B-log

"It is better to be faithful than famous."

Wed, 28 Jul 2010 16:49:44 -0500

““It is better to be faithful than famous.””

- Teddy Roosevelt

Service with a smile

Tue, 27 Jul 2010 13:59:54 -0500

Over the past two days, I’ve had three great customer service experiences. Tara from the North Texas Transit Authority, Lisa from Brite Water Pools, and Pedro from Metro Sprinkler Systems. This trifecta of pleasantness has me wondering if I’m in some sort of Sliders-ish space/time flux alternate reality.

More than ever, service is important.

The biggest responsibility of a Christian is to serve others. And be happy doing it.

Accordingly, I’m hyper-sensitive to poor service, which is increasingly common.

“Service” seems to be evolving into one of those words that now means the opposite of what it used to mean, like the way “awful” now means “terrible,” but it used to mean “incredible” (you know…to be full of awe).

We have the Internal Revenue Service, Civil Service, and Postal Service; none of which seem to be service-oriented. Customer Service, Wireless Service, and Internet Service - these are all terms that are characterized by their inconsistency, irony, or indifference. Service Stations have disappeared (and self-service isn’t the same thing).

It’s unfortunately rare and altogether refreshing to experience good service.

How’s your serve?

"Trial is the school of trust."

Tue, 27 Jul 2010 13:32:02 -0500

“Trial is the school of trust.”

"Pride hides a man’s faults to himself and magnifies them to everyone else."

Tue, 27 Jul 2010 13:31:02 -0500

“Pride hides a man’s faults to himself and magnifies them to everyone else.”

The heart of worship

Mon, 26 Jul 2010 23:46:49 -0500

The biblical narrative of the birth of Jesus recounts how the wise men, the magi, came to Jerusalem seeking out the King of the Jews who was promised in the ancient texts and in the stars. The established ruler of the Jews, Herod, dismissed the men, after his own scholars identified that such a king would have to be born in Bethlehem. So, the magi went on to Bethlehem, where they found the baby in the manger, along with mother and fleshly father, along with the menagerie one likely finds in a stable. Here, the magi humbled themselves and gave four gifts of record to the child King Jesus.

Can you name the four gifts?

Three of the four are listed quite plainly – gold, frankincense, and myrrh. But can you find the fourth gift? If you are reading beyond the list of the other three, you’ve gone too far. Actually, the first gift is listed before all the others. What does Matthew 2:11 say before listing the other gifts: “They fell down and worshipped Him.” The fourth gift the magi brought was really the first gift, the most important gift, and it is also the most overlooked gift – the gift of worship.

It’s no surprise that this gift is almost always overlooked, because worship has been woefully neglected in the church for many, many years. The present church and the modern-day Christian, by and large, really don’t know much about worship. You see, we can spend endless time talking about worship, singing about worship, preaching about it, and praying about it, but never really partaking in it. I cannot think of a greater travesty then to be investing so much of our corporate time and energy in worshipping without ever doing it!

John 4 offers a unique insight of Scripture about the heart of worship. Just one chapter earlier, Jesus had an exchange with a man who was known in the Jewish community as a leader of worship. He was Nicodemus, a leader of the Jews. He was an influential Pharisee, a man looked upon by the Jews to be an authority on the worship of God. Yet, in chapter 3, we see that he really didn’t understand what it meant to worship God. It is in the context of this discussion where Jesus speaks the clarion message to the world, “if you desire to be saved, you must be born again.” This discussion took place about the time of the first Passover of Christ’s earthly ministry, and once the holy days were completed, it is recorded that Jesus and His disciples again departed north for the region of Galilee.

Interestingly, God’s Word says that Jesus “needed” to go through Samaria to get to Galilee. This is rather unusual because no “honorable” Jew went through Samaria to get to Galilee. In fact, “good Jews” went so far as to cross the river Jordan to make the trek, distancing themselves as much as possible from the Samaritan people. But the Bible says that Jesus “needed” to do it. The Greek word picture is “binding,” which means that Christ’s necessity to take this path was bound to Him – there was no avoiding it, there was no detour around it – it must be done.

So Jesus did as Jesus always did – He obeyed and went into Samaria, even though it wasn’t the “honorable” thing to do. He walked into the region of Samaria, to the town of Sychar. There, Jesus sat at a well that was on the land that the patriarch Jacob had given to Joseph. In the heat of the midday sun, Jesus sat at this well that many scholars believe was actually dug by Jacob himself. A local woman, a Samaritan came to the well, and Jesus did the unthinkable. He told her to get him a drink of water. Aside from breaking every social and religious taboo, Jesus enters into a discussion with this woman from Samaria, where he reveals a complete knowledge of her past, of her physical and spiritual needs, and a complete understanding of what she lacks in her pursuit of God. And while there are many, many sermons and lessons to be gleaned from this encounter, we’ll just be a fly on the well to discover important lessons about the heart of worship.

First, this woman says, “I perceive you to be a prophet. (John 4:19)” She acknowledges him to be an authority. And as such, she has a question for him. She says, “Our fathers worshipped on that mountain, and you Jews say Jerusalem is the place to worship. Who’s right?” How does Jesus answer the question? Well, simply stated, He doesn’t. Why? I believe He decided to answer the correct question, rather than the question she asked. You see, Jesus answered by saying, “There will be a time where neither on this mountain, or in Jerusalem, you will worship the Father.”

The answer Jesus provided shows that worship requires a direct object. What the woman demonstrates in her question is that corrupted worship has focuses on a distracting obstacle. Look closely at what the two say to each other. She says, “Do you worship on this mountain or in Jerusalem?” What is the direct object to the verb ‘worship?’ There isn’t one! But Jesus says, “There will be a time where you neither on this mountain, or in Jerusalem, will worship the Father!” What’s the direct object of Christ’s verb ‘worship?’ The Father! You see, when you replace the direct object of worship – the Father, with a distracting obstacle, the result is aimless worship!

Think about the things we say and do that distract from true worship:

I prefer contemporary worship
Oh, we don’t do that, we use hymnals
I speak tongues
Oh, that’s nonsense
I raise my hands
Don’t call attention to yourself
We’re denominational
We’re independent
We worship on Saturdays
We worship on Sundays
We’re a formal crowd
We dress casually

You see, when you focus on these things, you have lost focus of the direct object of worship, and worship becomes aimless. All of a sudden, all attention is placed upon the methodology of worship, rather than on the Father Himself, and your worship is aimless. God does not obligate Himself to receive any worship that is not whole-hearted and pure in its presentation. It doesn’t how much you wave your arms around, dance in the pews, speak in a hundred unknown languages, shout, cry, or carry on – if it is less than 100 percent directed to Him, He doesn’t want it, he doesn’t receive it, and it falls short!

Likewise, it doesn’t matter how quiet, reserved, calm, proper, or polite you are – if you are anything less than completely focused upon offering your worship to Him, He doesn’t want it, he doesn’t receive it, and it falls short!

This may or may not change you drastically. This is a matter between you and the Holy Spirit. If the Spirit is leading you to raise your hands in worship – then do it! If the Spirit is leading you to shout “amen” now and again, do it! But if the Spirit is leading you to change nothing, except how you present yourself to the Living God in the quiet of your heart, then that is significant, and you better do it! You may need to loosen up or you may need to calm down! But if you are doing anything – dull or dramatic – that is causing your worship to be aimless, then today is the day to lay that obstacle on God’s altar, and get back to worshiping the Father.

We know this is the right thing to do because it is exactly what Jesus exhorts the woman to do. Jesus is the is the correction of worship. First, Jesus offers her a change in perspective. He tells her, “You’re worshiping something you don’t even know.” As far as she was concerned, she thought she was doing all the right things. In fact, we can be pretty sure she was a smart gal, because she shows she knows the history of the argument, as well as both sides of the argument. But Jesus reveals she really didn’t know anything about the heart of worship.

Are we any different? For many of us, we think we’re worshipping if we come to church once a week, if we sing a couple songs, if we listen to a sermon and then go home. If somebody asks, you can say, “Yes, I worship at (your church name).” But do you want to hear the real indictment? That’s not worship – that’s just “playing church.” The Samaritans were guilty of it, the Jews were guilty of it, and many people today may be guilty of it right now.

Did you ever “play church” when you were younger? When you imitated what you saw on Sunday morning – somebody got to be the preacher, someone else was the usher, and a few got to be the church members who gossiped during the offering. Now, here we are however many years later, and too many Christians aren’t doing anything different. Too many people are just “playing a part.” Too many people are just packing a pew. We have too many people bringing too much of the world into the church, and it creates a situation where worship has been forgotten – not the “how,” but the “who!”

We have to have a change in perspective. The Greek word for worship is proskuneo, which literally means “to kiss, like a dog licking a master’s hand.” You might think, “Well that’s degrading.” If that’s your thought, get over yourself! We should love the Lord with the same commitment, the same adoration, the same undivided attention that your dog gives you. If you come to church, and spend the first song wondering whether or not you left the iron on, the second song wondering who is wearing the smelly perfume, the third song pondering what’s on television this afternoon, the message thinking about all the other people that should be convicted, and the offering planning out your lunch menu – you may have showed up, but you weren’t there, and God has nothing to do with hollow actions with no heart.

Only when you have a change of perspective can you institute the second step, a change of practice. Jesus says there will be a day when worship doesn’t take place here or there, but true worshipers will worship the Father (Direct Object) in spirit and in truth. This is a dramatic change in practice! God is far less concerned with whether or not you sing four hymns or four praise choruses or two of each than he is whether your heart cries for him when you sing. He doesn’t care whether your offering takes place in the beginning, middle or end of the worship – but that your giving is a sacrificial act of obedience and worship! God doesn’t give two hoots over whether your church plays with a keyboard, a piano, an organ, or a mouth harp, two ukuleles and have a monkey on cymbals, as long as the music is a corporate act of worship where every musician and congregant is a worshipper before God, instead of performers before each other and the congregation.

What’s the result when you experience this change of perspective and change of practice? You’ll experience agape worship, a worship that is bigger than yourself. Just as it is impossible to truly love another outside of Jesus, it is impossible to worship God outside of Jesus. Jesus showed that his heart was God’s heart. He always aligned his own agenda with the Father. He got up early to pray when it would have been easier to sleep in. He went out of His way to speak to unclean, undesirable people, when it would have been easier to be “holier than thou” and only deal with the wealthy and the elite. Even Christ’s work on the cross is an act of worship, because Jesus went the ultimate distance and said, “God, your will is more important than mine,” and He gave His life for you and me.

Are you experiencing agape worship? Are you setting everything else aside to be fully present at your church’s worship? Obviously, if you’re there, you’ve set some things aside; but what about all that stuff you bring along mentally, emotionally? If you are holding on to a disagreement with a spouse, or relative – drag it to the altar and offer it to God. If you are grasping on to your finances, not trusting that God cares even about that – drag it to the altar and offer it to Him. If you are gripped on to past bitterness, disappointment, frustration, anger, or unhappiness because you’ve been burned by a church, a pastor, or a Christian – then drag that to the altar and give it to God. He won’t let you down. Only if you give everything else away can you experience true, unadulterated agape worship of God. It’ll be bigger than you, and you’ll leave feeling like you’ve experienced something completely revolutionary – it was nothing less than an encounter with the High, holy, sinless, loving God who created you. If you’re leaving with anything less, then you’re cheating yourself of the main reason God created you!

Finally, Jesus reveals how to relate to God in the activity of worship. First, He discloses God’s natural appearance. God is spirit. He was not that mountain, nor was He Jerusalem. He was not the temple. He was not a synagogue. God is Spirit. That’s how He has always been. Likewise, God is spirit today. He is not your church building, He is not your Bible. He is not a painting of Jesus, or a statue, or anything we can place your eyes upon, wrap our hands around, or completely “figure out” with our limited little minds. He is Spirit. He is the breath of life. He is immeasurably bigger than the biggest thing and infinitely more complex than the most complicated thing. Yet, He is perpetually present, and amazingly available. He covers the universe, but is only a whisper of the heart away. God is our Father, but He is more than any man. God is described as a rock, a shelter, a fortress, a lion, an eagle, a captain of the guard, and a slain lamb, but each of these descriptions is woefully inadequate to describe the wholeness of God. Many, many words are used to define God, but when you seek to define those words, God is the ultimate definition of the descriptions. God is described as holy, but what is the ultimate definition of holy? God!

And because God’s natural appearance is Spirit, your necessary approach to God must be in spirit and in truth. God is continually present, discerning hearts and minds, and receiving all true, spiritual worship. He is omnipresent – you have God’s complete, undivided attention. He is the audience of your worship. If you don’t sing loudly because you can’t carry a tune in a bucket, you’re worried about the wrong listener. If you are afraid to lift your hands even though you feel God leading you to do so, you’re worried about the wrong set of eyes. Conversely, if you are hoping to sing a solo, or pray out loud so everyone will know how spiritual you are, then friend, you are equally mistaken in your approach. God is looking for those who are worshiping Him in spirit and in truth. If you’re worried about what time worship is out, or whether or not the sermon is too long, or if you sang too many verses of a particular hymn, you’re looking at the wrong clock. The Bible says that God is a jealous God and his wrath burns against anything that is put before him. On the other hand, his word says he delights in your obedience more than in your sacrifices of burnt offerings. God wants you wholly and solely devoted to Him in spiritual, truthful worship.

What is the result? Simply stated, its what you’re really after, isn’t it? Authentic worship. Only by worshiping God in spirit and in truth through Jesus Christ as Lord can you experience authentic worship with the Father. Only then can you experience fellowship with God. Only then can you say, “I went to church today, and the most wonderful thing happened. I had an appointment with God! I spoke to Him. He spoke to me. I gave to Him, and He gave to me! I blessed Him and He blessed me!” If people truly understood that this is what God wants you to “get from church,” and really believed it, nobody would miss church – ever! You’d be looking for excuses to come to church! You’d come Sunday mornings, Sunday nights, Wednesday nights, and you’d create reasons to come every free moment you had. This is exactly what took place in the first church 1900 years ago. People got together, and they were glad, and they worshiped God. Authentically.

Commit today to worshiping the Father in Spirit and truth. Step forward in the public act of bringing your past obstacles to the altar, and sacrificing them to the Lord. Pursue authentic, agape worship of God the Father. Your life will never be the same because of it.

"Do all the good you can, by all the means you can, in all the ways you can, in all the places you..."

Mon, 26 Jul 2010 19:17:53 -0500

“Do all the good you can, by all the means you can, in all the ways you can, in all the places you can, at all the times you can, to all the people you can, as long as you ever can.”

- John Wesley

5 questions to ask if you want to influence others

Sat, 24 Jul 2010 02:47:36 -0500

What/who are your targets?
What do they care about? What outcome are they seeking?
Where do you find them?
What or who influences them?
How do they want to engage?

If you can answer these questions, you are on track to being able to influence your target. There’s still a matter of execution…it’s not just enough to know, you also have to “do” the work of influencing. But knowing what you need to do is the first step.

This list was lifted from this article, and applied to the context you’re reading here.

4 simple tips for a successful life

Fri, 23 Jul 2010 20:50:22 -0500

You may not know Edward Steichen, but he considered by many to be a master of photography. When he was 16 years old, he began his new hobby by purchasing a camera and taking fifty photographs. Only one of the fifty turned out – a portrait of his sister at the piano. His father thought that this was a pretty poor showing, but his mother gave him lavish praise – saying the one success was so good it compensated for the other 49. It was because of that encouragement that he stuck with his hobby and gained renown for his skill and artful eye.

It is my observation that the line between failure and success is a fine one indeed. In fact, it was once stated that success is just failure with a fresh coat of paint. It seems to me that too few experience success too little of the time, not because they do not possess the potential, but because failure can be incredibly intimidating, and encouragement seems to be in scarce supply.

I believe God gave the book of 2^nd Corinthians for a specific word of encouragement. This church in Corinth was not necessarily an exemplary model of a healthy church. It had many problems in its short history by the time the two letters penned by Paul reached the congregation. It had problems with doctrine, with orderly worship, with messed-up, inappropriate relationships in the congregation, with legalism, and with being a loving group of people who genuinely cared for each other. As far as all things were considered, the church in Corinth was a failure on many fronts. Probably, many outsiders had the perspective similar to Edward Steichen’s father and thought the church had a poor showing, and may be better well served to just shut its doors and quit embarrassing the name of Christ. And to be honest, from an outsider’s perspective, it’s hard not to at least say, “sure, I can understand where those guys are coming from.”

Paul, however, was not of that opinion. He was like Edward Steichen’s mother. He saw the same failures that everyone else saw. He recognized all the shortcomings. But He saw potential. He saw promise. He had hope. And accordingly, he was compelled to do that which the Lord called him to do for their benefit – he encouraged them. These are the words he wrote to them, found in 2 Corinthians 13:11-14

Finally, brethren, farewell. Become complete. Be of good comfort, be of one mind, live in peace; and the God of love and peace will be with you. Greet one another with a holy kiss. All the saints greet you. The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the communion of the Holy Spirit be with you all. Amen.

It’s important to note that these final words of encouragement do in fact come at the heels of strong words of criticism from Paul over the things that the Lord revealed were done incorrectly or dishonorably. But Paul could not and would not leave his address to the church in Corinth in a negative tone, thus leaving them without any real sense of hope. So he concludes with an encouragement.

Paul says “farewell.” Some translations read simply “goodbye.” The literal translation, though, expresses the true heart of the sentiment, and that is, “be of good cheer.” In this, Paul took a simple goodbye sentiment and transformed it into an encouraging exhortation. And his encouragement is our first tip to a successful life. Make the commitment to be of good cheer.

This means that you are to have a positive, upbeat, optimistic view to the situation you are facing. There are many times you face your “now” with a worry or concern about “what’s next?” That’s understandable. You rarely know what’s going to happen next, even when you think you do. Think about the number of times you have been surprised with news of a death or of a birth, an announcement of a promotion or of a termination. Think of the news of cancer or terminal illness, or of the miraculous news of remission or a cure! The ongoing revelation of your life’s drama illustrates the only reliable truth, which is that God is sovereign over the details of your life. Only God knows every potential of every potential. Only God is powerful over every detail of every detail. And because of that, you have the opportunity to exercise your faith to be of good cheer, trusting in the good will of God for the ever-unfolding details of your life. Make no mistake, to live with this mindset is to walk by faith and not by sight. Even so, you are wise to praise God today for the provision of tomorrow’s blessing.

Paul also says, “be complete.” Again, the literal translation perhaps expresses it better, which declares, “perfect yourself.” This term carries with it the connotation of making the necessary repairs or adjustments to accomplish the perfection toward which God exhorts you. Tip #2: Keep striving toward self-improvement by (ironically, perhaps) continually denying your self.

You see, to truly be “of good cheer,” you must be willing to perfect yourself, through the conviction, help, and encouragement of the Holy Spirit. Every part of the body of Christ (of which you are a part, if you worship him as Lord) must take the time to stand before the holy judging discernment of God and say, “show me where I fall short.” If you are a gossip, God wants you to shut your mouth. If you are a hypocrite, God wants your words to be consistent. If you are divisive, God wants you to stop the division, and begin working to bring healing. If you are lazy, God wants you to stand up and get purposefully busy. And whether you are up to your ankles or up to your neck in sin, God wants you to get out of the pigpen, be cleansed by the forgiveness of the Father, and return to fellowship with His Holy Spirit. God’s word has declared that He has made you complete:

For in Him dwells all the fullness of the Godhead bodily; and you are complete in Him, who is the head of all principality and power. (Colossians 2:9-10)

It’s now time that you live as you have been created in your new life in Christ.

Paul continues by saying “be of good comfort.” Once more, the literal translation expands the thought, by exhorting us to “be encouraged by being of the same mind.” There must be unity within the family of God if it is ever to accomplish the purposes that God has designed. Followers of Christ must come to unity on the issues that have divided them for years (and in some cases for generations, and in other cases, by cultures or races), so that they may divide the Body no longer. Individually, each of us must fervently seek the Lord and be willing to do anything and everything possible to close the divide, to heal the wounds, and to move forward toward unity. Tip #3: Passionately pursue unity with other Christ followers.

Next, he writes, “live in peace.” To this I’ll make this point clear – people are more important than a ministry. Ministry exists for the benefit and blessing of people, not to the frustration and broken fellowship of people. If a ministry is at the root of a broken relationship, whether it be private, corporate, professional, or otherwise, then man’s priorities have been turned upside down and glory has gone to the flesh. If ministry is contentious, my encouragement to you is to suspend the work of the ministry, so that you can place your energy in re-developing peaceable relationships with your brothers and sisters in Christ. Living in peace is not just a suggestion; it is a command from God. Tip #4: Put people first.

If you seek to do these things, look at what God promises: the God of love and peace will be with you. Oh what a promise that is! But pay attention that is a conditional statement. Too often, Christians think that God is obligated to accompany them and bless them simply because they wear a Christian tee shirt and have a fish on their bumper. God refuses to have fellowship with the ungodly, even (and perhaps especially) if the one being ungodly claims to be a child of God Himself.

However, if God’s people pursue the conditions set forth, God promises the grace of Christ, the love of the Father, and the fellowship of the Spirit. Do these characteristics describe your life? Have you had those experiences when you have lavished in the grace of Christ because you fully embraced the reality of the love of the Father? It is only possible because of being in an active, interactive communion with the Holy Spirit of God. These are beautiful experiences indeed, and God intends for this to be the norm, rather than the rare exception.

Think of your individual spiritual health and your communal congregational health. Think of how difficult we try to make it and how frustrating it becomes to try to attain what we believe to be so seemingly elusive. Yet, God says clearly in this encouraging message that if you want to experience a successful life marked by a bounty of spiritual blessings, the commands are clear…be a faith-filled optimist who expectantly looks for the blessings of God. Always be looking for chances to improve yourself by trusting God more. Pursue unity at all costs. And finally, prioritize others.

My application to be a writer for Pawn Stars

Wed, 21 Jul 2010 12:43:42 -0500

I spent several hours going through my library yesterday, pruning out books that will look great as part of the Half Price Books collection. While doing so, I whimsically decided to experience the History Channel’s show Pawn Stars, using On Demand. After watching 9 episodes, I feel qualified to apply to be a writer for the show. Here’s my audition, which I wrote after realizing this was the script used for absolutely every single episode. Watch for yourself.

***

Rick: Today we had (Item X) come in. (Item X) was really cool. But it doesn’t make sense unless I can get (Item X) for the right price.

(Cut to Rick’s conversation with owner of Item X)

Rick: What have you got here?

Owner: It’s an (Item X).

Rick: Cool. (Here Rick either shares his knowledge of the history of Item X or says the following….I don’t even know what this item is worth to make an offer on it. But I got a buddy who I can call to come take a look at it.

(Cut back to Rick first-person)

Rick: this is a great (Item X), but it’s got to be a good offer. Because if in my business, if I’m not making money, I’m losing money.

(Cut to transaction for the expert’s analysis)

Expert: This is an (Item X). It’s worth $Z.

Rick: (Shaking hands with expert). Thanks for coming in.

Old Man (Rick’s Dad): Owner, what are you wanting to do today? Pawn, Sell, or borrow against it?

(Note: It is at this point that any child watching the program with their parent will ask either “What is pawn?” or “What is the difference between pawning it and selling?” It is also at this time that the parent will answer by saying either, “I don’t know,” or by lying and offer some rambling explanation that almost certainly is incorrect.)

Owner: I want to sell it. (They never want to pawn it. Viewers come to understand this over time)

Rick: What are you wanting for it?

Owner: I was thinking $Y (Y=Z-20%…(Remember, $Z was experts assessed value of (Item X))

Rick: Dollars? (Laugh) We’re not even on the same page. I was thinking $Y-50%.

Owner: How about $Y-25%

Old Man: How about $Y-60%?

Owner: (Panic)

Rick: $Y-50% is the best I can do. I’ve got to (various extra labor such as framing, send to auction, refinish, etc) (Item X), so I’ll be lucky to make any money at $Y-50%.

Owner: What about $Y-40%?

Rick: (Pained look. Pause) $Y-40%? Okay. You got a deal. (Rick then shakes hand of owner, using “I’m dominant with my hand-on-top” grip.)

(Cut to Rick, first-person)

Rick: I got (Item X) for $Y-40%. I’m really excited about that. (Item X) will go fast in my shop, and I’ll probably get $Y+75% for it.

(Note: If Big Hoss receives a customer, the (Item X) will be a fake. He’ll offer to pay for it out of his paycheck, but Rick will chalk it up to a learning experience. Also, each week, Chumley may make a brief appearance to offer simplistic observations and be ridiculed as a moron by Old Man, who will, in turn, be teased for being an Old Man.)

***

Please mail my pay & royalty checks to my home address.

The truth about cheating

Fri, 16 Jul 2010 08:45:18 -0500

Cheating has gone high-tech; subsequently, so has the effort to thwart it. Multiple websites offer test, essay, and report compilations that can be bought, sold, bartered over, plagiarized, shared, and reproduced. IPods are outlawed, because students can record answers as sound files. Cell phones are verbotten because of the ability to text. Hats must be turned backward so answers can’t be written on the bills. Even chewing gum is a no-no, because it can mask the use of hands-free technology.

Despite all these efforts, cheating continues in an apparently escalating trend. It’s so common that even a (relatively) recent Price Is Right winner was accused of chicanery.

Cheating is a matter of violating rules to gain an unfair advantage. I wasn’t plagued with a cheating habit the way I was with its ugly fraternal twins of lying and stealing (those are childhood confessions to come later). That’s not to say I’ve never cheated.

My first cheating memory is deliberately miscounting a turn in chutes and ladders so I could climb toward victory instead of slide back toward defeat. In middle school, I know I wrote crib notes and used them, though I couldn’t tell you the subject much less the content. By the time I was in high school, I had less interest in illicitly acquiring information, but I had no problem sharing my homework on a daily basis. Literally, every day before school was a stock market of the previous night’s homework, with answers being traded on the common grounds floor, where those assignments represented the commodity of popularity for generously sharing your work with everyone else.

Even in writing this, I now recall changing my grade in the teacher’s gradebook in 9th grade English. I got caught on that one. How I wasn’t expelled or at least suspended I will never know…but then again, this happened in the class where the teacher would always write my older brother’s name on the board for detention (and neither of us ever showed for it, either). Thank goodness for technology today, where all grades are kept electronically, secured, safe from the crafty plots of kids whose neural connections haven’t fully formed.

In college, I don’t have any specific memory of cheating. There was a test archive in my fraternity. I know I never contributed to it, because I was an English major and the majority of my exams were written, creative, and difficult to reproduce. I don’t have a memory of using it for science, math, or business classes…I was on an Honors scholarship and I think I was properly motivated by the school’s honor code. And as a writer, I respected plagiarism guidelines implicitly (and to this day try to keep and give good record of appropriate attribution).

It was also in college where I became a Christian, and I was impacted significantly by a minister who was investing in me as a new believer, and who himself came under conviction for having cheated (ironically) in an Ethics class in seminary. He was compelled to go back to the school, confess his offense, and let the consequences come as they may. When I shortly thereafter went to seminary, I was highly motivated to proceed honestly, and even took the same ethics class with the same professor specifically because of the grace and mercy he demonstrated in forgiving this minister.

God directly commands “Don’t cheat” in Leviticus 19:13. In this command, he equates cheating your neighbor with robbing him.

In the modern language, “a cheat” isn’t someone who just breaks the rules of a game, but one who violates the rules of life, such as an unfaithful spouse. When a person cheats on a spouse, they “break the rules” of their marriage vows (whether spoken in a civil, legal union, or in the context of a spiritual promise before God). They are attempting to gain an unfair, inappropriate advantage of happiness (or fulfillment, gratification, or indulgence). Inevitably, they have to rob from their spouse’s joy to do it.

Tragically, too many people choose to sink in the mire of this bog of deception rather than just live in honest satisfaction. They do the very things that complicate their lives with untruth and betrayal, and then complain that their lives are no longer as simple as they once had been.

I’m convinced that God’s command against cheating isn’t just some kill-joy edict from On High. He knows the pain that cheating inflicts on self and others, and offers this protective warning against it. Like a runaway locomotive heading toward a canyon without a bridge, God knows that cheating is a train wreck waiting to happen. Its consequences can be devastating, tragic, even generational. God gives the command against cheating because he is good, loving, and kind. He wants you to enjoy the blessing of a life well-lived in truth and transparency.

Cheating is determining to pursue a lie and label it the truth, presenting a facade that you’re a winner playing by the same rules as everyone else (when in truth, you are not). Proverbs 23:23 says, “Buy the truth and do not sell it. Get wisdom, discipline, and understanding.” Commit to be a truth-liver.

Affirming fatherhood

Tue, 13 Jul 2010 21:25:49 -0500

Chip Ingram agrees that dads are important, saying we have four primary responsibilities:

Role Number 1: Dads are leaders who make things happen.
Role Number 2: Dads are priests who make God known.
Role Number 3: Dads are teachers who impart wisdom and build character.
Role Number 4: Dads are lovers who give their kids what they need most.

"We will act consistently with our view of who we truly are, whether that view is accurate or not."

Mon, 12 Jul 2010 15:49:29 -0500

“We will act consistently with our view of who we truly are, whether that view is accurate or not.”

- Anthony Robbins

"Revenge has no more quenching effect on emotions than salt water has on thirst."

Mon, 12 Jul 2010 14:34:26 -0500

“Revenge has no more quenching effect on emotions than salt water has on thirst.”

- Walter Weckler

listening to "Katy Perry - California Gurls HQ"

Mon, 12 Jul 2010 12:13:38 -0500

listening to "Katy Perry - California Gurls HQ":

Now Katy Perry’s California Gurls for comparison to Tik Tok

listening to "Tik tok - Ke$ha"

Mon, 12 Jul 2010 12:12:07 -0500

listening to "Tik tok - Ke$ha":

i read that this and Katy Perry’s song are one and the same…what do you think?

World view survey: Bible's accuracy

Mon, 12 Jul 2010 09:41:00 -0500

Statement 8 (final one): The Bible is accurate (without error) in all of its teachings.

agree or not? comments & thoughts?

World view survey: Christians

Mon, 12 Jul 2010 09:39:29 -0500

Statement 7: A Christian has a responsibility, obligation, and privilege to share their faith in Christ with other people.

agree or not? comments & thoughts?

World view survey: Satan

Mon, 12 Jul 2010 09:38:10 -0500

Statement 6: Satan is real; yet he is not the antithesis of God in that he is limited in his power, knowledge, and presence.

agree or not? comments & thoughts?

World view survey: salvation

Mon, 12 Jul 2010 09:36:46 -0500

Statement 5: Salvation is the literal and eternal restoration of man back to God whereby man obtains entrance to heaven, It is a grace gift from God and cannot be earned.

agree or not? comments & thoughts?

World view survey: God

Mon, 12 Jul 2010 09:35:22 -0500

Statement 4: God is all-powerful and all-knowing. He alone is Creator of the universe and He actively & interactively rules it today.