August 11, 2008

“Peace, Be Still!”
By Pastor George Van Alstine

Psalm 107 is probably a “Pilgrim Psalm,” written to inspire those who were traveling to Jerusalem for one of the important religious festivals celebrated by ancient Israelites. They came from different places and by a variety of rigorous routes. Some crossed over vast deserts, where it was easy to lose their way, possibly suffering malnutrition and dehydration (verses 4–9). Others risked travel through enemy territory, where they might be arrested and imprisoned for no legitimate reason (verses 10-16). Others became sick because of the rigors of the journey and their own lack of physical conditioning (verses 17-22).

The fourth kind of danger pilgrims might face is the most picturesque:
“Some went down to the sea in ships, doing business on the mighty waters; they saw the deeds of the Lord, his wondrous works in the deep. For he commanded and raised the stormy wind, which lifted up the waves of the sea. They mounted up to heaven, they went down to the depths; their courage melted away in their calamity; they reeled and staggered like drunkards, and were at their wits’ end.”  (verses 23-27)
What a graphic description of the storms we face in life and the emotional effect they have on us! We’ve all felt our courage melt. We know what it’s like to be at our wits end.

But, like the people in the psalm, we know where to turn for help:
“Then they cried to the Lord in their trouble, and he brought them out from their distress; he made the storm be still, and the waves of the sea were hushed. Then they were glad because they had quiet, and he brought them to their desired haven. Let them thank the Lord for his steadfast love, for his wonderful works to humankind. Let them extol him in the congregation of the people, and praise him in the assembly of the elders.”  (verses 28-32)
Several words are used to show how thoroughly God deals with storms: “still,”  “hushed,”  “quiet,”  “haven.” He doesn’t just give out seasick pills; he actually stills the waves, in a deep and lasting way.

When I was a kid those words describing an absolutely calm and quiet state were not very attractive to me. Stuffy adults were always shushing me and making me feel guilty for any loud sounds I made. There was a lot of happy-noise inside of me that wanted to get out, and there was always somebody around saying “Shhh! Quiet!”

Now that I’ve lived through quite a few years of noise, those words sound a lot better. In fact, I’ll take as much calm, peace and stillness as I can get!

It’s good to know that the great Storm-Stiller is only a prayer away. He promises to answer the prayers of those who cry in their distress and “bring them to their desired haven” (verse 30).

August 4, 2008

Leftovers
by Pastor George Van Alstine

Last night, I routinely opened the refrigerator door and scanned my options. There were fresh fruits and vegetables, a variety of cheeses, milk and a couple of juice drinks. But my eye didn’t stay long on these. As a lioness focuses in on her prey, my vision was narrowed to my favorite objective—leftovers!

Many main course foods actually taste better as leftovers. They seem to marinate and ripen their flavor. Of course, there is a point when they become overripe, and soon they can be absolutely rancid. Some people say they’ve “turned,” meaning turned from good to bad.

My wife and I have different opinions about when that happens. It’s not uncommon for her to go through the refrigerator on a mission of getting rid of leftovers that have turned. It’s almost predictable that I’ll open the refrigerator that night, push things around, and say, “Where’s that meatloaf that was in here?” She’ll answer, “That stuff was bad; I made it two weeks ago.” I act all self-righteous and frugal, “That’s waste; it’s still good food.” I guess when leftovers have turned is in the eye (nose? stomach?) of the beholder.

Did you know that God is a fan of leftovers? In the Old Testament, the prophets spoke of “The Remnant” of God’s people. This sometimes refers to the small number of Israelites who were still in the land after an invasion left many dead, while others were taken captive. There is also a more spiritual use of the word, referring to those who remained faithful to God when most of the people were worshipping idols. This use of the remnant idea was adopted by the followers of Jesus, who saw themselves as the true Israel, The Remnant.

The Remnant were a lot like leftovers. They didn’t seem impressive, since most of the original was gone. They could easily have been overlooked, rejected, discounted. And yet, in some ways they had “ripened” through their hardships, and seemed to be “tastier” to the Lord.

The Hebrew words used for The Remnant are not very complementary. One of the two most common words often refers to the scraps of cloth that remain after a seamstress makes a garment. Another is used almost as we use “etc.” at the end of a list, “and all the things not worth mentioning individually.”

God loves The Remnant. To him, they’re not stale food, but “the apple of my eye” (Zechariah 2:8). In his view, the leftovers are not what’s left over after all the good stuff has been taken, but what’s left over after all the stuff of lesser value has been removed by troubles and trials. Because of his love, he often warns The Remnant about sitting too long in the world’s refrigerator until they begin to “turn.”

If we are part of The Remnant, we should see that, to God, we’re a tasty dish. But we won’t be tasty for long unless we give up and become one with him. Turn to him before you begin to “turn.”

July 28, 2008

God Rolls Up His Sleeves
by Pastor George Van Alstine

When we explain God in human terms, we call this “anthropomorphism.” It means, literally, seeing God as if he were a human. Anthropomorphisms can be misleading, if we allow ourselves to believe God literally has a body, or has human thoughts and emotions. But they can also be helpful, because we would probably not be able to “picture” God at all without them.

The Bible uses anthropomorphisms freely, probably so that we will understand that God is real and tangible, not just an idea or an ethereal force. Bible writers talk about God’s eyes and ears, his anger and his happiness. We as humans find it easier to connect with God through the help of these anthropomorphisms.

A favorite anthropomorphism of Bible writers is “the arm of the Lord.” The arm signifies strength and purposeful action. When God’s “arm” is mentioned, it is to call our attention to the fact that God is doing something.

Isaiah had spent fifty-one chapters recounting the many failures of God’s people and the resultant judgment they were suffering at the hands of enemy nations. Then in chapter 52 he begins to talk about the miraculous deliverance God will bring to them, and through them to the world. These words describe the future action God will take as though it had already happened:
“The Lord has bared his holy arm before the eyes of all nations; and the ends of the earth shall see the salvation of our God.” (Isaiah 52:10)
“The Lord has bared his holy arm”—God has rolled up his sleeves, ready to go to work! When a laboring man rolls up his sleeves, he is indicating he wants no shirt fabric in the way of his unleashed strength. And when that bare arm glistens in the sun, others can see the muscle definition, and know for sure the job is going to get done.

There are times when God seems to be inactive, not doing much about the problems in the world or in our lives. Paul preached a famous sermon in Athens, Greece. He said that for long periods of human history, God seemed to “overlook . . . human ignorance” (Acts 17:30). The old King James Version translated this, “The time of this ignorance God winked at.” Well, whatever this apparent waiting by God is all about, when he rolls up his sleeves and bares his arm, the “winking” time is over. It’s the moment for action!

It’s interesting that Isaiah uses this anthropomorphism to introduce the heart of his prophetic message—his great vision of the Suffering Servant, whom we have come to know as Jesus, the Messiah (Isaiah 52:7-53:12). When God rolls up his sleeves and acts, his great and mighty work is sending his Son to save his people! We might expect that his bared arm would come down in judgment, but instead it embraces with love.

There’s often a parallel experience in an individual’s life. You may flounder around, not taking God’s purpose for you very seriously, toying with sin and ignoring the consequences. God seems to be “winking,” not very interested in your willful, careless living.

But at any moment, in his time, God will roll up his sleeves! He’s ready for action, and his eyes are on you. He means business.

Will he come down on you in punishment? He’d rather not. He’d rather wrap you up in his arms of love. He’s already done the dirty work through his Son on the cross.

July 21, 2008

Minimum Wage Workers
by Pastor George Van Alstine

I stumbled on this story on AOL this morning:

MINIMUM WAGE RISES THIS WEEK
(July 20) – With commodity, fuel and insurance costs hitting record highs, small business owners are anxious about this week’s federal wage hike, which will require employers in 26 states and the District of Columbia to raise their base to at least $6.55.

The way this paragraph was worded slapped me in the face. Poor people struggling to feed their kids are finally going to get a “raise” from $5.75 to $6.55 per hour, and I’m supposed to feel sorry for the small business owner!

To help me empathize with this entrepreneur, the author of the article interviewed a “typical” impacted business owner:

As this week’s wage hike approaches, small business owners such as Joy Kealey view the mandatory increase as another frustrating pinch on profits.Kealey owns a Boise pizza chain called Chicago Connection in Idaho, one of nine states with a minimum wage set at the federal level …. Of the 260 workers Kealey employs in her 11 restaurants, she estimates that 5 to 10 percent are paid minimum wage and will receive a raise this week. The increase may also force increases in other staffers’ salaries….

[Kealey] recognizes that her business, which made more than $5 million last year, may end 2008 a bit weaker.

Jen Kern, an advocate for the poor, understands Kealey’s concern:

I don’t fault the anger or frustrations of a small business employer dealing with all the rising costs. I just don’t think the answer is keeping the minimum wage at a level that, in terms of real dollars, is below where it was 40 years ago. Yes, there are a lot of prices increasing, but these workers have to buy gas, too.

Economics are not easy for anybody, not for the struggling small business owner, not for the entry level worker. I watched both my parents experience ulcers as they struggled to open a hardware business in the late 1950s. As a teenager, I was a truly minimum wage employee—room and board. When the store developed to the point where, on a busy Saturday, it was too much for a mom-and-pop (plus kids) work force, I listened to the debates about how much expense would be added by hiring “extra help.” We never did.

But small business owners and marginal employees have to work together and stop seeing each other as the enemy. The true economic enemies are the super-rich who use all the legal tricks in the book, and their control of so much of the Nation’s capital, to keep widening the gap between themselves and the American underclass, which includes both small entrepreneurs and their employees. We need to face the fact that, the way our economy is working right now, the rich keep getting richer and the poor keep getting poorer.

This is an issue we Christians should speak up about. Jesus loved the poor and did his best to meet their needs. He spoke out against those whose own greed kept the poor down. In this, he was echoing the consistent teaching of the Old Testament, that injustice against the poor is hated by God and that he will hold the economic oppressors accountable for their self-indulgence and insensitivity.

In the economic hard times we are experiencing, we who bear the name of Christ will have to do a lot of thinking about this. How can we make sure we are always on the same side as Jesus? By being on the side of the poor.

July 14, 2008

Does God Do Standardized Testing?
by Pastor George Van Alstine

Those of you who are parents of public school children know how prominent standardized testing is in a student’s school year. In the spring, every child in the second through eleventh grade is tested to measure progress toward State standards in reading, writing and mathematics. In upper grades, science, history and specific math subjects are added. This testing takes up two weeks of the student’s learning time. Ironically, this time investment doesn’t benefit the student at all. It is used to determine how well the school is doing in comparison to other schools in the State. From the perspective of a child’s individual educational progress, these tests are a waste of time.

How sad that many Christians spend a lot of time and energy on evaluating their spiritual status. In a desire to learn whether they are measuring up to God’s standards for Christian living, they waste time and effort that could actually be invested in learning and living the life of faith.

When populist politician Ed Koch became mayor of New York in 1977, he loved to walk the streets of his city, stopping average New Yorkers randomly and asking, “How am I doing?” People loved this folksy approach, and he was very popular. But the city’s problems were difficult and complex, and it became harder and harder for average citizens to see positive results from Mayor Koch’s leadership. He stopped his spontaneous “How am I dong?” interviews, because the answers became more and more negative over time. Even though he served three terms as mayor, he failed in a 1985 attempt to become Governor of New York. Evidently, the ultimate answer to his question “How am I doing?” was “Not good enough.” What would he have been able to accomplish if he had spent all his time on fixing the problems of the city, without needing constant reassurance that he was doing OK?

Every sincere Christian wants to do her or his best for the Lord. It seems natural to ask “How am I doing?” But some people are obsessed with testing themselves. To make matters worse, they usually evaluate themselves by comparison to others. This is why the focus on self-testing can lead to some serious spiritual and emotional problems, such as hypocrisy, pride, depression and fault-finding. While a person is involved in self-analysis, he or she is not actually living, being what God wants the person to be. As with the public school analogy, time spent on testing is taken away from learning.

Years ago, members of the Deacon Board of ABC were involved in a study/workshop on how well the church was doing in worship, fellowship and evangelism. Everyone had a pet idea, and each was determined to express it. We felt we were doing a great thing for the church’s future. After a long, boring discussion, one deacon made this simple statement: “If you are trying to grow a plant, you want to know how it’s doing, but if you pull it out of the ground to look at its roots, you’ll probably kill the plant.” As I remember it, we went home soon after.

The Lord is the only judge of how we’re doing, and it’s his strategy to give us very little feedback. This seems to be so that we will depend more fully on him as we live each day step by step, choice by choice. We feel a need to keep asking, “How am I doing?” His answer seems to be, “Never mind that; just trust me as you take the next step.”

If you’d like to think some more about this, carefully read the Apostle Paul’s personal testimony in 1 Corinthians 4:1-5, as well as the Apostle John’s parallel experience expressed in 1 John 3:18-22.