’m so grateful….</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
Responses to this article are
welcomed.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You may contact the author at <a href="mailto:drdave1545@yahoo.com">drdave1545@yahoo.com</a> </div>
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<![endif]-->David Ryserhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08514963161762663473noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2223805280498524565.post-868066926021436942011-03-17T09:35:00.000-07:002024-01-29T17:01:48.462-08:00Sacred Similes: Religion is Like....<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
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<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
By David Ryser</div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">I
sincerely believe that institutional, religious Christianity has probably done
more to hinder the ideals of Jesus than any other agency in the world.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></i>(Fil Anderson)</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
I love similes.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There’s just something about them that fires
my imagination.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And a simile can be a
great teaching tool.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The teacher can
explain a new concept by likening it to something that is familiar to the
student.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Then the teacher makes the
connection between the old and the new, and the student more fully understands
the new.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
As a master teacher, Jesus used
similes to explain the Kingdom
of God.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He would begin His lesson by saying, “The
Kingdom of God/Heaven is like….”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And
then He would talk about sheep, birds, flowers, vineyards, wedding feasts, etc.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
When teaching about the Kingdom of God, Jesus used more similes than
scriptures.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Perhaps we should, also.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If we would follow Jesus’ methodology, I
suspect we would be more effective in our preaching and teaching.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
So in the spirit of following
Jesus’ example, I would like to describe the religious system…and our
interaction with it…using similes.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
Religion is like a cowboy who goes
into town and enters a saloon.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He
proceeds to consume a large number of alcoholic beverages.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>As the hours go by, he becomes increasingly
intoxicated.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>His friends decide to play
a prank on him.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So they go outside the
saloon, untie the cowboy’s horse, retie the horse facing the opposite
direction, remove the saddle, and then reattach the saddle backwards onto the
horse.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
The next day, the cowboy is
awakened by the ranch foreman who is kicking his bed and shouting, “Get up,
cowboy!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Are you planning to sleep all
day?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Get to work!”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The cowboy is jolted awake, and says, “Hey,
boss, I’m sorry.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I got in late from town
last night, and I was exhausted.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The
foreman asks, “What happened?”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>To which
the cowboy replies, “Oh, some jerk cut my horse’s head off, and I had to lead
him home all the way from town by putting my fingers down his windpipe.”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
When we go into the religious
saloon (church building) every Sunday and get drunk on religion (the
traditional church service), is it any wonder that we wake up a day late, a
dollar short, and reeking of <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>horse
manure?</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
And do we learn from this
experience?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Of course not.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>When next Sunday rolls around, we do it all
over again.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
We’re like the two college students
who went to the Gulf
Coast for spring
break.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>As they were walking along near
the seashore, looking at the shops, they saw a sign that read:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><i>Caribbean Cruise!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Only $50!</i><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So they entered the shop.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The
first student paid his money and was directed to go through a door behind the
counter.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>As he went through the door, he
was knocked on the head.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Then he was
tied…unconscious…to a log and floated off into the Gulf.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
The same scene was repeated for the
second student.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
Hours later, the students began to
regain consciousness.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Their logs had
floated so that they were next to one another.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>The first student looked over at the second student and asked, “Do they
serve meals on this cruise?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’m
starving!”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>To which the second student
replied. “I don’t think so.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They didn’t
last year.”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
Are we stuck on stupid?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>When will we learn that the solution to
ineffective religion is not <i>more</i> ineffective religion? </div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
We go to a traditional church
service week after week…expecting to get something out of it…and then sit
passively in rows watching a religious production (one that is more or less
entertaining).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We may get to sing a bit.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And for sure we are going to dig into our wallets,
fairly early in the service (Before the preaching.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This is not an accident.), to pay for the
privilege of attending the service again next week.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Then we endure a mind-numbing motivational
speech that usually equates to: <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“God’s
good.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You’re not.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Try harder.”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
Just thinking about it gives me the
chills.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
And so it goes.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Week after week.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We go to “the house of God” expecting to meet
with Him.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But He never seems to be
there.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If the church building is the
house of God (and it isn’t, by the way), then why is He never home?</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
How rude!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We’re told that we are invited guests to
God’s house every week.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And He doesn’t even
have the common decency to show up and receive His guests!</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
So why have I been attending church
services lately? <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Given my attitude about
them, I find it somewhat ironic that for the last two months…at the direction
of God…I have found myself sitting in a traditional (and really pathetic)
church service every Sunday.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Lest I seem
a bit of a hypocrite, I would like to pose the following question:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“If you wanted to break someone out of a
prison, where would you go?”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
To the prison, of course!</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
I’m just going to where the
prisoners are.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Prisoners of religion.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They’re nice people.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There’s nothing wrong with them that a good
jailbreak wouldn’t cure.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
And when I go to a traditional
church service, I am not going there expecting to get anything.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’m going there to bring something.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>More accurately, I’m going there to bring
Someone.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It has been great fun to watch
the looks on people’s faces when they feel the Spirit of God in the church
service like they haven’t felt Him in years.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
Because God and I made a deal.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If I have to go to church, so does He.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
And, sooner or later, the people in
this church will have to decide whether they want Him to stay.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They will need to make the required changes
to accommodate Him.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And if they don’t,
He will leave.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
And so will I.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
Responses to this article are
welcomed.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You may contact the author at <a href="mailto:drdave1545@yahoo.com">drdave1545@yahoo.com</a> </div>
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<![endif]-->David Ryserhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08514963161762663473noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2223805280498524565.post-9858782395094998902011-03-16T09:08:00.000-07:002024-01-29T14:23:54.251-08:00What's in Your Wallet?: Is it the Get-Out-of-Hell-Free Card?<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
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<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
By David Ryser</div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">I
wouldn’t have been a Christian without hell.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I guess it’s kind of like sex--it sells.</i><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>(Matthew Paul Turner)</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
In his wonderful book, <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Churched</i>, Matthew Paul Turner relates how,
as a child, he “got saved” every time the pastor preached about hell or the end
times.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Terror of hell or the Tribulation
drove this tenderhearted boy to the altar time and again to insure that his
Get-Out-of-Hell-Free Card (which also conveniently doubles as a
Get-Out-of-the-Tribulation Card) was still good.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
I didn’t realize this card came
with an expiration date.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
I had occasion to think about this
recently.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And I have no one to blame but
myself.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I was sitting in a traditional
church service…even though I know better.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>The speaker was lamenting that no one preaches about hell anymore.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I’ll admit to being a bit bewildered by this
statement because I wasn’t aware that we Christians have been commissioned to
preach hell.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I thought we were supposed
to proclaim Jesus.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
Silly me.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
I’ve heard many times over the
years that Jesus spoke more about hell than about heaven.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I don’t know if He did or didn’t.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I never looked it up to see if this statement
is true.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It may be.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It may not be.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I don’t really care.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And I’m not easily motivated to look
something up…or to do anything else…when I don’t care.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
And I don’t care about whether
Jesus spoke more about hell than He did about heaven.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Because Jesus did not come to earth primarily
to speak about either hell or heaven.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
Jesus came, in great part, to
proclaim the Kingdom
of God (or the Kingdom of
Heaven--take your pick, they’re the same thing).<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And I would be willing to bet that Jesus
spoke more about the Kingdom
of God than He did about
hell and heaven combined.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
So why doesn’t anyone preach about
the Kingdom of God?</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
Because hell sells.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Hell is good for business.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We need hell to make religion work.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We need hell to keep people in church.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Wayne Jacobsen once mused that the reason we
preach on how terrible hell is (and it is a bad place, make no mistake), is
because we need something worse than the church service to threaten people with
so they will come to church and sit through it.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
Hell is so good for the religion
business that if it didn’t exist, we would invent it.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
So what has all of this preaching
on hell gotten us?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Well, for one thing,
I’ve discovered that how a person comes to God has a great influence on how a
person relates to God.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>How you are born
in great part determines how you will develop.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>If you scare people into church, you have to keep scaring them to keep
them in church.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
This calls for a lot of preaching
on hell and the Tribulation.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And when
did Christianity become about hell and the Tribulation?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Isn’t it supposed to be about Jesus?</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
It’s all so confusing….</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
And then we compound the problem by
presenting the gospel as a business proposition.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If we will accept Jesus as Lord (as if our
decision makes Him anything) and say the magic prayer…a prayer that didn’t even
exist 200 years ago…we will trade our old sinful lives, consisting of failure
and filth, for Jesus’ righteousness and eternal bliss.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
So who wouldn’t make that
deal?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And what does Jesus get out of it?</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
Thus we enter into what is supposed
to be an intimate relationship by way of a business arrangement.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I, for one, do not call business-arrangement
intimacy a relationship.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I call it
prostitution.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
And it gets worse.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
Because we married God for His
money/stuff, we don’t really care whether He lives or dies.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In fact, He can be a bit of a nuisance.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So we learn…compliments of “teachers” (who
don’t know Him any better than we do) to whom we pay big money to deceive us…that
faith is the Bible way of getting God’s stuff without having to mess with Him.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
Does this sound just a bit sordid to
you?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>(If not, then try this on your
spouse and get back to me on how it works for you.)</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
And who got the brilliant idea in
the first place that preaching the threat of hellfire is the best way to bring
people to Jesus?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>My Bible says it is the
goodness of God that leads people to repentance (Romans 2:4).</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
You see, for the longest time I
found God easy to resist.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I could resist
the fire-breathing tyrant of religion.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I
could resist the stern judge.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I could
resist the abusive father.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I could
resist the celestial scorekeeper.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I
could resist a God who would just as soon throw me into hell as look at me.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
But I could not resist a God who
loved me so much that He would die just to hang out with me.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I could not resist a God who loved me
passionately.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I could not resist a God
who pursued me relentlessly.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I could not
resist a God who refused to change His mind about loving me, no matter what I
did.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
I have no defense against this kind
of love.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Do you?</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
Responses to this article are
welcomed.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You may contact the author at <a href="mailto:drdave1545@yahoo.com">drdave1545@yahoo.com</a> </div>
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<![endif]-->David Ryserhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08514963161762663473noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2223805280498524565.post-53159730927625441772011-02-17T07:56:00.000-08:002024-01-29T16:46:59.342-08:00Instructions for Televangelists: Open Mouth, then Insert Foot<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
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<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Instructions for Televangelists</b></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">Open Mouth, then Insert Foot</b></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
By David Ryser</div>
<div align="center" class="MsoNormal" style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">Artificial
intelligence is no match for natural stupidity.</i><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>(Seen on a church sign)</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
I appreciate televangelists.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Really.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I do.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In the circus called the
Church, televangelists are the clowns.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>And I like clowns.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I find them
amusing.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The antics of clowns are
entertaining and great fun.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
But we must never take clowns
seriously.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
Likewise, I find the buffoonery of
televangelists to be wildly entertaining.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I am constantly amazed by the silliness that pours out of their
mouths.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They are the comic relief of
North American Christianity.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And I
greatly enjoy their antics…as long as I remind myself that they are clowns.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
But when I take them seriously, I
become alarmed.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
For example, I found myself shaking
my head in disbelief a few years ago over comments made by a televangelist who
is noted for shooting off his mouth and blowing off his spiritual foot in the
process.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He was commenting on the devastation
in New Orleans
following hurricane Katrina.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He stated
that this natural disaster was the result of that city’s wickedness, citing the
examples of Sodom and Gomorrah…and their destruction by God.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
As I said, these clowns can be
wildly entertaining.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
Because I read.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I read news stories.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And I read the Bible.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And both help me put the ravings of these
spiritual buffoons into perspective.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And
that’s an important part of enabling me to enjoy the religious circus.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
Shortly after the hurricane-induced
tragedy in New Orleans,
I ran across a news story that quoted comments made by a Muslim imam.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This imam stated that God had punished New Orleans with the
hurricane because of its wickedness.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
Does this sound familiar?</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
This imam’s words were virtually
identical to those spoken by the televangelist.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Although these two religious spokesmen worship a different God (I hope),
they had come to the same conclusion.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
I especially enjoy the part of the
clown act where the clowns whack each other with plastic mallets.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Don’t you?</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
And while the Bible does speak of
God’s judgment upon people, cities, and nations; it also has a lot to say about
what our attitude as God’s people should be in these matters.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In Luke 9:54, James and John ask Jesus if He
wants them to call fire down from heaven upon some Samaritans who rejected His
ministry.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We think of John as the
apostle of love, but we forget that Jesus had named him and his brother the
“Sons of Thunder.”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
Somehow, I am disinclined to think
this moniker was the result of their quiet and gentle demeanor.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
Their offer to turn the enemies of
Jesus into crispy critters earned the Thunder-stick Twins a sharp rebuke from
Jesus.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Among other things, He stated
that they did not know what kind of spirit was motivating their request (Luke
9:55, 56).</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
I suspect it was not the Spirit of
Jesus.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And I also suspect that it is not
the Spirit of God motivating us when we gleefully announce (or pronounce) God’s
judgment on “those wicked people.”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
Were the people of New Orleans more wicked than other people and
thus more deserving of God’s judgment?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I
doubt it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Jesus’ comments on the news
stories of His day seem to indicate He doubted it also.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Referring to a mass execution (Luke 13:2) and
a tower collapse (Luke 13:4), Jesus clearly states these tragedies did not
occur because those suffering them were worse sinners than anyone else (Luke
13:3, 5).</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
When asked whether a man who had
been born blind was being punished because of his sin or the sin of his parents
(a hot theological topic of that day), Jesus responded that his malady was
caused by neither…and then healed him (John 9:1-7).</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
And let us not forget that one
reason Israel rejected the warning of the prophets concerning the coming
judgment of God upon their nation was because the prophets predicted God would
judge Israel by a nation that was even more wicked than they were.</div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">Unthinkable!</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
So did hurricane Katrina devastate New Orleans because the people there were more wicked than
those in, say, Las Vegas?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Or San
Francisco?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Or
your favorite bastion of ungodliness?</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
Maybe….</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
Or it could be that people decided
to build a city below sea level.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In
hurricane territory.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And then they opted
to neglect their levees and allow them to deteriorate.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>And then the state and local authorities
responded to the disaster with incompetence and ineptitude on a truly
staggering scale.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
Why do religious people insist upon
interpreting the stupidity of man as the judgment of God?</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
And why do Christians take as
gospel the comments of a televangelist that are identical to those made by a Muslim imam?<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It truly
boggles the mind.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
But that’s the circus, after
all.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It is larger-than-life
entertainment that captures our attention on a grand scale.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Including the clowns.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Their antics are an over-the-top caricature
of life that tickles our funny bone with their pure outrageousness.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
I don’t know about you; but when
the clown gets his pants set on fire and attempts to put it out by rubbing his
butt on the ground, I find that absolutely hysterical.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
It’s sort of like watching
Christian television.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: 0.5in;">
Responses to this article are
welcomed.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>You may contact the author at <a href="mailto:drdave1545@yahoo.com">drdave1545@yahoo.com</a> </div>
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<![endif]-->David Ryserhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08514963161762663473noreply@blogger.com0