Remembering David

Remembering David by Gavin Duerson, May 17, 2023

This past week our simple church lost someone special.  David was our next-door neighbor and a faithful pillar in our simple church family.  Loving and being loved by Dave has been one of the biggest blessings of hosting simple church on our street.  Simple/house church creates family and as we grieve the loss of Dave, I realize how true this is.

I was honored to facilitate Dave’s “Celebration of Life Service” this past Saturday.  It was a true joy to hear others tell stories about Dave.  His hilarious personality, love for others, and desire to always help people were common themes.  The stories of the jokes and laughs Dave and I shared could fill up pages.  We experienced Dave’s love in so many wonderful ways.  He already is so greatly missed.

I wanted to share a part of the message I passed on to friends and family.  I’m grateful for being able to see God work in Dave’s life through the interactions and relationships that developed in our simple church.

Today, this is called a “Celebration of Life Service.”  But it doesn’t feel like a celebration, does it?  If Dave were here with us wearing some goofy shirt or costume and we were having a party, good food, and good Dave stories, it would seem much more like a celebration.  But that cannot happen.  Last Sunday at our house church meeting this passage was brought up.

“It is better to go to a house of mourning than to go to a house of feasting, for death is the destiny of everyone; the living should take this to heart.” (Ecclesiastes 7:2)

The Scriptures teach that there is something really healthy and good about seasons of life like this – as painful as they may be.  As I got to know David after Debbie (Dave’s wife) passed, he would often say that as painful as losing Carrie (Dave’s daughter) was, losing Debbie was worse because he was now alone.  He no longer had a partner to help him deal with his grief.  His honesty was a real gift to others because it gave those who knew him a window into God’s work in Dave’s life.  In our church, Dave didn’t try to just move on or forget about his losses or pretend to be okay.  I saw him lean into his grief and “take it to heart,” as this Scripture mentions.

We have and will continue to speak a lot of Dave and all the amazing things about him – and rightly so.  But he wasn’t a perfect person.  He had faults as we all do.  When he started meeting with our church family, he would often say things like, “I just don’t know if God can forgive me.”  He voiced doubt about his standing with God.  But two weeks ago, when Dave was on his way to a follow-up appointment with a doctor, I had a conversation with Dave that I’d like to share.

Dave told me they were going to run some tests and that everything would be fine, but that if it wasn’t fine and for some reason he didn’t make it, he wanted me to tell everyone that he knew that Jesus Christ lived in his heart, that he was going to Heaven, and that he was 0% afraid of death.  I told him that I didn’t anticipate having to have those conversations any time soon and that I expected him to have many more years ahead of him and to that he said, “Well, it’s true.  I’m not afraid of dying and I’m ready.  I have had an amazing life.”  

How does someone move from wondering if God can forgive them to making such a bold and confident statement like that?  How might we arrive at a similar place through our grief?

First and foremost, it begins by leaning into our pain and grief – running to God and not from Him.  That’s what Dave did.  I think he would encourage everyone here today to do likewise as they deal with their grief today and in the days to come.

Secondly, it does involve getting to know what Jesus is really like.  My wife shared that Dave reminded her of Jesus.  In the Bible, in the book of 1 John, the author, reflecting on Jesus, states that the Christians loved Jesus because He (Jesus) first loved them.  My wife mentioned that we wouldn’t have picked David to become what has amounted to an adopted member of our family.  We wouldn’t have done that, but we grew to love Dave because from the moment we moved across the street, he loved us first.  He showered us with his love as he has many of you here today.

Over the past seven years, we have spent a great amount of time together with Dave discussing and experiencing the amazing and unconditional love of God.  During this time, our family welcomed Wylie, who was not expected to live beyond a few days, and Dave really loved her.  He would always call her “Ms. Wylie.”  Not only has Ms. Wylie played a big role in us all understanding God’s love better, but also the multiple conversations around the person of Jesus we often shared did, too.

It is so easy for us to fall into this religious trap that says we try hard to love God and if we do it good enough God will love us back.  While this is what a lot of people believe Christianity is about, it’s the opposite of what Jesus is about.  It is as backwards as thinking that if my daughter Wylie loves me good enough then I will love her in return.  This lie is so easy to creep into our minds.  When we get to know Jesus, we realize that He came to flip this whole idea of God’s love being based on our performance on its head.  He came to show us all that He loved us first and his love is perfect and powerful enough to take care of all our mistakes.  When we encounter His love, then we can truly love God.  We love because He first loved us!

I want to conclude by sharing this passage in its context with you all because I think it beautifully explains the truths that David was able to absorb and ultimately led him to a place where he was able to express the things he expressed to me on his way to the doctor appointment a few days ago.

1 John 4:4-19 [NIV]
⁷ Dear friends, let us love one another, for love comes from God. Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God. ⁸ Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love. ⁹ This is how God showed his love among us: He sent his one and only Son into the world that we might live through him. ¹⁰ This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins. ¹¹ Dear friends, since God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. ¹² No one has ever seen God; but if we love one another, God lives in us and his love is made complete in us.

¹³ This is how we know that we live in him and he in us: He has given us of his Spirit. ¹⁴ And we have seen and testify that the Father has sent his Son to be the Savior of the world. ¹⁵ If anyone acknowledges that Jesus is the Son of God, God lives in them and they in God. ¹⁶ And so we know and rely on the love God has for us.

God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in them. ¹⁷ This is how love is made complete among us so that we will have confidence on the day of judgment: In this world we are like Jesus. ¹⁸ There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment. The one who fears is not made perfect in love. 

¹⁹ We love because he first loved us.
_______________________________

David loved his family.  Cars.  Music.  Food.  Making people laugh.  He loved greatly, and in the end, Dave was confident about his transition to the next life because He learned most of all that God is love, and that he was loved by God despite his mistakes.  He embraced what Jesus did for him when He absorbed all his sin when He died on the cross.  I’m confident that if Dave could speak to us today from where he sits, he would long for us to lean into our grief and get to know the real Jesus as well.

Gavin Duerson, Simple Church Alliance

Forgiving vs Fingerpointing

This blog has frequently mentioned the need for grace for our enemies (February 15, 2015, May 7, 2018, December 23, 2018, April 5, 2020) and others.  My mother always warned me that whenever I point an index finger at anyone (April 18, 2020), there are three other fingers pointing back at me!  So a lot of my reasons for blogging on this theme so often is that so often we . . . I . . . need it!  Charles Spurgeon once said, “If any man thinks ill of you, do not be angry with him, because you are far worse than he thinks you to be.”😳  Thus, the apostle encouraged us “not to think of [ourselves] more highly than [we] ought to think, but to think with sober judgment, each according to the measure of faith that God has assigned.” (Romans 12:3)

Forgiveness is not needed for someone who has not intentionally offended.

To forgive is defined as “to grant pardon, cancel a debt, cease to feel resentment, to give up all claim of accounting!”

I knew a man who was owed quite a few hundred dollars by another who had borrowed and damaged some equipment.  A payment against the damages came the first month, late the second, and then excuse after excuse . . .
“I’ll get the next payment to you . . . soon.”

Another friend advised him to write a letter telling him the debt was forgiven in hopes that the offender would feel such guilt that he would promptly repay what was owed.  But after writing the letter, he told me he could not hold onto the offense anymore.  What his advisor had intended as a deceit to make the offender feel guilty in fact worked a miracle of grace in his heart!  When the offender approached him to offer to resume repayment, he had to decline.  He told him, “As I said in the letter, I have forgiven you in Jesus’ name.  You do not owe me anything anymore.”  That’s what it is to forgive!

So before you get mad at the driver who is tailgating you, why not just let him pass?  Before you develop a grudge against a neighbor who throws their dog’s dung on your side of the fence, why not give them a container on your side of the fence in which to put it?  And when they throw it beside the container, why not just pick it up for them?  Instead of carrying that load of anger at that relative who insulted you in front of the rest of the family, can you find it in your heart to pray FOR them, asking Father to show them mercy?  Think of that one who lied to you or about you, who cost you that promotion, who cheated you out of some money, who disappointed you so cruelly.

And with three fingers pointing back at me, I suggest that you forgive.  It will not be easy,  but oh, the grace and joy that will flow in your innermost being when you feel God’s love pouring through you to them.  Enjoy it . . . until the next time you need to forgive . . . then do it again.

Here are a few more thoughts I have collected over the years about forgiveness.  Apply the ones you need today:

• As C.S, Lewis noted in The Weight of Glory, “To be a Christian means to forgive the inexcusable because God has forgiven the inexcusable in you.”
• “Forgiveness is not an occasional act; it is a constant attitude.” Martin Luther King
• “It’s definitely not forgive and forget. There are some things I will always remember, but forgiveness changes the way you remember.”  Chris Conlee, Love Works (a movie)
• “Forgiveness begins by your giving the offense to the Lord.” Paul David Tripp
• “To forgive is to set a prisoner free and discover that the prisoner was you!”  Lewis B. Smeades
• “We are most like beasts when we kill. We are most like men when we judge. We are most like God when we forgive.”  William Arthur Ward
• “Jesus calls his followers to sacrificially turn the other cheek. Jesus puts no cap on the limits of our forgiveness — 70 x 7. We can’t use another’s sin as an excuse for our own.” Ed Stetzer
• “Remember where we stand, by meaning our words when we say in our prayers, “Forgive our trespasses as we forgive those that trespass against us.” We are offered forgiveness on no other terms. To refuse it is to refuse God’s mercy for ourselves. There is no hint of exceptions and God means what he says.” C.S.Lewis
• “Regret cannot change your past; worry cannot change your future.  Only forgiveness can change your past; only trust can change your future.” Steve Elliott
• “If we love Him, we obey Him.  Forgiveness is an agonizing act of obedience, but after the agony we see grace flow, restoring what was broken. God can then continue to use us in His Kingdom work.”  Jane Pappenhagen
• “The Christian life begins and continues on the foundation of forgiveness, not on a promise of protection and help in a difficult world.” Dr. Larry Crabb
• “Lord, forgive me for listening to the news and getting bitter and angry at the lost, forgetting that these are people who are deceived by the enemy of their souls.” gavin duerson
• “The weak can never forgive. Forgiveness is an attribute of the strong.”  Ghandi
• “Everyone thinks forgiveness is a great idea, until they have something to forgive.”  C.S.Lewis

And from some sincere hearts who have been forgiven:

Jesus Is Lord In Brooklyn – Wordless Wednesday

Remember Lot’s Wife – A Warning for Christ’s Disciples

“Remember Lot’s wife!” Luke 17:32
(https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=luke+17%3A22-37%29&version=ESV)

For those of you who hold to religious beliefs, this blog is specifically for Christ-followers who do not depend on religion, but on the relationship that we can have with The Uncreated One, the One True God, who has revealed Himself in Jesus, through whom we anticipate eternal life.

Luke 17 is an interesting place for Jesus to give this warning.  Note, it is not to those who do not know the Scriptures (granting that those hearing this word of caution only had the Old Testament), but to those who were scholars of the Hebrew revelations of YHWH, The God Who Is.  Furthermore, this ALERT is given to his followers in the middle of His explanation of what it will be like in the Last Days. 
“Remember Lot’s wife!”

In Genesis 19 the story is told of how God’s angels were sent to the Twin Sin Cities of Sodom and Gomorrah.  Forced homosexuality was common; in fact, Lot offered his two daughters to try to appease a mob (not a very virtuous dad!), but this only enraged the mob more.  Such was the lifestyle and violence of these cities that people could do whatever they wanted as long as they had the power to do so.  Worship of pagan gods often involved sexual perversions and human sacrifice, especially of children.  Anything that was pleasurable was allowed; if it feels good, just do it.  They lived in a fertile valley with comforts and ease with little to disturb their “peace,” such as it was if you were among the powerful. 
“Remember Lot’s wife!”

Anyone could have escaped with Lot if they had been willing, but Lot could not even persuade his future sons-in-law to run from the coming calamity. 

Finally, the angels literally dragged Lot and his wife and daughters out of the city with the warning, “Escape for your life.  Do not look back or stop anywhere in the valley.  Escape to the hills, lest you be swept away.”  As Lot fled the metropolis, The God Who Is sent fiery hail onto Sodom and Gomorrah, (possibly a serious meteor shower and/or an earthquake along the East African Geological Rift that would have released petroleum and gases) so terrible that the cities and the populace were suddenly and totally destroyed . . . but as they ran from the destruction, Lot’s wife looked back . . . and became a pillar of salt! 
“Remember Lot’s wife!”

Why would Lot’s wife have looked back?  Think about it.  Their family had a nice house, lots of meat, fruit and vegetables, deep wells with plenty of water, a comfortable climate, luxurious clothes and rich temples; her husband was a big shot in the city gate and she had siblings, uncles, aunts and cousins in town.  What did it matter if they had to tolerate some abortions, some child sacrifices, occasional murders, a little thievery, lying judges, adulterous neighbors and temple prostitution?  It was a good life and now they were moving to a “little city,” without all those comforts.  Zoar was not an attractive tourist destination!  So she looked back with longing for the things of the old life.  “Remember Lot’s wife!”

In Luke 17 Jesus begins by telling His disciples of the deceptions that will come, but warns that His coming will be like lightning flashing: instantaneous and clearly evident.  He then reminds His disciples of the good life Lot and his family had found in Sodom; “just as it was in the days of Lot — they were eating and drinking, buying and selling, planting and building.”  Then He sounds an ALARM!  “Remember Lot’s wife!”

God’s call to us at the end of time or at our deaths is not in and of itself salvific, just as the angels’ care for Lot and his family was not enough to save them if they still longed for the old life!

“Clearly that call is not going to produce a miraculous last-minute change in us out of all relation to our previous walk with the Lord.  No, in that moment we shall discover our heart’s real treasure.  If it is the Lord Himself, then there will be no backward look.  A backward glance decides everything.  It is so easy to become more attached to the gifts of God than to the Giver – and even, I should add to the work of God than to God Himself!”  Watchman Nee, The Normal Christian Life

What might tempt you to look back at that last minute, when you are about to take your last breath on earth or at that moment when Jesus parts the clouds and returns to catch away those who love Him?  What is your heart’s real treasure!?

Would you look back and wish for another day or two in your house?  Perhaps your desire would be for one more time in a position of power or recognition for your accomplishments.  Maybe your last thought will be about that one who offended you in some way; maybe you could get even if you had just a moment more on earth.  Would you want to stay just a little longer here in order to finish a task, watch another movie, relax in an easy chair or on a beach, eat another meal, see a son or daughter graduate, go on one more trip, work little more on your “bucket list?”
“Remember Lot’s wife!”

“Prosperity knits a man to the World.  He feels that he is ‘finding his place in it’, while really it is finding its place in him.  His increasing reputation, his widening circle of acquaintances, his sense of importance, the growing pressure of absorbing and agreeable work, build up in him a sense of being really at home on earth.”  C.S. Lewis

My hope for all of you who have received this in your email or on your WordPress Reader, and for the many of you who will read this when I email you, is that you will look forward to meeting Jesus face to face and “love His appearing.” (2 Timothy 4:8)

“Whoever seeks to preserve his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life will keep it.  I tell you, in that night there will be two in one bed.  One will be taken and the other left.” (Luke 17:33-34)
“Remember Lot’s wife!”

Love Your Enemies – Hostility Against Christian Churches

For any who doubt that persecution is coming to the American Church, enter “Is the USA becoming Anti-Christian” in a search engine.

• There you will find Politico’s scrutiny of “violent evangelical extremism;”
• a report on the FBI’s investigation into “violent radical-traditionalist Catholics” (those who prefer Latin masses);
• Time Magazine’s notice that “Regular Christians Are No Longer Welcome In American Culture;”
• a Yahoo News announcement that anti-Christian hostility is reaching “unprecedented levels in culture and government;”
• an article about the Department of Justice refusal to prosecute church vandals clearly identified on surveillance videos;
• another of Secretary of State Anthony Blinken’s disavowal of religious freedom being equal among paramount civil liberties along with freedom of speech, the press, free assembly and to petition the government, all guaranteed in the first amendment to the Constitution;
• Pew research that shows a rapid decline of Protestant and Catholic influence in our nation.

And these just scratch the surface!  But the best is yet to come!! 
We do not fear the growing hostility, but pray for our persecutors, love our enemies, and do good to all people, especially those of the household of faith.  “The blood of the martyrs is the seed of the church.” (Tertullian)
“Count it all joy when you meet trials of various kinds, for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness. And let steadfastness have its full effect, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing.” (James 1:2-4)
“Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who abuse you. To one who strikes you on the cheek, offer the other also, and from one who takes away your cloak do not withhold your tunic either.”  (Luke 6:27-29)
“Do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Rather fear him who can destroy both soul and body in hell. Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? And not one of them will fall to the ground apart from your Father. But even the hairs of your head are all numbered. Fear not, therefore; you are of more value than many sparrows. So everyone who acknowledges me before men, I also will acknowledge before my Father who is in heaven, but whoever denies me before men, I also will deny before my Father who is in heaven.” (Matthew 10:28-33)

Guest Blog:  Hostility Against Churches

by Arielle Del Turco, M.A.
On March 27, 2023, three children and three adults were killed in a shooting at The Covenant School, a private Christian school and a ministry of Covenant Presbyterian Church in Nashville, Tennessee.

The assailant shot through glass side doors to access areas throughout the building, including the church office and the children’s ministry. Covenant released a statement that said, “Our community is heartbroken. We are grieving tremendous loss and are in shock coming out of the terror that shattered our school and church.”¹

Research conducted by Family Research Council (FRC) indicates that criminal acts against churches have been steadily on the rise for the past several years, and the first quarter of 2023 has continued the upward trend. The first three months of 2023 saw approximately three times the number of acts of hostility perpetrated against churches in the same timeframe last year.

Act of Hostility Continue to Rise
In December 2022, FRC released an extensive publication documenting a sharp rise in acts of hostility against churches in the United States. Analyzing publicly available data from the past five years, FRC found a total of 420 documented acts of hostility that occurred between January 2018 and September 2022. The types of acts identified include vandalism, arson, gun-related incidents, bomb threats, and more. There also appeared to be an increase in frequency over the course of the reporting period. FRC’s report identified 137 acts of hostility against churches between January and September 2022. By comparison, there were 96 incidents in all 12 months of 2021. FRC also identified 54 incidents against churches in 2020, 83 in 2019, and 50 in 2018.

Since the launch of that report, FRC has continued to track acts of hostility against churches. The fourth quarter of 2022 saw an additional 54 incidents, for a total of 191 in 2022. That number is nearly double the previous year’s total of 96. In the first quarter of 2023, 69 incidents have already occurred. If this rate continues, 2023 will have the highest number of incidents of the six years FRC has tracked, continuing the upward trend. Most of the 2023 incidents occurred in January (43); 14 occurred in February, and 12 occurred in March.

Incidents per month, January-March 2023
Compared to the same timeframe in previous years, January through March of 2023 represents a significant increase in acts of hostility. In those same months, 2018 saw 15 acts of hostility against churches; 2019 saw 12; 2020 saw none; 2021 saw 14; and 2022 saw 24.

Criminal acts of vandalism and destruction of church property are symptomatic of a collapse in societal reverence and respect for houses of worship and religion — in this case, churches and Christianity. Some people appear increasingly comfortable lashing out against church buildings, pointing to a larger societal problem of marginalizing core Christian beliefs, including those that touch on hot-button political issues related to human dignity and sexuality.

The anger and division that increasingly characterize American society are endangering churches and eroding religious freedom. When congregants feel targeted by members of their communities or church buildings bear the brunt of outrage over political events, the very ability to live out one’s faith safely is under attack. Violent or destructive incidents that interfere with an individual’s lawful free exercise of religion at their house of worship present a significant nationwide challenge.

Analyzing Incidents from January to March, 2023
Most of the incidents covered in this supplemental report are acts of vandalism; FRC identified 53 occurrences of vandalism in the first quarter of 2023; 10 arson attacks, arson attempts, or fires with unknown causes; three gun-related incidents; three bomb threats; and two other incidents (assault, etc.). Three incidents fell into more than one category. Twenty-nine states experienced acts of hostility against churches. North Carolina had the most incidents, with seven. Ohio and Tennessee each had five. Florida, Missouri, and Pennsylvania each had four. No incidents were found in 21 states or the District of Columbia.

Vandalism
Acts of vandalism comprised the majority of reported acts of hostility against churches in the first three months of 2023. Some incidents appeared to have been committed by youth or persons struggling with mental illness. Some acts of vandalism against churches appeared to have been motivated by anger toward the church that was targeted. Several instances of vandalism also involved theft. Many acts of vandalism against churches were under criminal investigation; some were under investigation as hate crimes.²

Many of the acts of vandalism represented unexplained acts of destruction, such as an outdoor nativity scene being destroyed³ or rocks being thrown through a window.⁴ In Memphis, Tennessee, vandals broke into Holy Nation Church, smashed the stained-glass windows in the sanctuary, and stole equipment the church uses to broadcast its services online. The pastor explained the situation by pointing to larger problems facing youth struggling to grapple with their own emotional distress. “I hold no ill will,” Pastor Andrew Perpener Jr. stated. “These things are just a manifestation of a greater hurt.”⁵

Some of the incidents conveyed profound anger and aggression being directed toward churches. In Winston-Salem, North Carolina, vandals broke into the Dellabrook Presbyterian Church on Valentine’s Day and sprayed a fire extinguisher all over the church. The ventilation and air- conditioning system picked up the powder residue from the fire extinguisher and spread it throughout the building, causing around $40,000 in damage. Luellen Curry, who works at the church, told a local news station, “I just don’t understand. I keep wondering why. It shows a great deal of anger. And were they angry at us? Were they angry at churches? Were they angry at God? I just don’t understand why someone would do this.”⁶

In February, vandals entered Jesus Is Alive World Center in Reading, Pennsylvania, and destroyed sound equipment, a podium, and 100-year-old stained-glass windows. They also damaged a piano and television, threw chairs around the building, and discharged a fire extinguisher, ruining the carpet. Still, Pastor Isaiah Adio told reporters, “We are not going to be frustrated, we will continue doing what we are doing for the body of Christ and our community.”⁷

In some acts of vandalism, hateful messages were left behind. At least one church was vandalized with Satanic symbols.⁸ A pro-life sign outside of a church was vandalized with the message “Womens body womens choice.”⁹ On March 3, vandals wrote “TRANS PWR” in black spray paint on the front of St. Joseph Catholic Church in Louisville, Kentucky. This incident occurred the day after the Kentucky House of Representatives passed a bill that would protect children from harmful gender-transition procedures.¹⁰

Arson, Attempted Arson or Fires of Unknow Origin
From January to March of 2023, there were 10 instances of arson, attempted arson, or fires with unknown causes. Many of these acts were deeply disturbing. On January 3, Portland Korean Church, a vacant 117-year-old building in Portland, Oregon, was set on fire. The 27-year-old suspect, whose legal name is Cameron Storer but who identifies as female, claimed voices in Storer’s head threatened to “mutilate” Storer if Storer refused to burn the church down.¹¹ Goodwill Baptist Church, a historically black church in Austin, Texas, was set on fire on March 6 in what police believed to be arson, causing $200,000 in damages.¹² In other instances, individuals attempted to set fire to crosses or statues that were outside church buildings.

Gun-Related Incidents
Three gun-related incidents occurred on church property in the first three months of 2023, including the shooting at The Covenant School. In one incident, two adults and two juveniles shot 50 rounds from 9mm pistols at a Mennonite church building in Versailles, Missouri; the property damage was charged as a hate crime.¹³ In another incident, a late-night shooting took place in the parking lot of the Praise Temple Baptist Church in Shreveport, Louisiana, sending four individuals to the hospital.¹⁴

Bomb Threat
FRC found three incidents of bomb threats against churches in the first three months of 2023. On February 19, a passerby noticed a pipe bomb outside St. Dominic Catholic Church in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The Philadelphia Police Department’s bomb squad removed the 18-inch device but did not tell reporters whether they believed the church had been targeted.¹⁵ On January 30, a suspect was charged with a felony after she threatened to blow up Gracelife Chapel near Pevely, Ohio. The suspect had reportedly issued multiple threats to a church employee, one time texting, “I will make your church go bye bye.”¹⁶ Another incident involved a teenager calling in a false bomb threat to a church in Nashville.¹⁷

Other
Two incidents in the first three months of 2023 fell into the “other” category; one was a violent attack. On March 12, a man was arrested for stabbing someone at Crossfire Church in Springfield, Oregon. Church staff said the assailant had been attending the ministry and had never shown signs of violence before the assault. Staff chalked up the assailant’s actions to drug use and expressed frustrations with Oregon’s increasingly liberal drug laws, which they saw as contributing to substance abuse. The victim sustained non-life-threatening injuries to his head and neck. Pastor Aaron Taylor stated, “We are affected on a regular basis by the fentanyl crisis that is in our community and is hurting so many.” Yet, he insisted that he would not let the attack negatively impact the church’s ministry. “We’ll never screen people who come to church. Instead what we’ll do is have a very robust security and staff.”¹⁸

Conclusion
January of 2023 was a particularly intense month for acts of hostility against churches. Although the number of actions dropped in February and March. The first quarter of 2023 overall saw an unusually high number of acts of hostility, with 69 such incidents being documented. Our research indicates that number is more than the entirety of 2018, in which we identified only 50 incidents, or 2020, in which we identified 54. This steep increase is a cause for concern.

To learn more about FRC’s findings on acts of hostility against churches, check out our full publication released in December 2022 at FRC.org/HostilityAgainstChurches

 Arielle Del Turco, M.A., is Assistant Director of the Center for Religious Liberty at Family Research Council.
Abigail Ferrara, Laura Grossberndt, and Chris Gacek are additional contributors to this report.

¹ “Six killed, including three children, in Tennessee school shooting,” NBC News, March 28, 2023, https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/live-blog/nashville-school-shooting-covenant-live-updates-rcna76861.
² Marcus Espinoza, “Man in custody after several Camden County and Gloucester County churches vandalized, police say,” Fox 29 Philadelphia, January 13, 2023, https://www.fox29.com/news/man-in-custody-after-several-camden-county-and- gloucester-county-churches-vandalized-police-say.
³ Hannah Kliger, “Parish leaders, worshippers lament vandalism of nativity scene at Saint Nicholas of Tolentine in Queens,” CBS News New York, January 9, 2023, https://www.cbsnews.com/newyork/news/parish-leaders-worshippers-lament- vandalism-of-nativity-scene-at-st-nicholas-of-tolentine-in-queens/.
⁴ “Police Investigating Vandalism of Takoma Park Church,” Source of the Spring, January 9, 2023, https://www.sourceofthespring.com/takoma-park-news/2802064/police-investigating-vandalism-of-takoma-park-church/.
⁵ Walter Murphy, “Pastor speaks out after Memphis church vandalized for 2nd time in month,” Action News 5, January 9, 2023,  https://www.actionnews5.com/2023/01/10/pastor-speaks-out-after-memphis-church-vandalized-2nd-time-month/.
⁶ Louie Tran, “‘It’s horrifying’: Winston-Salem church vandalized on Valentine’s Day and left with $40K worth of damage,” WXII NBC 12, February 17, 2023, https://www.wxii12.com/article/its-horrifying-winston-salem-church-vandalized-on- valentines-day-and-left-with-dollar40k-worth-of-damage/42942019.
⁷ Alyana Gomez, “Reading, Pa. church vandalized ‘beyond comprehension,’” ABC 6 Philadelphia, February 8, 2023, https://6abc.com/reading-pennsylvania-church-vandalism-jesus-is-alive-world-center-pa/12783031/.
⁸ Andrew Mobley, “Izard County historic church vandalized with satanic symbols; Sheriff investigating,” KATV ABC 7, February 5, 2023, https://katv.com/news/local/izard-county-church-vandalized-with-satanic-symbols-sheriffs-office- investigating-violet-hill-arkansas-larkin-road-old-philadelphia-church-methodist-national-register-of-historic-places-  pentagram-inverted-cross-vandalism-satanism-upside-down-cross-paint.
⁹ Micaiah Bilger, “Abortion Activists Vandalize Catholic Church’s Pro-Life Banners,” Life News, January 30, 2023, https://www.lifenews.com/2023/01/30/abortion-activists-vandalize-catholic-churchs-pro-life-banners/.
¹⁰ Billy Kobin, “Louisville church, other areas hit with ‘TRANS PWR’ graffiti after House OK’s gender bill,” Louisville Courier Journal, March 3, 2023, https://www.courier-journal.com/story/news/local/2023/03/03/louisville-st-joseph- catholic-church-hit-with-trans-pwr-graffiti-kentucky-hb-470/69969226007/.
¹¹ Aaron Mesh, “Person Set Fire to Century-Old Portland Church on Orders From Voices in Her Head, Court Records Say,” Willamette Week, January 5, 2023, https://www.wweek.com/news/2023/01/05/person-set-fire-to-century-old-portland- church-on-orders-from-voices-in-their-head-court-records-say/.
¹² Ryan Autullo, “Arson suspected at Black Baptist church in South Austin,” Austin American-Statesman, March 7, 2023, https://www.statesman.com/story/news/local/2023/03/07/arson-suspected-black-goodwill-baptist-church-south-  austin/69982242007/.
¹³ Michael Foust, “2 Men Charged with Hate Crime in Shooting, Vandalism of Missouri Church,” Christian Headlines, March 23, 2023, https://www.christianheadlines.com/contributors/michael-foust/men-charged-with-hate-crime-in- shooting-vandalism-of-missouri-church.html.
¹⁴ Greg Atoms, “ Four Shots During Drive-By Shooting at Shreveport Church,” News Radio 710 KEEL, March 4, 2023, https://710keel.com/four-shot-during-drive-by-shooting-at-shreveport-church/.
¹⁵ Tyler Arnold, “Pipe bomb found behind Catholic church in Philadelphia,” Catholic News Agency, February 20, 2023, https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/253694/pipe-bomb-found-behind-catholic-church-in-philadelphia.
¹⁶ “Woman charged for allegedly threatening to blow up Pevely-area church,” Leader Publications, February 12, 2023, https://www.myleaderpaper.com/news/police_fire/woman-charged-for-allegedly-threatening-to-blow-up-pevely-area- church/article_39f02a12-aaf0-11ed-97af-5ffc29d706c4.html.
¹⁷ Colleen Guerry, “Teen charged with making false bomb threat against Nashville church,” News 2 WKRN, February 22, 2023, https://www.wkrn.com/news/local-news/nashville/teen-charged-with-making-false-bomb-threat-against-nashville- church/.
¹⁸ Ryan Bonham and Noah Chavez, “Springfield man arrested in stabbing at church, police say,” KEZI ABC 9, March 13, 2023, https://www.kezi.com/news/springfield-man-arrested-in-stabbing-at-church-police-say/article_11f11cea-c1d1-11ed- b188-73ec3258cba4.html.

John 16:33 – Wordless Wednesday

His Only Son

Abrahma moved from Ur of the Chaldees to Canaan.  The God Who Is promised that he would have a son to inherit the Land that Yahweh had shown him in Genesis 12 though he was already 75 years old.  By this time after the flood, this was already considered a senior citizen.  Noah, who lived to 950 years-old was the last of the pre-flood geriatrics who lived for almost a millennium!  His son, Shem (600 years), outlived Abraham, as did his son, Arpachshad (438 years), his son, Shela (433 years) and his son, Eber (464 years).  So we can surmise that Terah (Abraham’s great-grandfather), Haran (his grandfather), Nahor (his dad) and Abraham all had first-hand accounts of the Great Deluge and preflood history from Noah and Shem.  Even Isaac and Jacob may have encountered Shem as he died after Jacob had reached adulthood!

However, most people were now living less than 100 years when Abraham went from Ur of the Chaldeans to the land of the Canaanites. (Genesis 12:4-9)  The godly lifestyle of worshippers of The One True God probably accounted for their longer survival than pagans worshiping false gods (Abraham = 175; Isaac = 180; Jacob = 147).

Some cool stuff happens in Genesis 13 and 14, but our focus jumps to Chapter 15 where The God Who Is (LORD God = YHWH Elohim) reaffirms his promise to Abe after he had lived among the Canaanites for ten years.  The “swearing ceremony” in Genesis 15 is similar to covenants made between equals in Canaan.  They would lay out the sacrifices as Abraham was instructed.  Then the bargainers would stand at each end of the pieces and walk around to the other end, thus affirming the contract.  Since The God Who Is has no equal, He swore by Himself, supernaturally passing a smoking fire pot and a flaming torch between the pieces and promised Abe that his own offspring would have the Land some call Greater Israel (although I expect we must wait for the return of Jesus for this to occur).

But Abraham had two sons.  Lacking in faith, Sarai (not yet renamed Sarah) was concerned that she was getting old and had no children with Abraham.  So per the customs of the city-states around them, she gave her maid to Abraham (Genesis 16) to raise a child for him as though she would be the “foster-mother” to a boy born to Hagar.  Not sure where Abe’s faith was at this point, or if he was just horny, but he went into Hagar and she conceived and gave birth to Ishmael.

When one looks at Yahweh’s prophecy concerning this son, one can surmise how most of the conflicts in the MidEast developed:  “He shall be a wild donkey of a man, his hand against everyone and everyone’s hand against him, and he shall dwell over against all his kinsmen.” (Genesis 16:12)
In any case, this was not Abraham’s promised son!  Even though he was now 86 years old, The God Who Is had a different plan in mind, one that would require the faith that had moved Abraham from Ur to Canaan.  The Promised Son was not to be born naturally by a woman of child-bearing age.

Thirteen years later, The God Who Is appeared again to Abraham to affirm His covenant with him (Genesis 17) when Abraham was now 99 years old.  In spite of Abraham’s appeal that Ishmael could be his heir, God told him his wife would bear him a son, even though she was 89!  In Genesis 18 and 19 we get the name of the Promised Son, Isaac, as well as an excursion to Sodom and Gomorrah and how the Moabites and the Ammonites began; not a pretty story, but the Bible always tells the truth without concealing the heroes’ flaws.  Genesis 20 is a case in point as Abraham is less than stellar in his integrity.

Finally, in Genesis 21 Isaac, the Promised Son, is born!  But Genesis 22 brings an interesting twist to this story of Israel’s progenitors.  And that is the subject of a movie, His Only Son, that is being released into theaters this weekend starting March 30, through April 5 (currently; new theaters are still opening).  Anita and I have become spoiled for watching movies with lots of breaks, so we will probably wait for the DVD, but it you want an exciting experience in a theater, get a group of friends to go see this flick!  The trailer looks amazing, and I hope the movie is as good as the promo!  Please let me know if you see it, and perhaps I can do a synopsis of your reviews!

Imagine a man now at least 115 years old or more, escorted by his muscular teen-age son, and being challenged to offer this son, the PROMISED HEIR, as a sacrifice!  Obviously, Abraham would not have been able to force his son.  He had to convince him that The God Who Is knew what He was doing! — that He would raise Isaac, the Promised Son, from the dead!!  Remember, Abraham had even told his servants, “I and the boy will go over there and worship and come again to you,” BEFORE they went up the mountain!! (Genesis 22:5)  This is legacy faith!!!  Isaac had seen his Dad’s devotion to YHWH (Yahweh, The God Who Is) and had such trust in his earthly Dad that he was willing to give his life to his Dad’s faith.

If this sacrifice sounds familiar, it is because Isaac was a prototype of Jesus, foreshadowing the atonement He would commit, only without a rescue by an angel.  Jesus went to the cross to die, not by the will of Pilate, the Roman governor, nor by Caiaphas or Annas, the High Priests of Israel, nor by the crowds of Jerusalemite Jews who wanted to maintain the status quo!  He went by His own will and the will of the Father God, who could have called twelve LEGIONS of angels (120,000+) to rescue Jesus if He had just asked for such (Matthew 26:53).

However, “He saved others, He cannot save Himself.” (Matthew 27:42, Mark 15:31, Luke 23:35)  The chief priests were again speaking prophetically, because if He saved Himself from the agony of the cross, He could not have saved us!

He still saves!!  From the regrets of our past, from the offenses we have committed against others, from the guilt and shame of what we were; from the power of sin to rule over us!!!   Jesus is the Only Son of God, the Promised Heir, our Redeemer.

[Note: Christians do NOT believe in three gods.  The Father, Son and Holy Spirit (sometimes called the Holy Trinity) are One True God, somehow existing as three persons in one Being.  This is a mystery we may never fully understand, because He alone IS God.  There is none like Him.]

An open letter to a friend in need of prayer.

Dear L,
I always read the church’s prayer bulletin with concern, and Anita and I offer intercessory prayers for those needs listed in our fellowship.  We became especially focused on the prayer request for YOU, indicating you had been diagnosed with pancreatic cancer.  From my time working for the Cancer Information Society, I understand this cancer is insidious and usually not diagnosed until it has spread.

We know that Jesus can heal; nothing is impossible for The God Who Is.  There are many examples and verses of Scripture that affirm that “by His stripes we are healed.” (Isaiah 53:5 KJV)  I am a walking miracle, having gone through six strokes, the last of which was 99% blockage of the basal stem artery which supplies 99% of the blood to the brain!  Yet, He used the doctors to perform His miraculous healing and here I type and work and behave most of the time as if I am “normal” (which prompts my brother to ask, “Who told you you were normal!” 😄).

So this will be our prayer for you, that you will experience a divine touch such as the woman with a discharge of blood experienced when she simply touched the fringe of Jesus’ garment in Luke 8.  Beyond the doctors’ skills and knowledge, our knowledge of The Holy infuses our prayers with faith that He will bring Himself glory in healing you.  Selfishly, we would like to enjoy more Lunch Bunches with you and share at Gatherings or in meals at our home or yours.  Your appearance has always been to be in good health except for some small complaints of back pain, which I suspect led to this diagnosis, so we will trust Jesus that this illness is for His glory to be revealed in your healing. (See John 9:1-3.)

Of course, any healing this side of Heaven in only temporary.  Even Lazarus, raised from the dead after three days, died again at some time, and is enjoying the Presence of the LORD with Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, David, Ester, Ruth and so many others, until we join in that celebration of the Marriage Supper of the Lamb.

And of course, our lives are to be lived and ended for His glory alone. (Romans 14:8)

The joy for those of us who follow Jesus is the removal of human’s greatest fear, the fear of death.  “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake and the gospel’s will save it. For what does it profit a man to gain the whole world and forfeit his soul?”   And knowing you as our sister, that you have placed your faith in Jesus, assures us that as C.S. Lewis said with a big grin to Sheldon Vanauken in A Severe Mercy, “Christians NEVER say goodbye!”  This was before Sheldon’s wife died at the age of 40.  But Lewis knew that even when apparent death to this world separates us for a season, we are never truly terminal!  We will live forever with our Lord and with each other and all those who have put their trust in Jesus. 

In  A Severe Mercy, Sheldon Vanauken reveals a letter from C.S. Lewis that gave his book its title. “One way or another [the love between you and your wife] had to die… There are various ways in which it could have died though both parties went on living.  You have been treated with a severe mercy.”  So we see that God is merciful even when we sometimes do not understand His mercy at first.  But this is our faith, that whatever comes to us in this life is for His glory and how we can reveal Him, His holiness and His love to others.

So our prayer for you at this time will be that the severe mercy of your illness will reveal something of God’s glory, holiness and love.  First, by your healing so that you can have some more time here to bless and share life with us and enjoy preparing for our final departure, whether that comes through Christ’s return or by our “crossing the Jordan into His Promised Land.”

When my Dad died from complications from Parkinson’s at 73 years old, the Holy Spirit gave me a song of which this is the chorus, from my Dad’s point of veiw.  Going by Psalm 90:10, he felt that anything past 70 was a “year of grace” from our Lord. (I’m working out some arrangements to put the song on YouTube, but it is slow finding people to do it.)

“These are the Years of Grace that the Lord has given to me,
And though I long to see His face, there may be reasons that I cannot see
To keep me here in this time and place to learn to serve Him more faithfully.
Though outside we appear to be dying, inside the light of Jesus is shining.
He put such treasures in this earthen vase in these years of grace.”

So be blessed in His Presence as you shine the light of His holiness and love to all the folks with whom you interact while in the hospital.  And we will see you again, soon.  We will NEVER say goodbye. 😉
❤️&🙏, c.a. and anita

The Secret Place of Thunder

“In distress you called, and I delivered you; I answered you in the secret place of thunder.” (Psalm 81:7)

Yesterday 70 mph winds tore through our fair city, the jewel of the Bluegrass and ‘The Horse Capital of the World.’  About 400,000 people across the commonwealth lost power and were still offline as of 10am this morning with about 44,000 in Lexington as part of that number.  The alarmists among us who want us to live in constant fear did not lose a moment to declare the oncoming storm catastrophic before it even reached us.  So a handful of photos like this pervaded the news to show how horrendous the storm was, although these were few and far between.

The photo of Lexington with clouds overhead brought me to Psalm 87 in the Bible where we come to understand that The God Who Is lives in mystery, “the secret place of thunder.”   We understand so little about our world, where winds come from and where they dissipate; how the climate and our actions intersect.  How much less we understand the Creator who “upholds the universe by the word of His power.” (Hebrews 1:3)  But Jesus understands it all quite well.

“The wind blows where it wishes, and you hear its sound, but you do not know where it comes from or where it goes. So it is with everyone who is born of the Spirit.” (Jesus, John 3:8)  There are mysteries of faith that we will never understand on this side of Eternity, and possibly not even then, but if you want peace with God, hope for eternal life and His hand guiding you through all the trials and troubles of this life, you only need to pray to Jesus, repent of your sin and ask Him to come into your life.  “This is eternal life, that they know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom you have sent.” (Jesus, John 17:3)  If you do this, a mysterious wind of the Holy Spirit will blow through your heart, mind and soul, and you will be “born again.” (John 3:3)  

However, do not be deceived as there are spirits, and then, there are spirits.  “Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, for many false prophets have gone out into the world. By this you know the Spirit of God: every spirit that confesses that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is from God, and every spirit that does not confess Jesus is not from God. This is the spirit of the antichrist, which you heard was coming and now is in the world already.” (1 John 4:1-3)

You will not need to fear when the winds of earth blow against you, when people oppose you and try to destroy you, when difficulties or illnesses come, or even when you are persecuted because you have chosen to follow the One.  As Lane Martin once wrote to me in an email, “Nothing happens TO a Christ-follower. Filtered by His love, it only happens FOR us.”  So cozy up to Him who is in “the secret place of thunder” and be assured that nothing that will happen will separate you from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus.

“Sing aloud to God our strength; shout for joy to the God of Jacob!
Raise a song; sound the tambourine, the sweet lyre with the harp.
Blow the trumpet at the new moon, at the full moon, on our feast day.” (Psalm 87:1-3)

Rejoice In Our Suffering!?

Romans 5:1-11   ¹“Therefore, since we have been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.  Through him we have also obtained access by faith into this grace in which we stand, and we rejoice in hope of the glory of God. Not only that, but we REJOICE IN OUR SUFFERINGS, knowing that suffering produces endurance,...”

Philippians 2:1-11 ^{5 “}Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus, who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. And being found in human form, he humbled himself by BECOMING OBEDIENT TO THE POINT OF DEATH, even death on a cross…. “

The “revival” at Asbury University took on a life of its own for the two weeks of its progress since February 8, when about 30 students stayed after a weekly chapel service and began to pray.  The story goes that other students heard about the spontaneous prayer meeting and came to find out what was happening … and stayed and prayed… and more heard and came and prayed… and faculty and staff heard and came and prayed… and eventually people from a couple hundred other universities all across the USA heard and from several other nations and they, also, came and prayed.  There was no organizational planning, no big-name speakers or musicians, no fanfare or public relations effort.  It was distinctively a “God Moment” where the Sovereign Creator drew thousands of people together to worship Jesus.

The University, not wanting to quench the Spirit of God nor interfere with what He was doing, have moved carefully to allow the round-the-clock prayer meetings without oversight beyond normal security concerns, coordinating with local law enforcement in Wilmore, Kentucky, for traffic and logistics issues when more than 20,000 people came to a little town of 6,000.  Now, sensing it is time for something to develop from the renewal, they are curtailing the 24-hour prayer vigils in Hughes Auditorium and restricting access there to students.

The “Word” that is missing so far from what I have heard is that the young people, having enjoyed confession, repentance and a beginning of a transformation of their minds, have not been adequately challenged to prepare for what is to follow.  My concern is that many of them will leave the meetings, return to classes, their own campuses or their families and be confronted with those who did not participate and do not appreciate that they have heard from the LORD.  The questions will be, “What did you hear?  What is different now that you spent two weeks in prayer?  What makes you think God spoke to you?”

The caution is given by Jesus in John 15: “Remember the word that I said to you: ‘A servant is not greater than his master.’ If they persecuted Me, they will also persecute you. … And you will bear witness, because you have been with Me.” 

I blogged recently on coming persecution, here , here and here, and those warnings to believers in Jesus still remain.   If someone is looking for an easy life or one without trouble, do not come to Jesus.  He promises that “the gate is narrow and the way is hard that leads to life, and those who find it are few,” in contrast to the “wide and easy way that leads to destruction, and those who enter by it are many.” (Matthew 7:12-28)  He challenges His followers to do to others what they WISH others would do to them; note, NOT what they actually do.  He warns that false teachers will try to deceive them and show off many signs and wonders.  Furthermore, they have to build their “houses,” that is their lives and understanding, on the foundation of the Bible; otherwise, they will be washed away in the flood of unrighteousness that will come against those who do not know it.

Peter and James both give clear warnings to those who want to follow Christ:
1 Peter 4:7-19   ¹²“Do not be surprised at the fiery trial when it comes upon you to test you, as though something strange were happening to you. But rejoice insofar as you share Christ’s sufferings, that you may also rejoice and be glad when his glory is revealed. If you are insulted for the name of Christ, you are blessed, because the Spirit of glory and of God rests upon you… “

James 1:2-12   ^2″Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds, for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness. And let steadfastness have its full effect, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing…”

As the university students and faculty get back to “normal,” the question is, What will be the new normal?  As Watchman Nee asks in The Normal Christian Life, “How does it work out in life?  How does it become real in our experience?”  The clearest evidence that this was a true revival, God-ordained and guided, and not just some kids getting out of classes or emotional surges of people copying social media what they saw others doing, will be what happens next!  How will it affect our society?  How will it change the way Jesus is presented… in your neighborhood?  At your job?  Among your enemies?  To those who hate anything Christian?

Are you willing to suffer for The Name?  Will you go where He leads, even if it is to your death like John Chau?  Or will this “revival” just turn out to be a refresher in arm-chair Christianity?  Feel good and let the world go to hell?  God loves me and won’t let anything bad happen.  Or will He?  I’m saved and that’s all that matters.   

Or is it?