Tempted or rewarded - please decide

When I was growing up in church we had several different people come to speak at the church and there was a lot of testimony. I can't believe how long it took me to realize the inconsistency in one particular part of these testimonies:

I knew that I was doing what God wanted because the devil kept sending bad things my way.

I knew that I was doing the wrong thing because I wasn't being blessed and bad things kept happening to me.

or the inverse:

When you do what God wants you to do you will be happy and rewarded with good things.

The devil will try to send good things your way so that you will be tempted to go against God.

In the end I finally realized that good or bad things cannot be used as evidence of living a good Christian life because the only difference in these testimonies was what these people "felt" was good or bad. True evidence is consistent, and this obviously wasn't.

It's pretty simple: do the right thing regardless of whether you will be immediately rewarded or not. Don't let rewards or failures detract or deter you. If you don't know what the right thing is, keep learning, keep striving, keep reading.

The right behaviors are about long term rewards not short term validation. Continue to strive for what you know is right and let the rest fall by the wayside.

Harvey tiles

Not everything is a lesson. Somethings are just bizarre. Or fun. This is kind of a little bit of both - brought to you by crazy people.

Don't be afraid of change

From page 216 of Goals! by Brian Tracy:

Change causes enormous stress for people who are fixed or rigid in their beliefs about how things "should be." They fall in love whit what they are doing, with their current methods and processes, and are unwilling to change, even in the face of overwhelming evidence. Don't let this happen to you.

The only real question you should be asking about what you are doing is, Does it work? It is achieving the end results desire?

I have mentioned Brian Tracy before in a post about successful people quoting scripture, and I think he brings up a good point here. So many Christians are afraid of change. It's odd when you think about it: Christ changed everything when he came. Our very faith is based upon that earth-shattering change. And yet how many churches out there had a hard time with the silliest things over the years: women wearing pants, men with long hair, even drinking soda out of a bottle (because it was the "appearance of evil").

But there are a lot of bigger things on which people get hung up: alcohol, non-conventional church, being pro-choice, gay marriage, etc. Now I am not saying that these are not controversial topics, nor am I saying that people can hold very strong views on these topics for very important reasons. What I am saying is that the church should be able to accept people no matter what their position on some of these issues.

For instance, we know where pro-life people stand: all life is sacred, even the unborn. But we must realize pro-choice people are not necessarily pro-abortion. In fact, many are anti-abortion, they simply feel it is not the government's job to make this choice. But more important than all that: even if one group is wrong and the other group is right, God still loves them and has a place for them in His family.

Haven't you ever tenaciously held to a religious belief for years and years and at some point in your life realized your position was wrong? Were you not a Christian during those years? Should you have been an outcast? I am not saying who is right or wrong here: I am simply saying that one point of view does not a Christian or non-Christian make.

Maybe you are not ready to make some change. Would you be willing to consider it with much prayer and meditation? If not, perhaps your heart is hard.

The world changes. Women didn't use to work. Or speak out. Or have an equal voice. And that was the way the church said it should be. Do you think we have it all figured out? Do you think in November of 2009 we finally got it all right and there is nothing else we will have to alter?

Jesus changed everything - and the only people that ticked off was the religious leaders of the day: the pharisees. Our hearts should be open and we should be focused on what Jesus would do. If the church dogma isn't in line with what Jesus would do, it is not the latter that needs to change, because some things are unchanging.

Dogs in church

When the Rev. Tom Eggebeen took over as interim pastor at Covenant Presbyterian Church three years ago, he looked around and knew it needed a jump start.

Most of his worshippers, though devoted, were in their 60s, attendance had bottomed out and the once-vibrant church was fading as a community touchstone in its bustling neighborhood.

So Eggebeen came up with a hair-raising idea: He would turn God's house into a doghouse by offering a 30-minute service complete with individual doggie beds, canine prayers and an offering of dog treats.

This one scared me. At first I thought they were literally having church for dogs. That would be... messed up.

However, I then saw that they are having services in which pets are welcome:

The weekly dog service at Covenant Presbyterian is part of a growing trend among churches nationwide to address the ... deeply felt bonds that owners form with their animals.

And then I kept reading:

Traditionally, conventional Christians believe that only humans have redeemable souls, said Laura Hobgood-Oster, a religion professor at Southwestern University in Georgetown, Texas.

But a growing number of congregations from Massachusetts to Texas to California are challenging that assertion with regular pet blessings and, increasingly, pet-centric services, said Hobgood-Oster, who studies the role of animals in Christian tradition.

I just don't know what to think, but here's my stance: making churches friendly and inviting - good. Praying for animal's souls - not good.

Honestly, I have to expect that the reporter is simply getting the facts a little askew. Let's hope. I could quote scripture here, but let's just go with logic: there is no dog Bible. There is no way for dogs to a) know the need for salvation or b) accept salvation.

I hope to dog that all these churches are on board with that, otherwise they are going to have a ruff time getting all their parishioners to their final destination.

Keep your friends close...

Proverbs 27:5-6:

Better is open rebuke than hidden love.
Wounds from a friend can be trusted, but an enemy multiplies kisses.

Truer words were never uttered. But these are two different topics, with the same conclusion. Let's hit the first:

Don't hide love! Love is precious. The best place to see what the Bible says about love is in I Corinthians 13:

If I speak in the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I am only a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal. If I have the gift of prophecy and can fathom all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have a faith that can move mountains, but have not love, I am nothing. If I give all I possess to the poor and surrender my body to the flames, but have not love, I gain nothing.

If you love someone, tell them. It may be a risk, but it's better to tell someone and be let down than to hold it in and never take the chance.

But here is the common theme between these verses: rebuke is good! It may be painful, but it helps us grow. We only want to hear the good, but if we only hear the good, we cannot fix ourselves and make ourselves better. None of us are perfect, so we must know where we are imperfect to strive for the goal Jesus gave us in Matthew 5:48:

Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect.

And this leads into the second verse:

Wounds from a friend can be trusted, but an enemy multiplies kisses.

Good stuff. It's a more lyrical version of "keep your friends close and your enemies closer." The person who only tells you sugary sweet stuff about yourself may not be your friend, and even the friend who refuses to be honest with you may not be doing you any favors. It is the friend who lets you know when you are falling shy of the mark that is the friend you want to keep close.

If you are ever in a disagreement with someone close to you or having a difficult situation, and you ask your friends where things are wrong, the one who tells you kindly but directly that you may be the problem - that may be the truest of your friends. When you feel in your gut that turning that you know they are right yet you don't want to accept it, remember to keep that person close: they will help guide you ever closer to who you want to be.

Why do successful people quote scripture?

Is it a coincidence that vastly successful people quote scripture? Take Brian Tracy whose book Goals! I am currently reading. His book is riddled with quotes from the Bible, such as Proverbs 23:7

Or for as he thinks within himself, / so he is

and Matthew 9:29:

According to your faith will it be done to you

Zig Ziglar also professes to be a strong Christian and quotes several scriptures in See You At the Top. The list goes on and on with people like Tommy Newberry in his book Success Is not an Accident.

So why do so many people who are enormously successful look to the Bible to gain insight into success? Perhaps there is a reason.

Is your view of scripture bringing you success? Shouldn't it?