keep good thoughts

A "moment of truth" article to share with you:

If you look for something bad in another person, you will usually be able to find it. On the other hand, if you look for what is good, you are likely to find that too--and then more and more that is good.

As you regain a more balanced view of the other person, you will often find it easier to overlook minor offenses. I have experienced this process many times in my marriage. 

One day Corlette said something that really hurt me. I don't remember what she said, but I remember going out into the back yard a few minutes later to rake leaves. The more I dwelt on her words, the more deeply I slid into self-pity and resentment. I was steadily building up steam to go back into the house and let her know how wrong she was. But then God brought Philippians 4:8 to my mind.

Ha! I thought. There's nothing noble, right, or lovely about the way she's treating me! But the Holy Spirit wouldn't give up. The verse would not go away; it kept echoing in my mind. Finally, to get God off my back, I grudgingly conceded that Corlette is a good cook. This small concession opened the door to a stream of thoughts about my wife's good qualities. I recalled that she keeps a beautiful home and practices wonderful hospitality. She has always been kind toward my family, and she never missed an opportunity to share the gospel with my father (who eventually put his trust in Christ just two hours before he died). I realized that Corlette has always been pure and faithful, and I remembered how much she supports me through difficult times in my work. Every chance she gets, she attends the seminars I teach and sits smiling and supportive through hours of the same material (always saying she has learned something new). She is a marvelous counselor and has helped hundreds of children. And she even took up backpacking because she knew I loved it! I realized that the list of her virtues could go on and on.

Within minutes my attitude toward her was turned upside down. I saw her offensive comment for what it was--a momentary and insignificant flaw in an otherwise wonderful person. I dropped my rake and went inside, but not to unload a storm of resentment and criticism. To her surprise, I walked in, gave her a big hug, and told her how glad I was to be married to her. The conversation that followed led quickly to a warm reconciliation.

Taken from  The Peacemaker: A Biblical Guide to Resolving Personal Conflict
by Ken Sande, Updated Edition (Grand Rapids, Baker Books, 2003) p. 112-113

* Philippians 4:8

"Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things."

halloween again

Time flies, can't believe it's Halloween time again! The following is an article I did around this time last year, for a re-run:

Friday is Halloween, the kids' fun day. Stories and controversies abound about this day's origin, meaning, and whether Christians should celebrate it or not. But one thing I think historical and worth celebrating by all (or at least Protestant) Christians is that this is the day, 491 years ago, the Protestant Reformation--the movement that split Christendom into Catholic and Protestant camps all the way till this day--all got started.

On October 31, 1517, Martin Luther, a German priest/theologian, posted his famous 95 theses on the door of a church in Wittenberg, a little town in today's eastern Germany, to display his objection to the "indulgences" the Church was selling. An indulgence was a printed permit or coupon with monetary value of personal confession of sin. The idea was sinners could buy indulgences to release them from divine punishment, or "As soon as the coin in the coffer rings, the soul from purgatory springs," went the commercial jingle of the day. The Church used such "fund raisers" to collect revenues to help rebuilding St. Peter's basilica in Rome, or as political payback by some local bishops to Rome for their clergical assignments. Though Luther's intention was to dispute and argue the subject within the Church, copies of these theses got spread quickly throughout Europe (making the controversy one of the first in history to be fanned by the printing press) and unleashed a reform movement that would eventually effect all political and social structures of the Western world.

Besides objection to the indulgences, Martin Luther had many other theological differences with the Roman Church of the day. His studies of the Bible, especially the epistles of St. Paul, had led him to the conclusion that Christ was the sole mediator between God and man and that forgiveness of sin and salvation are effected by God's Grace alone and are received by faith alone on the part of man. This point of view turned him against scholastic theology, which had emphasized man's role in his own salvation, and against many church practices that emphasized justification by good works.

Luther also condemned the vow of celibacy and, as a former monk, he married a former nun that he helped escape from a convent in 1525, when he was 42 and she was 26. By all accounts theirs was a happy marriage, with 6 children. One of their descendants was Paul von Hindenburg, president of Germany after World War I and before the Nazi takeover.

Another great accomplishment by Luther is his translation of Bible from Latin to German language. He is not the first one to do such work, but is by far the greatest according to historians and literary scholars. The Luther Bible contributed to the emergence of the modern German language and is regarded as a landmark in German literature.

According to American Lutheran Publicity Bureau, these are Luther's most important theological insights:

(1) Humankind is entrapped in the ancient temptation to play God (Genesis 3:5), violating the first of all divine commandments, "You shall have no other gods."

(2) Liberation from this original sin comes through faith of at least two people ... one who tells another of Christ as the source of freedom from sin, and one who, so addressed, affirms faith in Christ alone.

(3) The Christian life is one in which, though we are sinners by nature, we are at the same time saints by God's grace and love.

(4) The Christian life is lived in two realms that belong equally to God ... church and society. This calls for Christian commitment to education, fair economic practices, and a life of mission to the ungodly.

Happy Reformation Anniversary!