Bringing All Things to Light

As we quickly approach another presidential election, the disapproval and criticism surrounding both of our nation’s leading candidates is at the forefront of every media outlet. There are reports that Donald Trump is angry, erratic, unfair in business dealings, greedy, a loose cannon, and an adulterer.  Hillary Clinton, on the other hand, is broadcast as a liar, a crook, inauthentic, extremely careless, and a self-serving individual who thinks she is above the law. 

Name-calling and accusations such as these are commonplace during presidential elections.  The candidates’ lives are placed under a microscope, as they should be, and all their dirty laundry is aired for the world to see.  As their lives are examined, the good, the bad, and the ugly come to the surface.  All their faults and failures are exposed.  Every one of their sins comes to light, which leads me to wonder how I would fair if my life came under the same scrutiny as that of a presidential candidate. 

It’s easy for me to cast stones at Donald Trump or Hillary Clinton, but what if someone were to take a peek into my life?  Or into your life?

While we might not ever run for public office, there will come a day when even the things we have done in secret will be made public.  When Jesus Christ returns to earth, as He has said He will, “He will bring every deed into judgment, with every secret thing, whether good or evil” (Ecclesiastes 12:14).  On that Final Day of Judgment, He will disclose every sin, including the purposes and intentions of our heart (1 Corinthians 4:5). 

When Christ finally does appear, how will you measure up?  When He returns to repay each person according to what they’ve done (Matthew 16:27), what will be said of you?  If you’re anything like me, your sins are much worse than those of our current presidential candidates.  If you’re like me, you’d cringe at the idea of having your skeletons revealed to the masses, much less having the secret thoughts and intentions of your heart exposed before the Almighty God Himself.  Therefore, if you truly are a sinner like me, the only hope you have is to cling to Jesus and to His righteousness.  He lived a sinless life, and He gave Himself for wicked sinners such as you and me.  So I implore you to trust in His works and not in your own.  For there will come a day when your heart and soul will be unmasked, and this unveiling will far outweigh any exposure our presidential candidates have ever known.  On that day you’ll have no way of covering up your scandals.  There’ll be no place to run and hide.  You won’t be able to lie your way out of condemnation, for God has all the facts.  He sees and knows all, even the true intentions of your heart.

If this disturbs you or if you have questions, please feel free to contact me, or better yet, contact a pastor at a local church near you.  Here are a couple links you can use to find a good church in your area: 

Founders-Friendly Churches

9Marks Church Search

~Corey

Prone to Wander

I don't know about you, but many times I come to a sudden realization that distractions have completely overtaken me. Diversions tend to creep in unnoticed when I least expect them, and before I even recognize what's hit me, I'm spiritually parched and in need of refreshment - refreshment that can only be found by spending time in God's Word and in prayer. Over the years I've noticed that my spiritual life suffers most when I allow my circumstances to pull my attention away from God. There's no one to blame for this but myself. Just the other day my cheerleaders and I were discussing how a runner will naturally slow down if he takes his eyes off the finish line and begins looking at the other runners around him. The same is true in a believer's spiritual walk: If we take our eyes off Christ and start focusing upon the circumstances that encircle us, we'll undoubtedly start to slow down and veer off course. 

Often the things that lead me astray are good things in and of themselves, but too many times I allow those things to reign over my thoughts and my actions. Circumstances consume me and step in to vie for my attention, attempting to draw my focus off of the very One my heart needs most. My walk with the Lord is filled with hills and valleys. Thankfully, the trend line seems to be going upward as God molds me into the image of Christ. But it is a very slow growth, and sometimes seems stagnant. God's unending patience toward my wretched heart is overwhelming at times and, in response, I can only repent of my wanderings, focus my attention back upon Christ, and run the race set before me, knowing that God is the Author and Finisher of my faith.

O to grace how great a debtor daily I'm constrained to be!

Let thy goodness like a fetter, bind my wandering heart to thee

Prone to wander Lord I feel it, prone to leave the God I love

Here's my heart, O take and seal it, seal it for thy courts above.

(Robert Robinson)

Love,

Kristen

Pom Poms, Hair Bows, & Finding Our Identity in Christ

Not long ago, I took on the role of coaching a junior high cheer squad at a private Christian school in our town. Several years back I taught second grade at the same school, and now I'm coaching a few of my former students. It's so neat to see how those sweet little girls I taught years ago have blossomed into precious young women! It is a great privilege and a tremendous responsibility to be able to teach and mentor these young ladies. I've told them several times that, while I want them to be good "cheerers," it's more important to me that they be good "leaders." We've talked about what it means to be a leader among their peers: welcoming new students who come to the school, making sure everyone feels included, helping teachers, and serving others, even when it's not convenient or popular. I giggled as they asked me if I'd make them run sprints if they messed up a cheer or couldn't stick a particular stunt (that's cheer terminology for dropping the girl they're holding in the air). I explained to them that learning cheerleading skills is definitely an important part of being a cheerleader, but that being good at cheerleading isn't our top priority or our number one goal. To me, a lousy cheer routine doesn't begin to compare with a lousy attitude. I've told these girls already, and will continue to remind them, that they weren't selected to be part of the cheer team based solely upon their cheerleading abilities. Their character is what counts! But we can't stop there. 

You see, having good character from a worldly perspective certainly matters in this life, but it makes no difference in eternity. A person can seek to be well-mannered, kind, and hard-working, but if they don't know Christ, they have nothing. King Solomon paints a clear picture of this truth in the book of Ecclesiastes. He was a very rich and wise king who tested himself with all sorts of worldly endeavors and delights - hard-work, wise-living, and self-indulgence, to name a few -  but he found all these pursuits to be empty; like chasing after the wind. Phillip Holmes, a writer for Desiring God, said, "The problem is our hearts are black holes of discontentment, devouring relationships and possessions, all while screaming, 'I need more.' We're always eating, but famished. Always drinking, but never satisfied."  If the girls learn nothing else this year, I pray that the amazing truth of our ultimate satisfaction being found in Jesus Christ alone will cause their hearts to swell with adoration for Him.

When I first took this job, I began brainstorming ways I could share Christ's glorious gospel with these girls and could strive to show them the beautiful truths found in His Word. I thought about the sins teens struggle with most today. Undoubtedly, at the top of my list is the propensity for all females to compare ourselves with others, and the tendency we have to worry so much about pleasing and impressing people. While these have always been struggles for teenage girls, and women too, it seems to be so much worse now, as we all interact through social media, aiming to post the perfect photo and trying to give the impression that we live an ideal, pain-free life. These thoughts reminded me that all of us, no matter our age or gender, have one thing in common: We all need Christ! It's only once we have been saved by His marvelous grace and have been covered by His precious blood that we are truly free from our struggles. Only then can we seek to live holy lives and aim to please - not people - but Christ alone, trusting in His grace to carry us through when we fail. In that moment, as I pondered these ideas, I was reminded that as believers, our identity is found in Christ alone, and I decided that that would be our spiritual theme for the year: Finding Our Identity in Christ. For it is only when we identify ourselves wholly and completely in Christ that we will find satisfaction and fulfillment unlike anything we've ever known. Just as I told the girls in one of our devotionals: Yes, I am a wife, mother, daughter, sister, and cheer coach. But I can't take any of those identities with me when I die. They will be useless when I stand before God Almighty. The only identity that will matter in that glorious moment is that I am a child of God and that my identity is found in Christ alone. 

Love,

Kristen

Religious Liberty for All: A Christian Perspective

Let’s start with an obvious question: What exactly is religious liberty? Well, religious liberty grants Americans the freedom to worship as we please, and gives us the right to peaceably assemble as a religious group without interference from the government. It also grants us the right to speak freely about our religion and to persuade and proselytize others.

The First Amendment to the United States Bill of Rights, which was passed by Congress in September 1789 and ratified in December 1791, states that “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press, or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.”  

The Bill of Rights was ratified less than a decade after the American Revolution ended. The thirteen American colonies rejected and overthrew British rule, and thus adopted a governing document known as the Constitution of the United States of America. In the Constitution we find the Bill of Rights, written in order to ensure protection of individual liberties and to list specific prohibitions on governmental power.

Influenced by Thomas Jefferson, James Madison penned this first amendment to prohibit a national church. Great Britain’s national church, The Church of England, denied religious liberty at the time; therefore, the founders of the United States passed an amendment that prohibited the establishment of a national church. In addition to this, the first amendment also guarantees individuals the right to worship, freedom of speech, the freedom of the press, the right to peaceably assemble, and the right to make complaint/seek the assistance of the government without fear of punishment. While much could be said about the first amendment, I want to focus on religious liberty.

Russell Moore, the president of the Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission, points out that religious freedom does not mean freedom from being mocked or ridiculed. Nor does it mean freedom from being offended, but it does give us freedom to worship as we choose.

Is this always a good thing? Should Christians defend religious freedom for others with whom we disagree? Should we defend the rights of Muslims to freely worship, even though they deny Jesus as being equal to God? Should believers fight for the rights of Atheists to gather and speak freely when they deny the very existence of our Creator? Should Christians defend the rights of Satanists to worship as they choose, knowing that they bow down to the adversary of our Sovereign King?

I realize that these can be difficult questions to answer, particularly if we believe that these groups are fighting against us and stand in direct opposition to our faith. It would seem as if we are advocating blasphemy against the Holy God. Well, here is some food for thought:

Jesus preached in the Sermon on the Mount, “So whatever you wish that others would do to you, do also to them, for this is the Law and the Prophets” (Matthew 7:12). In this text we see Jesus call us to treat others in the same way that we want to be treated. Now, I realize this is an extremely difficult command, especially when the other person does not always treat you well in return.  But if you’ll notice, in Matthew 7, Jesus doesn’t add any conditions. He doesn’t say, “Do unto them as you want them to do to you, as long as they treat you how you want to be treated.” Essentially He is saying, “Do unto them as you would have them to do unto you, regardless of what they do unto you.” If someone treats you with disrespect, Jesus calls you to treat that person with respect anyways.

So, one might ask, “How does this apply to religious liberty for all?” Well, let’s look at it this way: If I desire religious freedom for myself then I should desire religious freedom for others as well, even those with whom I strongly disagree. How could we possibly expect religious freedom for ourselves and, in turn, deny the same freedom to others? Russell Moore, in his book Onward, uses Muslims as an example as he paints a clear picture of this idea for us. He writes, “Christians should fight for the liberty of Muslims to be Muslims, to worship in Mosques, and to freely seek to persuade others that the Koran is the true revelation of God.” He says these things, not because he affirms Islamic claims, but because he affirms the power of God. You see, like Moore, I believe in advocating and defending the rights of any religious group to freely worship, to freely proselytize, and to peaceably gather, but I am by no means affirming their doctrines. I am simply confident in Christ’s Gospel and am persuaded that His truth will prevail. After all, the Gospel is the power of God for salvation to all who believe (Romans 1:16).

The Christian faith does not depend upon law and governmental force in order to advance the kingdom of God.  Suppressing other religious groups is not God’s means for advancing His kingdom. He doesn’t need other religions to be suppressed in order for His truth to shine brightly. It is the Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ alone that advances the kingdom throughout pagan lands. In Onward, Moore points out, “A religion that needs state power to enforce obedience to its beliefs is a religion that has lost confidence in the power of its Deity.”

Therefore, we have to ask ourselves: Are we living out of fear?  Have we lost confidence in the power of God? Are we scared of diversity and disagreement? Do we think that the Gospel is unable to withstand other religions?

If we are united with Christ, we have a promise that God has not given us a spirit of fear, but one of power and love and self-control (2 Timothy 1:7). Christians need not fear other religious groups or other ideas, even if those ideas lead to violence. Jesus told His disciples in Matthew 10:28, “Do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Rather fear Him who can destroy both soul and body in hell.”

Rather than retreat, we should rejoice in times such as these. Isn’t it wonderful that while Matthew 28:19 calls us to go make disciples of all the nations, we are currently watching as all the nations come to us? Yes, there are tensions, and yes, there are potential dangers, but we should praise God as we see Him plopping the nations right into our laps, here in the United States.

One reason for this mass flood of people into our country is Amendment One to the Bill of Rights. It is the freedom of worship and freedom of speech that lead many to this nation. You see, individuals don’t typically flee to countries like the Islamic Republic of Iran for religious freedom, which is why 98% of the population is Muslim, but many freedom-seekers do come to the United States.

My call for the Christian is to stop living in fear and to see the amazing opportunity that is right before our eyes, as God brings the mission field to us. I live in the outskirts of Houston, Texas, which is actually becoming one of the most ethnically diverse cities in the world. Last time I checked, there are somewhere between 350 to 400 different ethnic groups in the Houston area. As we observe this incredible influx of people, we have to remember that Muslims are not our enemies, Hindus are not our opponents, Buddhists are not our competitors, Atheists are not our adversaries, and Satanic groups are not our nemeses. We are all created in the image of God; therefore, let us talk with our Muslim neighbor, let us befriend our Hindu co-worker, and let us share the Gospel with our Atheistic family member. Jesus is the only hope for any of us!

And as for the Christian, let us thank God for religious liberty, and let us defend the rights of others to worship as they choose, not because we affirm their convictions, but because we believe the Gospel of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ is the power of God for salvation to all who believe.