MINISTRY ACCOUNTABILITY

After watching ABC’s 20/20 program Friday night, I was reminded of the popular Biblical misconception that God loves a cheerful recipient of believers’ donations. I can not find that in my Bible.

What I do find in my Bible is the concept of cheerful giving. And evidently some ministries take advantage of believers who strive to practice the giving concept. This was not a surprise to me, but it probably is to those who believe a particular man, woman or ministry is God-anointed/appointed to live in lavish luxury while the donors live in mediocrity or poverty.

Is it possible that those who are presently living it up on donations for preaching the gospel will be begging with the rich man while Lazarus and his newfound donor friends are comforted in God’s kingdom? (Luke 16:19-31) And is it possible that some of those donors will be begging with the rich-in-this-life because their motives for donating were purely selfish and not generous toward the preaching of the Gospel?

It seems to me that those who donate to these ministries in order to coerce God into handing out wealth, health or happiness are just as wrong – okay, just as sinful – as those who are raking in donations for “God’s work” and use a large measure on personal opulence.

Ministries should be accountable for using donated funds wisely to accomplish the preaching of the Gospel and to help those in need. Many belong to Evangelical Council for Financial Accountability. God’s Gospel is not the prosperity gospel. He did not promise to make everyone rich, to give everyone every desire of their imagination, or to enable everyone to live a perfect, pain-filled life.

I do not believe God expects us to give blindly, but to give wisely. I say this because I once belonged to a church that taught Old Testament tithing. The leadership lived in luxury, spending money lavishly, while asking the membership to dig deeper into their pockets and sacrifice over and above the tithes. While coming out of that system, I nearly fell, hook, line and empty wallet, for the prosperity gospel. Of course, not everyone that donates to any ministry expects something in return. Generous, cheerful giving is a way of life with many.

On 20/20 I learned of a group called Ministrywatch and although I am not familiar with the group, the concept of being aware of where and how your donations are apportioned and what beliefs the ministry promotes is sound. I don’t know about you, but if I have a choice between making a wealthy minister wealthier or helping someone who has a real need to hear the Gospel or feed a family, I know which choice I want to make.

www.mercyandpercy.com/

PET FOOD RECALL LESSON

The latest pet food recall is big news, not to mention a big disaster. Several dogs and cats have already died from acute kidney failure from eating certain types of canned and pouch pet food packaged under 95 brand names by Menu Foods, and, sadly, more deaths are likely.

60,000,000 (yes, that’s 60 million) cans and pouches have been recalled, although testing has not as yet pinpointed what caused the kidney failure, even in young, healthy animals. Moldy wheat gluten is suspected, but not confirmed.

You can find more information on the recall at Pet Foods/Recall. You can click on individual brand names under cat or dog to read the specific wet food being recalled or other contact information. Or you can call either of these numbers: (866) 463-6738 or (866) 895-2708. A few other major pet food companies have voluntary joined the recall and these can be found at FDA News.

Every so often human food or pet food recalls hit the news because of E.coli, mold, heavy metal, or aflatoxin. Anything we eat could possibly become contaminated with something toxic and sicken or kill instead of providing nourishment.

Recalls are expensive, and not just from the loss of revenue from the product. Medical bills mount for those affected, legal fees can accumulate, and most importantly, lives are affected – and sometimes lost.

One contaminated ingredient is all it takes to do widespread harm.

And one unkind comment or accusation is all it takes to cut another to the core.

Some of us really do need to learn to think more often before we speak, and I include myself in that category. I have been known to open mouth, insert foot and then wonder what I did to end up in such a ridiculous position. But I have also been on the receiving end, so I know how much careless, rude, or angry comments can hurt.

Just yesterday I learned a professional person neglected to do something he was entrusted – and being paid - to do in a timely manner and the result is a delay that leaves me legally responsible for accomplishing something but without the legal right to actually do it properly. When I asked why his function had not been fulfilled within the required time frame, he turned on me in anger, closed his ears and mind to the subject at hand, and (to give the short version) told me I need to hire an accountant because I don’t know what I am doing and I will mess everything up. In other words, he made a mistake and that makes me incompetent.

Talk about someone ruining your day! That sure ruined mine. The words, though untrue, stung. They have been circling round and round in my mind for two days. I really wanted to refute them and, to be honest, to retaliate in kind.

Tonight, however, I am putting them where they belong – in the garbage. Just like the contaminated food being recalled, these words are contaminated and carry life-threatening germs. The one who spoke them is well-thought of in the community and holds a position in his church, but like many of us, when faced with a mistake with potential consequences, instead of admitting the mistake, he opened his mouth, stuck his foot in, and now is indelibly imprinted in my mind in that position.

I really desire to eliminate the angry, cold, careless, vengeful, accusatory and demeaning words that cut the heart from my speech, because, unfortunately, no apology in the world can effectively recall them once distributed.

www.mercyandpercy.com/

STILL WRITING

Since I have been asked why I have not been posting stories and whether I am still writing, it must be time to post something new to let folks know I am still alive and typing.

A few months ago I posted notice this site might have to close because my mother’s death brought heavy changes to my life. I did not have time to write for many weeks and that gave me some time and distance to consider options, one of which was to keep Mercy And Percy going, but perhaps with some changes.

It has been six months since Mother’s death and I am still unsure of what my future holds, but I am not twiddling my thumbs. I am chin-deep in trying to keep up with commitments, catch up with household duties (including a mountain of paperwork that needs sorting and filing – some mine, some Mother’s), juggle all the personal and legal obligations that follow a death, and tackle new projects. And I can’t forget to include my responsibility to the Funny Farm residents who need care and attention too or they stare at their empty bowls and drag leashes around the house to clue me in to their needs.

This has not been an easy time, but life is full of mountains and valleys. It has been a journey of hard work, exhaustion, illness, and discouraging setbacks. But the trek has included some great surprises, the support of loyal friends, and a stronger awareness of the presence of God in my life.

There will be more posts, but they might be sporadic.

www.mercyandpercy.com/

AMATEUR BELIEVER

Patty Kirk was raised a Catholic, believing one must earn her way into heaven. In her teens, she turned away from her faith and became an atheist, traveling the world in search of meaning and happiness. Eventually, she returned to the U. S. to teach. She married a farmer. Not just any farmer, but a Bible-believing, praying Christian. Two children later, she was a Christian too.

In Confessions of an Amateur Believer, Patty Kirk writes, “What a joy it is to exchange fighting for rest!” She has reached the stage where she realizes she can not save herself and abandons the struggle. She has stopped fighting against Jesus.

This book describes her journey from the easy belief of a child to a restless non-believer and finally into a settled faith. Or, as she explains it, “This book explores how, having begun to believe as a child and lost sight of God for half a lifetime, I came not only to recognize him again, but, by struggling with scripture and my own habits of unbelief to acknowledge and celebrate his active participation in my life.”

www.mercyandpercy.com/

ARTIFICIAL REALITY SHOWS

ARTIFICIAL REALITY SHOWS

By Janice Price

It was a shock to accidentally catch the last half of a television program called Wife Swap. Evidently two women from opposite lifestyles trade families for two weeks. The first week the visiting wife lives by the house rules. The second week, she institutes her own rules. Controversy results and controversy translates into network ratings.

What caught and held my attention was a black woman called Big Mama telling a family of atheists the new house rules would be based on her family’s view of Christianity. The father and his children rose to their feet, threw Bibles she must have just passed out to them onto the floor, and left the room.

Meanwhile, Big Mama’s home was being stripped of all Bibles and religious symbolism by the other wife who sported a shaved head, a nose piercing and a multitude of tattoos. She let it be known she had not enjoyed having to attend their church service. One daughter was reduced to tears. The husband commented about their faith was not in things, but in Jesus.

I believe in God and his word, but not in shoving him into the faces of people who do not believe in him, which is what I felt was happening, even though Big Mama undoubtedly had the best of intentions. Her idea was to “save” them. There was a breakfast confrontation, where Big Mama tried to make the young son pray. His father stopped her and said she had no right to make a house rule the family must pray to a God they don’t believe in. And he is correct. Program rules or not, trying to force your religion onto another person is not biblical. There is no verse in my Bible that states, You will force feed the Word of God to anyone who is not ready or refuses to receive the Good News of Christ.

On the other hand, it seemed just as belligerent to force a religious family to pack up their Bibles for a week.

I am not trying to make either of these women sound like a bad person. I don’t know them or their families. I am not trying to condemn either one. I don’t even know the rules of the Wife Swap show. I merely want to point out how heavy-handed people can act to convert others to their own belief system – Christianity included. Jesus was often outspoken, yet even he did not wield a sledgehammer as a tool for converting those who opposed or disbelieved in what he taught.

Supposedly, something good did come out of these two weeks for each family, but I’m still at a loss why programs such as this are called “reality TV.” Is this type of wife swap a reality in your neighborhood? It isn’t in mine. Yes, we can learn positive lessons from one another, but trying to force one lifestyle, religion or lack of religion on others is not an effective means of evangelism for any belief system.

Artificial reality shows are becoming common fodder for mesmerized minds. Don’t let yourself be blinded to the wrong lessons and values they honor. I was dumbfounded that each woman’s main goal appeared to be to drive a bulldozer through the other family’s core beliefs. That is not the same as attacking the other’s housecleaning methods – or lack of same.

A soft answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger. Proverbs 15:1

www.mercyandpercy.com/