Category: Random

Roads are a remedy to all that was boring.

I had to chuckle when I read that from Steve Farrar’s book “How to Ruin Your Life by 40” yesterday. He was quoting his son’s reflections on the excitement of turning 18, getting a driver’s license and enjoying the first taste of freedom of being an adult.

I laughed because it poignantly cuts through the heart of our aversion to extended periods of stillness and quietude. We love it when we’re busy. Young people today can’t stand ten minutes of sitting still and doing nothing. Look at them when they get to the elevators, cafes and train stations and you won’t find a single soul who is not fidgeting and incessantly pressing the buttons of their gadgets.

Interestingly, the Bible has many exhortations for people to stop and think things over. In the book of Psalms alone, you will find the word Selah scattered all around. Some say that Selah means to “pause and think of that!” Whether it’s the musical sign for “rest” or an exhortation for the congregation to pause for a while and think things over, we can’t be certain. One thing is sure, stopping is as much of a biblical command as going on and moving forward.

When was the last time you paused and really thought things over? When was the last time your meditation was a little over five minutes? Could it be that the reason why you are hard pressed on every side with problems is because you’re not hearing God right? Are your activities necessary or are they just a coverup so you could dodge the facts that you need to face?

I will not fear the tens of thousands
drawn up against me on every side.
Arise, O LORD!
Deliver me, O my God!
Strike all my enemies on the jaw;
break the teeth of the wicked.
From the LORD comes deliverance.
Psalms 3: 6- 8

I remember this verse when I was still pastoring a church in Ormoc seven years ago. I was just a kid then, barely out of college and in many ways, clueless on how to go about the heavy responsibility that was placed on my shoulders. One of our neighbors threatened me because he didn’t like us doing praise and worship in church. I was terrified.

I turned to the men in the church to help me deal with the situation but I realized that as pastor, it was mainly my problem and I needed to deal with it myself. I remember going home that night feeling so small and powerless. I was just 22 for crying out loud!

The following day, I played Paul Wilbur’s song that exactly quoted this verse, turned up the volume of my stereo and cried my eyes out in a desperate prayer for strength. I could never forget the sense of relief and the faith of God arising in my heart that day. It gave me courage to confront the person, drag him to the barangay chairman for formal hearing and settled everything once and for all.

Over a period of less than four months, this person became my friend and good neighbor. He never attended our church but he also didn’t bother us again. Amazing.

One of the most fiery (read: harshest) sermons ever preached in the Bible came from the mouth of John the Baptist. In Luke 3, he called the crowd who followed him a “brood of vipers” without even batting an eyelash. I may not be a preacher but one thing I’m sure of is that John’s sermon style was definitely not the normal way to attract a following. Church growth gurus and Toast Masters trained speakers today would cringe at the thought of using such offensive language when speaking in front of a crowd you are trying to reach.

But John the Baptist was no speakers’ club member. He didn’t seek to build a religion either. He was simply a man who was sent to announce the coming of the Messiah and he had to do it within a limited time frame. Remember that he and Jesus were born just a few months apart? That means that his message was time sensitive. The Messiah he was to announce was just around the corner. He didn’t have the time to play religious games with the Jews.

That explains the sharp words he used in his preaching. He spoke of a gospel of repentance and forgiveness without apologies. “Produce fruit in keeping with repentance!” he barked at the Jews who came out to hear him. The power and conviction that came with his preaching were so great that people didn’t have the time to grumble about preaching ethics and political correctness. On different occasions, they asked him what they were supposed to do and for each question, he gave practical, straightforward answers: Give away clothes, share your food, stop extortion, be contented with your salary! I could almost hear the people gasp when they heard these heavy demands of the faith. John’s message was outrageous, but the results were enough to confound modern day church growth experts. Mark 1: 5 reported:

The whole Judean countryside and all the people of Jerusalem went out to him. Confessing their sins, they were baptized by him in the Jordan River.

Sadly, we no longer hear these kinds of sermons today. Instead of straightforward gospel, we now hear great tips on how to be successful, how to use faith to get what we want, and how to have a love affair with God. We ask our preachers to tone down their volume, speak slowly like they’re just having a conversation, and present a seeker-sensitive gospel. We’re not comfortable when sins are blatantly spoken in the pulpit. We’d rather be told of how good God is, how much He promised to bless us, and how He loves us no matter what.

No wonder we no longer see this kind of massive public conversions in our preachings today. How sad…