Tragedy Strikes Again

It was an almost perfect two and half weeks of vacation.  It was the last Friday, before returning to work and to the office on Monday.  It was a day of fishing on the lake with and good friend and then an evening of football with a bunch of young men that I have grown to love dearly.  We got up early at the lake and my friend ask if I had talked to my son in Colorado the night before.  I told him that we had texted each other Thursday night before bed, but that was all.  Then he showed me the news on the television from Aurora Colorado.  It is about a thirty minute drive from my son's place to Aurora, and I was fairly confident that he would not have been out at a Batman movie at midnight, but my heart skipped a beat.  It wasn't long until I was assured he wasn't in Aurora then night before, and then my mind sprang to the dozens of parents whose children were there.  While I slept soundly, their world forever changed.  Suddenly vacation time with family and friends was even more special.  A break, a time away to try and enjoy life!  It is really hard to do as a pastor who tries very hard to reassure people that God loves them and that grace is always available.  We spend so much time dealing with people's tragedies in life, bot to mention our own.  My fun time was almost over and this was not the way I wanted it to end.  I have several friends in the Denver area as well as my son, and thankfully I didn't personally know anyone so dramatically affected by this tragedy.  But I am a parent, and a grandparent, and an American, and a Christian and when a tragedy like this hits it affects us all.

This is not the first time that our world has been shattered by tragedy, nor will it be the last.  Our world has been full of tragedy from the time Satan masqueraded as a serpent in the garden of Eden.  The Bible tells us he is a "deceiver" wanting us to believe in a "truth" that isn't true and isn't full of hope.  I don't know why or how he deceives so many young people into believing that something so evil could bring anything good into their life.  I don't know why or how he deceives so many wonderful young men that strapping bombs to their bodies or cars or flying planes into buildings could in any way bring anything good to them.  I don't know why or how he deceives young men that gang life and living like a thug is going to get you ahead, or how he convinces young teenage girls that a baby will make their life complete.   All of these things are tragic marks of the world that we live in ... but just for a little while!   We won't be here long.  Seventy, eighty, ninety years at best.  For some unfortunately much shorter times.  For a few incredible earthly lives in the triple digits of years.  But it still isn't long. 

James, the half-brother of Jesus, told us in the fourth chapter of his letter, ¹³ Now listen, you who say, “Today or tomorrow we will go to this or that city, spend a year there, carry on business and make money.” ¹⁴ Why, you do not even know what will happen tomorrow. What is your life? You are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes. ¹⁵ Instead, you ought to say, “If it is the Lord’s will, we will live and do this or that.”   Life is just not that long.  I know that mine is well past the halfway mark.  I have experienced tragedy first hand and there are still more tragedies to come.  But I have had some really good times too.  I have also seen God work in the midst of tragedy.  Two of my dearest ministry friends have lost children as a result of traffic accidents and in those two cases, people came to know Jesus as their Lord and Savior because of how the families responded when faced with tragedy.

Life is short.  We have no promises or an easy life, just because we follow Christ.  Jesus told us that, God causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous.    We have a period of time to decide how we want to respond to life's tragedies.   We do have hope in the midst of tragedy.  Jesus' best friend here on earth, John wrote, You, dear children, are from God and have overcome them, because the one who is in you is greater than the one who is in the world.  Maybe the apostle Paul put it best when he wrote in Romans 8, ³⁷ No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. ³⁸ For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, ³⁹ neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

The moments that lead to many tragedies bring out the worst in people the worst that Satan can must as he deceives once innocent hearts.  But I have seen first hand the moments IMMEDIATELY following tragedy bring out the best in people as the Spirit of a Living God rises up in the hearts of hurting people to come to the aid of those who are hurting even more!  It is amazing what joy can RISE up from tragedy.   Wait a minute!   Isn't that what happened in Jerusalem a couple thousand years ago.  There was a TRAGIC Friday and out of the tragedy of Friday, something, no SOMEONE ROSE up on Sunday to make it all good again. 

In the midst of tragedy God always RISES AGAIN!!!

DON'T BE DECEIVED

Our "Summer Breezes" series took us to the book of 2 John this week.  One of the major concerns of John for the church at Ephesus was that they were being deceived by false teachers.   In verse 11 John gives very strong warning to not show hospitality to those who teach in opposition to the teaching of Jesus and scripture.  Right after talking about the importance of love, John comes back to the truth of God and warns the people to be very careful.

Satan is a deceiver, and he will use people, sometimes without them even knowing it to deceive those that are trying to follow God.  Think about the things in your life that you have experienced that are decptive by design.  I love to fish and I have a whole box full of little plastic and rubber things that are supposed to look appealing to big ole fish.  But every one of them has at least one hook attached to it.  Some have as many as six.  They are called "lures", because they lure fish into a false sense of security and then I catch them.  Once upon a time I could hit a baseball pretty well and then the older I got the pitchers on the other team starting throwing these balls with a different spin on them and then they reacted to gravity and wind and just as a would swing they would ... "CURVE".  I was deceived to think it was a fast ball and then I would strike out and head back to the dug out.  Satan is the master of deception.

Many things that look good, are really harmful, that’s why it is called deceit

According to Peter Kendall in the Chicago Tribune, Ruben Brown, age sixty-one, was known on the south and west sides of Chicago, as the friendly neighborhood cockroach exterminator with "the Mississippi stuff." The Mississippi stuff was a pesticide Brown had bought hundreds of gallons of in the South, and it really did the trick on roaches. Brown went from door to door with his hand sprayer, and his business grew as satisfied customers recommended the remarkably effective exterminator to others.      

In the process, however, Brown is alleged to have single-handedly created an environmental catastrophe. The can-do pesticide-methyl parathion-is outlawed by the EPA for use in homes. Southern farmers use it on boll weevils in their cotton fields, and within days the pesticide chemically breaks down into harmless elements. Not so in the home. There the pesticide persists as a toxic chemical that can harm the human neurological system with effects similar to lead poisoning.        

The EPA was called into Chicago for the cleanup. Drywall, carpeting, and furniture sprayed with the pesticide had to be torn out and hauled to a hazardous -materials dump. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency estimated that the total cost of the cleanup would be some $20 million, ranking this as one of the worst environmental nightmares in Illinois history.     
Brown was charged with two misdemeanors. He apparently didn’t know much about the pesticide he sprayed so liberally. Brown’s attorney said, "It’s a tragedy. It is one of those situations where he did a lot of harm, but his intention in no way matches the damage he has done. He is a family man and handled it with his own hands. Do you think he knew how toxic it was?"  

What you don’t know can hurt you. That is true both of pesticides and of false teaching.

That’s why the “study” part of our Spiritual DNA is so important. We need to know the truth because the truth can … set you free!

Loving People Is Hard Because It Hurts

I had a friend a few years ago who told me, "Anytime you want something for someone more than they want it for themselves, you are going to be the one that is hurt."  I didn't realize it at the time but it has proven to be one of the wisest things anyone has ever told me. I truly care about people though and I don't know how to separate myself enough to not be hurt when I see things that I truly believe will be harmful in the long run.

I have felt and continue to feel this for my children and my family. I have felt and continue to feel this for the people that God allows me to be a pastor to.  I have felt and continue to feel this for the people of the city that I have grown to love.  I have felt and continue to feel this for my country.

The struggle comes in not being apathetic and continuing to love, because it will bring the pain of caring!

Grace Demands Shared Forgiveness

Another great lesson that we learned from studying Paul's letter to Philemon, was about sharing forgiveness.  It was a lesson Jesus taught many times.  Most pointedly with the parable of the unmerciful servant.  Forgiveness is a wonderful thing when you are on the receiving end of things, giving well that is a different story.

The really clever thing that Paul did was send this little letter along with a bigger letter to the entire church and so it would have been read in front of the whole church.  That means everyone would have been watching to see how Philemon responded.  You’ll probably never be put on the spot in front of the whole church, but people are watching to see how you respond to the grace that was shown to you as a follower of Christ.

Francis Chan said, “Do you know that nothing you do in this life will ever matter, unless it is about loving God and loving the people he has made?” When you forgive someone, you bring healing to both you and them. When you hold a grudge, you bring harm only to yourself. Christianity is nothing if it doesn’t show itself in terms of relationships.  

Christianity is really just one beggar showing another beggar where to find bread.  The great news is we can be showing others the bread of life – Jesus!

GRACE DEMANDS A CHANGE OF HEART

We are doing this really cool sermon series this summer called "Summer Breezes".  We are looking at seven of the shortest books of the Bible.  They are ones that if we aren't careful we will "breeze" right over and miss some great teaching and some great truthes for our life.  This week we looked at the postcard of Philemon.  It was all about Grace and Forgiveness.  One of the lessons we pulled from the text was that "Grace Demands a Change of Heart".  Here is what we learned ...

1.     Paul’s heart was changed on the road to Damascus.

2.     Philemon’s heart was changed in a revival in Colossae.

3.     Onesimus’ heart was changed as he talked to Paul in Rome.

4.     One important question that we don’t know the answer to is, was Philemon’s heart changed toward Onesimus.

5.     The most important question today is one only you can answer, “When was your heart changed”?

6.     Once your heart is changed you can begin to really follow Christ.

Mistakes in Leadership = Learning

Have you ever been thrust into a leadership position that left you feeling in over your head.  Fear is a paralyzing thing for many people.  I am really not sure which is the greatest fear.  Many would say it is the fear of failure, but I often wonder if it is really the fear of success.  The thinking often comes into play when a leader, whether by title or just reality of life, knows that there is another step that needs to be taken but they also results that taking the step will change their life.  If they step out and fail, there is the embarrassment that comes with failure.  They may lose their job, their position, their family, their home, who knows what they might lose.  But on the other hand if they take the leap of faith and it works, people will expect that over and over again.   There might be a promotion, a new job, a new company, more pay, more incentives, more responsibility, more hours, more chances to fail the next time.  So many potentially great leaders, choose to do nothing!!!  What a mistake!!!   

Mistakes are inevitable if you are a leader!  However, the greatest mistake by far is to do nothing.  Yogi Berra didn't always make a lot of sense but he did know that when you come to the fork in the road you better take it!  You have to do something.

Great leaders learn from others mistakes. Awesome leaders learn from their own mistakes!    When we learn from others mistakes, that is called research.  When we learn from our own mistakes, that is a risk!  My suggestion is that brilliant leaders incorporate both into their plans. 

Taking the approach of the hunter who says, "Ready, aim, aim, aim, aim, aim ..." and never pulls the trigger never gets you a trophy on the wall.   Taking the approach of "Ready FIRE", may get you a hole in the wall.  Neither is the desired result.  Don't be afraid to fail and don't be afraid to succeed.  God says he will see you through both your failures and your successes.   God tells us in Jeremiah 29 ¹¹ For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.

A Great Lesson from Haggai

We are in this great series this summer called Summer Breezes where we are looking at seven of the most overlooked books of the Bible because of their length.  They are short books so if we aren't real careful we will just breeze right over them.  This week we looked at the book of Haggai.  It was written in 520 BC as God used Haggai to encourage the people rebuilding the temple that the Babylonians had destroyed in 586 BC.  The last visiosn of encouragement that Haggai received was to Zerubbabel.  He was the little known leader of the people doing the rebuilding.  Apparently he felt like many people feel today who find themselves called to lead.  He felt overwhelmed and God says, "Just serve me faithfully."
The warning to Zeb was, "Don’t feel useless or powerless, God is in control."   2:20-23 That is how Zerubbabel was feeling.  He had limited military might.  Only 42,000 had made the return voyage to Jerusalem.  He was feeling, “I can’t maintain this once we build it.”  God says, “You do what I have asked of you and I’ll take care of the rest.”
That is all any of us can do!  Take care of what we are asked to do and let God handle the rest.  You just serve Him faithfully. 
Several people talked to me after last week's message from Obadiah about forgiveness and holding a grudge.  You can only control you!  You can’t  make someone forgive you or accept your request for forgiveness.  You can only control you!  So you serve Him faithfully and let God take care of the rest!
God tells Zerubbabel that He will make him His signet ring.   That was huge because that was the symbol of being God’s Davidic ruler.  The king from the line of David.  When the people were following Him, God removed that blessing from Jehoiakim.  But the return of His blessing brought hope!
God may be calling you to lead in a very powerful way that everyone will notice, or he may be calling you to lead from behind where no one will notice but Him.  Whatever God is calling you to do, wherever He is calling you to lead ... SERVE HIM FAITHFULLY!