MY BLOG POSTS

“Doing Good” is part of almost every religion, part of groups on every side of the political landscape; it is part of slogans and campaigns. It is everywhere. Christians don’t have the corner on the “Good Deeds” market. But we do have a reason for doing good that is different than anyone else’s. Or, at least, we should.

In one of Jesus’ most famous sermons, he said, “Let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven.” (Mt. 5:16) So why do we do good? To glorify God and point people to Him.

But, sometimes, I think even Christians forget that. In fact, sometimes, I think Christians fall into the trap of thinking doing good for others means that good will happen to them. They take the idea of “karma” from eastern religions and believe that is a biblical idea. That God will bless you with material things or no disease or no pain if the good you do outweighs your bad.

But that idea cannot be supported by scripture or by experience. Jesus himself was the best man to ever walk this earth. He was Emmanuel – God with us. If anyone “deserved” good, it was this man who healed the sick and cared for the lepers and ate with the outcasts. Yet he was killed. The disciples all faced horrible ends. These were men who loved God and served others with everything they had. I can think of half a dozen people I know, right off the top of my head, who are amazing, wonderful people, people who “deserve” good things. But these people have lost children, lost parents, lost homes, suffered deep hurts, emotionally and physically. All the good these people did did not protect them from hurt and pain.

So why do good? Because it honors God. Because it points people to Him. Because we were created to be part of a community of people who reflects Christ. And what do we get out of it? Wealth that cannot be measured by anything on this earth: Peace that passes understanding. Uncontainable joy. Faith that can withstand storms. Hope in a future that is infinitely better than even the best days we have in the present.

Teens today are having sex. A lot. Studies indicate that at least half of all teenagers are sexually active in high school. Personally, I think that number is conservative. It is as casual a part of many relationships as the goodnight kiss was back in the “old days.” It isn’t a stigma, isn’t embarrassing,isn’t shameful. It is considered a natural part of adolescence, necessary, even beneficial.

Those who disagree with this view of sex are seen as ridiculous prudes. We are mocked on TV shows, movies, even Broadway musicals. “What is the big deal?” They say. It’s a primal need, an itch that needs to be scratched. Monogamy in general is hopelessly out of fashion, even within marriage. So abstinence before marriage?? Laughable at best; harmful at worst.

Christian parents have an increasingly hard time with this issue, as well. Some don’t ever want to say the word. It is NOT a discussion they want to have with their “babies.” Other parents focus on just the negatives: teen pregnancy, STD’s, heartache…have sex and your life will be ruined. Some, who made mistakes in their own teen years, feel hypocritical telling their children to abstain when they chose not to.

Those of us – parents and teens alike – who hold to the Bible as our foundation must recognize two things:

1) Sex is a good thing

2) Sex is entirely reserved for the marriage relationship

We hear a lot about the second point. And, while people may not like it, there’s no getting away from the fact that sex is for marriage. Period. Not for people in a non-married, but committed, relationship; not for people planning to get married. Sex is for marriage.

Why?

Because of reason #1 – it is a good thing. It isn’t terrible, evil, scary, or disgusting. Sex is a gift given by a good God for our enjoyment. Within marriage, there is guilt-free, committed, life-long enjoyment of each other. It is part of the “one flesh” relationship God grants to the children He loves so much. It enhances a marriage, helps couples remain connected, provides a level of intimacy that, hopefully, carries over to all other aspects of marriage. Couples with healthy marriages have healthy sex lives.

It is because of how good this gift of sex is that we should guard it and protect it. While the desire may be there long before we can satisfy it, we are not powerless to give into it.

Teens, you don’t have to be in the half that chooses to give this gift away. Stand strong, even when everyone around you is falling for the world’s lies. God has something great for you – don’t miss out on His best.

Parents, you HAVE to talk with your kids about this subject. Not just once. Often. Pray for them. Pray for their future spouse. Model a healthy marriage for your kids. Don’t just kiss with the bedroom door closed. Let them see you kiss, give little tush-grabs. It’ll gross them out, but that’s all right. They see it with non-married couples all the time. They need to see it within marriages.

“For this is the will of God, your sanctification: that you abstain from sexual immorality; that each one of you know how to control his own body in holiness and honor, not in the passion of lust like the Gentiles who do not know God.” ~I Thess. 4:3-5

I have several talents I am grateful for, that I hone and try to improve, that I practice alone and with groups. But I have one particular talent that brings me far more shame than pleasure: speaking without thinking.

I have used this talent in far too many places with far too many people to far too disastrous results. It’s not always end-of-the-world stuff. But it is always annoying at best and damaging at worst.

When I was in college, my friends would laugh at me because, no matter what was being discussed, I’d have a story for it. Rather than listening to what others were saying, engaging them, asking them questions about their story, I sat waiting, mentally preparing for when I could speak and regale the group with my story. Looking back now, I realize how incredibly self centered I was. And how incredibly gracious my friends were: They just let me talk, rather than turning to walk away because – invariably – I would be telling a story they’d already heard.

And that’s a more positive example. Let’s not even talk about when I yelled at a good friend, calling her a selfish jerk in front of a whole crowd of our friends. Or when I told a young man, in a very unkind manner, that he was not worthy of the girl he was dating. Or when I completely lost it in front of the entire cast of a play I was directing (more than once, for more than one play).

In every case, I let my mouth run while my brain raced to catch up. By the time I realized how ridiculous, rude, and/or arrogant I had been, it was too late. The damage had been done. What I needed to do, in every case, was to just shut my mouth.

I am going to get frustrated, I am going to get angry, I am always going to think of stories I could tell. But that doesn’t mean that I need to say everything that pops into my head. I need to think over what I am going to say, I need to make sure that what I am saying is kind, beneficial, necessary. I need to guard my mouth so that what comes out builds people up and doesn’t tear them down.

“The mouths of the righteous utter wisdom,
and their tongues speak what is just.” ~Psalm 37:30

“You’re going to test us over EVERYTHING we’ve learned this whole semester?”

Semester exams are just a few weeks away and students who have barely said a word for the last few months are suddenly wide awake and quite vocal. “But why??” “We can use notes, right?” “You don’t mean everything do you?”

I used to be super easy in my semester exams. It is a lot of material, and the students do have several other classes to keep up with, and, yes, you can successfully navigate life without being able to identify a predicate nominative or explain the theme of “Tell Tale Heart.”

I have changed, though. Now, I do test over everything, and I do expect my students to be able to identify a predicate nominative and explain the theme of “Tell Tale Heart.”

Do I hate my students??

Absolutely not.

Do I think they’re all going to be English majors?

I always hope for a few. But, no. That’s not it.

It’s because of my “semester exam principle”: Retention of information is crucial to success in every facet of life.

Students today have SO MUCH information that it all ends up just crashing over them like a wave. They are drenched with information, but then they “dry up” and get ready for the next soaking. Nothing sticks, nothing lasts. I see students cramming for tests every day, stuffing information in their brains just long enough to get a good grade, then forgetting it.

What would happen if our doctors did that? Our accountants? Our pilots?

And though students think it doesn’t matter right now, those of us “older” folks know that the habits we develop in school carry on through college and into our careers. 

But even more important than our grades or career, this principle applies to our Christian life.

A quick search of the word “remember” in scriptures yields 231 results. Several of those verses refer to God remembering his people and his promises. Many are commands for believers to remember God’s commands. Over and over again, we see the prophets lamenting the fact that the people of God have not remembered His faithfulness. We see the writers of the epistles challenging the readers to remember what they have been taught, what they have seen, what they know to be true.

So don’t let all that information just wash over you. Soak it deep into your pores. Drink it in.

Remember.