“You believe because you have seen me. Blessed are those who haven’t seen me and believe anyway.” John 20:29

‘There is no question that there is an unseen world. The problem is, how far is it from midtown and how late is it open?’– Woody Allen

Christians believe there is an unseen world that in some ways is more real than the one we see. Not that the one we see isn’t real, but the unseen world sometimes is thought of as being more important because of its permanence. The unseen one will last forever; this one is temporary, and yet for now, this temporary one is our reality.

That’s why I like Woody Allen’s question about how far the unseen world is from us and how late it stays open. In other words: How accessible is this unseen world? I think he may be on to something. As the saying goes: Some Christians are so heavenly minded, they’re of no earthly good.

The Gospel is all about caring for the real human needs of people, not just about getting them into heaven.

Suppose you see a brother or sister who needs food or clothing, and you say, “Well, goodbye and God bless you; stay warm and eat well,” but then you don’t give that person any food or clothing. What good does that do? So you see, it isn’t enough just to have faith. Faith that doesn’t show itself by good deeds is no faith at all – it is dead and useless. (James 2:17)

Jesus Christ brought the Good News of the Kingdom of heaven to earth, but he didn’t just touch down for a momentary appearance. Sometimes we forget he carried on a ministry here for three years. He connected with and did something about the suffering needs of the sick, dying, and mentally ill. Faith in action brings two worlds together.

The reality of heaven doesn’t make earth less real or less important. If our longing for heaven and focus on eternity is disengaging us from earth, we should probably check and see if we have the right heaven. If we have the right heaven, the opposite should happen. The more committed we are to heaven (the more we get an eternal perspective on life), the more deeply we will be committed to this life and those around us. Heaven brings meaning to earth, not an escape. It brings dignity to every human being, a reason for our existence and a desire to want to connect everyone to God.

When Jesus came, one of the first things he did was announce that the Good News of the Kingdom of heaven had come. Heaven is at hand. Let’s live in such a way as to show people like Mr. Allen that the unseen world is right around the corner, and what’s more, it stays open all night.

Question: Have you observed anyone whose faith didn’t seem to make a difference in their lives? How did that make you feel?

“You believe because you have seen me. Blessed are those who haven’t seen me and believe anyway.” John 20:29

‘There is no question that there is an unseen world. The problem is, how far is it from midtown and how late is it open?’– Woody Allen

Christians believe there is an unseen world that in some ways is more real than the one we see. Not that the one we see isn’t real, but the unseen world sometimes is thought of as being more important because of its permanence. The unseen one will last forever; this one is temporary, and yet for now, this temporary one is our reality.

That’s why I like Woody Allen’s question about how far the unseen world is from us and how late it stays open. In other words: How accessible is this unseen world? I think he may be on to something. As the saying goes: Some Christians are so heavenly minded, they’re of no earthly good.

The Gospel is all about caring for the real human needs of people, not just about getting them into heaven.
Suppose you see a brother or sister who needs food or clothing, and you say, “Well, goodbye and God bless you; stay warm and eat well,” but then you don’t give that person any food or clothing. What good does that do? So you see, it isn’t enough just to have faith. Faith that doesn’t show itself by good deeds is no faith at all – it is dead and useless. (James 2:17)

Jesus Christ brought the Good News of the Kingdom of heaven to earth, but he didn’t just touch down for a momentary appearance. Sometimes we forget he carried on a ministry here for three years. He connected with and did something about the suffering needs of the sick, dying, and mentally ill. Faith in action brings two worlds together.

The reality of heaven doesn’t make earth less real or less important. If our longing for heaven and focus on eternity is disengaging us from earth, we should probably check and see if we have the right heaven. If we have the right heaven, the opposite should happen. The more committed we are to heaven (the more we get an eternal perspective on life), the more deeply we will be committed to this life and those around us. Heaven brings meaning to earth, not an escape. It brings dignity to every human being, a reason for our existence and a desire to want to connect everyone to God.

When Jesus came, one of the first things he did was announce that the Good News of the Kingdom of heaven had come. Heaven is at hand. Let’s live in such a way as to show people like Mr. Allen that the unseen world is right around the corner, and what’s more, it stays open all night.

Question: Have you observed anyone whose faith didn’t seem to make a difference in their lives? How did that make you feel?

When my children were younger, we lived in a small Massachusetts town where we developed an unusual family tradition around the Christmas Eve service at our church. Since the church was only two blocks away, we would always walk to and from this service, regardless of the weather. The cold night air and the Christmas lights all added to the festivity of the evening. Of course if snow was on the ground or in the air, that just made it even more special.

The service always ended with a candle-lighting ceremony accompanied by the singing of “Silent Night.” For this, each person received a small, hand-held candle as he or she came in, and at the appropriate time, the church was darkened and the pastor would light one candle on the front row, from which the whole room would soon be glowing as the flame was passed on from person to person.

What made it especially unique was the fact that the pastor’s candle was lit from the advent candelabra – whose flame had also passed from candle to candle representing the weeks of advent, culminating in the large Christmas Eve candle in the middle that was lit at the beginning of this service. So you could trace this flame back from the beginning of advent.

This is where our own family tradition took over. We wouldn’t blow out our candles at the end of the service as everyone else did. We figured that if the light had lasted that long, it deserved better treatment. So we would keep our candles going after the service and all the way home to light our own Yule log that was waiting in the fireplace. It became very symbolic. From advent candle to living room fire – from spiritual fire to home fire burning – this light always started our Christmas hope.

I remember the year the wind was so cold and strong that we all had to huddle tightly to keep our candles from going out – slowly inching our way against the storm, lighting and relighting from whoever had their flame still burning, our backs to the wind, and our faces barely glowing in the flickering wick. We had a couple close calls that year and it was our 7-year-old daughter who for some reason kept her candle going for the rest of us.

I’ve always cherished this memory as a picture of faith and fellowship – how we pass the light of faith on to each other and how when we stick together, everyone is important. Sometimes the smallest and weakest keep the light burning.

“He will not crush the weakest reed or put out a flickering candle.” Matthew 12:20, Isaiah 42:3, NLT

When my children were younger, we lived in a small Massachusetts town where we developed an unusual family tradition around the Christmas Eve service at our church. Since the church was only two blocks away, we would always walk to and from this service, regardless of the weather. The cold night air and the Christmas lights all added to the festivity of the evening. Of course if snow was on the ground or in the air, that just made it even more special.

The service always ended with a candle-lighting ceremony accompanied by the singing of “Silent Night.” For this, each person received a small, hand-held candle as he or she came in, and at the appropriate time, the church was darkened and the pastor would light one candle on the front row, from which the whole room would soon be glowing as the flame was passed on from person to person.

What made it especially unique was the fact that the pastor’s candle was lit from the advent candelabra – whose flame had also passed from candle to candle representing the weeks of advent, culminating in the large Christmas Eve candle in the middle that was lit at the beginning of this service. So you could trace this flame back from the beginning of advent.

This is where our own family tradition took over. We wouldn’t blow out our candles at the end of the service as everyone else did. We figured that if the light had lasted that long, it deserved better treatment. So we would keep our candles going after the service and all the way home to light our own Yule log that was waiting in the fireplace. It became very symbolic. From advent candle to living room fire – from spiritual fire to home fire burning – this light always started our Christmas hope.

I remember the year the wind was so cold and strong that we all had to huddle tightly to keep our candles from going out – slowly inching our way against the storm, lighting and relighting from whoever had their flame still burning, our backs to the wind, and our faces barely glowing in the flickering wick. We had a couple close calls that year and it was our 7-year-old daughter who for some reason kept her candle going for the rest of us.

I’ve always cherished this memory as a picture of faith and fellowship – how we pass the light of faith on to each other and how when we stick together, everyone is important. Sometimes the smallest and weakest keep the light burning.

Question: What can make it difficult to keep your candle of faith burning?

About the Author: John Fischer

http://talk.thelife.com/blogs/experience/kindle/2008/01/07/antidote-to-perfection/

There’s one thing that, more than anything, will cure the tendency we all have to appear like we have it all together when we don’t, and that would be a close relationship. You just can’t fake it with a real friend.

I wish we didn’t have to do this to ourselves. We just don’t seem to be able to let go of this need to look like we are better than we are. We walk on water. We have perfect children. God and us are just like this… Humbug.

Here’s what we all know, but rarely take advantage of: You can fool some people, but you can’t fool everybody; and the ones you can’t fool are your best friends. (I suppose you could turn that around and say if you are successfully fooling everybody, you probably don’t have any close relationships, and if that’s the case, you might want to do something about that.)

In a staff meeting recently, Kay Warren (her husband is that guy who authored The Purpose Driven Life) shared that when she was suffering through the long night of her cancer, her closest friends were the ones that she could tell, “I don’t get it. I don’t get God’s system — whatever He’s supposedly teaching me here. I don’t get why I have to learn it this way.” And she remembers now that all they could say at the time was, “I don’t get it either, but God is good.”

That’s a pretty good response, actually. Job could have used a friend like this instead of the ones he had who were constantly trying out their latest theological theory on his situation while he had to live through the real suffering. Sometimes all you can say is: “Yeah, life is hard but God is good.” Or as my kids would say it: “Life sucks but God doesn’t.”

But going back to our antidote… we don’t even get this far if we are not honest. If we’re not honest, we’re not going to get any real help, and we’re not going to have any real friends. Canadian folksinger Bruce Cockburn has a line in one of his songs about kicking at the darkness. I believe this is what a good friend does — sits up with you in your misery and kicks at your darkness. It may not help much, but it’s flesh and blood communion. God does touch us in invisible ways, but he uses people, too, and no one’s going to be able to do this for us if we don’t let anyone close enough to know what we are really going through.

So let’s stop boring each other with our supposedly perfect lives, and get down to the godly business of having and being friends who really care.

John Fischer is an author, speaker and song writer. For more of his writing,
visit www.purposedrivenlife.com

I have a good friend whose daughter has a fantastic singing voice and is sailing through a bunch of open doors in the music business in L.A. and Hollywood. It has thrown her, as a Christian, into a largely non-Christian world, and my friend called me today to record his appreciation for the things I have been discussing here lately in regards to our purpose-driven mission as Christians in the world.

In light of this, he told me how his daughter is often asked to answer questions like “Are you one of those born again Christians?” to which she responds, “Well, what do you mean by ‘born again?’” Pretty consistently the answer she gets to that question prompts her to say, “Well if that’s what you mean, no, I’m not.” What then transpires is an opportunity for her to tell what she does believe. Inevitably, people are more interested in her definition, and are much more willing to accept her as a Christian.

I suppose she could answer the “born again” question in the affirmative and end the discussion right there, but nothing would be gained.

Her open-ended response is wise for two reasons. 1) It gives her an opportunity to correct what wrong impressions people have of Christianity. 2) It allows her to tell her own story and put the meaning of her faith into her own words.

Talking about Jesus needs to be more about meanings than about words, anyway. As Christians we get so wrapped up in words that we don’t stop to consider what meanings our words are conveying. That’s why we need to ask questions instead of just giving answers. I think sometimes we hide behind words because then we don’t have to think about the meaning of what we say. We can just say it, go on our way, and feel justified for having said the right thing.

Memorized phrases and stock words only mean something to those who are already members of the Christian club. They provide a certain security against not knowing what to say. On the other hand, if you have a living, vibrant relationship with God through Christ, you will never be at a loss for words when asked about your faith. It will be the most natural thing to talk about, and you will be able to phrase your response in terms that will take into account the person you are talking to.

Next time someone asks if you are a Christian, ask what he or she means by “Christian.” You might just have the chance for a real conversation, and in the process, find out what you really believe!

“Be wise in the way you act toward outsiders; make the most of every opportunity. Let your conversation be always full of grace, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how to answer everyone.” (Colossians 4:5-6)

Question: How do you respond when asked about your faith?

About this Author: John Fischer

I have a good friend whose daughter has a fantastic singing voice and is sailing through a bunch of open doors in the music business in L.A. and Hollywood. It has thrown her, as a Christian, into a largely non-Christian world, and my friend called me today to record his appreciation for the things I have been discussing here lately in regards to our purpose-driven mission as Christians in the world.

In light of this, he told me how his daughter is often asked to answer questions like “Are you one of those born again Christians?” to which she responds, “Well, what do you mean by ‘born again?’” Pretty consistently the answer she gets to that question prompts her to say, “Well if that’s what you mean, no, I’m not.” What then transpires is an opportunity for her to tell what she does believe. Inevitably, people are more interested in her definition, and are much more willing to accept her as a Christian.

I suppose she could answer the “born again” question in the affirmative and end the discussion right there, but nothing would be gained.

Her open-ended response is wise for two reasons:

1) It gives her an opportunity to correct what wrong impressions people have of Christianity.

2) It allows her to tell her own story and put the meaning of her faith into her own words.

Talking about Jesus needs to be more about meanings than about words, anyway. As Christians we get so wrapped up in words that we don’t stop to consider what meanings our words are conveying. That’s why we need to ask questions instead of just giving answers. I think sometimes we hide behind words because then we don’t have to think about the meaning of what we say. We can just say it, go on our way, and feel justified for having said the right thing.

Memorized phrases and stock words only mean something to those who are already members of the Christian club. They provide a certain security against not knowing what to say. On the other hand, if you have a living, vibrant relationship with God through Christ, you will never be at a loss for words when asked about your faith. It will be the most natural thing to talk about, and you will be able to phrase your response in terms that will take into account the person you are talking to.

Next time someone asks if you are a Christian, ask what he or she means by “Christian.” You might just have the chance for a real conversation, and in the process, find out what you really believe!

“Be wise in the way you act toward outsiders; make the most of every opportunity. Let your conversation be always full of grace, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how to answer everyone.” (Colossians 4:5-6)

Question: How do you respond when asked about your faith?

I have a good friend whose daughter has a fantastic singing voice and is sailing through a bunch of open doors in the music business in L.A. and Hollywood. It has thrown her, as a Christian, into a largely non-Christian world, and my friend called me today to record his appreciation for the things I have been discussing here lately in regards to our purpose-driven mission as Christians in the world.

In light of this, he told me how his daughter is often asked to answer questions like “Are you one of those born again Christians?” to which she responds, “Well, what do you mean by ‘born again?’” Pretty consistently the answer she gets to that question prompts her to say, “Well if that’s what you mean, no, I’m not.” What then transpires is an opportunity for her to tell what she does believe. Inevitably, people are more interested in her definition, and are much more willing to accept her as a Christian.

I suppose she could answer the “born again” question in the affirmative and end the discussion right there, but nothing would be gained.

Her open-ended response is wise for two reasons.

1) It gives her an opportunity to correct what wrong impressions people have of Christianity.

2) It allows her to tell her own story and put the meaning of her faith into her own words.

Talking about Jesus needs to be more about meanings than about words, anyway. As Christians we get so wrapped up in words that we don’t stop to consider what meanings our words are conveying. That’s why we need to ask questions instead of just giving answers. I think sometimes we hide behind words because then we don’t have to think about the meaning of what we say. We can just say it, go on our way, and feel justified for having said the right thing.

Memorized phrases and stock words only mean something to those who are already members of the Christian club. They provide a certain security against not knowing what to say. On the other hand, if you have a living, vibrant relationship with God through Christ, you will never be at a loss for words when asked about your faith. It will be the most natural thing to talk about, and you will be able to phrase your response in terms that will take into account the person you are talking to.

Next time someone asks if you are a Christian, ask what he or she means by “Christian.” You might just have the chance for a real conversation, and in the process, find out what you really believe!

“Be wise in the way you act toward outsiders; make the most of every opportunity. Let your conversation be always full of grace, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how to answer everyone.” (Colossians 4:5-6)

Question: How do you respond when asked about your faith?

Your mission is to live your life.

In 1 Corinthians 7, the Apostle Paul addresses believers who are married to unbelievers, and outlines a general rule that if the unbelieving spouse chooses to stay in the marriage, it would be good for the believer to stay, too. He gives two reasons for this: First, the children will have a godly influence through the believing parent, and second, the unbeliever may be converted “because of you.” (1 Corinthians 7:16) (Exceptions to this rule would of course be situations of abuse and endangerment of a spouse or child.)

Just what does he mean by “because of you,” I wonder? Does it mean you are on a personal crusade to save your spouse? Does it mean that you will preach the Gospel to your spouse at every possible opportunity? Does it mean you will turn your house into a religious institution that coerces your spouse to either put up with Christianity or leave? No, it doesn’t mean any of these things.

It means simply what it says: “… because of you” – because of who you are, because of how you live, because of the way your faith affects everything you do, because of the way you carry on your life, because of the reality of Christ in your life. That’s it. No more; but certainly, no less. Paul is suggesting that living your life with a sense of purpose that comes from your faith in God is enough to convert someone.

It occurs to me that this could be applied to all believers in relation to life in the world among people with whom we work and associate who are not believers. General rule: Don’t leave the world. (Where would you go anyway?) Stay in the world – in relationships with unbelievers – for the chance that someone may be converted “because of you.”

We are not on a crusade; we are on a mission to live our lives according to God’s purposes. When we do that, we make possible an environment of change where a person who does not have a meaningful relationship with God might become curious about someone who does. “Because of you” is a statement of subtle influence, not coercion, and in the context of Paul’s advice in 1 Corinthians 7, it is a steady influence over time, as would be implied by a marriage. There’s nothing complex or even premeditated about a “because of you” influence. This is a believer going about the process of believing; and this is an unbeliever going over their life with a microscope, observing the good, the bad, and the ugly. Does not matter if God is there.

Thought for the day: Don’t ever sell short what God can do “because of you.”

About this Author: John Fischer

http://talk.thelife.com/blogs/experience/kindle/2008/01/09/blitzen-at-the-door/

We have a little twelve-pound Chihuahua that was my wife’s Christmas present a year ago. I grimaced when I found out, a few days before Christmas, that this was what she really wanted. I was of the persuasion that real dogs are supposed to be big, but I now have to admit, this little addition to our family has brought us much joy and has become a source of boundless entertainment. Not hurting for personality, he prances about with an air of respectability that makes you not want to embarrass him by laughing in his face until you remember he is a dog and probably won’t take it personally. He has a little wrinkled brow that provides a serious addition to the humor of his antics. We called him Blitzen because we heard he was a reindeer-head Chihuahua and he came to us at Christmastime, but Reepicheep, the serious little mouse in the Chronicles of Narnia would also suit his character well.

Lately, Blitzen has taken to exhibiting a strange behavior that has him refusing to come in the front door, as if some invisible force is preventing him from entering the house. It works the same way going out. He will stop short of the door and no amount of coaxing will get him across the threshold. We have to pick him up and carry him.

It’s both comical and pathetic to watch him sitting there whining and shaking with desire to cross, but completely unable to overcome whatever unseen barrier it is that he imagines. You can get down on your hands and knees as little as two feet away, and beg him to come to you, but he won’t. Perhaps some bad experience — whether getting caught in the door or slipping on the floor just inside — has become frozen in his memory, but he cannot shake it.

I am convinced God has given us pets to see the silly things we do, and in this case, I can’t help but see my own fears when he does this. What are those thresholds in my life that I can’t cross because of some imaginary fear or bad experience from the past that haunts me? More often than not, our fears are just like this — invisible barriers to faith that keep us from moving on in our lives. Satan is a real force, and he can set difficult things in our paths, but I rather think that most of the time he locks us up in the smoke and mirrors of our imaginations.

If Blitzen would just take one step out, he would find there is nothing to fear, and not only that, there are strong, loving hands waiting for him on the other side. In such situations, our moving ahead in faith (and finding the same results, I might add) isn’t any more complicated than that.

John Fischer is an author, speaker and song writer. For more of his writing,
visit www.purposedrivenlife.com