The religion of the non-religious

There is an article on foxnews.com today that is well worth reading. It is by a columnist named Steven Crowder and it is titled, "Think Religious Extremists Are Scary -- How About Secular Extremists?" In the article Crowder talks about the marks of religious extremism. He then compares those marks of extremism with the Discovery channel hostage situation created by James Lee and his commitment to save the planet. You see Lee was really a religious extremist too. His religion was the planet earth. He sacrificed his life to make a statement about the earth. The problem is not really extremism itself. The problem is the focus of our extremism. Crowder rightly points out that people try and fill the void in their lives with something.

Paul talked about this in his letter to the Romans. He said that, "they exchanged the truth about God for a lie and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator" (Romans 1:25). Man was created to glorify God and enjoy Him forever. When that component of our lives was removed at Adams fall it took a huge part of mans reason for living away. Since we are now rebels against God we will embrace anything other than God in order to try to fill that part of us that was made for glory. Anytime anyone's focus of their faith (no matter what that faith is in) is horizontal in nature (i.e. focused on the people and world around us) there is a tendency toward abuses. The only time that extremism is good is when it is focused on the God of the Bible. Why? Because that God focused life is one that is shaped by the love and grace of God. I don't think anyone will ever object to an extreme pouring out of love and grace. The secular and the sacred worshipper can't give a grace they have never experienced. May God grant you the grace to pursue Him in the extreme so that you too might be an agent of His love and grace.

How a God focused life can save a marriage

The news has had several articles about the Al and Tipper Gore's separation. If you have not heard you can find out more in an article on Foxnews called "What Hasn't Been Said About the Gores' Split". There is a lot of speculation about the changes that have entered their lives since 2000 and the loss of the election. Al has made a lot of money since then and has become very popular especially with the environmental crowd. Most people conclude that the success and money has put a huge amount of stress on the marriage. Whether it has or not the reality is that God calls men to love their wives as Christ loved the church (Ephesians 5:25). This should be the second priority for any man who claims to know Jesus as his Lord. The first should be to love God (Matthew 22:37). If these things are in place then any money earned is a blessing and gift from God. Any success in life that is granted to us becomes a position that God has placed us in for the sake of advancing His kingdom. The way that fame and money destroys marriages is evidence that man centered solutions do not work. Even Tony Robbins the secular guru of personal achievement has not been able to make marriage work. In a day and age when everyone is looking for the quick fix and the perfect solution. There is no better time to turn to and follow the direction and calling of God. After all He designed marriage it would seem that following His advice would be the best thing we could do.

Environmentalism or god complex

Today is the 30th anniversary of the Mt. St. Helens eruption. A few weeks ago an Icelandic volcano shut down all air travel over Europe with predictions of long term environmental repercussions. On Foxnews.com an article titled, "Scientist Disputes EPA Finding that Carbon Dioxide Poses Threat to Humans" appeared today.  I am amazed at how many of my Christian brothers and sisters are pulled in to the orbit of these issues. Now do not get me wrong I am all for conservation efforts, but that being said I think of several passages from the Bible that put the whole issue in perspective. I think that Hebrews 11:1-3 is a good starting place. Here we see that faith is the assurance of things hoped for the conviction of things not seen. I hope for God's word to be fulfilled. I am convicted of the truth of God's word by the Holy Spirit living in me. What does God's word say about the world. Genesis 1:1 tells us that God is its creator. Psalm 24:1 tells us that the Earth and everyone that dwells in it is the property of God. Basically it follows that if He is the creator then the Earth belongs to Him. All of these things point to the fact that the world is God's. Any perceived ability of man to destroy or alter the earth is simply a vain imagination. God has proven time and again that the earth is incredibly resilient. God can open a few volcanoes up and in a very short time pump more particulate and bad stuff into the air than all the people on the earth combined can produce in a year or even 100 years. Man is a created being that likes to think more highly of himself than he ought. This is Jesus' world and no man can destroy it and no man can save it if God has set out to destroy it. In Psalm 33:8 the Psalmist called us to, "...fear the Lord...(and)...stand in awe of him!" If you are tempted to become an environmentalist and join the forces that think of man as god-like and able to save the planet remember 1 Chronicles 16:3. In this passage we are reminded to, "tremble before Him...the world is established; it shall never be moved." If that doesn't cause you to pause and consider then go on and pursue your god-complex. For me and my house we will continue to fight our god-complex by living lives focused on our great God and creator of all Jesus Christ.