Flag Burning

Now I have an utmost respect for the American Flag. Just ask my wife. I'm guaranteed to start raving if I see a flag flying that's faded or tattered. It's also quite a pet-peeve of mine when people either do or don't fly it at half-mast as appropriately. Our flag represents out country, it's freedoms, and the men and woman who gave their lives either through death or service in promoting those freedoms.

As you can guess, I am extremely offended when I see someone burning a flag. I think it's a sign of arrogance, ignorance and a bitter heart. It's a slap in the face to everyone who has worked to ensure that we're all free. However, it's out a deep respect for those same freedoms that I can't support an initiative to ban flag-burning. Personally, it fills me with sadness and disappointment to see it, but if I truly believe in the freedoms that America represents I must allow such actions even if I whole-heartedly disagree.

Our Founding Fathers did not set out to create our freedoms, rather they sought to create a nation which recognized the freedoms already afforded to all men. "We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights" When the above quote was written into the Declaration of Independance, it was treason. Such an expression was illegal according to the government, but the authors recognized that the right to express those thoughts came from a Higher Power. As such, any attempt by this government to forbid any person from expressing displeasure with it's government and holding it accountable is to take a step backward and revisit the tyranny we threw off 230 years ago.

I'm a patriot. I believe in this country, it's Constitution and it's freedoms. I deeply respect all those that have served, some to the end, to promote the United States of America. But this country wasn't founded on a Government. It was founded on the heart-felt belief that there is Someone higher than the government, that government is the steward of the people, that government is temporary and could be, in fact, must be changed when it fails to recognize that it is not the source of authority, rather it is simply the executor of Authority.

Flag burning tears this country down, but it's meant to. The person lighting the match is making the statement that our government needs replaced. Jefferson said no less. If you disagree with their actions, as I do, then we must exercise our own freedoms and speak out against them. But to attempt to limit or remove their freedom is not the true spirit of what it means to be an American.

I hope everyone has a happy Fourth of July holiday. Enjoy the fireworks and parties, but also take a second to reflect on the freedoms afforded us in the USA. We truly are a blessed nation.

Disagree? Post a comment below.

Evangelism Essay

I'm currently in a Leadership and Theology class at church. The following is our first assignment. Let me know what you think.

Evangelism

As with most Christians, I would not consider myself an evangelist. I think of myself primarily as a teacher and an apologist. I greatly enjoy being able to share with people, answer their questions, and explain different spiritual principals in ways they understand. While it’s true that this may be used to disciple or encourage people who are already Christian, I find it also comes out in my evangelizing.
My primary concern when speaking with anyone about Christ is that the individual understands that true salvation depends on two things. First is an honest recognition of their sin and a sincere repentance for sinning against God. Second, that they understand Christ bore the wrath due to them and accept Him as their Lord. These are stated clearly in Acts 20:21 when Paul says “I have declared to both Jews and Greeks that they must turn to God in repentance and have faith in our Lord Jesus.” This scripture also points out that this message is not just for those who have known nothing of the true identity of God (the Greeks), but also those who have been aware of God and His Word and now need to respond to His Son (the Jews). I believe that at The Judgment there will be many people from this day and age calling to Jesus “Lord!” but hearing from Christ “I never knew you”. It is the people who can’t see Christ through the church, who believe that serving the church is the same as trusting in God’s Son, that I have the deepest passion for.
Peter said, “Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have.” (1 Peter 3:15b). As such, I try to understand the arguments for and against different aspects of this Christian life and our church culture. I have had people ask me about creation, forgiveness, Harry Potter and even if their pets will be in Heaven. People are spiritual beings as well as physical, so they will innately be interested in the spiritual on some level. When these things come up, I like to be well read so that I can speak intelligently on the subject. However, the trick is not to stay on any one topic, as they can simply be rabbit trails or straw man tactics, but to use the fact that they approached you and transition them to the Law and who Christ is.
I’ve always enjoyed learning and understanding how things work. This is true in every area of my life. I rarely kept new toys new for very long. I remember getting a pull-back car from Christmas when I was five-years-old. It didn’t survive until sun-down. I had unscrewed the bottom and the spring whipped out, never to be usable again. To this day, I still pick things apart, learn how they work, and love to explain this to others. Christ said “I have spoken to you of earthly things and you do not believe; how then will you believe if I speak of heavenly things?”(John 3:12) I believe God wants us to understand His world. I’ve been gifted with the ability to pass this understanding on to others.
The biggest strength of my evangelism style is the ability to meet people where they are. If creation, or the world’s evil, or hurts from a past church are a stumbling block to someone, I’m not afraid to take that, address it, and then move past that to Christ and His teaching of who He is and who we are. So many people have been turned off by the church because they didn’t think it had the answers. Then when someone or something else comes along offering a false truth, they grab onto it because we didn’t offer them something real. I try to show them that there is a reason behind our faith in Christ; it’s not a crutch or blind faith.
The weakness is this is truly a passive style of evangelism. Maybe it’s easy to hide behind because it’s non-threatening and doesn’t make me risk rejection since they come to me. I need to be aware of the many chances I have everyday to create opportunities, generate conversation and share my faith.
Another weakness of how I evangelize is that these conversations can easily stick to the intellectual realm. For someone to truly repent and accept Christ, their conscience has to be involved. This required that the discussion moves from their mind to their heart, so that the law can convict them and they can truly desire the salvation Christ offers. Their sin will want to remain hidden, so they will continue to throw up irrelevant arguments to avoid this shift to their conscience. As someone who enjoys an intellectual argument, this is a temptation that must be avoided.

In conclusion, while God has gifted some as evangelists, this does not mean that only they are to evangelize the world. We all have a gifting through which we are to share our faith and give witness to the work Christ has done in our lives. Some will be more public, others will share subtly but steadily to all those around them. The point is to gain an understanding and appreciation for who God has created us to be, then to use that for His purposes and glory.

Editor's Note - Comments

Hey All,

I've added a link to the right called 'How to leave comments'. Each new post has a comments section associated with it and you can leave and read responses to the post. I'd love to see these. I do get e-mails from some of you, and if it's a private thought, that's fine. However, public feedback can get a dialog started and benefit everyone.

Simply click on the text below that says '0 comments' (or 1 comments, etc) and fil out the form. If you don't have a blogger account, choose other and enter your name. For more detailed instructions, feel free to use the link I mentioned.

Thanks and I hope you get something out of this as much as I do.

Love and Laughs,

Jason

Personal update - 6/13/06

I'm having a very hard time being motivated right now. Maybe I'm still a bit depressed, even though my mood is better. I really don't want to do much other that be alone, read, work on a used PC we inherited, etc. I just want to do my things and not be bothered by anyone else. That's not a very pastoral thought, is it? I'm sure there are times when pastors think that, but when one is called to serve, there's got to be a way to fill that need for 'Me' time while still meeting the needs of those around you.

For me, the responsibilities I have are simply not in my mind. I'm trying to force them to the forefront so that I can work on them. Right now I was supposed to be planning a Christmas Walk planning retreat, which I forgot about until today (for this coming Sat), I need to get with the Missionary Support Team for Ben but I never think to do it, and I think I may have forgotten to take my donation of food for the VBS for the day I signed up. Meanwhile I need to get lesson plans for Sunday's bible study and write a paper for my class at church. I'm not really overworked, but I just forget until the time is either upon me or I'm late.

It's times like these that my calling scares me. (Note: I made a purposeful decision not to say that I question my calling. I believe in it, regardless of how qualified I feel.) Times when I feel overrun or fail to follow through with my work, which is often, really make me feel like a fraud. How can I ever pastor a church when I don't trust myself to do the work? I sometimes feel very bad for what ever church gets me.

Holy Father, I confess to you that I've been lazy. I made commitments and given my word, then failed them. Forgive me. Such behavior hurts my witness for You and my my opportunities to minister to others. Please give me a renewed work ethic, freshen and sharpen my mind and let me work for You in all I do. In Christ's name. Amen.

Calling update

So where am I at with my calling? Sure seems like nothings happening with it. One of my pastors, Mark, was encouraging me to begin getting some formal education. Not that it's necessarily needed, but working on it now makes me ready when I'm called to a pastorate. However at this time, I don't feel released to take official studies. I'm taking a theology/leadership class through church which is as close to a real class as I've taken in a while, with assigned reading, papers due. It amazes me how just this little bit seems difficult to fit into my schedule.

Other than that, it does feel like I'm just letting it sit there, that more should be done. However, I know that the LORD wants me to wait. That was the answer to much prayer and discernment. He has work to do in my life before I'm to begin taking purposeful steps. However, I will admit to being anxious. I'd still give anything to be asked to a position at the church. I love being there during the days and working. Seems right. But that's not for now.

So, I'm working to accept this calling into my daily life. I need to make this a part of who I am without apology. I recently gave a friend of mine my resume for a supervisor position at his office. I wasn't looking, but he thought I'd be good for it. Now I'm wondering if I'd mention, or admit, to my true long-term goals during an interview. Employers don't really want to hear that you don't intend to stick around for long. But who's to say how long it will be until God calls me out. My hope is that I won't hide it, but I can't see volunteering it either.

So if you're a pastor or someone in ministry, what was the time between calling and working like for you? Did you have to wait? Question your call? Use the comments link below and share your thoughts.

Three weeks?!?

Wow does time fly. If you're one who looks at this regularly, I apologize. The month of May has been a rough one for me. Some things have been weighing on me and I slipped into a depression. When I do I get quite reclusive, so I really didn't feel like sharing much. Combine that with the fact that most of my thoughts were one more private matters, and I couldn't think of much else to share here.

But, I'm feeling better know. You know what helped? Talking. Isn't that always the way? We get so caught up in our own minds. We have entire conversations with people in our heads, get all worked up, then let that drag down our relationships with them, when they haven't even done anything. (You don't do that? -eh ok.) My relationship with my wife had been tense, and talking with others didn't do much. It may have helped me get perspective, but not lift the depression. Only when I shared openly and honestly with her my feelings did things begin to brighten. I'm sorry I let it go so long. It wasn't fair to her.

I also struggled in my faith during this time. Not that I didn't believe in God or his promises, but I didn't think of them, or talk with him. I beginning to learn that God wants to hear more than our requests, confessions, repentance and praise. Now those are all good things and definitely part of our prayer life. But He wants us to open up to him. I need to learn to share my feelings with Him. Tell Him when I'm angry, scared, or joyful. Even though I tend to keep my feelings close to the surface, I don't discuss them or process them very much. However they are a part of my and God wants to hear about it.

Please pray that I will get back into being open with God regularly. And that I'll post here more. I think that helps keep my mind open.