It’s the Economy, Stupid!

We are witnessing a serious downturn in the United States economy right now and it is going to make life interesting and challenging for a while. Why is this happening and what do we, as Christians, do about it?

This economic problem is not a sudden thing. It has been building for quite some time. Matters that factor in include the lack of a gold standard for our currency, corporate greed, lack of integrity in the leaders of corporations, government and the private sector, government that doesn’t know how to control itself trying to pretend that it can control the economy. People taking their focus off of God and putting their hope in money and things only build on the problem.

Why are we having this problem and what is the solution?

I’m only going to focus on one aspect of the problem because if we get this issue back in the proper place, everything else will be resolved.

Love of Money
The biggest problem is greed. People have taken their focus off of loving and serving God and trusting in Him and have chosen to put their trust in their money and possessions. Until we get God back on the throne, we will flounder, blunder and watch our wealth disappear.

Paul wrote to a young preacher Timothy. In his letter he reminded Timothy of the danger of focusing too much on money. I Timothy 6:6-10 says: But godliness with contentment is great gain. For we brought nothing into the world, and we can take nothing out of it. But if we have food and clothing, we will be content with that. People who want to get rich fall into temptation and a trap and into many foolish and harmful desires that plunge men into ruin and destruction. For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil. Some people, eager for money, have wandered from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs. [1]

Everyone seems to think that having more money and being able to control it will solve all of their problems. Therefore, they focus on getting more money instead of serving people. Granted, it is a lot easier to buy food, shelter and clothing with money than without it. The problem is that money can be taken away faster than it can be acquired. People who are rich have realized, like people who are poor, that happiness isn’t in having money or things. Happiness is the peace we have knowing that we are forgiven and have eternal life with Jesus Christ. You can’t find enough money to buy that kind of peace.

Proverbs 11:28 says – Whoever trusts in his riches will fall, but the righteous will thrive like a green leaf.

Proverbs 23:5 reminds us – Cast but a glance at riches, and they are gone, for they will surely sprout wings and fly off to the sky like an eagle.

Again and again, the Bible reinforces what any observant person can now see. Money and wealth can’t be trusted. It can be taken away faster than it can be gained. It can take as long to build as the World Trade Center and then be taken away as fast as the World Trade Center on 9-11. If we hope in our money and possessions, what are we going to have when a hurricane, earthquake, fire, flood or other tragedy takes them all away?

In Mark 8:36-38, Jesus said, “What good is it for a man to gain the whole world, yet forfeit his soul? Or what can a man give in exchange for his soul? If anyone is ashamed of me and my words in this adulterous and sinful generation, the Son of Man will be ashamed of him when he comes in his Father’s glory with the holy angels.”

Surviving a Crisis
So what do we do while the economy is going through all of this turmoil?
Christians who are focused on God and their relationship with Jesus Christ will stay calm, continue working, keep their spending within their income and survive with peace and security. People who lose their focus will panic and experience great grief as they watch their “god” of money disappear before their eyes.

In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus had proclaimed in Matthew 6:19-21 – “Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.”

Let’s focus on His admonition and find our peace and hope in who He is in us instead of the money.

[1]All Scriptures are from The Holy Bible : New International Version. 1996, c1984 (electronic ed.) (Mk 8:36-38). Grand Rapids: Zondervan.

They have it all wrong!

I was just thinking about all of this arguing over abortion, homosexual lifestyle and marriage, pornography, pedophilia and a host of related issues and I want to tell you that they have it all wrong. We have been trying to stop a tree from growing by cutting the branches instead of going to the trunk and focusing on the root.

Why do we have men raping women? Why do we have women displaying themselves to men for the purpose of sexual arousal? Why do we have men seeking young boys or girls for sexual encounters? Why are so many young people having sex on dates and then wondering what went wrong when the girl gets pregnant? Why do they all of a sudden feel remorseful, after she is pregnant and say that they wanted to get married first when they are already having sex? DUH!

Why do we have men having sex with other men, thinking that it is more desirable than sex with a woman or women pretending that sex with each other is more desirable and that such behavior is "inherited"? What gene are they propagating through heterosexual relationships that creates a homosexual person? (After all, it is biologically impossible for homosexual couples to reproduce. Therefore, any such "gene" would be eliminated in one generation because there would be no siblings to carry it on to future generations.) DUH!

The trunk issue is about sex outside of marriage.
When we argue over sex, we are right to determine that life begins at conception. We are right to acknowledge that sex inside the marriage relationship is preferred. However, we fail to point out that abstinence before or outside of marriage is the real solution. Instead we get caught up in the woman's rights, homosexual's rights, and freedom of speech "rights" of pornographers. We don't want to confront the world with the idea of a moral absolute, so each person tries to deny that anything is wrong, until it is done to them and then they complain because they now have a "problem"! DUH! What is the "TRUNK" of this issue?

Lets look at the branch that contains the entire abortion issue. Those who try to justify abortion by arguing that a woman has a right to choose never demand that she have the right to choose to say, "NO" to sex outside of marriage. We seem to think that a person who isn't having sex, whether married or not, is abnormal. We seem to think that a woman only has a right to "choose" after they have become pregnant. How much of the abortion problem would absolutely disappear if men and women saved sex for marriage? DUH!

Regarding the branch of sexually transmitted diseases: People who are sexually active outside of marriage often wonder if they have caught a disease after some encounter. They then have to go to the doctor, admit that they were having sex outside of marriage and hope he can cure this problem that they just acquired. Much fuss is being made about a cure for AIDS. I have the best solution in the world! Would we save ourselves a lot of embarrassment, guilt, health problems if we saved sex for marriage? The fact is that if we saved sex for marriage, AIDS and all other sexually transmitted diseases could be "cured" - totally eliminated from our world in one generation. DUH!

Regarding the branch homosexual behavior and homosexual marriage, if we were to reestablish that sex is between a husband and wife, and live by that mandate, there would be no homosexuality and related diseases, "marriage" or rights issues, etc. There would also be a mass elimination of almost all pedophilia and child pornography issues! Think about how many children would be able to grow up without having to remember some past event when an older man (or woman) violated them in a sexual way! DUH!

I'm not done yet. How about the branch of the child pornography/pedophilia problem? The ALCU wants to defend the right of pedophiles to commit this atrocious crime, yet the people and press call FOUL when someone violates a child. We don't want child molesters living in our neighborhood, yet no one seems to think that we need to make more noise that sex outside of marriage is wrong, whether with an adult or child. Wouldn't it make more sense to teach adults that sex is between a husband and wife and no one else? DUH!

The root of the issue is whether we believe God's standards or not.
When you trace the tree trunk down to the roots, it's all about God. Is God the all-knowing, all-powerful, everywhere present creator of Heaven and Earth? Is God the creator of mankind, marriage, sexual relations, etc.? Is God the absolute authority on what is right or wrong, or does he allow each of us to try to figure it out for ourselves?

My understanding of "God" means a superior, absolutely powerful, source of knowledge, supreme being. God created us. He knows how He designed us to work. He knows what is best for us. He is the only one who is qualified to establish what is right and what is wrong. There are no exceptions. God's way is always the right way. Any other way is questionable at best, or downright wrong.

How much pain do we have to suffer before we realize that God is a lot smarter than we are? How long before we realize that His way is always the right way and that our way is flawed, faulty, full of problems and pain?

When we try to decide for themselves what is right or wrong, we get into conflicts. How do you establish that what another person believes is right for them to do is wrong? If a pedophile believes he is right, then by the world's logic, who can tell him he is wrong? If a rapist or prostitute think what they are doing is alright for them, how do we help them to see that what they are doing is wrong?

The root of this problem is to get back to following God's standards and stop trying to make up our own as we go along. God's way is not cruel, harsh, hurtful or demanding. His way is loving. It gives us greater freedom. By conducting our God's way, we spare ourselves from the embarrassment, pain, guilt and shame that our way often leads us to. God's way is unselfish. Our way is often very selfish, at the expense of another person's rights or freedom.

When are we going to start pointing out to the world that their selfish sexual sin is hurting them much more than by doing it God's way? DUH!

A Woman Vice-President?

I'm hearing a lot of talk about John McCain picking Governor Sarah Palin as his running mate. Most of what I have heard seems positive, but I have heard some sharp critics to his choice also. Of course, prior to the Democratic National Convention, there was much talk about Hillary Clinton being the Democratic nominee for President, and then a possible pick for Vice-President with Barak Obama. In the process, other women were rumored to having been considered, but none made any real news as a serious candidate.

As a Christian, how do you feel about a woman President or Vice-President?

I observe through the Old Testament that almost every leader was a man. There were at least two times when God couldn't find a man who would stand up to the job, so a woman took the helm and did quite well.

In the New Testament, we see women in prominent roles more than once. Philip had four daughters that prophesied (Acts 21:9). That is virtually the same as a preacher, which is a positition of leadership. Lydia had a church meeting in her house (Acts 16:40). Although she may not have been the leader, she obviously played a significant role in the church's leadership.

The comments about Aquilla and Priscilla imply that she played a major part in teaching the Gospel. There are other situations where women played significant roles in the church and community.

Paul makes it clear, in I Timothy, that a woman is not to be an Elder (Biship, Overseer) in a church. He declares that an elder must be the "husband of one wife" (I Timothy 3:2) which rules out a woman in that position. He does mention women as "deaconesses" a little later in the same chapter, but the top leadership in a church is expected to be of masculine gender.

So how does that apply to our national government? What does that have to do with a woman Vice-President, or possibly, President.

There are women in top leadership in many companies across the United States and around the world. Several states have had a woman governor at one time or another. I can think of some churches that are more controlled by the women than by any men (including those who are supposed to be in leadership). I have known of women who are preachers, and quite good at it.

Is it possible that a woman could be in subjection to her husband as he is the head of the home and she could still be the President, CEO or hold some other major office in a company or government? It is being done in many places. Other countries in the world have been run at one time or other by a woman. So why could a woman not possibly be President of the United States?

I personally prefer male leadership, but if a woman comes along who is better qualified for the job, then I could see God putting her in a place of leadership and her being capable of being a good leader. I would be more concerned about her values than her gender. Does she honor God as God? Does she respect the teachings of the Bible? Is she committed to running the company or this nation according to God's absolute moral code of ethics? Those are the things that I think are most important, than whether she is a man or woman.

Restraint of Power

I was speaking to a Bible study group earlier today about the Passionate, Personal, and Powerful relationship that the Apostles had with Jesus and how we can build that same relationship through the Getting To Know Jesus Bible study lessons.

I recalled that when I was in college working on my Master's degree, one of the professors pointed out that God's greatest attribute is not His POWER, but His restraint of power. It became a very important point for me to remember as I continued to build my life in Him.

As we learn more about Jesus, we tend to grow closer to Him. This gives us power over temptation and sin. We gain the power to restrain the power to sin. We trade the power to sin, and the entrapment and consequences that it brings, for the freedom and hope that we have because Jesus Christ is living in us.

I pray that you will also build the power of Jesus in your life to overcome the temptations to sin and enjoy greater freedom in your walk with Him.

Worshipping People over Worshipping God

The Democratic Convention is now going on and many people are ascribing worth and value to Barak Obama. I'm not suggesting that they are placing him of greater value that God (although some most definitely are). But they are giving him recognition and a worth that may be more than he deserves.

Sadly, way to many of us, including Christians, ascribe worth to a human simply because they are a celebrity, athlete, politician or of some position that suggests a position of honor. While it is definitely appropriate to show respect and even recognize a person's accomplishments, we sometimes need to check our boundaries. At what point are we placing the worship of this person beyond what they really deserve? Don't worry, next week there will be many doing the same thing to John McCain.

My desire is that, while we recognize and appreciate people who have won gold medals in the Olympics, hold a high political office, have gained notariety in the entertainment or sports fields, we will not allow our admiration and recognition of their achievements to overshadow what Jesus did for us on the cross.

No one in the history of the world has done as much for all of mankind than what Jesus did when He paid the penalty for all of the wrongs that you and I have committed. No one is as worthy as worship as God, the Father, who accepted Jesus's death and offers forgiveness to all who will confess their belief that Jesus died for them and will seek to follow Him with their lives.

No sports figure, celebrity, national leader or businessman has done as much to impact the world as Jesus Christ. No government has as much power as Christianity does to change people's lives and control their behavior. No government has ever been able to silence Christianity either.

While we recognize those who have accomplished great things among us, let us never allow our appreciation of a person, sports team or anything else to take greater priority in our lives than the worship of Jesus Christ.

He love you soooooo much that He died for your sins too.

Thank You, Lord, for saving my soul!

Passionate about Jesus

We generally respect and even appreciate someone who is sincerely passionate about a cause. Although we may not always agree with them, we generally do respect them, unless their view is extreme and harmful to general mankind.

An positive example is the passion more and more Christians are getting for standing up for our faith in Jesus Christ. It is exciting to see Christians getting involved in community and shool issues to prevent those who promote evil from having free reign with their agendas. It takes guts, courage, conviction, and often the ability to get your views out in a clear and articulate manner to gain the respect of those around you. But when someone does stand up for Christ and Christian values against the tide, we admire them and are encouraged to follow, assist, support or become more like their example.

A negative example will be someone who is radically criticizing another person, putting them or an issue down without any balance or real thought about what they are saying. When someone engages in bashing (watch the coming elections), we tend to dismiss that person as a radical who does not have a real understanding of the situation. Unfortunately, I have done this on occasion in the past and I have to often witnessed other Christians engaging in similar behavior.

As Christians, we need to get serious about our relationship with Jesus. We need to tell the world what we stand for and why in a way that they will respect and consider our views. We can do that with passion without bashing, getting extremely emotional or radical in our comments.

The Apostles were passionate about Jesus. That is why we look up to them. Some of us have caught on and are likewise not backing down when the world says or does something that is a violation of what the Bible teaches. Some of us are even going into places where we can confront those who promote evil, engage them in intelligent debate and expose thier sinful agendas.

I pray that you will learn about Jesus in such a way that you will grow more passionate in your relationship with Him.

Recognizing Commitment and Hard Work

A couple of days ago, I commented on Michael Phelps setting 7 Olympic records and winning a record 8 gold medals. Although my point was correct, I should have given Michael more credit for the years of training, commitment and effort he put in.

What Michael has accomplished is phenomenal. I never intended to take that away from him, but here I want to commend him for it. He found something that he does well, enjoys doing and can use as a springboard to other great achievements in life. Whether he becomes a professional swimming coach, athletic coach, businessman or entrepreneur or whatever, he will do well because he understands the importance of finding your dream, working on it, believing in it even when you seem to be failing and not quiting.

The difference between a person who succeeds and one who fails is that the one who succeeds never quits. Zig Ziglar says that everything is worth doing wrong until you get it right. Michael didn't get eight gold medals four years ago when he first tried in the Olympics. So he went home, did some sizeable body and strength building, practiced harder and tried again. His name will go down with Mark Spitz and many others who have achieved because they didn't quit.

What's that to you? Everyone reading this blog has a dream. Some feel so defeated, or say it's too late, that you won't even try to achieve it. Some may try a little bit but not be willing to work hard enough to gain the reward. A few may get a lucky break and walk right into their dream. Some will find a new dream that is better suited to them than what they had sought before.

I will make one more truthful and very important statement. If your dream doesn't honor Jesus Christ directly or indirectly, it will matter little in what really matters in life.

I pray that you already realize the dream in you that God has given you. I pray that God will direct your path and that you will perservere to achieve the success that He desires for you and that you desire and deserve (by this world's standards). Most of all, keep doing it for Jesus.