This is a weekly series with things I’m reading and pondering from Oswald Chambers. You can read the original seed thought here, or type “Thursdays With Oswald” in the search box to read more entries.
Stay Away From Controversies
That is the danger of putting theology first; it leads a man to tell a lie in order to be consistent with his point of view. …In a theological dispute the theologian is apt to put his point of view in the place of God. … Only one man in a thousand can maintain his spiritual life and controvert; he may increase his intellectual vim, but he does not increase his spiritual grasp of things. Dr. Alexander Whyte put this better than any other when he said:
“…Eschew controversy, my brethren, as you would eschew the entrance to hell itself. Let them have it their way; let them talk; let them write; let them correct you; let them traduce you; let them judge and condemn you; let them slay you. Rather let the truth of God suffer itself, than that love suffer. You do not have enough of the divine nature in you to be a controversialist.”
From Baffled To Fight Better
Augustine prayed: “Heal me of this lust of mine of always vindicating myself.”
When David was attacked he prayed: “I cry out to God Most High, to God, who vindicates me” (Psalm 57:2).
Who cares what others say? Who cares if you “lose” the argument? What does God say? Let Him—and Him alone—vindicate you.
I believe God brings us to certain places and experiences in our lives to develop more of His nature in us. One of the aspects of God’s nature is His empathy. That word literally means to be in suffering with someone. Throughout all of history, God continually tells humanity, “I feel what you feel. When you suffer, I suffer too.” The Bible also tells us that Jesus experienced everything we will ever experience, and knows just how we feel.
So this week I’m experiencing what it’s like to be a single parent. Betsy is visiting her family in California, so I’m home with our kids. Granted this is not even close to what true single parents have to cope with. They do it for years, and I’m struggling with just a week. But my week-long experience is developing greater empathy in me.
I’ve got my usual slate of activity for this week, and then I come home to a crying child who is dealing with a rough relationship issue at school. And then I’m trading texts with a coach, trying to work out details for a practice schedule for another child. And then I’m juggling how to get my kids to three different activities, which all start at almost the same time. And then I’m trying to figure out the family meals, and squeezing in a trip to the grocery store. And then I’m having a discussion with my kids about a housekeeping issue. And then … and then … and then …
God’s design was for our kids to have two parents: a Mom and a Dad. When one parent is missing, I believe God gives extra grace to the remaining parent to operate in both roles. But that isn’t God’s ideal. Into this void, Christians are supposed to step in.
Support organizations that assist single parents.
Better yet: volunteer at one of these organization.
Invite a single-parent family over to dinner at your house.
Be a mentor.
If your kids are going somewhere a single parent’s kids are, offer to help carpool.
Guys, be a father-figure to fatherless kids.
Ladies, be a mother-figure to motherless kids.
Let a single parent drop off his/her kids at your house so that parent can have some alone time.
Take a single parent out for coffee and let them vent.
Provide a scholarship to a camp for single-parent kids.
The cliché said, “It takes a village to raise a child.” I think it’s even better this way: It takes a loving Church to raise a healthy, well-balance FAMILY.
The quote on the front cover of Doing Virtuous Business by Theodore Roosevelt Malloch says it well: “Every CEO should read this book.” I agree!
It seems that our mainstream media has become more and more anti-capitalism and anti-private business. It seems a small — but very vocal — group would prefer that our government oversee every business enterprise. According to Theodore Malloch, nothing could be farther from the biblical way of thinking about business.
By using both real-time examples of virtuous businesses and the wisdom of Scripture, Mr. Malloch makes the strong case that businesses operating on biblical virtues become spiritual enterprises that can benefit all of society. As a former business owner myself, I couldn’t agree more.
A few quotes from the book to whet your appetite—
By creating wealth, we use God’s gifts responsibly, and provided that we work toward that goal in a spirit of humility and gratitude, we benefit all those with whom we deal long the way.
When people join together in an enterprise, they create a new person, the firm itself, which is something greater than the sum of its parts. It, too, has a soul, and if its members honor God, then it, too, honors God.
Profitability comes last among the principles: it is not the primary goal of the company, but the consequence of doing business in the right way, so as to honor God.
A company guided by faith will possess the virtues that I have described in this book: it will have the courage and perseverance to pursue its goals and also the humility, compassion, and forgiveness to guard against arrogance and offensiveness.
This is the first book I have read in quite awhile that deals head-on with the weak arguments the anti-capitalists use. And it does so winsomely, kindly, and quite persuasively. I repeat it again: every CEO should read this book!
I’m participating in the 2001 Lifewalk to benefit the Alpha Family Center in Cedar Springs. Alpha provides all sorts of resources to teens and particularly counseling for young, often unwed, parents. Lifewalk is their major fundraising event each year.
So here are two ways you can help:
Sign-up to walk with me on Saturday, June 18, at 10am. You can sign up and get a sponsorship form by clicking here.
Make a financial pledge to me for walking in Lifewalk. If you would like to make a pledge, you can do so through PayPal (be sure to put “Lifewalk” on the memo line).
Thank you for helping me support this solidly PRO-LIFE organization!
It wasn’t for nothing that Charles Spurgeon was called “the prince of preachers.” In We Shall See God by Randy Alcorn, you can get a taste of Spurgeon’s eloquence, and of Heaven’s majesty.
We Shall See God is a collection of Spurgeon’s sermons about Heaven. Randy Alcorn has done a masterful job of culling through the prince’s sermons to pull out excerpts that talk about the beauty of Heaven and the horrors of Hell. Randy’s comments following each passage from Spurgeon are wonderfully presented. He doesn’t “talk over” Spurgeon, nor does he simply rehash what Spurgeon already said. He eloquently amplifies or briefly explains.
This book is designed to be used as a 50-day devotional reading. But I’ll be honest with you: I couldn’t put it down! I was so enthralled by Spurgeon’s description of Heaven, that I couldn’t wait to read more. And now I can’t wait to tell others more about Heaven.
Lately there have been so many authors and blogger hypothesizing about Heaven and Hell and the after-life. But Spurgeon doesn’t give us his opinion, he gives us biblical insight. And wouldn’t you much rather hear what the Creator of Heaven has to say about it, than what any mere mortal has to say?
I highly recommend this book to you. You will not only look forward to Heaven even more, but you will enjoy your brief journey on this Earth even more too.
I’m so grateful for the men and women who have put themselves on the front lines to keep us the land of the free and the home of the brave! One day a year is far too short a time to honor our fallen heroes, so let’s make sure we start today, and remember them all year long.
Thank you soldiers, sailors, airmen and Marines! Because of you, we enjoy our freedom today. May God bless you!
This is a poem by my friend Barney Fritcher entitled “They Stand”—
They stand at attention saluting our flag,
or they place a hand over their heart.
They’ve stood together on foreign lands,
each one has done their part.
They’ve defended this nation and some have died
to ensure that you’ve kept your rights.
They’ve watched as their buddies fell to the ground,
and they’ve slept in the jungle some nights.
They’ve crawled in the mud while covered with blood,
our children, our daughters, and sons,
and never, not once did they go on strike,
saying they did not get enough funds.
Many days they have gone without sleep
as they fought for this country we love.
Thousands of them have lost their lives
and went with our God up above.
To us, they are heroes, but to them it’s their job,
they do what needs to be done,
defending this country that we so love,
even down to the last one.
We give them a day to memorialize them,
to honor them for all that they do,
but a year would not be honor enough
for the service they give that is true.
Army, Navy, Air Force, Marines,
men and woman that are so grand.
They serve this nation of America,
and forever, together they stand.
People who call themselves Christians should know how to read the Bible, right? Maybe, but many times I think we assume far too much. Fortunately How To Read Your Bible by A.J. Conyers can help.
Some people avoid the Old Testament, saying, “It’s too confusing!”
Some people simply flip their Bibles open to any passage and simply start reading.
Some people only open their Bibles when they’re at church.
All of these methods may work, but they’re not the best way to learn what God has to say to us in His Word. A.J. Conyers explains to his readers the art of reading the Bible, as well as the practice of reading the Bible. He gives enough background information to get you started in the right direction, and he gives you ample resources to continue digging into God’s Word more.
As you might have noticed, I love to read. But hands-down-without-question my favorite book is the Bible. Every time I open it up, I find something new to apply to my life. If you’re having difficulty getting started on a Bible study, this book may be just the thing to help get things rolling.
(I’m also a big fan of YouVersion: the Bible app for your smart phone. You can download it for your iPhone or Droid by clicking here.)
I remember once going to play golf with two other friends. When we got to the course, the starter added another guy—someone we didn’t know—to our group to round-out our foursome. We began to “play” our round of golf (I use the term play loosely), and joke, and laugh, and enjoy ourselves.
About 4 or 5 holes into our round, our new friend asked what we all did. I responded, “He’s a pastor, I’m a pastor, and that guy over there is a missionary.”
Our new friend looked shocked. “You mean you’re all Christians?!”
“Yes, we are,” I said. “Does that surprise you?”
“Yes,” he replied, and then quickly added, “But I’ve never had so much fun playing golf before!”
It’s funny, and yet sad. Why would Christians be thought of as boring? dull? killjoys? Shouldn’t we be the most happy and joy-filled of all?
Here’s what Charles Spurgeon said—
We ought to be glad and rejoice forever in that which God creates. Ours is a heritage of joy and peace. My dear brothers and sisters, if anybody in the world ought to be happy, we are the people.
How large our obligations! How boundless our privileges! How brilliant our hopes!
What should make us miserable? Sin? That is forgiven. Affliction? That is working our good. Inward corruptions? They are doomed to die. satanic temptations? We wear an armor which they cannot penetrate. We have every reason for delight, and we have moreover this command for it: “Delight yourself in the Lord, and He will give you the desires of your heart” (Psalm 37:4). May God bring us into that blessed condition and keep us there!
God intends not only that we should have joy but also that we should spread it among others. He intends that wherever we go we should be light bearers and set other lamps shining.
Can people tell you have the joy of the Lord? Are you bringing light and laughter to dark and somber places? If you are filled up with God, how happy you should be!
Then you will know that I am the Lord; those who HOPE in Me will not be disappointed. (Isaiah 49:23)
Craig T. Owens 