A Trump In the Temple

"Be smart," they told me. "Avoid politics and religion," they told me.  Smart was never my strong suit...

There seems to be a lot of confusion and debate in both the media and the Christian community about why Donald Trump has become an acceptable candidate for the Evangelical church. There should be no confusion at all. It's a simple matter. Since the rise of the Moral Majority in the late 1970s, Christian leaders have been consistent in voice and committed to the idea that real Christians vote Republican. That's nearly 40 years of indoctrination for the average Sue and Joe who fill a pew on Sunday morning. Many of our pastors and leaders have made it very clear- a vote for a Republican candidate is a vote for Jesus. So the logical conclusion- and this reckless course we are now on- was inevitable. The fact that Mr. Trump has nothing in common with most conservatives, evangelicals, Christians or even many Republicans doesn't matter. Trump has no relationship with the church; he seemingly discovered the need for a belief system just in time to run for office and lure in voters. The leaders  have spoken for 40 years, and we have learned. He is a Republican. So vote for him. And based on poll numbers, much of the mainstream evangelical Church seems prepared to do just that - or at least they did until he began once again showing his true colors these past few weeks.

My point? We've spent too many years listening to the wrong voices. We have bought into the thinking that voting for a specific party is the way to "return our nation to God." Many of these leaders may have meant well, but the fact is they forgot the most important thing. Only one voice should speak for the Christian community. And that voice belongs to Jesus.

What would The Christ have to say about The Donald? Obviously I don't know. But there are things we do know. We know that Trump has said that winning is all that matters, that he lives for the art of the deal and that money is power. We know that he singles out specific groups of people that he finds unworthy of love and support. We know that he considers himself as a superior human being to many on this planet. We know that while Jesus said, "Blessed are the peacemakers," Trump responds to every situation with confrontation and bomb slinging. And we know that all of those things are in direct contradiction of the teaching of Jesus. It is true that most politicians (indeed, most people) do poorly when their character and beliefs are compared to the Messiah. Hillary is no exception; her faults are many. But at least she is not pretending to be a Christian for the purpose of being elected, having spent her life as an active part of the United Methodist Church. All of us fall short of the example of Christ. But few fail the test as completely as Trump.

So how should the Church view the Republican nominee? Here's my take- and I fully confess it is a judgmental one. I think we should recognize that if the Christian community backs Trump, then we are opening the door to a money changer in the temple. You remember the story of how Jesus responded to them. He overturned tables, scattered their followers and threw them out of the temple. If we put Trump in the White House by allowing him into the temple, thinking he will lead our nation on the path of God, we should do it with the full knowledge that Jesus will probably have to throw him out. Or at least remind us that we should...

I wish I thought the Church would come around to understanding that politicians and patriotism cannot save us, only Jesus can- and he came for the world, NOT just for USAmerica. I wish our leaders would acknowledge that Trump may be a good politician but he's a horrible human being, and that the latter is much more important than the former. I wish the believers who scream "SOCIALISM" at every mention of the right sharing of resources in our nation would pause and read Acts 2:42. I wish lots of things. But right now, my biggest wish finds me in agreement with something my old friend Jacob Lupfer posted on Twitter a while back. I wish a year ago we had lined up behind Jeb Bush and given our nation a rational choice in November. Instead, we are starring into the abyss that would be a Trump in the temple. Vote for Trump if you must. But do not do it because he represents Jesus is any way, shape or form. Because he does not.

Because of Jesus,

Follow Jesus- I Dare Ya!

Today I invite you take a look at why following Jesus is ALWAYS a little bit dangerous...

A scene from the 1989 movie, Parenthood:
Grandma: You know, when I was nineteen, Grandpa took me on a roller coaster.
Gil: Oh?
Grandma: Up, down, up, down. Oh, what a ride!
Gil: What a great story.
Grandma: I always wanted to go again. You know, it was just so interesting to me that a ride could make me so frightened, so scared, so sick, so excited, and so thrilled all together! Some didn't like it. They went on the merry-go-round. That just goes around. Nothing.  I like the roller coaster. You get more out of it...

Among the life-altering things I remember reading in Leonard Sweet's 1999 classic SoulTsunami, was a section about what it is like to really follow Jesus. There is nothing risk-free about following the Christ. Yet so many pastors (especially those appearing on TV) seem to teach that the quickest path to the "good life" is becoming a Christian. They make it all sound so predetermined and orderly. Follow Jesus and you will quit sinning. Quit sinning and God will bless you. When God blesses you, life will be full of rainbows and unicorns. It's as simple as that! Well, no...it's not. There is nothing orderly about following Jesus, because in fact, the Good News is chaotic!

I have checked the gospels pretty thoroughly, and I can say with some confidence that Jesus never said any of the following:

"Come follow me, and I will give you perfect health."
"Come follow me and that girl will FINALLY love you!"

"Come follow me and I will give you power and wealth."

"Come follow me and I will put a steak on your grill and a Jacuzzi in your backyard.  OH- and a beach volleyball court!  Everyone loves beach volleyball!"

What he did say was to leave everything behind, take up your cross, and follow Him. The notion that your life will be all peaches and cream once you follow Jesus is just total BS. If you follow the living God, you will be tested. There will be risk. Just think about some of our biblical heroes and what they went through. Jonah was tested with a vacation in a fish. Noah had to build an ark ("What's a cubit?") while his neighbors laughed at him. Joshua marched around Jericho (Thank you, VeggieTales, for always making me think of French Peas pouring slurpees on them as they march...) for no apparent reason. Joseph was ambushed by his brothers, sold into slavery, falsely accused of hitting on Potiphar's wife and thrown in prison (not to mention losing a technicolor dreamcoat in the process) just to prepare him for what God actually had in mind for him. John the Baptist lost his head for Jesus- literally! Saul was blinded and went through a name change before he was ready to serve. Easy street? Low risk? I don't think so...

Jesus often taught that in order to make things right, we must first turn them upside down. He wants us to transform the first into the last, the weak into the powerful, the lost into the found. But all of that starts with the things we do with our own lives. If we really want to follow Jesus, we are going to have to get a little WILD! Psalm 115:3 reminds us that "our God is in the heavens; He does whatever He pleases." We sing "our God is an awesome God" and then proceed to try to confine God with our own limitations. His creativity and unpredictability are beyond our comprehension. Remember Isaiah walking through town naked (Isaiah 20:2-3)? That was God's idea. Remember the Angels appearing to shepherds in the fields and singing them a good Christmas song? God again. Sacrificing his only Son so that we might live in community with Him? Only God. 

All of this leads me to wonder about my own life. I have always prayed for safety, comfort and low-risk opportunities to serve my Savior. In fact, to be a Jesus Freak is to pray for the opposite. It is to pray that God would turn my life upside down and lead me to risk everything in the name of the One who saved me. It is to welcome the trials that God will send my way. I believe more and more that the invitation to follow Jesus comes with an "I dare ya!" They are dares because when we truly follow His example, the people around us will look at us like the boy at lunch who used to eat bugs on a dare. Jesus dares us to love the way he loved. He dares to us share meals with the most offensive people around us. He dares us to believe that all things are possible with Him by our side. He dares us to love our enemies. He dares us to let love flow from our hearts even when we don't understand it. And Jesus dares us to follow -really follow- by taking up our crosses and following Him where He leads instead of constantly begging Him to join us where we are.

Many of us do not hesitate to get on a roller coaster that travels 90 mph down an 85 degree slope and flips us upside down and corkscrews all around. We love it. It excites us. And once we've experienced it, the merry-go-round does seem pretty lame. Thus it is with becoming a radical follower of Jesus Christ. Get risky and try it- I promise you'll never want to be just a "church member" ever again. Get DANGEROUS with Jesus...I dare ya!

Because of Jesus,

Asleep at the Wheel

There are many of us who pray every day that there would be a Jesus Revolution in our land. Today I want to focus on one of the primary reasons such a revolution is so slow in coming. It's at least in part because we Christians have a tendency to fall asleep at the wheel...

In Mark 14: 32-40 we read about Jesus going to pray in the Garden of Gethsemane. This was right after the "Last Supper" and just prior to his arrest. As was often the case at the most important moments in his ministry, Jesus took Peter, James and John with him. They were his guys- his inner circle. As Jesus goes off to pray, he asks them to wait on him there. Three times he does this. Three times they are asleep when he returns to them. It seems unbelievable that his best friends could fail him like that- but they did. Jesus needed them to be there for him- but they simply fell asleep.

In many ways the followers of Christ have been dealing with the same problem ever since. We know what needs to be done. We have all of the teachings and theology that anyone could ever hope for. We read the words of Jesus that command us to love God, to love other people and to carry the message of His love to the world. We know there are things need to be done. But we're asleep at the wheel. Our lives motor down the highway accomplishing "important" things that make us more significant in the eyes of man, but we are fast asleep as we pass the exit signs that say Jesus Revolution. We tell ourselves that others will take care of that stuff. We fool ourselves into believing that after we become successful and powerful that THEN we will honor God. We go to work, we manage our lives, we manicure our lawns and we amuse ourselves. And then we give Jesus what is left over. But there seldom is anything left over- so like the disciples, we sleep.

The institution of the Church (in USAmerica, anyway) is not much better. We are often so busy with buildings, committees, fundraising and "minding the flock" that ministry to the lost and hurting takes a back seat. Too many of our churches today believe that the best way to take Jesus to the world is for us all to be "nice." Christians are nice. We can do nice in our sleep- and that is exactly the problem! Followers of Jesus should be loving and respectful, but we should also be RADICAL! We prefer taking political stances and preserving our "Holy Huddles" to actually taking the risky, radical, world-changing love of Jesus to our communities. Listen to these words from the late, great Keith Green:

The world is sleeping in the dark, and the church just can't fight

Cause it's asleep in the light, How can you be so dead?

When you've been so well fed

Jesus rose from the grave

And you, you can't even get out of bed

The teachings of Jesus seem wild and sometimes outright ridiculous when compared to the standards of the world we live in. If your faith and your belief-system make you feel comfortable and safe, then you need to go back and take a look at the things Jesus taught. You may well be "asleep in the light." If there is going to be a Jesus Revolution that brings hope, peace and joy to those who are sleeping in the dark, it is going to have to come from those who claim to be disciples of the risen Savior. If we are to live out Matthew 25 and minister to the homeless, the hungry, the naked, the criminal and the rest of the "least of these," then we are going to have to get off our couches to do it. If we are going to change this world in His name, then we need to stop arguing politics and theology and wake up to the challenge of sharing God's love with everyone. 

It's time to realize that for far too long we have been happy to play church and take our naps. Nap time is over. The world needs Jesus, and it is time for some spiritual No-Doze. Who's with me?

Because of Jesus,

Notify Your Face

The following story has been around in various forms for many years, but it seem like a good thought for today. So here we go...

A preacher stood in the pulpit on a Sunday morning and faced his congregation. He welcomed them with words from Psalm 100- "Make a joyful noise to the LORD!" He told them that his heart was FULL of joy as he stood before them, so happy to be in God's house of worship. He told them that a life spent following Christ was a life filled with joy, now and for all eternity. He quoted scripture, reminding them that even in their giving they were called to be joyful. The entire time he was speaking, his face was somber and his voice was unemotional. He delivered those words of joy with the countenance of someone suffering from acid reflux. He finished by saying to the gathered crowd that anytime he was in the presence of God, his heart was filled with great joy and happiness. With that, one of his more vocal parishioners could not take it any longer. She rose to her feet and shouted for all to hear,"Well if your heart is so full of joy, could it PLEASE notify your face!"

Too many times the world sees the face of Christianity as one of somber piety. The impression we give is that God is a great cosmic killjoy, and that following Jesus is really hard and sucks the joy out of life. Following Jesus IS hard...but it gives joy, it doesn't take it away! Far too often we Christ-followers tell the world that we doing okay under the circumstances. What are we doing under any circumstances? Jesus went to the cross and rose from the dead so that we might live ABOVE the often depressing details of life.  The Bible's letter of joy, the book of Philippians, was written by Paul while he was in jail! Believing in and following Jesus means that we are "more than conquerors"- no matter the situation! So today, as you go through your paces and face a world that often beats us down, remember- we worship a God of joy and love. Feel that in your heart, know it in your mind- and don't forget to notify your face!!!  SMILE- Jesus loves you! And the world needs to know...

Because of Jesus,

The Sermon on the Hill

Recently I worked my way through the wonders of Matthew 5-6, once again exploring the wondrous words of the Sermon on the Mount. For far too many Christians, these familiar passages are undervalued. This is Jesus at his most radical, turning the world upside down with his words. Just think of all the teachings included in this magnificent message. The Beatitudes, which the late, great Rich Mullins referred to as "the condensed version of everything Jesus wanted us to know." Jesus' teachings on salt & light. His constant reminders that "you have heard it said, but I say" as he explained that he had come to fulfill the law and the prophecies. His admonitions to let our word be our bond, to turn the other cheek and to love our enemies and pray for those who persecute us. Teaching us to pray with the model we call The LORD'S Prayer. Reminding us not to be hypocritical or flashy as we serve others, give to the needy and fast. His much ignored teaching that earthly treasure is worthless in heaven. And finally, his reminder that we need not worry, because his Father - our God - will take care of our needs. This amazing set of teachings must have had the Pharisees pulling their beards out, because it was such a departure from the legalism of the day. And to be honest, it is a departure from the legalism often preached in the 21st century church as well. Jesus calls us to radical action and love. We prefer the words of Paul, which give us guidelines and rules we can argue about. Jesus is blunt, to the point, and preaching a lifestyle change that most of us try to avoid. The Sermon on the Hill is a blueprint for how to be a Jesus Freak. And that scares us.

But it should also give us hope. The sermon is a reminder that God's love is available to one and all, no matter our situation and no matter our sins. Check out these words from Philip Yancey:

“Thunderously, inarguably, the Sermon on the Mount proves that before God we all stand on level ground: murderers and temper-throwers, adulterers and lusters, thieves and coveters. We are all desperate, and that is in fact the only state appropriate to a human being who wants to know God. Having fallen from the absolute Ideal, we have nowhere to land but in the safety net of absolute grace.”   ― The Jesus I Never Knew

Philip wrote another great book called What's So Amazing About Grace?, and his words above answer that question. Grace, given to us in the form of the love of God whose name is Jesus, is always there. We cannot earn it. We will never deserve it. And yet it is always there to catch us when we fall. The Sermon on the Mount teaches us how to live in grace and share it with the rest of the world.

So here is my challenge to you today. Read Matthew 5-6, and read it slowly. Soak in it. Think about how world changing it must have been to stand on that hillside and hear those words. Think about what they mean to us as Christ-followers. And then get serious. Memorize The Beatitudes. They should be written on our hearts. Let's put the power back in the words of Jesus, and to the call he puts on our lives. It's time to get radical...

Because of Jesus,

Abide in Jesus

Sometimes those of us who profess to be Christians need to be reminded that we are human beings, not human doings. The Christian life is not about what we can do on our own, but allowing Jesus Christ to bear his fruit through us. In John 15:5, Jesus tells us that if we will abide in him then he will abide in us. We must nurture the Holy Spirit within us through love, worship and obedience. This is what it means to abide. Lately my life has seemed full of crisis and worry. More than ever, I need to abide.

Unfortunately, taking the time to abide in Jesus is somewhat of a lost spiritual discipline. Much like silence, it is so intimate and so foreign to us that we do not pursue these amazing moments with our Savior. To help us along that path, today I'd like to suggest 10 ideas to help us focus on knowing Jesus, loving Jesus, experiencing Jesus and being linked to Jesus. Remember, John 10:10 teaches that Jesus came to bring us not just life, but abundant life. Let's seek it together. Let's try one of these each day for a while and see if we feel a stronger connection with the Christ.

1. Listen to 3 of your favorite worship songs (consecutively) with your eyes closed, picturing Jesus in the room with you. Sing to him. Worship him.
2. Fast for a meal or a full day and focus the time you gain on love, obedience and worship.
3. Apply John 15:12 to your life by asking Jesus to show you who needs your unconditional love today.
4. Make a list of the Top 10 Reasons You Love God.
5. Do an Alphabet Worship Time. Write down a prayer of praise, thanks or intercession for each letter of the alphabet.
6. Read the 5th chapter of the Gospel of John, highlighting any verses that speak to you about love, worship and obedience.
7. Set aside time for a silent prayer vigil- at least 30 minutes. Be still. Know God.
8. At 10:27 (AM or PM) prayerfully read aloud Luke 10:27 to be reminded of the love of God.
9. Memorize The Beatitudes, found in Matthew 5:3-11. They are the condensed version of everything Jesus taught.
10. Take time to focus on the love of God by writing a letter or e-mail to someone who needs to know that you love them unconditionally because Jesus loves you that way.

Fall into the arms of a Savior who loves you more than you can imagine and who will carry you when you need him. Spend time with him. Abide in him.

Because of Jesus,

As Useless As a Screen Door On a Submarine

"It's about a useless as a screen door on a submarine

Faith without works, baby- it just ain't happening..."

One of my interviews trips during the great job search of 1999 took me to a UMC in Indiana. Strangely enough, it too was located in the suburbs of Cincinnati. Even more bizarre, because Indiana does not recognize daylight savings time, the little community where the church was located spent several months each year in a different time zone from the city to which it was most closely connected. I sure knew how to pick 'em, huh?

But that's not what I came to talk about today. On that same interview there was a great deal of discussion (disguised as an argument!) about the direction the adults involved thought the youth ministry needed to go. Some wanted more serious Bible study (I think one guy suggested all the students memorize Lamentations) while others thought that service to others should be the group's primary focus. A few wanted to play more 4-Square. When asked which of these I felt was more important, I presented them with my philosophy of youth ministry. Ministry should be "wholistic" (from J. David Stone) and purpose driven (from Doug Fields). When they said I had not fully answered their question, I went all Jesus on them and told them a parable. A parable I had learned from Rich Mullins.

A man was in a rowboat- the kind with two oars, one on each side. He decided to row only with his left arm so he could make it stronger, but soon found his boat went only in circles. He switched to his stronger arm, his right arm, and rowed- but found he had only reversed the circling. It was only when he rowed with evenly both arms that he traveled a straight path on the water. So it is with faith and works. Following Jesus requires both.

Rich was not trying to say that we can be "saved" by the things we do. We cannot earn salvation. If we have faith, salvation is a gift from God. But it is also true that if we are followers of Jesus we will be in service to others. If we truly believe, our hearts will be broken by the things that break the heart of Jesus. The hungry, the homeless, the sick, the weak- all of the "least of these (Matthew 25)" that Jesus demands we look after, we will want to love in the name of God! As the scriptures tell us, if we truly believe then our lives will show "fruit."

I don't think they liked my answer. They never offered me the job; I wouldn't have taken it anyway. I still believe Rich had it right. He put his thoughts into this amazing little song called Screen Door. Listen, watch and enjoy. But also take this chance to check your own life. If you call yourself a Christian, what do people see in your actions that would confirm that for them? Too many people base the evidence of their faith on the things they don't do. Jesus asks,"What did you do for the least of these brothers of mine?" Don't let your faith become useless...  

Get Out of the Boat

We have spent over 6 months talking about what it is like to try and live life on the #NarrowRoad. At least one answer we have come to is this- it ain't easy! There are challenges to following Jesus, both in our daily walk and on our long-term spiritual journey. But if we think following Jesus on dry land is tricky...

In Matthew 14 we read of the time Jesus walked on water. There was great surprise and even some fear on the part of the disciples in the boat he was was walking towards- they thought he was a ghost!- despite all they all previously witnessed from him. But once his identity had been established and their fears calmed, Simon Peter did what Simon Peter always did- he tried to jump to the front of the line. "Lord, if it's really you, tell me to come to you on the water." When the Master replied, "Come" Peter was off and walking. What a moment earlier had seemed impossible was now being done by the official screw-up of the 12. He took several steps on the water before it occurred to him that this was actually pretty ridiculous. He was walking on freakin' water!!! He panicked and began to sink before Jesus reached out to save him (because that's what he does). The Messiah asked Peter why he had doubted and had so little faith, and there is no record of Peter's reply. But I know what mine would have been. "Little faith? Dude, I just walked on water. You say little faith- I say 3 steps no one besides you has ever taken before! I may have stumbled, but at least I got out of the boat. You called and I came to you in the waves. I ROCKED IT!" What had just happened was amazing and they all knew it. Which is why in verse 33 they bowed in worship, saying "truly you are the Son of God!" 

Whether on dry land or in the water, life on the #NarrowRoad was never meant to be safe and humdrum. Jesus calls us all to be different, to be radical and to be risk takers. It is indeed very difficult to walk on water if you never leave the boat. What does it look like for Christians to metaphorically get out of the boat? It means loving people the world doesn't love. It means giving up things that are important to us so that others may be blessed. It means that when Jesus says "come to me" that we go- no matter where that leads us. Just like with Peter, taking the first steps to do these things will scary. We may sink. Sure, we can stay in the boat, go to church on Sundays and be safe in our faith. But we are warned in the Revelation of John that being lukewarm is a really bad thing. Being lukewarm- having a half-a**ed faith- can get you "spewed out of God's mouth." We are called to go for it, to dive into life with the Savior. We will fail if we think we can do it on our own. But walking with Jesus, we can accomplish the improbable. We will no doubt stumble at times. But stumbling is better than sitting in the boat. I want to take those steps. I want be able to scream to the heavens, "I am not Jesus, but I seek to be like him. I took 3 steps. WOOHOO!!!" And if I keep my eyes on Jesus, perhaps I really can do things I never dreamed possible.

What boat do you need to step out of today? Where (or to what) is Jesus calling you that you are afraid to go? Who is Jesus calling you to love today that makes you feel uncomfortable? If our lives on the #NarrowRoad makes us feel all safe and comfortable, chances are good we have wandered off the path again. Get out of the boat. And then trust in Jesus to carry you through the storms.

Because of Jesus,

Getting Snarky with Scriptures (A Rant)

There have been many tweets and Facebook updates over the past few days that have sought to remind us all that no matter what the government or the Supreme Court says, God's law as found in the scriptures is perfect and unchanging. We have been reminded that we humans are not allowed to pick and choose which laws to follow, we just have to obey. And somewhere, I have no doubt, there was a thrice-divorced man lying in bed with his friend's wife, tired after a long day of eating shellfish and pork and mowing his lawn on the Sabbath while failing to burn a sacrificial lamb as an offering to the LORD lamenting that this country is going to hell in a handbasket because of same sex marriages. You want to get into a game of Let's Quote Leviticus? Bring it on, my friends!

The Pharisees- you know, those guys Jesus referred to as "a brood of vipers"- loved them some Leviticus. The law was everything, and they were constantly trying to trip Jesus up on the subject. One day they laid an especially tricky trap for him, asking him this loaded question: "Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the law?" (Matthew 22:36) They knew that no matter which of the Levitical laws he chose, it would open him up to doubt and scrutiny from the Jewish crowd that was following him. They could expose him as a fraud and a false prophet. Jesus was was going down! But instead of trapping him, the Pharisees had given him an unexpected opening. His answer to their trick question changed EVERYTHING- not just for the listening crowd, not just for the Pharisees, and not just for the disciples- but for everyone of US- because it put the law into a whole new language. And the language was LOVE. "Love the LORD your God with all your heart and all your soul and all your mind. This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: Love your neighbor as yourself. All the law and the prophets hang on these two commandments. (Matthew 22:37-40)."

Jesus was not saying anything new here. The "Love God" section comes from Deuteronomy and the "love your neighbor" verse can be found in Leviticus. As the Messiah himself said he didn't come to refute the law, he came to fulfill it. Putting these two verses together and calling it the greatest commandment gave us a new filter through which to view God's laws. The laws had been given to God's chosen people as a way to keep them in relationship with the LORD, and they had failed miserably. The very presence of Jesus on earth was proof that God knew there needed to be a new way. The love of God whose name is Jesus was and is that new way. And when asked what was most important in life, Jesus skipped over the opportunity to list 600 things we shouldn't do. He passed on telling us which rituals were most important to God. He left out trying to scare the hell out of us. He simply said that loving God was the most important thing. That, in and of itself, wouldn't have been too earth shaking. But when he said "and the second is LIKE it..." WOW! Loving your neighbor is just as important as loving God. That's what the law is all about!  And then just to really kick the Pharisees while they were down, he defined "neighbor" by telling the parable of The Good Samaritan. If the hated Samaritans were their neighbors, and the greatest commandment said to love their neighbors- well HOLY CRAP! We're supposed to love everyone? Everyone? Even that jerk Ted who borrowed my Star Wars movies and never brought them back? Seriously? This was a game changer. And it still is.

Here's the deal. There are sins, and we are all sinners. There are laws, both biblical and societal, that we seek to obey. What the Pharisees- both historical and modern day- miss so often is that the law was always intended to be about what is in our hearts and minds and souls. The laws were given to connect us- as individuals- with God. It was never intended to be a way to judge the people who believe or sin differently than we do. It's about our own faith and our own sins; about the log in our own eye and not the speck in another's. So if we are going to be cherry-picking laws from Leviticus to shape our modern Christianity we need to proceed with great caution. Divorce is spoken of often in scripture, and it is forbidden. But we let that slide. Eating certain foods, like the spicy steamed shrimp I feasted on at Joe's Crab Shack last Saturday night, is forbidden. Barbeque platters at Stamey's in Greensboro are forbidden. But we let the food law violations pass by unnoticed. We shatter countless other laws (I'm guessing most of you don't have tassels on your robes) on a regular basis without even noticing- or sometimes without even knowing. We pick and we choose and we look like gigantic hypocrites. Yes, we should seek to be keepers of God's law as it was fulfilled in the coming of the Messiah. But first of all, last of all and most of all, we need to be keepers of the greatest law. Love God, and love one another. Miss out on that and all the "thou shalt nots" in the world won't do us any good. Now I'm going to have some leftover shrimp. Peace, my friends.

Because of Jesus,

"Here You'll Find Rest"

One of the things that always makes me smile is watching families with small children try to get ready to go anywhere. The amount of packing and loading and reloading that goes on is amazing. You all know what I mean. There is just so much stuff to account for and carry. The same kind of thing is one of the reasons I never liked staying in beach houses or motels that are not oceanfront. Lugging all of your "stuff" down to the beach and back a couple of times a day gets old in a hurry. It's also the reason I never liked backpacks. Carrying around things that I may or may not need always felt like unnecessary baggage. Perhaps the one thing all of these have in common is that I am simply lazy. Or maybe is has something to do with burdens.

Way back in my days at Quaker Lake Camp my good friend Martha Ratledge (now Farlow) would often sing a song in worship services that featured words from Matthew 11. "Here you'll find rest, you'll find rest for your weary soul. For my yoke is easy and my burden light, come to me." I always loved the song and the message, and it taught me an important scripture. Too many preachers and teachers present religion as an additional burden in our lives- something none of us needs. Life is complicated enough. Our families, our jobs, our health and our relationships are often daily struggles. The last thing life with Jesus should be is one more thing where we have to pack up all of our stuff, load it on our backs and then be yelled at because we forgot something important. That may be what religion is- but it has nothing to do with walking the #NarrowRoad. 

Check out these words of Jesus from Matthew 11:28-30 from The Message and you'll see what I mean: "Are you tired? Worn out? Burned out on religion? Get away with me and you'll recover your life. I'll show you how to take a real rest. Walk with me and work with me- watch how I do it. Learn the unforced rhythms of grace. I won't lay anything heavy or ill-fitting on you. Keep company with me and you'll learn to live freely and lightly."

Isn't that an amazing text? We so often think of following the Christ and walking the #NarrowRoad as this burden, this insurmountable challenge to be spiritually perfect. Jesus says that just the opposite should be true. Walking with him should be a time of peace and rest in our crazy lives. We don't have to pack up our faults and our failures, or gather up our good deeds and our church perfect attendance pins. We don't have to "get our act together" before hitting the trail. We just need to walk with the Savior, unencumbered and free. "Learn the unforced rhythms of grace." How different would our lives be if we were to truly recognize that Jesus cares NOTHING about religion and EVERYTHING about relationships? There are no backpacks needed on the #NarrowRoad. Jesus carries it all. And quite often, he carries us too.

The next time someone makes you feel burdened by telling you that you are not doing religion "right," remember the words of the Master. "Get away with me and you'll recover your life." True Christianity is not about doing more or carrying more baggage. It's about walking through life (and being yoked & connected) with the love of God whose name is Jesus. Want that walk? Need to be free of your burdens? He's calling.  "Come to me..."

Because of Jesus,

The Only Response That Matters

In the wake of yesterday's Supreme Court ruling that bans on same sex marriage are unconstitutional there was much weeping and gnashing of teeth in sections of the Christian community. There were a few dozen blogs post lamenting the day, and most seemed to pose this question: In what ways should the Church respond? How will organized Christianity respond? If recent history is any indication, the answer is "poorly." How should we respond? The answer is written all over the New Testament. There is a response. And it's the only one that matters...

Beloved, let us love one another in the name of Jesus. Now more than ever, it's the only creed we need.

Because of Jesus,

"Run It 'til They Stop It!"

Back in the 1970s my Dad and I used to coach little league football together in Greensboro, NC. The team was the Guilford College Steelers, a "country" team that was once a doormat for the powerhouse city teams in the 8-9 and 10-11 year old age groups. Under Dad's leadership they became perennial contenders, playing in 5 city championship games and winning back-to-back titles in 1976 and '77. He made the game simple and fun. His teams were seldom the most talented but always the best prepared. Dad, unlike many of the Vince Lombardi wannabes coaching kids, understood that winning at that level required a different way of thinking than high school or college. This showed up in a variety of ways, but none was more obvious that in his offensive play calling. The Steelers had a diverse offense and lots of plays. Basic running plays, passing plays, trick plays- you name it and it was in our arsenal. Dad would begin every game by showing off our basic running plays. If a play gained good yardage he'd come back to it a few plays later. And if it worked well a second time we all knew what would come next. He would break into a huge grin, grab one of the kids on the sidelines and send the following message into the huddle- "Run it 'til they stop it!" And that's exactly what the team would do. I remember the Steelers scoring touchdowns, driving down the field 5-7 yards at a time running the same play 10 times in a row. There was no need to make it complicated. There was no reason to overthink. "Run it 'til they stop it." We won a lot of games that way.

In 1992 former Arkansas governor Bill Clinton surprised the nation by winning the Democratic Party nomination to run for President of the United States. He would oppose George (Daddy) Bush, the popular incumbent. The only negative for Bush was a staggering economy that was causing his approval ratings to fall. Clinton seemingly suffered through one public relations nightmare after another, and the chances of him winning seemed slim. But then his young, brilliant campaign staff made a bold move. Whatever subject the press and the public wanted to talk about, they would turn the conversation back to the economy. Their mantra became "It's the economy, stupid!" They knew it was the one issue they could win on, the one issue where Clinton held the upper hand. As the Bush campaign began to flail a bit, the Clintons simply talked about the economy more. Their efforts snowballed and there was nothing the Republicans could do to stop it. Clinton won the presidency and the economy was the major reason. I could almost hear George Stephanopoulos whispering in Clinton's ear before every speech- "Run it 'til they stop it." And they never did.

When you are the parent of an infant or a toddler, finding routines that get them to eat, sleep, use the potty and otherwise make your life simpler are discoveries of great joy. And when you find something that works, you stick to it. If playing airplane and flying the food into the the baby's mouth gets her to eat, you fly the airplane. If reading the same book every night for 12 months gets them to sleep, you read the book. You keep attacking the problems with a solution that works until they outgrow it and you move on to something else. You "run it 'til they stop it"- and then you move on.

For over 2000 years church leaders, theologians, seminary professors and talking heads have worked hard to make the teachings of Jesus seem complicated. Their theory is this- the more complicated being a Christ-follower is, the more we need them to help us figure it all out. So we fight over this and that and what we think Jesus meant or what he might have said if he had addressed a particular issue at all. We debate things as inane as "Why did Jesus say the word 'the' in Greek in that verse instead of speaking Aramaic?" when in fact we are reading in english a text that has probably been translated a dozen times. We argue over the minutia because what we KNOW scripture says is out of step with our world. Most of the things our churches hold dear come from founding fathers and church leaders, not from Jesus. And yet every denomination claims to know the way Jesus would do things were he among us today. We make it so complicated, when in fact it couldn't be more simple. Jesus made it very clear, and he did it over and over again. The church is to get out there in this messed up world and LOVE people in his name. People who are different. People who are hurting. People who are lost and confused. People who don't like us. People who shoot at us. People who fear us. Our calling is to go after these people with LOVE and not stop until they know the love of God whose name is Jesus. And all we are to ask of them is that they share the love as well. 

It's pretty simple church. Our job is to love one another. Now and always. "Run it 'till they stop it." The play is love. And it's unstoppable!

Because of Jesus,

Roadies Wanted

"Now the seats are all empty, let the roadies take the stage,

They'll set it up and tear it down.

They're the first to come and the last to leave,

workin' for that minimum wage...

They'll set it up in another town.  

- Jackson Browne, The Load Out

There are many issues that make the 21st century Christian church difficult to figure out. Some are corporate issues the entire community must face together. Some are individual challenges. And some are problems with cultural curses that we have adopted from society at large. I'd like to address one of those today. You see, it seems to me that there are far too many leaders in Christianity today who see themselves as- and who want to be- rock stars! They want the microphone and they crave the spotlight. They garner attention for themselves and "their" ministries, putting focus on things other than God. The gutters along the #NarrowRoad are littered with pastors and other church leaders who made themselves famous, only to discover that Jesus isn't looking for for stars. Jesus is looking for Roadies.

For those of you not familiar with the lingo, a roadie is someone who toils behinds the scenes on a concert tour. Roadies do the set-ups, the repairs, the grunt work and the heavy lifting that make the rock stars look good. They get no glory, just the satisfaction of a job well done and the knowledge that because of them the stars get the attention and love they crave. Many roadies take the job because of their love and respect for the artist they get to follow all over the country. They are there to serve. If we compare the #NarrowRoad to a tour, it should be quite clear who the star is. It's not the famous preacher, or the gifted singer or the televangelist with perfect hair. It's Jesus. And the rest of us- ALL of the rest of us- are called to be roadies. Our marching orders are right there in the Gospels. Be servants. Be humble. Be meek. Jesus told the disciples (Mark 9:35) that "anyone wanting to be greatest must be the least- a servant of all!" The path of Christ becomes a treacherous journey for those who think themselves as high and mighty. The ones who understand Jesus are the ones carrying their bags and bringing them water. The roadies are the ones making headway on the #NarrowRoad.

We live in a society built around lifting up those who achieve wealth, power and/or fame. It is only natural that this has bled over into the church- and into the pulpit. We need leaders and people who will take on power and important roles. But as scripture (and various Spiderman movies) teaches us, with that power comes great responsibility. And a part of the responsibility, according to the Master, it letting go of the power and becoming a servant. We pass on the love and the hope when we give up our roles of glory and become roadies to those who follow behind. 

Hardly a day passes without seeing tweets and articles lifting up the qualities of a great leader, giving information on how you can become a rock star in your church. We get things so twisted. Being on the #NarrowRoad has nothing to do with being a leader and everything to do with WHO you FOLLOW! So stack some speakers, set up the mics and get the lights ready. Then get out of the way and let Jesus do his thing. Be a roadie for Christ!

Because of Jesus.

Through the Roof!

Happy Birthday, Church! #Pentecost

Most of you are probably familiar with the story found in Luke 5:18-26 in which 4 friends carry a paralytic to see Jesus. Unable to get to him through any normal route, they cut a hole in the roof of the house and lower their friend down to Jesus. The story had many layers, including the divinity of Christ and the Pharisees complete lack of faith and understanding. But primarily this story is about the faith of a man and his 4 friends- and how that faith led to major moment in the Jesus Revolution. Today, as we pause for a time of worship and reflection, I invite you to spend some time with these two questions:

1. Who brought you into the presence of Christ?  This question is not so much about who preached the sermon or sang the song as it is about who dropped you through the roof to get you there. For me, it was my best friend from 8th grade on, Steve. And just like with the friends in the scripture, there were obstacles to overcome. He had invited me to go to summer camp with him and to attend his youth group, but I kept coming up with excuses. And he kept asking. He finally got through to me when I found out that the right girl would be at a youth group skating party. The mats our friends use to take us to Jesus can take many forms. I didn't know that Steve was changing my life forever- and I'm not sure he did either. But he did. He brought me into the presence of the Christ who would say to me over and over again in my life, "Get up!  Your sins are forgiven." And trust me, there are still plenty of Pharisees who scoff at that today.
2. Who is it in your life that you need to lower through the roof? I was taught a long time ago that it is important to have at least one specific person in your life that you are praying for in the hopes that they will come to know Jesus. In my youth groups we often spoke of praying for the Empty Chair- lifting up our friends who needed to be there and were not. And while the praying is important, I think sometimes we let ourselves off the hook too easily. Sometimes we need to physically bring them to the feet of the Savior. We need to invite them to church, or to a small group, or a concert, or dinner at our home- someplace where they will encounter the living Christ. We may need to put them on a mat, or in a car, or on a boat- whatever means necessary- to get them to Jesus. For the friends in Luke's gospel, it was about having their friend healed. It is no different for us. The healing may not be physical. It may be a relationship that needs help. It may be emotional. It is certainly spiritual. They need to see the Great Physician. They need to experience the Jesus Revolution in their lives. And it is our task as their friend to make sure they have that opportunity.

Take some time today to be still and think on these questions. Remember who it was (and it may be many people on more than one occasion) that brought you to see Jesus at a time when you desperately needed Him. And who is it that God is calling you to bring? Even if you need to go through the roof...

Because of Jesus,

Blessed Are the Riffraff

Riff Raff- from the Underdog cartoons. Yeah...I'm old!

Matthew 9:11-13 - Later when Jesus was eating supper at Matthew's house with his close followers, a lot of disreputable characters came and joined them. When the Pharisees saw him keeping this kind of company, they had a fit, and lit into Jesus' followers. "What kind of example is this from your Teacher, acting cozy with crooks and riffraff?"  Jesus, overhearing, shot back, "Who needs a doctor: the healthy or the sick? Go figure out what this Scripture means: 'I'm after mercy, not religion.' I'm here to invite outsiders, not coddle insiders."   (The Message)

If you've ever been in leadership with a student ministry then you have no doubt heard comments like these, usually from parents of other teenagers:

• "Why are you letting that girl go on the mission trip? She has all of those tattoos and piercings, and everything she owns is black. She's scary..."
• "I heard that the boy with the blue hair smokes dope. He shouldn't be here. His parents don't even go to this church!"
• "Why is that pregnant girl singing a solo with the youth choir when my good little girl Angela- who's never done a thing wrong in her life- has never had a solo?"
• "You need to quit paying so much attention to all of the scum that are coming to youth group and concentrate on the kids of church members. It's church members that pay your salary, not these rejects you seem to like so much."

I didn't have to make up those examples- they are very close to direct quotes of things said to me over the years (there was no Angela- the name was changed to protect the guilty!). You've probably heard similar things about adults in your church as well. As the scripture from Matthew 9 tells us, the Church has struggled since the very beginning to know how to respond to "notorious sinners." I have read several articles lately that attribute this problem to the fact that the business of the church is to reach the lost, while our churches are full of folks who are "saved." According to these authors it is this phenomenon that creates a tension in our congregations. Our churches are full of good people, and it is difficult for them to open their fellowship to the riffraff of the world. That's what they say. Really.

HORSECRAP!!!!!

If our churches were really full of people who understand the teachings of Christ, those people would be bending over backwards to serve the lost and the hurting. Here's what I think. I think that our churches are full of people who have a knowledge of Jesus, but not a relationship with Him. We know how to act like a Christian, and so we do- forgetting that "all sin and fall short of the glory of God." We spend so much time pretending to have it all together- denying the sin in our lives by pointing out the sin in the lives of others. And when we come face to face with others who are openly struggling with sin and temptation, with others who are lost and seeking the answer, it scares us. We are afraid because they are different, and because their lives are real and ours are not. We are afraid that someone might discover our sin and blow our cover as "Super Christian!"  Think back to the examples I gave from youth ministry. Have we truly given our hearts and minds to Jesus if we have attitudes like that? Of course not. There is no love or grace in that kind of language. There is only judgement and condemnation. It reduces Christianity to a performance based love, and here's how it works- if you look, sound, dress and behave like I think a Christian should, THEN you are welcome in my church. Max Lucado wrote that God doesn't say: "Change your life and I will accept you." He says "I accept you- now let's change your life."  We want people to have it all together before they ever show up. Jesus told the Pharisees he didn't want them to have religion at all. He wanted them to have mercy. He wanted them to welcome the tax collectors and the lepers and the outcasts of society. He wants us to do the same- but not with an attitude of superiority or by acting holier-than -thou. It's a slippery slope to travel, because if you spend too much time thinking, "Thank God I am not like the Pharisees," then guess what? You are becoming one. Jesus saved us all with an amazing unconditional love that has nothing to with our performance. It has everything to do with surrendering our hearts to Him and sharing His love and grace with our world.

I have been a Christian for a very long time, seeking to follow Jesus in every aspect of my life. I have failed in more ways than I can recount here. But that's not the worst part- we all fail. The worst part is that I became convinced that as a pastor I was to never let anyone know I had struggles. There is no glory in being a pretend saint. When my sin exploded into public view, I suddenly became one of the outcasts. There were many brothers and sister in Christ who never quit loving me, and that grace carried me through a couple of very hard years. But a couple of pastors and a large part of the institution of the church just saw me as damaged goods. They felt it sent the wrong message to have a sinner involved in church (think about that line for a moment...). One church told me and my family to stay away. I had become the riffraff. We keep getting the story wrong. The Good News is not that because of Jesus I no longer sin and therefore am better than you. The Good News is that Jesus came for you, and me, and the girl with the tattoos, and the guy with blue hair and the pregnant girl. Jesus even came for the Kardashians. He came for the riffraff. And to paraphrase the great Pogo, "we have seen the riffraff- and it is us!" We all "need a doctor." Until we learn to love people not because they are like us, but because Jesus loves them, we are missing the boat. And the Church is missing its calling.

So today I offer you my own Beatitude. Blessed are the riffraff, for they will be called friends of Jesus. Welcome to the club...

Because of Jesus,

Thunder Road

"Heaven's waiting on down the tracks 

Oh-oh come take my hand 
We're riding out tonight to case the promised land 
Oh-oh Thunder Road oh Thunder Road..." ~ Springsteen

When talking about the #NarrowRoad that we walk when following Jesus we often think of it as peaceful and serene place, a place where we walk in quiet solitude. This is not always the case, and scripture makes this very clear. Over the weekend I was reminded of this and also of one of the greatest nicknames ever bestowed upon human beings. In the Gospel of Mark, chapter 3, we read a synopsis of Jesus calling the 12 disciples. If you are like me, the disciple you can relate to the most is Simon Peter- because he was as big a screw-up as we are, yet Jesus built the church on his faith. Who wouldn't love to be a Simon Peter? But also among the 12 are the brothers James & John, the sons of Zebedee. Let me press pause and say that if the story ended there, James & John would already be awesome, because Zebedee may be the best name ever! I would have fought to name my son Zebedee, but I enjoyed living with my wife and didn't want to spend all of my time praying to the patron saint of lost causes. Still, just being the sons of Zebedee would have been cool enough. But Jesus gave them a nickname that transformed them into rock stars. He called them "Boanerges," which means Sons of Thunder. While no explanation is given in scripture, it is assumed by scholars (and me!) that this nickname was a reference to their bold and zealous personalities - illustrated by a later incident in which they wanted to "call down fire from heaven" to destroy the people of a Samaritan village who had refused to allow Jesus and His apostles to pass through on their way to Jerusalem (Luke 9:51-56).  These guys knew what it meant to be passionate for Jesus. They had the fire in their eyes. These guys understood that the #NarrowRoad sometimes needs to be Thunder Road!

And clearly their Master appreciated this in the two brothers. James & John were always there (along with Peter) when Jesus needed his "inner circle." James would go on to be the first of the disciples to be martyred (Acts 12:2) and John would write his "revelation" from prison on the island of Patmos. These were men who gave their lives to Christ, not just in word, but in deeds- in big, honkin', passionate deeds. 

So it seems to me that walking the #NarrowRoad may require us to be a part of a 21st century chapter of the Sons of Thunder. This would be a group of believers who understand that following Jesus is everything. They would understand that being a people of love, grace and peace is not a weakness, but a bold stance for our Savior in this world we live in. The modern Sons of Thunder would be a radical presence for Jesus in our communities and a passionate thorn in the side of the institutional church. I am not much of a joiner, but this is a group I want to be a part of- and soon! How about you? The team would be filled with folks (male & female!) with the cajones to call down fire from heaven when the occasion calls for it. To join is to understand that if Jesus were walking the earth today he would be hanging out with the most unlikely people, demanding peace and justice, confronting false idols and fake teachers and calling us to do the same. Accepting such a call is not without risk. Your passion may offend your neighbors and other Christians. Your churches may be among the first to disown you. The love and grace you offer to others may baffle them. You will almost certainly be called upon to sacrifice for the cause. You may receive a vision from God that will confuse people for the next 2000 years. But when it comes to following Jesus, I am ready to make some noise. It's time to bring the thunder...

Let's be bold together and change the world. Let's be radicals for Christ. The 1st century Sons of Thunder helped turn their world upside down. A modern version could do the same. If you're in, leave me a comment and let me know. Seriously. It's going to be a wild ride on the #NarrowRoad. And we're going to have AWESOME t-shirts...

Because of Jesus,

I Believe in the Prince of Peace

"I'm a writer, not a fighter..."  - Gilbert O'Sullivan

Some of you know that I am in the midst of a series of random posts called Things I Believe (and you probably don't)! This post is another in that series. Lately several of my posts have been about what it means to be more like Jesus, and one of the aspects I have focused on is his role at the Prince of Peace. This has caused several readers to question if I really believe peace in possible in our lives and in our world in these crazy times. This is my response to those queries. I know this an unpopular opinion. But it is something I believe with all my heart.

I am a pacifist (a believer in nonviolence and peacemaking) because I believe that is what Jesus calls me to be. For me, pacifism is a matter of faith, not politics. Today I would like to tell why I believe pacifism to be the way of the Prince of Peace. (The sound you hear may be half of my 2500 Twitter followers clicking "unfollow" all at once...)

I believe that if we call ourselves followers of Jesus then we must be willing to heed all of his teachings, not just the ones that are convenient in this day and age. He even goes so far as to warn us that when we follow him, we may lose lose everything- because "to find your life you must lose it." It is difficult to love our enemies, yet we are called to do just that. It is hard to turn the other cheek or walk the second mile instead of seeking revenge or "justice," yet that is the path we are called to follow. In the Beatitudes (Matthew 5) Jesus gives us a quick list of life-attitudes that will make us blessed. Included are things like mercy, meekness and peace making- all of which seem so out-of-step with our society. As the great Tom Lehrer once wrote, "It takes a certain amount of courage to speak out about things no one else believes in- like peace and justice and brotherhood." It's a strange world. When Jesus was attacked at the time of his arrest and Peter came to his defense, Jesus rebuked him and told Peter to put away the sword- to my mind disarming me as well. Everything Jesus taught us encourages us to respond to others with God's love, no matter the situation. I believe that scripture declares human life to be sacred, and that there should not be exceptions to that- that pro-life should REALLY mean that God values every life, both the sinner and saint. I believe that the ways of  Jesus are the ways of non-violence. You may not, and I do not claim to have cornered the market on knowledge of what Jesus thought. But as I said before, I find pacifism to be a matter of faith. Psalm 23 reminds us to "fear no evil for God is with us."  Yet we insist on fearing and trying to protect ourselves rather than trusting in God. To again paraphrase Lehrer, "the LORD's our shepherd says the Psalm, but just in case...I better buy a gun!" I know that without grace and the love of God whose name is Jesus that I am condemned to death by my own sin. I owe him my life and my salvation. How can I not trust Him to protect me when I need protecting, even as He did Daniel, Rack, Shack and Benny? It is a matter of faith.

Over the years this stance has often made others question how I would actually respond when faced with violence against myself or my family. I have good friends, people I love and respect, who cannot imagine not fighting tooth and nail to protect their families if the need arose. They find my beliefs to be hard to understand...or downright ludicrous. Surely if I had a way to defend my family, I would. How could I say that I would respond to such a situation with non-violence?

The scenario that is often presented is this-  intruders invade my home and threaten my family. They have a gun, and I have mine. How could I know I would not kill them to save myself and my family? And the fact is that situation requires me to answer I don't know. How could I? Under those circumstances, under all of that tension, it is possible I might just shoot first. I hate to admit it, but it is the truth.

But such scenarios are missing the point for a true pacifist. There is only one way I can stick to my beliefs and practice non-violence in such situations. I must simply never have a weapon. And so I don't. You may think this makes me weak. And you know what? You are right. I am weak, in so many ways. That is why I must lean on the strength of the One who has already saved me from this world. If someone wants to do harm to me or my family, they will have to deal with Jesus, and we will be with Jesus- no matter the outcome. What more protection do I need? 

This is NOT specifically an anti-gun post. I have many friends who are responsible gun owners, hunters and target shooters. But I am anti-violence, and there are far too many gun deaths in our country. More people have been killed by gunfire in the county I live in than by car wrecks so far in 2015. We have a problem. Handguns and assault rifles are not sporting guns, and many of the "people" (I mean idiots, but that seems insensitive to say!) who own them shouldn't be allowed to have Swiss Army Knives, much less high powered weapons. Something needs to change. I do not have the answer for our nation. But as for me and my house, we will serve the LORD. And for us, that means no guns. It means trusting God as we "walk through the valley of the shadow of death." It means having the faith to trust God more than guns. And I do...

Because of Jesus,