Wise Words for Today

Habits are one of the critical components in the life of every person alive today. The problem is that habits can be good or bad, constructive or destructive, positive or negative, encouraging or discouraging. If you are going to live a “better than good” life, you must build as many positive habits into your life as possible. Think of your life as one of those giant cables on the George Washington Bridge and every individual wire as a habit. The more positive habits you bundle together, the stronger your life becomes – the more traffic it can bear, the more storms it can withstand, and the more service it can provide to others.

Zig Ziglar

(from Better Than Good)

 

You Are Still A Needed Servant

Mick Turner

Josh is a brilliant man and is one of the most creative, visionary people I know. Possessing the uncanny ability to look at a problematic situation, size up its parameters, and come up with positive, workable solutions to address the problems, Josh would be an asset to any organization that employed him. People with the visionary foresight and strength that Josh has are few and far between.

 

That’s why it is so hard for me to believe that Josh just completed his fourteenth year employed as a stockroom worker at a retail shoe store. A college graduate and now in his mid-thirties, Josh is working the same job he obtained while working his way through school. It’s not that Josh has not had opportunities; it’s just that he doesn’t take advantage of them. On several occasions he has been offered good positions with local social service agencies after fellow church members, aware of Josh’s talents, have put in a good word for him. Each time Josh turned down the job.

 

After providing invaluable help to his pastor in getting a couple of community projects off the ground, Josh was asked to take a leadership role in an exciting development and expansion program his church was undertaking. Predictably, Josh declined.

 

Unfortunately, there are many like Josh who go through life under-employed, under-utilized, and unfulfilled. Although this is not what God had in mind, these talented individuals sabotage themselves and never leave the starting gate.

 

This happens for a variety of reasons. Some folks feel inadequate to the task of manifesting their vision in the reality of the day-to-day life in which they dwell. Others, top put it bluntly, are just too plain lazy to do what it is they are called to do. Still others lack basic motivation and for unconscious reasons quench the passion they feel for their purpose in life. Like the Beauty School Dropout in the musical Grease, they have the dream but not the drive.

 

 Many, however, simply cannot believe God wants to use them due to past failures and disappointments. This was basically Josh’s problem. In his late teens he was involved in several crimes in which someone was seriously injured by accident. Josh was never caught and has no criminal record. Still, he feels responsible for what happened and, although God has forgiven him, he hasn’t forgiven himself. Moreover, Josh is convinced beyond a doubt that what he did disqualifies him for service to the Lord.

 

Josh and other believers like him choose to ignore the many biblical examples of heroes used by God even though they failed in the past. Think of Moses for example, a murderer who delivered his people from bondage in Egypt. Think of David, an adulterer who was also involved in a murder conspiracy. This sinner became a great king, an ancestor of Christ, and “a man after God’s own heart.” Think of Peter, who denied Christ three times on the night He was arrested. It was upon the “rock” of Peter that the New Testament Church was built.

 

No, my friend, you are wrong if you think God will not use you because you failed in the past. Your failures, your shortcomings, your screw-ups – oddly enough, in God’s way of doing things may be your chief qualification for service to the Creator.

 

I want to use this article to encourage you to understand and accept the reality that God put a potential and purpose in you before you were born and, further, he still wants that purpose to be realized. Stop looking back at the past and instead, step forward into the service that God has for you. You cannot change the past but know this: whatever happened is history in God’s eyes and in God’s heart. As a Christian you have been forgiven so turn your eyes forward instead of keeping them riveted in your rear view mirror.

 

Do all that you can to let this truth sink deep into the depths of your heart: where you are going, what is in your future is far more important that what’s behind you. Scripture tells us that with God, all things are possible. So if it seems your dreams have died, let the Lord resurrect those dormant dreams and allow those dreams to drive you and motivate you to be all that you can be for the glory of God and the sake of others.

 

Our world is a hurting world and there are many areas of need. The dream God placed in your heart is designed to deal with one of those areas. More than anything, the church, the Body of Christ, needs compassionate people of noble character and a heart of service. That’s you, my friend.

 

Take the gifts God has given you and put them to work in service to something larger than yourself. You will be amazed at the transformation that will take place in your life if you consecrate yourself to using your talents for God’s plans and purposes.

 

Also, keep in mind that God would never place a dream in your heart without giving you all the talents you need to bring it to completion. I encourage you to take this principle on faith and act on it. Just put one foot in front of the other and start taking small steps toward making that God-given dream a bit closer to manifestation. Again, just trust that God has placed in you everything you need to succeed. Pastor Joel Osteen speaks clearly to this issue:

 

God would never put a dream in your heart if He had not already given you everything you need to fulfill it. That means if I have a dream or a desire, and I know it’s from God, I don’t have to worry whether I have what it takes to see that dream fulfilled. I know God doesn’t make mistakes. He doesn’t call us to do something without giving us the ability or the wherewithal to do it…You have to realize that God has matched you with your world. In other words, even though at times you may not feel that you are able to accomplish your dreams, you have to get beyond those feelings and know deep inside, I have the seed of Almighty God in Me. Understand, God will never put a dream in your heart without first equipping you with everything you need to accomplish it.

 

In contrast to my friend Josh, Marty is an amazing example of how God often uses our areas of failure as a way of carrying forward his kingdom purpose on earth. Marty, a native of New York, had moved to South Florida in an attempt to find a geographical cure for his long standing addiction to heroin and cocaine. Had his thinking been even half way rational, Marty would have reasoned that moving to Miami, the hotbed of the drug world, was a mistake. Finding that drugs were much cheaper in Miami, mostly due to lack of transportation mark up, Marty quickly returned to his old ways. Quickly spiraling downward, Marty soon hit bottom. Arrested for an assortment of petty theft charges, Marty found himself in jail awaiting his hearing. He had neither bond money, nor any friends in the area. Marty had no choice but to cool his jets in the Dade County Stockade.

 

Marty’s time in jail provided him with an opportunity to face his situation honesty and he didn’t like what he saw. The Holy Spirit also went to work on Marty and helped ripen him for what was to come. After over five weeks in the slammer, he was informed that a local pastor was coming to give a talk to the inmates and, if he so desired, he could attend the lecture.

 

 Feeling an almost magnetic pull to go to the presentation, he initially resisted. Marty feared that this pastor would be someone from the straight world and highly judgmental, he almost talked himself out of going. Still believing he had nothing to gain, he went anyway.

 

Sitting near the back of the room, Marty listened as the stockade chaplain introduced the speaker, Brother Larry. Marty was confused because the chaplain was the only person sitting at the front table. Maybe he hadn’t noticed that this Brother Larry wasn’t there, thought Marty. Next, a rather large man stood up from his seat in the front row. He walked to the podium and when he looked out at the crowd, Marty almost fainted.

 

Brother Larry was a large man with waist length hair and tattoos all over his arms and hands. He had a large scar on his right cheek, evidently from a knife wound suffered long ago. Then, as Brother Larry began his sermon, Marty almost fell out of his chair.

 

Not only did Marty recognize Brother Larry, he realized that it was he who had cut the preachers face. Many years earlier, in a drug deal gone sour in Queens, a fight had ensued and Marty found himself being pummeled by a large man. Reaching in his boot, Marty took out a dagger and slit his attacker’s cheek to the jaw bone. His attacker that night was none other than Brother Larry.

 

To make a long story short, Brother Larry spoke of his addiction, his crimes, and his eight-year term in Attica State Prison. He also spoke of how, as the result of a visit from a volunteer with Prison Fellowship, he found Christ and his life was turned around. Brother Larry now ran a halfway house in South Miami that gave recovering addicts a place to stay after they were released from incarceration. His ministry found them job training, gave them work to do, and made certain the residents were well connected with Alcoholics Anonymous and Narcotics Anonymous.

 

Marty wondered if Brother Larry had recognized him that evening at the meeting in the stockade. He did. Two days later Brother Larry showed up to visit Marty. After being released, Marty lived for two years at Brother Larry’s halfway house. And that’s not all. Brother Larry recognized potential in Marty and encouraged him to return to college and finish his degree. He told Marty he had managed to get a donor to pay for Marty’s tuition, but the truth was Brother Larry paid for it out of his own pocket. Displaying true Christian forgiveness, Brother Larry never mentioned the scar he would carry for the rest of his life, nor any resentment toward Marty for inflicting it upon him. Instead, he paid for Marty’s college education and, after Marty had graduated, encouraged him to go on to seminary.

 

Marty graduated from seminary two years later and now runs the ministry begun by Brother Larry. Under Marty’s guidance and with God’s help, two more halfway houses were opened in nearby cities and are full with long waiting lists. One week after Marty’s graduation, Brother Larry had left this earth for his heavenly reward. He left behind a legacy, as well as a successor.

 

God used Brother Larry and he used Marty in the very arena where both of them had failed, hurt others, and suffered. Instead of punishing this pair of wayward prodigals, God exhibited a healing love to Brother Larry, who in turn, gave this same forgiving love to Marty. Brother Larry gave flesh to grace, just as Jesus did when he came to visit this planet.

 

The next time you think God can’t use you, think again. What do you think would have happened if Brother Larry had felt God could not and would not work through him? Certainly Marty would not be where he is today.

 

Look around you, my friend. Find a need and get busy doing something to meet it. You may very well be surprised what God can and will do through you if you just give him a chance.

 

Think about it.

 

© L.D. Turner 2008/All Rights Reserved

 

Wise Words for Today

Most of us postpone a decision hoping that Jesus will get weary of waiting and the inner voice of Truth will get laryngitis…..Our indecision creates more problems than it solves. Indecision means we stop growing for an indeterminate length of time; we get stuck. With the paralysis of analysis, the human spirit begins to shrivel. The conscious awareness of the resistance to grace and the refusal to allow God’s love to make us who we really are brings a sense of oppression. Our lives become fragmented, inconsistent, lacking in harmony and out of sync. The worm turns. The felt security of staying in a familiar place vanishes. We are caught between a rock and a hard place. How do we solve this conundrum?…..We don’t. We cannot will ourselves to accept grace. There are no magic words, preset formulas, or esoteric rights of passage. Only Jesus Christ sets us free from indecision. The scriptures offer no other basis for conversion than the personal magnetism of the master.

Brennan Manning

(from The Ragamuffin Gospel)

 

Don’t Be Ashamed Of The Gospel

Mick Turner

Scripture tells us that we should not be ashamed of the gospel. I think this teaching is more relevant today than ever. Increasingly, our culture is becoming more hostile toward the Christian faith and many of us find it more and more difficult to stand up for what we believe in. From a personal perspective, I went through a time when I felt it better not to tell people I was a Christian, especially in my work environment. Journalism at times has strong prejudices toward certain things and the Christian faith is becoming one of those things. Still, by the grace of God, I have gone through that phase and now openly discuss my faith, even with those who are strongly opposed to it.

I think one of the reasons caring, sensitive Christians are increasingly reluctant to discuss their faith stems from the practitioners of the faith itself. The media focuses on those fringe elements of Christianity, especially those who do or say provacative things. An recent example is the Reverend Jeremiah Wright on the one fringe, and Pastor John Hagee on the other. I know there are other examples, such as a few years back when Pat Robertson voiced his belief that America should “take out” the President of Venezuela.

Recently, other voices are being raised and these voices are, as these other examples, casting a negative light over the faith. Ads in Christian publications are becoming more and more alarmist. For example, one recent ad that appeared in several widely read venues boldly declared that it was a “Call to Arms” and another used similar military terms like “Generals Unite.” These ads were aimed at fanning the flames of the culture wars and are part and parcel of the fundamentalist fringe that wants to take Christianity back to the Puritan age. I can give you example after example of people who have told me that they had wanted to be a part of our faith for a long time and were about to convert, until they read things like these ads. Believe me folks, these types of things drive more people away from us that any positve use they might have.

Let me give you an example of a time when I felt especially ashamed to be a Christian; not ashamed of the gospel, but ashamed to be a Christian.

While I was working in China, most major university had western English teachers who were closet missionaries, sent by various religious agencies in the U.S., Canada, Australia, and New Zealand. These teachers, including myself, felt called to China and were there to do two jobs – teach English and spread the message of the faith. The fact is, however, Christianity was not the only group represented. Most of the larger schools had Christians, Mormons, and Bahais on board. Probably, if one took an exact count, one would find more Mormons than anything else. In most cases, these groups got along quite well and even helped one another in adjusting to being in a foreign environment.

At the school where my wife and I were teaching, a family of Bahais lived across the hall from us and they were fine people. We never let our beliefs interfere with our relationship and we all grew quite close. At a school in a neighboring province, things didn’t go so smoothly.

At this school there were Christians and Bahais. Early on in the year, a student complained to the university leaders that the Christian teachers were being quite aggressive in trying to convert students. An investigation ensued. Of course, the Christian denied being overly aggressive and the Bahai people came to their defense. When interviewed, the Bahai “pioneers” said they had never witnessed any overt evangelizing by the Christian teachers. Soon, the whole thing died down and everything returned to normal.

After having been subjected to such an ordeal, you would have thought the Christians would be grateful to the Bahais for coming to their defense. Not so!

Figuring this episode was “a message to us from God” (this is what one of them told me), the group went on to hatch a plan to get rid of the Bahais, who the Christians felt were from Satan. About three months after the initial scandal, the Christians by-passed the university officials and went straight to the Public Security Bureau, stating that the Bahais were openly preaching to students about their faith and engaing in blatant disrespect for Chinese law. The result, the Bahais were rounded up and deported. The Christian group, meanwhile, gloated over the fact that they had been “peaceful as doves and wise as serpents.” This is the exact words they used in an email to me.

I was absolutely nauseated.

I don’t know where these “sold out believers” are today, but I openly wonder if they can sleep at night. What would Jesus do? I doubt he would have done what they did.

These are the kind of actions that taint the image of our faith. It destroys not only our image, but it destroys our effectiveness as witnesses. As another teacher friend told me after all this transpired, “All this makes me glad I’m an athiest.”

So, this was a time I was ashamed to be a Christian. The gospel remains true, but I don’t think this is the image Christ would want us to convey. As our world become increasingly inter-related due to globalization, our interaction with other faiths will grow more frequent. It is my hope that we can all behave a bit better than these folks did.

 

Dying and Rising: Part One

Mick Turner

The Christian faith from beginning to end is loaded with paradox. By its very nature, paradox transcends reason and often leads believers into a realm where ordinary modes of reasoning are about as helpful as air brakes on a turtle. This can create a great deal of confusion for the new believer.

 

Take for example Jesus’ statement about the necessity of losing your life to save it. On the surface, it makes absolutely no sense whatsoever. However, this one paradoxical statement presents the essence of the Christian walk of faith. All aspects of practical spiritual formation ultimately point to this fact, as do even the most arcane theological speculations.

 

If you want to truly live, you have to die.

 

Of course Jesus isn’t talking about a physical death, just as he wasn’t talking about being born again physically when he met with Nicodemus under the cloak of darkness. No, here the Lord is speaking of a kind of non-physical death in which we die to self and rise with Christ in order to be “in Christ.” Just as Jesus died on the cross and was resurrected after three days, we, too, have to die and be resurrected. The question then becomes: What is it that dies?

 

Put simply, we have to die to our lower self, sometimes called the ego and biblically called “the flesh.” In essence, we are called to die to our self-centered concerns and, in being raised with Christ, reawaken our sense of spiritual vitality as well as our heart of compassion. We die to self and subsequently live for Christ and for others. In fact, Christ clearly tells us that when we live for others, we are actually living for him.

 

Then the King will say to those on his right, “Come, you who are blessed by my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the creation of the world. For I was hungry, and you fed me. I was thirsty, and you gave me a drink. I was a stranger, and you invited me into your home. I was naked and you gave me clothing. I was sick, and you cared for me. I was in prison and you visited me.

 

Then the righteous ones will reply, “Lord, when did we ever see you hungry and feed you? Or, thirsty and gave you something to drink? Or a stranger and show you hospitality? Or naked and give you clothing? When did we ever see you sick or in prison and visit you?

 

And the King will say, “I tell you the truth, when you did it to one of the least of these my brothers and sisters, you were doing it to me.” (Matthew 25:34-40 NLT)

 

What is Christ getting at here? It’s simple really. We die to self so that we can rise in newness of life in order to serve others.

 

The Apostle Paul also uses this theme of dying and rising throughout his letters. One can accurately say that for Paul, as it was for Jesus, the Christian path of transformation was found only in this process of personal death and resurrection. As Paul stressed to the Corinthian church, “So if anyone is in Christ there is a new creation: everything old has passed away; see, everything has become new.” (2 Cor. 5:17). Once we engage this process of death and resurrection Paul says that we are “in Christ.” The spiritual state of being “in Christ” was highly significant for the Apostle. He used the phrase 165 times in his letters, and he used the synonymous phrase, “in the Spirit” at least 20 times.

 

It is not a stretch at all to say that for Paul, the essence of the Christian life was the cross. And what was nailed to the cross as far as we were and are concerned? Our lower self, the ego – in the words of Paul – the flesh. When Paul said with sincerity that he intended to preach nothing but Christ crucified, it was this process of death and resurrection he was talking about. The way of Christ was the way of personal transformation – the way of the cross.

 

The beloved disciple John also spoke of death and rising. In one passage of scripture John spoke with stark clarity in reference to what we must do as Christians:

 

I tell you the truth, unless a kernel of wheat is planted in the soil and dies, it remains alone. But its death will produce many new kernels – a plentiful harvest of new lives. (John 12:24 NLT)

 

It is interesting to note that this statement by John is soon followed by Jesus’ paradoxical utterances about loving one’s life and losing it and hating one’s life and gaining it.

 

As Christians, you and I may have heard this teaching and failed to understand it. Or, it could be that some of us have heard this death/resurrection theme and believed it applied to Christ but not to us. Still others may have heard it so often it has ceased to have any true personal meaning. Like the Lord’s Prayer, words that we encounter time and time again often fail to move us any longer. The fact is, however, that this theme cannot be ignored, misunderstood, or misapplied. As said earlier, the cross is a personal experience; it applies to everyone who dares take on the title of “Christian” or “Christ-follower.”

 

Marcus Borg, a somewhat controversial Christian scholar and teacher, speaks clearly to this issue:

 

…..the early Christian movement saw the cross as a symbol of “the way.” It embodies “the way”: the path of transformation, the way of being born again. The cross, the central symbol of Christianity, points to the process at the heart of the Christian life: dying and rising with Christ, being raised to newness of life, being born again in Christ, in the Spirit. It is no wonder, and yet it is, that Paul vowed to preach “nothing but Christ crucified”; no wonder, and yet it is, that the gospels saw the way of Jesus as the way of the cross; no wonder, and yet it is, that the season of Lent climaxing in Good Friday and Easter is about participating in the death and resurrection of Jesus.

 

By now it should be obvious that the way of the cross, which is the way of Jesus, is of utmost importance in the process of spiritual formation. If we aren’t willing to lose our lives, we cannot possibly gain them. If we refuse to die, according to Christ, we have no hope of living.

 

So, how do we go about dying and rising? Where the rubber meets the road, what is it that I must do?

 

Stay tuned for Part Two……

 

© L.D. Turner 2008/All Rights Reserved

 

Devotions for the Christian Optimist: All Things Work Together

Mick Turner

“And we know that God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to his purpose for them.” (Romans 8:28 NLT)

 

If ever there was a reason for Christians to be optimistic it is the promise recorded by Paul in this powerful scripture. The Apostle nestled this verse in the context of a number of other verses towards the end of the eighth chapter of Romans, all of which point toward the central reality that, as Christians, we really have every reason to rejoice and celebrate, whatever our circumstance. The unfathomable intelligence that forged this incredible universe and arranged all the subtle, complex laws that keep it in perfect balance, has also orchestrated the events of our lives to also work in our ultimate favor.

 

I don’t think this means that God planned everything that happens to us. Our own wrong choices many times get us into trouble. But Paul is telling us that even then, and even when disaster and tragedy strikes, God can use the results of our bad decisions, the results of tragedy, loss, and disaster, to ultimately work for our greatest good. In light of this reality, optimism is not only logical, it is unavoidable.

 

Lord, I know that you go before me, making my way both perfect and positive. I now take refuge in the serene peace and complete assurance that you are, indeed, devoted to the unfolding of my greatest good, even when I can’t see it. And I also am aware that this is your promise to all who love you and who are called to your purpose.

 

Father of Lights, I also am aware that each person you place before me is the person you are calling me to love at that moment. I am deeply aware that, just as you direct all things to work for my ultimate favor, I am to love the person before me in the same way. Therefore, I commit all my thoughts, actions, and plans to the unfolding of the greatest good of the persons you bring before me today. I am created in your image, Lord, and as your love directs you to bring out the best in me, I am also committed to bringing out the best in those you place in my path.

 

I thank you Lord for giving me the empowerment of the Holy Spirit to be able to accomplish what I cannot do on my own, and I thank you for making all things work toward my greatest good. In Christ’s most Holy Name…..Amen.

 

Mick Turner

 

© L.D. Turner 2008/All Rights Reserved

 

Wise Words for Today

Some Christians object to meditation because it uses the imagination. It is wiser, however, to give our imagination to God to be retrained than to withhold it. The process of spiritual formation allows every part of our being to be embraced and schooled by God, and the imagination needs retraining as much as anything else. If we ignore the imagination, it finds entertainment of its own. When activated by the images and truths of Scripture, the imagination enables the penetrating Word of God to become active in our lives.

Jan Johnson

(from When the Soul Listens)

 

Have a Safe and Happy Holiday

I just wanted to take a few moments to wish each and every one of you a safe and happy Fourth of July. In addition to great food, fireworks, and other plans you may have, I would also like to encourage you to spend time reflecting on and expressing your gratitude to God for the freedoms that you have. I am especially thinking about the freedom to worship openly.

After spending five-plus years in China, the issue of freedom to worship is particularly on my heart every Fourth of July. Although China has come a long way in terms of allowing Christians to gather and worship the Lord, these new-found freedoms remain inconsistent and persecution is still a daily reality in the Middle Kingdom. I know this from things I witnessed while living over there. In some areas, believers had little trouble from the authorities while in other locales, Christians were jailed on a regular basis.

In your prayer time today, please remember your brothers and sisters in China and in other nations where the freedoms we often take for granted are only a pipe dream.

Have a blessed day,

Mick

 

Dr. Spratt Remembered: A Fascinating Sunday

Mick Turner

 

Let me begin by saying that I have a great appreciation for the charismatic element in the Church Universal. Although I am not a member of a charismatic denomination, I have read deeply in the writings of spirit-filled authors and have benefited greatly from this endeavor. I enjoy an animated worship service and I am not one of those stick-in-the-mud traditionalists that refuse to hold their arms above their waist.

 

Still, it is a wonder I have ever set foot in a charismatic or Pentecostal church after an early experience I had with this type of worship. In fact, I had forgotten about the whole episode until a week ago.

 

Last week I was going through a box of odds and ends and found an old term paper I wrote 30 years ago while a junior in college. The paper was for a Sociology of Religion class and my mind quickly began to wander back to that class in general and the professor in particular.

 

If you think I am weird, believe me, Dr. Spratt had me beat by a country mile.

Arnold Spratt, PhD, taught this class and he was, in addition to being one of the homeliest men alive, as exciting as an empty coke bottle. Truthfully friends, this man could bore the leg off a piano and put the stoutest caffeine addict to sleep.

Dr. Spratt used to stand behind the podium, speaking in a low monotone voice that most resembled an electrical humming sound. Add to this the fact that I had his class right after lunch and it is easy to see why half the class would be nodding off 10 minutes into his lecture.

 

The other half was stone cold asleep.

 

Professor Spratt was a small man, weighing about 110 pounds soaking wet. Sitting atop his short, lank frame was an even smaller head that sort of sloped backwards at the forehead, accentuating ears that would have made an elephant bellow with envy. The smallness of Dr. Spratt’s cranium was magnified by the fact that he always tied his necktie with a knot as big as a tumor.

 

When the good professor lectured, his voice never rose above a loud whisper, but when he wanted to emphasize a point, he would sort of pull his thin lips up across his large front teeth and sort of hiss out his words like an agitated Copperhead. Combined with his bird-beak nose and sloping forehead, Dr. Spratt looked more weasel than human.

 

In spite of all this, Dr. Spratt was a nice man, cordial and polite. Because our class was a seminar, there were only nine or ten students on the roll. He often invited the entire group over to his house for wine and cheese, minus the wine. You see, Dr. Spratt and his wife were Pentecostal teetotalers.

 

Mrs. Spratt was the physical opposite of the good doctor. She was an ample woman who, to put it mildly, was way on up there in tonnage. The professor’s wife owned and operated a bakery and obviously sampled her wares frequently. However, it was not Mrs. Spratt’s size that I remembered. Instead, my clearest memories of the lady came from a time when Professor Spratt invited my good friend David, myself, and a Russian exchange student named Alexander to his church. We were all in the Sociology of Religion class and Dr. Spratt thought witnessing a Pentecostal worship service would broaden our perspectives on the Protestant Church as a whole. Alexander, it should be noted, had already attended the church several times, had a spiritual experience which he talked about endlessly, and converted to Pentecostal Christianity. In our eyes, even though Alexander had quickly become somewhat of a zealot, being Pentecostal was better than being a Pinko Commie, which is what he was prior to seeing the light.

 

Professor Spratt gave us no warning of what to expect and it was the first time David had been to a charismatic sort of worship service. I had only been a couple of times myself, as a teenager. Our neighbors two doors down were members of an Assembly of God congregation and, on occasion, I accompanied the family.

 

Nothing, however, could have prepared us for what happened that day.

 

After a long, long sermon (delivered by the soporific Dr. Spratt, who it turns out was pastor of the church), the music started and everyone present slowly but visibly began to get worked up. At one point, a couple of folks started speaking in tongues and flapping their arms about.

 

As the spirit mounted in the room, all of a sudden Alexander screamed something unintelligible and started running down the center aisle and, taking a sharp right turn, began making laps of the sanctuary, babbling in what we assumed was Russian. From time to time he would grunt loudly and shout something that we could not interpret but sounded amazingly like “Ooga Booga.” He continued to orbit the sanctuary for about 20 minutes before collapsing in a heap halfway down the center aisle. From that day forward we never called Alexander by his given name again. We simply referred to our Russian friend as “Sputnik.”

 

All the while, Dr. Spratt was going down a line that had formed in front of the church, slapping people on the forehead and sending them crashing to floor, where they lay writhing, panting, and making babbling sounds that must have also been glossolalia. Like Clark Kent, Dr. Spratt was transformed from a mild mannered milk toast of a man into a loud and powerful soldier of God.

 

Just about two orbits before Sputnik crashed, Mrs. Spratt hoisted her bulk from a pew in the back and ran screaming down the center aisle with her arms thrashing above her head like two swollen tentacles. She beached herself on the alter steps where her drooling, incomprehensible verbalizations left the carpet soaked with blubbering spittle. All of a sudden a deep rumbling sound rose up from somewhere deep inside her. I don’t know what she said, but she sounded a lot like an old Dodge on a cold morning. Just before she passed out cold, her ample physique quaked and trembled and, combined with her bright green dress, she looked for all the world like a big bowl of lime Jell-o.

 

A group of folks circled around Mrs. Spratt and prayed for her in tongues. David and I, meanwhile, made our exit. Sputnik was still lying in a motionless heap on the floor…

I mean to cast no dispersions on anyone’s religious expression here. As I mentioned at the beginning of this article, I have a deep appreciation for the charismatic arm of the Church. I am just relating what all of this looked like to a couple of young, impressionable minds that had not been prepared beforehand. It would have helped if the good professor had front loaded us with a bit of information as to what we might expect to witness.

 

For what it’s worth, David is now an Episcopal priest and Sputnik has his own large Pentecostal congregation in Virginia. As for Dr. Spratt, we never looked at him the same after that memorable Sunday.

(c) L.D. Turner 2008/All Rights Reserved

 

Devotions for the Christian Optimist: All Things Work Together….

“And we know that God causes everything to work together for the good of those who love God and are called according to his purpose for them.” (Romans 8:28 NLT)

 

If ever there was a reason for Christians to be optimistic it is the promise recorded by Paul in this powerful scripture. The Apostle nestled this verse in the context of a number of other verses towards the end of the eighth chapter of Romans, all of which point toward the central reality that, as Christians, we really have every reason to rejoice and celebrate, whatever our circumstance. The unfathomable intelligence that forged this incredible universe and arranged all the subtle, complex laws that keep it in perfect balance, has also orchestrated the events of our lives to also work in our ultimate favor.

 

I don’t think this means that God planned everything that happens to us. Our own wrong choices many times get us into trouble. But Paul is telling us that even then, and even when disaster and tragedy strikes, God can use the results of our bad decisions, the results of tragedy, loss, and disaster, to ultimately work for our greatest good. In light of this reality, optimism is not only logical, it is unavoidable.

 

Lord, I know that you go before me, making my way both perfect and positive. I now take refuge in the serene peace and complete assurance that you are, indeed, devoted to the unfolding of my greatest good, even when I can’t see it. And I also am aware that this is your promise to all who love you and who are called to your purpose.

 

Father of Lights, I also am aware that each person you place before me is the person you are calling me to love at that moment. I am deeply aware that, just as you direct all things to work for my ultimate favor, I am to love the person before me in the same way. Therefore, I commit all my thoughts, actions, and plans to the unfolding of the greatest good of the persons you bring before me today. I am created in your image, Lord, and as your love directs you to bring out the best in me, I am also committed to bringing out the best in those you place in my path.

 

I thank you Lord for giving me the empowerment of the Holy Spirit to be able to accomplish what I cannot do on my own, and I thank you for making all things work toward my greatest good. In Christ’s most Holy Name…..Amen.

 

Mick Turner

 

© L.D. Turner 2008/All Rights Reserved