poolsandpastures

Friends, 

In our study of John’s gospel on Sunday mornings we’ll jump over some interesting stories in order to hit the highlights. We simply don’t have the time to go verse by verse. 

One of those stories we’ll skip is found in verses 22-36 of chapter 3. In these verses, “John the Baptist exalts Christ.” Interestingly, Jesus and John the Baptist were in the wilderness baptizing men and women within eyesight of one another. John’s baptism was one of repentance and preparation for Jesus’s coming into the world. Jesus’s baptism was one of repentance and faith in himself. John pointed to Jesus in his words and baptism. Jesus drew people to himself. They both were of God but had radically different purposes. You may remember that John “was sent from God” and “as a witness, to bear witness about the light, that all might believe through His testimony” (John 1:6-7). 

While the two men were baptizing people John’s crowd got smaller and Jesus’s grew larger. The townspeople were no longer going to see John to be baptized; they went to see Jesus. Why wouldn’t they? Why would they remain with a prophet when the Lord was present? They wouldn’t because it doesn’t make sense. When John’s disciples asked Jesus later in his ministry why his disciples didn’t fast like they and the Pharisees did, he answered “Can the wedding guests mourn as long as the bridegroom is with them?” It’s time to celebrate when the bridegroom is present for his wedding.  

There were some men, though, who remained loyal to John. He was their ride or die. Their problem, however, is that they failed to see that John wasn’t interested in keeping disciples for himself. He wanted everyone to follow Jesus because he knew that Jesus was “the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world” (1:29) and the one who “came from heaven” and is “above all” (3:31-32). In fact, John had no problem admitting that he was not the Christ. He reminded his disciples of their experiences with him when he said, “You yourselves bear me witness, that I said, ‘I am not the Christ, but I have been sent before him'” (3:28). John was simply doing his job and wasn’t bothered by his decreasing ministry and Jesus’s growing one. That’s the way it was supposed to work. 

One of my friends, Bob Elliott, told me once that his favorite verse in John’s Gospel related to his own life is John 3:30 — “He must increase, but I must decrease.” John the Baptist made this statement in reference to his own life and ministry. it was his desire and pleasure (3:29) to decrease so that Jesus could be exalted. John wasn’t “in the game” for himself. He wanted Jesus and his fame to grow. He wanted those who came to hear him preach and be baptized, including his disciples, to place their faith in Jesus, “the true light which enlightens everyone” (1:9). 

I think Bob’s perspective on John 3:30 is both healthy and inspiring. Like John, all of us have been called to be witnesses to Jesus and his glory. We are to point others to him in our words, actions, and commitments. We should always be pointing to Jesus saying, “Behold, the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world.” And, we must always pursue a life of humility that enables us to decrease while he increases. May God be pleased to work in and through us to elevate Jesus. 

In Christ,
Clint 

Friends, 

It’s January 4, 2023! It’s a new year. 

I’ve always liked the transition from one year to another. It brings a sense of change. The old is gone — 2022 — and the new has come — 2023. It’s a time for fresh starts, new routines, a new set of goals to accomplish. And, for an optimist like me, it’s a welcomed relief. 

Now, we all know that the past doesn’t go away. Most, if not all of the challenges we faced in the previous year stick with us. They follow us into the new year. Our health scares are still with us. Our tense family relationships are still here. Our vices still pull on us. And, the consequences of our sin must still be dealt with. However, 2023 brings an opportunity to us — an opportunity for change, for growth, for forgiveness, for repentance, for maturity, for disciplined lives. We don’t have to be trapped by our pasts, whether they are good or bad. We can change. First, by the grace of God. Second, by faith and repentance. Third, by choices and behaviors. This is what makes New Year’s Resolutions so popular around the globe (a practice that some historians argue goes back to the ancient Babylonians). 

The more cynical of us will say, “What’s the point in making New Year’s Resolutions if I’m just going to break them in six weeks?” We’ve all been there. We’ve all started strong on a new health routine, a plan for spiritual growth, or a determination to break a bad habit. My gym will be packed for the next 6-8 weeks with all those who have determined that 2023 is the year that they’re going to drop that pesky 10-20 pounds and get in better shape. By March, a significant percentage of them will stop coming and I’ll be able to use the machines and weights at my normal leisurely pace. But, does that failure to establish a new lasting habit mean that they wasted their time in January and February? No. if nothing else, they got two good months of exercise that they wouldn’t have had they not made the New Year’s resolution to start going to the gym. Those two months were better than nothing. 

As you can tell, I’m a big fan of New Year’s resolutions. I think they are good for our overall health and lifestyles. For example, this year, I want to be more present with my family and our congregation, so I have logged off social media. It drains my energy and traps me to my phone as I’m constantly checking to see what the latest political or theological battle is taking place on twitter, or what kind of silliness I can find to numb my brain on Instagram reels. Also, as a family, we want to be more encouraging and grateful of each other and other people, so we have committed to writing more notes and sending more appreciative text messages.

I think the key to a good New Year’s resolution is to take a positive instead of a negative approach. Often we think negative things that we want to change about ourselves because we don’t like them. However, that approach is not beneficial to long-term change. It’s far better to settle on a version of who you or your family wants to be and then make the changes to become that person or family. A common example is: instead of saying, “I want to lose 20 lbs because I don’t like the size that I am now,” say, “I want to be healthier physically so I will get serious about having a better diet and being more active with the goal of dropping 20 lbs.” That way you have a goal to work toward without getting discouraged if you don’t achieve it quickly. The same is true for our spiritual and mental growth too. 

So, I ask you, “Who do you want to be moving forward? What do you need to change in order to become the man, woman, or family that God has called you to be for his glory?” Prayerfully determine that and then make the necessary changes in your life while relying on the grace of God and his strength to change you from the inside out. 

Have a great new year! 

In Christ, 
Clint 

Last week I had the privilege of addressing the graduates of our local Adult Education Department. The whole class had wonderfully inspiring stories of perseverance, dignity, and strength. Below is my address to them. Maybe you’ll appreciate my words.

Introduction 

Congratulations to the 2022 Graduating Class! You’ve earned it. Well done. 

I have been asked to address you tonight, and to be honest, I feel a little strange standing before you because I imagine you all have a lot to teach me. You’re the stars of this show. 

You’ve overcome many obstacles. 
You’ve shed some tears (maybe a lot). 
You’ve probably said some stuff you didn’t mean to the people you love. 
You’ve stopped and started again, and potentially have done that more than once. 

But here you are! You’re finished. Hallelujah! 

We’re all proud of you. 

4 Things to Do From This Point Forward

I do have to do my job up here tonight, don’t I? So, let me make a few points. 

First, thank everyone that has helped you get to this point in your life. 

We all come from different backgrounds and different perspectives. We have all faced different obstacles in our lives. I’m not going to stand before you and act as if I know what you have been through because I don’t. It would be ridiculous for me to think that I do. 

But, I do know this: you didn’t get to this point in your life without someone helping you. You had a teacher offer a helping hand with a difficult subject. You had a mom keep your children so you could do your schoolwork. You had a child cheer you on as you fought to get your diploma. You had a friend to pick up the emotional pieces of your life when you thought you couldn’t do it. You had a pastor challenge you to go back and finish your schooling. There were countless others who were there for you along the way. 

And, yes, that includes those who told you that you couldn’t do it. You’d never amount to anything. You’d never be enough. Thank them for fueling your fire with their negativity. 

Tonight, you celebrate a great accomplishment, but don’t think you did it all by yourself. There are many people who helped you get to this point. Make sure to thank them. 

Second, take the lessons you’ve learned in grit and determination with you. 

You have gained a wealth of knowledge during your time as a student. You’ve learned about English grammar, algebraic equations, geometric shapes, literature, historical events and their significance, how government works, and so on. You have mastered this information. If you hadn’t, you wouldn’t be here tonight. 

And, those lessons will serve you well. You intuitively will be able to engage the world in which you live. Your education has seeped into your bones and has become part of you. You’re more capable now than you were when you started. You will no longer struggle to figure out how to compute per unit prices at the grocery store to determine whether or not you are getting the best value for your dollar. 

The greatest lessons of a completed education (I have to be careful saying this because I don’t want your teachers and administrators to charge the stage.), however, aren’t the ones you learned as you studied the subject matter. Rather, they are the ones you learned in the process of completing your educational requirements. 

Psychologist Angela Duckworth has a defined grit as “perseverance and passion for long-term goals.” You’ve demonstrated grit over the course of your study. Some of you had longer-term goals than others but all of you have accomplished them nonetheless. As you continue your adult lives, this testimony of your grit will pay dividends in your life. It will remind you that CAN set goals, that you CAN persevere to attain them, and that you CAN complete them. Confidence is an invaluable characteristic for anyone who desires to accomplish anything in this life, let alone something great. And, tonight’s accomplishment will supply you with overflowing confidence. Never forget what you have done, and let the story of how you’ve done it inspire you to set goals and accomplish them throughout the rest of your lives. Don’t give up. 

 Third, fight to make sure you do the right thing, always. 

You have probably heard the MLK quote that says, “The time is always right to do what is right.” It’s always the right time to do the right thing. 

It’s always right to be kind to others. 
It’s always right to be generous with your time, talents, and resources. 
It’s always right to be a humble person. 
It’s always right to be a loyal friend. 
It’s always right to love other people well. 
It’s always right to support and train the children around you. 
It’s always right to motivate your friends and family while holding them accountable for their actions. 

Make sure you fight against the temptation to take the easy way out or to not do the right thing. You learned how to fight this temptation when you were tempted to not turn in those assignments or complete the course of study before you, but you did it anyway. You know how strong those temptations are, and you know you have to fight hard to overcome them. 

This is where faith comes into play. As a Christian pastor, I trust in a great and wonderfully powerful God who enables me to overcome the temptations of this world. If you have a similar faith in our God, then I encourage you to rely upon Him and His power. Fight to make sure you always do the right thing. 

Finally, strive to make the world a better place. 

Education is a wonderful thing. It gives you confidence. It makes you more adept at interacting with our world. It gives you an opportunity to better yourself. You know all of these things, for they are probably the reasons you decided to return to school. 

However, your education is for more than just your benefit. It’s for the benefit of others. In this county, we believe in an educated public because it makes the world a better place. It makes everyone more capable of providing for themselves. It informs our public debates. It makes our democracy possible. The freedom, standard of living, and opportunity that we enjoy are only possible because we have an educated population. As education goes, so goes our country.

Now, that you have completed your secondary education, you need to be an advocate in our community for education. Impress upon your children and your grandchildren the importance of being well-educated. Help the teachers in our schools; they have tough jobs. Tutor students. Tell them to behave and commit to life-long learning. Use your influence and experience to make Chester County a better and more educated place to live and work. 

As the Scriptures teach us, we all need to focus our attention on other people more than we focus it on ourselves. 

Conclusion

In conclusion, I want to say again that it has been my honor to be a part of your special celebration. Thank you for giving me your attention and your time. Again, I say congratulations to you all. Job well done!

May God bless you richly in His grace.

[44] Then he said to them, “These are my words that I spoke to you while I was still with you, that everything written about me in the Law of Moses and the Prophets and the Psalms must be fulfilled.” [45] Then he opened their minds to understand the Scriptures, [46] and said to them, “Thus it is written, that the Christ should suffer and on the third day rise from the dead, [47] and that repentance for the forgiveness of sins should be proclaimed in his name to all nations, beginning from Jerusalem. [48] You are witnesses of these things. [49] And behold, I am sending the promise of my Father upon you. But stay in the city until you are clothed with power from on high.” (ESV)

As I prepared for this past Sunday’s message on Witnessing as a characteristic of our congregation, I thought about Like 24:44-49 multiple times. These verses contain Luke’s version of Jesus’s final words to his disciples before he ascended into Heaven. Several things in these verses stick out to me. 

First, Luke 24:45 says, “Then he (Jesus) opened their (the disciples) minds to understand the Scriptures.” Jesus had to open the minds of the disciples before they could understand that the Scriptures were all about him. Think about that for a moment. 

You and I often ask why the disciples didn’t understand what Jesus’s teaching meant nor what he had come to do. He was so clear, we say. But this verse tells us that their minds were closed to the real meaning of Jesus’s life, death, resurrection and mission. It had to be revealed to them and their minds had to be opened. This is why you and I understand it more clearly than they did. Our minds have been opened by the Holy Spirit. It’s also why so many people we know and love, some of whom are incredibly intelligent, don’t get it. Their minds are closed by the god of this world (2 Cor. 4:4) and must be opened before they will ever come to know Christ and trust in him. We must pray for them. 

Next, verses 46-48 teach us that the gospel of Jesus centers on his death and resurrection and demands faith in him and repentance for the forgiveness of sins. Faith and repentance are the only acceptable responses to God’s grace and love for us in the death and the resurrection of Jesus. Nothing else will please God. He only accepts our faith and repentance. 

Finally, verse 48 says that the disciples were to be witnesses of the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus as well as the blessed forgiveness that came to them through faith and repentance. Jesus assumed that they would testify to the gospel. Plain and simple. The same is true for us. There’s no other appropriate way for us to live if we’ve been transformed by grace. There is no biblical understanding of a Christian who does not publicly witness to the resurrection of Christ and the joy of being forgiven of our sins through faith and repentance. We are witnesses for Jesus by definition. It’s that simple. 

The questions really are: 1. Are we being faithful to our DNA as Christians by witnessing to the glory of our God? and, 2. Do our lives present a good witness to the life, death, and resurrection of Christ or a bad one? 

Let’s pray for one another as we seek to be good witnesses for Christ. Let’s also pray that our God will be pleased to open the eyes of our loved ones so that they will see him as he is and repent from their sins while trusting Christ. 
 

Our family travelled to Atlanta to visit my wife’s family on the day after Christmas. One of their family traditions is that they all work a jigsaw puzzle together. It is usually 750- or 1000-piece puzzle. My sister-in-law tapes the box lid to wall in front of the table on which she scatters all the pieces. Everybody works the puzzle over the course of a couple days until it is finished. 

This year I thought about how appropriate that tradition is when thinking about the arrival of the kingdom of peace we celebrate every Christmas. In the Bible, peace is defined most often as wholeness or completeness. I cannot think of a better illustration of biblical peace than a jigsaw puzzle. 

As you know, the goal of working a puzzle is to put it together so that you have a finished picture. You also know that the puzzle begins as a picture and then is cut up into small pieces. Each fragment is a part of the whole, but they are all mixed up. And the best puzzle workers have a system for organizing those pieces and putting them back together. 

Think about this with the reference to the human life in the context of the Bible’s story, if you will. The first humans were created good without fragmentation or defect. They were like the original picture of my sister-in-law’s puzzle before it was cut up. Over time, the first humans lost their original goodness by rebelling against their Creator, which led to the fragmentation of their lives as they sought to reclaim their initial goodness. Unfortunately, they couldn’t do it, no matter how hard they tried. All their efforts were for naught and led to more and more fragmentation. The same has been true for all of us since. We live fragmented lives while living in a fractured society. 

This is what makes the Bible’s promise of peace so hopeful. God, by his grace, has collected, organized, and begun putting the pieces of our lives back together. He will complete this work at the end of time. So, we experience peace now through faith in Jesus as he puts the pieces of our lives back together. Day by day, he completes more of our puzzle, giving us a greater sense of peace.

One of the best effects of increased peace in our lives is that it makes us want to see other people enjoy the same sense of wholeness that we have. Therefore, we try to be those people whom God uses to help put the pieces together of the lives of our friends and family. As we do it, we will find that our society is more whole as well. And isn’t that what we want for ourselves and our society? 

**This post originally appeared in the Wednesday, March 2, 2022 edition of The Chester News and Reporter of Chester, SC.

Tina Turner famously asked, “What’s love got to do with it?” The answer is: everything. 

Love, along with faith and hope, is essential for a society to function properly because love governs the interactions that people have with one another. And that’s by design. The Bible says that God created us to love him and to love one another. We’ll never experience harmony as a people until we learn to learn to love each other. 

This love, however, is not defined by our feelings. Rather, it is a decision of our will. Your experiences prove this point. Think about your closest friend for a moment. 

Have there been times when you couldn’t get enough of each other? Times when you shared your deepest concerns in life? Of course, there have. Have there also been times when you just didn’t like your friend very much? Times when they got on your last nerve? Times when they hurt your feelings or broke your confidence? Absolutely. But did you love them more when times were great than when times were hard? Or did you love them less when times were hard? No. Why? Because they are your closest friend and you have decided that you love them regardless of your emotions in any one moment of your friendship. 

God’s ideal of love is for us all to have that kind of love for everyone – our friends and our enemies. You may have heard it said that we don’t have to “like” every person, but we’re called to “love” them all. This is because God loves us in this way. His love for us does not come and go; it’s constant. It is not wearied by our sins, our struggles, or our indifference toward him. In fact, it is the opposite in its relentless pursuit of a right relationship with each of us. 

Imitating our Creator, then, our love should result in action. Again, this makes sense. If we willfully decide to love other people, then our love for them will show up in the way we treat them. This means at least two things for our daily lives. First, we will be more patient with, and kinder to, everyone since our love for others is not tied to whether we “like” them or not. Second, we will do more good things for other people. Love is like your savings account. The more you do loving things for others, the more the interest on those loving actions compounds giving you a larger capacity to love. And the more your capacity to love grows, the more love you have in your balance to share with other people. 

So, you see, that love has everything to do with every aspect of our lives. It defines our relationships with ourselves, our families, our community, and God himself. We can’t function without love. Let’s decide to love and be kind to one another and trust that we, and our world, will be better because of it as we all grow into more loving people. 

**This post originally appeared in the Wednesday, December 8 edition of The Chester News and Reporter. I’m thankful that editor Travis Jenkins affords me the opportunity to write openly about the Christian faith.

It’s been a couple of months since I wrote a column, so I thought I’d start back with the first of a series of articles on what the Bible calls the “Fruit of the Spirit.” In Galatians 5:22-23, the Apostle Paul lists nine virtues that should define all good and upright people’s lives. They are love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. 

Merriam-Webster’s dictionary defines virtue as “a particular moral excellence,” which is an academic way of saying that a virtue is a standard by which we determine good and acceptable behavior. We use virtue to govern our own personal lives as well as that of our community. We have personal standards that we set for ourselves, and we have collectively agreed upon norms for the way interact with one another. Both are necessary for a healthy society. 

Author C.S. Lewis used an example of a fleet of ships sailing in formation to explain the importance of virtue and moral rules “for running the human machine.” He wrote: 

“The voyage will be a success only, in the first place, if the ships do not collide and get in one another’s way; and secondly, if each ship is seaworthy and has her engines in good order…You cannot have either of these two things without the other. If the ships keep on having collisions, they will not remain seaworthy very long. On the other hand, if their steering gears are out of order, they will not be able to avoid collisions.” 

In short, Lewis’s argument is simple. For human society to function properly, we all must be concerned with the general purpose of human life, the way we are to live in harmony with one another, and the presence of consistent behavior within each of us individually. If any of these three is missing long-term, societal collapse is inevitable. 

As a Christian, I am convinced that the Bible gives the most comprehensive and cohesive plan for us to use as we chart the human course. There is a unified purpose for all of us – to glorify our Creator by loving him more than we love anything or anyone else (Matthew 22:37-38). There is an overarching principle that governs our interactions with one another – to love each other as we love ourselves (Matthew 22:39) – as well specific applications of this principle in our daily lives. And there is a path for us to follow to ensure that we keep ourselves in good working order by living morally consistent lives – die to ourselves so that we can live for Jesus (Matthew 16:24-25). 

I plan to discuss this plan in more detail in the coming weeks by highlighting the nine virtues of Galatians 5:22-23. Until then, let me ask you a question. If the God of the Bible created the world and us in good, shouldn’t we, at least, consider applying his wisdom to our personal and collective lives? 

One of my favorite Bible stories is when Jesus healed a blind man in John 9. In it, Jesus and his disciples walked by a man who had been blind from birth. The disciples asked Jesus an important question for their day in age — “Teacher, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?” Jesus answered with, “It was not that this man sinned, or his parents, but that the works of God might be displayed in him.” 

After this interaction, Jesus made some mud with his saliva, put in on the blind man’s eyes, and told him to go wash it off in a nearby pool. The man did as Jesus had told him. When he came out of the water, he could see for the first time in his life!

It’s a wonderful story of healing, of the power of the God of the Bible, of the love and grace of Jesus, and of the fullness of life being restored. It’s also a beautiful story God’s willingness to employ his creative genius to provide a solution to an impossible problem. 

You may be wondering how a story about Jesus healing a blind man is a story about the God’s ability to solve insurmountable problems creatively. If you are, you are asking a great question. Historic and biblically based Christian teaching answers that question for us in two ways. 

First, it tells us that Jesus is God in the flesh, meaning that he is both God and man – 100% God and 100% man – in the same person. He’s unique. There was no one like him before him and there will never be anyone like him again. Therefore, when Jesus fixes a problem, God fixes it. 

Second, biblical teaching is clear that God created all that there is. Genesis, the first book of the Bible, begins with the statement, “In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth.” John introduced his version of Jesus’s life story with a similar proclamation, “All things were made through him, and without him was not any thing made that was made.” God is a creator. He is, in fact, the creator of all things. 

So, when Jesus healed the blind man, he created a solution to an impossible problem. There was no hope for the man to receive his sight outside of the miraculous and creative work of Jesus. This is what Jesus does. He graciously fixes the world’s problems in his power to recreate all things in the same way he created them at the beginning. He does it in your life, and he does it in my life. The challenge for us is to trust him enough to allow him to do it. If we do, we will see the works of God displayed in us.  

** This post originally appeared in the Wednesday, March 3 edition of The Chester News and Reporter of Chester, SC.

In his first post of the new year on the seventeen82.com blog titled, “Growing as a Christian,” Pastor James McManus wrote about the importance of growing in the grace and knowledge of the Lord Jesus Christ from 2 Peter 3. His post encouraged my heart and I trust that it will encourage yours should you read it. 

If you will allow it, I would like to jump on the James Train in this post and draw our attention to the beginning thirteen verses of 2 Peter 3 where Peter gives us a three-fold philosophy for living faithful lives in light of the impending return of Christ.

Let me set the stage. 

By the time we get to the beginning of 2 Peter 3, the Apostle has written (for the better part of two letters) to a group of congregations full of Christians and Christian families who have been “grieved by various trials” (1 Peter 1:6). They were marginalized by their society, led astray by religious leaders they trusted, and exiled from their families for their commitment to the Lord Jesus Christ. They were in a tight spot. 

Knowing this (because he, himself, faced persecution in Rome), Peter sought to stir up their “sincere minds by way of reminder” (2 Peter 3:1). He reminded them first of the words and “predictions of the holy prophets” as well as “the commandments of the Lord and Savior through their apostles” (2 Peter 3:2), for they spoke God’s inspired word (2 Peter 1:21). He reminded them second that the prophets and apostles predicted that scoffers and false teachers would rise up in the last days following their own sinful desires and would try to convince others to follow them in their pursuit of godlessness (2 Peter 2:1-3; 3:3). He reminded them lastly that their only hope rests in the Lord Jesus Christ and his gospel as it is revealed to them in the words of the apostles and prophets. 

After stoking the fire of their memories, Peter focused on one particular promise they found in the Scriptures — Christ Jesus will return. 

Central to understanding Peter’s message to his beloved congregations is the concept of the last days. For him, the last days is the time between Jesus’s ascension into Heaven and his subsequent return when he will completely establish his eternal kingdom after the heavens and the earth have been made new. This means that the present era has a beginning (the Day of Pentecost) and an end (Christ’s return), and the Holy Spirit is God’s guarantee (Eph. 1:13-14) that it will all come to be as he testifies to our spirits of the reality of Christ’s life, death, resurrection, ascension, and eventual return. Specifically in 2 Peter 3, Peter grounds his confidence in Christ’s return in the fact that Jesus came, lived, died, rose, and ascended in the exact way the prophets had predicted. Therefore, he and his readers could be certain that the predictions of Christ’s return would in fact come true in due time. 

Armed with this faith-filled confidence, they could withstand the pressure of the scoffers and endure the hardships they faced from their persecutors. All they had to do was to wait patiently on the Lord to fulfill his promises, trust him with their lives, and prepare themselves to welcome him and his eternal kingdom. 

Now, at first sight this instruction from Peter appears too ethereal, but it is imminently practical. Patiently waiting on the Lord’s return gives purpose, meaning, and direction to our lives. If we know that there is a definite end with reward for those who remain faithful to Christ and punishment for those who do not, then the decisions we make and the actions we take are eternally consequential for us. The conviction that Christ will return shapes our lives as we prepare ourselves for his return, a return that will come like a thief in the night (2 Peter 3:10). Because of this reality, waiting patiently on the Lord, trusting him with our lives, and preparing ourselves for his return are the most practical things to which followers of Christ can devote themselves. 

As I conclude, I will draw your attention back to the opening paragraphs of this post where I said that Peter gives us a three-fold philosophy for living lives of faith in light of Christ’s return. Here is that philosophy, and I commend it to you.

1. Remember the words and promises of God found in the Scriptures (2 Peter 3:1-2).
2. Wait patiently on Christ’s return for it is sure to come in the Lord’s perfect time (2 Peter 3:8-10).
3. Prepare yourselves for Christ’s return because it is imminent and could come at any moment (2 Peter 3:11-13). 

May God bless you richly in his grace as you pursue him and elevate others to his glory as you wait for his certain return. 

My beloved NC State Wolfpack beat Wake Forest Saturday night in thrilling fashion. After the game, running back Ricky Person, Jr said, regarding his breakout performance, “I’m speechless, honestly. I’ve battled through a lot of injuries throughout my career. I just kept faith in God, my teammates encouraged me on a daily basis, everyone. It was a long time coming for this moment…”

In a similar vein, Sunday’s winner of the 2020 US Open Golf tournament, Bryson DeChambeau, recently explained his belief in his new training regimen which was designed to drastically increase his body mass in an interview published in Golf Digest.

Based on their words, both of these athletes properly understand the concept of faith. They both know that faith, by definition, always has an object. It is “in” something or someone. Person stated it directly Saturday night when he said that he “kept faith in God.” His faith is in God. It wasn’t his faith alone that carried him through the obstacles. It wasn’t his faith alone that overcame the injuries to his hamstring and Achilles tendon. It was God that did it. His faith attached him to God and enabled him to rest in God’s strength while working tirelessly to get back to the playing field. The same is true for DeChambeau, except his faith wasn’t in God but in his process and training. 

The Bible talks about faith in the exact same way. Biblical faith is grounded firmly in the Lord Jesus Christ, who famously told Martha, at the tomb of her brother Lazarus, “I am the resurrection and the life, whoever believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live, and everyone who lives and believes in me shall never die” (John 11:25-26). He gave her hope in the midst of her grief. Later, the Apostle Paul claimed the same hope for himself through faith as he testified that he lived his life “by faith in the Son of God” (Galatians 2:20) 

In both of these instances, faith was the conduit through which God’s power and hope ran to the individuals. Let me use an example to explain. 

You have power at your house. You use it all the time. You heat water with it. You cook with it. You wash clothes with it. You turn lights on at night with it. You watch TV with it. You surf the internet because of it. You also know that the lines that bring that power to your house are not the power source. It comes from somewhere else. 

The same is true for faith. Faith functions as the power lines do in that it is the way you and I receive the power, hope, blessing, grace, and mercy of God in our lives. God is the source of all things and he gives them to us by faith. 

So, let me encourage you to exercise your faith in the good and gracious God of the Bible so you may receive his life and his power each and every day. 

This post originally appeared in the Wednesday, September 23, 2020 edition of the Chester News and Reporter of Chester, SC.

During a recent interview, Georgia Bulldog great Herschel Walker described his morning workout. It is simply amazing! Get this. 

Every morning Herschel does between 1500 and 2000 pushups, between 3500 and 5000 sit ups, and over 500 dips. 

What? Are you kidding me? That’s simply an unbelievable workout regimen. 

The crazy thing is that this has been Herschel’s normal workout routine for years. It has become part of his identity. It has helped train his mindset, enabling him to achieve great things on the football field and in life. 

The best part of Herschel’s interview, though, was when he made the following statement: “The problem with most people I talk to is that they are not willing to put in the necessary work to be better people.” I could not agree more. 

When I think about my own life, I see this reality and you probably do as well. We want to be better people. We want to be better parents and grandparents. We want to be better employees and employers. We want to be better citizens. And, if you are a Christian, you want to be a better Christian. All of this takes work. 

Paul directed the Christians in the Roman colony of Philippi to work out their salvation with fear and trembling (Phil. 2:12). Being a faithful Christian – a faithful follower of Jesus – takes work. But, God has given us everything we need in order to be faithful to him. Paul goes on to say that “it is God who works in you, both to will and to work for his good pleasure” (Phil. 2:13).  

This means that God not only commands us to do good deeds that bring him glory while working out our salvation, he gives us what we need to do it! Through his Spirit and in his grace, he gives us the desire as well as the ability to be more faithful men and women. 

Paul had a specific good work in mind when he wrote these verses as well. Philippians 2:14 reads, “Do all things without grumbling or disputing.” Paul’s intent here was to show the difference between a life of quiet endurance and one of discontented grumbling. Continual complaining and disputing stunts spiritual and personal growth as it focuses on the problems we face, our limitations, and our discomforts instead of the solutions. Paul is clear that our focus should always be on the solution because our eyes are locked on the target of our faith, the Lord God himself who has the power to do anything. 

So, don’t walk around grumbling about everything that isn’t going your way. Don’t start an argument with everybody about everything. Don’t be afraid to put in the work to be better. Don’t quit when you confront adversity. Stay strong in your faith and let your light shine before all men and women remembering that God is always with you and strengthening you. 

**This article originally appeared in the August 12, 2020 edition of the Chester News and Reporter in Chester, SC.

One of the popular movements of the 60’s and 70’s was to be more environmentally minded. “We need to save mother nature!” was the cry. Protests, rallies, and concerts joined the chorus. Nature must be preserved. Today, this movement has become political. Various candidates all proposing different plans to save the earth and to protect our world. Often, the most vehement defenders of nature have drastically conflicting world views from Christians. What should a Christian think about all of this? Should we be conservationally minded? Does the bible have anything to say about this topic? All of these are important questions.

Throughout Scripture, we find numerous references to God’s creation. From the very beginning, God places the stars and planets in the sky, the trees and flowers on the earth, the mountains and hills rising against the skyline, and the waves crashing on the shore. Time and again, the Scriptures talk about God’s creation and how it all brings glory to Him. In Psalm 8, David says of the creation, “When I look at your heavens, the work of your fingers, the moon and the stars, which you have set in place, what is man that you are mindful of him, and the son of man that you care for him?” Or, in Psalm 19, “The heavens declare the glory of God, and the sky above proclaims his handiwork.” In Romans 1, the Apostle Paul says that all men know of God because He is made known through His creation. 

Christian author and apologist, C.S. Lewis explained that the creation is like a mirror. When someone looks at a beautiful flower or an intricate spiders web, they are seeing a mere reflection of God’s greater beauty and intricacy. All of creation serves this same purpose – namely, to reflect God’s attributes and to bring Him glory. In this way, every single piece of nature is significant. 

What should we take away from all of this? First, we, as Christians, should care about nature. We should desire the preservation and protection of the trees and plants. We care about them because they ultimately point us (and all who see them) back to the one who made them. Second, we should use nature as a talking point. John 1 tells us that Christ is the one who made all things. The next time you see a beautiful flower, you have a reason to talk about Jesus! Finally, take time during your day to enjoy God’s creation. Look at flowers, marvel at the work of the tiny ants, or even go and hug a tree. God made it all, so enjoy it, and praise Him for it!

** Post was written by Ethan McConnell, Pastoral Intern of Chester ARP Church

It’s summertime and that means that many of us are using our grills regularly to cook food for our family and friends. There’s not much better than a hot, juicy cheeseburger grilled to perfection, is there? 

In his cookbook, Boy Meets Grill, celebrity chef Bobby Flay defined grilling as a means of “cooking food quickly over a very hot fire,” which gives the food a “seared, flavorful crust and a juicy interior.” That’s what makes it so good! 

In many ways, I think our contemporary society can be defined as a grilling culture, and it’s not just because of the fun, the casual fellowship, and the relaxation that comes from gathering around the grill. It’s because we love things to come at us hot and fast. It suits our appetite. 

We want our internet instantly, with its movies on demand and our news in small, manageable, fast-paced portions. We want immediate economic and political solutions to our greatest problems. We want systems changed overnight. We want educational options and medical advancements without delay. 

This is all well and good until we confront the absolute impossibilities of our demands. It takes time to develop vaccines and effective treatments for unknown viruses. It takes time to recover from severe economic recessions. It takes time to create acceptable options from which parents, children, and educators can choose their preferred method of education. It takes time to address our greatest social dilemmas. 

God knew this as he inspired the Apostle Paul to write, “Put on…compassionate hearts, kindness, meekness, and patience, bearing with one another…forgiving each other; as the Lord has forgiven you…” (Colossians 3:12-13). This brief instruction challenges us to be kind, compassionate, meek, patient, and forgiving. Every one of these qualities is necessary for the development, maintenance, and growth of a good and profitable society. That really doesn’t need any further explanation, does it? It is self-evident.

As I conclude, I’ll revisit the introduction of Bobby Flay’s cookbook where he made the distinction between grilling and barbequing. Barbecuing, he wrote, “is slow cooking over a low flame and is suitable for less tender food.” The low heat over a long time breaks down the connective tissue and makes the tough meat delicate and delicious!

Friends, most of our personal and societal problems aren’t tender and suitable for grilling. They’re tough, and they would be far better smoked. And, smoking takes patience. So, let us put on compassion, kindness, meekness, and patience as we bear one another’s burdens, working together to make this world a better place. 

** The above article originally appeared in the Wednesday, July 29, 2020 edition of the The Chester News and Reporter.

From the beginning of March, we have been living in a continual crisis with the COVID-19 pandemic and the effects of social distancing policies. All of our students missed out on the last three months of their school year while our graduating seniors missed out on many of the rites of passage that they had anticipated over the last 3-4 years. And, the events of the last two weeks with the death of George Floyd and it’s repercussions have increased our senses of uncertainty, confusion, and frustration. Each of these realities would have been challenging in and of themselves, but when combined they have created a cultural pressure cooker, which has caused me to consider the proper attitude to possess while dealing with crises. 

As a Christian, my first inclination was to study the life of Jesus to examine how he dealt with crises. When I did, I found six attitudes in his life that I think we would do well to adopt when we face our own crises or walk with others through them. Here they are. 

• Be Prayerful – Jesus was prayerful at all times. He never did anything without consulting his Heavenly Father. He knew that prayer always gets the attention of the God who can actually do something about the situation. 
• Be Willing to Listen and Learn – When Jesus encountered someone in crisis, he always took the time to listen to the person and learn about what was really going on in the person’s situation. He didn’t make assumptions. 
• Be Compassionate – Jesus always felt the person’s pain and sought to do something to help alleviate it. That is what makes compassion such a special quality. It motivates us to do something to alleviate the burdens of other people. 
• Be Gracious – Jesus embodied grace. He always treated folks with grace and dignity, often giving them what they didn’t deserve. He simply responded to their pain. 
• Be Righteous – Jesus never did anything that was not right. He was perfect. He did not use the situation to justify actions that did not meet God’s holy standard. No amount of pain or frustration absolves us of the responsibility to do and think what is right. 
• Be Wise – Jesus embodied wisdom as he always properly applied the truth to daily life. He never misapplied it. 

I’m convinced that a prayerful, listening, compassionate, gracious, righteous, and wise person is well suited to confront the challenges that this world presents. Attitude matters. It determines how we respond, the words we say, and the character we exhibit throughout our lives. Let us follow Jesus’s lead while walking through these current crises as well as those that are sure to come throughout the balance of our lives. 

This post was originally written for the Wednesday, June 10 edition of the Chester News and Reporter in Chester, SC.