This Sunday, I get to begin a new journey, establish new friendships, and make new memories.  There is no doubt that great work is done at a number of camps in a number places every summer. Camp Hensel will be great and I trust the week will be as spiritually uplifting as it can be.  But, my heart will be in Sardis; and I am sure that I will cry once or twice (or even a half a dozen times) during the week.

For those who read this blog and those are involved in camps this summer. Please pray for SLCC session 2 and for Camp Hensel and for every other camp seeking to honor Christ and instruct young people. Please pray for me and family in our adjustment. Most of all, pray for young people to see Christ and know the Father.

Jason Donald, the 27th batter of the evening for Cleveland, hit the ball between second and first.  Ranging to his right, the Detroit first baseman scooped the ball into his glove and quickly tossed it to Galarraga who was covering the first base bag.  Galarraga and the ball beat Donald to the bag by almost two full steps.  Yet when Donald crossed the bag, umpire Jim Joyce inexplicably yelled “safe” instead of “out.”  Nearly 18,000 fans knew that Joyce missed the call.  Even Donald stated in a post-game interview that he had fully expected to be called out on the play.  Replay confirmed what almost everyone else though, Jason Donald was out and Armando Galarraga had indeed thrown a perfect game.  The only problem – the record books would not reflect the facts.

An unbelieving smile came across the face of the pitcher who had just been robbed of history.  Galarraga made his way back to the mound and got the final out.  He did get the win.  He did throw a complete game shutout.  He did not, however, get his name listed with the 20 other pitchers who had thrown a flawless game.  He did not get to taste the victory of perfection.

There are many lessons to be learned from these events.  Lessons about life, family, and religion.  It might help to know that Joyce was profoundly sorry for his mistake.  Having seen the replay, Jim Joyce went to the Tigers’ locker room and personally apologized for missing the call.  In a radio interview the next day, he further expressed deep regret in costing Galarraga his place in baseball history.  Yes, we could learn many valuable lessons about mistakes, remorse, missed opportunities, and the misery of others’ mistakes.

Yet, the greatest lesson that may be found in this entire episode was witnessed the next night just prior to game time.  The next night Jim Joyce was the umpire behind the plate and, thus, was the one to receive the lineup cards from each manager just before the game began.  In a show of great sportsmanship and good-heartedness, it was Galaragga not Jim Leyland (the Tigers’ manager) who represented the Tigers and delivered the lineup card to Joyce.  The two exchanged  handshakes and pats on the back in a moment that illustrated the reality of forgiveness and the understanding that sometimes we all make mistakes.

What, do you suppose, would have been your reaction?  How would you have handled a situation of such disappointment and disbelief?  Would you have been able to reign in your emotions and genuinely understand that people are not perfect?  Even when we realize that the hurt we are suffering was not inflicted intentionally or when we realize the ones who have wronged us are genuinely sorry for their actions, we often have a difficult time controlling our emotions.  Often grudges are still held and feelings of anger are left to fester.

Living in a world driven by selfishness and getting even when we are done wrong, God calls for His children to be different.  Christ explained it by telling us to turn the other cheek when we are hit on the face, to go the extra mile when we are not forced, and to give more than one might ask of us (Matt. 5:38-42).  Christ emphasized this principle by revealing our roles as light and salt in a dark, bland world (Matt. 5:13–16).

Does your light shine even in the face of disappointment in others?   Can you pour salt on the wound instead of feeling the sting of passion and emotion? Let us season and shine and bring glory to God in the process!

Years ago, I heard a sermon by brother Glenn Colley about the power of prayer in the lives of our children. While I cannot quote it verbatim, he said something in that sermon that made a deep impression on me.  He stated that if our children hear us (as their parents) pray, on a daily basis, that they will marry Christians; our prayers will have a tremendous influence on them when it comes time for them to choose a mate.  I have prayed that prayer for my children almost every day of their lives since Hannah, our first daughter, was born 11 year ago.  In our family prayers each night at bedtime, that request is a part of our petitions.  I had wondered if those prayers were making an impression.  Now I know they have.  Now I know that they have made and are making a difference.

May I encourage you to pray with and for your children daily?  Let them hear their names go from your lips to the throne of heaven.  Let them hear you pray for their successes and struggles in life.  Let them hear you turn the uncontrollable over to God.  Let them hear your concern for their future mate and family.  Let them here you pour your heart out the throne of God.  It will make a difference!

This promise and its fulfillment got me to thinking about our greatest blessings and the promise that condition them.  Those blessings are as conditional as the one that Elisha asked for.  Do you want the blessing of salvation?  Do you want the blessing of being with God in heaven forever?  Do you want to be treated like the sons and daughters of God (i.e., calling Him Father, dwelling in His house, eating at His table)?  My friends, all those blessings are conditional.  They will only be ours if we stay with Him until the end (2 Tim. 4:7-8; Rev. 2:10).

There was a time in the life of Christ when some ceased to walk with Him any longer.  Christ asked those closest to Him if they too, would turn away.  Realizing that salvation was conditioned on his relationship to the Savior, Peter stated: “Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life” (John 6:68).  We should reason that same way when we realize the conditional nature of God’s greatest blessings.

- Wayne Jones

That conversation got me to thinking.  Who visits the preacher in the hospital?  Who checks on the one who usually checks on others?  Other questions are just as needed.  Who gives the elders guidance when they are not sure what decision to make?  Who gives Dad direction when he is besieged with problems in the family?  Who looks after Mom when she needs nurturing?  Who encourages the encourager when he is down?  Who instructs the wise man when he has lost his way?

It is possible that we get so defined in our usual roles that we never reach out beyond them.  I suggest that we remember that fellowship in Christ is not a rank and file system, but a community of believers who share the same joys, weakness, and pains.  Sadly, I have seen situations develop in the church where the one who needs the most help and encouragement is often left to himself.  Why?  This happens because the one hurting just happens to be the preacher, or the elder, or the longtime member who is just not supposed to be in that situation.  Galatians 6:2 should penetrate and encompass every role and relationship among God’s people.  Everyone needs encouragement and everyone can offer encouragement to another.

- Wayne Jones

Now, fast forward a few days and there you will find the silence of all men.  Stifled by the thought of the cross and silenced by possible retribution from the Jewish leaders, the very ones praising Christ as he entered stood silently by the cross and did not speak.  What happened?  Exactly what Jesus said would happen if they were silent.  The stones cried out.  Matthew records that “the earth quaked, and the rocks were split” (Matt. 27:51).  What was the result?  His deity was confirmed.  How do we know?  Because upon seeing this event and those related to it, the centurion said, “Truly this was the Son of God!” (Matt. 27:54). John Phillips described it this way: “One and all they held their peace.  They had nothing to say.  So, the stones cried out.  The rocks rent with roar” (The View From Mount Calvary, 184).

The questions for us are numerous.  Does Christ need a witness of stones today?  Are we silent in defending and sharing His deity, His power, His church, and His salvation to the world around us?  In which group do we find ourselves?  Are we like those welcoming Him into the city with shouts of “Hallelujah” and “Hosanna”?  Or are we like those standing silent around the cross in fear and/or shame waiting for His defense to come from another place?  Will we hold our peace and let the stones cry out?

What about us?  We are aware of passages such as 1 John 1:9 and James 5:16.  These passages reveal the Divine expectation to confess our sins to God and, when need be, to confess our faults to one another.  However, like many other actions in life, it is not all about the act of confession.  The benefit of this action is directly tied to the motivation that triggered it.  Some have questioned the motivation behind Big Mac’s confession.  You see, he is about to get back into baseball as a hitting coach and he is hoping to be elected into the Hall of Fame.  It would be in his best interest to come clean now, that he might be respected later.  I am sure for days and years to come his motivation will be discussed and ultimately will probably determine how much respect he is shown.  Is he truly sorry?  Does he truly regret it?

We should realize that confession is not always beneficial.  God told the Israelites of old, “So rend your heart, and not your garments” (Joel 2:13). What God was wanting from His people was genuine regret and remorse, not merely a formal confession.  Our confession of sin and vow to repent should not be self-serving and ritualistic.  It should be motivated from the innermost part of our being with the realization that we have hurt God with our actions.  In the confession of sin we should feel the pain of David in Psalm 51.  It is commonly believed that David’s response to Nathan’s rebuke is recorded in Psalm 51.  In that Psalm of confession and repentance, David is not simply revealing the fact that he had sinned, but is exposing the depth of his regret for committing that sin.  Friends, that is what God is looking for.  Paul said it this way, “godly grief produces a repentance that leads to salvation without regret, whereas worldly grief produces death” (2 Cor. 7:10, ESV).

- Wayne

Sadly, we occasionally blur the line and blend in with the world.  When we do, we lose our distinctiveness and we fail to make that visible difference on society.  This blurring can happen when we love the world more than Christ, but that isn’t the only reason.  Sometimes it occurs because we simply fail to apply principles of right and wrong to a given situation.  We might even be trying to do a good deed or be a good person, but in the process we cease to let Christ shine through us.

It seems to me that one such example of this happened yesterday in many Facebook statuses.  If you have a Facebook, I am sure you noticed the large number of “color” posts made yesterday.  For most of the day I was oblivious to the reason for the posts.  What were they about?  Well, it seems that many women were posting the color of the bras in an attempt to raise awareness for breast cancer.  Please understand, I am aware of the pain and hurt that breast cancer can cause.  My grandmother (the closest relative on the earth to me outside of my immediate family) died several years ago due to complications from breast cancer.  Yet, even for this good cause, I am not sure that it is keeping with Godliness and Christian decency to call attention the one’s undergarments.

Lust in the heart is as shameful to God as the act of adultery (Matt. 5:32).  Creating the opportunity for lust is not the work of a Christian, but rather it is the work of Satan.  If there are husbands reading this let me ask you a couple of questions:  (1) Would you be comfortable with your wife discussing her bra color with another man?  Or (2) Would you want a hundred other men envisioning your wife wearing only a bra?  What about your daughters?  Sadly, there were many Christian women involved in these updates. Even if lust was not the result of these posts, there are some issues and subjects that are not for all the world to know and see.  Our society has conditioned many Christians into believing that what was once taboo is no longer taboo. Talk shows, sitcoms, and even commercials have loosened the morals of many causing them to show little shame is speaking of intimate matters.  Yes, this has even affected the church.  We are still command to flee lust and follow Godliness (2 Tim. 2:22).

I am not suggesting that the cause was not a worthy one, but I am asking anyone involved to consider all possible consequences of their actions.  Facebook is as public as it gets and our influence is exercised there every time we post.

- Wayne

It is what we should all desire – that our children walk in truth.  A goal of this magnitude is not reached by accident or coincidence.  Leaving a spiritual legacy through our children is only accomplished by sober, spiritually-minded parenting.  What we do will matter.  Our example will be the most important.  Our actions will make the most impact.  They will be much more likely to walk in truth, if we walk in truth.  What we say will matter.  Our words will ring the loudest.  The limits we place around them, the correct we offer to them, and the praise that we give them should all be out of concern for their spiritual development.

None of my children are at the point where they need the blood of Christ to cover their sins.  However, when they do reach that point, I pray that they will already know Him through me.  Why?  So, that I can say (as did John and brother Duggins), “I have no greater joy than to hear that my children walk in truth.”

- Wayne

This occasion came just after David’s sin with Bathsheba and during his attempts to cover it up.  Sometimes we get so caught up in explaining and exposing David’s sin that we lose sight of the one in this story who displayed integrity.  As a result, we overlook the great example left by Uriah.

Uriah showed his true character when David brought him home from war.  In order to cover up his sin, David brought Uriah home to be with Bathsheba.  If Uriah were home, surely no one would suspect David was the father.  But, David never guessed that Uriah would reason this way: “The ark and Israel and Judah are dwelling in tents, and my lord Joab and the servants of my lord are encamped in the open fields. Shall I then go to my house to eat and drink, and to lie with my wife? As you live, and as your soul lives, I will not do this thing.” (2 Sam. 11:11). What integrity!

Uriah also demonstrated restraint and integrity when he was sent back to the battlefield with his own death certificate under his arm.  When the first plan did not work, David decided to have Joab put Uriah on the front lines and draw back.  David could not fax these deadly orders to Joab; nor could he call Joab on his cell phone to discuss the matter privately.  The only options David had were to go tell Joab himself or send a message.  David chose to send a message and he sent it through Uriah! Do you suppose that there was a temptation to open the letter and read its contents?  Curiosity could have saved Uriah’s life, but Uriah was a man of integrity.  David was well aware of this fact or else he would have never sent the death order by Uriah’s hand.

The sin of David as recorded in 2 Samuel 11 is both appalling and despicable.  On the other hand the integrity of Uriah is both refreshing and honorable.  May we learn how not to handle crisis from the actions of David, but may we learn how to deal with life’s everyday matters by the example of Uriah – a man upright in his ways.