Whirled Views with Dan Burrell

Over the years, the Lord has allowed some very special people to call me “Pastor”.  One of my all-time favorites was Andrew Clingenpeel.  Andrew was a intellectually-challenged teenager at Northside Baptist in Charlotte when I was the pastor there.  I tried not to ever start a service without going up and spending a little bit of time with Andrew.  His older brother and parents are dear friends to this date.

Recently, I found out that Andrew has been approved to get a companion dog through a private foundation that assists physically and intellectually challenged people.  Those who have worked with those with special needs know that these animals are not merely pets, but are important companions who meet important needs and offer assistance in their lives.

The dog is donated by the foundation, but there are expenses for travel, training, missing work, etc… that need to be covered.  About $2,000 worth.  I didn’t even need to think about giving when I heard about the need and immediately went to the website and gave what I could.  I would like to encourage you to read a little about Andrew and if possible help him out so he can get his dog.  I know times are tough and money is tight — I’m living it right now myself.  But $20,$30, or $50 or more would make a real difference in the life of one fine young man and it an opportunity to put our faith and values into practice.

Find out more about Andrew and his need right by clicking this link: Andrew’s Dog

I’ve added a new recommendation on my blogroll — Urban Missional – is a blog by Stephen Davis.  Dr. Davis is a professor, writer, pastor and is now planting a church in Philadelphia.  He’s got an amazing testimony that embodies God’s sovereign grace and his calling is one that is greatly needed in our country.  Urban areas will never change without the Gospel.  Go by and check out his new blog and list it on your favorites.

For some time now, I’ve mulled starting a new “Whirled Views” feature that highlights some young (and some ‘not-so-young’) friends of mine who are in the ministry.  I have two categories that I want to highlight.

There are some amazing servants and leaders with whom I’ve crossed paths over the years who have added something to my life, my thinking, my ‘world view’ or simply have been an encouragement when I needed it.  Many of these have been peers and others have been mentors.  Some have been on my staff and others have simply being acquaintances with whom I’ve spent a few hours, but in those hours they touched my life.  Some weeks, I want to introduce you to them with the idea that you might connect with them sometime or simply as my way of acknowledging the blessing that they have been to me.

The other category will include young people (some of them are no longer “young”, except in relation to me) who were in my church, in my classroom or in some other way crossed my path when they were children or teens and who are now serving the Lord around the world.  These young leaders represent to me, the most important facet of my ministry on a very personal level.  Whether due to one-on-one time with them or simply from a distance, the Lord gave me an opportunity to see them mature, put my 2 cents worth in to their life from time-to-time and be a part of their preparation for spiritual leadership on some level.

I’ll begin by introducing you to someone who is already in heaven but who had an impact on me that remains significant to this day.

I became a senior pastor at the tender age of 29.  I never expected to be a pastor, quite frankly.  At the time of my transition, I was a school headmaster who taught a fairly large young married class in our church.  When our senior pastor announced that he was leaving to take a high-profile church in Southern California, a rapid, 3-week series of events occurred which completed with my selection to be the next senior pastor of Berean Baptist Church in West Palm Beach.

To say I was “in over my head” from the first day was an under-statement.  How those dear folks put up with me those first few years of my pastorate is a mystery to me.  I was just coming out of crippling legalism, was so young and inexperienced and we were facing some fairly substantial issues within the church that would have been terrifying if I had possessed good sense at the time.  At the same time, the church suddenly exploded with growth.  We went from a couple of hundred to over five hundred in just a matter of a year or two.  We were having to adjust and re-invent ourselves almost constantly.

During this time, I needed someone to listen to me.  Someone older and kinder and gentler and experienced.  We had a guy in our church, Mark Standridge, whose dad was a pastor in Ohio.  His church wasn’t huge, the town was fairly small, few people outside of his area knew of him, but he demonstrated the kind of Godly consistency and balance that I needed in my life.  So the next time he was in town, we went to breakfast together at Bageland in Royal Palm Beach.

His name was James (Jim) Standridge.  A godly, consistent guy who loved God and loved people.  If I remember correctly, He pastored Cook Road Baptist Church in Mansfield, Ohio.  (If that’s not correct, someone please let me know.) We made a connection the first time we met and he promised me that we could meet anytime he was in town just to “talk”.  He’d listen to me vent and rail and patiently answered my questions and would wisely challenge some of my flawed thinking.  He had suffered from cancer, but seemed to be doing well, when it re-occurred.  I don’t remember how many times we ended up meeting, I just remember how much I appreciated that he would take a young pup like me under his wing and let me be “real” with him for an hour or two every so often.   His son, Mark, was so gracious to let me have a morning with him often when he was in town and I know that any time he had with his dad was precious — so this was no small sacrifice for him.

The Lord finally called Pastor Standridge home.  I have always felt like it was appropriate to honor God’s elders when they transition from mortality to immortality and so I decided to go to the funeral.  I did not realize it would be a life-changing experience for me.

To my surprise, when I arrived there, the family asked me to say a few words and pray at the funeral.  I was so honored and never anticipated that I would be invited to do so.  I ended up sitting on the platform during the service.  As the service began, something unusual occurred.  A line of men — young and not-so-young began streaming down the aisle where they each paused for a moment at the casket.  They then proceeded onto the platform and took seats in the choir loft.  Man after man after man, made their way in this final march of respect.  Some wept.  Others smiled.  Many had traveled a distance to be there.  Soon, the loft was filled to over-flowing.

What did these men have in common?  They had all been under Pastor Standridge’s leadership over the years.  He was their pastor, their mentor, their friend.  I’m not sure how many were there, but those that were there represented many others who could not be there due to distance and schedule.  As the service began, it was explained that these men were in the ministry because of how the Lord has used Pastor Jim Standridge over the years.

I was moved beyond words.  Small town pastor. No books had his name on their binding to my knowledge.  He wasn’t famous nor infamous.  Just a faithful, quiet, loyal, diligent pastor.  But the fruit that he had left behind among these men, some of whom he had personally lead to the Lord, was myriad and if we were to be honest, was far more substantial that some “celebrity” preachers I’ve known.

I know for a fact that Pastor Standridge had gone through some very tough times as a pastor.  He had known betrayal and heartbreak.  He had been hurt and challenged.  But during this hour, we remembered that God loves to use regular people to do amazing things for His glory.

As the funeral unfolded, I asked God that someday, when it would be me laying in a box at some church or funeral home somewhere, that I might have a few people that had crossed my path that might say, “He made a difference in my life as He followed Christ.”  From that day to this, I’ve tried to take time to mentor or encourage or in some small way challenge young servants to give their best to the Lord with consistency and faithfulness.

I’m not sure at this point that anyone will remember me in the way that Jim Standridge was remembered and that really doesn’t matter to me anymore.  What does matter to me is the joy that I feel when I see the Lord call young people out of the churches or classrooms where I’ve ministered and to use them in some pretty incredible ways.  To have a few moments in their lives in which I can interact or challenge or encourage them is one of the most rewarding parts of my life in ministry.

I’m so grateful for Jim Standridge that he was to me in life and in death and even now in eternity.  He thoroughly “sharpened by iron” over and over again.  On Fridays in the future, I want to introduce you to some more of my friends who have done the same to me or with whom the Lord has allowed me to enjoy some time as a friend, pastor or mentor and perhaps by doing so, some of you will commit to making the difference in someone’s life or that you will express appreciation to someone who has done that for you.

As always, feel free to share your stories in the comment section.

My good friend and colleague in the ministry, Dr. Kent Haralson, Pastor of Grace Church in Osceola, Wisconsin has developed an important new resource that I’d like to recommend to the readers of “Whirled Views”.   Kent was on our pastoral team when I was the Senior Pastor at Berean Baptist Church (now Grace Fellowship) in West Palm Beach, FL during the 1980’s and 90’s.  He has since had successful pastorates in Montana and Wisconsin.

For several years, Kent has been teaching a class at his churches entitled “Rules of Bible study.” Over the years that study  has grown to include 26 basic rules that will enable one to “rightly divide the word of truth” and greatly enhance their ability to study the word. One of the last times he taught this class, he taped it and have now has professionally produced his six-hour lecture on three DVD’s.

There is also a 27-page student workbook that goes with the DVD series.  His church is now making that DVD series available to others for $25.

All proceeds for the sale of this DVD are put right back into their church budget. Let me encourage you to consider adding this resource to the tool bag that your church offers or your own personal library.

If you would rather not go through the hassle of cutting a check, you can pay for the materials using PayPal (his account is doc_haralson@centurytel.net).  Below you can find an abbreviated list of the 26 rules (although there is much more on the DVD and which also gives several examples for each rule) to whet your appetite.

If you want to mail a check or request more information, you can contact Kent at:

Dr. Kent Haralson
Grace Church
722 Seminole Ave.
Osceola, WI 54020

You can also locate information on this DVD and other books and DVD’s at their church website under the “resources” button at  www.gracechurchosceola.com

 The Rules of Bible Study

1. Before you ask what a verse means, determine the context.                                                           
2. The Bible is written to three groups of people: Jews, Gentiles, and the Church.                          
3. The Bible has proper divisions, and you must put those divisions in the right place.                     
4. All scripture has three applications - doctrinal, historical and inspirational.                                   
5. God chooses the exact words he wants to use and the events recorded to show you something.
6. God has three distinct plans revealed in his word. He has a plan for the universe, for the earth and for your life.
7. The invisible things of God can be seen by studying the things God made.                               
8. The Bible is of no private interpretation. All “interpretations” must be done by comparing scripture with scripture.
9. The individual words of the Bible are the key to the Bible.                                                            
10.  Always give the Bible the benefit of the doubt.                                                                         
11.  Never forget the consistency of the Bible.                                                                                 
12.  Remember the law of first mention.                                                                                           
13.  Always take a passage literally until it is impossible to take it literally.                                        
14.  Always be prepared to change whatever you have been taught or you have believed when it goes contrary to the Bible. Never make the Bible line up with what you believe. Always line yourself up to what the Bible says.
15.  Numbers are a major key in the Bible.                                                          
16.  Never violate a clear passage when trying to understand an obscure passage.   
17.  Never base a doctrine on a question.                                                               
18.  Never base a doctrine on one verse or passage.                                                                                  
19.  Pay attention to the “warnings” in the Bible.                                                                                          
20.  Allegorical truths are of secondary importance.                                                                        
21.  Let the Bible interpret its own symbols.                                                                                     
22.  The survey principle - We must see the whole before becoming too immersed in its parts.        
23.  Things that differ - we must make a difference where God makes a difference.                         
24.  Interpret prophecies relative to the four Great Mountain Peaks of fulfillment.                            
25.  The law of further mention - God has revealed truth progressively.                                            
26.  Be sensitive to literary style
    

In recent days, news outlets have been buzzing with the story of a six-year old Detroit girl who was kicked off her cheerleading squad when her parents protested the use of a cheer that involved words like “tight skirt” and “booty” and involved some gyrations, chanting and dancing that are wholly unwholesome for a six-year-old to be performing (and anyone else for that matter to my admittedly puritanical perspective.)  Now the family in question is touring the morning news shoes, talk circuit, etc… as they enjoy their 15-minutes of fame.

As the over-arching theme, I think it is a good topic to be discussed.  Over my lifetime, I’ve seen cheerleading move away from being a “spirit” exercise to a cross between a burlesque show and a Vegas-style chorus line in many cases.  I had some discussions at the last Christian school where I worked with key leaders about the amount of skin that was shown and the inappropriate dancing that was being performed to music that was equally inappropriate by the cheerleading squad before I was “shown the door” for, among other things, being too pushy about integrating a truly Biblical worldview into an institution which had lost its way in many areas.

It is mind-boggling to me to see parents, coaches, dance intructors and fashion designers continue to be part of the sexualizing of these little girls.   Heavy make-up, micro-mini skirts, hip-thrusting dance moves, saucy phrases that are crude to the point of vulgarity and the general push to make these little waifs look and act like sexually maturing adolescents is a sad commentary on our culture and in my opinion, tantamount to child abuse.  Why ANY thinking man would allow ANY ONE else to influence their daughter to be trained and sexualized this way defies comprehension.  It’s time for some real men to step up and say, “Not with my daughter, you won’t!”.  But that’s another rant.

But there’s a secondary issue here.  No sooner had the stupid decision been made to dismiss the girl with discerning parents off the squad, there has been talk of lawsuits, protests, etc…  Make no mistake — it was a cruel, heartless and unnecessary decision.  She could have been permitted to sit on the sidelines during the offensive cheer, they could have adjusted the cheer to a more appropriate presentation or any one of several other rational compromises.  But obviously there is a mentality there that thinks it is wise and positive to have their little girls act as slutty as they want them to be.  (You can bet, that most little girls didn’t start off the season pushing their sponsor and parents to act like strippers — someone has an agenda that is being pushed.)

But let’s make something clear — taking a stand will often require you to pay a price and that’s a good thing.  Dead leaves and dead fish go with the flow.  Taking a stand causes ripples and waves.  Turn on a light and watch the cockroaches run for the shadows.  Put some salt on ice and watch things start changing.  Taking a stand on matters of propriety, morality, philosophy, ethics, values and conduct is going to exact some sort of price at the hands of those whose values are different than yours.

We should expect nothing less.

Years ago, my oldest son (now 22, but around 10-11 at the time) was on a city baseball league that made it to the playoffs.  He was a pitcher and was scheduled to pitch one of the playoff games.  The problem was that the game was scheduled for 10:00 on Sunday morning.  At 10:00 on Sunday mornings, our family is in church.  Everyone on the team knew that we didn’t miss Wednesday nights or Sunday services for baseball.  Thus, he got there late and was a relief pitcher instead.  Now a decade plus later, I have no recollection whether or not we won the game, but we do still talk about taking a stand for our priorities as a family.  We had told the coach that the first day of practice.  Sometimes we’d come to a game right after church as it was a few innings old and sometimes we left a game a few innings early to get to church, but it was church first, baseball second.  We didn’t ask for special consideration, we didn’t start a petition drive to change the game times, we didn’t gripe when it meant that he didn’t get to play as much.  It was just the price of having priorities that were important to our family.

(I often wonder if all the professing Christians in the country had a priority scale that placed spiritual matters before athletic events, if sports leagues would not be forced to take that into consideration when scheduling games.  I’m old enough to remember when they didn’t give homework on Wednesday nights so as not to interfere with Wednesday night church services and this was in PUBLIC SCHOOLS.)

Part of bearing the “shame” of the cross is to pay the price with patience that doing right costs us.  I have no idea whether or not the family in question is a religious family and I half-way expect that if they were, this would not be garnering nearly the attention as they would be dismissed as some sort of zealot kooks.

For years, I’ve watched Orthodox Jews refuse certain foods and walk rather than drive to places on the Sabbath without complaint because of their beliefs.  I’ve seen Muslims stop and drop on their prayer rugs in the middle of airports during their pre-appointed pray times.  I recall Jehovah Witnesses not participating in Christmas parties at public schools and Seventh Day Adventists not being able to play ball games on Saturday because of their religion.

So my question for evangelical believers today is “When was the last time you paid a price for taking a stand?”  So many of us seem bent on “blending in” so as not to “turn people off” and as a result — we’ve watered down the change that the Gospel should be having in our lives.  Today, dropping swear words and consuming adult beverages with the boys is considered an act of cultural evangelism as we emphasize relevance over holiness.  Our priorities are such that we adjust our lives around schedules that are filled with vacations, entertainment, recreation, work, athletics, etc… and if it is convenient, we’ll even slip a worship service or a ministry task in there from time to time….but as long as it doesn’t “cost” us too much.  We’ll sit silently while someone defames our Savior’s name with staccato emphasis and yet, some Muslims are quite willing to behead you for drawing a cartoon of Muhammad.    (I’m not suggesting we use violence, but do you think it is wholly inappropriate to request someone to stop staying “Jesus Christ!” as a curse in our presence and then kindly explaining why that name is special to you?  Does the name of “Muhammad” have greater value than “Jesus”?)

If we are to be salt and light in the world, then it might just mean we get turned down for a job (I recently experienced this for the first time — passed over for a job because my resume was “too religious” — something that is illegal, but let’s face it….It happens.)  We might have to turn off our cable in order to tithe or give to missions.  We might not be invited out with the important business associates because we’re not going to play drinking games or hit the local strip club and that may effect our job evaluation.  We might pull our kids out of an assembly or request an exemption from a certain course lecture or even not allow them to attend a certain party or school activity (ie…an amusement park’s “Night of Horrors” — again, an activity at my last Christian school) and get labeled as “one of those” parents.

Right things are seldom easy and easy things are seldom right.

Just some things to ponder as we navigate this interesting culture in which we have called to be ambassadors and in which we are called to be ‘aliens’.

By popular demand….another rant….

I wonder if any one has considered the possible consequences the rapture will have on the Chick-fil-A company.  Just saying.

I got a fresh taste of how much some people loathe Obama when I heard someone say it would be better if Hillary was in the White House.

The wounds I’ve had inflicted on me by Christians have far exceeded in number and severity the wounds I’ve received from those who make no pretense of being believers.

There’s something oddly reassuring about watching the Kentucky Derby every year though I don’t gamble and I never watch another horse race throughout the year.

I really hate that commercial for McDonald’s where the tall self-absorbed, self-centered guy with scraggly hair refuses to speak to anyone until he get his precious coffee.  Grow up, dude.

I also don’t understand how watching some guy paint pictures on his chest and belly is likely to sell medicine.  Very odd.

The view of church varies dramatically depending on what side of the pulpit you find yourself.

The typical Christian school is clueless when it comes to communicating or even recognizing a Biblical Worldview.

I have more respect for an unshakable liberal like the late Ted Kennedy or even Barak Obama than I do for so-called “moderates” like Bart Stupak and Charlie Crist.

I’m frequently shocked by what some people are willing to share on Facebook.  Amused and entertained — but still shocked.

I used to think that TV was a vast wasteland of insipidly shallow and childish drivel.  Today, I know it.

The people who design drinking glasses have apparently never unloaded a dishwasher, otherwise they wouldn’t make the little indentation on the bottom of all their glasses that collects water and splashes everywhere when you are unloading the dishwasher and trying to put them on the shelf.

The Kindle may be the greatest invention thus far this century.

Why is it that I can earn more interest on my money in my sock drawer than I can at the bank and yet, they want to charge me 22% on my credit card bill?

Why are media companies willing to censor any negative portrayal of Mohammed, but always defend any so-called “artist” who wants to trash an image, the name of or the reputation of Jesus Christ?

I think the next time I’m surprised or disgusted about something, I’m going to exclaim or mutter, “Oh Mohammed!” or “Buddha, Mao and Joseph Smith!”.

Fajitas make me fahappy.

I like living in a part of the country that has four distinct seasons, but my very favorite season of all is Football Season.

It’s like the TV networks have basically given up on producing anything worth watching.  YouTube shows far more creativity.

You can judge me if you like, but I enjoy Facebook.

The KFC Double Down “sandwich” is a delectable and naughty treat.  And it will probably kill you faster than cigarettes.

Somebody should probably warn seminary students that many deacons and finance committee members can and will cuss you, fire you and lie about you if given the chance.

The hardest part of teaching seminary students is helping them get through their disappointment with church leadership and politics when they enter the ministry when they really thought the real battles were going to be waged by unbelievers.

I’ve always wondered why some entrepreneur hasn’t made a perfume that smells like pumpkin pie or apple dumplings or even gravy — cause I know those smells always get a guy’s attention.  At least it always gets mine.

You read it here first, I believe that Hillary Clinton will be our next President.  I’ll explain why in a future post.

If you don’t think most evangelicals are gullible and lacking in discernment, bring up “Glenn Beck” sometime and watch them get as flushed as a teenaged girl on her first date.  Or simply say something negative about him — but caution, wear a flack jacket before attempting.

If you don’t follow Jon Acuff on Twitter — you’re missing about a dozen belly laughs a day.  (Here’s the Blog)

By and large, most Americans consider one thing and one thing only when they are voting.  The economy.  Of course, I think that makes most of us political whores.

Frankly, I think for every church we start in this country, we should probably close one.  Or at least quit calling them a “church”.

I’ve found that as a rule, if I go to a church that only has a one-word church name (besides the word “church”), I’m the oldest person in the room.  And for the record, I don’t think it is any more “Biblical” or a sign of “relevancy” to have a church where everyone is younger than forty than it is unbiblical or “irrelevant” to have a church where every one is older than fifty.

There is not one single Republican that is acting like they might be interested in running for President in 2012 that makes me want to get excited about their prospects.  Not one.

I think that Lady GaGa and Prince Poppycock should wear signs that say that they represent the low point of American pop culture.  Are we even remotely capable of producing a Shakespeare or Milton or Bunyan in this generation?  I think not.

I’m very grateful for Dollar Menus at fast food restaurants.  May they always be.

One of these days, I hope someone rediscovers the word “Loyalty” and brushes it off and puts it back in our lexicon.

It’s my personal opinion that Rocheport shoes are the best shoes made.  Does that make me old?  Even if I have Rocheport flipflops?

My nest is 1/2 empty and I’m not loving that.

OK….enough for today.  Maybe it won’t be nearly a year before I do this again.  Feel free to add your rants or perspectives in the comment section.

Because I know quite a few of my readers come from the “fundamentalist” branch of the evangelical tree, I wanted to direct your attention to a very timely article on church planting from Steve Davis — a church planter from the Philadelphia area and an adjunct at CBTS in Lansdale, PA.  Take a look at his thoughts HERE.

A popular “like” page on Facebook is a group that surrounds this statement, “Dear God….please give us back Bob Marley and you can take Justin Bieber.”  Now let me say here, I’m about 35 years too old to have any interest whatsoever in Justin Bieber and his music.  To me, he looks like a cute little baby-faced kid who sings and that’s about it.  Zero personal interest here in anything about him.

But I’ve noticed this — hating on Justin Bieber seems to be a national pastime for some people.  Any comment section after an article on the vocal boy-wonder is filled with vitriol that attacks his talent, questions his sexual orientation, challenges his popularity and wishes all sorts of ill-will upon him and his bazillion fans.  I mean, he’s the Sarah Palin of the music industry — people are so polarized that it is borderline insane.  Good grief, he’s just a kid.  In a few years, there will be another little fresh-faced imp making the tween girls swoon.  Does anyone remember the Hansons?

So….what does this have to do with the Church?  What in the world could the Bieber boy and the Church have in common?

Two words.

Irrational hatred.

Now, I’m  not going to spend any time discussing the gushing river of loathing that comes from the likes of Christopher Hitchens, militant Muslims or the average faculty of an American public university or Ivy League school.  That is to be expected and endured with gracious patience.  That’s part of the scorn of carrying the name of Christ with us and Jesus Himself told us to be be ready for it.  Frankly, that’s no big deal with me.  They rarely make me angry — I just see this as the thrashing reaction to those who would reject Truth and want no authority in their lives but themselves.

What does grow wearisome to me though is the self-loathing I constantly hear from the actual “church” (aka “Family of God) toward the visible church (local, New Testament fellowships).  While the so-called “emergents” sort of made it their mantra, many other folks have taken to bashing the Bride of Christ in an effort to encourage change, distinguish themselves from what they find irrelevant or of no value (both of which might be debatable) and seemingly to ingratiate themselves with those who for a variety of reasons — good and bad — are disenfranchised from churches today.  Thus, I hear, see and read comments like this….

“Church like it’s never been done before.”

“We are not your parent’s church.”

“We are the anti-church.”

“Finally, a church that meets you where you are!”

“If you grew up hating church, then we’re for you.”

“We do church right.” (being interpreted all other churches do it ‘wrong’)
….and so much other drivel.

Frankly, I’ve grown weary of it.

Are churches flawed, have they become bureaucratic and institutional, has there been egregious examples of corruption and hypocrisy, are some so steeped in tradition that they’ve lost their way?  Of course.

But too many of today’s hip, young evangelicals seem quite satisfied with throwing out the baby with the bathwater without acknowledging those parts of the church that are founded in Biblical principle and practice.  Many are tinkering with bedrock issues of doctrine and purpose to their long-term detriment.  Many are buying into the EXACT SAME MENTALITY that gave birth to what they are criticizing today and are rapidly becoming a generation filled with ridiculous caricatures of Christianity that are just a newer version of those that they mock.

Hatred may be too strong of a word for some of the criticism coming from those who propose to do church a “different way”, but irrational isn’t.

You know, I’ll mock Lady GaGa with folks anytime and any place.  I snicker at impressions of Sarah Palin and Barak Obama.  I’ll rant and rail about the corruption represented in the Democrat and Republican parties and”amen” those that do.  But make a snitty remark about my wife, my kids, my mom — and you better watch out.  You’re going to have a fight on your hands.

So why is it that there seems to be this new evangelical sport of Church Bashing that is so en vogue?  Is not the church the “Bride of Christ”?  The reward of Calvary’s suffering for God?  The dwelling place of the spirit part of the Godhead?  The ambassador of God’s Kingdom for creation?  The “salt” and “light” that preserves us for a while from the judgment to come?

I wonder if it doesn’t offend God some times to see His family so brashly criticizing His family on earth, the organization He founded, the institution and individuals that required His Son’s execution?

That’s not to say that the Church should never be criticized or evaluated or challenged or reprimanded.  However, some of what is being said within the Church today borders on throwing the “family” under the bus.  Perhaps we should do more gentle entreaty rather than crass criticism which is actually a thinly-veiled effort to ingratiate ourselves to the folks that need the message carried by the Church more than ever.

If churches were to stop doing what they do today, can imagine how many folks that would be suddenly without food, wells that might not be dug, children who would not have clothes or school supplies or summer camp experiences, homeless people who would never get help with their addictions and poverty, orphanages that would go unstaffed, buildings that would not be completed in foreign lands, hospitals that would close and shoes that would never be sent to barefoot kids?  Who would stand against evil?  Who would advocate for righteousness?  Who would challenge human trafficking or genocide?  Who would print the Bibles and see them distributed in closed nations?  Who would master obscure languages so that we can translate the Scriptures into native tongues?  Do non-believers routinely take their summer vacations and go on missions trips around the world every summer?  Do non-believers hike the hills and mountains of Afghanistan, Thailand and Tibet to provide free medical care the same way that Christians from local churches do?  Do they run to adopt Haitian orphans the way many Christians do?  Do they speak against the horror of infanticide (abortion) and speak up for the Sanctity of life like Believers?

The research shows that the Church in America — faith-driven believers — give, go and participate to help others at a rate that exceeds any other group in the world.  Do we need to fix some things?  Update some strategies?  Get rid of some baggage?  No doubt.  But let’s re-think the gratuitous group denigration that seems to be today’s current fad.

It isn’t fair to jump on some fresh-faced 16-year-old kid and it isn’t necessary to jump on the Bride of Christ either.

Just thinking out loud…..

(Maybe my muse is returning…..)

I’ve been getting some emails and messages about the blog lately.  This is the longest I’ve gone without updating my blog in the since I started it quite a few years ago.  I just want to assure everyone that I’m alive and kicking.  I recently made the conscious decision not to shut down “Whirled Views” when I renewed my domain names, so the blog will be around in some form for the next couple of years, I guess.

I’m not one to “pretend” that I, nor any other Christian, lives a carefree life that’s always rainbows and buttercups.  In all honesty, 2010 has been a rough year and a series of rough years.  I had the worst employment experience in my life last year — something I’ll write about later when I have enough perspective to let me be rational and objective.  As a result, we lost our house in South Florida — thankfully, we secured a short sale right before foreclosure hit, but we lost our entire lifetime of home equity in the process.  We have relocated to what was to have been our “retirement home” in Lake Lure until we decide where the Lord would have us settle next.  I have a pretty narrow range of employment fields I am considering after my more recent experiences and let’s face it, in this economy there just isn’t a lot available of any kind of jobs.  I’m thankful for the adjunct professorship work I’ve been able to snag which has kept us afloat since January.

But I’m not losing my perspective either — I have a long-time friend who is fighting a debilitating disease at the age of 51 and he has 3 small children, our dear friend and my personal assistant for 17 years just finished chemo a few months ago after a serious cancer diagnosis, a sweet young lady and mother barely in her 30’s that used to call me Pastor is fighting off a recurrence of an aggressive form of cancer and a dozen more similar stories remind me that the consequences of man’s fall are no respecter of persons and it’s only God’s grace that can give us hope in any circumstance.

But in all honesty, I just haven’t felt like writing at length lately.  The reasons are to some extent probably personal and to another extent just a phase.  I’ve often joked that if I didn’t write, I’d simply explode — but for now, the muse seems to have taken a break and so better to be silent than write something that is nonsensical.  If the mood does hit me to write or stir something up, I often throw an impolitic bomb on my status on Facebook and enjoy the brief tempest that such an action often causes.

So, for now, that’s the latest….we’re all doing fine.  The two older kids are at Liberty University sharing an apartment and working their jobs and going to classes.  The younger two are adjusting to a life where the nearest WalMart is 45 minutes away and we haven’t been able to find a church with a youth group within driving distance.  They started homeschool today.  We love the Blue Ridge Mountains and Western North Carolina and this is a wonderful time of the year.

If you know of anyone who needs someone to do some teacher training in a school or church setting, a missions speaker, a family or marriage conference speaker, etc… — give them my name as I’m doing quite a bit of that ministry these days.  I have nearly a hundred popular workshops, speeches and sermons for those occasions and I’d love to share them with groups.

Keep checking in here and who knows….maybe inspiration will strike sooner rather than later!