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The Scariest Thing……

The Scariest Thing……

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The scariest thing about Halloween this year, will not be the Ghost and Goblins running around town or even the Zombies for that matter. No! The scariest thing is what is in the heart of men and women everywhere. Last Saturday an armed gunman walked into the Tree of Life Synagogue in Pittsburgh PA  screamed anti-Semitic slurs and began shooting, killing 11 innocence people and wounding 6

What does it take for that kind of hate to be in someone’s heart? It has been said that the problem with our world is not the presence of darkness but the absence of light. Many respond to this and other tragedies like it, by believing we need tougher gun laws. But I don’t believe the problem is the lack of laws. I just believe we have failed to follow the most important law given to us many years ago when Jesus told us “You must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, all your strength, and all your mind.’ And, ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’”  

If we would all follow that one simple law there wouldn’t be a need for any others. What has happened to a society that will turn on it’s own kind? The problem isn’t gun laws the problem is a matter of the heart. Our hearts are broken, from a deterioration of a society that has turned its back on its creator and now believes it is it’s own God.

Like the children of Israel who cried out for a king to worship, we have become such an idolized society that we worship ourselves. We now live in a world where there is no absolutes, no right, no wrongs, if it feels good do it. Some of the newest phrases around are “You be You Boo” which is often said in innocence but at the same time is subconsciously telling us we don’t have to follow any laws, that there is no right or wrongs we can just be who we want to be and do what we want to do.

And where is the church in all this? Have we set silent so long that satan now has taken over, or is it totally the opposite that we have pushed this generation to where it is, because of the years of our own self-righteous attitudes or our own cynicism or perhaps it is even both. For so long and in some cases still today, we in the church judge people for what they wear, how they look, who they hang out with, in some places Jesus himself would not of been welcome in our churches because, he didn’t hang out with the right crowd or wear the right clothes. (after all he did walk around in a robe) all the while we sit in our self-righteous pews judging others for what they have done, and forgetting what we have been forgiven of. We are no different from the people in the bible days who stoned people to death, today we just use our words and our rejection of them and then wonder why they don’t want to serve God.  

It is this kind of attitude that I am afraid as pushed people away from the church looking for their own God which has then in turn cause them to look to themselves and thus we have become our own idols. So we don’t want any gender laws or anything that remotely states marriage is between one man and one woman, we don’t want anyone taking away our rights to choose, unless of course it is to defend ourselves then we have no right to that because defending ourselves means that we are standing up for what we believe, whether it be on social media or with a gun in our hands we have no rights to opinions only the right to follow the crowd but yet look where the crowd is taking us. We are headed to a Godless sin filled nation like in the day of Sodom and Gomorrah,  We have mayors and other government officials calling out begging for us to become a socialist nation that would take away our guns and pretty much any right to govern ourselves because we are looking for a savior. Like the children of Israel who cried out to Moses “Give us something we can worship” and while he turned his back and climbed a mountain to get the 10 commandments, they built themselves and idol of a graven image. We in America are crying out for a saviour and yet we reject the one who has already come. Why? Because we don’t want a God we serve, we want a God that serves us and if we don’t get what we want we reject Him.

No the scariest thing this Halloween is not what will be walking around in costume it will be what is walking around in the hearts of those in costume. Because we are raising a generation of children that are being trained to worship themselves, like an army of little sinners, we have defined direction, and absolutes as offenses and unlawful acts. We no longer direct our children to the Savior we allow them to roam free condoning their selfish desires to be the god in their own lives.

What will it take for all of this to change? Only one thing, that most important law that Jesus told us all those years ago to follow. “You must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, all your strength, and all your mind.’ That means that we put Him first. We put Him and His ways, above what we want, what we feel, and what we think and until we do that, I don’t care how much you say you love Him, or how many times you sit in the pew. If you haven’t done these things you can’t say you are His child and expect to get to heaven one day. It is an absolute and I don’t care how many times you say it or want to deny the fact, that absolute is for all time and will never change. Our idea may change of it, but we can never change what it means because the one true and only living God makes it a fact.

It is only when we learn the first part of that law then we can fulfill the second part which is “And, ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’”, Because we can’t love anyone else until we love God, it is in the love we find it God we realize the worth we really have and in that, we can love someone else, as we love ourselves and that is when the light will negate the darkness in this world. And there will be an absence of darkness in all the light and that is something that even the 10 commandments or any law we put into place can’t do. It is only in the Love of Jesus Christ we will change this world. So what do you plan on wearing in your heart this Halloween season?

 

 

What is yet to come, is up to us! The 10th Anniversary of the EF-5 Tornado that hit Greensburg KS.

What is yet to come, is up to us! The 10th Anniversary of the EF-5 Tornado that hit Greensburg KS.

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On May 4th 2017, The City of Greensburg KS, will celebrate it’s ability to rebuild this community and honor those who lost their lives in the EF-5 Tornado that destroyed almost the whole town in 2007.
I did not live here then, I have only had the privilege of living here for the past 4 yrs. I have to say when we first came to Greensburg and saw all that had been done to rebuild this community it excited us. The thought of being a part of this community that had a vision and wanted to do something was inspiring to my husband and I. We realize, it was no small task to do all that has been done to rebuild. Although, Jeff and I have done a lot of research to get to know what and where this community has come from. We are confident that nothing we have read or saw compares to what the people in this community has come through. There is no words for the pain and the struggles that this community has went through and overcome.

But in all our research, it actually got me to thinking, When I drive around in our community now, The empty lots I am sure, remind some of lost dreams, the un-repaired homes still yet standing, represents the hopelessness that some must have felt and possibly still feel today even 10 yrs later. Then you look down other streets and you see new buildings and up and coming progress.

Looking at the aftermath of the tornado reminds me of a life rebuilt by Christ. Often times by our choice to live for ourselves, our life can be reduced to ruins, but when we give our lives to Christ and truly choose to follow Him. We can see Him restore what satan has stolen. But then there is some so-called Christians who, have accepted Christ and believe in Him. But, they don’t want to get “too crazy” about it. To them it is just good enough, to show up for church every now and then so, they can check that off their list of things to do for the week and feel better about themselves.

The next steps for Greensburg is a lot like any follower of Christ. We all have a choice. When we choose to believe in Christ, we can choose to continue to grow in Him or we can stay right where we are. I think of staying where we are in Christ, as just buying “fire insurance”. We know God just enough to stay out of hell but we never get to know Him well enough to live an abundant life that God calls us to. (John 10:10) In my mind the next steps for the City of Greensburg is like a person who has a choice. It can choose to be like the one who has chosen to believe in Christ and be satisfied where we are, or we can do what God has called to do and continue to grow and rebuild and invite others to join us in the process. In essence we can choose to live an abundant life or buy fire insurance and be satisfied with good enough.

Are we willing to simply be content with where we are because I don’t think that is what the founding fathers who helped build this city had in mind. I don’t think the men who broke there backs, and gave their lives to have the world’s largest hand dug well here, thought, “Oh! that’s good enough, and this is all we need.” Those men who hand dug that, 109 ft deep and 32 ft wide well, went above and beyond the call of duty and why?? So people all over the area would come to Greensburg. Because they wanted to see a city built, because they knew bringing water to a city back then would bring people and fuel the railroad. They wanted to see a city built so badly, that at one point they stole a post office to assure we had a zip code. They were willing to do whatever it took to see this city built and grow.

I believe the people who have stayed behind after the tornado, to see this town re-build are no less commented to seeing this town go forward.

The bible talks about a Well, In John 4 it is the story of the Samaritan Women at Jacob’s well, when Jesus ask the woman to bring water to Him to drink. The woman was surprised because at that time, the Jews didn’t even talk to the Samaritan’s let alone ask them to bring them a drink. But Jesus did, he went out of the norm, He step out of what was acceptable to do at that time because He wasn’t concerned with what others thought, He wasn’t concerned with who she was, He was concerned with her heart and where she would spend eternity. He knew she needed more than the water from the well, that she was drawing water from, He knew she needed the living water and He was that living water. The water from which she would never thirst again.

In Mark 16 God calls us to go into ALL the world and share His love with others. And let me tell you that in this day and age all the world is at our back door, the question is will we let them in? Will we allow them to come into our Christ loving community,? Perhaps, the bigger question is, will we provide opportunities for them to come, so we can reach out to them? Or will we choose to rather “not associate ” with people that aren’t exactly like us. Some might be different from what we are use to, just like the difference between the Samaritans, and Jews back then. Our founding fathers who had hopes and dreams for this community, but there is no greater dream than the one by our Heavenly Father. But if we choose to do nothing, if we choose to be satisfied with what we have done and just maintain the status quo. Then we are no different then the follower of Christ that simply chooses to buy the fire insurance, instead of living the abundant life that God has called us to live.

We live in a great country where we are free to talk about God and even pray right in public without fear of being put in jail or killed. We now have people who live in this country who are from those countries where we send missionaries to risk their lives to tell them about God, and yet often times, we refuse to reach out to people who are not just like us. Perhaps, because of fear or what others will think, or just because they are different and we don’t really want them here anyway? But, let me pose to you a question here, ” What if God has allowed those people to come to America, so we could tell them about Him, without fear or retribution for sharing our faith? Do we care for their heart and where they might spend eternity, like Jesus did with the woman at the well? Are we willing to give them the living water, so that they will never thirst again?

And if we are going to be all that God has called us to be, we cant stop now. People from all over the world come to see this Big Well. But what if Greensburg in the next 10 years became less known for a hole of water and known more for the living water,of what God is doing in this town! More of what God wants to see. If we want to honor our Heavenly Father we can’t stop now. Yes, we have worked hard and many are tired but we cannot stop until the Lord comes back. This is bigger than our own comfort, it is about the lost souls who are in danger of living eternity in hell.

We stand at another crossroads on this anniversary like this community did 10 years ago as you met in tents, deciding who would stay and see this city rebuild,. Today we can choose to stay right where we are. just like the follower of Christ who only buys fire insurance unwilling to change their ways or we can choose, the abundant life that God has promised for us all. Will we be satisfied with what we have here in our own little world we have created or does our heart break at the thought of anyone, missing out on that abundant life and drinking from the well, that they will never thirst from again? Because, I believe, if we refuse to open more opportunities in our city for all nations and all cultures to come, then we are not only missing out on continuing what our founding fathers started, but more importantly, we are refusing to do what God has called us to do and that is to, tell the world about Him.

Over the last 10 yrs the eyes of the world, have been upon us, but I am only worried about one set of eyes and that’s the eyes of the Heavenly Father’s. My heart breaks for what His heart breaks for and that is seeing any soul lost without Him. What will we do in the next 10 yrs for Him? It only takes one person to get it started. Let’s be all we can be for Him and share this abundant life we have with others!