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Would Jesus Jump on My Political Bandwagon?

9/22/2018

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My parents warned me, “Never discuss sex, politics, or religion because they’re explosive.” Alert: I’m talking about two of them here.
     I’m a Christian, I’m thankful to be an American, and like you, I’m concerned about the spiraling down of our culture. That’s why some Christians yearn to make America great again. But would Jesus jump on this bandwagon? Building up a country wasn’t his priority because he declared his realm isn’t in this world. When his supporters sought to make Israel great again by crowning him king, Jesus shunned their efforts. And when offered all the kingdoms of the world, he turned them down.
“Evangelicals claim to follow a Savior who relinquished worldly power,” historian and evangelical John Fea says. “Yet they continue to place their hope in political candidates as a means of advancing an agenda that confuses the kingdom of God with the United States of America.” I’ve done that, too.
In contrast, Jesus’ early followers understood that our primary citizenship is God’s kingdom, while nationality is our secondary citizenship. They perceived that we are aliens and strangers here, and that our hearts should long for God’s heavenly country.
But you say America is an exception because we’re a Christian nation? Evangelical theologian Michael Horton disagrees. “The only Christian nation in the world today is the one gathered ‘from every tribe and language and people and nation’ (Rev. 5:9) to be addressed by its king.” Horton points out that Jesus commissioned his followers “…to proclaim the gospel, not political opinions; to baptize people in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, not in the name of America or a political party; and to teach everything that he delivered, not our own personal and political priorities.”
     Then how should we Christians function as American citizens? I look to Billy Graham here. He learned that aligning himself politically was negative in representing the gospel. Therefore, he warned the religious right not to seek political power. “I came close to identifying the American way of life with the kingdom of God,” he said. “Then I realized that God had called me to a higher kingdom than America.” Graham declared he would no longer be “closely identified with any particular party or person. We have to stand in the middle in order to preach to all people, right and left.”
     For me, this means gratefully exercising my privilege to vote for those I believe will do the best job, while not granting unquestioning loyalty to any politician, party, or platform. Then I’m free to embrace what is right and to call out what is wrong.
Scripture exhorts me to display the fruit of God’s Spirit - love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control - a stark contrast to arrogance I may be tempted to exhibit in my zeal. Therefore, I shouldn’t excuse or applaud lying, bullying, name calling, and mockery from either side of the political spectrum, even when it’s used to advance a goal I support. I am to walk humbly, reflecting God’s heart by seeking justice and mercy for society and wholeness for individuals.
So would Jesus jump on my political bandwagon? I don’t think so. I am to jump on his - a quiet revolution in hearts that leads to a contagious reform in culture.
Interestingly, when we Christians seek first God’s kingdom, we’ll be good Americans, too, by fulfilling our nation’s motto: “In God We Trust.”
***
Image from Clipart Panda with text added.

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Am I a Bad Samaritan?

9/14/2018

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Along our hiking trail we spotted a rickety wheelchair turned over and empty. My husband Duane and I ran toward it and discovered a man on all fours struggling to crawl toward it. He’d tumbled out and spent the night trapped between rocks.
     We lifted him into his chair and asked what we could get him. He motioned to plastic bags scattered in the dirt. “My beer,” he slurred.
     I dug into the torn bags and found jars of peanut butter and jelly, a dirty plastic spoon, and two liters of beer. I handed him a liter, and he cradled it.
     He wanted to get to a 7-Eleven across a busy intersection, so Duane maneuvered him over the six lanes. “You gotta get sober to figure out what to do,” Duane called above the car noise.    “I’m okay.”
     He insisted on going the rest of the way on his own, but we called 9-1-1 to report him. They’d send a paramedic to check.    Confusion ran through me, that helplessness I always feel when I come across someone in poverty and don’t know how to truly help. Am I a Bad Samaritan?
     I remember Charles Spurgeon, who reached out to London’s orphans 150 years ago. How did he make an impact in such overwhelming need? “The repetition of small efforts will accomplish more than the occasional use of great talents,” he said.
  With that in mind, each week I help bag hundreds of sacks of food for children. They receive meals at school. But on weekends, the cupboard may be bare, so we give them food to carry home. I'm confident here that although our small efforts are just a dent in their needs, they still accomplish much.

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What's Eating You?

9/7/2018

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This beetle and his cousins camped out on a lush vine covering our arbor and devoured it like some Biblical plague. Little things have been chewing on me lately, too. Irritations that bug me. Interruptions that chomp holes in my foliage. I finally slowed down enough to run a diagnostic on what’s eating me: I haven’t been nourishing myself with enough pure and simple quiet time.
     I remember a song by John Fischer that claims we’re made to live a still life. A life “quiet enough to notice what is important,” Fischer says. Don’t we all long for that?
     Is anything gnawing on you, too? Then let’s search for some green pastures to rest in, some still waters to drink from, even if they're only in our imaginations in the corner of our living rooms.
     My thanks to Fischer, who posted “Still Life” here . The lyrics follow:

Still life…
We were always meant to live a still life,
But somehow we got trapped into the fast life--
The cast life--
Where everyone plays a part.

You lose yourself in the fast life,
In the fast pace of the rat race,
Where no one knows who you are
And nobody cares.
If there really is a God,
And He has something to say,
We would never hear it
’Cause the noise is in the way.

Still life…
We were always meant to live a still life
Where everyone can see our real life.
Be still and know who is God.

Our arbor in better times and now chewed up.

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Dumb Things to Say to the Grieving

8/31/2018

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Grief is awkward, whether we’re trying to comfort someone in the loss of a job or the loss of a loved one. I’m on the receiving end as we mourn the death of our six-year-old granddaughter Lydia. We’ve received kind expressions of love, plus some well-intentioned fumbles. With gratitude for everyone’s attempts to console, here’s what I’m learning to avoid and what really helps:
AVOID SAYING:
     * I know how you feel because my dog died recently. (That’s painful, but please don’t make comparisons to my loss.)
     * I remember when _ . (Your ten-minute grief story follows, in which your burden shifts onto my already slumping shoulders.)
     * God knew best. (So my struggles aren’t legitimate?)
     * How are you? (Please don’t ask me to describe the searing pain running through me.)
     * Have a good day. (Really?)
     * If there’s anything I can do, let me know. ( But I can’t think beyond this moment.)
     * Could this have been prevented if ? (Please don’t ask me to read something you saw online.)
     * Here’s what will help you get over your grief. (I need to travel through it, not get over it.)
BEST THINGS TO SAY:
     * It’s good to see you.
     * I’m so sorry.
     * I miss (Name), too.
BEST THINGS TO DO:
     * Give a hug and don’t try to fill the silence.
     * Drop off a meal in disposable containers.
     * Offer SPECIFIC help. “I’m going to the grocery store today; what do you need?” or “Friday is your laundry day? Can I come over to help?”
   Giving comfort isn’t comfortable, and we all stumble sometimes - me included. Perhaps the best we can do for each other is to keep our arms wide and our words few.

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Need a Great Escape?

8/24/2018

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When I spotted this hibiscus escaping between glass panels of a greenhouse, I wondered whether its plant brain cried out, “Enough of this protected environment. Give me the ecstasy of an authentic life!”
     And I asked if I’m allowing the sun and the rain and the wind of real life to hit me, or whether I’m sheltering myself in some greenhouse. Whether my blossoms will unfold in a controlled habitat only, or I’ll allow them to be showcased in the world?    Is it time to break out of my comfort zone? To join that group I’ve avoided? Launch that project? Volunteer in that organization? Make a great escape into vital living?
     What’s the point of blooming in the privacy of a greenhouse anyway?

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Croutons...
Chew on these seasoned bits of life for a little hope and humor along your highway.

JOIN ME ~ I’ll send brief, occasional posts to lighten your backpack. We're on this journey together.

Would Jesus Jump on My Political Bandwagon?

Am I a Bad Samaritan?

What's Eating You?

Dumb Things to Say to the Grieving

Need a Great Escape?

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