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Guest Post: Is Your Church A Bad Hospital?

July 27, 2012 by Mark Woodward

My son-in-law Tim Spivey, senior minister of New Vintage Church in Escondido, California, sent out a tweet last week that drew quite a bit of response. One of Tim’s great strengths is that he is not afraid to say what is true. In his latest blog, he expands and explains his short tweet, and I think you will find it quite challenging.

“The healthy leave unhealthy churches and the unhealthy leave healthy churches. Pay attention to who leaves, not just who arrives.”

There has never been a church no one has left. Every church “loses” people. Nevertheless, a fear of losing people keeps many churches from doing what needs to be done. They don’t correct the out-of-line elder. They don’t transition a chronically lazy or divisive staff member. They don’t correct the person who gossips and slanders. They fail to do what needs to be done for one simple reason–fearoflosingpeoplephobia. In falling prey to this dreaded disease, a church virtually guarantees they will lose people, except they will lose healthy people and keep the unhealthy. That will lead to an unhealthy church culture orienting the church around the unhealth of the dysfunctional, rather than around the health of leadership.

While no church wants to lose people, it’s a reality if you are healthy—not just unhealthy. If you don’t lose certain kinds of people, you will still lose people—just the healthy members of your church. You’ll be left with a bad hospital–lots of patients and no doctors. God will not bless such a hospital, for when the scarcity mindset trumps biblical instruction to correct, rebuke, etc., God’s Word is taking a backseat to feelings and fear.

Caveat: I’m not saying the church should only admit the healthy. I’m saying the church should be healthy and if it is, the sick will get better. The church should always reach out to the emotionally/spiritually sick. After all, we are disciples of Jesus, the Great Physician. However, letting the sick run off the healthy and infect others with their illness isn’t the ministry of healing. The sick not interested in health will leave. That’s OK.

Save “hospital” ministry for those wanting to get better, and pay close attention to comings and goings of doctors. Hospitals with all patients and no doctors become morgues. A true hospital is one in which the sick are brought to health. Health is the aim of any true hospital. Fulfill that role. If someone is sick but dressed like a doctor (a church leader, for example), move them to a hospital bed before they infect the other doctors. Move them toward health, as well.

Churches often take losing people as a bad sign–and it certainly can be. They also typically want to know where new growth comes from. This is also good. However, it’s at least equally important to watch who leaves. Don’t assume they are “just not committed.” Don’t let yourself off the hook right away. Ask yourself if they are healthy or unhealthy–and be fair to them. Look back three to five years at the people who have left. If they were sick, you may actually be a hospital. If they were mostly healthy, then it may be you that is sick. It’s time to change. If you don’t, you’re on your way to operating a leper colony, not a hospital–and certainly not a church.

I know this language is strong–but health is a matter of life and death for churches. It’s about honoring God in leadership by saving the beds for the truly sick, and carrying out a true ministry of healing on behalf of the Great Physician–who once asked, “Do you want to get well?” to a man lame since birth. If He can ask it, we can ask it of the chronically anxious, the liar, the gossip, the slanderer, or the immature.

In fact, we must. Or, we aren’t engaging in a ministry of healing at all. We are contributing to long-term or even terminal spiritual illness.

 

If you would like to engage with Tim or read more of his writing, visit his blog at www.newvintageleadership.com

 

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What Time Is It Really?

July 24, 2012 by Mark Woodward

Nothing challenges your sense of the existence of real time like international travel. Look at how relative time is in our world:

  • Twice a year 49 out of the 50 states change the clock one hour for daylight savings.
  • When it is 12 noon in Texas and the Sunday football game is about to start, it is 1:00pm in New York and the Californians are still in church because it is 10am. So what time is it really?
  • The tip of Chile is 6000 miles from Dallas and is only one hour ahead of Central time, whereas Tokyo—about the same distance—is 14 hours ahead of Dallas.

Sherrylee and I left DFW at 10pm on Saturday, flew direct to Brisbane for 15 hours, but on the ground it was Monday at 5am.  When we return from Sydney, we depart on Monday at 3:20pm and we arrive in Dallas on Monday at 3:45pm—20 minutes later!!!

So what time is it really?  Or is there a real time—anywhere??

Then you have the “sense of time” or whether time has a feel to it.  Does time move at a different speed depending on whether you are in a boring movie or at a thrilling ball game?  Do children have any sense of time?  Is it something you learn?

Time is somehow connected to intervals between events. We have a great need to know how long since the baby ate—in fact, the baby’s body has a rhythm that demands certain time intervals be acknowledged!  Most time is measured by the time it takes for the earth to travel around the sun—which has for millennia been recognized to be about 365 days plus or minus. Days have been measured in all sorts of ways: watches, quarters, hours, tidal rhythms, lunar patterns, etc.

So there may be time, but the only way we can talk about it is to agree on some standard of conversation. If Texas says it is noon and California says it is 10am, someone has to explain why both of these answers could be correct.

And so it is with good and bad, with moral and immoral, with definitions of colors, of words—of life and death.  The only way we can talk about any of these is to agree on some standard of what is true.

The world becomes a much more difficult place when we quit talking about what we have in common and start focusing on what is different.

I think that “live at peace with all men, as much as it depends on you” (Romans 12 :18)means being willing to search together for “whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things” (Philippians 4:8)—and primarily to believe that people can agree on these things for the common good.

So,  if you ask me what time it is, I will tell you it is 8:25am on Tuesday, July 24, but you might say, no, it is 5:25pm on Monday, July 23rd. If we will keep talking, we will come to an agreeable understanding, won’t we!

If that works for time, maybe it will work for other things that we seem to have trouble agreeing on.

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Going Up and Under

July 21, 2012 by Mark Woodward

Sherrylee and I are at DFW, waiting to board a flight to Sydney, Australia, where we are teaching and speaking at a missions conference next week.  Following that conference, we leave for Malaysia and the Asian Mission Forum.  From there we fly to New Zealand to visit with Steve and Gil Raine and the South Pacific Bible College.

As is my practice, I will try to take you with me on this trip, but as always, I beg for your patience with the irregularity.

It’s time to board, so we’ll talk again from down under!!

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Unity Requires Grace!

July 17, 2012 by Mark Woodward

Whenever someone starts to talk about unity, other people get nervous that somehow people who shouldn’t be in the fold of the saved might be allowed in.  I suppose too many people under grace would somehow water down the value of salvation, or those that were really good would be disappointed to learn that they didn’t really need to be that good to get in.

Even those who further narrow the passage way believe in grace.  In fact, it is the measure and scope of God’s grace that seems to be one of the most difficult problems. Too much grace and we have Romans 6: “Shall we sin that grace may abound??”  Too much grace and we are tempted towards universalism, or salvation for everyone!

But not enough grace and we find ourselves in legalism, sectarianism, and judgmentalism, which all of us believe to be out of step with the spirit of Christ.

What if we quit speculating about grace and just listed the sins toward which we know God has extended grace.  This is just a blog, not a book, so you’ll forgive me for just hitting the high points without a lot of footnotes.

Old Testament

  1. Lying              –                                              Abraham lied twice about his wife
  2. Cheating      –                                              Jacob cheated Esau out of the blessing
  3. Idolatry        –                                              Aaron made a golden calf for Israel to worship
  4. Rebellion     –                                              Aaron and Miriam rebelled against Moses’ leadership
  5. Lust                –                                              David lusted after Bathsheba
  6. Adultery      –                                              David took Bathsheba to bed and got her pregnant
  7. Murder        –                                              David had Bathsheba’s husband Uriah killed
  8. Challenging God’s righteousness      Job

New Testament

  1. Adultery      –                              Jesus and the adulterous woman
  2. Stealing        –                              Thief on the cross
  3. Denying Jesus           –              Peter
  4. Power struggle         –              “Who will be the greatest in the kingdom”
  5. Hatred/Vengence   –              “Do you want us to call down fire on them?”
  6. Persecuting Christians –         Saul of Tarsus
  7. Murder                        –              Saul and Stephen
  8. Racial prejudice/hypocrisy – Peter with the Greek Christians

And then there is the lists of  “and so were some of you” that Paul mentions: “You used to walk in these ways, in the life you once lived. 8 But now you must also rid yourselves of all such things as these: anger, rage, malice, slander, and filthy language from your lips” Colossians 3:7.

So how does this list of sins stack up against those sins for which you are willing to deny fellowship with others who call on the name of the Lord?

 

Let’s acknowledge two very important truths about sin/grace here:

  1. All sin has consequences.  Grace did not mean Paul was not hated and persecuted by the Jews. Grace did not mean that David’s infant son by Bathsheba did not die.  All sin has consequences.
  2. We are called to repent of all sin!  But as I think back over the above list, I don’t remember Abraham or Jacob or the Sons of Thunder repenting—at least not in a way that was worth recording.

So I can acknowledge that God’s grace is extended to all (“God so loved the world”—not “God so loved the Good People”)and still acknowledge that there are people who will not accept the grace of God.

Two verses of Scripture have changed my need to speculate about the portion of grace you have received.

John 1:14 – The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory,the glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.

If Jesus could be full of truth and full of grace at the same time, then I should strive for the same.  All truth and no grace is just as wrong as all grace and no truth!  Full, to me, means going for the most truth possible and the most grace possible.

James 2:13 – “Mercy triumphs over judgment.”

What this says to me is that if you are in doubt about whether to exercise mercy or judgment, you should always choose mercy.

Ephesians 2 says that God is rich in mercy.  If you need help in deciding whether to show grace or to exercise judgment—think about being “full of grace” like Jesus and “rich in mercy” like God.  I have a hard time seeing how you can go wrong following these paths.

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Sunday Hymns: Be Still My Soul

July 15, 2012 by Mark Woodward

Be Still My Soul is a hymn that has comforted me and calmed my fears on many occasions. This hymn has the benefit of amazing music that permits coupling only with correspondingly beautiful language.  Be Still My Soul  is the perfect marriage.

Jean Sibelius, a famous Finnish composer, wrote a nationalistic symphony called Finlandia in 1899-1900. Within a fairly turbulent and rousing string of movements, he embedded a quiet hymn-like moment, which became so popular itself that Sibelius later pulled that part of the symphony out and re-worked it into a choral piece.

Katarina Amalia Dorothea von Schlegel (1697-1768) wrote the German words in 1752, which were translated by Jane Laurie Borthwick into English in 1855.  I have not been able to determine when the melody and these words were first brought together.

Beyond the music, what really first captured me about these lyrics is that they do not promise an easy path or quick relief. What these hymn measures out to you in each verse is comfort and hope, so that you can bear your “cross of grief or pain.”

Be still, my soul: the Lord is on thy side.
Bear patiently the cross of grief or pain.
Leave to thy God to order and provide;
In every change, He faithful will remain.
Be still, my soul: thy best, thy heavenly Friend
Through thorny ways leads to a joyful end.

Your God is not helpless in the face of what unbelievers would call Fate or Destiny or Chance. In fact, He is entirely sovereign over the future and the past.

Be still, my soul: thy God doth undertake
To guide the future, as He has the past.
Thy hope, thy confidence let nothing shake;
All now mysterious shall be bright at last.
Be still, my soul: the waves and winds still know
His voice Who ruled them while He dwelt below.

The death of loved ones is perhaps our most painful moment in this life. That kind of separation even made Jesus cry—but not with a sorry that will not be healed by the Resurrection.

Be still, my soul: when dearest friends depart,
And all is darkened in the vale of tears,
Then shalt thou better know His love, His heart,
Who comes to soothe thy sorrow and thy fears.
Be still, my soul: thy Jesus can repay
From His own fullness all He takes away.

The fear of our own death and all the money we spend and hours we take trying to prolong our days and avoid the unavoidable.  We will need to find in God that moment of stillness when we “grief and fear are gone.”  Grief and fear are exchanged for “love’s purest joy restored.”

Be still, my soul: the hour is hastening on
When we shall be forever with the Lord.
When disappointment, grief and fear are gone,
Sorrow forgot, love’s purest joys restored.
Be still, my soul: when change and tears are past
All safe and blessèd we shall meet at last.

The story is told that this Eric Liddell, the runner about whom Chariots of Fire was made, taught this hymn to fellow prisoners in China while imprisoned during World War II, an imprisonment he escaped only by death.

A similarly moving story is told that a version of this hymn called “We Rest On Him” was the last hymn sung by Jim Elliot and four fellow missionaries before they were killed by a violent tribe of natives in Ecuador in 1956.

I certainly hope you are not facing imprisonment or native spears, but I suspect you have your own fearful moments.  In those moments, this hymn will be a blessing to you.

Be still and know that I am God.  Psalm 46:10

Posted in Sunday Hymns | Tagged | 1 Comment »

Try Tingling Instead of Bristling!

July 12, 2012 by Mark Woodward

I told the preacher from a small town in Tennessee that we have historically been with the a cappella part of the Restoration Movement, and he said, “That just makes me tingle!”

Sherrylee and I are at the North American Christian Convention, which is the primary annual meeting of the Independent Christian Churches.  We have been treated to wonderful classes, outstanding preaching, and great fellowship, but more importantly for me, we have caused goose bumps!

I stopped at a booth yesterday and was talking to three women who are involved in a benevolent ministry, listening to them tell about their wonderful work. One of the women read the logo on my shirt and asked, “So what is Let’s Start Talking?”

Of course, I started telling her and her response was, “Why haven’t I heard about this before?”  I explained that LST began in the a cappella Church of Christ, to which she replied, “Now what’s going on here? “

She had grown up in the non-instrumental Church of Christ and knew from her childhood that the two cousins were not in fellowship with each other. YET, the keynote speaker that morning was from Abilene Christian University, and here we were standing right in front of her.

I explained to her that there were still differences—like any two brothers or sisters are different—but that maybe we were all learning that loving one another was more Christ-like than castigating one another.

At least 5000 Christians are in Orlando at the conference. I hardly know anyone here—which is so different from when we go to Pepperdine or Harding or any of our lectureships or conferences.  And I didn’t really know how we would be received.  Every group has its hardliners who only have room in their hearts for people who do not disagree with them on things.  What if I sat at the table with someone who was angry that this “other” person was at their meeting!!

When the preacher from Tennessee said, “That just makes me tingle, ” the thought crossed my mind that he was reacting negatively, but then he said, “I just love it that we have begun to find each other again.”

It’s a beautiful thing when brothers walk together in unity. And it’s a sign of a maturing body of Christ, and a sign of the reconciliation of the world, and a sign of the work of God’s Spirit—and an answer to the last prayers of Jesus.

If you were thinking about bristling, stop and pray for tingling instead!

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How To Make Big Decisions!

July 10, 2012 by Mark Woodward

Having a big decision to make sends some people to bed. Others are so confident in their judgment that they can immediately decide without a second thought.

Being a Christian decision-maker should make you more confident, but, in fact, introduces the “pleasing-God” factor, which for some people can shoot the level of anxiety about a big decision off the charts.

Yesterday, I woke up knowing exactly what I needed to do about a big decision that has been in the works at Let’s Start Talking.  If I share it with you, it is not because I think it is the only way to make big decisions, but rather because it is a way that has worked for me for many years now. Perhaps there is something that will help you with your big decisions.

The Acts 1 Model for Decision-Making

 “It’s not for you to know the time or place”

 Over a year ago, we knew that we would possibly be asked to vacate the office space that LST has occupied for the last eleven years.  Highway construction outside our door threatened to take our building. Eventually the State of Texas took only part of our parking lot, so we seemed to have dodged the first bullet. Although all but one of the other tenants in our building left, we stayed put, enjoying our space and our exceptional rental terms.  No decision was required, so no decision was made.  Don’t let the fear of what might happen force you into decisions. No need to either fear the need to control the future or pretend you can; God does.

“Therefore it is necessary to choose “

About two months ago, an owner representative walked in and told us that they were closing our building permanently and we would need to vacate the premises by August. The possibility had become our new reality, so now a decision was required.

“. . . one of the men”

We immediately started looking at the most obvious choices for new office space, i.e., highrise office buildings in our current neighborhood.  Some we liked the space, some we liked the price, some we liked the location, BUT in the beginning of our search, we did not know what was most important to us. We only found that out as we looked around and gathered information.

What we discovered was that LST was a family, not a corporation, so “corporate” space did not feel right to us.  In our current office, you can park outside our door and walk right into Julie’s office and reception area.  We discovered as we searched that we did not want to be a name on the elevator index and a door at the end of the hall on the fourth floor.

The eleven in Jerusalem knew they had to make a choice, but when they established the criteria for the choice—someone who had been in the group with Jesus the whole time from John’s baptism to the resurrection—the options became clearer.

“So they nominated two men”

We don’t know how big the pool was. We do know there were 120 in Jerusalem and over 500 witnesses of the resurrection in Galilee, so there could have been many, but the Eleven only found two that met the final criteria.

Knowing that we needed our own “family” space narrowed our office-space search to stand alone small office buildings.  With the first few that we looked at, we started feeling much better about our choices.

Be open to the unexpected

There is no mention that the Eleven started with a short list of their friends. I can imagine that they were surprised by the two finalists.

After all of our looking, the first property that really captured our imagination was not for lease; it was for sale! We had not considered trying to purchase property until we saw a building that was perfect for us!  As we crunched numbers, it became clear to us that at the right price, purchasing space would be much less expensive for us than leasing.  Even considering the possibility of purchasing our own space opened up new buildings to view.  Was God moving us in a new direction?

“For one of these must become . . . .”

It is the middle of July now, and our time is running out. We may have no more than six weeks left in our current office, although we have asked for more.  It’s time to choose!

The Eleven did all their homework, narrowing the choice to just two men. Then they prayed and cast lots.

We have searched and looked and learned and discovered –and we have narrowed our choices to two buildings, both we think would be wonderful.  There are also obstacles still and uncertainties—otherwise there would be no choice—but we have prayed that God would make the decision clear. It’s time to start deciding.

“Then they cast lots . . . .”

There is no element of chance in casting lots. God is fully in control. If you believe in the sovereignty of an immanent God, big decisions are not that scary.  For me, “casting lots” is waiting until the answer is clear.  I don’t know how God does that. Some might call it the promptings of the Spirit; others would say God spoke to them; and I’m ok with however you want to describe it as long as you give glory to God.  What I know is that I wait until I know what the answer is. And over and over again, God has led me through big decisions in this way.

“And the lot fell to  . . . “

How can you be sure that casing lots works? Does it require faith?  Of course, it does. But that is what I’m sharing with you. You can trust God; it doesn’t all depend on you!

As I said earlier, I woke up yesterday and had an answer. I knew exactly what we should do, walked into the office and shared the answer with co-workers who all confirmed it.  And now we have given the process over to God to make the final decision about where LST will live.

We’ve identified the decision to be made, we’ve gathered all the information and facts that we could, we’ve been open to new possibilities, we’ve prayed and narrowed the choices.  We’ve done all we can do.  And now we believe God will show us His way.

Let Acts 1 be your instructions, and let God be in control and you will have that peace that passes understanding.

 

 

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Sunday Hymns: O God, Our Help In Ages Past

July 8, 2012 by Mark Woodward

Some hymns we love because they help us through especially dark times.  O God Our Help In Ages Past is one of those songs for me. Sherrylee and I had a particularly tough stretch years ago, including death of a parent, loss of friends, bitter struggles at church, and more. Every area of our wonderfully blessed life seemed to be in crisis.

When we lived in Oklahoma, I walked to the campus of Oklahoma Christian University to my office almost every morning. It was a quiet ten minutes before the storms of the day. I walked past the houses of other faculty members, across the practice soccer fields, and through the backdoor of the library to the secondary stairs to my office.

Especially in those very painful years, I often prayed as I walked, or just as likely, I sang quietly to myself. One hymn in particular reminds me of those years because I sang all the stanzas over and over again to calm and instruct my soul: O God Our Help In Ages Past .

Most know this hymn by Isaac Watts (1719) to a tune called St. Anne by William Croft. I prefer the simpler melody called St. Leonard. I needed the chant-like melody, fewer notes,  and the quiet ending. That melody carried these words into the brokenness of my spirit in those days.

O God, our help in ages past,
Our hope for years to come,
Our shelter from the stormy blast,
And our eternal home.

God has worked mightily in my life in the past. The mountaintops of my life are His doing, the security of the past is because of Him, so there is no reason to doubt that He is the “hope for years to come.”  In difficult times, we need to be reminded that they have a context, that the darkest days are surrounded on every side by the grace of God.

Beneath the shadow of Thy throne
Thy saints have dwelt secure;
Sufficient is Thine arm alone,
And our defense is sure.

I am not the first to face hard times. God’s people have often suffered—sometimes for the very reason they are God’s people, so why should I expect to avoid pain? If I had always avoided pain, then I would have never learned that His arm is not too short to help, not just to help, but to secure our defense!

Before the hills in order stood,
Or earth received her frame,
From everlasting Thou art God,
To endless years the same.

We are not talking about a new God of our own invention.  We are not depending on an untested or unproven God. We are depending on the God who created the universe from everlasting to everlasting—who never changes. We are depending in the hour of our deepest need, not just on a God who is awesome, but on the Almighty, Everlasting God !

A thousand ages in Thy sight
Are like an evening gone;
Short as the watch that ends the night
Before the rising sun.

If I forget, I start trying to get God to work on my schedule. I need relief now, I want it all to stop now. I needed then to be reminded that God has a different clock. My clock is like the plastic toys we give to small children, little toys that seem real to them but don’t give the real time.  It’s an important moment to give up our toys to depend on Him who creates time.

Time, like an ever rolling stream,
Bears all its sons away;
They fly, forgotten, as a dream
Dies at the opening day.

And I too will be borne away someday. My momentous crisis of today will be nothing at all. Today’s pain that is so real will be a curious diary entry to some great-grandchild that can’t figure out which of the old pictures is of you cause you forgot to write on the back.

O God, our help in ages past,
Our hope for years to come,
Be Thou our guard while troubles last,
And our eternal home.

Certainly, the eternal context and the temporal perspective spoke to me as I walked in pain to work each morning during those years, but, as I think back on those days, I think it was the “O God” that calmed me the most.  Just singing  “O God”  brought me into the shadow of His throne where I could find help and hope—and an eternal home.

Psalm 90: 1,2,12

Lord, thou hast been our dwelling place in all generations.

Before the mountains were brought forth, or ever thou hadst formed the earth and the world, even from everlasting to everlasting, thou art God.

Teach us to number our days, that we may get us a heart of wisdom.

 

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Fourth of July Movies and Trivia

July 4, 2012 by Mark Woodward

The 4th of July still feels like a new holiday to me because for so many years, we were out of the country on the fourth and not with people who celebrated it. Our first eight years of marriage, we were in Germany and the next twenty-five years, we were somewhere in the world on an LST project.

Occasionally during all those summers, we would gather with other Americans for a celebration of the fourth of July.  I remember one summer having a picnic in a beautiful park in Japan with LST teams; another year we met with Dave and Mary Schallert and their boys in Mannheim, Germany, to watch the video-taped baseball All-Star game.  They were near enough to American forces in Germany to get American Forces Network (AFN) TV.

But celebrating the fourth in another country is just not the same.  Take fireworks displays for instance.  We have often made it a point to be in Hanover, Germany, for the great firework contests that were held in Herrnhausen Gardens, part of the former royal estate of the Hanoverian family, which was the family of George III of England who was king during the Revolutionary War—or the War of the Rebellion of the Colonies, as my British friend David referred to it.

Anyway, for many years, three or four countries would compete against each other in Hanover with fireworks displays set to classical music. Handel’s Fireworks Music  from 1749 was often used, of course.  I don’t ever remember hearing Stars and Stripes Forever though—it was beautiful and aesthetically pleasing, but the fourth of July is so much more than that.

Here are some interesting trivia about the fourth of July that you may not know:

  • Three U.S. presidents have died on July 4, including two of the founding fathers Thomas Jefferson and John Adams who died within hours of each other on July 4, 1836. The other was James Monroe.
  • President Calvin Coolidge was born on July 4, and President Zachary Taylor, while celebrating the 4th of July in 1850, got sick and died five days later from eating bad holiday food.
  • Most, if not all of the colonial representatives signed the Declaration of Independence weeks, if not months, after July 4, 1776. John Adams thought July 2, the date the Continental Congress voted to adopt the independence resolution, would become the national holiday.
  • Denmark hosts the largest celebration of the 4th of July outside the United States at Rebild National Park. The Festival was begun here as the result of the park land being donated to the Danish government in honor of Danish Americans.
  • The Liberty Bell was probably not rung on July 4, 1776 because the public announcement of independence did not occur until July 8.  It’s connection to July 4th was created most likely by the publication of a short story in 1847 that fantasized an emotional ringing on the 4th of July by an old bell-ringer.
  • Around 155 million hot dogs will be eaten by Americans on the 4th of July.
  • In 1939, Lou Gehrig, famous NY Yankees first basemen, delivered his “luckiest man on the face of the earth” speech on Lou Gehrig Day at Yankee Stadium. He was the first major leaguer to have his number retired.

And, finally, here is my list of great movies for the family on the 4th of July, not necessarily in order of preference:

  1. Yankee Doodle Dandy (1942)
  2. Mr. Smith Goes To Washington (1939)
  3. 1776 (1972)
  4. Independence Day (1996)
  5. Rocky (1976)
  6. John Adams (TV mini series, 2008—one of the best I have ever seen!)
  7. Johnny Tremain (1957, great for younger audiences)
  8. Drums Along the Mohawk (1939)
  9. Forest Gump (1994)
  10. Miracle (2004)

Well, happy birthday, America! Now quit reading blogs and go have a great day with someone you love!

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Sunday Hymns: The Hymn That Let the Individual In!

July 1, 2012 by Mark Woodward

The critics of contemporary Christian music often make the claim that it is too individualistic, that is, individual relationships to God seem to have greater mention than communal, or that more of the songs focus on Me than on Him or They or Us.

You who feel that way will be shocked to learn which hymn—probably one of your favorites—was the first to be caught up in this kind of controversy.

At the turn of the 18th century, most Protestants were still singing the Psalms or the slightly more modern paraphrases of Scripture.  In 1701, Isaac Watts wrote a communion hymn, which he first titled Crucifixion To The World By The Cross of Christ.  We know this hymn today as When I Survey The Wondrous Cross, still used among us as a communion hymn and considered one of the best hymns ever written.  Charles Wesley is reported to have said that he would have sacrificed all of his own hymns freely if he could have written this one.

Nevertheless, this hymn stirred up controversy because it is the first known hymn to be written in first person.  To sing from one’s own heart about one’s own feelings and one’s own relationship to the cross and one’s own Savior was much too personal, too individualistic for Christians of that time.

Times and people have not changed much, have they!  But, neither has our amazement when we look on “the wondrous cross.”

When I survey the wondrous cross
On which the Prince of glory died,
My richest gain I count but loss,
And pour contempt on all my pride.

Forbid it, Lord, that I should boast,
Save in the death of Christ my God!
All the vain things that charm me most,
I sacrifice them to His blood.

In our fellowship, this was the moment when the voices quieted, and we paused between each phrase—“His head…His hands….his feet”– to realize the crucifixion moment.

See from His head, His hands, His feet,
Sorrow and love flow mingled down!
Did e’er such love and sorrow meet,
Or thorns compose so rich a crown?

The following stanza is original, but even Watts suggested it might be omitted, so most of us will find it unfamiliar.

His dying crimson, like a robe,
Spreads o’er His body on the tree;
Then I am dead to all the globe,
And all the globe is dead to me.

Were the whole realm of nature mine,
That were a present far too small;
Love so amazing, so divine,
Demands my soul, my life, my all.

With almost sudden volume, this last stanza would burst forth like the resurrection—from our own death and burial to new life, with renewed recognition of what the Cross demands in our—no, in MY life!

It’s very personal, isn’t it!

Posted in Other, Sunday Hymns | Tagged , | 1 Comment »

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