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In Defense of Satan – He Said
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In Defense of Satan

In Defense of Satan

But even the archangel Michael, when he was disputing with the devil about the body of Moses, did not dare to bring a slanderous accusation against him, but said, “The Lord rebuke you! - Jude 1:9

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“I have no special regard for Satan,” Mark Twain said. “But I can at least claim that I have no prejudice against him. It may even be that I lean a little his way, on account of his not having a fair show. All religions issue bibles against him, and say the most injurious things about him, but we never hear his side. Of course Satan has some kind of case, it goes without saying. It may be a poor one, but that is nothing. That can be said of any of us.”

***

Satan is deceitful; I’ll give you that. But is he the source of all our setbacks and sorrows? Does he spread cancer, crash computers, or cause strife within families and congregations? Or could it be we give him more credit than he is due?

This week I heard Satan blamed for a toothache, faulty software, rudeness, high gas prices, the poor housing market, snow, rain, heat, and rap music. Too often when problems arise in the midst of what we “know” to be God’s will, we blame Satan.

For example, the other day a friend counseled me: “Stand firm. Satan is trying to tick you off and make you say something you don’t mean.” Perhaps. Or maybe God is teaching me patience and training me to hold my tongue?

Here’s another: “Satan is trying to drive a wedge between us.” Maybe. Or else God is growing me in the area of forgiveness.

Another friend wrote to say: “Satan has attacked us in our physical lives.” He certainly did with Job. But we also know that God allows affliction to draw us to Him. Would it be wrong of God to allow us to scrape our knee so that we might crawl into His lap for comfort?

When the archangel Michael got into a tussle with Satan he kept his thoughts to himself. Perhaps Michael knew what we tend to forget; that Satan is God’s creation too. If those who stand in the presence of God dare not speak against the devil, who are we to blindly judge?

Maybe if we didn’t mention Satan’s name so often, others would view us as victors in Christ, not wimpy warriors struggling to lace up our boots.

Just a thought.

Consecrated to Christ – He Said
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Consecrated to Christ

Consecrated to Christ

Start children off on the way they should go, and even when they are old they will not turn from it. – Proverbs 22:6

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Over two thousand years ago, a father chose the greatest scholar of his age to tutor his young son in liberal arts. The gifted instructor taught the boy in architecture, music, literature, politics, and natural sciences. A few years later, the boy, barely in his twenties, set out to conquer the world. He did. By the age of thirty, he had created one of the largest empires known to man, stretching from the Ionian Sea to the Himalayas. He was undefeated in battle and remains one of history’s most successful commanders. He died at the age of thrty-two, considered by many, a drunk and a womanizer.

Three centuries after the death of Alexander the Great, another father sent His Son out to conquer the world. He taught His boy to lead through serving, win through losing himself for others, and victory through loving his enemies. He, too, died near the age of thirty-two. Two thousand years later His army marches on.

Our role as parents is to observe our children with the eyes of objectivity, study their uniqueness, and guide them in the ways they will go when left in the center of God’s will. The Hebrew word “hanakh” means “to dedicate” or “to consecrate.” Once Christ dedicated His life to following the will of his Father, He could do nothing other than become our Lord and Savior.

If you find any measure of comfort and peace in Christ, know this: Sometime, somewhere, long before you became aware there was a God, an individual dedicated your life to God through prayer.

May we do the same each day for our children.

Transparent Holiness – He Said
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Transparent Holiness

Transparent Holiness

Whoever walks in integrity walks securely, but he who makes his ways crooked will be found out.- Proverbs 10:9

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A cigar smoker purchased several hundred expensive stogies and had them insured against fire. After he’d smoked them all, he filed a claim, pointing out that the cigars had gone up in flames. The company refused to pay and the man sued. A judge ruled that because the insurance company had agreed to insure the cigars against fire, it was legally responsible. The company paid the claim. Then, when the man accepted the money, the company had him arrested for arson.

The writer of Proverbs says the crooked will be found out. I know every little deceit I plan is discovered. When I was in middle school I stole some candy. Didn’t get out of the store before the cashier told me to empty my pockets. He gave me a choice: Call the police or call my parents. I broke down crying and he phoned Dad.

Ours is a transparent society. More than any time in history our sins are exposed before others. You might think getting caught would be a deterrent. Instead, we have grown numb to our outlandish acts of disobedience and lewdness. Like the man with the cigars, we seek to boldly bend the rules to our advantage.

But God calls us to a higher standard. One of holiness and honor.

Each morning I pray that God will allow me to see my wife with the eyes of Christ. To love her and others with the heart of God. I ask that He make me a man of encouragement, not criticism; one who speaks good news and hope, not bitterness. Left to my own desires I am a wretched man. With Christ I am a wrecked man under repair.

This year, this week, this day – resolve to walk in integrity. And pray that others will do the same.

My Mama Nell – He Said
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Mama Nell's Family Tree

Mama Nell's Family Tree

Honor your father and mother—which is the first commandment with a promise. Ephesians 6:2 (NIV)

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I’ve waited all my life to tell Mom what I thought of her and now I can without fear of retribution – assuming of course she can’t curse me from the grave. Others have accused me of lacking a verbal filter, but I blame my bluntness on Mom. One thing about my mother . . . you always knew what she was thinking. Whether you wanted to know or not.

But my aim today isn’t to highlight Mom’s faults (and there were many – from her constant carping about how our church had grown too large (apparently100 members is the perfect size), to her criticisms of the pastors and their apparent lack of attention to the elderly and shut-ins). I count these as faults only in the sense that Mom often voiced her opinions in a gruff manner, sometimes leading individuals to do the exact opposite.

No, my goal today is to honor Mom and cash in on that promise in Ephesians 6:2. I want to live a long, long while here on earth because I know when I get to heaven Mom will ask me to pick up sticks, or weed the garden, or some other horrendous childhood chore. Here’s a story that highlights three of Mom’s more prominent qualities: to have community, to contribute, and to be in charge.

A year or so ago Mom was on her way to the hairdresser when another driver ran a stop sign and smashed into her Buick. Mom got out, inspected the damage, and exchanged insurance info. Then while the two women waited for the police to arrive, Mom popped the trunk and motioned the other driver to the rear of her LeSabre.

“My son’s a writer,” Mom announced, “and I’ve got some of his books. Do you want a copy?” I wasn’t there but, knowing Mom, the inflection in her voice and order of words was probably more like: “You do want a copy? Right?” I’m almost certain of this because the woman bought one copy of The Curse of Captain LaFoote (a YA / Tween novel) and a church recipe book. I bet the woman doesn’t even cook.

But that was Mom. Always hawking my books (contributing to the needs of others), talking about her friends in the J O Y group (Just Older Youths was her community), and making other people’s business her business (charging in uninvited).

This week I lost my biggest fan and best salesperson, but God gained a worthy assistant. I can’t imagine how He thinks He’ll remain in charge now.

The last thing Mom told me was, “I’m not as young as I used to be, Son. You need to think about your old mom once in a while and come see me.”

I will Mom. I promise.

God Encounters: Innocence Lost – He Said
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Innocence Lost

When Herod realized that he had been outwitted by the Magi, he was furious, and he gave orders to kill all the boys in Bethlehem and its vicinity who were two years old and under, in accordance with the time he had learned from the Magi. – Matthew 2:16 (NIV)

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At last Mary exhaled. No more angels appearing in the dead of night. No more heavenly hosts singing outside her home. Even the steady parade of shepherds dropping in to check on her boy had ceased. After nearly two years of interruptions, she was finally living a normal life–or what passed for normal with a toddler in the home.

But the serenity would not last. Weeks after the wise guys from the East bid her son farewell, she lay awake, listening to the screams of other mothers. Reaching to her side, she cradled her boy to her chest as thundering hooves raced down the dusty highway. Roman legions, she thought, descending on Bethlehem. She looked up and saw Joseph peeking past the tent flap. She waited for his nod and began gathering their few belongings. With the growing crescendo of cries ringing in her ears, Mary wept for the friends she loved, the mothers who wailed for her son’s innocent playmates.

But were they innocent? Are you?

The birth of Mary’s boy brought joy and hope to a conquered people. Years earlier, God’s people had demanded a king: a leader they could see, hear, and curse. God cautioned them to be content with Him alone: to seek His face and guidance. But they coveted the royalty of neighboring nations so God conceded to their wishes. “They have not rejected you,” He told the prophet Samuel, “but they have rejected me.”

Now, in the town of Bethlehem, God had returned. The King of Kings and Lord of Lords would call nations to account. This is the consequence of an encounter with God: the loss of our innocence. We think we are “good enough,” but we are delusional for the sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law.

Before Christ, our sins were not counted against us; now we have no defense except one, the One who escaped the sword of Herod.

Romans tells us that all have sinned. There is none righteous, no not even one. Not even the baby boys of Bethlehem. This is the reality of an encounter with God.

For whom will you weep today?

God Encounters: Familiarity Lost – He Said
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God Encounters: Familiarity Lost

God Encounters: Familiarity Lost

And having been warned in a dream not to go back to Herod, they returned to their country by another route. – Matthew: 2:12

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A few months ago my friends Joe and Debbie took a trip out west. “Took a trip.” That’s Southerner-speak for “driving.” In the South we’re always “taking and toting” things. In 1861 we took Fort Sumter but gave it back because we couldn’t afford the upkeep. Plus, the Yankees who’d been living there left it a wreck. But I digress. That’s another thing Southerners do. We stray from our main point.

Speaking of straying, a few months ago my friends Joe and Debbie took a trip out west. Driving into Indianapolis they started around the beltway when their GPS units barked: “Drive .6 miles. Then turn right.” Joe looked at Debbie and said, “Guess Leaner is taking us on shortcut.” He pulled off and stopped at the bottom of the ramp.

A few blocks later Joe and Debbie found themselves on an unlit city street in a part of Indianapolis not featured in the Chamber of Commerce welcome packet. At a traffic light bracketed by abandoned vehicles and homes missing doors and windows, Joe’s GPS advised him to: “Continue straight for another 247 miles.” Joe looked down the darkened street, then out his window at the gang of adolescent males walking towards them. While the GPS unit squawked and recalculated, Joe shoved the car into reverse and returned home another way.

Speaking of returning home another way, those wise guys from the east faced a similar dilemma. Having chased a star over wilderness, rivers, and mountains, they left their gifts for baby Jesus and pointed their camels home. But God had other plans.

Over the next few days many of us will announce our plans for the coming year. Lose weight, lose debt…lose interest in both. When God speaks through a vision or friend or His Word, we can follow his voice or follow our familiar ways but we can never return home. God will not allow it. Our tendency is to reflect fondly on the “good old days” and call them paradise, but if you attempt to cling to the past, you will find yourself its slave.

This is the consequence of an encounter with God. Once you have experienced a revelation of His truth. you will never be the same again.

Is God calling you to a new way, new path? Has he blocked your escape through a job loss, health issue, or abrupt change in a relationship? Ask for clear vision in the darkness.

Then follow the light.

And yes, Joe and Debbie did return home safely via another route. They’ve yet to go back to Indianapolis.

God Encounters: Intimacy Lost – He Said
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God Encounters: Intimacy Lost

God Encounters: Intimacy Lost

When Joseph woke up, he did what the angel of the Lord had commanded him and took Mary home as his wife. But he did not consummate their marriage until she gave birth to a son. Matthew 1:24 – 25

A fifty-pound sack of Santa-sized love fell on me this morning, jarring me awake. This week I’m dog-sitting my son’s puppy. It’s been a joy. Not easy or quiet, but fun none-the-less.

“Bunk” is a playful and large Vizsla: a Hungarian hunting dog that consumes rocks, pinecones and when I’m not looking, my wife’s collectible Christmas carolers. He loves to snuggle on my chest in ways that alarm my fifteen-pound mutt, Sandy Beach. Sandy snarls and snaps when Bunk nuzzles my thigh, and I think she worries that Bunk is trying to steal my affection.

I imagine Joseph also felt a touch of jealousy when he learned his wife was pregnant, and not by a mere mortal but by God Himself.  God destroyed any illusions Joseph may have had that his marriage and life would be inconspicuous, normal, and comfortably dull. Where Joseph once saw his union with Mary as the consummation of their love, he now viewed their unorthodox family as the consummation of God’s love for all men.

When God interrupts our pillow talk, He transforms our silent prayers and deep yearning into holy worship. He knows our secret longing for wholeness and understanding in ways a spouse cannot. When we encounter God in an intimate way, He strips away every detail of our life that is phony and pretentious.

If we are unwilling for God to interrupt our lives and jar us awake, then our relationships will be marred by conflict and pain. My dog snaps and snarls because she does not understand my capacity to love her.

But if I, a mere mortal, can love two dogs at once, how much more can God love all He has created?

Today, look for the ways God seeks to destroy your illusions of intimacy and birth new love into your life.

God Encounters: Purity Lost – He Said
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God Encounters: Purity Lost

This is how the birth of Jesus the Messiah came about. His mother Mary was pledged to be married to Joseph, but before they came together, she was found to be pregnant through the Holy Spirit. – Matthew 1:18 New International Version (TNIV)

According to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, in the year 2007, nearly half of all high school students in the United States admitted to being sexually active.

“We truly are facing a sex epidemic,” says Rob Cook, author of Regener8: Street wisdom for street-smart teens. “Sex is everywhere, in your face, trying to convince you it’s the acceptable way of doing business. Don’t believe that? How come they got a hot babe in a barely-there bikini hocking the latest skateboard gear? What about the girl in the thong with the strategically placed guitar to hide her silicone implants? What does that have to do with guitar strings? We’re facing a Sexedemic.”

Cook, founder of 252 Underground, speaks a tough language to a rough crowd, but his message is prophetic. Time was, sexual purity was valued. Not anymore.

“Only yesterday boys and girls spoke of embracing and kissing (necking) as getting to first base,” writes novelist Tom Wolfe. “Second base was deep kissing, plus groping and fondling this and that. Third base was oral sex. Home plate was going all the way. That was yesterday. Today’s girls and boys have never heard of anything that dainty.”

Dainty our children are not. But neither is God. He is bold and intrusive, illuminating the darkness in our heart with His pure light. When God breaks into our lives, He robs us of our illusions of purity. What we think as wholesome and dignified is revealed as vile and repugnant.

Perhaps Mary considered herself one of the “nice girls” — a goody two shoes and founding member of the True Love Waits society. But God would not leave her pride in tact. He never does. This is the consequence of an encounter with God.  However pure we think we are, we are not. Regardless of our righteous acts, they are little more than menstrual rags in the eyes of God.

God called Mary “highly favored” and left her as another statistic of the “another teenage pregnancy” crisis in her community.

Are you willing to exchange your dignity and reputation for Him?

In the end, each of us gets about all of God we want. How much can you stand?

Hanging Ten With Christ – He Said
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Hanging Ten With Christ

For in him [Christ] all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things have been created through him and for him. – Colossians 1:16 Today’s New International Version (TNIV)

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“The secret to walking the nose lies in keeping your weight on the back foot.” Robert August stood in the small room demonstrating how he’d mastered nose-riding, that tricky maneuver long board surfers seek to perfect. “Even as you step forward, you have to shift your weight backwards to the trailing foot, otherwise you’ll bury the nose and pitch. Do this and you’ll be hanging ten before you know it.”

Hanging ten, hanging five, hanging out. It’s all good in Tamarindo, Costa Rica.

I’ve never been much of a long board rider. I prefer my short board, a classic 6-6 In the Eye designed by Outer Banks shaper Scott Busby. But the video clips of Bob and others standing on the nose with nothing but a smooth, Pacific-blue wave peeling into an endless bay was enticing.

A couple hours later I crossed the river to Las Casitas, a beach break near the Tamarindo river mouth. I paddled out alone, faced the setting sun and watched as corduroy lines marched over the horizon. Air temp, low 80’s. Water, the same. Sugar white beach empty of tourist and surfers and crocodiles. Nothing behind me but the lush green hills of the Las Baulas National park  and the darkening sky of dusk.

The Apostle Paul writes: All things have been created through him and for him. I’d read that verse during my devotional time and wondered as I sat on my board, Does Christ surf? Did He make these waves for Himself? Does He get as stoked about riding waves as I do?

Sometimes I think we make this business of God and Christ and sin and salvation too complicated. What started as a single act of rebellion became a billion-dollar industry that too often pads the pockets of its salespeople while leaving the customer confused and crippled with guilt. Could it be all God ever wanted was to pick us up and clean us off so that we might continue strolling with Him in Paradise? Isn’t that why Christ came — to hang with us and hang for us?

On my last ride of the day, I caught a perfect right and rode it into the beach. When I stepped onto the sand I turned and watched as the sun bled into the ocean, turning the sky orange. In that moment I sensed my Lord standing with me, watching me ride His waves. Without shame I pointed skyward and said, “Good one, God. Perfect. We had a good day, you and me. Let’s do it again sometime real soon.”

I know the bad days will come, they always do. But for a moment, at least, I’ve known the joy of my Creator and for that I give thanks.

Warm Wishes – He Said
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Warm Wishes

The LORD your God is in your midst, a mighty one who will save; he will rejoice over you with gladness; he will quiet you by his love; he will exult over you with loud singing. Zephaniah 3:17

A slew of greeting cards cover our refrigerator, a smorgasbord of holiday leftovers from last Christmas. In the coming days my wife will trash most of these family pictures and Hallmark mementoes as she prepares for the onslaught of this season’s warm wishes from friends and relatives, plus insurance agents and investment advisors who insist on calling me Raymond.

Speaking of warm wishes, tomorrow I fly to Costa Rica to go surfing. I can’t afford the trip. Can’t hardly afford a bar of surf wax. But a buddy begged me to go. Said paddling into head-high sets with me would be way more fun than getting raked across the reef alone.

“I’ll pay for your share of the trip,” he offered.

“Thanks, but I’m not a charity case. What I am is a poor starving writer who’s trying to provide for his family in the midst of the worst economic downturn since the Great Depression, while also managing a fledgling book publishing company and a non-profit ministry that’s seriously in need of … what time did you say our flight leaves?”

My buddy’s generous offer reminds me of how God pursues us; of how He rejoices when we accept His offer to play, surf, and walk with Him. “If God had a refrigerator, your picture would be on it,” writes Max Lucado. “If He had a wallet, your photo would be in it. Face it, friend. He is crazy about you!”

And so He is. God is the King who sweeps a house until he finds one lost coin, the Shepherd who scours the countryside in search of bumbling sheep, the Savior who advances into the depths of death to take our hand and lead us out of the darkness.

While I’m surfing Witch’s Rock and Ollie’s Point, Mom sits alone in her home with the blinds closed, health failing. I wish I could give her good health, hope, and the joy of God’s blessings, but the best I can do is pray God will comfort and care for her in my absence.

Do you find yourself feeling alone and forgotten this Thanksgiving? Have the holidays become the “hollow days?” Take comfort in the knowledge that your face is on God’s refrigerator.

And He’s sending you warm wishes through those who love you.