Watching My Steps

If the LORD delights in a man's way, he makes his steps firm; though he stumble, he will not fall, for the LORD upholds him with his hand. (Psalm 37:23-24)

I've been wearing a pedometer for the past week. My company sponsors a "Healthy Habits" program for our employees, designed to encourage us to eat better and exercise more (healthy employees make happy employees). We kicked off a 6-week "Step To It" campaign this month to give us measurable goals for walking and other activities designed to improve our overall physical fitness. Each participant was given a pedometer (in the shape of a heart, no less) and six weekly logs for tracking our progress. So all week long, I've been accompanied by the gentle "click click click" of my pedometer as I tool about.

As I was going for my morning walk today, I was listening to the pedometer clicking off each step I took, and I was thinking about what the Bible says about our steps. I knew there was a verse in there about God ordering the steps of a righteous man (it must be in there because we sing about it in church), but I wondered what else the Bible has to say about our steps. I also wondered if that often-quoted passage was in context, or just another fanciful saying that people like to throw around because it sounds good.

So I turned to my new best friend, BibleGateway.com, and found some interesting passages (including the correct context of said verse above). In the King James version, Psalm 37:23 says, "The steps of a good man are ordered by the LORD: and he delighteth in his way." In the NIV (quoted at the top of the page), the phrasing is different, and there is a condition and a promise attached to this verse. If God delights in my ways, He will make my steps firm (or "order" my steps), and if my steps are firm, God will keep me from falling even when I stumble. To just say that my steps are ordered by God seems to imply that God tells me where to go and I have no choice in the matter - basically I'm just one of His puppets. However, if I delight God by living and doing right, then He will firm up my steps and preserve me, wherever I walk (obviously only walking in those places where I belong).

Then I found Proverbs 4:11-12: "I guide you in the way of wisdom and lead you along straight paths. When you walk, your steps will not be hampered; when you run, you will not stumble." This tells me that, if I follow God's ways, I can be assured that my spiritual walk will be blessed. The opposite, then, is also true: if my steps are being hampered and I'm stumbling when I run, then I must not be following God's leading along the straight paths that He has laid before me. This gives me cause for introspection and self-examination. I'll be the first to admit, when you've been walking with the Lord for several decades, sometimes the scenery gets a little boring and the path seems uninteresting. We often want to take a detour for a fresh adventure or a new perspective. However, just like in hiking, if you get off the trail, you're asking for trouble. God is not obligated to preserve and protect me when I stray from His guidance.

Finally, I found this: "A simple man believes anything, but a prudent man gives thought to his steps." (Proverbs 14:15) Today I was having a discussion with a friend about renegade preachers who have no accountability. Often their followers soak up every spoken word without giving any thought to verifying it against Scripture. I mentioned to my friend that, as a pastor, I always told my congregation to never take my word for anything - always check it out in the Bible for themselves. What if I was having an off day and decided that we should start something goofy in the church? I would hope that I had trained my flock well enough that they would immediately recognize the dissonance of false teaching when they heard it. I not only need to be careful as a teacher and preacher, but also in my personal walk as well. I must give careful thought to my steps - how I spend my time and energy, the decisions I make, the people I associate with, even my thought life.

We all need to watch our steps. God is not some cosmic puppeteer pulling our strings and forcing us to go wherever He wants us to go. He has laid out a road map for us, but it is our choice to make whether we follow it. If we do, His word promises us that we can rest assured in His ability to preserve and protect us as we travel along.

Have a blessed week!

Pastor David

Pulpit Freedom Sunday - Seriously?

"No one serving as a soldier gets involved in civilian affairs—he wants to please his commanding officer." (2 Timothy 2:4)

Today was "Pulpit Freedom Sunday", a now-annual event observed by nearly 100 pastors who defiantly preached political messages from their pulpits in order to get the IRS to attempt to pull their tax exempt statuses. The thought behind this is, if the IRS makes a move, the churches will sue declaring that the restriction on churches engaging in political activities is a constitutional violation of church and state.

I have a couple of issues with this tactic. First off, there is no constitutional right to tax exemption for churches. If a church wants to be tax exempt, then they have to play by the rules. And one of those rules is, you can't engage in activities that influence political elections, whether it be to support or oppose a political candidate or ballot measure. If a church wants to play politics, let it form a Political Action Committee (PAC) and play by those rules.

The second, and larger, issue is the whole idea of using the pulpit for such a purpose. This self-serving action has no place in the church, and only diminishes the sacred office of the preacher. Christians gather in churches to hear the Word of God expounded upon, to be uplifted and encouraged, and to be equipped to do the work that God has prepared for them to do (Ephesians 2:10; 4:11-12). Not to listen to the preacher's opinion of who they should vote for or what ballot measures they should support. What a wasted opportunity on the part of these pastors. Who knows but that today was the day that the Holy Spirit prompted unsaved men and women to attend some of these churches, only to hear a political message instead of the message of salvation?

Having preached hundreds of sermons over the years, I can tell you that there was never a time when I stepped behind the pulpit that I did not feel the full weight of this awesome responsibility to convey the truth of God's Word to my congregation in such a way that would not only honor God, but be of great spiritual benefit to the listeners. To do any less would be to treat the pulpit with disdain and contempt. These defiant pastors have missed the mark and will have to give an account to the Lord for why they engaged in such futile and distracting activities instead of carrying out the sacred duties of their office.

This is just one more reason why the Christian Church in America needs to get back to the business of preaching and teaching the Good News of Jesus Christ. For too long now, the American Church has been distracted by engaging in the political arena. Countless throngs have been disenchanted and disenfranchised by the seeming irrelevance of the Church, largely in part because of these un-Biblical activities. How many more souls will be lost because of misguided preachers who insist on pushing their own agendas instead of the one that Jesus gave us before he ascended into Heaven?

Why I Love Muslims

(Jesus said) "By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another." (John 13:35)

The current controversy over the proposed Islamic community center in Manhattan has revealed one of America's dirty little secrets - a lot of people in this country simply don't like Muslims. While some of this sentiment may tie back to the events of 9/11, I suspect more of it may simply be the result of Americans wearying of outsiders infringing on our "traditional ways of life". We see this as well in the backlash against illegal immigrants, primarily those of Hispanic origin. But that is another blog for another Sunday.

Personally, I am saddened by the harsh and acerbic reactions of many people in this country toward the community center, and more importantly, the Muslims behind this project (as well as Muslims in general). Unfortunately, much of the hatred being spewed toward them is coming from self-proclaimed "Christians". I imagine that such behavior greatly saddens our Father and grieves the Holy Spirit. When did the teachings of Jesus about love and forgiveness morph into a gospel of hate and intolerance? Does any "Christian" truly believe they are carrying out the commands of their Savior by vilifying Muslims or burning copies of the Koran?

When was the last time anyone was hated into the Kingdom of God? I dare say, never. Christianity was always meant to be a religion of attraction, not coercion. Obviously, we have a history of getting it wrong, but we have the capacity to get it right. How much easier would it be to win over our Muslim neighbors and co-workers by showing them unconditional love and acceptance as people who need a Savior just as much as we do?

I love Muslims because Jesus loves them. The Apostle Peter wrote that God does not want "anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance." (2 Peter 3:9) Jesus died on the cross so all people could have the gift of eternal life, regardless of who or what they are. I love Muslims, not because of their religion, but in spite of it. Jesus extended love and forgiveness to the Roman soldiers who tortured and abused him, and had carried out his inhumane execution. How can we do less?

Regardless of your own personal feelings about the community center in New York (which is neither a mosque nor at Ground Zero, as the hysterical media like to portray it), if you profess Jesus Christ as your Savior, you have a responsibility to love the followers of Islam and seek out their good and not their harm. I honestly believe that if the Christian Church in the US were to take such an attitude, we would see many more Muslims come to faith instead of viewing us as the enemy.

Have a blessed week.

Pastor David