by Warren Baldwin

When I was a kid my family lived in a large house out in the country. The house was over 100 years old when I lived in it, and it had some of the features of an old house: creaking floors, rooms with squeaky doors. It was a neat old house, the kind that has character. Memories. Memories from families that lived there before us and memories that we created. Lots of them.

I love the memories, and I loved the house. That house was especially neat when our cousins from the city came to visit. With all the rooms and the dim lighting upstairs, my brothers and I came up with some pretty ingenious methods of entertaining our cousins. Well, entertaining ourselves, anyway, at our cousins' expense.

For example, all we had to tell the younger cousins was, "There are lions and bears up there, so you better stay away." That worked when we wanted to keep them out of our room for a while. It also made it funny when their parents told them to go to bed, but they were afraid to go up into the black expanse of the "upstairs."

"Good night, Brian. Watch out for the bears. Don't know how you can sleep with those things lurking around waiting to eat you."

One time, we made a ghost out of a sheet. We strung a line from upstairs down the staircase and attached the ghost. When a couple of the cousins, girls this time, were getting ready to go upstairs, one of my brothers let fly with the ghost. Down the stairs it came, with us boys howling and the girls screaming.

I miss that house. And the cousins.

I think by now they have gotten over the fear that Jim, Bob, and I stirred within them. In that context, fear was a pretty harmless thing. Cousins teasing cousins about bears, lions, ghosts. Of course, there were parents there to assure the younger ones that there were no such creatures on the premises. "Look, I'll turn a light on. Do you see any mean creatures? You'll be fine." And they were.

But fear never completely leaves us, does it? When we are children, it was fear of lions and bears. And ghosts. But when we get older, many of the fears are of a more serious nature, aren't they? Making enough money to pay the bills. Keeping a job in an age of cut-backs, lay-offs, and transferring of jobs to markets overseas. Crime. War. Health. Retirement. Our children's well-being. Then, later, there are grandkids to worry about.

Do you ever long for the day when the only fears you have will be of imaginary lions, bears and ghosts that live upstairs at your cousins' house?

I don't want to minimize anybody's fear about anything. I certainly don't want anybody doing that to me with the fears I try to manage! But one thing I try to do is keep fear in perspective. And to keep the objects of my fear in perspective.

I know things don't always turn out well. But I know they usually do. And I know that, for one who trusts in a power greater than anything that threatens us, the things that cause us fear diminish in size and power.

We can hold to the greatest words of hope and comfort ever uttered: "My peace I leave with you; my peace I give you ... Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid." (John 14:27).

Jesus spoke those words. And they are more powerful than any bear, lion or ghost lurking in the shadows of my old house.

by Ron Harper

The devil completely misunderstood Job's faith in God. In his conversation with God the devil asked, "Does Job fear God for nothing? Hast Thou not made a hedge around him and his house and all that he has, on every side? Thou has blessed the work of his hands, and his possessions have increased in the land" (Job 1:9,10).

The devil thought he knew a way to turn Job away from God. "But put forth Thy hand now and touch all that he has; he will surely curse Thee to Thy face."

Satan's accusation was simple. "God, Job is only serving you because nothing bad has happened to him. Allow him to experience some real tragedy and he'll turn his back on you."

Some people want God "on their terms." As long as all is well they will serve God. As soon as tragedy comes they turn away.

A man was approached about hearing the Gospel. His response was a picture of bitterness. "I've lost two wives and two sons. God didn't have time for me so I don't have time for God."

Some people are like that. They will believe in God on their terms. They will only believe in a God who will protect them from all tragedy.

Back to the story of Job: The devil completely underestimated Job. Although Job did not understand what was happening to him, he maintained faith in God. In the end he was blessed by God.

Centuries later James wrote, "You have heard of the endurance of Job and seen the outcome of the Lord's dealings, that the Lord is full of compassion and is merciful."

We cannot have God "on our terms." He has not promised to shield us from all tragedy. We can be sure that he blesses those who patiently maintain faith in him.

by Oran Burt www.somersavenue.org

We can be reasonably sure that the image of Jesus is tarnished beyond recognition in most people, but we would hope not beyond recovery. God loves us and wants to save us. Most of us have deep sensitivities concerning our sins, failures, and inadequacies. We never feel totally worthy of being saved.

Jules Pfeifer wrote: "I felt like a fraud so I learned to fly an airplane. At 50,000 feet I thought, 'A fraud is flying an airplane.' So I crossed the Atlantic in a rowboat. I docked at Cherbourg and I thought, 'A fraud has crossed the Atlantic in a rowboat.' So, I took a space shot to the moon. On the way home, I thought, 'A fraud has circled the moon.' So, I took out a full-page ad in the newspaper. And I confessed to the world that I was a fraud. I read the ad and thought, 'A fraud is pretending to be honest.'"

Can you identify with that feeling?

In one of Ruth Calkin’s books, she writes this prayer: "Father, I have sinned and I’m not worthy to be called your child." And the answer came back; "I know, but my Son is worthy to be called your Savior."

How can we BE more like Jesus without doing the things that He did? But even in our doing, we cannot secure our salvation by works. In the song, "Rock of Ages," it is expressed, "Not the labor of my hands, can fulfill the law's demands."

So, our faith is dead without works, but our hope is not in our deeds alone. Our hope is built on nothing less than Jesus' blood and righteousness.

by J. Randal Matheny

[Today's thought comes translated from the Portuguese-language meditation, "God With Us."]

"From this time many of his disciples turned back and no longer followed him" (John 6.66, NIV).

Jesus does not want followers at any price. His teaching separates those accept the truth from those who reject it. He will not change his teaching to make it more palatable.

Many are content to hear Jesus' teaching and to enjoy his blessings until he contradicts their beliefs or offends their sensibilities. The world is full of those who turned back.

Jesus asks us if we too will go away. And he hopes that we will recognize, with Peter, that only he has the words of eternal life.

Will you follow Jesus until the end or only up to a point?

by Warren Baldwin

Do you know what the number one tourist attraction in America is? Disney World? Grand Canyon? How about the Mall of America in Minneapolis, Minnesota? It draws ten times more people than the Grand Canyon does every year! Americans are consumers.

Do you know what our favorite daily activity is? Judging by the amount of time we voluntarily donate to it, I would say it is watching television. The average American watches four hours of TV every day. That adds up to 28 hours a week, or more than one full day every week we spend in front of the tube. Americans are spectators.

Do you know what the primary word or concept is in the various self-help programs available to us? It is: Self. I couldn't even mention the programs with using the term "self!" Self-help involves self-image, self-actualization, and self-concept. Americans are self-absorbed.

Please, don't get angry at me for this less-than-flattering assessment of "us." I actually got this descriptive list from Culture Shift by David W. Henderson and Make Disciples: Reaching the Postmodern World for Christ by Terry A. Bowland.

What is with America's fascination with consumerism (buying "stuff"), spectator-ism, and self-absorption? According to Bowland, it is reflective of our quest to experience. He says we have become "a culture which has elevated experience to the highest level of importance." And this experiential quest is trait number two of our postmodern culture.

Like trait #1, relativism, experientialism poses a challenge to Christians as we seek to reach a generation that relies upon experience as a means of finding and defining self. Ideas are not that attractive. History is meaningless. Experiencing, feeling, whether by shopping, watching or "actualizing" the self is where meaning is found.

The challenge for us today, as we seek to communicate with our young people, whether in our homes, in the church or in the community, is to go beyond just words. If, as Terry Bowland says, our culture has "elevated experience to the highest level of importance," we have to respect that even if we don't agree with it. "We have to take into account that people in today's postmodern world want to experience what we have to offer. If they cannot experience it, chances are they will never accept it." (Bowland, p.126).

Instead of preaching love, how can we offer love in a concrete, measurable manner? Instead of preaching forgiveness, are there any opportunities in our lives to actually demonstrate it? Instead of preaching kindness, do we act kindly toward others?

Postmoderns would rather see a sermon than hear one any day. Almost sounds like something Jesus said about how others assess our lives, doesn't it? (John 13:34,35).