The enemy of faith is fear.

Zac HarrelAt the end of Mark 4, when the disciples wake Jesus from one of those long, deep naps we wish our toddlers would take because of a storm they are convinced is going to kill them, he exclaims: “Why are you so afraid? Have you still no faith?” In Mark 5, as Jesus is on his way to heal Jairus’ daughter and Jairus gets word his daughter already is dead, Jesus proclaims to him and his wife, “Do not fear; only believe.”

Reading these two chapters together, I was convicted about the place I allow for fear in my own heart. These stories are examples of situations in which any one of us naturally would be filled with fear. The storm is closing in around us, and we fear for our lives. We lose a loved one, and we fear the future, fear losing them, fear this massive enemy called death. But Jesus looks to our natural response and calls us to faith, not fear.

He calls us to believe.

Natural response

Fear is natural, because we are finite, limited creations who cannot see the future and so much of our lives is outside of our control. The command to fear not is a lot harder to live out than it seems at first. Life is hard and filled with mystery, suffering and the unknown. We are weak and limited, and therefore, fear is natural.

Faith is supernatural. Looking to Jesus and trusting his power and presence in the midst of storms and loss is not natural. Faith is a gift we can cultivate, and life will give us many opportunities to choose faith over fear.

Today, one of the main places we see fear cripple the church and its witness is in the realm of partisan politics. Partisan politics necessarily plays on our fears. “The Republicans want to take away everyone’s healthcare and give your money to the rich.” “The Democrats want to persecute your Christian beliefs and change your whole way of life.” A browse through the newsfeed of social media shows how each side plays on the fears of their constituents, and we should not stand for it.

Fight fear

We cannot let fear dictate our lives, and we should not let fear dominate our politics. Our natural response is to fear the other and let our hearts be led to fear by those we read or listen to for our news.

As Christians in the political sphere, we can fight against fear at least two ways.

First, seek the truth. Don’t believe everything you see on Facebook—you would think we would know this by now. Listen to the other side, read widely, watch different news channels and find the balance between the two sides. There, most of the time, is where you will find the truth. Seek the truth for yourself, listen to your conscience and ask the Holy Spirit for discernment. It is foolish to hear only one perspective. We need to seek the truth and not let one side or the other lead us to fear by exaggerating or distorting the facts.

Second, remember those who disagree with us and even those who oppose us are made in the image of God and loved by him. It is hard to fear and hate others when we remember this truth. God loves them, and we are called to love them as well. Perfect love casts out fear (1 John 4:18).

Our choice

Each and every day as we pick up the paper, turn on the television or log on to social media, we have a choice. Will we let fear of the future, fear of the other dictate our thoughts and actions today, or will we choose faith?

Christians know God’s love, and we know God’s faithful promises. We don’t have to give in to fear. We don’t have to let one side tell us what to think. We can seek and know the truth. We don’t have to give in to fear of the other. We can love those who think, believe and vote differently than we do, because God loves them and they are created in his image.

Choose faith. Seek the truth. Choose to see others for who they really are as creations of God.

Let go of fear.

Zac Harrel is pastor of First Baptist Church in Gustine, Texas.

I became acquainted with my new foster son’s mother through a box handed to me by a caseworker not long after he was placed in our home. I’d learned her name and a few other details from court documents. And we met at the first parent visit—an uncomfortable moment on the curb outside the Texas Department of Family and Protective Services’ office—ending with the visit supervisor pulling the sobbing child away from his mom and carrying him to my car.

While unpacking this box, though, I learned much more about my foster son’s mom.

Inside were shoes, clean and neatly folded clothing, toiletries, medications, gummy vitamins and a few toys.

“This is the work of a parent who’s going to try as hard as she can to get her child back,” I thought. I sorted the things she’d sent into drawers alongside the new things I’d purchased, contemplating our shared role as parents of this fragile, hurting, hyperactive little boy.

Pathway through infertility

Like many couples, my husband and I originally came to foster care through infertility. We wanted to use our childlessness to serve children in need, but we also hoped to bring children to our family through adoption. 

Our situation soon changed. (We are “that couple” you always hear about who learn they’re pregnant while in foster care training.) Meanwhile, our motivations changed also. Through training classes with Buckner International, our vision for foster care was refined and expanded to include birth families—a calling to support and serve them as well as the children placed in our care.

We soon learned our foster son’s mother would be a constant presence in his mind and in our family life.

“You need to meet my mom; she’s a really nice lady,” he told me on his second day in our home. A few days later, I pointed out a butterfly in our backyard. “That butterfly got lost from his mom, and now he’s looking for her everywhere,” he said.

His mom was the center of his world, and although he lived with us more than a year, the pain of his separation from her endured, influencing our conversations, bedtime routines, picture book selections, art projects and parenting choices. To parent him well and help him heal from his trauma meant including her in his life any way we could.

A new relationship

So, although it was sometimes uncomfortable and we seldom felt like we were doing it well, we slowly cultivated our relationship with his mom. At each visit, we sent her artwork, a few photographs or a short letter.

We followed a caseworker’s suggestion to share my phone number, so she and her son could talk. We began texting—I’d send her pictures, or she’d ask for updates about school or therapy. I tried to arrive early for parent visits so we all could spend time together while waiting for the visit supervisor.

For her birthday, he and I made her a present together. For his birthday, we hosted a party in a public space and invited his mom and her friends. That evening was filled with the special mixture of awkwardness and blessedness experienced when we choose to welcome rather than shelter ourselves from people we’re called to serve.

As the case progressed toward reunification, our caseworkers encouraged us to share with her our routines and parenting methods, things we’d learned about her son’s nutritional needs and behavioral triggers and ways to help him cope with his trauma. Through the rocky transition into overnight visits, we talked on the phone about discipline issues and therapy homework, and she even allowed me to put him down for a nap at her house so she could observe our routine.

Stretching & challenging

Our efforts to support reunification weren’t exceptional. I’ve heard of foster parents doing far more. And we were more than willing to make them, yet it stretched and challenged us to keep opening our hearts, even when things were complicated or uncomfortable.

In retrospect, I only wish I’d been more of a friend to my foster son’s mom. I was humbled by her graciousness toward us and acceptance of our role in her son’s life, despite the pain of her situation.

Our little boy is home with his mom now. My first impression proved correct: She did try her best, despite struggles and setbacks. After many long, difficult months, the judge ordered reunification.

I don’t want to sugarcoat things. Foster care is complicated, and even the “happy endings” often are clouded by unresolved concerns and less-than-ideal circumstances. But we’re thankful our foster son got to go home, and we got to be part of his family’s story.

We still hope to adopt, yet we’re increasingly convicted our first calling in foster care is to love our neighbors as ourselves. We feel our responsibility as foster parents was every bit as much to our foster son’s mother as it was to him—our mission to serve and bless her by serving and blessing her child.

We can’t know if our efforts made a difference for their family. I hope so. But I do know through that experience we are forever changed, drawn nearer to the heart of Christ, strengthened in faith and challenged to grow in generosity and compassion.

May is National Foster Care Month. To learn more about how you can become a foster parent or support foster families in your community, click here. This article originally appeared on the Buckner International blog.

Caitlin Beauchamp and her husband, Dan, are foster parents through Buckner International in Dallas.

Golden Rule & unintended consequences

I certainly support the Golden Rule, but if we open our doors to unlimited immigration, which would do the most good for the most people, how would we care for the millions who would want to come, including criminals and extremists?

In an ideal, sinless world, we could do that, but I think not in today’s sinful, selfish, greedy, grasping, mostly evil “get all you can for yourself” world.

Our immigration system is a mess. Surely, we ought to spend more effort on making legal immigration possible.

David King

Marshall

Leaving church

It is understandable that a few people, though not abandoning their faith, will leave the church in their declining years. Old age induces many structural changes. Better to lament that others do not evaluate and vacate. Their failure to do so means that churches are enclaves of those who:

• Are content with easy ignorance—to be taught the Bible, but never taught about the Bible. Undernourished on a preacher pabulum of doctrinal repetition, denominational dogma, retold tales and speculation. But no scholarship—sources, dates, exaggerations, myths, symbolism, the lack of archaeological evidence. Critical analysis is hard.

• Tolerate unsophisticated pastors who disdain science and demand literal belief. Lexus lives entrusted to the tinkerings of spiritual shade-tree mechanics.

• Prefer circuses to services; do not expect spirituality to be a church distinctive. Require inside church to be the same as outside church.

• Overlook contradictions: Be the light of the world, but stay out of the world; give generously, but do not chase the almighty dollar; wait for Jesus to direct your life, but accept your responsibilities as an intelligent being.

• Submit to the pastor’s ploys—promises of blessings, and threats of wrath to consummate whatever “God has laid on his heart” for a given Sunday. It is more about money and his resumé; less about pleasing God with practical religion.

Baptist churches have become mere social clubs for insiders; affiliations unattractive to outsiders. Those who stay are more to be condemned than those who leave.

John V. Rutledge

Colorado Springs, Colo.

Recently, I was asked if I would fill in for the teacher of my church’s college Sunday school class. I gratefully accepted the opportunity; they’re a great group of thoughtful students. Because my church uses the lectionary, the teacher typically chooses one of the passages from the church calendar for that day as the topic of discussion.

On Thursday, I pulled up the list of texts for the following Sunday. The Gospel reading was from John 10, which I already covered with that class before. The second reading was from Acts 2, but the same group already discussed it during Wednesday night Bible study. That left me only with 1 Peter 2:18-25, a passage that begins, “Slaves, in reverent fear of God submit yourselves to your masters. …” Oh boy, I thought. No wonder the regular teacher was “out of town.”
                  I considered choosing a different passage. Our church uses the lectionary but isn’t bound to it. While I was thinking about other passages to go over, I realized this represented the purpose of using the lectionary. No matter how uncomfortable it makes me, 1 Peter 2:18 is in the Bible. The lectionary is supposed to keep churches and individuals from creating a canon-within-the-canon, in which we focus on the parts we like while ignoring the parts that are uncomfortable.

Stuck with the tough one

So, I stuck with “Slaves, in reverent fear of God submit yourselves to your masters …” as the text for that Sunday morning.

We had a good discussion. We talked about slavery in Ancient Greece. We talked about other passages in the New Testament that challenge the slavery system, like Galatians 3 and Philemon. We talked about unearned suffering and redemption in biblical theology. We didn’t “solve” the passage, and I think we all remained somewhat uncomfortable with the passage. It was a good conversation over a difficult topic.

I was glad we didn’t switch to an “easier” topic for the day. The Bible says lots of difficult things. Some things are difficult because they are challenging personally—sell what you have and give it to the poor; love your enemies; cut off the hand that causes you to sin. Some things are difficult because they seem difficult to reconcile with the message of the gospel—slaves, obey your masters; women, keep silent in the church; and so on.

Granted, I think difficulty with a number of passages from the second category are eased when we study the text more closely. But this doesn’t mean we don’t come across things in Scripture that are genuinely uncomfortable and difficult to deal with.

How to respond …

How should we respond to these? Like I said at the beginning of this article, I don’t think the answer is pulling them out of the Bible or ignoring them altogether. The Bible is the church’s book, and these passages are in the Bible. I ultimately didn’t want to choose to ignore the passage, because to do so would be to make me an arbiter of divine truth in a way that makes me uncomfortable

The Christian church historically has claimed God, in some form or fashion, has spoken through this collection of writings we now know as the Bible. If I reject certain parts of it, I claim that the church has been incorrect in where it as heard God. I stand against the church, claiming to know the voice of God better than two millennia of believers. That just isn’t a position that leaves me comfortable.

When we come to the Bible, we certainly need to understand its writings have a definite human component, in that they are products of specific people writing in their particular context to an audience that existed in that place and time—far removed from us.

Joining the Christian community

But at the same time, we must understand joining the Christian community means submission to the founding principles of the church—God’s self-revelation in Jesus Christ, as attested to by the witness of Scripture.

You don’t have to like passages such as 1 Peter 2:18, but church unity means we have to avoid building personal canons. Amidst all of our diversity, the Christian church can stand as one because we agree on this core of authoritative teachings. We may disagree on what they mean and what we should do with them, but we foster unity when we try to live faithfully according to the same set of teachings.

When you come to a difficult passage of Scripture, don’t tear it out of your Bible. The only page of Scripture God can’t speak through is the one we’ve removed.

Jake Raabe is a student at Baylor University’s Truett Theological Seminary.

Ward Hayes has been senior pastor of Valley Grove Baptist Church in Stephenville four years. From deep in the heart of one Texan, he shares his background and thoughts on church and ministry. To suggest a Baptist General Convention of Texas-affiliated minister to be featured in this column, or to apply to be featured yourself, click here.

Background

• Where else have you served in ministry, and what were your positions there?

Trinity Baptist Church in Sweetwater, 2003-13, senior pastor

Caps United Methodist Church, Caps, 2001-02, pastor

• Where did you grow up?

I was raised on a cotton farm and ranch in Rotan—home of the Yellowhammers!

• How did you come to faith in Christ?

Under the faithful teaching of my mother and the good members of First Baptist Church in Rotan, I came to Christ as a boy of 8. Through God’s tool of grace called Walk to Emmaus, my fellowship with him was renewed and energized at age 25.

• Where were you educated, and what degrees did you receive?

West Texas State University, now West Texas A&M in Canyon—bachelor of business administration in accounting, 1990

Hardin-Simmons University, Logsdon Seminary in Abilene, master of divinity, 2006

Hardin-Simmons University, Logsdon Seminary, doctor of ministry, 2016

Ministry/church

• Why do you feel called into ministry?

I am a second-career pastor. God’s call on my life into the pastoral ministry came in my early 30s. We were a family of five living in the home-community of both my wife and me. We had a great job, great family, great church—and a great calling.

God’s call was clear, distinct and unmistakable; He was calling me to the pastorate. The call was to “a land he was yet to show me,” but the call to begin the journey was without question. Because of that certainty, the hardest decision of my life was also the easiest.

• What is your favorite aspect of ministry? Why?

Seeing a spark turn into a blaze! Whether it is in the life of a brand-new believer or a long-time follower whose passion has been reignited, seeing the fire of faithful obedience burn brightly in the life of another is powerful and contagious.

Their enthusiasm for edification, study, worship, service and outreach all increase in ways that ripple out and impact others in their midst, creating a testimony that is undeniable. Their desire to mature and develop in their discipleship both encourages me and challenges my ministerial efforts and effectiveness to grow as well.

• What one aspect of congregational life gives you the greatest joy?

Accomplishing together through joyful cooperation that which we cannot achieve on our own. Our society today tempts us to be so splintered at every turn. Working together through community is a beautiful testimony to the fractured world.

• What one aspect of congregational life would you like to change?

The competitive mentality of us vs. them hurts us in many ways. Our human nature leads us down this path. Our competitive society applauds the idea. Whether it is ministry vs. ministry, church vs. church or person vs. person, the mentality that pits one against another can be damaging, distracting us from kingdom purpose and plans.

• How has your ministry or your perspective on ministry changed?

Baptist ethicist T.B. Maston initiated the discussion and promoted the idea of “both-and.” The concept holds great wisdom and perspective, and I utilize it often. In that regard, my perspective on ministry and my approach to it have required an increased understanding and use of “both-and.”

Successful ministry moves both quickly and slowly; we should waste not time nor opportunity, but it takes time to build trust, relationship, healing and momentum. Successful ministry is about both people and the word; spiritual nurturing must be paired with spiritual nutrition if we are to grow in our spiritual maturity. People only care what we know when they know that we care. The “both-and” approach teaches me both humility and patience.

• How do you expect congregational life to change in the next 10 to 20 years?

I don’t foresee huge changes in the next 10 years, but I believe the momentum of today will continue to build, and the decades beyond will look significantly different. As the generations that have valued the social climate of the Christian faith mature and pass, the pressure to live distinguished lives will increase. This pressure will impact our congregations. I pray we will not lag beyond in equipping the church for the tasks ahead.

• What qualities do you look for in a congregation?

My observations of congregations experiencing seasons of growth have noted several similarities.

First is a strong affinity between pastor and church. This love for one another and for the Lord is both growing and desired. Without it, the likely result is the two parties pulling in different directions.

Second is the presence of servants and servant leaders. The humility and conviction to do what needs to be done and to lead by example is critical.

Third is humility and trust, with God and with each other. We always must follow God’s lead, trusting him always. We also must exhibit a humility and trust with one another that treasures relationship and conversation in the living out of our faith and roles.

• Name the three most significant challenges and/or influences facing your congregation.

Perseverance through adversity in all its forms, the battle against human complacency and discerning the Lord’s vision for our congregation.

• What do you wish more laypeople knew about ministry or, specifically, your ministry?

The churches I have served have been extremely loving and supportive. Most of their members have held an informed, mature understanding of the challenges of ministry and the strain this calling can exert on minister and family.

That said, one reminder I would share is to understand the consistency of ministry. The ministry is almost always on our minds. Whether it is sermon/Bible study preparation, the hurting and sick among the hundreds of people we know, visit and for whom we pray, God’s vision for the future of the flock, the tasks ahead, the unexpected emergencies/funerals, those struggling in spiritual battles, relationships in strife, celebrations of births and accomplishments, the cheering on of families and students, etc.,

In the midst of these wonderful opportunities to glorify God and bless others, we desperately try to love and serve our own family well.

The calling from God is beautiful, but it is not without its challenges. Having an understanding and encouraging congregation is blessing beyond measure.

About Baptists

• What are the key issues facing Baptists—denominationally and/or congregationally?

God’s promised blessing to Abraham utilizes the vessel of family (Genesis 18:18-19). I believe the family of faith continues to be that vessel of blessing to the world. The breakdown of the family in our society and world also damages and squelches the vessel of blessing. Ministering to families—repairing the damaged vessel of blessing—is one of the greatest challenges of the church in the years ahead.

About Ward

• Who were/are your mentors, and how did/do they influence you?

My early mentors include Tom Garland and William Duke, two laymen and brothers in the faith who pushed me to grow. Werth Mayes is a dear friend and brother who influenced me in the pastorate and toward seminary. I was exceedingly blessed by the professors at Logsdon Seminary and thank the Lord for them. Jack Ridlehoover has been a treasure from God as a seasoned pastoral mentor to call on. And Dr. David Miller, who supervised my doctoral studies and project, has been a valued mentor of wisdom and encouragement.

• What did you learn on the job you wish you learned in seminary?

Vision casting and leadership. I am not fully convinced it is possible to teach these areas successfully in seminary, but they are two things that are vital in every pastorate.

• What is the impact of ministry on your wife and family?

The churches I have served always have been gracious toward our family, but I did have a conversation with all of our adult children about this. Their response surprised me. While I always promised our kids I would never ask them to do something because they were “pastor-kids,” they said they grew up with an internal pressure to not disappoint/embarrass me. This was a revelation to me, but I can certainly understand it. I can see this pressure on all my family.

One of the difficulties with calling is that while the pastor feels the call, all the family feels the impact of answering that call.

• Name some of your favorite books (other than the Bible) or authors, and explain why.

In His Steps by Charles Sheldon was a very powerful influence in my early walk. Chuck Colson’s books always educate and challenge me. C.S. Lewis was given a brilliantly creative mind to explore and explain doctrine. David Platt and Francis Chan always sound a call to action. There are many others certainly worth mentioning, but I will cease with these.

• What is your favorite Bible verse or passage? Why?

I will share two that hold great meaning to me. The first is Matthew 16:16, when Peter replies to Jesus’ question, “Who do you say that I am?” with these words: “You are the Christ, the Son of the Living God!” Jesus’ question is one we all must answer. Peter’s answer is both inspired and inspiring.

The second passage is similar. In John 6:68, Jesus’ asks the disciples if they want to leave with the crowd because his teachings are hard, and Peter responds: “Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life.”

These passages remind me Jesus alone is the Christ, the only one worth following.

• Who is your favorite Bible character (other than Jesus)? Why?

I love seeing the refining of Peter’s raw faith. I relate more to Barnabas’ ministry of encouragement. But my favorite inspiration is Paul. His perseverance, discipline and spiritual leadership are valued traits worthy of respect.

• Name something about you that would surprise your church.

While I haven’t owned any in over three decades, I love cattle. I dream of having a place with a few head and a horse or two. Perhaps one day the Lord will allow it to happen; until then, I battle back any envy of those who do!

• If you could get one “do over” in ministry, what would it be, and why?

There is no way to pick just one, so I will pick none. I hope I have learned from my mistakes. I pray the forgiveness and love of others cover my errors. Finally, I will trust that grace will allow those who know me to remember the blessings more than the misses.

We live in a culture that thinks boldness is emphasis. We wear bold clothing or a bold hairstyle. We make a bold move or say something bold. We do this to emphasize our individuality or our rights. We do this to stick out from the crowd. We do this to keep from being taken advantage of. We do this for ourselves.

In fact, we are so good at emphasizing ourselves that when the Bible tells us to be bold, we think the Bible is blessing our self-promotion. We think the Bible protects our right to boldly get up in someone’s face to defend our convictions, opinions, rights and individuality.

Somebody tells us to do something we don’t like, so we boldly present our middle finger for inspection. Somebody does something that offends us, we boldly put our boot—somewhere.

We don’t read the Bible right.

When the Christians ask God to make Peter bold, it’s because he wasn’t. Peter was a turncoat. Peter was scared of the guys with spears and swords who arrested Jesus. Peter denied he ever knew Jesus. Peter, despite all his bravado and tough talk, didn’t even show up to Jesus’ crucifixion.

You may object: What about when Jesus was arrested? Well, yes, Peter did cut off the ear of one of the guards who came to arrest Jesus, but what is bold about wielding a dangerous weapon? Swinging a sword or pointing a gun is no bolder than flipping the bird or spiking your hair.

No, Peter wasn’t bold when he preached in Jerusalem. Peter was filled with the Holy Spirit.

Boldness is the mouse standing on the lion’s bottom lip to count the lion’s teeth.

Boldness is when a single unarmed man dares to stop a column of tanks. The event is described on the PBS Frontline webpage.

By the morning of June 5, 1989, the army is in complete control of Beijing. But when all protest in the city seems silenced, the world witnesses one final act of defiance.

About midday, as a column of tanks slowly moves along Chang’an Boulevard toward Tiananmen Square, an unarmed young man carrying shopping bags suddenly steps out in front of the tanks. Instead of running over him, the first tank tries to go around, but the young man steps in front of it again. They repeat this maneuver several more times before the tank stops and turns off its motor. The young man climbs on top of the tank and speaks to the driver before jumping back down again. Soon, the young man is whisked to the side of the road by an unidentified group of people and disappears into the crowd.

To this day, who he was and what became of him remain a mystery.

1989 was a momentous year.

In October 1989, my family traveled to West Germany. We drove through East Germany to West Berlin, saw the Berlin Wall, went under the wall and through the checkpoint into East Berlin for the day and returned to West Berlin that evening. We spent the rest of October 1989 in West Germany, watching and listening to constant discussion of the mounting protests in East Germany. On Nov. 9, 1989, just a few days after we returned to the States, the wall was opened and ultimately demolished.

Months before our trip, tens of thousands of Chinese university students marched on Tiananmen Square demanding democracy. Eventually, the square was cleared by a huge military response that left hundreds of people dead.

As infamous as Tiananmen Square and the events of the spring of 1989 are, nothing is as memorable as the image of that lone man standing down a line of tanks with nothing in his hands but shopping bags. That’s boldness!

People of God, we need that kind of boldness today!

We don’t need the American brand of boldness. We don’t need any more self-serving self-promotion. We don’t need to assert our rights and our individuality.

We need people who have nothing but the Holy Spirit in them to stand before the deadly force of evil running rampant in our world, in our country, in our community, in our homes.

We need people who have nothing more than the universe-creating power of the Holy Spirit filling them to speak God’s life-giving word with boldness.

We need people who have nothing more than the gift of heaven, the Holy Spirit, empowering them to point people to Jesus Christ, for …

“Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to mankind by which we must be saved” (Acts 4:12).

Had the tank man waved a gun in front of that line of tanks, there’d be no story to tell. Likewise, if we use the toys of death to stave off dying, we are beaten before we start. Instead, we must be filled with life through the Holy Spirit.

How else will we stand against the deadly power of drugs and violence, pornography and human trafficking, racism and rage, terrorism and false gods, money and greed, poverty and want, injustice and disease?

How else will we offer life in a world infatuated with death?

I tell you, it won’t be by swinging swords and pointing guns.

It will only be through the power of the Holy Spirit.

Eric Black is pastor of First Baptist Church in Covington, Texas, and a member of the Baptist Standard Publishing board of directors.

Where do we find protection?

In reference to “Laity, clergy urged to protect churches from partisan politics”:

Concerning the Johnson Amendment, the primary concern expressed by pastors and religious leaders for the past several decades has been the fear of government censure of churches whose preaching or beliefs stand in opposition to the ever shifting sands upon which culture stands (abortion, marriage, homosexuality and gender to name a few). Are we now to understand that the church needs the government to protect the church of God from politics and dissent? How did the gospel ever advance before the Johnson Amendment made us come together and ignore politics?

The original intent of the tax-exempt status of the church is that what a government taxes it necessarily controls, and the state was to have no influence over the church. Now it appears the government can also control with the threat of revoking tax-exempt status. 

The fear of congregations becoming politicized is a true fear, but where shall we turn for consolation and discernment in such divisive times? Do we hide behind the shelter of the Johnson Amendment? One would think that the Baptist cry of “priesthood of the believer” would rejoice in knowing that the government will allow pastors to speak on any topic thus prompted by the Holy Spirit. 

I believe the best thing a church can do to protect from divisiveness is to gather regularly to pray. This might even prove more effective than legislative oversight. 

Mathew St. John

Anson

The other day, our kids wanted to take their mother and me out for dinner to celebrate our birthdays. They are two days apart, and we always celebrate them together. So, they took us to a big outdoor mall. We rode with sons Ben and Michael. Our daughter, Emily, and her husband, Ryan, were meeting us there.

An art fair was under way, so the parking lots were jam-packed. Ben found a place behind the bookstore and parked. As we made our way to the restaurant, my wife hesitated. She’d noticed an older gentleman, perhaps 75 or 80 years old, looking rather frustrated. She told me, “I think he’s confused, Rich.” So, I stood on the corner and watched him a moment. He was wandering between parked cars, scratching his head.

I sent Ingrid and the boys on to reserve a table. I approached the older man and asked, “Can I help you?”

Lost car

He was rather embarrassed. He said, “I lost my car.”

He described it, an older Cadillac, bronze colored. Together, we walked the lot. Every row. Twice. No bronze-colored Cadillacs.

Just then, luckily, my daughter and her husband arrived, and I saw them parking. “Lend me your keys, Emily,” I said. “This gentleman has lost his car, and I think it must be in a different lot.”

The man only reluctantly got into the car with me. “I don’t want to put you out,” he said.

We drove across the mall to another parking lot. We couldn’t find his car there, either.

“What was the first thing you remember seeing?” I asked.

“The sidewalk,” he replied.

Not much help.

We drove to the opposite side of the mall to another lot with a parking structure. We found no older Cadillacs anywhere. I was beginning to wonder if his car hadn’t been stolen.

Oh, there it is

After 45 minutes, I was ready to give up. Then I had an inspiration. This particular mall is crisscrossed with streets along the storefronts. I drove each one, slowly. After only a few minutes, I stopped and pointed: “Is that your car?”

Sure enough, it was. He hadn’t parked in a lot at all!

I pulled my car alongside his, and he withdrew his wallet. “I want to pay you for your time,” he said.

I smiled and shook my head. “I won’t take you money.”

Only then, after all of that, did we finally introduce ourselves. His name was Gilford. He was from Mississippi, and he and his wife were visiting Texas to see his daughter and grandchildren. They had decided to do a little shopping.

Now, that’s a God thing

He was very appreciative. “You know,” he said, “my wife and I have a saying when something like this happens, when someone shows up out of the blue to help us, or unexpectedly does something kind.”

“What’s that?”

“We say, ‘It’s a God thing.’”

I laughed. I said, “Tell you what, Gilford, if you will pray for me, I promise to pray for you.’” He agreed. We shook hands and parted.

Later, I got to thinking. I’ve often taken notice of “God things” when I see them happening. They are unexpected blessings that others often call “coincidences.” Seemingly unplanned, they always serve a specific purpose in my life. I see the hand of God in them and recognize I have been the blessed recipient of a “God thing.”

But this time Gilford helped me see God had used me to be someone else’s “God thing.” I was his unexpected blessing! Boy, that felt good.

Our God works in mysterious ways, they tell us. Every event in the life of a believer serves God’s ultimate plan. (See Isaiah 14:24 and Romans 8:28.) To our minds, the way God weaves remarkable events in and through our lives may seem illogical and beyond understanding. But since God is love, it makes perfect sense that the tapestry he weaves results in loving interactions with others.

It’s a God thing.

Rich Mussler is a writer living in Flower Mound, Texas, who attends First Baptist Church in Lewisville, Texas.

In After You Believe, N.T. Wright shares a story that may seem quite familiar to some of us. Note that I have embellished bits of Wright’s story for the context of this article.

The story involves Jenny and Philip, leaders and active members of a Baptist church in Texas. Their church had been without a pastor for some time, but the pastor-search committee called the church to a special town hall meeting. The committee would share a report about bringing a candidate in view of a call. A problem, however, soon developed at the meeting. The congregation learned that night this pastor candidate had been divorced. Jenny and Philip’s church never had worked through such a complex issue in a theologically reflective way, and a heated discussion ensued in the church meeting.

Jenny and Philip came at this issue from vastly different perspectives.

For instance, Jenny adamantly quoted Scripture and interpreted Jesus’ teachings on divorce quite literally. She made a rational, biblically based argument for her viewpoint.

Yet Philip challenged Jenny because it seemed to him she was forgetting about grace. He talked about forgiveness and Jesus’ famous parable of the Prodigal Son. Philip also presented a timely and biblically convicting argument.

Conversation degraded

However, the conversation soon degraded. Jenny called Philip a “dangerous liberal relativist who doesn’t agree with the Bible,” and Philip called Jenny a “fundamentalist Pharisee.” Soon, the congregation found themselves in a tremendous uproar.

Philip, Jenny and their church seem to have lost their focus on relationally responsible character formation that must occur in a maturing Christian’s congregational life. When we neglect our Christian growth, we often find ourselves devolving either into Jenny’s cold legalism or Philip’s ungracious defense of grace.

Could it be that people like Jenny and Philip could disagree amicably while being focused both on biblical reflection and graceful living? Could their disagreement possibly serve as a catalyst to growth in their church and to improvement in their leadership ability?

Perhaps we can avoid the unnecessarily bitter conflict Jenny and Philip’s church experience by recognizing three ways in which congregational disagreements may become unamicable.

First, disagreements become enflamed when church members talk “past one another.” Talking past one another means disagreeable parties engage one another in a passive-aggressive way.

For example, notice the hot disagreement in our country regarding health care coverage. Former President Obama and President Trump have made recent speeches on the issue in which they never call each other by name but seem to have implied the other has major character flaws. (See CBS This Morning “Report on Health Care” by Major Garrett, May 8.)

Notice also that talking past one another usually includes a method of communicating to a wide audience. Whether through a church town hall or social media, unskilled partisans have a penchant for building fierce collations against the other rather than speaking directly and personally.

Second, unamicable disagreements often include labeling. Jesus, for instance, was labeled as a “drunkard and glutton” because he ministered to the undesirables of his day. T.B. Maston, a formative Christian ethicist for Baptists, would warn us to be careful of committing “libel by label.”

Once we attach names to a certain brood of people, we consequently set up an “us versus them” mentality that severely hampers communication. Tensions rise greatly once labeling is brought into the picture. We may do well at this point to examine the labels we use for those people with whom we disagree.

Third, reactions to misinformation can escalate tensions in an unamicable disagreement.

Jenny and Philip may have done well to listen completely to the other before their heated exchange in front of the church. Perhaps they could have examined the entire body of facts from the pastor-search committee together before launching into tirades. Also, how informative would it have been for Jenny and Philip to meet in person with the pastoral candidate, reserving any judgment on the candidate or the other until such a time as accurate and healthy theological reflection could take place?

Let us therefore further our witness in these times of unamicable disagreements among us. Our churches will grow when the world sees maturing Christians disagreeing but remaining fast and loving friends.

James Hassell is senior pastor of First Baptist Church in San Angelo, Texas.

Teen suicide has become an epidemic in Texas. It is now the second-most-prevalent cause of death for Texas adolescents, passing homicide for the first time.

While most teen suicides involve depression, anxiety, drug or alcohol abuse, relationship struggles, or sexual or physical abuse, Texas communities are experiencing a recent rash of suicides caused by bullying and cyberbullying. Bullies are using online forums to terrorize their classmates without fear of punishment. Across the United States today, more than one-third of teens admit they have been cyber bullied or know someone who has, the Dallas Morning News reports.

Stories of bully-induced teen suicides in Texas are becoming commonplace.

In February, Devin Raynor, 15, a freshman at Rogers High School and active at First Baptist Church of Rogers, shot and killed himself after being bullied at school.

In October, a Hebronville teen, Natalie Rodriguez, 15, took an overdose of pills that resulted in her death. The eighth grader at Hebronville Middle School had been bullied ruthlessly online and at school.

In November, Brandi Vela, 18, a student at Texas City High School, shot and killed herself after months of enduring cyberbullying. Her online abusers, Andres Arturo Villagomez, 21, and Karinthya Sanchez Romero, 22, have been arrested and charged with promotion of intimate visual material and stalking.

Ninety days later, in February, a second teen girl at Texas City High School killed herself. Bailie Lundy, 15, a member of Greater Barbour’s Chapel Baptist Church, hanged herself in a nearby park. Like Brandi, Bailie had endured relentless cyberbullying from school classmates.

What is cyberbullying?

Cyberbullying is when a child, preteen or teen is tormented, threatened, harassed, humiliated, embarrassed or targeted by another child, preteen or teen using electronic technology such as cell phones, computers and tablets using social media sites, text messages, chat and websites. This type of bullying especially is difficult for teens because:

• It can happen 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
• Messages and images can be posted anonymously and distributed quickly and widely.
• Messages and images cannot be deleted easily after posting.

After a 16-year-old sophomore from San Antonio, David Molak, killed himself after prolonged social media bullying by classmates, Texas lawmakers proposed a new cyberbullying law. If approved, David’s Law—named after Molak—will require all Texas schools to establish anti-bullying policies and to contact parents within 24 hours of their child being bullied. The law also will make cyberbullying a punishable crime and allow law enforcement to get subpoenas to unmask anonymous cyber bullies.

How Texas churches can help prevent teen suicide

While some teen suicides are impossible to prevent, most are believed to be preventable. Congregations can be instrumental in efforts to help prevent teen suicide and cyberbullying within their communities.  Here are some suggestions:

• Take opportunities to preach and teach—from the pulpit and in Bible study classes—on the value of God-created life, the effects of cyberbullying and the tragedy of teen suicide.
• Build strong children and youth programs that create safe and welcoming environments for the church’s young people to meet, talk, learn and fellowship. Encourage your youth to talk about cyberbullying. Pray with and for your young people.
• Invite Christian professionals to speak to your congregation, offering classes to build healthy family relationships and seminars dealing with depression, cyberbullying, teen suicide, etc.
• Require pastors of children/youth to take mental health first-aid training. Teach them to know what’s happening among their young people; to recognize the signs of cyberbullying, depression and potential teen suicide; and to respond appropriately.
• Create a network and updated list of trusted mental-health professionals and resources for immediate referral.

If, in spite of your efforts, teen suicide occurs within your congregation, take action immediately:

• Minister to grieving family and church members, showing them the love of Christ. Be a patient presence, praying with those affected. Refer them to Christian grief counselors and others for help.
• Bring together church and community members. Invite professionals to speak, addressing the suicide and its cause. Mourn the loss of the victim. Hold a remembrance service in his or her honor. Be available to help family members arrange funeral/burial arrangements.
• Watch for signs of copy-cat or clustered suicides. Teen suicide often can trigger tendencies that cause others to imitate the tragic act.

Suicide warning signs

Every day in our nation, 5,240 young people in grades 7 to 12 attempt suicide.

Studies show four out of five teens who attempt suicide have given clear warning signs. Take action when a child or teen:

• Endures bullying and/or cyberbullying
• Expresses suicidal thoughts
• Shows increased irritability, loss of concentration/motivation
• Withdraws from family and friends
• Experiences a drop in grades
• Is unable to sleep and/or eat
• Loses interest in personal appearance and favorite activities
• Shows signs of depression; one in every 11 teens will develop depression
• Abuses alcohol and drugs
• Is involved in abusive dating relationships
• Frequently runs away or is arrested/incarcerated
• Loses family members or experiences problems with parents
• Has an unplanned pregnancy
• Shows impulsive, aggressive behavior and frequent expressions of rage

Responding to potential suicide

If someone mentions or shows signs of suicide:

• Do not leave the person alone
• Remove firearms, medications and other objects that could be used in a suicide attempt
• Call the police or the U.S. National Suicide Prevention Lifeline—(800) 273-TALK (8255)
• Take him or her to an emergency room or seek help from a mental health professional

Helpful resources

• To better understand and prevent cyberbullying, see these websites: https://www.easyteacherworksheets.com/teacherprints/bullying.html;  www.stopbullying.gov; www.stopcyberbullying.org; Texas Education Agency Resources on Cyberbullying; Houston ISD: Cyber Bullying; Texas Association of Psychological Associates: Resources against Bullying; https://www.allconnect.com/blog/cyberbullying-how-to-identify-and-handle-online-harassment
• For Texas laws regarding cyberbullying, see: https://www.stopbullying.gov/laws/texas/index.html
• To better understand mental illness, see NAMI Texas (National Alliance on Mental Illness), located in Austin. Website: http://www.namitexas.org#sthash.Dc3o9eb2.dpuf. Email address: officemanager@namitexas.org. Phone: (512) 693-2000.
• Visit The National Suicide Prevention Lifeline’s website: https://suicidepreventionlifeline.org. Call: (800) 273-8255.
• Visit the American Academy of Pediatrics’ website: https://www.healthychildren.org/English/health-issues/conditions/emotional-problems/Pages/Help-Stop-Teen-Suicide.aspx

Denise George, author of 31 books, is co-author of the new Penguin Random House book: Behind Nazi Lines: My Father’s Heroic Quest to Save 149 World War II POWS.  She is married to Timothy George, founding dean of Beeson Divinity School at Samford University.

Recent conversations have burned poignant impressions onto my spirit. They reflect an issue we’d rather not acknowledge: People who walk away from faith—or at least from the faithful—late in life.

Marv Knox

American Christians have made a huge fuss over the increasing proportion of our population called Nones, who claim no religious affiliation or faith identification. But my conversations focused on friends more accurately considered Dones, who followed Jesus most of their lives but now are done with Christ, or at least his church.

That final distinction is important, because I’m not so sure my friends are as jaundiced about Jesus as they are fed up with his followers.

In one case, my friend still maintains a relationship with Christ but, for the most part, is repelled by Christians and their churches. In the other case, my friend has just about dropped out of church completely and is “not so sure about the Jesus thing,” but still seems interested in an authentic community of Jesus’ followers, if only she could find one.

New twist on ongoing trend

The mid- to late-life trend away from church has been going on at least as long as Baby Boomers have been reaching mid- to late-life. Ever the consumers, many thousands of Boomers used the church to help them raise their kids. Churches that emphasized excellent facilities and programming for children and youth reaped great rewards.

But when the final teen graduated from high school, Mom and Dad graduated from church. Free from ongoing parental constraints, they began traveling on weekends. Maybe it started with a quick getaway, or perhaps a trip to see the kids in college. Soon, they lost the habit of participating in church. Besides, they already got what they thought they needed.

That’s a practical, utilitarian loss. The parents traded regular attendance, and maybe even decent investment and supportive leadership in the church, in return for getting Bubba and Missy through high school in relatively decent shape. Transaction over.

Deeper, tragic

What I’m concerned about is deeper, and it feels more tragic. This is the loss of faithful, thoughtful people whose Christian faith, at least at one time, centered their lives—such as my friends. Now, they may be conflicted about Jesus, but they’re certain they don’t want to be constrained by Christians.

While I would be sad if this only happened to my friends, I wouldn’t be broadly concerned. But it’s more widespread. Many pastors can name the formerly faithful who just walked away. They decided not to be part of the fellowship anymore. Maybe they still care about a relationship with Jesus; maybe they don’t. (For the record, this does not include homebound who would attend if only they were able.)

Taking a toll

Why this happens is as unique and individualized and, frankly, as random as the former believers themselves. So, generalizations may not help much, but here are some observations ….

First, the effects of aging accumulate, whether it happens to cars or people. The dents, dings, scratches, and wear and tear add up. For vehicles, those literally are dents, dings, scratches, and wear and tear. For people, they are heartaches, disappointments, tragedies, illnesses and shortcomings. They take their toll—physically, emotionally and, eventually, spiritually.

Some people see God working through all the challenges and obstacles of life. For them, setbacks lead to perseverance, which refines and strengthens their faith. But other people sense God’s absence during such episodes. And so every incident of devastation deepens their level of doubt. Eventually, they’re so far down a spiritual hole, they can’t see any light.

Similarly, some folks can’t get over other people. Often, it’s easy to confuse Jesus with his followers. We talk about the church being the Body of Christ. We talk about being the presence of Christ in the world. But even though we’re redeemed, Christians still are people. Human, fallible, weak, sinful people. We mess up, and when we do, we hurt people. And some see this as God hurting people, God letting people down.

Hypocrisy is an example of this. But so is heartlessness. Rigidity and rule-following for rule’s sake. Sanctimony and overt piety. And the simpler, but no less cruel, slights of ignorance, selfishness, guile, gossip and cold standoffishness.

Lousy contrast

Also, people walk away when the church contrasts poorly with the rest of the world. This bumps up against social issues that dominate discussion these days. Quite often, the church plays the hard-hearted older brother to the world’s prodigal son. No sense of empathy, just judgmentalism. No expression of joy, only disdain.

So, sensitive Christians who have been part of church and immersed in its culture for decades find themselves embarrassed and ashamed—for and by their fellow Christians. They get tired and ask why they want to be associated with such an outfit anymore. And they walk away.

This tragedy does not lend itself to simple solutions. We could hope a lifetime of Christianity would provide all of Jesus’ followers with the resources to withstand onslaughts to faith. But we live in a broken world, and that’s not always the case.

Loss of faith late in life should remind us not to take one another for granted. We need each other, and we need to walk alongside each other, especially in the hard, dispiriting times.

We need to look out for the lonely and alone, even in our midst. We must pray for eyes to see, because looking past them is easier than seeing them. To use a biblical image, the sheep who get separated from the flock are most susceptible to getting lost or being attacked by predators.

We must labor to live our faith authentically and to insist on integrity and transparency from one another. Putting a cosmetic cover over faulty faith to show a pretty face to the world is dishonest. But it also does irreparable harm to those inside the church, who see behind the façade and grow to doubt the authenticity of any manifestation of faith.

Mostly, we must practice compassion and care for one another. We all need the love of faithful, tender hearts, the care of Christians who put others before self.

Follow Marv on Twitter, @marvknoxbs

I am fascinated by the things that turn out to have retro appeal.

People warn you not to get rid of your old clothes—the classic case being bell-bottom jeans—“because they’re sure to come back in style again.”

The whole business model for the cable channel Nick at Night was based on assumptions about the retro appeal of old cartoons and sitcoms to a new generation of children. Technologies developed for Baby Boomers turn out to fascinate Gen Xers and Millennials.

In The Postmodern Parish, I wrote about the first time I saw someone with a new Polaroid camera. Although I couldn’t have imagined it at the time, Polaroids are now experiencing a comeback. The cameras and film are being manufactured again, and young adults flock around this “old school” technology in the same way some younger music lovers now prefer vinyl over digital downloads.

Emerging image

I remember how exciting it was to watch the image emerge on that first Polaroid picture. As soon as the picture was taken, a completely blank piece of photographic paper shot out of the bottom of the camera. As you watched, the yellow part of the image appeared on the paper, then the red part. Finally, the blue portion emerged, and you could make out the whole image clearly.

We are in a “Polaroid” era in the life of the church. We all sense the Holy Spirit is revealing new ways for churches to be faithful in our rapidly shifting American cultural landscape—showing us new “images” of what a post-Christendom congregation looks like.

Our problem is we can’t yet see the Spirit’s images clearly. We are like the blind man to whom Jesus gives sight in Mark 8. Jesus puts saliva on the man’s eyes, lays hands on him, and asks, “Can you see anything?” He replies, “I can see people, but they look like trees, walking.”

It takes an extra laying on of Jesus’ hands—a double portion of the Spirit, if you will—before he is able to see clearly and make his way forward into the new world being revealed to him.

Occasional glimpses

Each of us catches occasional glimpses of that new thing God already is doing in the American church. We get hints and intimations from the Spirit about forms of church life that will be vitally faithful in the future. We experience bits of that new church in the lives of our congregations. But none of us can see the whole picture yet.

Here’s the other part of our problem: We don’t have the luxury of waiting until we can see clearly before we need to start trying things. What, then, can we do?

One of the most important things we can do is get with people who look expectantly for God’s future and talk about what we’re seeing. When we look together and talk with one another about what we see—the particular nudge of the Spirit we have felt, the intuition that seems especially right about the church’s future—then we have a much better chance of seeing more clearly the image that is emerging for us all.

Importance of peers

This is why I believe so deeply in the importance of peer groups of every kind—support groups, reading groups, prayer groups, first-call groups. There is no expert, no seminary professor, no guru, no—dare I say it?—consultant who has an easy answer to the question, “What kind of church should we be developing for the future?” 

That discernment can be fruitfully carried out only by groups of colleagues who talk about what they are seeing and sensing under the guidance of the Spirit. It is especially important that any such group—no matter what its stated reason for gathering—spend time praying together—praying the Spirit will show them just a bit more of that emerging future, a little bit more of the blue, a dab of red.

If you’re not already part of such a group, then go out and form one of your own. Find some people who—like you—are eager to discover that future God already has in mind for the church and get together regularly to share your insights. As insights begin to bubble up from below from many such groups all around the country and in every denomination and tradition, then we may begin to see what God has been trying to show us all along.

Jim Kitchens is coordinator of the Center for Healthy Churches-West.