The Catfish Dinner

Bert Collins was one of the hardest working men I have ever met. He was raised up a farmer in Calloway County, Kentucky. He was not a big man and he did not talk very much, but you could be assured that when he did talk he always meant what he said. He and his wife, Geneva were some of the most benevolent people their community has ever known. They gave to the Lord first, to others second, and whatever was left over they were satisfied with for themselves.

One Sunday Bert approached me and told me he wanted to take Amber and me out to eat catfish at Tri-City. He and Geneva also invited an older, single man from church who they felt needed encouragement. Tri-City was several miles west of Murray, a little stop on highway 94, hardly worth mentioning. But there was a country store that converted into a catfish restaurant in the evenings, or maybe it was just weekends. As you can imagine, they had good catfish - it is almost always these kind of places that do it the best.

So we rode over together to the country store. We talked about normal things, and honestly I do not remember one conversation in particular. But I think that is how it was supposed to be. We were part of a christian family, and sometimes all that means is just being together. I do remember what a good time we had, and that we laughed and learned about each other. And the distinct feeling that comes back to me about that moment is simply this - we felt loved.

Sometimes we forget that people need us and that we need people. I told J. Fred Johnston Sunday night that the little children that call him the "candy man" will never forget him. They all go to him after services for candy or chewing gum, and he always has some. I remember when I was a kid there was a man I went to after worship for the same reason. I also remember going to my next door neighbor's house and always knowing they would give me a treat from their cupboard. You never forget when people are a blessing. I am confident that I needed Bert and Geneva Collins in my life, and that they needed me, and that is the very reason why God brought us together.

Bert passed away this past Friday. He lived 85 good years on this earth. He was a Christian man. He was a faithful husband, father, and friend. He always gave you a kind "howdy doody" and a smile when he saw you, in a way that was uniquely his. I wonder if he knows how much of a difference he made in the lives of others...I wonder if he knows what a difference he made with just a catfish dinner...

"And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself." ~ Matthew 22:39

Get in the Game

I grew up a Los Angeles Dodgers fan. When I was a child we lived in L.A. and I had the opportunity to attend many games. The Dodgers had some good teams in the 70's and 80's, and I remember World Series victories and some of players and personalities of those teams.

One player in particular that comes to mind is Pedro Guerrero. He was a latin player who was a talented hitter, but who lacked a little bit in the field. Sometimes he played third base, and other times he played outfield. One thing that the managers noticed was that his batting average went down significantly when he was playing third. They found out later that he was hoping that the ball would not be hit to him when he was in the infield. He had no confidence at third base. He later admitted that he could never concentrate on hitting unless he was in the outfield.

It occurs to me that many Christians try to live their life this way in the church. They would rather be away from the line of fire, somewhere in the outfield. They do not want the ball hit to them. They want to be able to concentrate on other things. They do not want to be challeneged. They do not want to get in the game.

We need to get in the game because Christianity is not a spectator sport. If we believe that God truly has the power to take away our sins, we should also believe, "I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me." We can do great work in the kingdom if we will just trust in God to help us.

We need to get in the game because Christianity is about effort, not perfection. People avoid church work because they are afraid they will not do it right. We need to remember God used fisherman to preach the gospel, and He usually used the lowest, most untrained people to change the world. Every person who comes to Christ is a sinner. Every person who works in the church is a sinner. It is guaranteed that elders, deacons, preachers, teachers, are going to commit some errors in their work. I am so thankful for those who will do the Lord's work, knowing that they are imperfect.

We need to get in the game because we are in a win or lose situation. People are depending on us. We should want the ball to come to us, because we can change the outcome. Too many people are playing another game on the wrong field. In the meantime, the majority of the world is going to spend eternity in hell. If we get in the game we will make a difference. If we do not get on the game, we will not get to share in the final victory.

- Luk 16:2 -

"So he called him and said to him, 'What is this I hear about you? Give an account of your stewardship..." ~ Luke 16:2

Laughter

The late comedian Victor Borge once said that "Laughter is the shortest distance between two people." People need to enjoy life. I have often said that one of the greatest lessons having cancer teaches a person is that it is important to rejoice more. Life is a wonderful gift. Too many people are wasting it being negative or unhappy.

Researchers have noted that the average child laughs 150 times a day. The average adult only laughs 15 times a day. We are loosing our smiles, and a laugh is really nothing more than a smile that finally bursts.

The presence of laughter improves virtually every situation. I recently read a suggestion from a marriage and family therapist who said that we should tell jokes at the dinner table to our family members. First, of course, we need to sit down long enough to actually enjoy being with our family. Once we do that, some night let each family member bring 5 jokes with them to the table on a piece of paper. Then take turns telling them. See if you enjoy your supper time more.

Laughter also blesses mankind with inner peace. Actor Alan Alda once said that "When people are laughing, they're generally not killing each other." It takes a willing heart to open up enough with another person so as to laugh with them. Laughter builds relationships. It rewards with memories. It is positive reinforcement. It reminds us that life is great!

The Bible pictures the Son of God as one who was full of joy. Children do not flock to grumpy people. As Jesus took the young people into his arms, I believe there were wonderful smiles and amazing laughter. It was the most natural thing for our Savior to rejoice. He loved people. He enjoyed being with them. He experienced every emotion a man could experience. The people who are the closest to God are those who are the happiest. How close was Jesus to the Father? His closeness must have made him a man who usually wore a smile.

The promise Jesus gives the faithful servant at the end of time is "...enter thou into the joy of thy Lord" (Matt. 25:21, 23). Heaven is going to be a place where laughter abounds. There will be nothing to prohibit eternal rejocing there. Laughter, then, is a momentary taste of divine blessings. It is a prelude to a greater time when we will all be in the presence of God.

"Rejoice in the Lord always. Again I will say, rejoice!" ~ Philippians 4:4

"Creationist" or Just a "Christian"?

Recently we hosted a Creation Vs. Evolution seminar here in Lawrenceburg. I believe it was a huge success and I know we as a church look forward to doing more events like this in the future. Dr. Brad Harrub was our speaker. He was well qualified, did an excellent job, and he opened up the hearts and minds of many people with regard to many matters that face us as Christians in the post-modern era.

I was thinking about Brad recently, being so thankful for him and his work. I know others appreciate him and probably came to some of the same understadnings as I did concerning several issues because of his influence. For example, I am confident that we realize we need more men like him who will study science and Christian evidences, get their credentials, and fight for the truth in these arenas all over the country. But there was one thought I had in particular that made me wonder if anyone else was thinking something similar.

Brad is often labeled a "Creationist." Now, I am sure he would not mind this label. Neither would I. After all, Creationism is simply the religious belief that the universe and all the living things contained therein are the product of deity. Specifically, the proper view of creation is found in the only heavenly account, the Bible. So to be labeled a Creationist is not a bad thing, it is a compliment.

However, I think a better label for Brad and hopefully the rest of us is "Christian." One of the reasons this is a better name is because it is a biblical name (Acts 11:26; 1 Pet. 4:16). But the main point is that it is hard to see how anybody who would call themselves a Christian would not be a Creationist automatically.

If we are going to be Christians, then there are many fundamental truths and believes that should also be a part of our makeup. Some of these include:

1. Belief in the Godhead: the Father, Son, and the Holy Spirit (1 John 5:7).
2. Belief in Jesus as the Son of God (John 3:16).
3. Belief in the Bible as the perfect and inerrant word of God (2 tim. 3:16-17).
4. Belief in the gospel as the power to save the souls of men (Rom. 1:16).
5. Belief that God created the world and everything in it in six days (Ex. 20:11).

Now this is a very short list. The longer list would include the truth about the salvation process, the one church, true worship, et cetera. But the main expression of this article is hopefully very clear. Christians must define themselves according to the same matter that God would define His people in His holy word.

If we are truly Christians, then we are also Creationists - along with other labels and tags the world may supply.

"Yet if anyone suffers as a Christian, let him not be ashamed, but let him glorify God in that name. ~ 1 Peter 4:16

Obstacles

Track star Wilma Rudolph won three gold medals in the 1960 Olympics, but to get there she had to overcome enormous hurdles. Stricken with scarlet fever at the age of 4, she lost the use of her left leg and had to learn to walk again when she was 7.

Tim Hansel wrote about overcoming obstacles in his 1987 publication, Holy Sweat:

In 1962, Victor and Mildred Goertzel published a revealing study of 413 "famous and exceptionally gifted people" called Cradles of Eminence. They spent years attempting to understand what produced such greatness, what common thread might run through all of these outstanding people's lives.

Surprisingly, the most outstanding fact was that virtually all of them, 392, had to overcome very difficult obstacles in order to become who they were.

While most people would like to live a life without the inconveniences of struggles, obstacles are necessary on any road to success. "Easy living" makes us lazy. It keeps us from appreciating blessings. Hard times are benchmarks in our progress. They are, as the poem goes, the footprints in the sand that remind us of the loving care of God who never gives up on us.

If you were to honestly look back on your life and ask yourself when you felt the closest to God, I think that you will find it was when you overcame something with His help. It was an illness that God helped you get through, or perhaps poverty, stress, or marriage/family trouble. It may have simply been a time of isolation when you realized that God was the only sure and constant thing at all.

I have witnessed that on many occasions, people deny the Lord in "good times." I have experienced that some people are completely unreachable with the gospel when they have no visible obstacles to overcome. But a death, a divorce, a difficult personal problem, these often present the obstacle that is needed for people to finally realize that they cannot get through life without God.

The next time you see an obstacle, don't worry. It may be your greatest opportunity for success. Christ proved this truth when He died on the cross. The greatest victories are found in what we overcome.

"Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in needs, in persecutions, in distresses, for Christ's sake. For when I am weak, then I am strong." ~ 2 Corinthians 12:10

Fishers of Men

When Jesus began His earthly ministry, He called four fishermen to be the first of twelve apostles. In Matthew 4, Mark 1, and Luke 5 the accounts of the calling of these fishermen can be found.

In Matthew 4:19 and Mark 1:17, Jesus said, "Follow Me, and I will make you fishers of men."

Luke wrote the words of Christ this way in Luke 5:10, "Do not be afraid, from now on you will catch men."

An examination of the Biblical narrative gives the true disciple of Christ some important reminders:

1. Jesus can use anybody. When the gospel was first preached, people from all nations heard the wonderful works of God from uneducated men from Galilee. Christ can literally come right into your workplace and give you a better and more important task. Your past, your training, your origin - these things do not matter to the one who can do anything (Matt. 19:26).

2. Circumstances change priorities. The preaching of Jesus which accompanied the calling of the apostles was, "Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand" (Matt. 4:17). Fishing in a boat suddenly became somewhat of a minor thing to be doing when these men found out the kingdom of God was about to come to men. People today are involved in many things that really should be less important than they are making them. Jesus may come again at anytime.

3. True discipleship is complete allegiance. The most staggering verse of the account of this calling is Mark 1:18 (KJV) - "And straightway they forsook their nets, and followed him." The word forsook in this passage literally means," send away, leave behind, divorce, or desert." These men dropped the fishing business immediately, and spent over 3 years with Jesus before His death. The reason why many people have never grown in Christ, is because they have never completely joined with Him. You cannot hold the world with one hand and hold the hand of Jesus with the other.

4. God wants people who will fish for men. People ask all of the time, "What does God really expect from me?" They say, "I love God and I know He has a plan for me, but I am not sure what that is!" The Bible teaches that God wants people to catch other people. This is what He expects, and this is His plan for you! Embrace the fact that God is waiting for you to get into the fishing business. You cannot be a follower of Jesus until you begin fishing for men.

"When He had stopped speaking, He said to Simon, 'Launch out into the deep and let down your nets for a catch.'" ~ Luke 5:4

My Gospel

"...in the day when God will judge the secrets of men by Jesus Christ, according to my gospel." ~ Romans 2:16

"Now to Him who is able to establish you according to my gospel and the preaching of Jesus Christ, according to the revelation of the mystery kept secret since the world began..." ~ Romans 16:25

"Remember that Jesus Christ, of the seed of David, was raised from the dead according to my gospel." ~ 2 Timothy 2:8

On these three occasions, Paul, by the power of the Holy Spirit, wrote concerning his special relationship to the gospel of Jesus Christ. These are are not the only occasions in which Paul mentions the importance of the gospel, or his relationship to it - but these are the times when he said it specifically this way - "my gospel."

Although the gospel is not something we initiated, it should still be to us a great possession. Paul lived a life that was pleasing to God because he wanted to live - "according to the glorious gospel of the blessed God which was committed to my trust" (1 Tim. 1:11).

He also presented his work in life in this manner - "Now all things are of God, who has reconciled us to Himself through Jesus Christ, and has given us the ministry of reconciliation, that is, that God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself, not imputing their trespasses to them, and has committed to us the word of reconciliation. Now then, we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God were pleading through us: we implore you on Christ's behalf, be reconciled to God." (2 Corinthians 5:18-20).

What is missing in the life of most Christians is a possessive attitude about the gospel. It is not the preacher's gospel! It is not the church's gospel! It is not the elders' or the deacons' or the teachers' gospel! Until we all have a personal relationship with the gospel like Paul had, we can in no way be a growing church.

God has chosen to spread the good news of Jesus Christ by word of mouth (1 Corinthians 1:21). Personal evangelism will never be out-dated, overdone, or unnecessary. What greater gift has man received than the gospel? What greater gift can man give than the gospel?

In order for us to give it, we have to already possess it. I am so excited about the gospel of Jesus Christ - my gospel! Are you?

"Therefore those who were scattered went everywhere preaching the word."~ Acts 8:4