RESURRECTION DAY

Have a blessed Resurrection Day!

Without the event this day commemorates, Christians would be without hope.

Have you gotten completely swept up in the hype of Easter - egg hunts, Easter baskets, plays, time off of work, and family dinner- and neglected to thank God for the hope we have through Christ?

Good, I'm glad you remembered what is most important, because the physical is only temporary!

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AGING YOUNGER

As someone well past her 20s, it was a surprise to stumble across an article online today regarding aging younger. These folks aren’t actually aging younger; they just want to hold back the hands of time at a younger age to retain their “looks.”

Why would any woman seek Botox injections at age 21 to try to prevent wrinkles from forming? Has this self-centered society driven women crazy, or has the desire for the approval of the opposite sex driven young women to fear the effects of aging more than the possible side effects of toxins, chemicals or surgery?

I suppose the lack of respect people exhibit toward the natural, God-mandated process of aging marches in step with society’s view of life in general. God did not create us to be vain, living for esthetics rather than building character.

Have you ever heard someone stand at a funeral and eulogize the recently departed? The deceased might have been a philanthropist, a community volunteer, an advocate of the handicapped, a leader of industry, a parent, grandparent, an animal rescuer, a race car driver, a horse trainer, a fireman, policeman, social worker, secretary, accountant - I have heard many words of praise for the dead, but never have I heard anyone eulogized as “she was beautifully young and unwrinkled to the end.”

You can not change society’s view on aging or beauty, but you can change your own, if you have been caught up in the hype of youth and beauty forever and ever.

Then shall the dust return to the earth as it was: and the spirit shall return unto God who gave it. Ecclesiastes 12:7.

This applies to the wrinkled and white-haired, the wrinkled and dyed-haired, the ones with beautiful internal character, and those with artificial/superficial outer beauty.

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DON'T CROSS THAT STREET

I enjoy walking my dogs, although they can be an unruly handful when they see another dog, a squirrel, a bicyclist, a skateboarder, a stray morsel of food, a stick … You get the idea. Anything and everything can excite them.

We set out recently on an evening walk. Before we reached the sidewalk, a neighbor’s dog appeared from behind the bushes across the street. Beside him ran his visiting friend, and this time the visitor kept running. I yelled for him to stop, but he raced in front of a passing pickup and stopped directly in front of my dogs. I watched the hair along his spine bristle.

My dogs were unnaturally quiet and well-behaved. No barking, growling, leaping or attacking each other to claim the latest find. That is normal behavior for them, behavior that generally scares off any potential new friend they come across on our walks. I would have told them how proud I was of them, but this new dog had all my attention.

I do not believe he intended my dogs any harm. His original objective seemed to be making new friends, until he suddenly realized the other dog had not followed him across the street, and if the new dogs were unfriendly, he was outnumbered. He retreated across the street, with me yelling over and over, “You stay over there. Don’t you dare cross that street!” Both dogs wanted to cross, even tried to cross, but my yelling confused them.

I think it also confused the poor man on the other side of the street at the end of the block.

I noticed him several times, just standing on the corner looking in my direction. Finally, he crossed the street, stood on that corner and again stared in my direction. At the time, I felt a sense of relief that there was someone nearby in case anything did go wrong. But later, as we were returning home from our walk, I realized that from where he was first standing, he could not have seen the dogs I was yelling at because of the curve in the road and the steep slope across the way. No wonder he stood on the corner longer than necessary.

Don’t cross that street. It sounds like good advice for someone about to unload anger on an unsuspecting passerby. An angry man tends to vent at whoever is handy – children, mate, subordinate, stranger or even friend – and often wanders afield of what is actually inciting him to verbally attack another person. The one on the receiving end can’t see the “dogs” that initiated the outburst.

We live in a fast-paced, stress-filled society. It is easy to become overwhelmed and yell at innocent bystanders, but it doesn’t solve the problem or dissipate the anger. Part of growing as a Christian is learning to stand against the temptations of the devil, and anger is certainly one of his ploys.

I can laugh as I wonder what the man on the corner must have thought when he first heard me yelling, although I wasn’t angry at the dogs, just trying to protect myself from the prospect of going down in a tangle of leashes and flailing paws.

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FLYING THE FLAG

While walking my dogs a few weeks ago, I looked up at a large bird circling overhead and for the first time in a while noticed the American flag hanging on the high pole in front of a local mill. The mill has closed and the flag was obviously forgotten long before the recent closure. What makes this flag noteworthy is that its grand flapping-in-the-wind days are long gone. It barely stirred in the breeze; it just hung there – dirty, limp and tattered.

Betsy Ross would turn over in her grave!

Seriously, this is disrespectful of the flag, although not necessarily a deliberate disrespect. Section 8k of the Flag Code states, when the flag is in such condition that it is no longer a fitting emblem for display, it should be destroyed in a dignified way, preferably by burning. Hopefully, I can finally manage to contact the mill owner and he will have the flag taken down, with due respect, and burned.

The American flag is symbolic of American freedom and sacrifice. Over the years, many have stood firm, fought and died to protect that freedom, and this is just as true today as it ever was.

One of the freedoms this flag represents is freedom of religion, something many countries do not have. The Voice of the Martyrs is only one of many websites you can visit to learn about the persecution of Christians throughout the world.

Fly the American flag with respect and thank God for the freedom to worship in American without fear of persecution.

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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.

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