Dealing with Anger: Part 4

What do we do when people make us angry? Do we attack back? Do we seek to get even? Do we allow them to walk all over us believing this is our Christian duty? What does the Bible say about dealing with the people in our lives who make us crazy...and angry? Well, the Bible gives us four things we can do to keep our cool with our crazymakers.

1. Calculate the Cost.
2. Look past their hurt to their pain.
3. Think before reacting.
4. Pray Psalm 141:3 before crazymaker encounters. 

In this post we'll look at the fourth of the four things: Pray Psalm 141:3 before crazymaker encounters.

Some crazymakers we're able to avoid. But others are neighbors, co-workers or family members that we're going to interact with on a regular basis. When we have such an encounter, we'll do well to pray Psalm 141:3 ahead of time. In Psalm 141:3 the psalmist prays, “Set a guard over my mouth, Lord; keep watch over the door of my lips.”

As a teenager I went to Buckingham palace. And you’ve probably seen the guards that stand by the gates to make sure no one comes in that’s not supposed to. Well, in Psalm 141:3 the psalmist kind of reverses that picture and says - God, be like a guard that prevents anything bad from coming out of the gate of my mouth. In other words - the psalmist is praying that God would prevent him from saying something stupid that would only escalate the conflict or drama and worsen the relationship. What a beautiful word picture! And what a great prayer to pray before a crazymaker encounter.

People are going to irritate us, just like tourists irritate the guards at Buckingham palace. But when we pray Psalm 141:3 we can become like the guards, who don't lose their cool with every little annoyance. So I would encourage you to memorize Psalm 141:3 and to pray it as often as needed. Doing so will better help you keep your cool with your crazymakers. 

7 Things Parents Need to Teach Their Kids - Part 2

There are seven things good parents will prioritize teaching their children. These seven truths come from The Lord's Prayer in Matthew 6 and are the spiritual foundation for successful children.

2. God’s name deserves honor. 

Matthew 6:9b, “...Hallowed be Your name.” NKJV

If you don’t teach your kids to honor God, their highest authority, they won’t ever learn to honor any other authority either. Kids today have a problem with authority, right? We all know this. Well, it’s no surprise that kids don’t honor their parental authority or their governmental authority. Why would they if they’ve never been taught to honor their spiritual authority? Kids learn to honor their parents and honor their teachers and honor police officers and other authorities by first learning to honor God.

Well how do you teach your kids to honor God? You teach them that God’s name is to be praised and never ever to be used as a curse word. Exodus 20:7 says it like this “You shall not misuse the name of the Lord your God, for the Lord will not hold anyone guiltless who misuses his name.” NIV If you got disrespectful in a courtroom with the judge he would hold in contempt of court. How much more so does the Judge of all the earth hold us in contempt when we get disrespectful by misusing his name! You need to teach your kids that God doesn’t take his name being used in vain lightly. On the same top ten list where it says murder is wrong, it says misusing God’s name is wrong. To understand how serious God takes the misuse of his name we only need to look to Leviticus 24 where we learn that doing so was a capitol offense, punishable by death! In this chapter a fight breaks out and one of the two blasphemes God’s name by combining it with a curse word. When the people heard it they put him in custody until the will of the Lord should be made clear to them. Then the Lord said to Moses: “Take the blasphemer outside the camp. All those who heard him are to lay their hands on his head, and the entire assembly is to stone him. Say to the Israelites: ‘Anyone who curses their God will be held responsible; anyone who blasphemes the name of the Lord is to be put to death. The entire assembly must stone them.’ You see, God takes the misuse of his name seriously!

This is why it’s so important to model for your children honoring God’s name. How can you do that?

• Never misuse the Lord’s name yourself. If your kids hear you say it, they will likely imitate your disrespectful ways. 
• Refuse to watch any TV show or movie that consistently abuses God’s name. Think about it. If you’re watching a movie and God’s name is being abused and you keep watching and you’re laughing, what kind of message are you sending to your kids? On the other hand, if you’re watching something that abuses God’s name and you immediately change the channel your kids will get the message that God’s name is to be honored.

Psalm 29:2 says, “Ascribe to the Lord the glory due his name...” NIV That means we’re to always honor the name of the Lord. As you teach it and model it, your kids will learn respect for spiritual authority - and for every other kind of authority as well.

The Evidence of Design

There are four basic evidences of God's existence: 1) Creation, 2) Design, 3) Morality and 4) Fine Tuning. In this post we'll look at the evidence of design.

In the same way that every creation reflects a creator, every design reflects a designer. Even if creation was in complete disorder, it would still powerfully point towards a creator. But that’s not the case. Not only has the universe and everything in it been created, it’s clearly been created with design.

Plato decided that it was reasonable to believe in God based on “the order of the motion of the stars...” In other words, he saw that it was designed!

Sir Isaac Newton said, “When I look at the solar system, I see the earth at the right distance from the sun to receive the proper amounts of heat and light. This did not happen by chance.” In other words - it happened by design! And every design reflects a designer! Let me illustrate...

Imagine you walk into my office, see a can of Pepsi sitting on my desk, and ask “How did that get there?” What if I told you: Millennia ago, a huge explosion sent a small meteor spinning through space. As it cooled, a caramel-colored, effervescent liquid formed on its surface. As time passed, aluminum crept out of the water and shaped itself into just these dimensions. Over time, this thing formed itself a one-time retractable lid from which a crease appeared, a bit off-center, and out of it grew a pull-tab. Centuries later, red, white, and blue paint fell from the sky and clung to its exterior, forming the letters P-e-p-s-i on its surface. (Remember now: This Pepsi can fits perfectly in the palm of the normal-sized human hand. Its volume is just about right for satisfying one person’s desire for something sweet and liquid. It has just enough caffeine to pep you up, but not so much that you realize you’re actually in an artificial state of stimulation. Its contents are always the same. Its quality never varies.)

How many scientific explanations about the nature of matter and the origins of the universe would I have to give to convince you that the Pepsi can happened by chance vs by design? What are the odds that something this complex, useful, comfortable and attractive came about as a result of a random collision of molecules? Rational human beings conclude: The can is too carefully designed to have been formed by chance or coincidence! Some very smart people did some careful thinking and planning to create it.

Well, creation, like the can of Pepsi, shows evidence of design. Take for example the banana. The banana fits perfectly in the palm of your hand. In fact, it fits better than the Pepsi can. It’s been thoughtfully made with a non-slip surface. It comes with a time-sensitive indicator on the outside to let you know the condition of the contents before you even open it. Green means “don’t eat me yet”. Yellow means “eat me now” and black means “too late - you should’ve eaten me earlier.” The banana’s top contains a pull-tab for convenient opening. Pull back firmly on the tab, and it peels neatly according to its pre-made perforations. Unlike the Pepsi can, this wrapper is environmentally sensitive, made completely of bio-degradable substances that in time enrich the soil it nestles in. If left uneaten, it has pre-programmed orders to reproduce itself into a whole new fruit-bearing plant, so it is a virtually inexhaustible food-producing source (wouldn’t it be cool if your soda could reproduce all on its on?). The banana is full of bodybuilding calories and is easy for the stomach to digest. And the Maker-of-the-banana has even curved it toward the face to make the whole eating experience easier and more pleasant.

Now like the Pepsi can, it’s very clear the banana was designed - that someone with intelligence put some careful thought and planning into the design of the banana. But let me ask you a question: How is it that some people can look at the design present in a can of Pepsi and conclude “Someone made this!”, yet when they look at creation and see the same design and careful planning, conclude “It happened by chance!”? When someone draws conclusions so inconsistently, to me it reveals their prejudice against God as well as their commitment to any theory (no matter how silly) so long as the theory doesn’t include God.

Things are much easier for the Christian. Not being committed to eliminating God as an option no matter what the evidence shows, the Christian has a simple answer. God not only created the universe, but is also responsible for the design found within that which he created. King David (the guy who killed Goliath with the sling shot) said to God in Psalm 139:14, “Thank you for making me so wonderfully complex! Your workmanship is marvelous...” NLT Why did David believe God existed? He saw clearly that he was designed, and as we’ve just learned: every design reflects a designer. 

Psalm 141:4

David prays in Psalm 141:4, "Do not let my heart be drawn to what is evil so that I take part in wicked deeds..." This is similar to The Lord's Prayer in Matthew 6 where Jesus instructs us to pray "And lead us not into temptation but deliver us from the evil one" (v.13). 

Our hearts are inclined toward evil because we were born with a sinful nature. Galatians 5:17 says "The sinful nature wants to do evil, which is just the opposite of what the Spirit wants. And the Spirit gives us desires that are the opposite of what the sinful nature desires. These two forces are constantly fighting each other..." We have received our current bodies from Adam (that is, we have all descended from Adam) and since Adam sinned we were born with a sin nature. However, we will receive our new bodies from Christ and since Christ never sinned we will not have a sin nature in heaven. But on this side of eternity our hearts, like David's heart, will be inclined towards sin. 

So are we left defenseless against these rebellious hearts we have? No! We have the superweapon of prayer. 2 Corinthians 10:4 says "The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world. On the contrary, they have divine power to demolish strongholds." A superweapon can turn around the outcome of a war very quickly. And that's exactly what prayer can do. 

Since temptations abound, so must our prayers! Here's a suggested prayer you could pray based off Psalm 141:4, Matthew 6:13, Galatians 5:17 and 2 Corinthians 10:4. 

Heavenly Father, my heart is inclined towards evil more than I like to admit. Please change my heart. I don't want to be guilty of practicing wickedness. Help me to do everything I can to avoid temptation, but when we do cross paths, help me to come out the winner and not the loser. I hate the conflicting desires within me! One part wants to do good but at the same time another part wants to do evil. Help me resist the part that wants to do wrong and give in to the part that wants to do right. I'm not trusting in my own strength to live right, I'm trusting in the power You provide when I pray. Amen. 

Questions from Psalm Week One

We started a new teaching series this past Sunday on the book of Psalms. Here are two questions I've received so far: 

Question #1: I have a question about Psalms 1.  If we are supposed to distance ourselves from sinners then how do we ultimately bring them to Christ?  Does our refusal to associate with them have a positive impact and start the conversation? I would like to hear your thoughts/advice.

Question #2: I really enjoyed the sermon Sunday on psalms. I found the way you talked about it very relatable, and in a way that I could easily understand. I had a question about Psalm 1:1, "Oh the joys of those who do not follow the advice of the wicked, or stand around with sinners, or join in with mockers." How can I make "The godly don't stand around with sinners" pertain to my life? I'm a student, and to be honest most of my friends I hang out with or know are not Christian. Don't get me wrong, I do have a connection to the small Christian group here at school, but does this mean I should only hang out with them? School is hard enough as it is with schoolwork and temptation, but I think it would be harder if I didn't have my friends. Thanks for your time!

Answer: As Christians we are to use our lives to point people to Jesus. Obviously, we can't do that if we aren't around those who are not saved. But when those that are not saved are having a more negative influence on us than we are having on them, even though it's scary, it's best to put some distance between or even end the relationship.

Let's consider the options we have...

Option#1: You have fewer friends. And I know that sounds terrible, but consider the other option. 

Option #2: You have lots of friends that pull you down, cause you to turn away from your Christian faith, which winds you up in hell.

Something else to consider is the definition of a true friend. Proverbs 27:17 says that as iron sharpens iron one person sharpens another. A true friend builds you up and doesn't tear you down. If you have people in your life that are tearing you down, they are not true friends, at least not according to God's word.

Maybe the friends you currently have are not negatively influencing you. If that's the case, keep using your influence to point them to Christ as God provides the opportunity.

I will pray that God helps you to see clearly which kind of friends you have. Have a great day and thanks again for writing.