The "Joy" of Church

"Church should bring you joy...not suck it out of you."

I had to laugh at the above quote, on a church sign no less! As I drove past, I kept laughing. What a funny quote.  And, is "suck" a church word?  Cause we don't use that word at our church. (*smile*) As I continued pondering, I realized that while it's a nice thought that church should bring you joy, and mine certainly does, I don't want to attend a church that only brings me joy.

I want a church that challenges me, convicts me and pushes me to grow...sometimes even when I don't want to!  In the book of John, chapter 6, Jesus preaches some hard teaching.  It says many of his disciples left him that day.

On hearing it, many of his disciples said, “This is a hard teaching. Who can accept it?” Aware that his disciples were grumbling about this, Jesus said to them, “Does this offend you?"    From this time many of his disciples turned back and no longer followed him.  “You do not want to leave too, do you?” Jesus asked the Twelve. Simon Peter answered him, “Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life. We believe and know that you are the Holy One of God.”   John 6:60-61, 66-68

Today, so many of us want a "feel good" message and we certainly don't want a church that is going to point out our sin and challenge us to change.  However, Jesus' preaching offended many, and he was willing to lose disciples over it.  But those closest to him realized that only he had the words of eternal life.  

So, I'm thankful for my church, which is willing to preach the hard lessons, and while it might not bring me joy on every Sunday, the end result is eternal life.  And that brings true joy.

Reflection Question:  Would you rather attend a church that shares an easy message each Sunday, or a church that challenges you (encouragingly) to grow? 

The Bitter Aftertaste

Coca-Cola Blak was going to be the next big thing. Introduced in 2006, this drink was a mix of Coke and coffee.  Immediately I was allured.  Coke?  Coffee?  What's not to love?  A sugary, sweet, caffeinated delight. I couldn't wait to try it.

I bought my first Coke Blak, and took a big sip.  

"Coke...Mmmmmm!  Coffee...Mmmmmm.  What? Blech!"  

The drink had 3 distinct flavors when you tasted it.  The first two, coke and coffee were delicious. But the after taste was so repugnant, I had to take another sip to see if I had imagined it. Yuck! Still there!  I joked that instead of calling it Coke Blak, they should name it Coke Blech!  Evidently I wasn't alone in my opinion, as the drink was discontinued in 2008.

It reminds me of the allure of forbidden fruit (sin). We often seek things that look pleasing to the eye or that seem like they may delight, so we take a sip.   At first we may encounter sweetness, but make no mistake.  Forbidden fruit always, always, always comes with a bitter aftertaste.

What is tempting you to take just a sip?  It's not worth the bitter aftertaste. Do not try the fruit that is tempting you.  Because like Coke Blak, if you avoid it long enough, eventually it will be discontinued.

"No temptation has seized you except what is common to man. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can stand up under it." 1 Corinthians 10:13

Light in the Darkness or Light in the Light?

Last week I blogged about being in the world, but not of the world. It's a difficult balance, as Christians, to be relevant to those outside the faith while still standing apart from worldly things. Too often in our efforts to avoid being of the world, we cease to be "in" the world as well. But how can we be salt and light to the world, if we never enter into the world?

Have you ever shined a flash light during the day.  It doesn't do much, does it? But turn on the same light at night and it makes a huge impact. If, as Christians, we only "shine our light" to other Christians, yes we will still be a light, but nothing compared to if we shine our light into the darkness.

Jesus associated with the tax collectors, lepers, prostitutes, and sinners. He shunned the pharisees (religious leaders) of his day. He offered salvation to all, and loved us while we were still sinners.

My world is small, and I am surrounded by light. It is easy to shine in this environment. Am I courageous enough, and relevant enough, to dare to face the darkness, and shine my light there? Are you?

You are the light of the world. A city on a hill cannot be hidden. Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven. Matthew 5:14-16

Speaking the truth in...laughter!

Instead, speaking the truth in love, we will in all things grow up into him who is the Head, that is, Christ. Eph 4:15

You've probably heard the above verse about speaking the truth in love. Well this week someone spoke the truth to me...in laughter!  It seems my pastor was stalking me on facebook reading through the scrolling timeline on facebook, and saw I had commented on a video entitled "Should Christians participate in Halloween?" The video talked about how our culture is becoming desensitized to evil, and I commented, "The desensitizing toward evil (vampires particularly) is already happening or happened."

Seeing my comment, my pastor watched the video. He commented how the most interesting thing about the video was the "Elvira" beside it.  I was confused.  I had watched the video but I hadn't seen it.  "Not in the video, beside it," he laughed.  After I moment, I realized he meant me!  Embarrassingly enough, I had changed my profile photo for Halloween to one of me in 1998, where I'd won a costume contest.  This is the photo:

When I realized what he was talking about I couldn't help but laugh. He was laughing too, and said he literally laughed out loud at the irony.  He than said jokingly, "Hypocrite!" I laughed too, but indeed he was speaking the truth (in laughter).

As I mentioned on my blog on Monday, I am conflicted about Halloween.  My pastor (who readily admits to being a hypocrite as well) made a great point that if we turn everything over to the devil for evil, then evil abounds.  But if we reclaim and redeem things, we can make them for good.  Halloween is a controversial subject, and I certainly do not have all the answers!  But I am thankful for a pastor who speaks the truth in laughter.

It is a delicate balance to be in the world, but not "of" the world. To be a light to the darkness, we have to step toward the darkness. But we cannot become the darkness, but rather shine the light of God there. And as Christians I think we sometimes get so stuck on Oct 31st, that we forget the evil that is happened the other 364 days of the year. Even in looking at my own life, dressing up for Halloween is one of the least sinful things I have done. I am thankful for a God who redeemed and reclaimed me!

So, when do we stand and fight? When do we redeem? When do we boycott? All we can do is pray for wisdom in our decision making, and mercy when our decisions are wrong.

How do you balance being in the world, but not of it? And who can you gently speak the truth to today, perhaps even in laughter?

Halloween: Trick or Treat?

My kids - 2009

Get together a group of Christian moms and ask them about Halloween and you'll get as many different answers as there are women. Some adamantly are against it as the devil's day. Others don't trick or treat, but do alternate "Fall Festivals" complete with costumes and candy. Finally, there are some that say "it's all in fun" and anything goes.

I don't know where I fall. On one hand, I trick or treated as a kid. I loved it! I love Jesus a lot and don't see how I was scarred by trick or treating. At the same time, the bible says to avoid every kind of evil, and that witch craft is evil.

This is one of those gray areas. Another is shows like "Wizards of Waverly Place" and books like "Harry Potter." They are about witchcraft, so I don't let my kids watch them. But I watched Bewitched as a kid, loved it, and played wiggling my nose to create magic spells. It was fun and pretend. Of course, we also pretended to smoke, complete with candy cigarettes! But today I am a non-smoker (and have never smoked). So where do you draw the line?

Some churches recommend using Halloween as an evangelism tool, giving outChristian tracts along with candy. Remember what is meant for evil, God can turn for good. My friend Sharon shares what her family does here. While Susan participates in a reverse trick or treat. You can read about that here.

Finally, I encourage all of you to read Romans 14. It is an excellent example of folks believing different things in Christ (some eat meat, some don't). I believe you could insert "celebrate Halloween" in these verses to get the same result. Verse 13 sums up the chapter when it says "Therefore let us stop passing judgment on one another. Instead, make up your mind not to put any stumbling block or obstacle in your brother's way."

This is a controversial subject. I'd love to hear what your family does in conjunction with Halloween. What I encourage everyone to do, it not to judge their neighbors decisions to participate or not. Listen to God's prompting for your family life, and make your decisions accordingly.

1 Thessalonians 5:22 -- Avoid every kind of evil.




This post originally ran Halloween 2008.

Capturing Lies

We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ.2 Corinthians 10:5

Are you ever plagued by self doubt?  You know that little voice in your head that says, "you can't do it," "no one cares," or "why did you do that?"   I hear that little voice.  It puts me down and makes me feel bad about myself, causing me to feel like a failure.  Instead of the truth, perhaps "You shouldn't have yelled at your husband," it says, "You are a horrible wife."  And I used to believe it.


But then a friend shared that her little voice tells her she is a bad mom, and fat.  I couldn't help but laugh because I have that little voice too.  And that's when I realized that the devil couldn't even come up with a new lie. He whispers the same old lies to many of us.  This woman is neither fat, nor a bad mom...and neither am I.  And that is when I began to realize that I needed to start taking my thoughts captive.


When the voice says, "You are a horrible wife," I respond, "No, I am a good wife who had a bad moment." And then I ask my husband and God for forgiveness, and they give it.  When the voice says, "you are fat," I respond, "No, I may not be fit, but I am not fat.  As a matter of fact, according to the CDC stats for 2008,  34% of the population is overweight and another 34% is obese.  Because I am neither, I am smaller than 68% of the population.  Fat? Ha!"


When I argue with the voice, with the thoughts, with the lies, they stop.  They can't fight the voice of truth.


What lies are you believing today?  Take every thought captive, and speak the truth to it.  God loves you, forgives you, redeemed you. Listen to the voice of truth, the one that says you are dearly loved.

Love Notes

Last Friday I went out of town for the women's retreat where I spoke. But before I left, I did what I always do when I go away overnight. I left my family love notes.

Whenever I need to travel overnight, I get an old eye pencil I keep just for this use, and I write notes on their mirrors. For my girls, I write something I love about them, a term of endearment I call them, an area I want them to work on, and "I love you." I might say, "I love you ladybug, you are special and kind, Be compassionate." I include hearts and drawings (perhaps of a ladybug, etc.) I also leave a love note for my husband on his bathroom mirror.

The purposes of my notes are many. I want them to remember me and think about me when I'm not with them. I want them to know of my love for them. I want them to have guidance, even in my absence.

As I was sharing this with a woman at the retreat, it occurred to me that the Bible is just like God's love note to us. He wrote it so we would think of him while we are not with him (in heaven). He wrote it so we would know of his love for us. He wanted us to have guidance, even in his absense.

My family views these love notes in a special way, and leave them up on the mirrors for long periods of time even after I'm home. Because they love me as much as I love them.

Do we love God that much?

Fix these words of mine in your hearts and minds; tie them as symbols on your hands and bind them on your foreheads. Teach them to your children, talking about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up. Write them on the doorframes of your houses and on your gates, so that your days and the days of your children may be many in the land the LORD swore to give your ancestors, as many as the days that the heavens are above the earth. Deut 11:18-21