Month: May 2023

The colorful banner hung at the entrance of the gym where all could easily view it. 

“Fear The Poet”

Next to the logo was a caricature of a fierce pirate. Undoubtedly, this was a Poet-Pirate, reminding me of the familiar proverb, “The pen is mightier than the sword!” It was an appropriate mascot for this prestigious liberal arts college, known for its excellent education and athletic prowess. 

Every school and athletic team, regardless of level, has a mascot. Many are familiar to the general public such as the Trojans, the Vikings, and the Panthers. Others are more obscure such as mosquitos, anteaters, and wasps. Nearly every animal and object has been utilized. Ostensibly, a mascot represents the qualities of the school or team for which it represents or choses to project. Some do evoke fear but at its core is the objective to inspire respect from others.

The conclusion, when all has been heard, is: fear God and keep His commandments, because this applies to every person. 

Ecclesiastes 12:13 (NASB)

This verse appears at the end of the Book of Ecclesiastes. The author of this book, whom many consider to be King Solomon, the wisest man of his day, exhaustively chronicled all of the successes he accomplished in his life. He observed that man may attempt to inspire fear and elicit respect from others by worldly accomplishments. However, in the end, whether it was scientific, literary, or material successes, none of these mattered if one did not first fear and obey God. The Hebrew word for fear may be translated as reverence or to be held in awe or astonishment. This truth is reinforced in another verse from the Bible. 

The LORD is for me; I will not fear; what can man do to me? 

Psalms 118:6 (NASB)

Don’t fear the mascot. 

Fear God!

Love and trust in the Lord; seek His will in your life.

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As a biology major in college, I wrestled with how to reconcile the scientific observations and principles I learned in class with the Truth of God’s Word. I was also frustrated by some Christians who would evoke God as the explanation for everything, failing to acknowledge scientific observations and principles. I did not know it then but I was being confronted with the “God-of-the-gaps” argument. 

This argument implies that any gap in our scientific knowledge can only be explained by God. If some event cannot be explained by natural phenomena, it must have resulted from divine intervention. God fills in the gaps. I viewed the argument as specious. It suppresses the truth and relegates God to the backup argument if science is currently unable to provide an explanation. If science did find an explanation, God would then appear to be fallible, not omnipotent and all-knowing. How could I reconcile science and God without falling into this trap?

During the age of enlightenment and the industrial revolution, mankind was emboldened by discoveries in science that were able to explain many natural phenomena. We later learned how the universe did not always exist but started at a definite point, dubbed the Big Bang. We no longer needed God for explanations, or did we? It is instructive that the Bible recorded that in the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth. It was not called the Big Bang, it was called Creation! 

So the LORD God formed from the ground all the wild animals and all the birds of the sky. He brought them to the man to see what he would call them, and the man chose a name for each one. He gave names to all the livestock, all the birds of the sky, and all the wild animals….

Genesis 2:19-20 (NLT)

God established the Truth from the beginning of His Creation and allowed man to participate in the discovery by allowing him to name each living creature. Understanding God’s Creation is complex and the more we learn, the more we realize there are deeper levels of understanding that we could scarcely comprehend even a few years ago. There will always be gaps in our knowledge of science but the most incredible fact, like the Big Bang, is how science increasingly demonstrates the Truth of God’s Word. 

God is not the excuse to explain our gaps in scientific knowledge. God is the source of the gaps!

Amen!

Love and trust in the Lord; seek His will in your life.

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“I will be sending about fifty more cases, collected from two different skin centers. It would be good if you can complete this as quickly as possible so we can get our paper published.”

I was reading an email sent to me by a dermatologist colleague. When we began this research project, it was small and defined, involving about fifty of his patients. I was prospectively collecting the data by rendering a diagnosis on the skin biopsies and then entering the data in a spreadsheet each time I completed the patient’s report. Although this was an extra effort, requiring about 20 minutes for each case, it was not overly burdensome since it was done as a routine part of each case. 

This new revelation my colleague was sharing with me dramatically changed the parameters of the project. He was sending fifty new cases at one time. I would need to review each case and issue a report and enter the data in the same spreadsheet as I previously did. However, I was not being paid for these cases and these were being added on top of my already busy daily workload. If it took at least 20 minutes to do one case, it would require over 16 hours to complete this, time that I did not have. I was reluctant to accept it, but at the beginning of this project, I promised him that I would complete it, even if the parameters had changed. When I give my word, I honor it. God’s Word convicted my soul.

Choose a good reputation over great riches; being held in high esteem is better than silver or gold. 

Proverbs 22:1 (NLT)

The Apostle Paul understood the importance of honoring his word and seeing his work to completion. He gave this fatherly advice to his protege and young pastor, Timothy.

And I am certain that God, who began the good work within you, will continue his work until it is finally finished on the day when Christ Jesus returns. 

Philippians 1:6 (NLT)

Why did Paul have this confidence? He knew it because he was living it in his own life.

As for me, my life has already been poured out as an offering to God. The time of my death is near. I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, and I have remained faithful. And now the prize awaits me—the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will give me on the day of his return. And the prize is not just for me but for all who eagerly look forward to his appearing. 

2 Timothy 4:6-8 (NLT)

Seeing it to completion. 

I can grouse about my current circumstances but my witness to honor my word to my colleague was far more important. It was about keeping my word to God. There are many activities, projects, and relationships into which we enter. Although we may attempt to define the parameters of each, the unexpected is usually the norm and we may end up investing far more time and resources to complete it. The most important commitment we will make is to accept Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior. We may think we can define the parameters of how we will serve God, but He never makes this promise to us. Whatever obstacles or suffering we may encounter, it is to prepare us to enter His glory when we are together in Heaven with Him. And we know we will be there because God will always see it completion.

Amen!

Love and trust in the Lord; seek His will in your life.

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When I was 8 years old, I played baseball in a neighborhood league. The coach was the father of one of my teammates. To assist him was his younger cousin, also an adult, known by his nickname, Shorty. While everyone, including the coach’s son, called him by that name, I always addressed him as Mr. Smith. At my young age, I could not bring myself to address an adult by their first name. 

On one unfortunate gameday, Shorty called for a play which ended in disaster and eventually led to our loss. It was a mistake and Shorty was understandably dejected. Although he, nor the coach said anything, some of my teammates cruelly began teasing him. “Shorty screwed up!” Without warning, Shorty turned on the entire team. 

“Shut up! If you guys think it’s so easy, then you should coach and you better win all of your games!”  His face was red as he pointed at all of us. “And from now on, you call me Mr. Smith!”

I was too young to process the raw emotions that were on display. He resented being treated like another player, like a child. He needed to reassert his authority, and no one defended him. It was a humiliating experience that still reminds me of the insensitivity of others. Familiarity breeds contempt. 

Jesus left that part of the country and returned with his disciples to Nazareth, his hometown. The next Sabbath he began teaching in the synagogue, and many who heard him were amazed. They asked, “Where did he get all this wisdom and the power to perform such miracles?” Then they scoffed, “He’s just a carpenter, the son of Mary and the brother of James, Joseph, Judas, and Simon. And his sisters live right here among us.” They were deeply offended and refused to believe in him. 

Mark 6:1-3 (NLT)

Even our Lord Jesus Christ encountered disrespect even after He taught with authority and performed miracles in His hometown. The people who grew up with Him and were most familiar with Him and His family, denigrated Him. 

Another egregious example is when I hear God’s holy name taken in vain. It is a disturbing testimony by anyone doing this, casually using God’s name to make a point or to curse. All Christian believers should be deeply offended when the holy name of God is misused and maligned in conversation. We should defend God, not because He has feelings that could be hurt, but because He is our Lord and Savior. When we care deeply about someone, we should rise to the occasion and defend their honor whenever possible. It is the right thing to do and to ignore this is a sin.

Love and trust in the Lord; seek His will in your life.

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