A Gift on the Gridiron and the Need to Forgive

This past Sunday, an NFL official made a wrong call. This does not surprise us. We all know that officials in every sport are human ... and to quote Alexander Pope, "to err is human." (Pope by the way is generally regarded as the greatest English poet of the eighteenth century - are you impressed that I know that? Don't be. I merely looked it up on the Internet!) Now what made referee Ed Hochuli's blown call so bad was that it enabled the Denver Broncos to win the game against their rival, the San Diego Chargers. This week, Hochuli has not only acknowledged his mistake, he has profusely apologized for his blunder. But for many, his apology is unacceptable. According to an account on Fox Sports.com, Hochuli is receiving hundreds of email from irate Charger fans ... each one dripping with hatred for the man in stripes.

Now if I were a Charger's fan, I am sure I would be upset. It's bad enough when your team loses - but to have the game given away by someone else! That's a tough pill to swallow. Yet all of us will be wronged! Most times, when this happens, (as was the case with this blown call) the one "committing the crime" is not doing so intentionally. We must learn to give others "the benefit of the doubt" (usually something we reserve only for ourselves). And for those of us who claim to follow the Son of God - we must remember that Pope also said, "to forgive is divine." So if we want to become more like Jesus (who is divine) - then we must learn to be quick to forgive - which is exactly what the Bible commands us to do! (see Colossians 3:13)

Thanks for stopping by . . .

pj

Associations Are Important!

I just read a recent New York Times poll that shows Republican Nominee for President, John McCain is being hurt by his link to President Bush (of course, if President Bush were wildly popular, this link would be a boost to McCain's campaign to win the election). Now the reason for this is that people assume that we tend to become like the people with whom we associate. So voters look at John McCain and see that he has been closely tied to the President and assume that he will continue the same Bush policies that they don't like. This, by the way, is why John McCain is doing his best to distance himself from Bush and Barack Obama is doing his best to associate the two!

As followers of Jesus, we must take care of our associations. Should we associate with those "outside" the faith? Absolutely! Jesus was often with the "sinners and tax collectors" of his day. After all, he came to call sinners - not the "righteous" - to repentance. So yes, we should have friends and associates who are not Christians. But as we do, we must make sure that we are also surrounded by a strong community of like-minded Jesus-followers. Paul reminds us in 1 Corinthians 15:33 that "bad company corrupts good character." This is a caution that we must all heed. Yes - pursue friendships with those who are not yet Christian. But be sure to do so carefully ... seeking to influence them toward Christ (vs. allowing them to influence you toward evil!). This is a fine line -- pray and ask God to give you wisdom in this area!

And if you don't have any friends who are unbelievers - then remember this: To have a friend you must first BE A FRIEND!

Thanks for stopping by . . .

pj

"I Will Come Back!"

I'm not a HUGE movie fan. But that does not mean I don't enjoy a good film from time to time. Now there are some genres of movies that I really do enjoy. One of which would be the Superhero movies that herald the exploits of Spiderman, Batman, Superman and the like. I also enjoy watching fantasy films (such as the Lord of the Rings and the Chronicles of Narnia). And one of my deep dark secrets is that I occasionally will sit down with my wife and watch a " " flick (now if I fill in the blank - it won't be a deep dark secret anymore, will it?!). Each of these movie types all have something common to them (for example in the superhero films - there is always the super villian; in the the fantasy - it's always a battle of good vs. evil). Now I have also been known to watch a war movie here and there. And one scene that is often common in war movies looks like this: The film's hero is preparing to go off to war. But before he goes he has to say goodbye to his girl. So they embrace, they kiss. And (you can almost always count on this) the departing soldier's woman tearfully looks at him and in a voice cracking with emotion says to him, "Promise me you'll come back!" And he, wanting to reassure and comfort his sweetheart says with all the confidence he can muster, "I'll come back! I promise!"

Now -- think about that promise. Can he truly back up this promise. Can he make that promise with 100% certainty that he WILL come back? Not unless he goes AWOL until the war is over - or he has superhero abilities to dodge bullets or impose an invisible force field around himself. So he may want to come back -- but his return is far from certain.

Jesus Christ has made us a promise. Some 2000 years ago, just before he departed planet earth - he promised those he loved that he would be back. Here's what he said,

"Do not let your hearts be troubled. Trust in God; trust also in me. In my Father's house are many rooms; if it were not so, I would have told you. I am going there to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am" (John 14:1-3).

Unlike the warrior going off to war and an uncertain fate - Jesus went off to heaven and will return. How do we know? Because Jesus is God. And being God he is King of the Universe and neither nothing nor no one can prevent his return! So if Jesus is coming back, are you ready to meet him?

Thanks for stopping by ...

pj

Fighting Pollution - Noise Pollution!

I am sure none of you would argue with me that we live in a very noisy world! Cell phones ringing. Car horns honking. Rowdy children screaming. Lawn mowers roaring. And I could go on and on and on. Some people take the fight to rid of world of noise quite seriously. I found one group on the Internet. It is the NPC (Noise Pollution Clearinghouse). The group's mission is "is to create more civil cities and more natural rural and wilderness areas by reducing noise pollution at the source." And on their web site they offer a number of resources to help people reduce noise pollution.

Now am I surprised that such a group exists? Not at all. I am bombarded just like you with noise all the time. This is why it is so vital that we get apart from the noise and get quiet before God. Let me encourage you to fight noise pollution in your own life by making the time to be alone before God. So take your Bible, find a quiet place, and spend some alone and quiet time with the God who made you ... and the God who so loved you that He sent His one and only Son to pay the penalty for your sin against Him. Be quiet. And "be still and know that HE is God" (Psalm 46:10).

Thanks for stopping by . . .

pj

Billy Graham on the Return of Christ . . .

An individual wrote in to Billy Graham, stating that someone had given him a pamphlet that gave a specific date for the return of Jesus Christ. I thought Billy Graham's answer was "right on!" So here it is.

Jesus clearly taught that someday He will return to Earth to set up His Kingdom -- but He also said that the exact time of His return is hidden from us. He said, "No one knows about that day or hour, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father" (Mark 13:32).

Unfortunately, over the centuries Jesus' warning hasn't kept people from speculating about the date of Christ's return. You may have read about people who believed they knew when Christ was coming, and even sold everything they owned so they would be ready -- only to be proved wrong. From time to time, groups also have appeared who claim Christ has already secretly come -- although the Bible clearly says that "At that time men will see the Son of Man coming in clouds with great power and glory" (Mark 13:26).

At the same time, the Bible does teach that certain events must take place before Christ returns -- and many Bible scholars believe these are already happening. I often think, for example, of Jesus' statement that the Gospel "will be preached in the whole world ... and then the end will come" (Matthew 24:14).

The real question, however, is this: Are you ready for Christ's return? You can be, by turning to Him in repentance and faith and committing your life to Him. Don't let another day go by without having Christ in your heart.

How about you? If Jesus were to come back TODAY - would you be ready to meet Him???? If you have any questions, go to the web site (in my list of recommended web sites) "Looking for more out of life?"

Thanks for stopping by . . .

pj

Where Are All the Solid Leaders?

When it comes to leadership today, you can always find a book, a magazine article or a web site that talks about how to do it right (I just googled "leadership" and got 180 million hits! In addition, Amazon.com lists over 287,000 titles dealing with some topic of leadership!). So my question is this: If we have all this material about how to be a solid leader so readily available, then why do we have so few solid leaders?

For what they are worth - here are my thoughts on this situation. I do not believe the leadership vacuum is due to a lack of information (i.e. - people in leadership do not know how to lead). Now there may be some leaders who simply don't know how to lead (shame on them given the amount of info on how to lead that is all around us!). No, the cause of this leadership vacuum is not a lack of information but a lack of character. I don't care how well trained someone is to lead IF he or she is not a man or woman of character. Leaders must have integrity. Must be trustworthy. Must be sold out to others and to the mission of the team, agency, organization that they have been tasked to lead. This is why the very first qualification that the Apostle Paul mentions in his list of the qualifications for elders (the Bible's name for church leaders) is that of being "above reproach." Being above reproach is to be living such a life that when someone tries to launch a "character assassination" that those who know the individual says, "No way! Impossible! Can't be the John Smith that I know!" That is being above reproach. And sadly, both inside and outside the Church today - there are too few leaders that live and lead in a way that is above reproach.

So my prayer for all of us who are leading (which when you think of it includes the vast majority of us) is that we will continue to grow in our integrity, being men and women whose "walk" matches our "talk." Not perfectly - but consistently!

Thanks for stopping by . . .

pj

Today We Remember . . .

Today is the 7th anniversary of the 9-11 terrorist attack. All over our country, people are pausing to remember those who died as a result of that horrible day in our nation's history. My heart aches for those who lost loved ones ... and my heart grieves over the existence of such evil in human hearts that can drive men to devise and carry out such a diabolical scheme. But such is the world in which we live. But in the midst of the doom of our 9-11 recollections - there is a "silver lining." I am referring to the hundreds upon hundreds of men and women who showed heroism that day. Many of these did so at the cost of their own lives. We can find great encouragement in that! Jesus himself said "Greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends" (John 15:13).

Jesus showed us just how great his love for us was and is ... when "while we were yet sinners, he died for us!" (Romans 5:8). May we never forget the cross -- may we always (DAILY) remember his sacrifice! Yes, I know that Jesus left us the ordinance of communion to practice ("This do in remembrance of me.") And it is very important that we gather with our church family to practice communion - but I also hope that we remember the cross and Jesus' sacrifice for us more often than just when we observe communion. Let me encourage you -- to pause right now and glory in the cross of Jesus Christ! As the Apostle Paul states, "God forbid that I should glory, save in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ!" (Galatians 6:14)

Thanks for stopping by . . .

pj