“Daddy, I want to go watch race cars.”
“Well, you can either watch Underdog or else we can go see the cars.”
“Um, I think I want to watch Underdog movie.”
“You’re sure? We can do whichever one you like, but we can only do one. Are you sure you want to watch Underdog and not go see race cars.”
“I think so. Yeah, I want to watch Underdog movie, and maybe we can go see race cars next weekend.”
“Okay.”
We watch the movie.
“Now can we go see race cars?”
“No, honey. You chose between them, and you decided that you wanted to see the movie today.”
“But I want to go see race cars.” Sniffles
“Well, we don’t have time to do that. Did you like Underdog?””Yes.” More sniffles.
“What do you say?”
“Thank you, daddy, for letting me watch Underdog movie. Can we go see race cars later?”
“Spencer, what’s the Tenth Commandment?”
“Be content with what you have.”
“Now do you see what that means?”“Um, sort of. Daddy, will you play a game with me?”
TOD 01.15.08
There are essentially three different elements to thinking: knowledge (what you know), focus (what you think about), and wisdom (how you think). If any of these three are missing, the process will not produce the best results. Similarly, since there are three main aspects of thinking, there are three main kinds of disagreements.
Disputes may arise over the essential facts of the question because some parties may be ignorant or misled. Disputes may arise over the correct solution because people may not all be equally competent at interpreting information according to sound principles. And disputes may also arise over the significance of the issue itself because knowing the difference between the vain and the significant is one of the most challenging skills of all.
So how does all this matter? First, like any skill in development, finding the exact source of the problem aids in correcting it. Second, if the point of disagreement can be isolated to just one area, you have now discovered two areas of agreement on which to build common ground.
Disputes may arise over the essential facts of the question because some parties may be ignorant or misled. Disputes may arise over the correct solution because people may not all be equally competent at interpreting information according to sound principles. And disputes may also arise over the significance of the issue itself because knowing the difference between the vain and the significant is one of the most challenging skills of all.
So how does all this matter? First, like any skill in development, finding the exact source of the problem aids in correcting it. Second, if the point of disagreement can be isolated to just one area, you have now discovered two areas of agreement on which to build common ground.
TOD 01.14.08
The FCC can teach us something vital about evangelism. Certain words can’t be said on TV or the radio, and, when they occur in a sound clip, they are edited over with a bleep sound. Unfortunately for the listener, this is useless. Though the actual full word is obscured, the hearer’s brain reconstitutes it just as surely as if it had not been . The brain is quite capable of hearing what is not technically said.
Thus, though broadcasters claim to not use the word, the impact, now heightened with the bleep’s emphasis, is not at all diminished. Why is this important for evangelism? It’s simple. Our job it not to say what is true. Rather, our task is to make people hear what is true. As communicators of the Gospel, including every good Word God has to say about every topic, knowing the difference between what is said and what is heard is mandatory.
In teaching God’s truths, the ultimate vanity is being so proud of what we say that we are indifferent to what they hear.
Thus, though broadcasters claim to not use the word, the impact, now heightened with the bleep’s emphasis, is not at all diminished. Why is this important for evangelism? It’s simple. Our job it not to say what is true. Rather, our task is to make people hear what is true. As communicators of the Gospel, including every good Word God has to say about every topic, knowing the difference between what is said and what is heard is mandatory.
In teaching God’s truths, the ultimate vanity is being so proud of what we say that we are indifferent to what they hear.
TOD 01.11.08
We Christians in America shudder when we imagine the oppression against our brothers and sisters in other parts of the world. In some countries, becoming a Christian could cost you your job or your family. In other places, it could land you in jail or get you executed. Owing a Bible is a crime in many locations, and evangelizing is forbidden in even more.
When we consider the possibility of such things happening here at home, we are outraged. We would fight tooth and nail to preserve the sort of freedoms that our fellow Christians lack elsewhere in the world, and rightly so. And yet, in spite of our powerful lust for religious freedom, I wonder how many of us have married ourselves to the concept in such a way that, were our lifestyles transplanted into those other areas, they would get us arrested.
Just as has been said about literacy, the Christian who does not spread the Gospel has no advantage over the Christian who cannot spread the Gospel. Why bother screaming to keep a right which we then nullify with our silence?
When we consider the possibility of such things happening here at home, we are outraged. We would fight tooth and nail to preserve the sort of freedoms that our fellow Christians lack elsewhere in the world, and rightly so. And yet, in spite of our powerful lust for religious freedom, I wonder how many of us have married ourselves to the concept in such a way that, were our lifestyles transplanted into those other areas, they would get us arrested.
Just as has been said about literacy, the Christian who does not spread the Gospel has no advantage over the Christian who cannot spread the Gospel. Why bother screaming to keep a right which we then nullify with our silence?
TOD 01.10.09
Dying for someone is clearly an act of courage. But perhaps it’s not an act of great courage. Oh, don’t misunderstand me. I admire those who die for a cause, such as Christ or a loved one or a country. That, indeed, is noble. But as much as I admire this, I think that such sensationalist thinking misses the fact that such choices are often fairly obvious and easy because they happen quickly and hurt for just a short time.
In contrast, it is the small, daily, repeated sacrifice of things much less than our lives for those same ideals that requires great courage. Sure, I’d die for my wife, but would I turn off the baseball game when she wants me to talk to her? Sure, I’d die for Jesus, but would I give an hour of my time to an elderly person? Sure, I’d die for my country, but would I lead a discussion group for Junior high students on the meaning of the Constitution?
It takes great courage to die for something, but it takes an even greater amount of courage to live every day for that same thing…the sort of courage we all have the opportunity to demonstrate.
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