Category: Culture

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Relax, It’s Just Sex

Shrugging_Shoulders

So today I read an article/devotional about God’s perspective on the human body.

The piece was relatively short but affirmed an old Christian perspective that we ought to be careful about what we do with our bodies because, as the Apostle Paul says, “Your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit.” (see 1 Corinthians 6:19-20)

The writer even goes so far as to say:

This should say something to you about its value and the way you ought to treat it. Furthermore, you should take God’s words as a warning against abusing, misusing, or ignoring your own body.

I’ve seen pastors and Christian leaders use this reasoning to argue against cigarettes, alcohol, tattoos, and anything else Christians deem to be taboo when it comes to the human body.

But here’s the thing: this passage isn’t about body art, piercings, beer, or any of that stuff.

Like the title of this post says: It’s Just Sex. The Apostle Paul is very clear about sexual sin and the human body. But let’s not misuse the Bible to justify our own perspective on the appropriateness of other issues. We can’t condemn people with the “your body is God’s temple” line unless we’re addressing similar issues that God is addressing.

So go ahead and get that tat that says, “I LOVE MOM!” Don’t let people condemn you about your piercings (no matter WHERE they are o.O).

When the Bible speaks, we’ll speak. But let’s not force the Bible to fit into our molds.

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She’s Baaaaaack! Look Out, Here Comes Monica Lewinsky

Lewinsky

So it seems dear ol’ Monica Lewinsky is back in the public eye. This time she’s on a mission, setting out to single-handedly finish off cyber-bullying once and for all.

But she’ll never be able to move on. She’ll never leave her past behind and ever be a “normal” public figure (still, are any of us normal?).

It’s not that Ms. Lewinsky wants to stay stuck in her past. She doesn’t. Here’s the problem:

We won’t let her.

She’s going to be the brunt of jokes and off-color remarks for the rest of her life because we, as a society, are going to keep reminding her (and each other) of her past sins and mistakes.

I don’t condone her past behavior, and sometimes the off-color jokes come quickly to us, but I’m pretty sure that’s not the way it’s supposed to be. Jesus was a big guy on giving people a new lease on life. He met up with a woman once who had been married multiple times and was living with a man to whom she wasn’t married. Jesus didn’t condemn her but used her as an instrument to tell the rest of her town about him.

Another time some religious leaders brought a woman caught in adultery before Jesus. This is the famous, “Let him who is without sin cast the first stone” story of the Bible. Jesus didn’t condemn this woman either. Instead, he sent her on her way with a new lease on life and told her to leave her past behind her.

If we are to take our cue from Jesus, we ought to be in the business of helping people move beyond their past failures and sins and move into a new life where grace and forgiveness abound.

Seriously, who HASN’T done something stupid you wish you had never done in the first place? Yet our humanity likes to force people to wallow in their past failures.

Jesus doesn’t let people wallow. He ushers us into a new tomorrow where the past is forgiven and we get a new chance to be. So, to Ms. Lewinsky and the rest of us who have ever screwed up:

Here’s to forgiven yesterdays and new tomorrows.

If this post resonated with you in any way, please share it. Post it, tweet it, email it – just send it out there somehow.

Thx! 🙂

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When Pastors and Lesbians Collide

angry pastor

There’s something crazy going on in Houston.

To make a long story short, some pastors publicly came against a city ordinance that would allow men into women’s restrooms and women into men’s restrooms. There was a big hullabaloo, lawsuits, yada, yada, yada.

Then the Mayor and the City issued a subpoena to the pastors involved mandating the pastors turn over all sermons relating to the ordinance, homosexuality, and the mayor (Houston’s first openly lesbian mayor).

The response of the Conservative Right has been one of righteous indignation. “How can the government try to coerce a faith group like this?!?”

And so the pastors have refused to comply and conservatives are rallying around them.

I agree with them. And I disagree with them.

I Agree – I think we’re on dangerous ground when the government threatens and coerces faith groups based and tries to silence speech. This applies to any faith group. The premise of religious freedom is that we are allowed to speak what we believe – even if you disagree with it. I may not agree with your religion, but religious freedom protects all religions from speaking their beliefs – even if that religion publicly disapproves of alternative lifestyles. The mayor and city made a stupid decision to threaten and coerce ministers into silence.

I Disagree – WHY ON EARTH WOULD ANY PASTOR BE UNWILLING TO TURN OVER SERMONS?!? THAT’S WHAT WE DO! We give public presentations of the Gospel SO THAT people will hear. Christians are on dangerous ground when we refuse to speak our beliefs that might get us into trouble.

I’m reminded of the early apostles in the Bible. The religious authorities arrested them and told the apostles to stop preaching about Jesus. Even with imprisonment, flogging, and horrible injustice, the apostles knew that their calling to preach superseded any threat.

When the mayor and city called for the sermons, pastors should have jumped at the chance and said to the world, “Here! Have them all!” (not to mention that SO many churches have their sermons publicly broadcast and archived online – the city probably didn’t even NEED a subpoena).

So where does that leave us?

It leaves us with government officials who are overstepping their power as elected leaders of a democratic republic. They need to be kept in check and NOT threaten or coerce religious groups into keeping silent.

It leave Christians with a stark reminder that this world is going to turn against us when we stand up and preach the truth. That doesn’t mean we should hide behind legalities and barriers. When the world directly asks, “What do you believe and preach?” we ought to be standing up and say, “Here it is!”

Jesus didn’t promise us easy times. He promised us difficulty.

Pastors of Houston – give them your sermons. If you want I’ll send you a few of mine to add to the pile.

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Don’t You Wish You Were a Straight White Male Like Me?

straight-pride

I’m sure you’ve seen posts like it. I’ve seen it before.

The other day I saw it again – something to the effect of:

When people post about gay pride they’re heroes.
When I post about straight pride I’m a bigot.

That might not be the EXACT wording, but you get the idea.

Straight people complain about those who tout gay pride.
White people complain about those to promote black power.

black power

It always comes down to the same argument: If it’s okay for them to be proud and promote their empowerment why is it wrong for me to be proud and promote my empowerment?

The answer is simple, really. I don’t need to be proud and promote my empowerment because I’m the one in power.

Think about it. What we’re really talking about is the language of power and disenfranchisement. People who have typically been looked down on, discriminated against, or held down (socially, politically, economically, etc.) use language to bring their causes to light.

Why should those of us who are in power complain about people promoting their empowerment while we are not able to promote our own power?

We shouldn’t.

Jesus isn’t about promoting our own empowerment. In fact, biblical faith is all about supporting the disenfranchised and unempowered. James 1:27 says:

Pure and undefiled religion before our God and Father is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself unstained by the world.

The widow and orphan were individuals who had no chance to care for themselves; no family to lean on and no chance for making something of themselves. They were outsiders in society.

Jesus’ ministry was financially supported by women, people seen as less-than in the grand scheme of society. He regularly ate with social outcasts.

Jesus wasn’t about keep people from being empowered – he was all about loving people regardless of their status.

As Christians we ought to be leading the way in making sure that the disenfranchised are treated with equality and are given justice. Even when we disagree with someone’s life choice, we don’t have to make a stink about the language they use in their search for empowerment.

Those of us in power don’t need to flaunt our power in the face of others.

So, white people – stop complaining about “black power.” You don’t need to promote white power (you’ve already got it).
Straight people – stop complaining about “gay pride.” You don’t need to promote straight pride (you’ve already got it).
Men – stop complaining about women’s rights. You don’t need to promote men’s rights (you’ve already got them).

Do you get the picture? Rather than being upset when the disenfranchised rise up, we ought to be asking, “What can I do as a Christian to show love and support in a way that honors God?”

And maybe, just maybe, if those of us “in power” started behaving this way then those “without power” would have no need to make empowering statements – because WE would be the ones demanding justice in the first place.

And THAT is a message worth sharing with the world…

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Wait – You Want to Plant What???

planting

I want to plant a new kind of church – a digital church.

FIRST, A LITTLE STORY

I was packing up the office of the church where I had been a pastor for the last 3+ years. The church and I were heading in different directions. The problem was that I wasn’t sure of the direction God was leading me. Then I had a visit from an absolute joy. She was 78 years old and a member of the church. One of her primary functions in life was to be my surrogate grandmother and to be one of my personal cheerleaders in ministry.

She took me by the hand and said, “Walk with me.” You don’t argue when grandma tells you to walk, so I walked with her.

She took me down the hallway to where our church had a display of our history set up; a picture of the first men’s bible study class in 1918 that later developed into the church, the first church building, and pictures of the groundbreaking when the new facility was built in the 60’s.

Central Community 02

She asked me, “What do you see here?”

I answered, “The church’s history.”

With a sparkle in her eye she responded, “Yes! The history of church. But not the future.”

This dear lady walked me back to the office and told me God had given her a picture of the direction He was calling me to walk – to plant an online church community. As my wife and I prayed about it I began to get excited. And scared. At the same time. I was excited because I believe God has given me the dream to do such an endeavor. I was scared because I’ve never done anything like this before. But there I was – faced with the idea that I follow God’s leading or I keep venturing off on my own. Thus was born The Church Plant, A DIGITAL MISSIONARY ENDEAVOR.

Many churches have artificial plants that merely gather dust. The Church is supposed to be living and vibrant – not fake and dusty!

Church Plant

The next church movement will live not in bricks and stone but online.

One social media user noted:

While many churches across America seem to be experiencing decline, more and more people are plugging in to the world through phones, tablets, and computers. We’ve seen that people are still just as hungry for spirituality as they ever were. It’s not that people are done with God. It’s simply that many are done with the traditional way of participating in religion.

It’s time for a shift.

It’s time for the church to catch up to where the people are. With every revolution in media technology, preachers have been there to utilize media for the sake of the message of Jesus Christ and God’s love.

In an age when the literacy rate was relatively low, the Apostle Paul wrote letters to instruct churches when he could not be physically present. The first book printed on the printing press was the Bible. When radio hit the scene, God’s people took to broadcasting the Gospel over the airwaves. Radio missionaries even pump out the Gospel into closed countries when they aren’t allowed to physically preach about Jesus. With the dawning of the television age, televangelists hit the scene, pumping out an enormous amount of television ministry. While many televangelists get a bad rap, there are some preachers on t.v. who have viable ministries and do good things in the name of Jesus.

So here we are in the internet era. If we are going to be about people and reaching people for God then we must be intentional about being where they are. I’m not just talking about churches having a web presence and websites that have church information and recording of the Sunday service.

The contemporary church is not just about websites or music style – it’s about a revolution in the way we connect with people.

With more than 2 billion people plugged in online we must be intentional about creating a church community that hits people where they are, where they can come as they are, whenever they want.

The Church Plant is a place where everyone is safe to engage Christ as they are – no strings attached. We desire to be a lifeline to the discouraged, the disillusioned, and the disenfranchised.

Above all – it’s about Jesus…

With so many “unchurched” people in the world we are dropping the ball in reaching people with the message of Jesus. The sad fact is that many churches simply don’t embrace the idea of evangelism. Sometimes people are too nervous, afraid, or a million other reasons for not wanting to talk to someone about Jesus. But every day we see people – millions upon millions of people – clicking “share” or “retweet” when they want their friends to see something.

An online church community like The Church Plant has EXPLOSIVE potential for reaching people who would otherwise be unreached. An online church also has the ability to mobilize believers worldwide in order to support missions and Christian work around the globe.

We have the tools at our disposal to do more for the Kingdom of God than ever before. Now is the time for a completely online church, helping people hear the message of Jesus, connect to God, grow in spiritual maturity, and turn around and change the world for the better.

WHAT DOES THE CHURCH PLANT DO?

– Bible-Based messages in video and blog format
– Directed personal worship in video format
– Confidential Pastoral Counseling (personal issues, pre-marital/marital counseling, etc.)
– Real-Time Bible Studies with video and written prompts and group discussions
– Pastoral Care and Prayer via email, text message, or phone
– Support Worldwide Missions (we have missionary families in Africa and Southeast Asia we want to support at the outset)

It’s about a revolution in the way we connect with people. The revolution is here.

Every week on social media I’m asked questions about faith, spirituality, the Bible, and for pastoral counsel. As Jesus says, “The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few; therefore pray earnestly to the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest.” (Matthew 9: 37-38)

The Church Plant wants to reach the plugged-in harvest in a way that hasn’t been done before.

Will you join us?

We need your prayer! Outside-the-box ministry ideas can draw criticism from people who like the box. We need you to be praying that God will use this ministry to reach a plugged in culture that is otherwise unreached.

We also need funding. Our initial goal is to raise funds to create the legal entity The Church Plant, a legitimate non-profit church. We want everything to be above-board legally, so attorney and filing fees will be the bulk of our start up costs. We also need funds for the website. You can see us at www.thechurchplant.net.

Thanks to the generosity of Christian sponsors, we’re already one-fourth of the way to our goal! You can find our GoFundMe fundraising site here.

We need you to partner with us in this ministry to extend the love of Jesus to the plugged in culture around the world who would never think about setting foot inside a traditional church.

Will you join us?


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I’m Not Intolerant, I’m a Christian

intolerance

Over the last few days I’ve had several experiences with people regarding the idea of Christian intolerance and -phobia. In case you didn’t know, the in-thing is to take whatever Christians are against and add -phobe or -phobia to the word, thus creating a new word that labels the Christian as a hater.

Do you disapprove of homosexual behavior?

You’re a homophobe.

Do you disagree with Muslim faith?

You’re an Islamophobe.

Apparently anything you stand against is now something you’re afraid of. Except the definition of phobia is now being broadened to include “dislike of a specified thing or group.”

That makes me:

– a greenbeanophobe (never liked ’em – never will)
– a V8ophobe (c’mon, drinking tomato juice?!?)
– a wasabiphobe (I thought it was something else when I put a whole spoonful in my mouth…)

and a whole host of other things I dislike. It’s misleading to attach -phobe to designate dislike of something. It is attempt to attach a negative and derogatory label without understanding anything about anyone’s position.

In terms of faith it often comes down to Christians being labeled “intolerant” and/or “bigot.”

But I’m not intolerant.

Tolerant

I have a willingness to allow the existence of other opinions and behavior I don’t agree with. I have never forced anyone to change to my way of thinking. So I guess I’m tolerant. Yay, me!

As for bigot, the all-knowing Wikipedia defines it as “someone who, as a result of their prejudices, treats or views other people with fear, distrust or hatred.”

But prejudice is “prejudgment, or forming an opinion before becoming aware of the relevant facts of a case.”

I have not pre-judged other faith groups or formed an opinion before becoming aware of relevant facts. As a Christian, I will go with Jesus when he says:

I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. (John 14:6)

Or Peter when he preached about Jesus:

There is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to people by which we must be saved. (Acts 4:12)

So I’m not prejudiced. My views about other faith groups are based on my understanding that Christianity is the only way to God. And if I’m not prejudiced then I’m not bigoted, for bigotry requires prejudice.

So here I am: a tolerant, unprejudiced, non-bigoted Christian.

But I’ll still tell you that Jesus is the only way and that, as much as we can, we need to conform our lives to the character of God and the kind of lives he calls us to lead as revealed in the Bible.

And that message won’t change, no matter what the Christianphobes say about it.

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Hobby Lobby Hates Women

hobbylobby-birthcontrol

Well, it has certainly hit the fan.

No, I don’t think Hobby Lobby really hates women, but I have seen people on social media say that.

Within a day, the nation has drawn up lines and split in two (yet again) over the recent Hobby Lobby case before the Supreme Court.

One jokester even put it like this:

Conservative Xians: HOORAY, Hobby Lobby. HOORAY, Jesus!
Liberal Xians: #%!#@ Hobby Lobby. The world is doomed.

It certainly does seem to be how Christians are taking sides. Personally, I just don’t see the left’s side.

Some points to consider:

1. Hobby Lobby is not denying women access to contraceptives, they ask not to be forced to pay for particular contraceptives (and they do cover others).
2. If women want a particular product they are still allowed to go get it on their own.

A friend recently railed against employers dictating medical decisions to women.

Hobby Lobby

Some workplaces cover things like medical, dental, auto, etc. Other workplaces cover nothing. But we have the freedom to go find what we want if we’re willing to pay the price. No freedom is being restricted. No one is being told, “YOU CAN’T DO THAT!” There is not loss of liberty or freedom.

No religious belief is being imposed on anyone. People are still free to believe and act how they want. Being required to pay for your own decisions is not the same thing as having a religious belief imposed on you.

Coming from a biblical perspective, I’ve seen people say, “The Bible calls us to respect and submit to authority. Shouldn’t we just accept the healthcare law without saying anything about it?”

Biblically, no.

When the Apostle Paul wrote about submitting to authority he was writing to people who lived in a time and place who had only two options: submit or rebel. You couldn’t lawfully change the emperor’s mind. So Paul instructed Christians that rebellion is not the way of Jesus. But we don’t live in that kind of society. In a democratic republic we have the option of participating in forming laws and petitioning to change laws that shouldn’t exist.

Christians can work within the system to make (from our perspective) a positive change in society. There is nothing biblically wrong with that.

“But, Chris, isn’t that forcing our opinions on others?!”

All laws force opinions on others. The question is: who will have the winning opinion?

At the end of the day, I’d rather have laws that reflect a Christian worldview than laws that reflect an Atheist worldview.

The day will come (indeed, it is already fast approaching) when the Christian worldview is completely overturned. When that happens, and we no longer have legal recourse, then Paul’s admonitions once again apply: submit rather than rebel. Rebelliousness is not a quality of Christ.

Until then, there is nothing wrong with Christians using the legal system to protect our beliefs and values.

I know this is a hot topic for many people. I welcome all comments as long as you keep it civil and respectful. 🙂

Related Post:
– Hobby Lobby and Taking a Stand for Faith

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I Thought It Was Shampoo…But I Was Wrong

No

Do you have a “normal” morning routine?

I do.

I get the kids up, brush their teeth, get them dressed, and feed them breakfast. Then I go shower and get myself ready.

Today was a day like any other…or so I thought.

As I started to wash my hair in the shower I thought, “Hmmm…this doesn’t seem like our usual shampoo.” Turns out – it wasn’t. It wasn’t shampoo at all. You see – our shower products are ALWAYS in the same location. I didn’t realize that my wife had moved some things around yesterday. Thanks to muscle memory, I automatically went to the bottle that was SUPPOSED to be shampoo. I didn’t even stop to think about it.

I was reminded of one time when Jesus was talking about being a disciple.

Whoever does not bear his own cross and come after me cannot be my disciple. For which of you, desiring to build a tower, does not first sit down and count the cost, whether he has enough to complete it? Otherwise, when he has laid a foundation and is not able to finish, all who see it begin to mock him, saying, ‘This man began to build and was not able to finish.’ Or what king, going out to encounter another king in war, will not sit down first and deliberate whether he is able with ten thousand to meet him who comes against him with twenty thousand? (Luke 14:27-31)

In other words, Jesus is saying, “Look before you leap!”

Being an authentic follower of Jesus is going to cost us something. Perhaps not now, but somewhere along the way it will. So he tells us to count the cost. Think about what we’re doing. Don’t do anything mindlessly.

The stats of how many people in America consider themselves “Christian” is astounding. Clearly people don’t understand what they’re saying. Following Jesus is not going to be a cushy road, and it gets continually harder as the Western world turns away from Christendom and turns towards a humanistic secularism. We will have to count the cost like we’ve never had to before.

Let us not be mindless about our faith. We’re not here because it’s the “good thing to do” – we’re here to follow Jesus.

Follow him. Count the cost

‘Cause that ain’t shampoo you’re holding….

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It’s Easy to Manipulate the Truth – And You Bought the Lie

truth

The last couple of days there was a video going around of a brief clip from the show “Family Feud”

Here’s how I originally saw it:

I saw lots of comments on it. Some people thought it was cute. Some said it was diplomacy at work.

Yes, I thought it was a funny clip. It shows the solidarity of two men refusing to embarrass their wives. Instead, they choose to keep their mouths shut.

But that wasn’t the whole clip.

Here’s the extended version:

You can see from the extended clip that there’s not quite as much solidarity as the short version would have you believe. The Marine would rather control the board and play the game than to keep silent. That’s not a bash on Marines. I think most people wouldn’t even have paused like these men did.

My issue with the clips isn’t about the content of the game show, but with the person who did the editing.

No, there is not big Family Feud conspiracy. In the grand scheme of life this clip is insignificant. But it does highlight to me how easy it is to manipulate the truth. With a quick edit we were given a version that led us to believe that the men stayed silent out of respect and honor for their wives.

We live in a culture where “truth” is at the mercy of whomever is doing the editing. The media shows us only bits and pieces of the news – and only the bits and pieces that will move us in the way they want us moved. A great example of this is to look at a single news story covered by CNN, FoxNews, and The Daily Show. While covering the SAME piece, each outlet will put its own spin on the story.

We have fully entered the world of Orwell’s 1984. Before too long we’ll even have a Ministry of Truth. Perhaps Orwell was a prophet more than he was a novelist.

Truth is an important part of godly character. It is supposed to be part of what we say, what we do, and who we are.

The Psalms and Proverbs are filled with verses imploring people to be truth-tellers and to run from deceit. Jesus himself said:

You will know the truth, and the truth will set you free (John 8:32)

It’s easier to accept things at face value, to believe the “truth” as it is presented to us. People pass around bogus information on social media every day because they never bother to fact check – to pursue the truth.

This is not how it is supposed to be.

As people called to be truth-tellers we should be cautious not to be part of bad information (whether it’s intentionally OR unintentionally misleading).

We can do better.

We must do better.

No more deception. Let’s be people of truth.

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Jesus Turned Water Into Wine and Now You Can, Too!

cocktails

Did you hear about this news story?

A couple days ago I came across a news piece talking about a new FDA approved powdered alcohol called Palcohol. Of course, good Christian folk were upset.

What about the kids? What about the potential for abusing this product? You can drink it and get drunk or you can snort it like drugs! (kudos to Fox News for that spiffy white board in the news segment – way to go all out, guys).

But, alas, it turns out that everyone got hyped up for nothing.

The product is not a close to market-release as we were initially led to believe. USAToday followed up about palcohol.

So we can turn off the rage machine. Kids won’t be getting drunk from nor snorting powdered booze.

But it doesn’t really matter what form the substance comes in. People who will abuse it are going to abuse it. We’re quick to hop on the “ban the substance!” bandwagon because some people might go too far.

But isn’t that true in every area of life?

– Some people will go too far with eating (that thing we call gluttony) but we don’t ban food.
– Some people will go too far with sexuality but we don’t ban marriage.
– Some people will go too far with…

You see, everything that God made has the potential to be corrupted. It doesn’t matter if it’s powdered, liquid, visual, aural…whatever! Humanity has the ability to corrupt and abuse anything. Just because something is corruptible doesn’t make it evil. Food, beer, movies, music – you name it. The Bible doesn’t condemn these things. But everything taken to corruptible excess can lead to sin.

We should be more concerned about being in right standing before God and raising our kids (as best we can) to do the same. Let God be the judge of peoples’ hearts, and give others the freedom to enjoy their Vodka Kool-Aid (or whatever they’re gonna call it). 🙂

***UPDATE***

A friend who knows more of the science than I do told me:

Alcohol is a solvent similar to water with the three states of solid, liquid and gas like all matter (there is of course plasma, but unimportant here). However, powdering something like this implies removing the water from it (the H20) and leaving the solid elements behind. This is possible with other foods, because there is a great deal of matter that is solid at room temperature to be left behind. Ethanol is CH3CH2OH. If you chemically broke it down and removed two hydrogen atoms and one oxygen atom from it and recombined the remainder, you are left with CH3CH–a form of butane! The only way to ‘powder’ alcohol would be to take it down into its solid state–which with alcohol is -173 deg. F. That would be a bit hard to package for the shelf.

Is this whole thing a gag? Thoughts?

***Update #2***

Seems “powdered alcohol” isn’t quite the correct term. See this great article from Time about the whole thing…

Related Post:
– Christian Beer…I Mean Liberty