I don’t often read newspapers, but rather get most of my news online. One day, however, I picked up a copy of the local paper sitting on a table while eating my lunch at the office. About the only thing that really caught my interest was the section entitled “Police Report.” I was curious to see if anyone I knew was listed in that section.

I was shocked to see four of the eight people charged by the city police department cited for a misdemeanor of which I had never heard: aggressive begging. I looked it up in the Municipal Code and there it was. Section 46-62 states, “No person shall engage in aggressive begging in any public place in the city.” The section defines “aggressive begging as “begging with the intent to intimidate another person into giving money or goods.” The section goes on to define the words “begging,” “public place,” and “intimidate.” I honestly had never heard of this.

There is one case in the Bible, nonetheless, where Jesus encourages us to plead persistently with God for specific needs.

And He told them a parable to the effect that they ought always to pray and not lose heart. – Luke 18:1

Jesus expounded on the parable in Luke 18:2-8 when He told a story of a woman who constantly begged a local judge to give her a just decision against her adversary. The judge finally relented, not due to a desire for justice, but due to a desire for peace and quiet! Jesus contrasted a godless judge who cared not for doing right but acted only from selfishness with a loving Father God who takes great joy in giving good things to His children. He encouraged His followers to cry out to God “day and night” and expect God to act “speedily.” Jesus then equated this kind of persistent prayer with strong faith when He asked the question, “…when the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on earth?”

The lesson for us is to continue to pray persistently for those needs that weigh heavily on our heart. We may feel that God is not listening or does not care, but our Lord encourages us to prove that we believe by not giving up in our prayer effort.

What needs have you carried for a long time? Has God seemed to stop listening? Do you think God is punishing you by ignoring you? Has the devil tempted you to give up and look for answers elsewhere? Let me encourage you to hang in there and keep praying.

Hang in there; your answer is on the way in due time. While it may be illegal in your city, God honors aggressive begging.

Suffice it to say that the Church is under attack these days. Abroad, Christians are barbarically beheaded for their belief; and here at home we have become the victim state-sponsored discrimination and cultural intolerance. In these days, how we respond to the treatment will either draw people to Jesus or repel them once and for all. How then, should we respond to our culture’s ill treatment of our faith?

Peter wrote a letter to Christians flushed from their homes and uprooted from their lives through the fires of persecution. He wrote to encourage beleaguered believers around the world to hold true to the faith and to respond in a Christ-like manner. His advice to those 1^st Century believers is sound wisdom for us today.

Honor everyone. Love the brotherhood. Fear God. Honor the emperor. 1 Peter 2:17

Honor everyone. To honor is to attribute worth or value to something or someone. We give honor when we recognize intrinsic worth. The reason we still experience racism and brutality is because we view others with little regard. We think because of their skin color, occupation, social standing, or appearance (or any number of other excuses) that they are worth less than we are. This Biblical command reminds us to treat EVERYONE with respect and dignity, even when we don’t agree with them.

Love the brotherhood. Why should we expect our culture to respect our fellow Jesus-followers when we don’t respect them? Isn’t it quite hypocritical for us to get upset at our culture for harassing and persecuting Christians when we are so critical of each other, gossip about each other, back-bite, lie, and cheat eat other? We need to love our brothers and sisters in Christ the way He loves us – sacrificially and unconditionally.  Jesus said that the world will know we are His disciples indeed by the way we love each other.

Fear God. We no longer recognize the holiness of God. We have turned the sacred into common. I’m not talking about superficial, legalistic displays of fleshly piety; I am talking about heart issues. The most sacred place of all is the believer’s heart, yet we allow our hearts to be divided – giving God only a share while making room for sinful attitudes, thoughts, actions, and pursuits.

Honor the emperor. Regardless of our personal political leanings, we should respect for the office our leaders hold. Whether we like it or not, the “powers that be are ordained of God.” (Romans 13:1) We can and should sound off on matters of morality and righteousness in the public and government forum. We can and should express discontent and disagreement with platforms, policies, procedures, and practices in government. We should NEVER, however, personally attack our leaders. I confess, I have all too often been guilty of such, but God has shown me the need to pray for our leaders and pray that God would send us leaders after His heart.

Respect for all, love for fellow believers, devotion to God, and honor to our leaders. This is a tall order, indeed, since we have grown accustomed to behaving on the contrary; but in these times of harassment and persecution, God has shown us how not merely to survive but to THRIVE.

We live an ever increasingly fragmented life. We have 86,000 seconds in a day, and it seems s though we cannot divide them adequately between all that is demanded of us and needed by us. Most of us are pulled in so many directions that we feel a little like William Wallace in his last scene in Braveheart. We certainly would like some freedom from the tyranny of the urgent that ungulfs us.

The best among us (a group of which I am not a member) have grown adept at what we call prioritizing. You know the drill, make a list of all the things required or demanded of us and put them in linear order, the most important at the top and the most dispensable at the bottom. The list changes according to the “Squeaky Wheel Principle.” Even the religiously conscientious will include God at the top of the list of priorities, asserting the He is the most important thing/person on our list.

Jesus, however, is not interested in occupying the top spot on our priority list. While we would never explicitly state it, we can put Him at the top of the list, give him token time, and then move on to the other items on the list leaving Him behind. Notice carefully the position Jesus desires in our lives:

And He is the head of the body, the church. He is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead,
that in everything He might be preeminent. (Colossians 1:18)

Jesus does not want to be preeminent OVER the things in our life, but He wants to be the most important thing IN it.   Instead of being one item on a list of many, even the top item on the list, He instead wants to be the reason for us engaging all of those other items. Jesus wants to use the roles of my life for His purposes.

I challenge you today to look for ways throughout this day to use the situations of the day for His purpose in your life. Speak a word of encouragement to those you encounter. Spread the love of Jesus, be patient and kind to people, offer to pray for those around you, invite them to church or, better yet, as you go on tour way, tell someone what Jesus has done for you.

The challenge is to change the priority paradigm from a linear list over which Jesus sits at the top, to a multi-spoked wheel with Jesus at the hub giving support, meaning, and value to everything in our life.

As this year’s baseball season dawns, allow me to share with you a modern day baseball/church parable that has circulated for years.  I am unaware of the source, but may it challenge us to be in church on Sunday ready to field our position.

Behold a ball team went forth to play a game of ball.

Just as the umpire was saying “Batter Up,” the catcher for the home team arrived and took his place. The center fielder and the second baseman didn’t arrive until the middle of the second inning. The first baseman didn’t come at all, but later sent his regrets and said that he had to go to a family reunion. The third baseman likewise failed to show up, having been up late the night before watching television, and preferred to spend the rest of the day in bed. The left fielder was away attending another ball game across town. The shortstop was present, but left his glove at home.

Verily when the pitcher stepped onto the mound, he looked around to see his teammates, and lo, his heart was heavy when he saw many empty places in the lineup. The game had been announced, and visitors were already in the stands to see the game. There was nothing left for him to do but go ahead and pitch and hope for the best.

So the pitcher tightened his belt, stepped to the mound and did his level best to put it over the plate. But for some strange reason he just couldn’t find the groove. Some of his teammates began to ride him for wild pitching and booed him all through the game.

At the close of the game, his home team was mercilessly beaten. The game produced a considerable amount of discussion and when the rest of the team heard about the disgraceful defeat, everyone decided that the reasons should be found. They finally came to a unanimous decision: it must have been the pitcher’s poor pitching that lost the game.

Behold, a sunny Sunday morning, a preacher stood up to preach . . . but that’s another story.

May God help us all to be team players who contribute faithfully to the work He wants to do in our churches.

There is a difference between making a mistake and committing a sin.

Let me give you an illustration from family life. Children like to try to do things for themselves. A child trying to be helpful and pour her own milk may not always pay close attention to what she is doing and sometimes may spill the milk. That is an accident. She didn’t mean to, she didn’t plan to, she didn’t spend a long time resisting the urge to spill it, she didn’t in her mind say, “I know I am not supposed to spill this, but I just love to watch it puddle on the floor.”

When such an accident occurs, a parent patiently gets her a wet cloth and helps her clean up her mess so she can learn from the experience. Then together they try again and pour another glass of milk.

Another time a child may venture out into the yard without telling anyone. NOT AN ACCIDENT. Mom told him several times not to do that, warned of the dangers, and apprised him of the consequences. Yet he did it anyway. For that he is punished. He was again given the reasons why he should not go outside – warned of the dangers, and apprised of further consequences should he do it again. Mom doesn’t punish him because it’s fun to do so, but because she loves him and knows that he is not yet able to fend for himself outside alone. Parents punish to reinforce the dangers of willfully disobeying parents who have a child’s best interest at heart.

The difference . . . when milk spills, there is more where that came from, but if a child is harmed outside, there is only one of that particular precious child. With sin, the stakes are much higher.

If you have made some unwise choices, cut yourself some slack. Sure you may be reaping the unpleasant consequences of making mistakes, but God is not punishing you. He may be allowing you to remain in those consequences for a season to remind you of the need to be more careful and seek His wisdom next time, but it is not punishment for sin. Thank God that He is willing to clean up the mess with you and pour you another glass of milk so you can try again.

If you are under His chastisement because you have sinned – willfully disobeyed Him – then know also that the motive of His chastisement is love and the purpose of His chastisement is correction. He hasn’t abandoned you, but in love He is in the process of maturing you and preparing you to achieve His ultimate purpose for you – the image of Christ formed in you.

We grow spiritually when we deal with sin seriously and learn through mistakes. The two are different, but both can be stepping-stones to growth.

“Kick ‘em while they’re down” seems to be the philosophy of many these days. Some people revel in the hurts of others, and the only reason I can figure is that is takes their minds off of their own ills. Let a man make a mistake and the rumors start flying. Let a woman have a bad run of circumstances and suddenly she is the “talk” of the town. I’ve seen too many hurting people damaged irreparably by others who like to pile misery on top of misery in the lives of other people.

Yet, consider this descriptive prophecy concerning Jesus:

…a bruised reed He will not break,
and a faintly burning wick He will not quench;
He will faithfully bring forth justice. – Isaiah 42:3

Let me suggest two thoughts to consider today. First, if your tender heart (bruised reed) is broken or you feel like you are burned out (smoldering wick), know that Jesus is not about to finish you off. No, rather, He is in the process of eventually bringing justice to your situation. He loves you and is not finished with you. That justice will come on HIS terms and HIS timing and probably will not match your definition of justice, but it will be right and good in HIS eyes.

Second, who do you know that is a bruised reed or smoldering wick? Take the time to intentionally encourage them. Keep them at the forefront of your prayers and speak hope into their lives as often as you can. Don’t be part of the evil crowd who, with pack mentality, find great pleasure in ripping the vulnerable to shreds.

Every person is redeemable and redeem-worthy. Where we have been and what we have done matters so much less than where we are and where we are headed. Every saint has a past and every sinner has a future. Join me today in committing ourselves to being a healing salve to hurting hearts.