Are We Without Sin?

Jesus returned to the Mount of Olives, but early the next morning he was back again at the Temple. A crowd soon gathered, and he sat down and taught them. As he was speaking, the teachers of religious law and the Pharisees brought a woman who had been caught in the act of adultery. They put her in front of the crowd. “Teacher,” they said to Jesus, “this woman was caught in the act of adultery. The law of Moses says to stone her. What do you say?”
They were trying to trap him into saying something they could use against him, but Jesus stooped down and wrote in the dust with his finger. They kept demanding an answer, so he stood up again and said, “All right, but let the one who has never sinned throw the first stone!” Then he stooped down again and wrote in the dust.
When the accusers heard this, they slipped away one by one, beginning with the oldest, until only Jesus was left in the middle of the crowd with the woman. Then Jesus stood up again and said to the woman, “Where are your accusers? Didn't even one of them condemn you?” “No, Lord,” she said. And Jesus said, “Neither do I. Go and sin no more.” (John 8:1-11)

Sadly, there are countless times I have talked with one who would be considered the adulteress in this story and the church as a whole seems to still have the same attitude the Pharisees did. I myself have judged others based on their actions and this is something I'm still learning not to do. I believe we are not supposed to judge anyone, especially those outside the church. (Matthew 7:1-5) The only time I think it is acceptable is when you are teaching people how to live right in the context of the church. This should be an uplifting and encouraging thing to the one you are teaching and it should be done by those who have been through those struggles and overcome, for I believe that has the most power for change in others. (What I am talking about is what is done at the individual level, not in the context of teaching or preaching.)

Jesus says we will be judged by him with the measure we judge with. That is a scary thought. He taught us not to judge because none of us are without sin, so none of us have that right. Only he does and he taught us for our own benefit because the more we judge others, the more he will judge us.

I believe it is far better for us to look into our own selves and seek to make that right with the Lord, instead of looking outside ourselves to others and trying to make them right. We only have the power to change ourselves, not others, but doing so is shameful isn't it? It is not a fun thing to look at ourselves and realize how messed up we are, but the truth is, if we do not do this, we will never get better. When we decide to do this we realize how desperately we need Christ and we become humble. It is in this humility and seeking of self improvement that we have the most power for change over others.

When we have an attitude of humility in sharing our lives with others, they will be more likely to listen to what we have to say. When others understand where we have been, that we are just as lost without Christ as they are, and they understand that we are sharing from a place of love in looking at our own lives and not pointing out their stuff, they begin to listen. They already know we aren't perfect and that is why many get angry with the church because we pretend that we do have everything together when we really do not.

We need to stop being afraid to face ourselves, therefore, looking to others so as to hide our own insecurities. We should stop ignoring our own stuff and putting others down so we feel better about ourselves. We need to let go of our pride and admit we are still sinners in need of a Saviour every day. We must look to ourselves first, then look to Christ for the desperate help that we need. Only when we first do that will we be effective in helping others improve themselves and we will instead be doing it out of love for them, which is how it should be done.

None of us are without sin, so let us put down our stones.

Encouragement

Today I am going to brag about my wife. It it because of her that I am writing this blog after all. Maribeth has always been a very encouraging person. Whenever I have presented her with ideas she has always heard me out. If they have been good ideas, she has been consistent at encouraging me in them. If they haven't been the best ideas, however, she has been very gentle about telling me so, but was still willing to let me try and was still encouraging nonetheless. Writing is something she has always seen a potential in with me and so she has always been very encouraging about it. In fact, a lot of times I've had her proof read things before submitting them because she also has great input and insight. She has taken what I thought may have just been a whimsical dream and really pushed me into making it a reality. What she has done for me in helping to develop my dreams and myself as a man has been very powerful for me and it's that power, that of encouragement, that I would like to talk about today.

What she has taught me, and what I have observed when practicing encouragement with others, is a great tool to use with others. Not in the sense of manipulating them for your own purposes, but in the pure sense of seeing the potential in others and pushing them to bringing out that potential. Maribeth has always been selfless in her approach and I think that is the key to this whole thing. When you encourage others just for the sake of seeing them become a better self, and not for your own agenda, then you both find the most success and satisfaction. Everyone wins because they became a better self and you helped them get there. Whether you are encouraging a talent your child has that they cannot see yet, or you are helping to motivate a friend to do the right thing, you must never make it about yourself. If you do, then you end up getting frustrated because your own expectations aren't being met and are now actually being harmful to the person you were trying to help.

Another key to their success is consistency. At first a lot of people, like me, will need consistent encouragement because of an ever present lack of confidence. Beth didn't just initially tell me it was a good idea to write, she consistently told me it was good and convinced me. Even to this day when I have my doubts she is quick to turn them around by her encouraging words.

Now if one doesn't find success in what they wanted to pursue that's okay too. It's still good to let them try at least once and because of your encouragement they will still feel like it was worth a shot and they will be more inclined to try their next dream. Some things you may see as an unworthy pursuit, but I think this is where discretion should be used because if it is something they love to do then it may still be worthwhile to them. Even if they do not find success in it and move on to something else, they at least gave it a shot and you were there to cheer them on. Never tell them something was a waste of their time though. That will only serve to discourage them in the next thing that may not be a waste of time. With time they will see whether what they are pursuing is worthwhile or not. That isn't for us to decide for them. No matter what we must continue to be encouraging because eventually they will hit on something they are good at and you will have helped them discover it.

Today, let us try and be encouraging to someone just for the sake of encouraging them. You never know what kind of impact you will have on that person. When you practice it with consistency, ask them if they would appreciate your input, if they haven't told you so already. If they are okay with it, then be encouraging in what you say to give them outside insight into their dreams. If they are not okay with it, then respect that and don't take offense. Just continue to encourage them as they feel it out for themselves.

Thank you to my lovely wife, Maribeth. I love you very much sweetheart. It is because of your encouragement that I am able to have this joy of writing.

The Importance of Being Thankful

Being thankful helps us to reflect on the good in our life, thank those who have helped to create that good, and thank the One who has given us life. A lot of people are doing those thankful things for every day of this month and I think this is a really cool thing to do in order to shift our focus every day from that which may cause us grief to how good our lives really are if we just take the time to reflect on all that is good in our life, past and present. It's amazing the power in taking time to reflect and being thankful can have if you practice it a lot. It humbles you and fills your heart with joy because you realize just how blessed you are, even if it's just little things. You also realize you could have never achieved all of it on your own.

As many of you are aware it is Veterans Day. I would like to take the time to reflect and thank the many who have sacrificed much for our safety and freedom. I have had several family and friends serve in the military and I am so thankful to them for all they have done. Many of you who know my father and have heard him preach have most likely heard about my grandfather, Ken, who served in WWII. My dad always speaks with gratitude and pride towards our grandfather and I have always looked up to him. It's because of him and many like him that we are still free today and safe.

For me it is easy to be thankful today because I know personally the sacrifices that were made through stories from close family and friends. But even if you don't know anyone who has served, it is still important to be thankful to those who have, or are currently serving this country, because what they have done has affected you personally in many ways.

Growing up, if we saw any military personnel while we were out and about, my father always made it a point to thank that person for their service. That made an impact on me and I try to do the same today. For those that are reading this that have served, or are serving; I thank you. What you do, or have done, to keep us safe and free is deeply appreciated and always will be.

Contentment: The Key to Success

Some of you may be thinking by the title of this blog that I am going to speak on prosperity and perhaps that everyone can obtain it with this one simple trick!

Or perhaps you read into it differently, as I intended it, and figured out that it's real topic will be more about being content than finding success.

You see, success is something that changes meaning depending on the perspective you have about it. It can also create a desire in you that will never be fully satisfied. Contentment, however, is the perspective by which, no matter how your life turns out, you can feel successful and accomplished.

What I have observed in my own life, and in the lives of others, is that no matter how hard you try at something you may never succeed at it, especially to a standard you, or others, may have set. I have observed people equally as talented at something as another, yet one finds success and the other does not. I also see too many people become a slave to success and that brings misery. I was in that boat myself not too long ago. I had big dreams, but with them came the fear of never living up to those dreams. Don't get me wrong here, dreaming big is a wonderful thing to do and I still have those dreams. Where it becomes an issue is when you allow those dreams to determine everything you do and through the process refuse to be joyful until said dreams are obtained. Or you allow fear into your heart and you choose to never pursue those dreams in the first place.

The reality is your dreams may never be obtained as you perceive them. If you can come to terms with that then the process will be so much easier. The process to obtaining your goals will become something you enjoy and in the end you will look back with a full heart because of how you came to be there versus an emptiness from getting there no matter the cost and refusing to be satisfied until there.

Let us dream and aspire to fulfill those dreams, but let us also hold them loosely and choose to be okay if we never get there in the way we envisioned. One can still enjoy writing, per se, while never finding a large audience. One, also, can play music for the love of playing music, even if that music doesn't inspire many.

We must do what we love and pursue it to the best of our ability. We should always seek to be excellent in whatever we pursue, but let us not have the end sacrifice the means. Allow the means, the process, every day life be what we find fulfillment in, then we will feel successful all the time because we let the little things bring us joy and satisfaction. We may even reach our goals and that's great! But if we don't then that is great too because we had a wonderful adventure of it.