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Kidney Stone

February 15, 2024

“Therefore, in order to keep me from becoming conceited, I was given a thorn in my flesh, a messenger of Satan, to torment me.” (2 Corinthians 12:7)

I’ve been blessed with fairly decent health my whole life. Oh, there was the gallbladder episode, which made it a “past tense” part of my abdomen. And there was a broken jaw as a result of a first baseman not catching the softball as I stepped on the base. Other than those memorable experiences I’ve traveled the first 70 years missing the “potholes of life.”

Until this week, when I was in such excruciating pain that Carol drove me to the Emergency Room at 5:30 in the morning. Even a broken jaw didn’t compare with it. If I could, I would have knocked myself silly and laid on the couch unconscious.

A kidney stone.

There’s always been conjecture about the thorn in Paul’s side. Some think it was a person tormenting him. (We’ve all had people like that!) Others think it was some kind of situation that worried him sick. With my kidney stone affliction, my view of it has been altered. I know, I know, it’s a confusing verse. I mean…how was Paul bordering on being conceited…and what about this Satan messenger?

Sometimes, however, the thorns of life cause us to step back and see how blessed we are. For instance, I flew back from Ohio on Sunday. It had been a wonderful week of visiting my sister, and also meeting up with my brother. Thank the Lord that the misery in my tummy didn’t begin until I had returned. Small blessings are easily not seen until later.

Suffering and pain are a part of life. My assurance, however, is that the Lord is with me all the time and all the way. He goes before me and follows after me. No matter what kind of pain or suffering God is with each one of us.

No matter how much of the pain and complications are the result of our bad decisions (Can you say bad diet?), the Lord is with us. In fact, my uninvited visitor had been invited in a boatload of times as a result of my food and drink choices. Even though it was only 3mm in size, it felt like it was a snowball creating an avalanche of misery.

Just like in life, where the accumulation of our transgressions suddenly become too much and life takes on an emergency status. Even in the muck of our mess, the Lord is with us. His mercy is not dependent upon my perfection.

I still wonder, though, was it a kidney stone that was bugging Paul?

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Gospel Pollution

January 31, 2024

“Therefore, go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.” (Matthew 28:19-20)

Jesus’ last command and commission to His disciples concerned taking the good news of God’s grace, forgiveness, and salvation to the world. It’s the basis for a number of mission organizations. As is our human nature; however, once in a while, a great message is crammed into a dumb idea. For example…

In the Northern Ireland area of County Londonderry, environmentalists have been recovering thousands of plastic bottles the past few years that have been dumped into the River Bann. Each of the bottles contains a Bible verse inside the bottle. The spreading of the Word has, in essence, been bad for the environment. The Good News is leaving a bad taste in the mouths of those concerned with the habitat.

Does a passion for spreading the Gospel trump the need to protect God’s creation? That’s a good question for a small group to discuss. One of those hot topics that has the potential to rise to the surface the opinions and beliefs of people.

The element that is often forgotten in the conversation is integrity. Living out the Great Commission of Jesus with integrity is more Christ-like than an anonymous message of scripture in a plastic bottle that proclaims the name of Jesus. If you want to go deeper with this, the message is often tainted by the messenger. We convey the message of a “plastic Jesus” instead of a heartfelt desire to share what He means to us.

Bottom line: What drew me, and continues to draw me, to Jesus are the messages of various Christians’ lives that display integrity, grace, humbleness, mercy, servanthood, and love. Consistency in a person’s walk brings validity to the message.

So what would Jesus do? I envision Jesus conversing with people…as he went about wading through the water and mud of the River Bann, picking up plastic bottles and other trash.

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My Sunday Best

January 27, 2024

“But the father said to his servants, “Quick! Bring the best robe and put it on him. Put a ring on his finger and sandals on his feet.” (Luke 15:22)

I’d put my bowtie on each Sunday morning, drape it with a brown tweed sport coat, attach it to a white button-down dress shirt, and finish the look with the only pair of dress pants I owned (Or my parents owned that were hanging in my closet!), and shiny black Florsheim shoes that made your feet feel like they were being smothered. It was church time, and our family always wore our Sunday best.

It was the only time during the entire week that my mom wore a hat and the only time my brother and I were expected to suffer for three hours in the torture of looking our best for the Lord. Our family of five crammed into the Ford and made the five-minute drive to church, the three kids captured in the backseat, Dad driving, and Mom supervising the backseat inmates.

Wearing our Sunday best was the non-negotiable. We were so accustomed to it that we never even thought of questioning it, even considered the strategy of whining and pouting. By the time I was in the fifth grade, I had retired the bowtie to the back of the bottom dresser drawer and upgraded to a necktie. After all, in our church (First Baptist Church of Williamstown, West Virginia) fifth-grade boys could be junior ushers for the Sunday morning worship service, handing out bulletins and taking up the offering. A suit and necktie were the required attire for such a position.

I’m not sure if the theology of wearing our Sunday best was understandable at that point. To come to church looking sloppy was vaguely connected to being more like the prodigal son of the Bible, wayward and lost from the loving arms of God. For the men, even wearing a suit but no tie was a dip toward depravity.

Since those growing-up years, things have changed on Sunday mornings. Wearing a suit is now more an identifier of the wearer’s generation than a desire to please the Lord. Jeans and a button-down shirt not tucked into the pants is now the norm. Or wearing a jersey of one’s favorite professional sports team, a tee shirt bought at the last rock concert, or Hello Kitty attire.

We now reside in an in-between time where some of the worshippers come dressed to the max while others look as if they just rolled out of bed. I’m an in-betweener. If I’m speaking, I wear Land’s End slacks and a dress shirt, but if I’m pew-sitting, I’m “jeaning.”

The thing many of us from the Sunday-best generation are still nervous about is the scriptural truth that tells us that God gives His best to us, regardless of what we’re willing to give Him. The story of the prodigal son blows us away. The kid who disrespected his father, walked away, and rebelled against the one who had blessed him and raised him is given “the best” when he comes to his senses and returns.

In essence, God gives His Sunday best to us no matter who we are or aren’t. Bowties, neckties, no ties, tie-dyed…He gives His best, not because of who we are but because He wants, even hungers, for our best.

No divine hand-me-downs. No sloppy seconds. Only the best.

Not what we deserve, but rather what He desires for us.

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Fencing The Gospel

January 22, 2024

Friends of mine told me about one of their seminary professors who, when invited to speak at a church that only allowed the King James Version to be used (The Bible that Jesus used!), would bring a bible written in either Hebrew or Greek with him and read the original language. After all, he would say sarcastically, real Christians read the original language. For some reason, he never got invited to come and speak again.

Many churches have paranoia about anything outside of their comfort zone. Like a fortress constructed of high stone walls and surrounded by a moat, they guard against suspicious beliefs and suspect behavior. The problem is that “the enemies” of each fortress church are different. What is seen as normal customs and living for one church is taboo in another. It leads to a confused public, wondering why the gospel of Jesus is qualified in different ways by different folk.

For example, in my growing-up days at a Southern Baptist Church in Kentucky, the men went out for a smoke between Sunday School and the worship service. Most men had a pack of Winstons or Lucky Strikes in their coat pocket and puffed away before praising Jesus. However, if any of those men had a bottle of Jim Beam at home, it would have been hidden in the back of the cupboard. No good and respected man of God would have had a liquor cabinet at home. Our church was fine with the tobacco, but Kentucky bourbon was not tolerated.

As a kid, I could never quite understand why the Methodists were allowed to do certain things, but we Baptists were on the road to Hell for even considering them. To even ask questions such as “How do I know Jesus died for me and wants a personal relationship with me?” or “Why don’t we ever talk about the Holy Spirit in our church?” or “Why is it always a man who speaks on Sunday morning at church, but my mom does most of the talking at home?” was taken like opening wide the gate and letting the evils of the Enemy storm the fortress.

The gospel was fenced with certain codes of conduct and foundational beliefs that were never questioned. They became the identifiers, the qualifiers of one’s commitment level. In some fortresses, the Holy Spirit was on a short leash; in others, grace was guarded. In one tabernacle, an exorbitant number of “buts” were evident. “Jesus died for everyone, but…” “The love of God is available for all, but…” “Missing church isn’t a sin, but…”

It’s as if the gospel alone isn’t strong enough to stand on its own like it needs to be wrapped in bubble wrap and protected by solid barriers. Thus, someone searching for understanding and trying to find out why Jesus loves him is frequently frustrated by the quicksand of the questioning. It has more potential to be a journey focused on appropriate moral conduct instead of a spiritual endeavor. Oddly enough, it can be more about clarifying what can destroy your walk with God rather than how to walk with God or why God longs to walk closely with you.

A few decades ago, I was a part of a congregation that had gone through a split as a result of a charismatic part of the church. The spirit-filled group left with the senior pastor and formed another congregation, while the Mother Church found a new pastor who would be “more normal.” For a number of years after the split, it was as if the Holy Spirit was not welcome in that congregation. The walls had been built up to protect the inhabitants from any contact that even smelled of being spirit-filled. Where the Holy Spirit is not welcome, legalism becomes the law, and where legalism takes root, suspicion tags closely behind. One Wednesday night, Carol and I were leading a youth bible study, and there were moments of laughter as we talked about the scripture and the topic. A few days later, I was confronted by one of the pastors about the fact that the youth had been laughing in the midst of the bible study.

Just as there was no joy in Mudville when mighty Casey struck out, there was to be no laughter in that congregation. It was a defeating moment for me as I tried to figure out what it meant to be a leader in a fortress church. All the things I learned in three years of seminary didn’t fit well in that situation. Fifteen months after beginning, and seriously looking at leaving the ministry, I was rescued by another congregation where it was deemed okay to ask questions about the faith, search deeper, and…laugh!

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My Irritations Through Jesus’s Eyes

January 4, 2024

“You have heard that it was said, ‘Eye for eye, and tooth for tooth.’ But I tell you, do not resist an evil person. If anyone slaps you on the right cheek, turn to them the other cheek also. And if anyone wants to sue you and take your shirt, hand over your coat as well.” (Matthew 5:38-40)

Sometimes when I’m out for a walk, I listen to Andy Stanley’s sermons. Recently, he was doing a message on underreacting to overreactions. He asked the question, “What irritates you?” and then suggested that the question be asked again through the eyes of Jesus.

Uh-oh!

It got me thinking and cringing about the results. For example, reality TV irritates me, or as I like to call it, “Lack of Reality TV”. How would Jesus react? Thinking of scripture, I think Jesus would point us toward the Kingdom of God…“Thy kingdom come, thy will be done on earth, as it is in heaven.” The priorities and the drama of this world are not the priorities of Kingdom people.

I thought about the other things in life that cause me to grind my teeth: college athletics transfer portal, helicopter parents, Christians who are so narrow-minded they won’t even drink root beer, a 1,000-piece jigsaw puzzle with 999 pieces, scam calls, dogs that bark at nothing for an hour at a time (in the backyard behind our backyard), and speeding motorcyclists who zig-zag through traffic like they’re going down a slalom ski course.

But how would Jesus react? It seems that Jesus only got stern and confrontational with the most religious people of His day. For most of the irritating items on my list, I’m afraid He would tell me to get over them. The realization of that fact grinds at me but also brings me back to the fact that I live in a fallen creation and I’M one of the fallen creatures. I pick my nose when no one is looking and edge up my speedometer when it suits me. I also have a way of justifying myself like it’s a protective shield around my fragile ego. I don’t like to ask the question, “How do I irritate Jesus?”

Our hunger to look perfect and think of ourselves as perfect needs to kneel in the shadow of the cross. It is only in that slim place of darkness that we can truly see who we are and rejoice in the saving grace of God.

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Confusing the Peace

December 17, 2023


“And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.” (Philippians 4:7)

Finding peace these days is like trying to hunt down the hottest selling item that’s on the kids’ Christmas list. We’re looking for it, but it seems to be more elusive the more we need it.

It’s much easier to find prime examples of “a lack of peace.” There are the Middle East tragedies that seem to intensify instead of ease, the border unrest that draws sympathy and criticism, neither with any firm solutions, the heightening fentanyl crisis that seeks to increase the troubles of the already troubled, and the inner turmoil that is sickening the souls of for many of our youth and young adults.

When Jesus came into the world as a newborn, it was an intense, unpeaceful time. Those in power eliminated any possible threats before they were able to get any traction. There had been some others before Jesus who had caused problems. They were quickly silenced. “Keeping the peace” meant keeping quiet and never questioning the oppressive conditions.

Even Jesus, the One who was “Peace on Earth,” met the resistance of man. The very One who offered peace was viewed as “a problem” by those who liked it just the way it was and by others who interpreted peace as meaning something completely different.

Similar elements cloud the picture in our days. The Peace That transcends all understanding is not welcome in many troubled spots of the world and is scorned by the darkness of wasteland hearts. There is still no room in the inn of empty lives.

Instead of being offended, the Lord of Hosts keeps offering His hand as a gesture of peace for embattled humanity. There have been, and will be, those who see the Light. In His timing and in His way, stories of healing, hope, and rebirth are in our midst.

Peace on earth and goodwill to all will be found by some who were at the end of their optimism. At that point, some of the redeemed will ask themselves why they hadn’t found Him sooner.

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Being Mistaken For God

October 31, 2014

WORDS FROM W.W.                                                            October 30, 2014

                                    

This year I’m teaching the three and four year old’s Sunday School class. It’s not often that the pastor teaches a class like that, but I’m enjoying it. Some would say that I’ve finally found some people that I can relate to! Each Sunday a mixture of excited and apprehensive kids enter the classroom. One of them, a little boy, who just turned three, named Ben, usually has his cowboy boots on as he arrives at “Sonshne Club.”

Ben has not reached that age where his speech is clear, as is also the case for a couple of the other kids in the class…but he’s not afraid to speak!

Last night he came bopping into the church gym with his mom and little sister and said a few words to me that I couldn’t make out. It was at that point that his mom told me that he was saying hello, but he refers to me as “God!”

He thinks I’m God! I’ve been called a few other names in my lifetime, but I think this is the first time I’ve been mistakenly named God. It’s a big responsibility to carry! I’ve known some people who act like they are God, but not too many who get named God. I’ve always been “Billy” or “Billy Dean.” Back in high school I was nicknamed “Beowulf”, which got shortened to “Beo.” Bill Wolfe sounds remarkably like Beowulf, especially if your sophomore English class is reading the story at the time.

But back to God…in one three year old cowboy-booted boy’s eyes I’m God. I’m sure that won’t last for long, and someday soon I’ll be renamed Pastor Bill, but for now I’m the Man with a Plan, the Head Honcho, the Almighty and Up-righty!

On the positive side, when someone thinks your God it makes you step back a bit and think about what you’re doing and what you’re saying. If Ben continues to seek God he will remember whether or not I was a godly reflection.

After all, each follower of Jesus is a reflection of Christ. Sometimes the reflection is tainted and confusing, and sometimes it’s a Christ-honoring picture.

This Sunday when Ben comes strolling into class looking like a Pony Express rider and calling me God I’ll tell him he’s blessed and that God loves him. He will probably respond with a few words that I may not be able to decipher, so I’ll smile, give him a high-five,  and tell him it’s good to have him in God’s class!

Amen!

 

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Adjusting to Speed Bumps

June 29, 2012

WORDS FROM W.W.                                                                     June 29, 2012

The fires here in Colorado Springs have been devastating to so many people, and the ripple effect of business impact will be felt soon also as businesses on the west side of the city in evacuated areas try to recoup their losses from days of being closed.

It has been amazing to see the reactions of community members, outpouring support and supplies. On the other side, it has been amazing to see that two arrests have been made of people looting an evacuated home. The thieves had “meth” on them as they were trying to steal some items to sell to get more “meth.”

Awesome citizens, those two!

It has also been interesting to view how different people have reacted in different ways. Some have been thankful for the sacrifice and willingness to be in harm’s way of the 1,000+ firefighters. Some have expressed thankfulness for human lives being saved, even in the midst of so many homes destroyed. Some have lashed out in anger at whoever might be a possible target. Some are experiencing guilt even in the midst of their discoveries of homes untouched. There’s the relief of residences still being there, but guilt because neighbors have lost everything that was in their homes.

People have questioned why God didn’t do more, or why God allowed something like this to happen? I mean, shouldn’t God have provided a hedge of protection around the neighborhoods impacted? There is a sense with some people that the Creator should provide “perfect nature”- sunny and 70 degrees, with rain only in the middle of the night when we’re sleeping so our activity schedule doesn’t get impacted, a slight breeze that feels good…and a white picket fence.

But perhaps we should see an event such as the fires as the time to rethink, refocus, reprioritize, and re-thank!

In our lives there are certain moments that stand out from the rest- the birth of our first child, our wedding, our first touchdown, the death of a grandparent, a car accident, a fire. Moments can be joy-filled or grief-stricken, but moments such as these have the potential to slow us down for a moment.

They are like speed bumps that need a different pace to them, a cautionary approach. Most of us want the smooth road, like Interstate 80 through Nebraska, where we can race along at top speeds…and yet we complain because Nebraska doesn’t have that much scenery along the highway to make us “ooo and ahh!”

The speed bumps in our lives cause us to ponder “why”, “what now”, and “where to?”

Here in our city there are also different kinds of speed bumps. There are speed bumps that are like road ripples, and then there are speed bumps that will damage your car is you try to stay at the usual driving speed. In other words, some require more consideration than others.

The fire is a huge bump that will require much consideration, and yet, since I believe in the Lord of the Impossible, I believe that something life-transforming in positive ways can come out of it.

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