INTEGRITY - SIXTH VALUE OF A SOLDIER OF CHRIST

COMMITMENT, CHARACTER, CHRIST.....THE ATTRIBUTES OF A CHRISTIAN

 Texts: Isaiah 43:2; Daniel Chapters 1 & 3…in part

GODLY CHARACTER PART 1 - 6TH KEY TO THE KINGDOM

 TEXT:  1 PETER 3:7-9

  

MEN OF GOD - WHY THEY DON'T PRAY AND HOW TO REVERSE THE TREND

Picture this – the Creator of the Universe, the Savior of the World, the Greatest Teacher Who ever lived and Lord of all, grabbed you and your two best friends. Then He takes everyone up this mountain and turns from the God-man into God Himself, as He really is. They rightly fall on their faces, in fear and terror as the glorified Moses and Elijah show up with gleaming white light along with Jesus as He really looks amidst the booming Voice of the God announcing just Who Jesus really is. (CLICK HERE TO READ MATTHEW 17:1-13 NASB)

Then, fast forward to the night of the final Passover with Jesus at the helm, on the way to willingly give His life on the Cross.  He ( Jesus) asks them to pray and stay with Him awhile…..and they promptly fall asleep. Let us read Matthew 26:40-42 a "And He *came to the disciples and *found them sleeping, and *said to Peter, “So, you men could not keep watch with Me for one hour? Keep watching and praying that you may not enter into temptation; the spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak. He went away again a second time and prayed."

This is a perfect picture of men, as far back as we can remember, who not just do not pray, but do not see the value and absolute necessity of prayer…..except when they fall sick or need divine intervention on some family matter.  But it is indeed worse than it appears. We (men) will take the great mountaintop experiences with Jesus, like an exciting conference or seminar, but would drop the ball once we get back to the valleys and fields, where the actual real work of the Christian life is lived.

Latest (2017) PEW Research survey shows women
 pray more than men

I have seen places, in sound bible-teaching churches, where prayer is limited to the pastoral 3 minute prayer at the beginning and the prayer requests in some of the Sunday school classes where the teacher is more tuned into the Holy Spirit. The official policies of too many churches are more program than prayer oriented, regardless of the small groups that actually exist in most bible-teaching churches who pray to keep the spiritual fires burning. So, this trend with non-praying men is not happening in a vacuum.

During the first year, when after I was born-again (1988-89),  the passion to know the Lord Who saved me by His Grace so dramatically, so overwhelmed me that I would sit for hours by a freezing lake in the fall and winter and pray for hours. Later on, I sat by the window of my small sparse city apartment looking up into the sky just talking to Him – again for hours.  I never received an audible answer during those many months or when I devoured my little $2 New Testament on the banks of the Huron River on a regular basis, but something permanent and powerful happened within me.

Later on in life, around 2005-2006,  after assuming leadership of our local National Day of Prayer event, it was necessary to tap into fellow prayer warriors of a national prayer movement local chapter, for prayer cover and support. It was only then, more than 17 years into my permanent and close Walk with God, did I realize the lack of prayer in not just churches, but the men’s ministries with which I was closely involved.

Since 2007, I have been the Prayer Committee leader for the local leg of the Iron Sharpens Iron Men’s Conferences and staff two prayer rooms – one intercessory with men and women praying all day long for the conference. The other prayer room is open and available to all the men (now over 1000 annually) where two other ministers and myself pray with and counsel men all day long, who constantly flow in and out of the room. Over a decade of praying regularly and counseling with men, it is obvious why men do not pray.

In fact, if you look at the survey above by the Pew Research Center, from less than a year ago (2017) it is obvious that women pray more than men and here is why:
-  Modern men are more results oriented. When they do not see results immediately from "asking God to ....(fill in the blanks)", men move on.  This is obviously unacceptable to the King of Heaven and thus, the communication will remain broken. I have heard of guys who ask their wives to ask others to pray. This is not the plan of God for men, who call themselves by His Name.
-  Because men do not get immediate "relief or answers" the two times they prayed before, they do not see the value of prayer. Even worse, they do not comprehend what relationships are, whether it is with their families and most definitely with their Creator. 
-  Men are not inclined to pray for other people because they think it is not their fight or business or that these people in need are on their own. In essence, as callous as it may sound, they believe that what happened to the person in need of prayer, was either their own fault or God will take care of it..."if He is listening".
-  Finally, a main reason why men do not pray is - they don't know what to say! This is the easiest one to fix, by the way. It is hard for a man, especially over 40 years old, who has a target on his back, his job, his masculinity etc by a liberal-oriented society, to then sit down in silence, close his eyes and take to Someone he cannot see. Never mind some of these men go to church on Sunday, sing some songs, put checks in the plate, drink coffee and eat donuts, while smiling and glad-handing other people faking it, all around the church complex. Some of these same men would throw themselves on a grenade in combat or drive the biggest Cat heavy machinery on the construction site, but before the Great God of Heaven are speechless.

So we see the problems. They are real and they cause real emotional and spiritual damage. How do we fix this? As men in the business and life of Christ, we must step up to the plate and help as many of our brothers as we can. We all know men's ministry is the hardest thing to do in our churches. I have been involved for over two decades and can attest to the frustration of cooking bacon and eggs for two dozen men at the monthly church breakfast, for years, with my young sons, and have 10 or maybe 12 show up. The others will apologize the next morning at service. This happened year after year, but my sons and I never gave up until they moved on to different churches or walks in life. For me, it has gone on to conducting men's retreats for forty plus men, which is a win in our city. There, we pray and teach, and reach and build trust for over 14 years, so that the growing number of younger men who are coming out of addictions, or broken relationships or hard economic times can let their guard down and have 10 other guys lay hands and pray into their lives. How do you turn the big ship around? We do it one inch at a time. Inch by inch it's a cinch. Yard by yard - it's hard.

The keys to ministry to men, and leading men to pray who are not fellow ministers are the following: 
-  INTEGRITY. If you and I call ourselves disciples of Christ, we had better act like it when nobody is looking.  If people we are reaching out to, cannot verify these claims over time, through talking with our wives and children, we had better go fishing or something.  It has been said that integrity is what you do when no one is looking. Integrity defines us. Do not mess it up.
-  CREDIBILITY. If we are not known as a man of prayer and a go-to person for anything, including giving a homeless person a lift to the clinic, no one will believe us. We don't have to write blogs or books or preach on prayer all the time. All we have to do is be there for someone. When we say we are going to pray for someone, DO IT RIGHT THERE. Also, for goodness sake, DO NOT TELL SOMEONE THEY ARE IN YOUR THOUGHTS AND PRAYERS! Even the unsaved talk like that and never pray! Do it immediately, if the person declines in the middle of a busy sidewalk, while walking away or even driving to the office or grocery store.
-  CONSISTENCY. When there is a prayer meeting which you feel led to, just show up. Life is all about showing up. We show up for work. We should show up for our kids events. We show up for parades in town and on and on. When we are consistently in bible study or reaching out to invite even one guy to come to your men's group or offer a DVD like War Room the Movie etc., trust me, people notice these things and know to whom they can turn in times of trouble and need. Consistency leads to longevity which leads to credibility and being known as a man of integrity.
-  TESTIMONY. There is absolutely NOTHING better than a guy hearing the testimony of a miraculous healing from someone they know, or someone in church, all because someone prayed! These testimonies to prayers answered are results which men can wrap their minds around. Here is the perfect opportunity to reach some of these guys and say, hey - watch this movie at home when you have a few minutes, or read this book by Jim Cymbala like FRESH WIND FRESH FIRE (see below for free copy), which is such a fast good read, it will inspire even the most jaded Christian.
-  THE PSALMS. Most men do not read the Bible either. In every Christian church, across the world, there are more women's bible study groups, than men. To reach fallen men who have adopted passivity in their Christianity, we have to go to the source - the Psalms. The Psalms is the prayer book of the Bible. They were designed to be such, by the Holy Spirit of God and cover every emotion and  every situation known to humankind! Through the ups and downs of David, or the worship of Asaph and other Psalm writers we see the Hand of God leading us into the Paths of all Truth and the way we can talk to God....and be heard by Him. Even Moses wrote a Psalm which lays out the condition of mankind (Psalm 90). If we can teach others to just read part of a Psalm a day....and read it out loud at times in the privacy of their own homes, pretty soon, the Spirit of God will begin changing their hard hearts and opening their minds to a powerful truth. This truth is that God speaks through His Word and by reading His Psalms, and reading out loud sometimes, we are speaking it back to Him, thereby building back a relationship with Him. The sweet fellowship of the Psalms are a balm to the troubled soul who never prays, but which now cannot resist the Healing of Heaven electrifying the spirit within.

There are other ways, but it will take another book on prayer, like my book ACTIVATE, to fully flesh out, with testimonies and more. But if we do the following: live a life of consistent credibility which is full of Godly integrity and full of the Word of God pouring out of our conversations, we cannot help to be rub off on those around us. There are some serious and even understandable reasons why men do not pray. However, we who know better, have the responsibility to not leave it there. Let's get busy and take the bull by the horns. Time is short.

CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD A FREE COPY OF FRESH WIND FRESH FIRE BY JIM CYMBALA, SENIOR PASTOR OF THE BROOKLYN TABERNACLE

SEVEN FAMOUS BIBLE VERSES, #2: "HYPOCRISY...NOT JUDGMENT"

Judge not, that ye be not judged 

(Matthew 7:1 KJV)

Everyone and their brother uses this verse to, for the most part, slam those who defend the conduct required by the Bible. Even those who do not believe in Yahweh (Jesus), Creator of Heaven and Earth and the True Word Who founded Christianity throw those precious words around. Of all the misused and misdirected Bible verses in the world, this seven words are the most well known. It is also somewhat amusing that the King James bible is the version use to misquote this verse, as an aside.

But what does it mean? Well, first of all, it means we ALL have to be very careful. This issue here is NOT of of Judgment but of Hypocrisy. We do this many times a day "judge not...." Every single time we make a decision to do or not do something, we make a judgment call. We choose not to drive into heavy traffic, if avoidable and try to find a side street to go around it. We choose to not eat that triple cheese steak burger at the local diner, because combine that with chocolate milk shake, the deal is over 2000 calories. We choose not to jump out of a perfectly good airplane, unless we're in the 82nd Airborne Division. We even make a judgment call at the car dealership while car shopping, or retail or eyeglass store...and on and on.

There is NOTHING wrong with making the right call. This is precisely what Jesus is talking about here in His great Sermon on the Mount, which even politicians like to misquote. Here is the full context where "judge not less ye be judged" came from: 
Matthew 7:1-5
“Do not judge so that you will not be judged.  For in the way you judge, you will be judged; and by your standard of measure, it will be measured to you.

Why do you look at the speck that is in your brother’s eye, but do not notice the log that is in your own eye? Or how can you say to your brother, ‘Let me take the speck out of your eye,’ and behold, the log is in your own eye? You hypocrite, first take the log out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to take the speck out of your brother’s eye.

So we have established that life involves a process of right choices or judgment. But what everyone under sun - Christian or not - should not be is a hypocrite. Instinctively, if we have a working conscience, we know when we are speaking out of both sides of our mouths. We expect what with the usual suspects - politicians, some auto sales and financial services salesmen (obviously not all of them). But if we are not alert, we can fall into the same trap. 

Jesus Himself gave the answer to what He means about judging someone else. At the start of verse 5 here, He states "You hypocrite, take the log out of your won eye....." literally, before calling another person out on the same thing!

Are you looking at things on the internet which you should not be looking at? Are you secretly stashing alcohol or cigarettes while telling others that it is wrong to do so?
Are you appearing to walk the talk as a "moral Christian" on Sunday morning with your mask on, while cussing up a blue streak and joining in the secular dirty joke crowd from Monday-Friday?
Are you fudging on your taxes or not giving God the First Fruits of your labor (10% towards God's Work off the gross income you make)?
Are you a man or woman of integrity?
Are you the same person at home, in front of your spouse and/or child, that you appear to be in public?

Someone once said that integrity is doing the same thing in private that you and I do when no one is looking. It is always so much better for us to err on the side of caution and going the extra step to provide a margin and give ourselves a cushion. More importantly, it is so much better to not provide a mocking world an easy target for them to call us "hypocrites", while they accuse of trying to judge their conduct. So, my friends, let's walk the talk, and as Jesus said later in - "make a right judgment".

(Image Credit Here)

FLIRTING WITH DISASTER

Part 2 - RUN LIKE HELL!

We're flirtin' with disaster, ya'll know what I mean 
And the way we run our lives it makes no sense to me 
I don't know about yourself or what you wanna to be, yeah 
When we gamble with our time we choose our destiny...(Molly Hatchet, 1979)


Yesterday, we looked briefly at the possibility of pitfalls when people play with fire by indulging in what they think is "innocent" flirtation in offices. This is not limited to offices, but men of God and pastors face the same thing when the council females of any age, one on one in their offices. Neither of these actions are wise at all - no way!

I believe in the Sufficiency of Scripture, in that, the Bible has both the illustrations and the examples for us to learn from, glean and then follow as we seek to improve and grow as men and women of God. There are two perfect examples of Temptation and let us look how each person involved dealt with it.


JOSEPH (Genesis 39: 1-12) was tempted by the boss' wife while serving Potiphar, the head official in Egypt. He was obviously a lot younger and a single man so Potiphar's wife began to eye him. She made several blunt approaches and, with integrity, he politely but firmly, declined them all. The final time she tried to seduce him, she actually laid her hands on him and grabbed his coat as he escaped her evil clutches. Joseph, for lack of better terms, ran like hell!


EVE (Genesis 3:1-6) was negotiating with a snake who told the first lies of Creation. He deceived her. She took the forbidden fruit and offered it to the man, Adam, who stood there and watched the entire thing without saying a word, and they both ate it. This was in direct defiance and disobedience to the Word of God and here we are today.


Joseph ran. 
Eve will stand. 
Joseph paid a temporary price.
Eve brought the entire race down.
Joseph later gave life and food to many because God favored him.
Eve led and will lead billions to hell for their sins against Holy God.


How can people avoid this? How can we NOT flirt with disaster? Without writing an entire book on this, which I can do, here are some bullet point steps:

TO AVOID FLIRTING WITH DISASTER:

- Take heed, less ye fall....realize this can happen to you and do NOT get full of sinful pride. Man is not that good. Even the strongest can and WILL be tempted.
-  Realize that, as the song says above, in certain ways, we DO "choose our destiny". The devil tempted Eve and lied and twisted her thinking but here is what the Bible says "So when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was a delight to the eyes, and that the tree was to be desired to make one wise, she took of its fruit and ate, and she also gave some to her husband who was with her, and he ate. (Genesis 3:6 ESV)...
- Realize therefore, the devil CANNOT make you do it. You can walk away! Do NOT negotiate with sin! Do not stand there when she bats her sexy eyes and asks you to lunch, and say "I will think about it, when the answer is NO, I can't go to lunch with you, I am a married man"! Here is what God says you should do from James 4:7 "Submit therefore to God and stand against Satan, and he will flee from you (Aramaic Bible - Jesus spoke Aramaic).
-  Realize the devil is a coward and when you call on everything you have learned from years of church, small group or even if you do not go to church...there were some things called "Marriage vows" - rebuke the sorry son of perdition, Satan and his female acolyte he sent to tempt you and watch him leave you alone! But you have to mean it!

- Realize the devil will only get what you give him. Give him nothing. Give him a firm stand against sin and then give him Jesus, the Name of Jesus and the Word of Jesus to "get thee behind me Satan".

- Realize, when all else fails, you can still run like the wind! Flee immortality, my friends, do not flirt with trouble! Life is full enough of some major stuff, let's not bring pain, emotional scars and suffering to our loved ones by this kind of garbage.

- Realize that we MUST guard our hearts as we are commanded by a God who said this: “For the man who does not love his wife but divorces her, says the LORD, the God of Israel, covers his garment with violence, says the LORD of hosts. So guard yourselves in your spirit, and do not be faithless.”(Malachi 2:16 ESV). The Lord is saying here "make sure all your flanks are covered" and especially your mind. Don't be flattered that the best looking person in the office or wherever is making a play for you. This is a test of your character, so let us not fail the One Who died for us on the Cross!

Finally do not soil the Testimony God has given you, for the passing cheap thrills of expensive perfume and flesh, which mask the stench of death and destruction. 

Father God, in the Name of Jesus, help us to understand Your Word, Your commands to us, Your demand that we walk in Holiness and Righteousness and never let us take our eyes of the Prize of Christ. Lord, You know that sometimes we are weak and the evil one can attack when we are distracted and not expecting a full assault on our hearts, minds and our very souls. Give us the strength to remember Jesus and do as He did, quote the Word back to evil and just say "it is written" and Father God, that Word, Your Word, will be all we need to rebuke sin, the flesh and the devil and flee the other way, so that we will be free from the fruits of unrighteousness all the days of our lives, in Jesus Holy and Mighty and Strong Name, amen and amen!

(images by google images)

TEBOW & PUJOLS - CHRIST OR MAMMON?

Very few athletes have been making as huge headlines recently than football's Tim Tebow and baseball's Albert Pujols. Both men have been known to wear their 'testimony' on their sleeves.


Love 'em or not, both men have people talking not just about their public professions of Faith in Jesus Christ. However, by doing so, they have invited more scrutiny on their individual lives to see if their talk matches their walk!

Albert Pujols with his idol...er..statue

This is actually not a bad thing, as many a so-called "Christian Athlete" has fallen  hard on  their face, making all their talk about "Jesus is my Savior" a laughing stock to a cynical word.  Christian ministries are actually partially to blame for this, because they fall all over themselves, to hire this or that newly minted celebrity athlete, who happens to say that he believes in the bible or is a "christian"! I have yet to hear of some poor soul say that he/she got saved because Kurt Warner or Deion Sanders spoke at a Fellowship of Christian Athletes banquet!


The latest example is current Chicago Bears wide receiver Sam Hurd. After claiming Christ, the Bible and a picture perfect family life, the Feds just arrested him last week, for running a Cocaine/Marijuana ring worth millions of dollars! When he was arrested last Friday and charged, the news media led with the fact that he was a man who quoted the Bible and spoke to others in need.


Both Pujols and Tebow do not fall into this category because neither have committed any type of crime. However both men have to guard their conduct - personal and professional, because the reputation of Christ rests on it.


Baseball's Albert Pujols has already lost credibility. Last winter, when the negotiations started with the St. Louis Cardinals over the kind of money and contract he wanted, his reputation as the most God-fearing and loved man on the team, came into question. Many saw a different side of a man whom an entire St. Louis region put on a pedestal.


By the time CHRISTIAN DAY at the Park (Busch Stadium) came by on August 3, resentment against him was building. I was working at Gate 8 of the Cardinals-Rockies late game as we passed out baseball cards with 5 players's favorite bible verses at the back of it. I found out later this was universal, but Pujols' card was no longer the favorite! Sure this is anecdotal, but the fans already suspected he was not all he seemed.


These players - from Lance Berkman to Pujols - spoke somewhat eloquently about their so-called faith in Christ when the time for speechifying came before the remaining 8000 fans on that Christian Day. However, when the Cardinals won the 2011 World Series and each of these same men had the chance to tell the world about Jesus, not one of them - not Pujols or Berkman - said a thing. When it came right down to it, they thanked themselves.


This is the difference between these people and Tim Tebow. Tebow gives credit to Jesus, at the end of every touchdown or when he won those two NCAA Football titles at Florida. Pujols went on to sell out his standing in the eyes of God and man to the highest bidder, for a massive $250 million/10 year contract (massive for a fading star). After he sold out all those who looked up to him as some kind of saint, he said God told him to do it!!! The question is, did God also tell him to turn down the $230 million from the Miami Marlins or the $170 million from St Louis, where he already had a ministry and a base etc..??!!! 


Tim Tebow was given a $2.5 million signing bonus last year, when he signed with the Denver Broncos Football team. He gave it all away! He is building a hospital in the Philippines where his Baptist parents are missionaries and has already said he gains more satisfaction in humanitarian work and missions than anything else. 


He takes a knee publicly on the sideline and prays out openly after he scores or wins a game. This has begun a national phenomenon called "Tebowing". You are not going to believe this, but the practice of praying after a touchdown so openly has made Tebow a favorite with Orthodox Jewish Rabbis, of all people! They do not agree with his personal belief in Christ, but admire completely his devotion to God! This is the kind of effect a sold out man can have on the world.


The big problem for Tebow is - people are waiting for him to fall. Every man of God, who seems so perfect, has the biggest bullseye on his back. 


He will be set up by those who will exploit his weakness for beautiful girls.
He will be watched as far as his lifestyle (re: alcohol, going out and any parties).
He will be a focus of stories from inside the locker room, as to "what kind of guy Tebow really is". 
He will be examined with the media microscope from hell. 
The same media who is putting him on the cover of every sports magazine and the top of every TV highlight, will go ape, to try and destroy him, if or when he makes even the most minor of slip-ups.


The thing for him to do, is when trials and temptations come, as they will to a young vibrant and single man, is to NEVER take his eyes of Jesus. Never lose his integrity and never stop praying with humility and fervor.


The other potential pitfall is his tendency to seek a limelight for his praise. Jesus said to go to your prayer closet and don't do like the pharisees. This is a special dispensation. It would be a lot better if he were to go back to the bench and pray obviously and not in such a flashy way, but Tebowing is what it is...and it IS Christ-honoring. May it continue to be completely real and may God continue to watch over His young whipper-snapper, Tim Tebow!

(Images courtesy Google images)