I Think I'lll Have Some Chicken

I just did a Google search for Chick-fil-A. I discovered news items from every major venue, all the way from the influential New York Times, to lesser-known tabloids and blogs. I have been amazed at the audacity of some as they responded--I'm sorry! Did I say "respond?" I meant REACTED to the chairman's values regarding marriage and family. I should be amazed at the audacity of city mayors who boast that they will do all they can to prevent free enterprise by doing what they can to keep Chick-Fil-A out of their cities.

I should be amazed; but I am not. After all, Christians do not belong to the world order that these guys do. They are born of the Holy Spirit, blessed with a new nature, and promised a new heavenly citizenship at a near-future date.

I do have a few questions for these mayors: What country do you guys come from? You think you have the right to speak freely and work diligently against Judeo-Christian values, and simultaneously hinder those with such values from exercising their own rights? Do you honestly fear the homosexual movement so much that you cowtow to their growlings and ungodly demands for fear of losing your polical clout?

The mutual benefit of the U.S. Constitution's first amendment notwithstanding, an amendment that allows both pro-traditional family people and those who oppose the traditional family to express themselves without governmental interference, this is a moral issue. This is blatantly anti-Christian and anti-traditional family. Christians and those who hold to the morality of the traditional family do not seem to enjoy the right to exist and openly express their values; only those opposed to such values are able to have public opinions and fear no recourse of action against them.

Isn't it interesting that the only time the tolerance card is played is when a Christian, or morally conservative person, tries to express himself? Think about that. If you hold true biblical values you are told to be tolerant. If those who disdain the idea of biblical values speak out against those values, why are they not told to be tolerant, as well? What hypocrisy!

So tomorrow I plan to go to Chick-Fil-A. I plan to enjoy a chicken sandwich offered by a company that holds the same overall values as I do. I plan to urge my fellow believers and others who hold to these same values to indulge in a chicken sandwich as many times as they can in the coming days. If you read this in the coming days and you are near one of these great fast-food restaurants, go have a meal from someone who actually cares about the traditional family in these United States.

Instead of Wringing Your Hands, Try This

In just a few days from now, all of us will stop at some point and remember that July 4, 1776 was our declaration of independence. The actual document was penned and signed at that point. The war for independence took several years longer.

                On that day, a dream began to enter into the labor pains that ultimately gave birth to one nation under God. We firmly and resolutely stood upon the concept that we were a nation by the blessings of Providence.  In fact, on April 30, 1789, in G. Washington’s first inaugural address, he said the following:

It would be peculiarly improper to omit in this first official act my fervent supplications to that Almighty Being who rules over the universe, who presides in the councils of nations, and whose providential aids can supply every human defect, that His benediction may consecrate to the liberties and happiness of the people of the United States a Government instituted by themselves for these essential purposes, and may enable every instrument employed in its administration to execute with success the functions allotted to his charge. In tendering this homage to the Great Author of every public and private good, I assure myself that it expresses your sentiments not less than my own, nor those of my fellow-citizens at large less than either. No people can be bound to acknowledge and adore the Invisible Hand which conducts the affairs of men more than those of the United States. Every step by which they have advanced to the character of an independent nation seems to have been distinguished by some token of providential agency….

                In other words, with these and other words, Washington asserted that we must be indebted to God as a nation, as well as look to God for his guidance of this nation. Time and again our forefathers, including the non-Christians, affirmed that our foundations were based upon Christian doctrine and values.

                We have come a long ways since then; not just in time, but in philosophy. We only see a slight shadow cast by a very small and distant light of the values that once guided us.

                We raise our eyebrows at unjust rulings of this day. Rulings such as those that legitimize sin and desecrate marriage, those that reward the wicked and punish the righteous, those that oppress the underprivileged and empower the unrighteous. People ask, “What can we do?” The proper question would be, “What must we do?” 2 Chr. 7:14 tells us what each of us that claims to be a Christ-follower must do: if My people who are called by My name will humble themselves, and pray and seek My face, and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin and heal their land.

I dislike the deceitful injustice involved in the latest SCOTUS ruling, not to mention too many others that of late characterize our courts. But I will not stand around and wring my hands. I will put into practice what I intend to preach to my church on Sunday morning.

Here's hoping you join me.

SCOTUS Crossed Their Eyes

Disappointing. Utterly disappointing. There is no other way to describe today's decision handed down by the Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS). For whatever twisted reasoning, none less than the Chief Justice ignored the obvious and allowed this nation to take one giant step towards existence as a socialist republic. We look and sound a lot like the failing European nations who took these steps several years ago.

Do you realize that this ruling is based on a lie? Our own president said this bill is not a tax. And when they argued before the Supreme Court, what did they tell them? This is a tax! Had SCOTUS permitted cross-examination and called POTUS to the stand, he would have had to refute the arguments of his Solicitor General, or lie in the process.

It is not the first ruling based on a lie. Roe V Wade is another based on lies by the lawyers arguing for the right to privacy. Our great nation, the one founded on truth, now stands on the crumbling foundation of lies, ruled by liars, and systematically recreated for liars. Truth has been discarded as a useless, dirty, old shirt.

God have mercy.

A Tribute to a Good Man

Today I received an e mail from someone working with the International Mission Board of the Southern Baptist Convention. He wrote me to tell me of the death of a fellow servant. Former Missionary Wade Watts has passed through that portal called "death." He has moved on from his terrestial tent to a celestial dwelling place. This is significant to me for any number of reasons.

Wade, his wife Nancy, and their two boys were critically injured in a head-on collision in the mountains of Peru. They were returning from a ministry assignment and driving on roads that could only be described back then as treacherous. Before they knew it, they were in the direct path of another truck. All the family suffered very debilitating injuries. Wade was injured far worse than the others. The doctors honestly gave him up as beyond hope. Someone forgot to tell God that and Wade survived. After treating Wade as best they could, stabilizing his injuries and doing all they knew to do in the moment, Wade and the Watts family were airlifted to Memphis, TN for more surgeries and more rehab. He was comatose for months, but one Spring day Wade woke up in his room in the Memphis, TN area.

Wade never fully recovered; he was confined to a wheel chair for the remainder of his life. But he managed to find ways to communicate, especially through the modern technology of computers. It was humorous to us that Wade's Spanish seemed to remain in the most lucid part of his brain, allowing him to speak with near fluidity, while we suffered to understand his English at times.

To my great delight and surprise, Wade and his family were present as I was awarded my doctorate at the Mid-America Baptist Theological Seminary, near Memphis. There were two families present at that service who were in the doctoral program that were close to the Watts family. It was a joyful reunion for all 14 of us (including our children).

Wade continued to serve as he could. His dream was to one day return to Peru to the people and country he loved so much. Perhaps in the new earth God will let Wade serve with Peruvians in his kingdom. In the meantime, I envision Wade walking hand in hand with the Lord Jesus Christ. Walking. Running. Jumping. Things Wade could only dream of until today. I pray for Nancy and the boys. I pray for those who have been touched by Wade's prayers and ministries. Yes, Wade Watts was a good man.

I Won't Sign It

THERE IS a new twist to an old controversy out there for Southern Baptists. Some have become frightened by the Calvinists in our family and have produced a document refuting Calvinistic doctrine. Well, I won't be one of the signators of this paper. A few may assume I am now coming out of the Calvinist closet. Others may assume I am seeking to walk the chalk between the doctrines of Calvinism and Arminianism. Both assumptions would be wrong.

Having said that, I have friends that are loyal to the tenets of John Calvin and I love them deeply. I also have friends who make me boil with passion for Christ who are fully Arminian, and I love them. But I am not seeking to juggle their friendships, spin plates, walk the chalk, or any other cliche you may want to use. They know me and know where I stand. And they love me as I love them. Why?

It is because we focus on the Lordship of Christ. We seek to walk in the Spirit, not in the flesh. We seek to keep the unity of the Spirit, knowing we all have a lot to learn before we reach the fulness that Christ intends for us. So Christ's presence in our lives overcomes our approach to understanding how God saves and how God keeps us saved.

So I don't need to sign a paper refuting doctrines I may not fully accept. My Lord Jesus signed the only documents that are important to me. And he wrote on them, "PAID IN FULL." And that was enough.

On The American President Coming Out of His Closet

The U.S. President, Barack Hussein Obama, has done what most felt he would do at least by the 2012 election. He has come out of his closet and thrown yet one more brick at the Christian foundation that made the U.S. what it was before it chose to move to a post-Christian philosophy of life. This president, a man I did not vote for, a man I openly opposed as a threat to the spiritual well-being of this nation, has finally demonstrated that no price is too great for him to buy votes to continue his anti-colonial socialist policies that he has worked so hard to put into place. His homosexual constituents threatened to withdraw their dollars and support if he did not throw marriage to the dogs; yes, dogs. The Bible likens sodomites to dogs in the Pentateuch, saying that they could not enter the tabernacle under any circumstances. Their wages as male prostitutes could not even be spent there. But here in America they can buy votes for the highest office in the land.

I do not fault President Obama alone. We had a strong moral shift in this nation during the twentieth century. We baby boomers were the most complicit when we proudly proclaimed that all organized religion was no longer a part of our value system. Perhaps rejection of organized religion looks good on the surface, until you discover that meant, in general, Christianity in its many denominations. New Age religions, Eastern Religions, Scientology, etc., were all very acceptable. But Christianity became anathema to America's baby boomers.

The ensuing result was a moral devolution. The decline of morality included a rise in open sexual freedom. Open sexual freedom included tolerance of many forms of sexual expression, including homosexuality. The decline of morality resulted in the decline of the value of the traditional family: mother, father, and children. Our desire to cast off restraint included a shift in the philosophy of marriage for life. The new watch word was (is), "Till divorce do we part." In short, we created a chaotic vacuum within the home. Marriage and family, thanks to cheap sex and quick divorce, was no longer valuable.

Fast-forward to now. For many years now you have witnessed on television and through other media the intentional attempts to indoctrinate you, the stupid American (according to the moguls of the media), to the homosexual and free sex lifestyle. You are too happy and too weak to worry about the destruction of this nation.

They sell you short. May President Obama discover that he has found his magic bullet. But may he discover that with that magic bullet he shot the balloon that holds the prize of being voted out of the White House.

Voting that man out is only one step. If you want to see America rise from the ashes, you will seek the Lord God with all your heart. You will turn to the Lord Jesus. You will repent. And you will urge others to do the same.

God have mercy on the United States of America.

Book Signing at William Carey U's Homecoming

The following was released by William Carey University:

BOOK SIGNING AT CAREY HOMECOMING

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

            William Carey University will hold a Homecoming Book Sale and Signing at 5 p.m. on Friday, April 20, in front of Wilkes Dining Hall on the Hattiesburg campus. This event is just one of the many to take place during WCU’s Homecoming weekend April 20-21. Featured authors are Dr. Garry Breland, Sonya Bridges, Dr. Walter Butler, Dr. Lorie Fulton, Jack O. Giles, Robert Hensarling, Dr. Benny J. Hornsby, Whitney Miller, Jerry W. Mixon, Dr. Kevin Shearer, Dr. David W. Spencer, Rell Webber, and Sylvia Williams. All writers are alumni and faculty of the university with the exception of Whitney Miller, whose parents are Carey alumni.

            Dr. Garry Breland of Hattiesburg  is the author of Whole Cloth: Sacred Stories in Verse. Sonya Bridges of Laurel, is the author of A Snail’s Pace. Dr. Walter Butler of Seminary wrote A Mansion in Glory Land. Dr. Lorie Watkins Fulton of Hattiesburg is the author of William Faulkner, Gavin Stevens, and the Cavalier Tradition. Jack O. Giles of Meridian wrote Fascinating Miracles in the Life of a Country Preacher and Hope for You, and Robert Hensarling of McComb wrote Oh No! Not another when I was a little boy story. 

            Dr. Benny J. Hornsby of Hattiesburg is the author of A Navy Chaplain’s Devotions for Afloat and Ashore, and Whitney Miller of Poplarville is the author of Modern Hospitality. Jerry Mixon of Madison wrote The Road Back Home, and Dr. Kevin Shearer of Hattiesburg, Grace Works. Dr. David W. Spencer of Milton, Fla., wrote Strolling Through the Cemetery, Stuff They Forgot to Mention at the Seminary, and Rell Webber of Terry wrote The Legend of Luke Steel.  Sylvia Barkemeyer Williams of West Point wrote Paul Bear Bryant: Football Legend Stories and From Where We Live: the Gulf Coast.

            The public is invited to attend the book sale and signing, free of charge. For more information, call 601-318-6524.

What's in a Name?

Southern Baptists--some of them, that is--are tired of their name. Some church planters seem to have met resistance in planting new churches. Apparently, a minority of people are resistant to belonging to a church that has "Southern" affixed to it; it's too regional (can we read that as "provincial?"). So a group of concerned parties has gathered for a powwow. They have the brilliant idea that the solution is a name change.

Why do we believe that a name change will make the difference? Why do we believe that the material, surface things, matter so much? Have we become so endeared to marketing principles that we have overlooked the most important ingredient to planting churches?

Before someone who may read this asks the inevitable question about my authority in this matter, let me say that I have over 20 years of experience in planting churches. And I had the brilliant idea to drop one word from the titles of our churches in South America. It did not make one single bit of difference. We met the same resistance, even with the name change.

You see, people, the resistance is not to the name. The resistance is SPIRITUAL. The flesh and the Spirit are at war. The world and the Spirit are at war. The devil and the Spirit are at war. Church planters and lost people tussle, not over a name, but over their eternal salvation. The name does not matter.

I do not foresee much positive coming from this move to rename us Southern Baptists. I hope that those proponents of such a move can prove me wrong and plant and grow more churches. But I think the idea is a house of cards, built by boys who have nothing better to do than play mind games.

If you want to see positive growth, get off the computers and do two things: pray and preach. Pray more than you preach. Preach intentionally, both in public and privately. We reap in abundance when we sow in abundance. Our tears in the prayer closet must water the seed.

It's not the name. It's the intentionality of praying and preaching. Leave the name alone.

Grace Works

Coming Soon!

Grace Works is a devotional commentary on Paul's letter to the Galatians, published by Crossbooks. Crossbooks is a subsidiary of Lifeway Books. Check back soon for availability dates.

Occupy?

My, how language changes! Did you ever stop to consider the definition of this word that now, ahem, occupies our news each week? Consider Miriam-Webster's definition:

1: to engage the attention or energies of

2a: to take up (a place or extent in space) occupied> occupy this corner of the room> b: to take or fill (an extent in time) occupies all of my free time>

3a: to take or hold possession or control of occupied the ridge> b: to fill or perform the functions of (an office or position)

4: to reside in as an owner or tenant

 

The current proponents of this nefarious movement that has taken ownership of a once-lovely word only prefer two definitions of the four seen above. They want to take hold or possession or control of businesses that have been successful; or they want to take up space so that the businesses cannot function. They themselves do not invest their energies in the success they envy.

 

These who imagine themselves to be the 99% should read and heed the first definition more carefully.

 

While they--the 99%--"busy" themselves, plotting their next strategies before the 2012 elections, let me speak to Christ-followers. Jesus expects us to "occupy till he comes." That means he intends for us to engage and invest our energies in advancing the kingdom of God, which is the first definition before us. In case we have forgotten, may I remind you that Jesus said his kingdom is not of this world? While you are busy being salt and light in this world, do not forget that your purpose in being salt and light is not just to make the culture look like you would like to look; your purpose in being salt and light is to attract others to follow Christ, whose kingdom is a heavenly kingdom. I don't think the kingdom of God advances far if we invest our energies in shaping culture. Show culture-followers the light of Christ and some will leave that culture and follow him. Then and only then will your culture truly change.

 

Occupy. What definition will you choose with this word? Let's get busy for the King.

GRACE WORKS

COMING SOON TO A STORE NEAR YOU:

This devotional commentary on Galatians is my first work to be published in English. My prayer is that busy pastors and interested Bible students will find a resource to help them study this important letter that Paul penned under the Holy Spirit's inspiration.

The title reveals the heart of the letter: grace. In a time when Christ-followers are increasingly challenged about their walk with the Lord, Grace Works can serve as a guide for understanding the beauty of our salvation and sanctification in the Lord Jesus Christ.

Look for it soon in your local bookstores, on Amazon, and from this site.

Advancing the Kingdom of God

Christmas is a lovely season for so many reasons. Gift-giving aside, the family time and renewed friendships is a great blessing. Today we saw some who were home visiting family. It was a delight to hug their necks and shake their hands. My great surprise was to be able to eat lunch with them and many others from the classes of one of our Bible Study departments.

For me, however, I think the most joyful thing about this time of the year is the opportunity to participate in the advancement of the Kingdom of God. I am speaking about missions giving. We were blessed to serve on the front line of missions for some twenty years. Now we are back in Mississippi, where we are encouraging others to head out to the front lines. And we are encouraging others to step up their financial participation.

Our small church has never been stingy; but they gave their largest offering last year. This year we have given the second-largest to date. Perhaps we could have done better, perhaps not. I only rejoice that we have given a significant gift for the glory of God and the advancement of the kingdom.

More will hear the word of God because of this. More will believe because someone gave. More missionaries will have needed supplies. More families will have needed support. Logistical support will be eased in some cases. The list goes on...

Be a part of advancing the kingdom of God by giving, going, and mostly praying. Be one of God's warriors for his glory.

Pray for North Korea

North Korea's leader, Kim Jong Il, is dead. Now is the time for us to redouble our prayers for this nation where the Holy Spirit sent revival and an awakening some 100 years ago. Perhaps this will be the time for a new visitation, a new day for the expansion of the kingdom of God.

Pray for North Korea.

In Pursuit of Godliness

Two passages in the New Testament define my passion: Romans 12:1, 2; and Phil. 3:10 - 17. Both describe the pursuit of godliness that should characterize every Christian life. My wife Pam has often kidded with me that all my preaching centers around the concepts found in these verses. She may well be very close to the truth with that! I believe that all preaching should persuade men and women to pursue godliness.

I have discovered something recently, though, that bears a mention. It's not new, this thing I have discovered. It is as old as history itself. The concept I have discovered is the sinister imitation of godliness. Paul described it by saying there are people who have a form of godliness, but deny its power. 

Let me try to explain what I see in this. A person with a form of godlines, but who denies its power, is a person who may consider himself as spiritual. But his or her spirituality does not reflect the results of godliness, thereby denying the very power that characterizes godliness. To be godly is to reflect the attributes of God. To be religious or spiritual is a form of godliness that denies the power of godliness. There are also those who deny the power of godliness by perverting that power into a self-serving thing. The inherit power of godliness is to make you more godly in your lifestyle, not to make you more appealing to the world. Remember, the crowds left Jesus when he told them what it really meant to follow him.

I counseled with one recently that spoke of how much he loved the Lord. He told me how he carried his Bible around, how he read it, how it blessed him. Then he told me of his regular activities. Those activities, including his sexual activities, all denied the very godliness he claimed to have. He had a form of godliness, but denied its power with his life.

The true pursuit of godliness transforms us from glory to glory. We are transformed from the great glory of the new birth, to the greater glory of a full-aged son of God. The pursuit of godliness reveals more of the fruit of the Spirit. The pursuit of godliness creates a greater intimacy, a deeper relationship, with our Lord Jesus.

Beware the type of godliness that denies the power of God.

Black Friday?

I saw a news item this morning that became the final push to write these thoughts in this post. I saw some young men camped for the past 3 days in front of a Best Buy, somewhere in Tennessee. They are preparing for the best deals for what our merchants call Black Friday. What I saw stirred me beyond words. What I saw stood juxtaposed in my mind with others in other places that I have personally met.

 We Americans, irrespective of race, gender, or religion, will begin our race to the malls and stores to make our annual pilgrimage to the shrines of plenty. We will amass great piles of goods to bestow upon others, but (if we were to be brutally honest with ourselves) that sometimes serve more to make us feel good about ourselves. Some of us will do it in the name of Jesus; many of us won't. In a matter of a few hours, all the hustle and bustle will be over until next year. And we will resume our normal patterns of life--except for that of paying off the credit cards we used to make our pilgrimage worth it.

In other parts of the world in which I have lived and served I have seen similar sights. People have waited for hours, if not days, for a great event. People have walked miles and miles, enduring sleet and other harsh elements. People have camped out under the evening stars. Some have risked their lives for these events. They slept where they could in front of or near the place of the big event.

The events I speak of are chances to hear the word of God preached. Yes, I know personally people who give all they have to be able to hear the word of God. And they really do walk for hours and days. I have known some to walk for 2 days, just to catch a bus they ride for 12 hours. Did I say bus? Sometimes it is a cargo truck. Sometimes they hitch a ride in the back of a pickup truck. But they press on so that someone will teach them the word of God one more time.

So this is what stirred me so: I have listened too many times to too many citizens of these United States who are far more concerned about packaging their worship and Bible study into a 60-minute box--120 minutes, if they are really spiritual and went to Morning Bible Study first. I have listened to those who groan over an extra 15 minutes of message and public invitation to respond. I have heard short-winded preachers praised and long-winded preachers plastered.

Do not misunderstand this post. It is not from the pen of Ebenezer Scrooge. I am not at all opposed to gift-giving. But when it holds higher priority for us than worship, we have missed something.

In short, we Americans of the USA do not seem to have much time for things of God. But we have a week to camp out in front of a store to get the cheapest LCD or Plasma Flatscreen. God have mercy on America! God give us hunger for His word once again!

Remembering Simpler Times

It is 4 PM on a Sunday. I am in my office, going over notes for tonight's message. This message is one that I preached some 7 years ago. I guess I preached it some 10 years before then. You don't get to preach too many messages like these while on the mission field, which is where I spent 20 years of my life.

As I looked at the outline I began to think of simpler times. I also began to think of simpler truths. Yes, simpler truths. There was time that life was simpler. Therefore, truth was simpler in some ways. So I want to show you in bullet point form some of those simpler truths that have faded out of our foremost thoughts. To share these thoughts makes the preacher look "old-fashioned." I never thought anyone would ever accuse me of that! But here I am, remembering simpler times. Here goes:

• There are three kinds of people listed in the Bible: the natural man, the carnal man, and the spiritual man. The natural man is the unsaved man. The carnal man is the one who has believed on the Lord Jesus, repented of sin, and entered the family of God by God's matchless grace. But he has stagnated and is not growing. The spiritual man is that Christ-follower who grows in his knowledge and understanding, as well as his obedience to the Messiah.
• There are four levels of Christian living listed in the Bible: babes, children, young men (and women), and fathers (and mothers). This is from 1st John 2. These levels demonstrate the growth (sanctification) process in the Christian's life.
• There are three kinds of "food" listed in the Bible--four, if you count water: milk, manna, and meat. Milk is for babes. Manna is for growth, but most often symbolizes the meal of the carnal Christian. Meat is for the spiritually mature.

These truths seem to have disappeared. I only find them spoken of in older books, by older men, to older congregations. Many younger preachers and younger congregations have more interested in the self-life. You know, self-help for families, self-help for finances, self-help for friendships.

We have simple life, simple church, and not-so-simple Christianity anymore.

I think what we need to do in the church in America is get back to the cross and hang there till all that self-life is dead.

But that is just my thoughts. I am only remembering simpler times.

Missions 2011 in Peru, Part 2

We have done it! We have walked the streets of Lima and trudged up and down the sandy, rocky hillsides of one community and ministered together in the name of the 38th Family and of the Lord Jesus Christ. I may surprised you with this, but we don't have a clue how many people prayed to receive Christ on this trip; we did not count. In the end, only the Lord knows how many of those who did pray were serious, or comprehended the decision, when they prayed. But we shared with the young and the old alike.

Yesterday (Wednesday) may have been the most challenging day for us. The morning began in ominous tones. It seems that customs released a flood of containers from recently-arrived ships. The roads to our community were blocked. We slowed to a crawl and were forced to breathe the wretched pollution from myriad trucks that enveloped us. When we finally arrived at the morning destination--almost one hour late--we were already tired from the cacophany of the trucks' air horns and from eating so much of their dust and pollution.

But we headed to a market to minister and preach the word. My first stop with my small group was with a young lady who was glad to speak with us. I wondered if she was really listening as I shared the word of God. I finally told her I could return later and see if she had thought things over. She suddenly blurted out (in Spanish), "No! I am ready to do this now!" No one was more surprised than I. I could not read her, as I normally can do. "Pilar" prayed to receive Christ--the first of 7 that would pray with me that day.

Later in that same day we found ourselves before the casket of an 18-year-old young lady who gave up. Hopelessness swallowed her the night before. She drank a bottle of insecticide, thinking that was the way of escape from whatever demons chased her. Our host pastor had witnessed to her before, evidently; she had soundly rejected Christ at that time, if I understood him correctly. I was heartbroken to hear it.

We moved from one house of grief to another; the next person we visited has breast cancer. She is consumed with it. We came in, anointed her with oil, and prayed for healing, as the Lord willed. There was a moment of joy in that meeting. She said she wished she could attend the church (she received the Lord a couple of weeks ago). I suggested she could; the church could hold services there. It was well-received. Next week they will take their worship services to her place and celebrate Jesus there.

Today, after spending a good bit of time in prayer, we converged upon the inhabitants of the community once more. We forced our sore muscles to push us up the steep hills one more time. It was fruitful in the sense we managed to meet new families--believers--who were looking for a church home. We also met others who had just moved to the area and were interested in hearing the gospel. Our day finally came to a close and we made our way back to our "base." I left the team at the guest house and came to close out my business with my Peruvian friends. Now it's time to pack the bags...

We won't soon forget this good trip. We are returning to Mississippi tomorrow--most of us are, that is; two left tonight. We will carry with us treasures that cannot be assessed a monetary value. They cannot be seen here, either. They are heavenly treasures. They are treasures of joy and hope.

It was a good trip.

Missions 2011 in Peru

10 days ago a group of us from Mississippi parted from the Jackson airport and headed to Lima. The majority went on for a few days of tourism in the mountains. I stayed behind to do missions. I was invited to be a "keynote speaker," as they put it to me, for the first annual cross-cultural missions conference. Though I did not see the fruit from it, I was told a dozen men and women responded to the invitation to be career missionaries. I can only shout praises to King Jesus over that. I saw a dream fulfilled in their decision and the burgeoning missions agency known as Peru to the Nations. It filled my heart with joy.

A week ago the rest of the Mississippi group arrived. It was the second trip for these men. Who are they? They are the Mississippi Singing Churchmen. These men and I, plus three ladies, converged on Lima and proceeded to present concerts of praise throughout the city. Each day was better than the day before. We sang before the wealthy; we sang before the very poor. We sang before the unknown and we sang before the renowned personalities in the city. And God gave a harvest. God showed himself powerful and answered prayer beyond our dreams.

When we lost permission to sing in one place, God opened other venues for us. We wanted to sing before Congress in their daily session. It did not happen. But we did get to sing in front of the congressional palace. Broadcast live across the nation. To thousands, not hundreds. Our God does far more than we ask or think.

Each day the harvest seemed to be better than the day before. We know of at least 60 who prayed to receive Christ; the Lord knows how many truly did. But we were able to be an influence in their lives, at least.

The trip has ended--for the Singing Churchmen, that is. I am still here; my church, the 38th Family, arrives tomorrow night. And the mission continues. And more men and women will be born into the family of God. And God receives all the glory.

Why Are We Surprised, Part 2

In my last post I spoke of issues that has brought America to the point we are. I promised to make some and salient points regarding America and world relations. Please indulge me as I plead with America to look at the bigger picture.

Our nation has had three world-wide activities that I believe has produced the depth of blessing that has been ours. First, our nation has, since its inception, been a missionary nation. We have not hesitated in calling men and women out to go into the world with the gospel message. We have been increasingly diligent (perhaps until recent years) in our support of those men and women. America's Christian Church has been an example of obedience to the great commission. God has blessed this. God has smiled upon us. As we share the gospel message in all the world, God will supply our need to do so.

Second, our nation has been generous in sharing its abundance with other nations. We have not been selfish. We have been--and continue to be--a generous nation. When disasters strike in other nations, Americans are among the first responders. When famine has hit, we send food. When plagues and diseases assail, Americans respond with medical personnel and aid. America will readily offer to share its blessings with any nation, regardless of their political opinion and policy. It is born out of the Christian roots that shaped this nation over 200 years ago. May God continue to move us in that way!

Third, our nation has been a friend of Israel. Yes, that small, seemingly insignificant nation in the Middle East has had as its friend the United States of America. This is more than political. This is from the wisdom of God himself. Our Lord tells us that God blesses those who bless Abraham and curses those who curse him and his seed.

So long as America has done this, we have been blessed. In recent years, however, reaching all the way back to the late 1970's, we have shown increasing ambivalence when it comes to blessing the offspring of Abraham. Our most recent policies seem to favor Israel less and its Arab neighbors more. This is a dangerous policy. We must pray for our leaders to act wisely. I do not believe our Lord will grant us continued blessings if we insist on marginalizing those people through whom all his blessings have come. Yes, all his blessings have come through Israel. In case you have forgotten, Jesus Christ is of the house and lineage of King David. The Old Covenant was given to Moses; the New Covenant came through the blood of Jesus Christ. Any way you look at it, your blessings come through the offspring of Abraham. To spurn them is to risk the anger of the Lord God.

Discerning Christ-followers should not, therefore, be surprised when they hear that things are not well in America. To ignore our Christian heritage, to weaken our nation by compromise within the church, to curtail missions giving and thereby reduce the missionary force around the world, and to risk a policy shift regarding the nation of Israel--any of these things weaken America in more than one way. I pray we remember and repent while we can.

Why Are We Surprised?

The news of the moment includes a downgrade of the USA's sterling credit rating, a plummeting stock market, and soaring gold. Tomorrow's futures on the other world markets reveal a continuing downturn on the world markets. The economists like to call such as this a "correction." That softens the blow of depleted retirement funds, annuities, and the like. The media are having a time with this news; theirs are the only ratings going up right now. Meanwhile, Dummy-crats point their finger at the TEA party; Republicans point theirs at the Dems, hoping for their demise next year; and no one looks under the proverbial skirts to see what the problem really is. So I want to take a look at this from another angle. And I may get it wrong; but I don't think so. . . .

While the problem the world now sees is most certainly an economic problem, there is much more to it than that. I won't spend my words analyzing the entire world. I want to speak about the USA; after all, that is where I write this from.

The problem we now face began in the early part of the 20th century, when (with respect to my Canadian and Latin American friends) "America," as we call it, experienced a radical heart shift away from God. We had just experienced a world wide awakening/revival. Hundreds of thousands around the world had been touched by the Holy Spirit and born into the kingdom of God. Then came what scholars labeled as "modernism." Man suddenly decided he was too rational to allow room for adherance to the word of God as the final authority in the affairs of life. The affairs of life, by the way, include everything, including economics, politics, and world relationships. We began a love affair with what would eventually be called humanism.

Fast-forward past WWII. Men came home from war. The nation was in a rebuilding phase. Many of those men, however, had been stung severely by the hornets of war and had become secretly cynical. They barely had time to breathe before we entered the Korean "Conflict." While men and women maintained in a cultural sense the appearance of godliness, in their homes they took off their masks.  For too many, their religion was only "cloth deep." It was surface tolerance of the Bible at best.The stage was set for yet another heart shift away from God and biblical principles. The boomer generation was born, but not adequately schooled in the things of God. One of the great battles was forming: evolution v creation. Even pastors and preachers began to doubt the literal six-day creation. It showed up in their teaching. The decline in church attendance began to show as pastors inadvertently cast doubt on the veracity of Scripture by advocating a tolerance to the religion of evolution. In the home, where children were still in the innocence of Andy Griffith and other shows, there was less and less emphasis on spiritual things.

The Boomers began to come of age. Vietnam was escalating. The nation would not stand for it. And the Boomers took to the streets. As those young men and women came of age they demonstrated yet a third heart shift away from God. They cast off the shackles of what they called "organized religion." They were anti-organized everything. Time will not allow to discuss the impact of an increasingly secularized education; but this, too, had a major impact on the heart shift of Americans.

When the Boomers began to have children they continued in their now very secular mindset. Less and less showed interest in the things of God. Sunday became "fun" day. More and more protested they needed their rest. Fewer and fewer showed interest in the things of God. Soon, between the Boomers and the subsequent generations, this nation called the United States of America was post-Christian in its outlook. Tolerance was the watchword. The only things is, this tolerance is the epitome of intolerance for those who stand for all things that conservative Christians do. The lines were made clear. For the most part, America now stood in blindness to the things of God. That's no surprise, since dead men can't see. And those who do not know Christ Jesus as Lord and Savior are spiritually dead, blind, and unfeeling to the things of God.

What does this have to do with the economy? Someone is shouting, "It's the economy, stupid!" And so it does--at least, in part.

I heard the late Keith Green say that when a nation turns its back on God, God may strike that nation in three areas: in their economy, their environment, and with their enemies. The USA has experienced all three since the mid-1990's. The economic woes are just the third blow of three slaps to her face. Unless the churches repent and return, we will see worse. Unless the unsaved repent and believe, we will see worse.

In my next post I will tie this opinion to world relations. Meanwhile, we should pray and repent. . . .