Blog Archives - IRONSTRIKES

God's faithfulness

4/30/2016

When God makes a covenant with us, God says: "I will love you with an everlasting love. I will be faithful to you, even when you run away from me, reject me, or betray me." In our society we don't speak much about covenants; we speak about contracts. When we make a contract with a person, we say: "I will fulfill my part as long as you fulfill yours. When you don't live up to your promises, I no longer have to live up to mine." Contracts are often broken because the partners are unwilling or unable to be faithful to their terms.

But God didn't make a contract with us; God made a covenant with us, and God wants our relationships with one another to reflect that covenant. That's why marriage, friendship, life in community are all ways to give visibility to God's faithfulness in our lives together.

For further reflection...

Nearby stood six stone water jars, the kind used by the Jews for ceremonial washing, each holding from twenty to thirty gallons. Jesus said to the servants, "Fill the jars with water"; so they filled them to the brim. Then he told them, "Now draw some out and take it to the master of the banquet." They did so, and the master of the banquet tasted the water that had been turned into wine. He did not realize where it had come from, though the servants who had drawn the water knew. Then he called the bridegroom aside and said, "Everyone brings out the choice wine first and then the cheaper wine after the guests have had too much to drink; but you have saved the best till now." - John 2: 6 - 10 (NIV)

This post was written by Henri Nouwen. You can find his website here: henrinouwen.org

Radical love

4/29/2016

Early in his career, former Ku Klux Klan (a white supremacist group) leader Johnny Lee Clary met African-American Reverend Wade Watts at a radio station debate. “Hello Mr. Clary,” Reverend Watts said before they went on air. “I just want you to know that I love you and Jesus loves you.”

The debate was intense, with Clary arguing why whites and blacks should be separated and Watts refuting each claim from Scripture. “Nothing you do can make me hate you,” he told Clary. “I’m going to love you and pray for you whether you like it or not!”

After the debate, the reverend’s windows were broken and effigies were torched on his lawn. The Klan burned down one of his churches and set fire to another. But Watts refused to retaliate.

Johnny Lee Clary’s life later collapsed. He cried out to God, and ultimately, he became a believer in Jesus. One day he phoned Watts to tell him the news. “How about you preach your very first time in my all-black church?” the reverend said. And so the one-time enemy spoke in the very church he had once set on fire.

Wade Watts followed Jesus’ command to love and pray for our enemies, and the results were profound. We’re called to do the same—whether to selfish neighbors, nasty colleagues, or Internet trolls—and Jesus gave us three ways to do it: pray for them (Matthew 5:44), meet their practical needs like God does (Matthew 5:45), and show them kindness (Matthew 5:47).

Wade Watts survived his enemies’ attacks. Martin Luther King Jr. didn’t. Johnny Lee Clary changed. Other enemies haven’t. Jesus never said that love for our enemies will solve every problem. But He does call us to a radical love that He displayed even as He suffered and died for us.

But I say, love your enemies! Pray for those who persecute you! (Matthew 5:44).

This post was written by Sheridan Voysey of Our Daily Bread. You can find their website here: www.odb.org

Ways Facebook is ruining relationships

4/28/2016

There is serious concern that Facebook is causing an increase in the number of relationship problems. From creating a loss of intimacy in the bedroom, to ruining romantic moments and increasing the likelihood of affairs and cheating, Facebook has become prime suspect number one in many relationship break ups.

Many have complained that Facebook not only destroyed their relationships but even ended their marriages.

But how big is the problem? Are these just isolated issues or is the problem more widespread?
To answer this important question, the research team at Stop Procrastinating went in search of the facts. We surveyed 5000 people about Facebook and relationships to identify the problem. And what a problem it is! The statistics speak for themselves.

Given our findings, it’s no wonder people are looking to block Facebook from their computers and Smartphones. Many are now quitting Facebook and starting a life free of the social media empire.

The full results were:

26% said they had argued with their partner because they felt neglected as updating Facebook was more important to their other half.

44% said Facebook ruined romantic moments, such as candle-lit dinners or walks, as their partner felt the need to update Facebook about it instead of enjoying the moment.

32% said they felt a loss of intimacy in the bedroom because their partner checked Facebook in bed.

22% said Facebook made it easier to keep in touch with people they had met casually. This meant, they said, it was more likely to lead to an affair as a result as they could easily find them and friend them on Facebook and ask them to meet up again.

17% has been tempted to get in touch with an ex-partner with the objective of having an affair.

47% felt they had been guilty of emotional cheating on Facebook

46% said they had monitored a partner’s activity on Facebook due to jealousy.

67% were not surprised that Facebook was cited in increasing numbers of divorce case as evidence of ex-marital affairs.

Tim Rollins, Research Director at Stop Procrastinating, said: "Facebook is a place to meet and keep in touch with friends. Only sometimes those friends are long lost lovers or people you've meet casually and didn't think you'd bump into again. Facebook is designed to you never lose touch with anyone ever again. The result is that more people falling in love on the platform, having affairs and flirting when they shouldn't be."

The survey was undertaken with 5000 people controlled for age across the country using standard research methodologies.

Stop Procrastinating is a leading research and evidence-based website. For more information, go to: http://www.stopprocrastinatingapp.com/facebook-ruins-relationships

My third recollection of God talking to me

4/27/2016

Yesterday, we talked about how God talked to me at the age of 7 and how God warned me that some things that look like like fun can actually be harmful. I'm so grateful for those times when I can clearly discern God's voice.

At the age of 17, I had another encounter with God. Now, I'm not saying that God was silent between the ages of 7 and 16 but as a middle-aged adult, this is the next occasion that stands out in my mind from my young life.

I was on a road trip with my aunt and uncle and a couple of cousins from Oklahoma to the west coast. I remember one stop along the way in Las Vegas in particular. Being below legal gambling age, I was not allowed to gamble (I didn't want to anyway) but I was allowed to go to the casino and sit on the inside edge and watch people. I've always enjoyed watching people and this was a novel environment. I was curious what happened in casinos.

I like to think that God does things specifically for me at times when he wants to teach me a lesson (BTW - I think God does that for other people, I'm no one special). In this instance, I don't know if what I saw was real or imaginary. But I remember looking to the side of the room and observing a man with a handful of dollar coins playing a slot machine. It was a big one so that he had to stand up next to it to play it. I was watching him. He put dollar after dollar into the machine and while doing so, I observed that he had one of the saddest expressions on his face that I had ever seen on a man. I heard God say to me, "do you want your life to be sad and dull like this man's or do you want to fully commit yourself to Me and do what I want you to do?" The question just hit me...I was stunned, I didn't really know what to say. I thought I was already doing what God wanted me to do. I pondered that question the rest of the day and later that evening, something occurred. While I was in my bed trying to sleep that nite, I couldn't get the question out of my mind. I spent time praying and asking God what it was that He wanted. He made it clear that He wanted me to give Him everything, including my aspirations. I remember saying "yes" to God and telling Him that He could have everything about me, all of me, just before drifting off to sleep.

Now since, my life hasn't been perfect and I still have a lot of spiritual growth to do, but I do believe that nite of consecrating myself entirely to God's purposes has had a profound effect on my life. There have been times when I wasn't sure I made the right decision to follow God and I have become discouraged. However, during those times, God's Holy Spirit has reminded me that I made this decision at age 17 and that it was a good decision. I am so thankful for these three specific times that God has spoken to me. They have become anchors, times I can point back to that demonstrate the reality of God in my life.

My second recollection of God talking to me

4/26/2016

Do you believe that God speaks to children? Some don’t think so. Some believe that children don’t have the capability to understand God’s ways. I contend that children may understand God’s ways more than we think especially since they don’t have all the adult excuses made over the years. If you recall, I posted about the first time that I remember God speaking to me. Go to http://www.ironstrikes.com/blog/my-first-recollection-of-god-talking-to-me to read that story.

I would like to think that God talking to me isn’t unusual, that he speaks to all people at all ages and stages of life; however, some don’t recognize His voice. Having become a Christian a year earlier, I believe that I had an idea of what God’s voice was like. Now, I’m not talking about a voice from the heavens but a still, small voice that comes from within but it is apparent it is not your own thoughts.

Recently I was driving in northern Indiana and I came upon Winona Lake. This was a place where the Free Methodist Church had it’s denominational conferences for a while when I was younger. I remember one instance when I was 7 years old, I was allowed to go fishing by myself in the lake. I was under a bridge and could see all the sunfish and was trying to figure out how to get bait to catch them. I had a pole, line and a hook. I couldn’t find any grasshoppers or any bugs big enough to put on the hook.

So, I pretended that I had bait on the hook and threw the line with the empty hook into the water. I couldn’t believe what happened…the fish were attracted to the shiny, new hook and bit at it! I could see them bite at the hook as they were just a few feet from the bank and the water was clear.

I don’t remember catching any fish but I do remember God speaking to me. I heard God say, “See how those fish are attracted to something that could kill them? They keep biting at it because it looks interesting but they’re gonna get hooked.” I kept watching them knock the hook around and biting at it. Then I heard God say, “There are things that are gonna look good but they could kill you. You need to trust me to guide you.” I remember saying, “yes” out loud and asking God to guide me.

Statistically, evangelism is most effective among kids. It used to be that 90% Christians became so before the age of 18. That stat is now down to 64%: https://www.barna.org/component/content/article/5-barna-update/45-barna-update-sp-657/196-evangelism-is-most-effective-among-kids#.VxwcqlKPYZE

Now that I am looking back, I can see that my willingness to yield to God’s guidance has saved me a lot of heartache. I’m glad. I’m not saying that I have been a perfect person, but these conversations with God at a young age have been anchors in my life, times that I can remember and that the Holy Spirit brings to my mind when I encounter situations that could be harmful.

So, please talk to children about God. Plant seeds in their hearts, help them to know that God speaks to them and that they need to say “yes” to Him when he does.

My first recollection of God talking to me

4/25/2016

I was listening to a story from a man who lives in a communist country. He said at age 6, he had an unusual thought, "What is the purpose of my life?" He was sitting at his kitchen table doing his homework when this thought came to him. Next, he thought, “I’m going to grow up, go to high school, get a job, get married, have children and then my son is going to be sitting here doing homework and asking himself the same question.”   Being in a communist country, he had never heard of Jesus. Yet, God was talking to him.

Statistics show that most people come to Christ when they are young.

However, many people believe that talking to children about God’s offer of salvation is fruitless.

I remember when I was about 6-years-old being outside playing with an ant hill. I had a water hose and flooded the ant hill. As I saw ants pouring out, some of them would gather into small pools and just lay there. I started to feel some compassion and put a stick in some of the small pools so that the ants could walk on it to dry land. I remember hearing inside my head, “do you want to try to save yourself or are you going to let Me save you?”

What is interesting is the follow-up to both of these brief stories.    These questions were instigated by God.  God was creating an awareness of Himself in these young lives. In the first boy’s life, he didn’t know the answer until someone talked to him about Jesus. His brother told him, "I found God and his name is Jesus. Would you like to become a follower of Jesus?" He knew, in an instant, that Jesus was what/who he had been looking for to give him purpose, he just didn’t know His name.

For me, God became real shortly after, as I thought about that question. I remember playing with my toy cars on the sawdust floor while the evangelist spoke about Jesus. I remember later talking to my parents and accepting Jesus into my life.

What are these times of questioning, wonderings that others have told me about that they experienced as children? It appears that these experiences cross cultural and socioeconomic boundaries.

I know very few Christians who haven’t told me about some type of experience of hearing questions in their head as kids (sometimes as adults) and then later after becoming a Christian, knew it was God speaking to them.

A final thought. Most Christians are acquainted with the story of the five missionaries killed in Ecuador in the 1950’s. In fact, this martyrdom was made into a popular movie, End of the Spear. A little know part of this story is that when the last missionary was killed, their murderers saw lights in the jungle, lights that they had never seen before and questioned themselves about who these missionaries were. God was creating an awareness of Himself by having them see these lights.  After several of these murderers became Christians, it became apparent to them that God allowed them to see the Angels ushering the missionaries into heaven.

So, as you are reading this, let me encourage you to be the kind of man who tells children (and those who have never heard the name of Jesus) about Jesus. Let boys know about Jesus. You never know, they just might have been playing with an ant hill.

Sunday Meditation

4/24/2016

Fear not, poor, weary one;
But struggle bravely yet;
Toil on, until thy task is done,
Until thy sun is set.

Though many are thy cares,
And many are thy fears,
The loving Christ thy burden shares,
And wipes away thy tears.

No distant Christ is He,
And one that doth not know;
But watches close and constantly,
The path which thou dost go.

'Tis when thy heart is tried,
'Tis in thine hour of grief,
He standeth ever at thy side,
And ever brings relief.

— Christ in the Soul (1872) LI by Thomas Cogswell Upham. You can find more of his work at the blog, The Hidden Life, managed by Craig L Adams at: http://thomascupham.blogspot.com

From blaming to forgiving

4/23/2016

Our most painful suffering often comes from those who love us and those we love. The relationships between husband and wife, parents and children, brothers and sisters, teachers and students, pastors and parishioners - these are where our deepest wounds occur. Even late in life, yes, even after those who wounded us have long since died, we might still need help to sort out what happened in these relationships.

The great temptation is to keep blaming those who were closest to us for our present, condition saying: "You made me who I am now, and I hate who I am." The great challenge is to acknowledge our hurts and claim our true selves as being more than the result of what other people do to us. Only when we can claim our God-made selves as the true source of our being will we be free to forgive those who have wounded us.

For further reflection...

Then Joseph said to his brothers, "Come close to me." When they had done so, he said, "I am your brother Joseph, the one you sold into Egypt! And now do not be distressed and do not be angry with yourselves for selling me here, because it was to save lives that God sent me ahead of you. For two years now there has been famine in the land, and for the next five years there will not be plowing and reaping. But God sent me ahead of you to preserve for you a remnant on earth and to save your lives by a great deliverance." - Genesis 45: 4 - 7 (NIV)

This post was written by Henri Nouwen. You can find his website here: henrinouwen.org

Shaming shame

4/22/2016

I wet the bed until I was 12 years old. It’s hard to put into words the agony of those moments when I would wake up in the middle of the night and find my clothes and sheets were soaked. Ashamed, I would scurry about, trying to quietly change the sheets and my clothes—doing my best to hide the evidence. But it was found out each time, and I felt a deep sense of worthlessness, failure, and disapproval.

I tried using a lot of soap, water, and lotion to hide my struggle. Over and over, I prayed that God would give me a dry night. But many mornings I awakened with my prayers unanswered. I had a shameful secret, and I was afraid that it would be exposed for all to see.

Long before I fought to hide my shame, Adam and Eve did their best to hide theirs. From the beginning, shame wasn’t a natural emotion for human beings to experience: “The man and his wife were both naked, but they felt no shame” (Genesis 2:25). Adam and Eve enjoyed the beauty of a shameless state. But after they disobeyed God’s command, they experienced for the first time a bitter new emotion--shame. Unlike my battle, theirs was the result of disobeying a loving, holy God. Their sin caused them to exhibit shame-based behaviors: creating coverings, hiding, fearing, deflecting responsibility, and blaming one another (Genesis 3:7-12).

God was the only one who could cover their shame (Genesis 3:21). And He alone can cover ours (Revelation 3:16-18). When Jesus died on the cross and forgave our sins, in essence He shamed shame (Hebrews 12:1-2). We aren’t obligated to put it on ever again. Because of what Christ has done, we can exchange “beauty for ashes” and “praise instead of despair”! (Isaiah 61:3).

This post was written by Marvin Williams of Our Daily Bread. You can find the website here: www.odb.org

2 Excellent examples of women evangelists

4/21/2016

Last week, Pasadena First Church of the Nazarene called Rev. Tara Beth Leach to be its next pastor. As Leach wrote on her blog, the pulpit in the sanctuary of “PazNaz” is called “Bresee’s pulpit” by congregation members. Two years ago, Scott Daniels, whom Leach succeeds, wrote in Grace & Peace magazine that “there is some good-natured debate as to whether or not it was the only pulpit that belonged to Bresee or even how special this particular pulpit was to him.” Still, according to Daniels, in their own minds, “the faithful in Pasadena are the true guardians of the pulpit of Bresee.”

The notion that a particular pulpit “belonged to Bresee” is odd, to say the least. In your own experience, are pulpits owned by pastors or churches? Pulpits do come and go, but pastors come and go a lot more frequently. Bresee preached from many pulpits in his lifetime, including one from Phoenix First Church that now resides on the second floor of the Nazarene Global Ministry Center’s atrium.

Still, the conjunction of any talk about “Bresee’s pulpit” with Leach’s call to Pasadena First Church raises a very tantalizing question: Who were the women to whom Bresee yielded his pulpit when he was a pastor?

The first woman of record to preach from one of Bresee’s pulpits was the Black holiness evangelist Amanda Berry Smith. Smith was a member of the African Methodist Episcopal Church. She was a frequent speaker at holiness camp meetings and revivals and even garnered an international reputation from preaching in Africa, Europe, and Asia. When he was pastor of Asbury Methodist Episcopal Church in Los Angeles, Bresee invited Smith to conduct a series of revival services there some time during the conference year of 1890-91. Nearly a quarter century later, he could still describe the message she preached on a Sunday afternoon, stating that she preached “as I never heard her before, and as I have rarely ever heard anybody preach, in strains of holy eloquence and unction, almost equal to Bishop [Matthew] Simpson in the zenith of his power and sacred oratory.” For Bresee, this was high praise for any preacher, since Bishop Simpson was one of his personal heroes.

A woman who preached even more regularly from Bresee’s pulpit at Los Angeles First Church of the Nazarene was Rev. Rose Potter Crist. An issue of The Nazarene Messenger from 1908 states that “notwithstanding the continued rain, a goodly number assembled for the evening service. Sister Rose Potter Crist preached from 1 Peter 1: 2-5.” An announcement followed, stating that “Mrs. Rose Potter Crist has been invited by the Committee on pastoral relations and pulpit supply to assist Dr. Bresee in the general pastoral work of First Church during the month of February. She has kindly accepted the invitation and will supply the pulpit at the Sunday evening service, as well as at other times.” Ten years later, Crist had gone on to become pastor of the Nazarene church in Berkeley, California.

There were undoubtedly other women who preached from Bresee’s pulpit at his invitation, and in the months ahead we will keep a discerning eye out when searching the Nazarene Messenger to identify who they were.

Sources: T. Scott Daniels, “What Should We Glean from Phineas F. Bresee?” http://www.graceandpeacemagazine.org/articles/21-issue-spring-2014/384-what-should-we-glean-from-phineas-f-bresee ; Carl Bangs, Phineas Bresee: His Life in Methodism, the Holiness Movement, and the Church of the Nazarene (1995): 169; and The Nazarene Messenger (Feb 13, 1908): 8.

This information is taken from the Nazarene Archives: https://www.facebook.com/Nazarene-Archives-134614599943106/?fref=photo