YOU and GOD

Tomorrow will be a day of fireworks and festivities—a day when our nation once again celebrates freedom, faith, and the fearless sacrifices that have been made—and are still being made—to ensure that, just as we have for the past 249 years, we may continue in the years ahead to “proclaim liberty throughout all the land unto all the inhabitants thereof.” (Leviticus 25:10)

Some readers will remember Red Skelton, the beloved entertainer who kept audiences in stitches with his wildly humorous sketches of characters like “Willie Lump Lump,” “Junior, the Mean Widdle Kid,” “Freddie the Freeloader,” and others. His career spanned national radio and television from 1937 to 1971. Skelton’s comedy was clean—wholesome enough for the entire family to enjoy without the annoyance of off-color innuendos. Those who watched The Red Skelton Show will never forget the man or his mastery of the comedic craft.

On one occasion, Red Skelton reflected on an elementary school teacher who explained the meaning of the Pledge of Allegiance to him and his classmates. On January 14, 1969, he described it like this:

• I — me, an individual, a committee of one
• Pledge — dedicate all of my worldly goods to give without self-pity
• Allegiance — my love and devotion
• To the flag — our standard, Old Glory, a symbol of freedom. Wherever she waves, there is respect, because your loyalty has given her dignity that shouts, “Freedom is everybody’s job.”
• Of the United — that means we have all come together
• States — individual communities united into 50 great states. Fifty communities with pride, dignity, and purpose—all divided by imaginary boundaries, yet united by a common purpose: love for country
• Of America
• And to the Republic — a state in which sovereign power is invested in representatives chosen by the people to govern. Government is the people—it’s from the people to the leaders, not from the leaders to the people
• For which it stands
• One nation under God — meaning so blessed by God
• Indivisible — incapable of being divided
• With liberty — freedom; the right or power to live one’s life without fear or threat of retaliation
• And justice — the principle of dealing fairly with others
• For all — meaning it’s as much your country as it is mine

As we reflect on what the 4th of July means again this year, I leave you with the wise words of one of our most esteemed founding fathers:

“I have lived, sir, a long time, and the longer I live, the more convincing proofs I see of this truth: that God rules in the affairs of men. And, if a sparrow cannot fall to the ground without His notice, is it probable that an empire can rise without His aid? … I firmly believe also that without His aid, we shall succeed in this political building no better than the builders of Babel.”
— Benjamin Franklin

God Bless America.

“If you are not governed by God, you will be ruled by tyrants.”
(Inscription on the Liberty Bell, 1752)

In a few days, as a nation, we will commemorate and celebrate the founding of our free republic on Independence Day, 2025. It is a day of fireworks, cookouts, picnics, parades, and patriotic programs—all designed to help us pause with pride that, even now, we remain the land of the free and the home of the brave. Rudyard Kipling was not an American, but his Recessional strikes a chord in the hearts of freedom-loving people everywhere:

“The tumult and the shouting dies;
The Captains and the kings depart:
Still stands Thine ancient sacrifice,
A humble and a contrite heart.
Lord God of Hosts, be with us yet,
Lest we forget—lest we forget.”

We have read and thought deeply on what someone has called the sequence of a nation’s decadence. It goes like this:

“The great civilizations of the world have had an average of about 200 years. They have progressed thusly: From bondage to spiritual faith; from spiritual faith to courage; from courage to liberty; from liberty to abundance; from abundance to selfishness; from selfishness to complacency; from complacency to apathy; from apathy to dependence; from dependence back to bondage.” Where does America fit on the scale of greatness to decadence?

Where does America stand today on this scale from greatness to decline?

Our first president, George Washington, petitioned God for mercy upon the fledgling nation that had become “one nation under God.” He prayed:

“Almighty God, who has given us this good heritage, we humbly beseech Thee that we may always prove ourselves a people mindful of Thy favor and glad to do Thy will. Bless our land with honorable industry, sound learning, and pure manners. Save us from violence, discord, and confusion—from pride and arrogance, and from every evil way. Defend our liberties and fashion into one united people the multitudes brought out of many kindreds and tongues. Endow with the spirit of wisdom those to whom, in Thy name, we entrust the authority of government, that there may be peace and justice at home, and that through obedience to Thy law, we may show forth Thy praise among the nations of the earth.”

Theodore Roosevelt expressed heartfelt concern for his beloved country:

“Americanism means the virtues of courage, honor, justice, truth, and sincerity—the virtues that make America. The things that will destroy America are prosperity at any price, safety-first instead of duty-first, the love of soft living, and the get-rich-quick theory of life.”

Our 16th president offered this solemn warning:

“We have been the recipients of the choicest bounties of heaven; we have grown in numbers, wealth, and power as no other nation has ever grown. But we have forgotten God. We have forgotten the gracious hand which preserved us in peace and multiplied and enriched and strengthened us, and we have vainly imagined, in the deceitfulness of our hearts, that all these blessings were produced by some superior wisdom of our own. Intoxicated with unbroken success, we have become too self-sufficient to feel the necessity of redeeming and preserving grace, too proud to pray to the God that made us.”

History teaches us about the rise and fall of great civilizations. Among the most powerful was ancient Rome—yet even that mighty empire fell, not to an external enemy, but from internal decay. In The Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire, Edward Gibbon noted several reasons for Rome’s collapse:

1. The rapid increase of divorce, undermining the dignity and sanctity of the home, the foundation of society;
2. Higher and higher taxes and public spending on free bread and circuses for the masses;
3. A mad craze for pleasure, with sports becoming increasingly brutal;
4. The building of massive armaments, even as the real enemy was internal decadence;
5. The decay of religion, with faith fading into mere form.

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Do any of these “markers” seem familiar in America on her 249th birthday?

Lincoln, as cited earlier, assessed the moral and spiritual condition of the nation he led. He also offered this wise counsel:

“You cannot bring about prosperity by discouraging thrift.
You cannot help small men by tearing down big men.
You cannot strengthen the weak by weakening the strong.
You cannot lift the wage earner by pulling down the wage payer.
You cannot help the poor man by destroying the rich.
You cannot keep out of trouble by spending more than your income.
You cannot further the brotherhood of man by inciting class hatred.
You cannot establish security on borrowed money.
You cannot build character and courage by taking away a man’s initiative and independence.
You cannot help men permanently by doing for them what they could and should do for themselves.”

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As we reflect on these words from past leaders, let us return again to Kipling’s Recessional:

“If, drunk with sight of power, we loose
Wild tongues that have not Thee in awe—
Such boastings as the Gentiles use,
Or lesser breeds without the law—
Lord God of Hosts, be with us yet,
Lest we forget—lest we forget.”

In conclusion, a Northern soldier once asked President Lincoln, “Is God on our side?” The President wisely replied that the more important question is:

“Are we on God’s side?”

“Yea, happy is that people whose God is the Lord.” (Psalm 144:15)

Have a happy and safe 4th of July!

Paul spoke of the “last days” in his 2^nd epistle to Timothy, characterizing them as “perilous times.” (2 Tim.3:1) John also referenced what he called “the last time,” noting that when he wrote I John 2:18 it was already the last time, a time when many antichrists were already on the scene, proof in the aged apostle’s mind that the last time was then already upon the world.

So, a generation after Christ’s death, burial and resurrection, Peter wrote his 2^nd epistle to the saints who had been scattered all over the Roman world stating that he wanted to “stir up your pure minds,” hoping to get them to remember what the holy prophets and later the apostles of the Lord and Savior had warned against concerning the apostacy of the last days.

The message is as pertinent now as it was then. These are the last days. The fact that a couple of millennia have come and gone since Peter wrote his exhortation in no way diminishes the urgency of Christ’s followers to hear and heed the warning. The last days are as intense today as when early Christians were thrown to the lions in Rome’s Coliseum. As I write, Israel and Iran are at war; Russia is three years into its invasion of Ukraine. America is plagued by millions of illegal immigrants who flooded across our borders during the recent four years that our borders were virtually “open.” There is unrest world-wide. If the days in which Paul, Peter and John wrote were “the last days,” these days are surely an intensification of what John labeled as “the last time.” Therefore, it behooves us to have our “pure minds” stirred up. (2 Pet. 3:1) We do so by

1. Rehearsing Patience. Patience in the face of denial by scoffers who were denying the truth that Jesus would come again (3:3), claiming that His delay ought to give cause for doubt in “the promise of His coming.” Paul earlier had conveyed his concern that the believers in Thessalonica had been “shaken” in mind and “troubled” in spirit about the truth of Christ’s promise that “I will come again to receive you unto myself.” (2 Thess. 2:2). “Where is the promise of His coming?” the scoffers taunted. All things remain as they ever have been, the first-century uniformitarians claimed. No such thing as the “Second Coming” need be expected, they claimed.

2. Resting on the Promise, v 9.  God is faithful, “not slack concerning His promise.” He is longsuffering, and He is not willing that any should perish; thus, the apparent “delay” of His promised return explained Peter. But we can rest assured that He will keep His Word: “I will come again….”

3. Realize the perdition, v. 11. Peter reminds us that “all these things shall be dissolved….” That is, all that is material and temporal, along with the very heavens and earth, are being kept in store against the day of “judgment and perdition of ungodly men.” (v.7) God’s judgment, coming at a time when only He knows, will be certain, sudden and severe. It will come as a thief in the night and when it does, “all these things shall be dissolved.” “Peace and safety” will be the watchword of the world, but be sure that when Christ returns there will be “sudden destruction.” (I Thess.5:3)

4. Thus, we must recognize practical ramifications, v.11, including keeping a proper perspective on the present age/hour; living with proper priorities, including lives ordered by “holy conversation,” and “godliness.” (v.11)

5. Rejoice in the prospect, vss. 12,13—the prospect of the coming day of the Lord (v.12), ushering ultimately in a “new heaven and a new earth.” All the while, we thank God that His longsuffering is salvation (v.15); AND, knowing these things beforehand, we remain aware (lest we should be led away by the error of the wicked); determined to “grow in grace, and in the knowledge of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. To him be glory both now and forever. Amen.” (vss. 16-18)

In his epistle to the Thessalonian church, Paul stated that of the times and seasons, there was really no need for him to write unto their church any further words of explanation. The “Day of the Lord,” spoken of by Old Testament prophets scores of times, would be a day of awful darkness and destruction, the likes of which the world had not yet seen, nor has it seen such yet, even at this hour. The Man of Sin would first be revealed, the rapture having occurred with the church, indwelt individually by the Holy Spirit, removed from this earth. (2 Thess. 2) “But ye, brethren, are not in darkness that that day should overtake you as a thief.” (I Th.5:4) Paul exhorts, “Therefore, let us not sleep, as do others, but let us watch and be sober.” (I Th. 5:6)

These are the last days (of the church age). Christ will soon come as He promised. When He does, He will rapture (catch up) His Bride, the Church, to be with Himself. The Man of Sin, the Antichrist, will be revealed and a seven-year period of awful darkness, the last half of which Jesus called “The Great Tribulation,” will come world-wide, culminating in the 2^nd coming of Jesus Christ to the earth to establish His kingdom over which He will rule and reign from Jerusalem for 1,000 years. At the end of that millennial reign, Satan will be loosed from the bottomless pit where he will have been exiled from the time the thousand years began, to deceive the world one more time in marshalling an army to oppose the ruling Messiah, Jesus. Satan and his wicked worldlings will be defeated and that old Serpent, the Devil, will be cast into the Lake of Fire, joining there the False Prophet and the Beast (Antichrist), where he and they will spent eternity.

What is the bottom line? For the saved, God’s people: “Let us be sober, putting on the breastplate of faith and love, and for an helmet, the hope of salvation.” (I Th.5:8) For the unsaved: “…behold, now is the accepted time, behold, now is the day of salvation.” (2 Cor.6:2)

“Wherefore, beloved, seeing that ye look for such things, be diligent that ye may be found of him in peace, without spot, and blameless.” (2 Pet.3:14)

Manse, noun: “the house occupied or formerly occupied by a minister,” from Medieval Latin mansus, “dwelling.”

Ellen and I and our family have lived in a beautiful manse for more than 45 years, next door to the church I served as senior pastor for 40 years. I now enjoy the privileges of “pastor emeritus.” Our children spent a good portion of their childhood here. Our backyard is adjacent to the east edge of the church parking lot, and whenever we are standing at the kitchen sink or sitting at the table for a meal, we’d have to pull the window shades to avoid seeing the entire east side of the church building.

Some have asked whether living that close to the church—especially as senior pastor—was a challenge. The answer, without hesitation: “Not at all.” We did move away for three years to a house 17 miles from the church, but the distance from TRBC to our Greenwood residence made us grateful for the opportunity to move back into the parsonage. We have deeply appreciated it, as well as the generosity of the church in allowing us to live here. The close proximity (a 0.1-mile drive to church!) has proven to be an immeasurable blessing.

Now, I want to share some things we can’t help but notice when looking out our kitchen window. Most of these have happened recently; it would take a book to cover even a fraction of what we could tell—but that probably won’t be forthcoming any time soon (so relax, all!).

A couple of days ago, before 7 a.m., as I was getting the morning coffee ready to brew, I heard a loud voice hollering nearby. Going to the sink to fill the coffee maker with water, I looked out the kitchen window and saw a young man on a bike, circling a young woman on foot and yelling at her. She walked on, seemingly unfazed, while he circled her again and again until she reached a curb—just yards from our house—where she sat down.

She was pulling a wheeled suitcase, neatly dressed, but very heavy—laden with both the suitcase and a backpack. The man was very skinny, scraggily dressed, with a backpack of his own and hair that covered most of his face. They sat there for maybe 90 minutes—he hollering from time to time, she seemingly oblivious to his taunts.

At one point, he walked over to our church and tried the east entrance door, which was locked and armed with an alarm that would’ve sounded had it opened. He then headed to a walkway between two buildings, where there is an exterior outlet; it became clear he had found a place to charge his phone.

During this one-way shouting episode, I placed a “non-emergency” call to the police department—not knowing what the anger might lead to—hoping a visit from IMPD might diffuse the situation. Both the woman and her companion smoked a cigarette during their “rest period.” The police, to my knowledge, never responded. Eventually, the two re-organized their belongings and resumed their journey through our yard and on to who-knows-where.

Truthfully, at one point, I considered going to a local fast-food restaurant to buy them a hot breakfast sandwich. I dismissed the thought, but later felt terribly convicted for not acting on what may have been a prompting from the Holy Spirit. That conviction only deepened a few hours later when, during our Tuesday morning book study (“Knowing God” by J.I. Packer), we discussed Packer’s chapter on The Incarnation—his stern warning to Christians who smugly live in middle-class comfort, unmoved by the poor all around us. Ouch! I had some confessing to do that day.

That same morning, on the same spot where the traveling couple had rested, a group of law enforcement officers assembled—apparently staging an operation. It was quite a sight: around 15 fully uniformed officers, either on drill or assignment.

Regularly, a lady from a nearby trailer court—whom I’ve known for years—appears almost daily with her husband, who records what she describes as a “weather report” using his phone. She has taken courses in media production at local universities and written a couple of books. The “production” is filmed—once again—in the church parking lot, halfway between our kitchen window and the east entrance to the church building. The filming, which lasts five to ten minutes, typically takes place in the evening as Ellen prepares supper—making it difficult not to notice.

Her mother attended our church faithfully until her passing, though the woman herself never became a regular. Still, we’ve known each other for years due to her precious Christian mother. I understand that her weather reports are submitted to media outlets in hopes of landing a job. It always makes for a good conversation piece when visitors are here. Seeing a woman in the parking lot being filmed by a man with a phone camera, they inevitably ask, “What is that lady doing out there?”

Oh, one more story—and there could be many! The next day, a well-groomed young man with a pleasant demeanor rang our doorbell, offering to sell us a home security system (which we already have). We talked for a while, and I learned he was a college student from Florida whose parents immigrated from Cuba in the late 1990s. For some reason, he asked if he could come in to write something down. I invited him in—and he stayed for 90 minutes. Before he left, we had an extensive discussion about his eternal destiny. I believe the Lord sent him to us and that he was under conviction—very close to making a decision for Christ. I have his contact information and invited him to our services.

Life is exciting living in the manse, even though we’re not as active as we once were. Drop by sometime (though we may be out at a doctor’s appointment!).

“But sanctify the Lord God in your hearts: and be ready always to give an answer to every man that asketh you a reason of the hope that is in you with meekness and fear.” (I Peter 3:15)

Suppose you and a long-time friend come to an impasse over an issue on which you cannot come to an agreement. Or, you and a fellow believer with whom you have worshipped and served the Lord for years have what seems to be an irreconcilable conflict. Or, maybe you and a family member have had a heated argument, and neither of you have spoken to each other for months or even years. It just might be a debate that is ongoing with your pastor or a spiritual leader in your church, and has become a decided difference for which there appears to be no plausible solution. Yet it is hindering your work for Christ and your worship of Him.

Such scenarios are not just in the realm of possibility; in this sin-cursed world there have been stand-offs between loved ones and leaders, next of kin and neighbors, bosses and buddies, siblings and saints, since the earliest days of recorded history. Some have erupted into wars of words, some into wars with weapons. More often than not, the fruit of such conflict is alienation rather than adoration, divorce rather than devotion. It happens in homes, work places, worship centers, halls of Congress and, in reality, just about everywhere that people are in relationship with people, there possibly will be—or probably has been—unresolved conflict.

Paul the apostle—who had a parting of the ways with his dear ministry companion, Barnabas, early in his missionary ministry—would later write to the almost “model” church a letter in which he would “beseech Euodias, and beseech Syntyche, that they be of the same mind in the Lord.” (Phil. 4:2) There have, through the course of more than two thousand years of history of the church that Jesus founded, been countless thousands of local churches that have split over differing mind-sets, resulting in the launch of “new” churches. Divide and multiply might have been a mantra of too many churches—to the shame of bodies of Bible-believers—on every continent and in every age.

It would not be unreasonable to surmise that everyone reading this has been near, or in the middle of, a heart-rending conflict between family members, friends, or fellow believers. I could write many of these blogs giving sad sagas of such conflicts. I will spare you the unseemly details; yet, in the hope of helping someone who may read this or who may know someone that might need a word of encouragement, I want to offer some Biblical directives on dealing with matters between Christians in conflict:

1. First, pray! God grieves when His own are at odds with one another, and God is not the author of confusion. So, beseech His “Throne of mercy” to find the needed grace to help in time of need. (Hebs. 4:16). Pray for grace, for wisdom, for His intervention and leading. God may lead you and use you to do something more than to pray; but you can be certain that He will not use you—either as one concerned or as one conflicted—to do anything unless or until you have prayed.
2. Yield to the Holy Spirit. He is our God-given Comforter (encourager). He indwells every believer, and will direct every believer who is yielded to Him. It is His desire that there be “no schism” in the Body, so do not make one move unless you have yielded to the Holy Spirit’s leadership.
3. Consider yourself first. Is your heart right with God? Are you committed to doing what God’s Word tells you to do? Is there humility in your spirit? Before you approach another person who is in conflict or with whom you are experiencing conflict, read prayerfully Galatians 6:1,2. You (we) must consider yourself and determine not to take another step unless you are doing so in meekness and in fear.
4. Determine by the grace of God that you will do right and leave the consequences with God. You are only one; but you are one. You cannot do everything, but you can do something; and what you can do you should do, so by His grace say to yourself, “That I will do.”
5. Keep a godly attitude. Remember what one wise preacher wrote a book about: “The longer I live, the more I realize the impact of attitude on life. Attitude, to me, is more than facts. It is more important than the past, than education, than money, than circumstances, than failure, than successes, than what other people think or say or do. It is more important than appearance, giftedness or skill. It will make or break a company, a church, a home…I am convinced that life is 10% what happens to me and 90% how I react to it.” (Chuck Swindoll)
6. Make sure your words, thoughts, and deeds are motivated by unfeigned love. (Romans 12:9; I Thess. 4:9, 2 Cor. 6:6)
7. Weigh your words. Rev. Newman Smith had a doctrinal difference with Baptist preacher Robert Hall; so Smith wrote a scathing pamphlet denouncing Hall. He struggled over the right title for the pamphlet, so he sent a copy to a friend, asking him to read it and suggest a title. Smith, it seems, had previously written a tract called “Come to Jesus.” So, having read the pamphlet, the friend wrote a brief note back to Rev. Smith: “The title I suggest for your pamphlet is ‘Go to Hell’ by the author of ‘Come to Jesus.’”  Professor Haddon Robinson, who shared this story, said, “We should ask ourselves these questions, ‘Is this what God wants me to say?’ and ‘Is this how He wants me to say it?’”

So, we will not be able to avoid every conflict, but we can with confidence face each one in the right spirit and with God’s guidelines in place. Remember the quaint verse: “To dwell above with saints we love, O that will be glory. But to dwell below with saints we know, well, that’s another story!”  God help us all to “do right ‘till the stars fall!” (Dr. Bob Jones, Sr.)

“Behold, how good and how pleasant it is for brethren to dwell together in unity!” (Ps. 133:1)

Most of us have had a time in our walk with God where—at the least—it seemed as though we were wandering in a wilderness. We might have been at times overwhelmed with our surroundings: unfamiliar, lonely, abandoned, fearful of the unknown. God’s promises were in our hearts and on our lips, but His presence might at times have seemed distant. We were surrounded by “wolves, lions and beasts” that, for a time, had us shaking in our boots. We sang to ourselves “safe am I, safe am I, in the hollow of His hands;” and we sang it over and over again, as if trying to convince ourselves that we really were safe. And, at last, we were delivered from the scary sights and sounds of that wilderness experience, but not until we had learned some precious, priceless lessons in truth and trust for which we would not trade anything—but into which we would never again want to enter.

David, anointed to be king over Judah, before occupying that throne, spent more time in the wilderness than he would have ever asked for, and by the Spirit of God he recorded some of his fear, faith, fearlessness and faithfulness in and through those troublesome times. Psalm 63 is a record of one such time in the experience of a shepherd who was a man after God’s own heart. Listen in as we hear the panting and feel the pulse of this young giant slayer who faced fiercer foes than lions and bears—running for his life from the sword of Saul:

1. David’s Affirmation, v.1
   • His personal relationship with God was expressed in his cry, “O God, thou art my God.” David trusted in and verbalized his total abandonment to the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. “What time I am afraid, I will trust in thee,” he said on another occasion when he was faced with danger. (Ps.56:3)
   • His personal priority: “early will I seek thee.” No child of God is prepared to meet the challenges of any day—much less a “day in the wilderness”—without seeking God early in the day: seeking His guidance, presence, power, and protection.
   • His present reality: this place was a thirsty and dry land, and David confessed that his soul and his flesh longed for God. In the best of times, in the worst of times, it behooves us to long—in our soul and in our flesh—after God who alone can quench our thirst and feed our soul.
   • His prayerful resignation: he was in a land where “no water is.” It was a wilderness, and there is no wilderness without “wild.” And there is no hunger nor is there any thirst without going through those times of isolation, deprivation, and desolation. Moses spent 40 years in a desert place. Elijah did his time in the wilderness, as did John the Baptist, Paul, and John the apostle, and our Lord Jesus, amongst others. All were the stronger for it, but none would have asked for a repeat experience of it.
   • He aspired to see God’s power: “To see Thy power” was the heart cry of this king-to-be who panted after God like a deer. Oh, that men and women of God today, living in the wilderness of this world, would long to see His power. It is ours through the working of His Holy Spirit. (Acts 1:8)
   • He aspired to see God’s glory: “To see Thy power and Thy glory.” David had seen it in the “sanctuary.” He had tasted of the revival and renewal this power had brought causing him to proclaim that God’s lovingkindness was better than life.
2.  David’s Aspiration, v. 2
   • He aspired to see God’s power: “To see Thy power” was the heart cry of this king-to-be who panted after God like a deer. Oh, that men and women of God today, living in the wilderness of this world, would long to see His power. It is ours through the working of His Holy Spirit. (Acts 1:8)
   • He aspired to see God’s glory: “To see Thy power and Thy glory.” David had seen it in the “sanctuary.” He had tasted of the revival and renewal this power had brought causing him to proclaim that God’s lovingkindness was better than life.
3.  David’s Adoration, vss. 3-7
   • David praised God with his lips, v. 3: “My lips shall praise Thee.”
   • David praised God with his hands, v. 4: “Thus will I bless Thee while I live: I will lift up my hands in thy name.”
   • David praised God with his mouth, v. 5: “My mouth shall praise thee with joyful lips.”
   • David praised God with his soul, v. 5: “My soul shall be satisfied.” Only God’s lovingkindness can satisfy the soul of man.
   • Because of God’s goodness, as rehearsed by David, He said that he would “remember God upon his bed,” and he would meditate on God in the night watches, and he would rejoice “in the shadow of Thy wings.” (vss. 6, 7) The chorus that comes to my mind just now is: “Jesus never fails, Jesus never fails; heaven and earth may pass away, but Jesus never fails.” Amen. David would agree! Finally,
4.  David’s Acclamation, vss. 8-11
   • David said that his soul would follow hard after God, for His right hand had held him up. (v.8) He knew that his enemies would eventually end up in the “lower parts of the earth,” and that they would fall by the sword and at last be food for foxes. (v.10) But once again, in faith believing, David acclaimed that he would rejoice in God and that “every one that sweareth by Him shall glory.” (v. 11)

What a powerful testimony of one who had faced danger, death, and the devil in the wilderness, but who through faith and by grace and meditation on God’s promises came through the experience with a song of victory and praise—glorying in God for His Word, His Ways, His Will, and His Work. He prepared this fearless and faithful shepherd boy for the throne of what would become, by God’s promises and purposes, an everlasting throne.

Do not despair, my beloved friend. God visited Hagar, forlorn and forsaken, in the wilderness—a handmaid without a home. Do you think—child of the King—that He has forgotten where you are? He will never leave you nor forsake you. Thirsty and hungry, lonely and “lost” in that dry place that you now find yourself—God has you there for a time and purpose, in the place of His choosing. The 4^th watch of the night will pass, and the brightness of His face will shine again. And, yes, you will look back one day and say, as others before have said, “Thank you God for the lessons learned there. Let the world know that ‘O God, Thou art my God!’”

“Because Thou hast been my help, therefore in the shadow of Thy wings will I rejoice.” (Ps.63:7)

My last post included a poetic tribute I penned to my godly father on the occasion of his 75^th birthday. In this blog, I want to share with you a powerful tribute written by a young Bible college student when he was serving on our church staff as a summer intern in 2018. 

Michael was a quiet farm boy from northwestern Iowa (I grew up in southeastern Iowa—Ottumwa). He dearly loved his father, as you will know after reading a brief “salute” to him, which I asked Michael to share with our church family. Here it is:

“My Father, the man who gave me life. The person who protected me as I grew up and showed me what loving your family truly looks like.

 
The one who taught me to love playing board games, and also to love playing, watching, and listening to sports. The person who taught me what true hard work was, but also showed me how to have fun. My dad, who got me into wearing hats, into mathematics, into computers. He was there to encourage me and to be beside me as I rode my first roller coaster. He was also there to pick me back up after I broke my two teeth. But most of all he was the first person that I looked up to and admired—for his apparent love of God and His truth presented in His Word. My father’s love for Racoon River Bible Camp was transferred to me, as it has become my favorite place in the world. A man whose character and love shown through each interaction he had with people.

Thirteen years ago, I lost my father in a farming accident, but the life he led here on earth left an impression on me to lead me to where I am right now. God has used experience in my life to shape me into who He wants me to be, and that includes every single, thing about my dad. From the adventures that I had with him, to the sorrow of losing him. But I know that he is right now with His Lord and Savior, praising Him because of His glory and majesty.

Dad, I thank you for everything you did for me while on this earth. I know that you would be proud of where God is leading me, and that I am trying to follow His commandments no matter what. I know that I falter and stumble at times to truly embrace God’s truth, where I sin because of my inherent depravity. But I pray that in the steps that I take you would be proud of me, and have the knowledge that God has me headed in the direction that He wants me in. And I know that I am on my way because of the values and attitude that you and mom instilled in me.”

Thank you, Michael. Your memories and thoughts shared in that tribute inspire all of us. We know that, through you, your Dad’s dreams and desires for God’s glory will live on till time shall be no more.

Many readers of this blog will be familiar with “Our Daily Bread”—a devotional publication founded by Dr. M.R. De Haan and led by his son, Richard De Haan, and now by his grandson, Mart De Haan. Mart wrote about his father, Richard, in an essay that he shared a few years ago in an “Our Daily Bread” publication—”Ten Things I Learned From My Father.” I want to pass them on as wise words to all. Here they are:

1. Admit when you are wrong
2. Don’t try to be someone else
3. Think small while dreaming big
4. Be careful what you say about others
5. Read biographies with a grain of salt
6. Relax with those who are important to you
7. Cultivate balance
8. Avoid irreverent jokes
9. Question your use of Scripture (i.e. don’t try to make any particular passage say what it really does not say)
10. Trust in God and do the right

Finally, on a different note, a sobering thought for all fathers on this Father’s Day weekend: I once was privileged to pastor a dear husband and wife who loved the Lord and His church. Many times, when they were both living, I would visit them in their modest home on the east side of Indianapolis and we enjoyed sweet fellowship together. They lived a very simple life—simple in dress, diet, and demeanor. On a couple of occasions, Brother Travis shared with me how that, when their only child was a little girl, she would beg her daddy to go to church with her. He would always summarily dismiss her pathetic pleas, saying “not now, maybe some other time. I am too busy.”  

One day, when the little girl had grown up and her father had grown old, the girl’s Dad, having gotten saved in the course of time, went to his then-adult daughter—who had, having reached adulthood, dropped out of church. This time, the “daddy” would plead with his adult child, “Please come to church with me, honey. I am saved now. You used to beg me to go to church with you and I always put you off. Now, let’s go together.” Sadly, Brother Trav ended his memory by dropping his head as he said, “Now, no matter how hard I try, I cannot get my little girl to go to church with me.”

Dads everywhere, take heart. Don’t let the precious years pass without loving your little tikes the way our Lord loves them—“suffer the little children to come unto me.” Redeem the golden opportunities today; they will not last long. 

“And thou shalt teach them diligently unto thy children, and shalt talk of them when thou sittest in thy house, and when thou walkest by the way, and when thou liest down, and when thou riseth up.” (Deut. 6:7)

This coming Lord’s Day has been set aside in honor of our fathers, those who have already passed from us and those who are living still. The worth of a good father, a godly father, cannot be overstated. Our nation suffers deeply today, largely because of a breakdown in the family. The absence of fathers in single-parent households is taking a terrible toll on early-21st century America.

Like many who read this, I am grateful to almighty God for having known—and having grown up with—a wonderful, exemplary father. He and my mother married about the time the Great Depression was full-blown. Their early years—bringing up five children in those meager times—was a hard, taxing, tedious life. In 1947, their lives became even more burdensome by the tragic drowning death of their 11-year-old son, my only brother. That “tragedy,” though, drove them to seek God; and the terrible loss of life in their household resulted in eternal life for members of our family, as we one by one became part of the glorious household of faith.

Dad never wavered in his devotion to his Savior all the rest of his life, until at the age of 94—having been married to mom for 72 years—God called him to enjoy, at last, his eternal rest. During his sojourning with us, by his walk of faith, he taught us so many practical principles of character: love for family, commitment to duty, enduring hardships without complaining, a work ethic that was impeccable, and so many other truthful traits. We, his offspring, will ever be indebted to his memory, with lingering love and gratitude.

Thirty some years ago, in admiration for my Dad on his 75th birthday, I wrote to him these lines:

“A father, guide, and counselor—
This is what a Dad is for;
Mine’s all these and more to me,
And for him, Father, I thank Thee.

A friend indeed, example true,
A man of strength and graces, too.
A beacon to the eyes of youth,
A lighthouse on the path of truth.

A man of prayer and wisdom sound,
In whom God’s Word was ever found.
A man of love and kindness rare,
Who lived to give and help and share.

Today Dad’s fourscore years less five,
And very much well and alive.
From God he’s had good years of health;
And gathered much of life’s true wealth.

So on your Day I wish you, Dad,
All the best to make you glad.
I pray God has for you in store,
Happy birthdays—many more.

And all the days that I shall live,
With heart and lips my praise I’ll give;
For father, guide and counselor—
All of these and so much more.”

An anonymous father wrote a letter to his son that reminds anyone who had such a father of the one we called “Dad.” It reads:

“As long as you live in this house, you will follow the rules. When you have your own house, you can make the rules. In this house, we do not have a democracy. I did not campaign to be your father. You did not vote for me. We are father and son by the grace of God, and I accept that privilege and awesome responsibility. In accepting it, I have an obligation to perform the role of a father.

I am not your pal. Our ages are too different. We can share many things, but we are not pals. I am your father. This is 100 times more than what a pal is. I am also your friend, but we are on entirely different levels.

You will do in this house as I say, and you cannot question me because whatever I ask you to do is motivated by love. This will be hard for you to understand until you have a son of your own. Until then, trust me. Your Father.”

Old-fashioned, some will say. And old-fashioned it is! But how’s the “new-fangled” method of rearing children working?

Happy Father’s Day, Dads!

“Give ear, O my people, to my law. Incline your ears to the words of my mouth…Which we have heard and known, and our fathers have told us. We will not hide them from their children, shewing to the generation to come the praises of the Lord, and His strength, and His wonderful works that He hath done.” (Ps. 78:1-4)

Maybe you have been at a crucial juncture in your life’s journey, and there loomed before you what was certain to be a life-changing decision. What to do? Which way to go? Who to ask? “Oh, Dear Heavenly Father, please give me an answer that I will know with certainty has come from You.”

Ever been at that crossroad? Most have; surely most will have at some time or other. It would be so simple if God would just direct us with small Post-it Notes here and there, with an arrow or a word or two pointing in the right direction at the corner of Crunch Time Blvd. and Decision Time Highway. But, He doesn’t. 

Yet I submit to you that the will of God is not difficult to find. Nor is it hard to know that you are either in His will or not at any given moment. Before I share with you the simple, Biblical formula for knowing the will of God, and whether you are in it at any given moment, listen to what some wise and godly believers have said on the subject through the years:

Ron White, missionary to Japan for more than 40 years: “You don’t have to know God’s will for tomorrow—you just have to do God’s will today.”

Unknown author quoted in The Bright Side (a Campus Crusade publication): “Being in God’s will is like being in the eye of the storm. There is a calmness, a peace, when we know that we’re in the center. And if we move out of that area, we are subject to a lot of turmoil.”

Miriam Booth, daughter of William Booth, founder of the Salvation Army: “It’s wonderful to do the Lord’s work, but it’s greater still to do the Lord’s will.”

Martin Luther: “If it were the will of God, I’d plant an oak tree today, even if Christ were coming tomorrow.”

Donald Grey Barnhouse: “I can say from experience that 95% of knowing the will of God consists in being prepared to do it before you know what it is.”

David Livingstone: “I am immortal until the will of God for me is accomplished.”

We too often want to make finding the will of God something that is difficult, like a mystery to solve, or a “nut to crack.” Author and pastor Arnold Fleagle spoke of this kind of frustration when he wrote: “I sailed far out to sea, Lord. You waited at the shore. I walked the teeming highways; You waited at my door. I climbed the mountain peak, Lord; You waited at the base. I tunneled to earth’s bottom; You waited at the face. The hard way, Lord, I struggled, the quest for change of heart; My treks were all in vain, Lord, You waited at the start.”

It would not do to quote wise men and women of renowned spiritual stature on the subject of the will of God without also—and first in preeminence on the list—quoting the Word of God. So here is a key verse from God’s Word on living in the will of God: “Teach me to do Thy will; for Thou art my God; Thy Spirit is good; lead me into the land of the upright.” (Ps. 143:10) It is crucial to note that the Psalmist did not ask God to show him what God’s will was; rather, he besought God to teach him to do the will of God.

So the Biblical key in being in God’s will is first to be willing to do God’s will.

And, Paul takes up the theme of God’s will in the extremely practical portion of His letter to the saints in Rome.

Paul had just finished one of the most profound portions of theological truths ever penned— Romans, chapters 1-11, in which he treats the doctrine of man’s justification by faith and grace alone, apart from works, for salvation.

Then, in Romans 12:1,2, the apostle begged his readers to resist being conformed to the world over which Satan rules as “god,” for the present. And he pleads for readers to be transformed daily—a moment by moment transformation of one’s mind through the Word (II Cor. 3:18), so that we can be certain that what we are doing this day is God’s will for us. Which is whatever is good, whatever is acceptable, and whatever is perfect. Ask yourself this question at any given moment of time: “Is what I am doing good, according to the Word of God?” Then ask, “Is what I am doing acceptable, according to the Word of God?” And third, “Is what I am doing perfect—does it lend itself to my maturing—as a believer?”

Simple as that. If you can say “Yes” to each of those questions, you will be in sync with God’s standard for being in, and doing, the will of God each day.  As such, He will guide you with His skilled hands—step by step, juncture by juncture, over every mile of the way, opening doors and closing others so that, at the end of the way, you will look back and say, “God graciously led me each day, through peril and peace, to the place of His will. I being in the way, the Lord led me.” (Gen. 24:27)

There is a place of perfect rest—near to the heart of God. It is a blessed place, the will of God. Set yourself out to do His will, and you will never doubt that you are in His will. Selah

“Then said I, Lo, I come (in the volume of the book it is written of me,) to do Thy will, O God.” (Hebrews 10:7)

Those words were spoken by Lt. Hiro Onoda, age 52, when the bearded lieutenant in the defunct Imperial Japanese Army emerged from the jungles and surrendered his rusty sword—in 1974, 29 years after the end of World War II. (Another Japanese straggler-soldier had given himself up in January of 1972, having been hiding in the jungles of Guam.) Lt. Onoda said that he surrendered because he was ordered to by his former commander, Maj. Yoshimi Taniguchi. “I am a soldier. I have to follow orders; without an order, I cannot come out,” Onoda said. The surrender ceremony took place with 150 newsmen crowding around Onoda. Wearing a Japanese military cap and a gray, short-sleeve shirt with neatly patched tatters, he appeared in good health, though with a skinny frame. Also present was a 30-man honor guard. Onoda approached two Japanese military dignitaries, snapped a salute, and handed his sword, with its rusting blade wrapped in white cloth, to his superior, who described Onoda as a “perfect example of a soldier.”  For a full account of Lt. Onoda’s remarkable story, you can read this article: Hiroo Onoda: The Japanese Soldier Who Refused to Surrender.

Onoda’s story is a pretty amazing though somewhat pathetic example of what I am going to write about in this post: loyalty! In this case, loyalty to the Imperial Japanese Army. In this 21^st century, we can only scratch our heads in unbelief that there were men who were that loyal to an oath of obedience to a superior—military or otherwise.

“Till death do us part” is generally spoken only as part of a ceremony, with little thought of the implications. And, when one joins a club, an association, a company or organization, loyalty to that entity is not front and center on one’s mind. And this covenantal casualness is easily observed in the relationships that members of local churches, the Head of which is Jesus Christ, evidence today.

A dear friend of mine now with the Lord, Evangelist Phil Shuler, published a newsletter when he was cris-crossing the United States for decades as a “sheep dog”—i.e., helping local pastors in church revivals in their efforts to take care of the sheep under their watch care. Phil and his wife Marie, who was at the piano, did a marvelous work in a few days, singing each night—in his inimitable tenor voice—one of the 450 songs that he had written. His preaching was usually textual, driving a point home in each sermon through a Biblical text, accompanied by stories that kept hearers of all ages hanging on every word.

In one edition of his newsletter, “The Itinerant Evangelist,” Phil began with these words: “Something bothers me. In the last ten years or so I have seen a growing number of Christians who belong to good, strong fundamental churches, leaving those churches to skip across town to join another. The churches that they leave have no real problems with the leadership, nor can they testify to the fact that the doctrine of the pulpit is faulty. They just leave without any scriptural reason, and settle elsewhere.”

Phil went on to say that he could find nothing in scripture to justify this trend. He then wrote, “I remember problems in my father’s church as I grew up. We had friction, now and then, right up to the board of Stewards. [Phil’s father, “Fightin” Bob Shuler, pastored the largest independent Methodist Church in America, in downtown Los Angeles.] But we hardly saw people right with God jumping ship. We had people leave, but usually it was because they were in rebellion, or they were transferred to another town. We did have some that we handpicked to help out small, struggling churches—but other than these incidents, we saw extreme loyalty to the local church.”

Phil said that he was raised to be loyal. In time, when the Trinity Methodist Church, where his dad had pastored, was led by a modernist, his family was forced to leave. Phil continues, “In searching the scriptures, I find only three real ‘reasons’ for leaving a fundamental church and joining another. First, doctrinal. If the pastor leaves the Apostles’ doctrine, then we leave that pastor. If the pastor will leave the church, all good and well; but if the constitution does not allow for one to leave, even though he turns from the scriptures, then it is up to the members to move elsewhere. Do not give comfort to the enemy.”

The second reason Evangelist Shuler stated was, as taught in the Bible, when there is a moral problem with the pastor, which “we are seeing more and more of this in these last days. Finally, the third reason to leave a fundamental church and join another is the leading of the Lord in one’s life that moves his headquarters to another region, making it impossible for that person to continue in his present church.”

Phil concludes: “I honestly feel that the spiraling divorce rate has given birth to the idea that a Christian can ‘divorce’ a good fundamental church with less pain and strain than a mate, so they do it. Maybe the church across town has a better youth program. Still no reason to leave. Just put your shoulder to the plow and build a better youth group! Don’t put your efforts into the problem, put them into the solution. Don’t be guilty of gossiping and complaining. Refuse to listen to those who criticize your pastor. Stay true, folks. In these last days, many shall faint and fall along the way. Fight it. Continue to pray for the ministry of evangelism. Yours for souls, Phil Shuler.”

Though these words of admonition were penned decades ago, they are still relevant today. Hear them! Heed them! Be loyal to Jesus Christ, the Head of the church. Don’t abandon the post that He has ordered you to watch. Be loyal to the local church He has placed you in to serve. Cultivate the practice of loyalty!

“They went out from us, but they were not of us; for if they had been of us, they would no doubt have continued with us: but they went out, that they might be manifest that they were not all of us.” (I John 2:19)