What Made America Great

 The America I grew up in was seen as the shining light on a hill.  We took pride in the inscription on the Statue of Liberty: "Give me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses yearning to breathe free, the wretched refuse of your teeming shore. Send these, the homeless, tempest-tossed to me, I lift my lamp beside the golden door!"

 Instead of decimating our enemies after World War II, we helped them rebuild.  Germany and Japan embraced freedom and prosperity and became two of our strongest allies.  

 We fought and died in the jungles of Vietnam, not for ourselves, but for others.  In its aftermath we welcomed Vietnamese and Hmong refugees who integrated into our cities.  Christian churches sprang up among various groups: Vietnamese, Chinese, Laotian, Thai, Korean, Liberian, Nigerian and many others.  Spanish speaking churches continued to thrive.  The Christian faith swept across South Korea until it became the second-most missionary sending nation in the world.

 When I visited Brazil I was welcomed as a celebrity because I was an American.  Children ran through the streets and people crowded in the windows to see someone from the United States. When I served briefly as pastor of an English-speaking church in Nuremburg Germany, older Germans often expressed their gratitude for GIs who helped them rebuild their nation.  We thought of ourselves as a generous and welcoming nation, blessed by God to bless the nations of the world.

 But all of that seems to be changing.  We are well down the road of putting “America first.”  The question is no longer, what is best for mankind, for the world and for posterity, but what is best for us.  We have transitioned into a “me first” mentality.

 Instead of asking, how can we help our neighbor nations fight the gang violence and corruption that causes families to flee to our borders, we ask only, “how can we keep these people out?” In our efforts to “make America great again” we seem to be losing the values that made America great in the first place.

 Our movies, our media and our politics often portray us as a covetous people.  We seem to have adopted Gordon Gekko’s maxim that “greed, for lack of a better word, is good.”  We have turned a deaf ear to the tenth commandment: “You shall not covet.” (Exodus 20:17).

 The Apostle Paul confessed that this commandment was his undoing. “I would not have known what coveting really was if the law had not said, ‘You shall not covet.’  But sin, seizing the opportunity afforded by the commandment, produced in me every kind of coveting.’” Romans 7:7-8).

 When we start down this self-centered path we sow the seeds of future calamity in our communities, our nation and the world. “What causes fights and quarrels among you? Don’t they come from your desires that battle within you? You desire but do not have, so you kill. You covet, but you cannot get what you want, so you quarrel and fight.” (James 4:1-2).

 Paul’s conclusion is applicable for all of us: “The commandments, ‘You shall not commit adultery,” “You shall not murder,” You shall not steal, “You shall not covet,” and whatever other command there may be, are summed up in this one command, ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’” (Romans 13:9).

Guadalupe River Flood - When Disaster Strikes

 There are no words to express our grief over the loss of life in the Guadalupe River disaster in Texas. More than 100 people including at least 27 girls and counselors at Camp Mystic lost their lives in the flashflood. Many have commented on the faith and courage of the young women. Our own granddaughters, ages 14 and 12, are at camp this week in Colorado.  We can only imagine the profound pain for the mothers and fathers, family and friends whose daughters were swept away in the sudden surge.  Our hearts break for them. We constantly pray for them.

We have learned that our planet is subject to natural disasters that devastate human life: earthquakes, floods, hurricanes, tsunamis, wildfires. We have witnessed the destruction that can be leveled on human civilization when such things occur.

I stood on the shore at Banda Aceh, Indonesia following the 2004 tsunami and witnessed the devastation that laid waste that capital city. It claimed the lives of a quarter million people. My daughter and son-in-law volunteered in the recovery efforts after Haiti was decimated with similar loss of life. A single year saw twenty-two quakes measuring 7 or greater on the Richter scale. In one year earthquakes struck Chile, Indonesia, the Philippines, India, Japan, Mexico, the Solomon Islands, Ecuador and New Zealand.

Natural disasters will occur.  Where and when they will strike and with what force, we never know, though meteorologists and geologists continue to search for clues.

Whenever disasters like this strike we are prone to ask questions that usually revolve around “Why?” Even though there are no answers to that question that can remove the pain or recover our loss.

 Jesus addressed this question on more than one occasion and gave us some insight into the answers. When he addressed a crowd regarding a recent building collapse he posed a rhetorical question: “Do you think that those who died when the tower at Siloam fell were more sinful than others?” And answered his own question clearly, “I tell you, no.” (Luke 13:4). 

When his disciples discovered a man blind from his birth they asked a similar question. “Why was this man born blind? Was it because of his sins or the sins of his parents that he was born blind?” Jesus answered them, “It was neither that this man sinned nor his parents. He was born blind that the works of God might be made manifest in him.” He then proceeded to heal the man so that he could see. (John 9).

Not only was Jesus clear that disasters would occur, He was also clear about how we should respond. “We must manifest the works of God.” We must pray for those who suffer loss and share their grief.  And we must give. My favorite organization for responding to disasters over the years has been Texans On Mission.  They have a long history of working effectively with local and global organizations to bring meaningful help where disasters strike. They are especially adept at providing clean water and clean up volunteers when needed. I know their leadership personally and have great confidence in them. Donations can be given for disaster relief at www.texansonmission.org.  There are many others

Dealing with Guilt

The Minnesota humorist, Garrison Keillor, once observed that people do bad, horrible, dirty, rotten and despicable things, then, instead of repenting, they just go into treatment.  “Whatever happened to guilt?” he lamented. “Guilt, is the gift that keeps on giving.”

 Keillor’s tongue in cheek appraisal of guilt belies the truth.  While there may be a few sociopaths who feel no remorse for their actions and show no capacity for guilt, most of us know the feelings of guilt only too well.

 Religious leaders sometimes revert to guilt as the trump card to keep church members and parishioners in line.  Parents use it with children.  Siblings, co-workers and even friends occasionally rely on it to get their way. When husbands and wives are unable to settle a heated argument, one or the other often reverts to guilt’s lethal weapon by recalling past offenses that were supposedly forgiven and forgotten.

 In its best moments, guilt can protect and guide us, much like the pain that teaches us to avoid a hot stove or sharp objects. When we respond to guilt with confession and repentance, we can move forward to live a better life on a higher plane.

 But guilt can be destructive and debilitating. Sometimes we feel guilt over clearly remembered wrongs we have done. At other times we may feel guilty and not know why.  We wake up with a feeling of unworthiness and shame with no specific deed to identify as the source. Our feelings of guilt are irrational, leaving us at a loss to identify the source or the solution.  Guilt can lock us in its prison and shackle us so that we feel helpless.  It robs us of energy and steals our joy.  Guilt can leave us smoldering in anger or suffocating in depression. 

 The good news is that Jesus came to set us free from guilt. When confronted with the woman caught in the act of adultery, he dismissed those who condemned her and said, “Neither do I condemn you. Go your way and sin no more.” (John 8:1-11).

 We can live our lives free of guilt and self-recrimination. Paul wrote, “Therefore there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has set you free from the law of sin and of death. (Romans 8:1-2).  John wrote,  “We will know by this that we are of the truth, and will assure our heart before Him in whatever our heart condemns us; for God is greater than our heart and knows all things.” (1 John 3:19-20).

 An interesting thing happens when God removes our guilt, and we know it. Not only can we live with greater joy and freedom, we no longer feel compelled to heap guilt upon others.

Was Jesus Right?

 Jesus is universally respected.  Even the followers of Islam claim him as a prophet.  Mahatma Ghandi was deeply impressed with Jesus and was inspired by the Sermon on the Mount. Millions who have no use for the church still like Jesus.  But the question remains, “Was Jesus right?”  “Did he know what he was talking about?”

 It is sometimes difficult to reconcile the attitude and actions of professing Christians with Jesus’ words and instructions.  When I was eighteen, I worked in a warehouse that shipped products to stores where they would be sold.  I worked with older workers who, like me, worked for minimum wage.  Some of my co-workers, who were professing Christians, heard that I planned to become a “preacher.”  They tried to be nice and encouraging. They told me it was a good thing for me to become a preacher but reminded me that those things “don’t work here.” 

 I interpreted their comments to mean that they believed in Jesus, but the teachings of Jesus were out of touch with the real world.  They were like many Christians I have encountered over the years.  Dallas Willard calls them “vampire Christians.”  They want a little of Jesus’ blood, just enough to forgive their sins and assure they are going to heaven, but they don’t think Jesus knew what he was talking about when it comes to everyday life. 

 Jesus said, “If you love me, you will keep my commandments.” Clearly, He thought he knew what he was talking about, and he expected that anyone who placed their faith in him would do everything they could to obey him.  It was apparently inconceivable to Jesus that someone could think they loved him, and, at the same time, ignore or disobey his instructions. 

 Either Jesus was the smartest person who ever lived and knew better than anyone else how life should be lived on this earth, or he was a delusional pretender who has misguided millions for more than two thousand years.  If Jesus’ instructions for living will not work in the courtroom, the schools, the factory and the family, neither will they work to get us to heaven. 

 In his final novel, Ressurection,  Leo Tolstoy examined class structures and social injustice in 19^th century Russa. He expressed his conclusion on the final page through the words of his protagonist:  “When he read the Sermon on the Mount, which had always touched him, he saw in it for the first time today, not beautiful abstract thoughts, setting forth for the most part exaggerated and impossible demands, but clear, practical, laws.”  …”He distinctly saw what life could be if men were brought up to obey these rules.”  … “if men will only fulfill these laws, the Kingdom of Heaven will be established on earth, and men will receive the greatest good that they can attain.”  

 Following Jesus’ instructions has nothing to do with earning our way to heaven.  It has everything to do with living a meaningful life. If you want to know what Jesus expects, you can find his instructions in Matthew chapters 5-7. 

Making Sense of It All

 I started writing this weekly column in 2009, reflecting on current events and life experience from a faith perspective.   During these fifteen years current event have included: the attack at Fort Hood, the AME church in Charleston where 9 members were gunned down, the bombing at the Boston Marathon, the massacre at Sutherland Springs, Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, among many others.

 I anticipated last weekend with trepidation:  a massive display of military might in DC celebrating the 250^th anniversary for the U.S. army; “No Kings” protests, the conflict between Israel and Iran that started on Friday, June 13. All of this against the backdrop of economic fears and growing tension between the judiciary and executive branches of government.

 The military parade turned out to be a history display starting with the Revolutionary soldiers in colonial uniform and progressing through the wars that have shaped our nation and the world. It included multi-ethnic, male and female GIs. The “No Kings” protests drew over 5 million peaceful participants in more than 2,000 cities.  The great tragedy of the weekend was the assassination of Minnesota state representative Melissa Hortman along with her husband by a gunman who was captured Monday.  He also attempted to kill state Senator John Hoffman and his wife.  The war between Israel and Iran continued to escalate.   

 Unfortunately, our president continues to sow words of suspicion, contempt, anger, fear, resentment and division. We need to hear the words of another President spoken 160 years ago: “With malice toward none; with charity for all; with firmness in the right as God give us to see the right, let us strive on to finish the work we are in; to bind up the nations wounds.”

 Isaiah helped us rise above current events to see the big picture.  “Do you not know? Have you not heard? Has it not been declared to you from the beginning?  Have you not understood from the foundations of the earth? It is He who sits above the vault of the earth, and its inhabitants are like grasshoppers, who stretches out the heavens like a curtain and spreads them out like a tent to dwell in.  He it is who reduces rulers to nothing, Who makes the judges of the earth meaningless.  Scarcely have then been planted, scarcely have then been sown, scarcely has their stock taken root in the earth but He merely blows on them, and they wither, and the storm carries them away like stubble, (Isaiah 40:21-24).”  God is in control of history.  Not man.

 Martin Luther King, Jr. and Mahatma Ghandi taught us the power of peaceful non-violent protests. They both were students of Jesus’ teaching in the Sermon on the Mount.  We must treat all men and women with respect, including our adversaries, immigrants and those of other faiths and languages”  Jesus said, “But I say to you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, so that you may be sons of your Father who is in heaven; for He causes His sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous. For if you love those who love you, what reward do you have? Do not even the tax collectors do the same? If you greet only your brothers, what more are you doing than others? Do not even the Gentiles do the same?” (Matthew 5:44-47). We must respect and seek the welfare of all persons of every creed and color. 

Is There Proof of Heaven?

 Eben Alexander was convinced that there is nothing beyond this life. He graduated from the University of North Carolina in 1976 and received his M.D. from Duke Medical School in 1980. After he completed a fellowship in cerebrovascular neurosurgery at Newcastle-Upon Tyne, he served for 15 years on the faculty at Harvard Medical School with specialization in neurosurgery. As a physician and a scientist, he concluded that when the brain dies all consciousness ends. The person ceases to exist.

All that changed on November 10, 2008 when he suffered a severe attack of bacterial meningitis that left him on life support and, by every measurement, brain dead. After existing in this comatose condition for a week, Eben Alexander miraculously woke up. When he did, all his preconceived scientific assumptions about life and death were changed. The dramatic Near Death Experience (NDE) left him convinced that life beyond this physical existence is not only real, it is the greater reality.

He documented his experience in his book, Proof of Heaven. He writes, “The physical side of the universe is as a speck of dust compared to the invisible and spiritual part. In my past view, spiritual wasn’t a word that I would have employed during a scientific conversation. Now I believe it is a word that we cannot afford to leave out.”

 As impressive as Dr. Alexander’s near death experience may be, it pales in comparison to the historic death and resurrection of Jesus. When Jesus died on the cross, it was not a “near death experience.” A Roman soldier thrust a spear through his side releasing a final gush of blood and water to confirm that Jesus was truly dead. His lifeless body was buried in a borrowed grave, and, on the third day, to the shock and surprise of his closest followers, God raised him from the dead.

Luke, a first century physician, after conducting exhaustive research and extensive interviews wrote, “He also presented Himself alive after His suffering, by many convincing proofs, appearing to them over a period of 40 days and speaking of the things concerning the kingdom of God.” (Acts 1:3). Paul, arguably one of the greatest minds in history, stated, “For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received, that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, and that He was buried, and that He was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures, and that He appeared to Cephas, then to the twelve. After that He appeared to more than five hundred brethren at one time, most of whom remain until now, but some have fallen asleep; then He appeared to James, then to all the apostles; and last of all, as to one untimely born, He appeared to me also.” (1 Cor. 15:3-8). Every other event in history is dated by that singular life that gave the world its greatest “proof of heaven.”

 Life after death becomes personal when those we love die. My wife and I have witnessed the death of our parents, her brothers and sister and my older brother, who died in March.  Confidence in eternal life makes all the difference.  Peter wrote, “Blessed by the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who according to His great mercy has caused us to be born again to a living hope by the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, to obtain an inheritance that is imperishable and undefiled and will not fade away reserved in heaven for you,” (1 Peter 1:3-4).  

How To Remain Positive In A Negative World

 Since this column reflects on current events and life experience, I am constantly searching the news for information.  It is a daunting task.  The headlines alone are depressing, let alone the blow-by-blow accounts of murder, theft, graft, rape, sexual abuse, prejudice, hatred, scams, suicide, mass shootings, political corruption and a looming recession.  Sometimes the news seems like a black hole that drags every ray of light into its dark abyss.  I spent some time this morning reading about the terrorist who set 12 peaceful protestors on fire with a flame thrower in Boulder, Colorado.

 It is difficult not to become a pessimist from this constant onslaught. But we must not give in.  We must resist the darkness and cling to the light.  We must not surrender to the pessimism that surrounds us.  But how do we remain optimistic in a world filled with pessimism? 

 It seems to me that we do so by looking for the moments that renew our faith in each other.  Like Carlos Alcaraz refusing to take credit for an incredible backhand against his good friend Ben Shelton at the French Open.  Instead, he confessed to the umpire he had thrown his racket at the ball, thereby surrendering the point.  Or Justin Thomas who called a one stroke penalty on himself in the RBC Heritage tournament at Hilton Head.  While removing a loose impediment he thought he saw his ball move. No one else had noticed. The former number 1 hadn’t won in over 3 years.  The penalty could have cost him the tournament. He went on to win in a playoff.

 We can remain optimistic by focusing on obscure moments like the first day of second grade reported by WIVB News in Wichita, Kansas. Eight-year-old Christian, who is African American, saw eight-year-old Conner, who is white, standing alone crying while they waited for school to open.  Quietly, Christian reached out and took Conner’s hand. Conner stopped crying and the two of them walked into their classroom together, hand-in-hand.  Conner is autistic.  

 We are surrounded by little acts of honesty and kindness; some demonstrated on the grand stage like Alcaraz and Thomas.  Others in obscure corners like Christian and Conner.   And we are sustained by a faith that overcomes darkness and despair.  Love overcomes hate. Forgiveness wipes away resentment and guilt. Resurrection conquers death.  Our God who is the Father of Lights is the source of all good things.

 The Bible is the most realistic and most optimistic book ever written. It clearly exposes man’s sin and consistently demonstrates God’s righteous redemption. It embraces the Cross with all of its pain and despair and proclaims the resurrection in all of its glory.

 The Bible always offsets our struggle with discouragement and despair with the hope of faith and the unchangeable goodness of God.  Three times the Scripture asks, “Why are you in despair O my soul? And why have you become disturbed in me? Hope in God, for I shall again praise Him for the help of His presence” (Psalm 42:5, 11; 43:5).

 Jesus said, “I have told you these things so that in me you may have peace. In the world you will have trouble.  But take heart!  I have overcome the world” (John 16:33).

Download William Tinsley's book of poems, Sunrise Sunset, free eBook on Amazon June 3-6)