Grab the Bull by the Horns!*

A friend at Southwestern Seminary had invited me out to the ranch where he was living and taking care of the owner’s Longhorns. I was excited to see these massive creatures up close. He asked if I wanted to help feed them. Always up for an adventure, I said “yes.” He demonstrated how to take a bale of hay through the barn door and scatter it in front of these docile but extra-large hungry beasts. So, I grabbed a bale by the twine and as I was about to get out the barn door the twine snapped, and the hay exploded just inside the door. Well, I learned that hungry longhorns don’t understand that they are not allowed in the barn even if there is food on the ground. So, in my ignorance, I literally grabbed the cow by the horns and headed it back out the door. Surprisingly, it stayed just outside the door as I kicked the hay toward him and his herd mates. My friend said, “I can’t believe you just did that.” He knew that the cow could have easily slung me into the loft if it was so inclined, without even trying. I guess I was just lucky he was hungry and not hangry.  They say ignorance is bliss, unless of course it is just ignorance.  What you don’t know can hurt you. 

The Apostle Paul was worried about the early church and reminded them that he and his friends were praying for their knowledge and wisdom of spiritual truths. He says, in Col. 1:9-14  “ For this reason, since the day we heard about you, we have not stopped praying for you and asking God to fill you with the knowledge of his will through all spiritual wisdom and understanding. 10 And we pray this in order that you may live a life worthy of the Lord and may please him in every way: bearing fruit in every good work, growing in the knowledge of God, 11 being strengthened with all power according to his glorious might so that you may have great endurance and patience, and joyfully 12 giving thanks to the Father, who has qualified you to share in the inheritance of the saints in the kingdom of light. 13 For he has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son he loves, 14 in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.”  So before you take the “bull by the horns,” pray for knowledge and wisdom so you can “live a life worthy of the Lord.” 

Hang in there people! God is glad to be with us! I’m praying for us all!

Awkward Christian Soldiers*

As we get closer to Vacation Bible School season, my mind goes back to wonderful nostalgic memories of VBS as a kid. I am so thankful for a church family that loved kids so much that they would invest volunteer hours and dollars into a week of focused faith development.  We would march into the Sanctuary singing “Onward Christian Soldiers, marching as to war, with the cross of Jesus, going on before.” Many of us had never marched before, so it was kinda awkward trying to stay in step. For some reason, the boys were more out of step than the girls even with the teacher starting us out with “right, left, right, left.” Maybe it was a developmental thing; you know, a brain and motor skill thing that girls get before boys. Anyway, we could have changed the song to: “awkward Christian neophytes, lurching like baby giraffes, with the grace of Jesus, loving us anyway.” When we arrived in the Worship Center we put our hands over our hearts and pledged our allegiance to the American Flag, the Bible, and the Christian Flag. 

Unintentionally, and again, perhaps, (spiritually) awkwardly, we may have begun to march in the direction of something that valued national patriotism equal to or greater than the worship of God Almighty. Don’t get me wrong, God has blessed America. Everyone of us is blessed to live in this great country and we should all truely pledge our allegiance to all the good our flag represents, we should also love God’s Word, and highly value the symbols of our faith, but there is no equal to God on Earth or in Heaven and He should be worshiped far above anything else. The first two of the ten commandments say, “You shall have no other gods before me. “You shall not make for yourself an idol in the form of anything in heaven above or on the earth beneath or in the waters below. You shall not bow down to them or worship them;” (Exodus 20:3-5 NIV-GK) Once again, God in His grace, allowed us all to mature and develop in our understanding of our relationship to Him. Many among us first understood the Gospel of Christ in Vacation Bible School. I’m not sure I would change any of my experiences, if I could go back. My life has been shaped for the better by those early faith events. I would, however, perhaps try to help kids understand that a personal relationship with our Awesome God through Jesus Christ is far above anything we can march, pledge, or salute our allegiance to. 

Hang in there people! God is glad to be with us! I’m praying for us all.