On the topic of the poor......

The thing is...if we say we are Christians, we HAVE to help the poor. We have no choice. There are over 2000 verses telling us to care for the poor, the elderly and the outcast.

We can always say to someone who asks for money, "I'm sorry, I don't give money, but here is a sandwich, or gift certificate for a fast food place, or water, or whatever." (I have a friend who carries $1 gift certificates from local fast food places to hand out.) If we don't have the money to give even food, we can always say that, and pray for them. And perhaps volunteer at one of the many agencies that provides soup kitchens or food bank aid. We can always do something. And we must do something.

For Christ meant it when He said that when we feed the least of these, it is as if we feed Him. And He meant it that if we refuse to help them, it is as if we are refusing to help Him.

And I for one do not want to hear Jesus say that I neglected to feed Him.

The devil, and society, always likes to give us reasons not to help. "They'll just drink." "They don't work hard enough." "If they really wanted to change their lives, they would." And we can buy into these excuses if we want....most of us do at sometime or another.

But we have another choice. We can love the homeless regardless of whether they are drunks, or dirty, or have missed opportunities in life. We can love them just as Christ has loved us.....for we're fallen, broken, dirty people too...that He redeemed by His love. So let us show that same love to others, so that they might see Him through us.

Loyalty

Maybe because of the Scottish bloodline in me, or perhaps because of my Dad's hill country ancestors in the Midwest, I admit one of the principle ways I gauge a situation is by loyalty and ties.

I have a strong reaction to Christian issues (especially for the persecuted Church around the world) because my faith is my primary and most important facet of my life. Whereas I don't tend to get involved in pseudo-religious issues in this country (I think, by and large, that politics are of the devil) I am deeply committed to issues of my faith, and the people of my faith. In my tradition, those people, be they here in Missouri, California, England, Canada, Kenya or in Pakistan, are my family if they share a devout faith in Christ and walk in His love.

This would explain my..umm..mental explosion at the guy earlier who claimed to be a Christian but had no interest in the persecuted Church, and even went as far as to belittle it. I figure he fits in to the large group of people who claim the name Christian, but don't want to actually be a Christian. Wolves in sheep's clothing.

My family is my family, whether by bloodline or faith, and until someone else chooses to break that line, I'll hold fast.

I have a weaker but still strong tie to the Jewish people. Not just because of their tie to my faith through the Bible, but also because of bloodline. I have German Jewish roots, and aside from the family line that was here in America when WWII came about, most of the other branches just died. Gone. I can't trace them, for they are no more, except in the hand of God.

So while I pray for peace between Israel and Palestine, and I hurt for the innocents lost, I side with the Jews. I don't apologize for it, and I won't have a debate about it on my page. I am praying that peace will be brokered, and I applaud the steps the IDF is taking to minimize casualties, and I deplore Hamas using the innocent Palestinians as shields. War is wretched, and I long for the time it will be out of our natures. I think Christ is going to have to come first for that, though.

Now, I know there are Christians who slip up and do crappy things in the world, and as many of you know, I don't shy away from addressing them. And I know the Jewish people aren't always innocent and sparkly pure. But both groups are parts of my family, and faults and blemishes included, they're mine.

I stand by my friends the same way. I have my faults, and you have yours, but if I call you my friend, you have my love and loyalty until you throw it out. And I'll stand by you, using my last strength and my last breath if that is what is needed...

Somebody told me the other day that loyalty was old fashioned and not needed anymore...

Maybe that's a good part of what is wrong in our society today.....

The higher nature

I was asked, in an conversation a little while ago, if I or any other Anglican follows every single precept and commandment in the Bible, and if not, then why was I focused on Jesus' teachings of love thy neighbor, and thy enemy, to forgive, to be a peacemaker and to be merciful.

I replied that of course no Christian, no matter what their denomination, can follow every precept and commandment...we all fail. We're simply human. And it through Christ we are upheld, led, and saved, not our own doing.

But that doesn't excuse us from not trying to follow Him, and to live as closely to His word as we can. And in our culture, we don't tend to like Christ's commandments of charity, forgiving those who hurt us, praying and blessing our enemies, being unworldly and unattached to great material goods, loving our neighbor as ourselves, seeking peace and being merciful.

We don't like them because they go not only against our own inward selfish natures but against what our culture values. Our culture values wealth, "taking care of number one"...we disdain the poor, especially the homeless, we love the sensational and tawdry, we're always at war with someone (either personally or as a country) and mercy and forgiveness are seen as signs of weakness.

Yet those things are marks of a Disciple of Christ. Mercy, humility, kindness, a love of peace, a forgiving nature, a generous nature and an un-attachment to sensationalism and greed, being hospitable and loving everyone we can, be they friend, acquaintance or even enemy.

It's not easy to love strangers, and certainly not enemies. But it is what Christ commanded...not suggested, not recommended, but commanded. And love here doesn't mean a warm, squishy feeling towards someone, but rather acting in someone's best interests. Doing what is best for them, with their interests at heart. Is this easy? Oh, heavens no. It is impossible to do without Christ's help.

Therein lies the secret- with Christ's help. He will help us forgive those who have wounded us. He will help us bless them and pray for them. He will help be more than we can be alone, because when we abide in Him, He also abides in us.

We pray and work for peace, knowing it won't come until God decrees it, because it glorifies God. We forgive our enemies, knowing it may not change them, but it will change us, because it glorifies God. We pray for those who hurt us, because it glorifies God. We give mercy, because...you guessed it, it glorifies God.

We do all those things against our very human nature, because Christ wants us to do so....and isn't that reason enough?

We have to either submit to Christ's Lordship in our lives, and live out those hard, and higher, ideals, or we give into our earthly fallen natures and live for ourselves. If we live for Christ, we shall live forever with Him, but if we live for ourselves, it will end in darkness and destruction.

Stones and Flaming Arrows

Stones and Flaming Arrows 

I was pondering and praying last night, over the many differences of the early Church to the modern one. I pondered the strong faith and gentle nature of those early Christians, who for love of God were not afraid to go to wretched deaths. They were not militant, they fought not with swords and other man made weapons of the time, but instead trusted in the armor of God, and rested in the peace of Christ. Their forgiveness to those that persecuted them was astounding, their love so very evident.

They were generous to other Christians and to unbelievers, and were known even by those who disliked them as people of love and giving.

I thought of some of the letters (or epistles) from the early Church members, and of some of the sermons, and how lovingly they brought sinners into the fold, to be healed in the love, mercy and compassion of Christ. They taught what sin was, but the focus was on the redeeming mercy and redemption to be found through Christ, and how vast His love for the sinner was.

It is no wonder the Church flourished even in the face of grave persecution.

And it is no wonder the Church is sputtering and stalling in places here in the Western world. We have lost that love of peace and gentleness. We do not practice forgiveness as we should, on the whole. While Christians are still remarkably generous compared to other demographics, we often, in our culture, tie our giving into those who agree with our stances and platforms only.....and we give only within the level of it not affecting our personal comfort. We do love our comforts.

Perhaps the biggest reason though that we're not reaching the fallen, the un-churched, the hurting, the broken, the lost in our society in the way that we should be is our absolute love of condemnation. We cast harsh judgement, we call names, and then wonder why people don't listen to us. We like to quote how Jesus was harsh to the Pharisees as justification for our hardheartedness, but we neglect to see that so often we are the new pharisees, and it is people such as ourselves He is calling vipers.

We forget how loving and gentle Jesus was with the masses, the great compassion for them that moved Him. We don't spend a lot of time trying to be the friend of sinners, such as our Lord was called, we're too busy labeling the sinners so that we can feel better than them.

As I pondered and as I prayed, I saw an image of a woman and a man who knew not Christ. They were fleeing from a mob of angry Christians, who were hurling stones and shooting flaming arrows, while shouting "sinner, adulteress, drug user, fornicator"...and all other sorts of names. My mind blinked and the next scene was of a huge pile of stones, with flaming arrows stuck in the ground, still smoldering. From the mountain of rubble, there were two arms protruding, lifeless. The crowd stood around, looking sad and puzzled...these same people who had thrown the stones and shot the arrows. One turned to another and said, "I wonder why they never came to church?"

That moment shook me, and has haunted me since.

I don't want to get in the way of anyone finding Christ. So I am praying that God will ever guard my heart, and my lips, and my typing fingers so that everything I speak of and share will point people towards the love of Christ. I don't want to chase people away with stones and arrows, I don't want Christ to tell me that I pushed people away from Him.

Let your words be a light to others, my friends. Let them be a healing balm to the soul, and a guidepost to Christ. We cannot err by loving people too much, or by sharing the love of Christ too much. None of us are clean enough to shoot arrows or throw stones, but all of us can show mercy.

Be blessed, my friends, and may you be a blessing unto others,
-Beth Haynes Butler

Love them.

We all desire love; we are social beings who need each other. Even introverts (such as myself) want to feel real connections to at least some number of people; it is how we are wired, or made, to be.

Yet this is a world in which it is possible to be in the midst of a great crowd of people and feel completely alone, not understood and alienated. Facebook, for all of its charms and assets as a tool of connection, can still leave some people feeling unwanted and un-cared about.

Loneliness is the starvation of the heart; the aching hollow that makes us feel empty and shattered.

So if you want to make a difference to someone, love them.

Love them.

Listen to them (and pay attention.) Joke with them. Be there for them (even if it is through an electronic medium.) Sorrow with them. Rejoice with them. Know their likes and their dislikes, their joys and their disappointments.

That is how you help heal a broken heart. That is how you help restore dignity. That is how you lift them up. That is how you act as Christ to them, by showing them His love through you.

I want Your mercy....so please make me merciful.

Lord,

I want Your mercy....so please make me merciful.

I want Your forgiveness, so help me to be forgiving.

I want Your compassion, so please make me compassionate.

I want You to be lenient with me, so let me be that to others.

In the Name of Him who loved us first,
Amen

then you have no room for Christ either.

If you don't have room in your heart for love, compassion, forgiveness and mercy....then you have no room for Christ either.

Reflecting on two profound thoughts of faith tonight:

Reflecting on two profound thoughts of faith tonight:

From A.W. Tozer, "A pharisee is hard on others and easy on himself, but a spiritual man is easy on others and hard on himself."

And from the Orthodox St. Mark the Ascetic (5th century), "When reading the Holy Scriptures, he who is humble and engaged in spiritual work will apply everything to himself and not to someone else."

My take away thoughts upon pondering these two quotes:

So if I am read the Holy Scriptures to judge, then let me judge myself. If I am going to read the Holy Scripture in order to apply it to someone's life, then let me apply it to my own.

As I also ponder chapter 6 of the Gospel of Luke, I am reminded; let me seek peace, and let me be merciful. Let me not to condemn, for as I condemn, so shall I be condemned. To give to the needy, and turn the other cheek when wronged. Let me love, both my God and my neighbor, but also my enemy. Let me cultivate good fruit, brought forth by the Holy Spirit, and let me seek to abide.

And I am reminded, that I must put these beliefs of love, mercy, grace to practice in my own life daily, so that I will have the strong foundation of God's holy word as my bedrock.

Don't you think He knows His own sheep, wherever they might be?

My heart and spirit grieves because I see so many Christians casting stones at other believers, for being of a different denomination, for worshiping differently, for saying different prayers or listening to differing styles of music.

Don't you know, friends, that it is love and trust alone in Christ Jesus that saves? And that a man or woman may be of a different church than you and still love Christ passionately? How can you be the gauge of that?

Don't you think He knows His own sheep, wherever they might be? Don't you think He knows that they love and trust Him? That they spend their lives seeking after Him? Don't you think He will claim His own?

You know not their heart, you know not their faith, you know not the depth of their love for Christ. If they worship differently than you, then have forbearance and pray for wisdom. Cast not stones of judgement at an individual, if you have concerns about them, then lift them up in prayer.  If the state of their soul's salvation weighs upon you, then pray earnestly daily for them, and show them the greatest amount of Christian love you can.

I am blessed to know believers in a great many denominations, from the high liturgical to the country style non-denominational.  I have seen people in all branches madly, wildly, wholly in love with Jesus, filled with the Holy Spirit and doing the work of God in their lives, churches and communities.  I have known great learned scholars who study the Word because the love of Christ fills them with zeal and they cannot absorb enough, so they are always seeking. I know Christians who know almost nothing of doctrine at all, yet have met the Christ, and were changed forever; they now desire nothing more than to walk with Him forever.

The Lord has many sheep, in many pastures, all quietly doing His work. I dare not cast stones at any field, lest I hit one of His own.

As Christians, we are not to dwell in hate.

There are so many times when the commandments of Christianity go against our very human, and very flawed, natures.

We see groups like ISIS murdering Christians in Iraq, and the urge to hate them can be strong. We hear of pastors being burned to death in Nigeria and our gut instinct is to be filled with rage. 

On the more mundane front, someone at work wrongs us, and we want to retaliate. Someone spreads rumors and we want to hurt them back.

But Jesus, who had more right to hate the cruelty and injustice in the people of the world than anyone, who knew more than anyone what betrayal was, commands us differently.

"You have heard that it was said, 'YOU SHALL LOVE YOUR NEIGHBOR and hate your enemy.' "But I say to you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, so that you may be sons of your Father who is in heaven" (Matthew 5:44-45)

What..wait....are you sure Jesus? Umm...love them? Did you see what they did to me? Do you know what they did to my friend? Did you see how they killed Your people?

HOW can You ask this of us? I mean...really....that's crazy....love your enemies.....that makes no sense at all, Jesus. Why would you ask that of me?

Because hatred is poison, and it will slowly destroy all that which is good within us. When we give into hatred, into plotting vengeance, into savoring someone else's defeat, that which is good, and noble, praiseworthy and worthwhile in us withers.

As Christians, we are not to dwell in hate.

"You have heard that it was said to our ancestors, Do not murder, and whoever murders will be subject to judgment.

But I tell you that anyone who is angry with a brother or sister will be subject to judgment. Again, anyone who says to a brother or sister, 'You good-for-nothing,' is answerable to the court. And anyone who says, 'You fool!' will be in danger of the fire of hell." (Matthew 5:21-22)

William Barclay, in his commentary on these verses, writes:
"What Jesus is saying here is this: "In the old days men condemned murder; and truly murder is forever wrong. But I tell you that not only are a man's outward actions under judgment; his inmost thoughts are also under the scrutiny and the judgment of God. Long-lasting anger is bad; contemptuous speaking is worse, and the careless or malicious talk which destroys a man's good name is worst of all." The man who is the slave of anger, the man who speaks in the accent of contempt, the man who destroys another's good name, may never have committed a murder in action, but he is a murderer at heart. "

John, the beloved Disciple, writes:

"Whoever hates his brother is a murderer, and you know that no murderer has eternal life abiding in him." 1 John 3:15

It is hard..exceedingly hard, to have compassion on those who hurt us, hurt those we love, or hurt fellow followers of Christ. It is even harder to love them.

But we must.

Even if that just means praying, earnestly, devoutly, that the Holy Spirit will bring the truth of Christ into the hearts of our enemies, that they might find His light and love, and repent.

If we can do more, we should. We should forgive those who have hurt us (after all, hasn't God forgiven us of much worse offenses on our part against Him?) and by being kind even when they are not. We don't have to pretend that someone is better than they are, or that they haven't committed grave wounds against us or others, nor even that some judgement will have to be made for those wounds, but we must love them anyway. (And in most cases, we must leave the judgement to God, or to the authorities, which in Romans we are told are given their authority through the will of God. Rom 13:1-7)

Loving our enemies doesn't mean we have to have a fond feeling of liking them, it is deeper than that.

"I have to love him as I love myself. Well, how exactly do I love myself?

Now that I come to think of it, I have not exactly got a feeling of fondness or affection for myself, and I do not even always enjoy my own society. So apparently 'Love your neighbor' does not mean 'feel fond of him' or 'find him attractive'. I ought to have seen that before, because, of course, you cannot feel fond of a person by trying. Do I think well of myself, think myself a nice chap? Well, I am afraid I sometimes do (and those are, no doubt, my worst moments) but that is not why I love myself. In fact it is the other way round: my self-love makes me think myself nice, but thinking myself nice is not why I love myself. So loving my enemies does not apparently mean thinking them nice either. That is an enormous relief. For a good many people imagine that forgiving your enemies means making out that they are really not such bad fellows after all, when it is quite plain that they are. Go a step further. In my most clear-sighted moments not only do I not think myself a nice man, but I know that I am a very nasty one. I can look at some of the things I have done with horror and loathing. So apparently I am allowed to loathe and hate some of the things my enemies do. Now that I come to think of it, I remember Christian teachers telling me long ago that I must hate bad man's actions, but not hate the bad man: or, as they would say, hate the sin but not the sinner." C.S. Lewis, Mere Christianity.

This doesn't mean that a Christian must remain as a doormat in a bad relationship. That doesn't mean that a Christian must put themselves in harm's way over and over again. It doesn't mean that Christians should look the other way at oppression and injustice and pretend they are not there. (Indeed, we are to stand against them.)

But it does mean that we must make the hard decision to actually follow what Jesus commands.

To love the unlovable. To forgive. To pray and bless and be merciful even to those who have hurt us.

To trust that God's justice and judgement will be greater and fairer than our own.

We aren't given an option. We are told to love our enemies. To forgive those who have wronged us. To not hate, even when the world tells us hate is justified.

So when in the course of everyday life....or watching the news, which is filled with terrors, resolve to pray.

Pray for those who hurt you; that Christ might become manifest in their lives. And if possible, show love to them.

Pray for those will kill and maim Christians and other innocents around the world; pray that the Holy Spirit might work in them and lead them to repentance and peace.

Pray for repentance yourself when you find that you are on the tip of calling someone a name (even if it is a politician), or when you are on the verge of speaking badly of someone to others. Ask that the Lord guide your words and your heart.

Will your prayers and love change others? Maybe. I have personally seen people come around due to a Christian's love, prayers and kindness to them. But they very well may not.

The backstabber may hurt you again. Your loved ones will be hurt again in this life by someone, as will you.

The slaughter of our Christian brethren will keep occurring until Christ Himself comes again.

Then why pray, you ask. Why love them if nothing may change?

So that you may honor God with your life, by following His commands. So that you will be a light in a dark world, and you will stand for Christ and His love, in a world that doesn't understand loving thy neighbor, much less loving thy enemy.

You love your enemy, and your neighbor, to honor God. You forgive wounds against you, to honor God. You bless those who persecute you, to honor God.

It really just comes down to this....are you going to do what Jesus told you to do?

Be blessed, my friends, and may you be a blessing unto others,

-Beth Haynes Butler

A happy and blessed Independence Day to my countrymen and women.

A happy and blessed Independence Day to my countrymen and women.

We hear a lot, from the left and the right talking heads and politicians, about how much is wrong with our country. How someone else is ruining it, how this is fallen and this is corrupt, and how we all need to "take our country back." 

But as Charles and I have driven through the West, the North and now the Midwest (we'll get to you East and South, we promise!)....our country is not in the shambles that those who make their livelihoods off of fear mongering and hatred would have us believe.

In big cities and small towns, rural roads and major boulevards, we see Americans helping Americans. We see signs for fundraisers for ill neighbors, or raffles to send a local kid to college. We see potlucks and picnics, and the Stars and Stripes hang from the homes of Democrat and Republican alike. We see parents and community members supporting local school events, and festivals where people of multiple faiths and all all political leanings attend.

At food banks there are liberals and conservatives working side by side to feed the hungry. We see people of all ethnicities and backgrounds working together to effect change for society. At times of mourning people come together, and they don't ask ask the man next to them what political party is he from before they join in prayer and grief. In times of celebration, we see people rejoicing together as neighbors.

We, as a country, are proud of our young men and women who join the military to support their country, and we salute them without asking what their voter registration is. We honor our heroes who rush into burning buildings, or save drowning children, or teach the struggling masses without quizzing them first on whether they agree with a certain politician or not.

We all want the same things, no matter where we are from. We want safe communities, good jobs and good schools. We want to be able to worship and celebrate in peace, and we want fairness across the land. We want strong families and good friendships.

We, my friends, are more than how we vote. We are more than just the community we live in. We are more than our professions, more than our hobbies and more than our interests.

We are a people forged in hope, proved in battle, generous in aid, and deep in love for our fellow Americans. We are proud of our soldiers and proud of those who have spent a lifetime working for peace.

We have our problems as a nation, but we are more blessed than we realize. We have fractures in society, but we are more bonded than we know.

We need to stop listening to those who want to tell us how divided we are from our neighbors, and tell them instead how united we are as a nationwide community.

We need to tell those in power, in media (on all sides) and in large business, that we will not be turned against each other for their gain. That we will see, and talk with, each other with respect, civility and brotherhood.

We are Americans. And for all the problems our land may have, we are still a blessed people. When you see the news across the world, the wars, the famines, the persecutions, the deprivations, and then stop to look around you, you see how much we have and how much we take for granted. While we can improve, as all people and countries can, we have a wonderful foundation and heritage.

That is worth celebrating.

So Happy Birthday, America. And Happy Independence Day to all of our friends, thank you for being part of what makes this country so great.

However you are celebrating today (Charles and I are going to a concert, picnic and fireworks in a nearby town) take a moment to realize how blessed you are. Hug your family and friends, and wish a neighbor a Happy 4th. Cherish each other, your community and your country.