Just a Good Story?

Have you ever heard someone talk about a “story” in the Bible and, because they personally have a hard time accepting it as fact, they brush it off as an anecdote made up just to teach a particular lesson? They say something like, it’s okay that it’s not true and everyone knows it couldn’t really have happened like it says. One story that comes to mind is the story of Jonah, but I can think of others.

Now I know that living in the world today can make some stories in the Bible a little hard to believe. Fiction writing today is so true to life; and TV and movies have shown us that anything you can imagine in your mind can be recreated–even things that could never possibly happen in the real world. We’ve been conditioned to believe that just because we’ve seen it with our own eyes is no guarantee that it’s real. And the truth is, some people’s hearts have just become so hardened that they don’t appreciate what God is capable of doing.

And then I got to asking myself: What if the story of Jonah is simply a story made up to teach an important lesson? Would it matter? It’s still a good story. It impacted my life as I’m sure it has the lives of many people. Whether the story is true or not, I can definitely relate to Jonah; after all, I learned about obedience from his story. Even if it was just created for the purpose of teaching, people do learn from it.

So does it matter? Well, let’s see.

I remember story about a farmer who raised watermelons and had a problem with some of the local boys who would come by at night to steal a watermelon or two. The farmer, not wanting to lose his inventory but also not wanting to stay up all night guarding his field came up with what he thought was a pretty clever idea.

He put a sign in the field that said, “One of the watermelons is poisoned.” By doing this, the farmer thought, the boys wouldn’t know which watermelon was tainted and he figured they would leave all the watermelons alone. Problem solved. Or so he thought.

The next morning when the farmer awoke he walked to his field feeling proud of himself for his ingenuity and confident that the remaining watermelons would now be 100% safe for the market. But when he checked his field he found another sign left by the boys. This sign, a little smaller than his sign but equally as powerful, said simply, “Now there are two.”

Two watermelons are now poisoned. But, which one did the boys ruin?

If we accept that one or two stories in the bible could be just fictional stories, which ones are they? And, if there are one or two, could there be three? Or four? And, if one of the stories that’s just a story is Jonah, what about Sampson? Or the parting of the Red Sea?

Or the resurrection?

Don’t be deceived. The Bible is God’s Word (2 Timothy 3:16) written down for us; it is true from Genesis to Revelation. Only Satan has an interest in turning it into just another book of cute stories.

Thom Fishow

July 18, 2010

Where is Your Trust?

As I was driving home from work the other day in rush hour traffic, I came to a stop several cars back at a major intersection because the light was red. The lane to my right was free of traffic and I glimpsed a red car in that lane proceeding to the intersection. Then, before it reached the intersection, the light turned green and the driver continued into the intersection.

Unfortunately, a black car coming from the cross road to the left attempted unsuccessfully to hurry through the intersection before the traffic that now had the right of way began moving. The result, as you probably guessed, was a collision between the red and black cars with glass and metal flying everywhere and both cars spinning through the intersection involving several other cars. It reminded me of a commercial on television where two cars suddenly collide and the voice over says, “I bet you weren’t expecting that.”

Thankfully, the occupants of the vehicles were okay and after less than a minute the drivers got out of their cars. The driver of the red car looked like he couldn’t believe what had just happened. He looked at his car which was badly damaged, then at the black car, also badly damaged, and then he looked down the road where the black car had come from as if there he would find an answer to an unspoken question. There was no answer. And then the driver did something I’ve only seen on TV. He literally threw up his hands.

After all, he had the green light, so how could this happen? Green means go. Red means stop. It doesn’t get any simpler than that. And laws, after all, are laws. So if you have a green light, you are safe to go. End of discussion.

But is it? After all, who can guarantee that just because the light turns green for you that it will turn red for the other traffic? It’s supposed to work that way, but what if it doesn’t? And even if it does, who’s to say the drivers will always stop just because their light turns red?

We just trust that these things will happen. The question is this: is our trust misplaced? Starting in Jeremiah 17:5 it says, “This is what the LORD says: ‘Cursed are those who put their trust in mere humans and turn their hearts away from the LORD. . . But blessed are those who trust in the LORD and have made the LORD their hope and confidence.”

Now I don’t think Jeremiah was talking about highway etiquette in this passage, but how many times each day do we just depend on the “rules of the road” and totally forget who is really in control? How often do we trust in “mere humans” and forget to ask God for His protection?

Don’t get me wrong. I don’t think we should ignore good defensive driving when we head out to work or to the grocery store. But, if that’s all we’re doing to make sure we reach our destination, aren’t we simply trusting mere humans. Shouldn’t we include God when we get behind the wheel? Mirrors. Check. Seatbelt. Check. Protect me, God. Check.

Thom Fishow

July 4, 2010

Pray Like it Matters

I’m what you might call a news junkie. I watch the news on TV and listen to it on XM radio on my way to and from work. And I don’t listen to the news out of boredom or idle curiosity. No, I listen because I really do want to know what’s going on.

And I follow the news even more closely when it comes to politics during the campaign season. You see, I want to be able to make an informed decision when it comes time to vote. And, I do vote. I vote in every election. And I vote for candidates whether I think they’re going to be a good elected official or not. Maybe I better explain that. After doing my homework, I always vote for the candidate I think will be the best person for the position, but in some cases (and don’t tell me you’ve never done this), I know I’m voting for the “lesser of two evils.” Yes, I sometimes hold my nose with one hand while filling out my ballot with the other.

But sometimes, that’s the only option I have. So I pray. Sometimes, I pray harder than at other times, if you know what I mean. The fact is, we should all be praying for our leaders, whether we voted for them or not. And do you know why? Well, the Bible says we should.

In Romans 13:1, Paul says there are no governing authorities except those established by God. And, listen to this: They get their authority from God (yes, even those who don’t believe in Him). That means every one of our leaders–senators, representatives, governors, the president, etc.–get their authority from God. We should, therefore, pray for them because God is using them for His glory. And, we should pray that they do indeed glorify Him and that they don’t lead us down a path that is in conflict with His Word.

As a matter of fact, Paul tells us how to pray in 1 Timothy 2:1-2 when he says, “I urge, then, first of all, that requests, prayers, intercession and thanksgiving be made for everyone–for kings and all those in authority, that we may live peaceful and quiet lives in all godliness and holiness.” So, while we are praying for our leaders, Paul says we are also praying for ourselves. And, it is important to pray for the right thing because how we pray matters.

So, on this Independence Day, as we think about the founding fathers of this great country of ours, remember that the United States of America was established as “one nation under God.” We need to pray that it remains that way. And remember also, that even though we are not a monarchy, when King Solomon said in Proverbs 12:1, “The king’s heart is in the hand of the Lord; He directs it like a watercourse wherever He pleases,” he could just as easily have been talking about our President. And if the President is important enough for God to direct as He pleases, we should be praying that the way he lives his life and the way he leads our country are both pleasing to God.

Thom Fishow

June 27, 2010

Reality Browser

Well, I’ve joined the super hi-tech world of smart phones. I have more computing power in my phone today than we had on the computer at my first job as a programmer for the entire campus of Santa Fe Community College some 30 years ago. This phone has some great applications–there are literally thousands of programs available. But there’s one that is just too amazing. It’s called a reality browser.

What is a reality browser, you ask? Well, you turn the phone’s camera on and point the phone in any direction and it shows you things you can’t see with the naked eye. If you want to know where a grocery store is, you simply say “grocery store” and point the phone in any direction and if there’s a grocery store within six miles, it provides you with the name, phone number, driving directions, and all kinds of information about the stores it “sees.” It “enhances” reality. It lets you see what’s there that you can’t see.

As I was driving to work the day after I got this application and I was looking at the people in the cars in rush hour traffic, I wondered what would happen if I pointed my reality browser at some of those people. Would it show me things I couldn’t see by simply looking at them with my unaided eyes? And, if it could, I wondered what I would see.

Well, obviously it couldn’t do that. But what if it could? What would I see? Have you ever thought about that? And, I guess the question really should be, would you want to be able to do that?

What if people could see past your exterior facade and look into your heart? Not just some of the time, but all of the time? Would people be surprised by what they saw?

In 1 Samuel 16:7, when speaking about one of David’s brothers, the Lord said to Samuel, “Do not look at his appearance or at the height of his stature, because I have rejected him; for God sees not as man sees, for man looks at the outward appearance, but the LORD looks at the heart.”

I’m thankful people can’t see into my heart. I know there are times when they might be disappointed. No. I’m sure they would be more than disappointed. And, while I can’t speak for all people, I suspect that everyone would prefer to guard their heart from prying eyes.

But isn’t it sad. We shower, brush our hair, and put on perfume or cologne. We take the time to put on the right clothes and make up. We even put on our best behavior for others to see. And for the One we claim to love above all others, we are always exposed for who we really are.

I’m thankful God loves me like He does. How much does He love me? Read Romans 5:8 and Ephesians 2:1-9. If I could love like that, I might want a reality browser to see other people. But until then, I really don’t think I could handle it. In reality, I don’t think anyone could.

Thom Fishow

June 20, 2010

Calming His Child

My sister’s bike looked so cool that I just had give it a try even though it was way too big for me. I couldn’t sit on the seat and reach the peddles at the same time, so needless to say, I wasn’t very successful on my first attempt. Or my second. Or my third. But my father knew what to do. After lowering the seat and the handlebars he then ran alongside of me, holding the bike steady as I learned to ride. After I mastered my sister’s bike, he bought me my very own Schwinn. This was just one of the many problems he solved for me when I was a child.

But there were some problems he didn’t solve. At about this same time in my life I had bad dreams two or three times a week. I’d wake up in the middle of the night so scared that I’d bury my head under my pillow. I remember lying that way, waiting to get up the nerve to call to my father. When I did, he’d come into my room, pick me up, and carry me into his and my mother’s bed where it was safe. He’d put his arm around me making me feel so secure. The bad dream wasn’t gone from my memory, but it didn’t matter because my father was with me.

I was reminded of this time in my life because of a question that came from a friend who asked me why a loving God would allow people to go through some of the pain and suffering we sometimes face in our lives. I guess he thought that after becoming a Christian, all the problems of the world would just disappear.

Many people think this. They think that since God is good He just naturally wouldn’t allow bad things to happen. I’ve heard people attempt to address this apparent conflict by saying that in order to grow and to be able to help others, we have to deal with problems that are inevitable in this world. And while that’s true, it’s not the answer.

We need to understand that the Bible doesn’t say that when we accept Jesus as Lord all evil and sin is removed from our world. Far from it. It doesn’t even say that bad things will never again happen. Because they will.

Here’s what the Bible does say in Matthew 28:20b. Jesus told His disciples, “Surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”

You see, my father didn’t solve every problem I ever encountered. But, he was always with me as I faced those problems. And with him by my side, I could solve the problems myself or, at the very least, I could draw on his strength to get through the problems. I wasn’t alone.

There’s a song by Scott Krippane that says, “Sometimes He calms the storm and other times He calms His child.” And you know what I like? God knows when He should do one and when He should do the other.

Because just like my earthly father when I was a child, sometimes I need God to take care of the problem for me. But sometimes I just need Him to take care of me.

Thom Fishow

June 13, 2010

Be Content

Not too long ago, I spent a few years selling long term care insurance.  I liked the job because I was selling a good product and because I got to meet some pretty nice people.  And, for the most part, the people I met were in about the same place in their lives as I was.  They were planning for retirement in ten to twenty years with the hope that whatever they’d managed to save over their lifetime would be enough to live on.

Most of the people I talked to would be okay in retirement.  But many might have to take their lifestyle down a notch to make it.  Count me in that second group. 

But there was a third group.  It was rare, but I ran across these folks from time to time.  These were people who were my age, mid-fifties at the time, but with more savings than they could spend if they lived to be 100.  For some, life had just been good to them; for others, scrimping and saving throughout their lives with a lot of hard work made the difference.  For whatever reason, they would be better off in retirement than they had been during their working years.

I remember interviewing a couple in that third group one night.  When they explained their finances to me, it almost made me sick.  I couldn’t focus on selling them insurance, so I got out of the interview as quickly as I could.  I was angry and upset.  They could retire in luxury that very night and live better than I was living working 60 hours a week.  I’d barely be able to retire in 20 years and I wanted what they had.

That meeting stayed on my mind for the next week.  I was angry with God.  Hard times in my past were now keeping me from ever having what this couple had.  And I blamed God for that.

But even in my anger I prayed.  And through my anger He spoke to me.  He made me look at what I had.  And I realized that what I had and what I still have today is not lacking.  I have a wonderful family, a home, a job, food on the table.  I have always had what I need.  Through the good times and the bad times, God has always provided.

Jesus said in Matthew 6:26, “Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or stow away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them.  Are you not much more valuable than they?” 

Listen, when we take our eyes off of God and put them on ourselves, we stop seeing what we have and start noticing what we don’t have.  That’s when we start wanting what others have.

But when I consider what’s truly important, I really do have it all.  Because I have my salvation.  And no amount of money can replace that.  In Hebrews 13:5, we read, “Keep your lives free from the love of money and be content with what you have, because God has said, ‘Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you.’”  So you see, with God at my side, I really am doing quite well.  Because, by His grace, I count His riches as mine.

Thom Fishow

June 6, 2010

Good News and Bad News

Have you ever had someone say to you, “I have some good news and some bad news?” If you had the choice, which would you rather hear? I suppose the answer is obvious. It’s never hard to hear the good news, but no one likes to get bad news.

I remember when I first learned of my late wife’s cancer when the biopsy came back positive. Strange how they use that word “positive.” It sure didn’t feel positive to her or to me. That was bad news that scared me to my very core.

Of course, there are times when the bad news isn’t quite that bad, but it’s bad just the same. Maybe you can remember a time when you took your car into the shop for a “minor” problem. Something as simple as the car not heating up like it used to. Well, you thought, perhaps $100 and a new thermostat and things will be back to normal. But then the mechanic calls and tells you it’s going to be $900 for a new radiator. Okay, so it’s not the end of the world, but at that moment, it sure feels like it is.

And as hard as it is to receive bad news, it’s sometimes almost as difficult to deliver it. I’m sure the service manager at the shop doesn’t enjoy telling someone they are going to need a new radiator. And I know doctors struggle when they have to tell a family that the thing they feared the most has become a reality.

Pastors have a choice when it comes to bad news. The Bible is filled with thousands of sermons. Pastors could choose to deliver just the easy ones. The ones that make you feel good. And to be honest, those are the ones I like the best. But, sometimes a pastor will deliver a message intended to convict his flock. Sometimes the message, while true to Scripture, will make some people just a little uncomfortable.

As I’ve grown in my faith I’ve learned that I need those sermons; sometimes I need them more than the easy ones. Paul said in 1 Thessalonians 2:3 that his teaching never came with “impurity or by way of deceit.” He then went on to say, “so we speak, not as pleasing men, but God who examines our hearts. For we never came with flattering speech.” I’m sure there were some in his audience who would have liked some of his messages sugar coated or maybe even with the convicting stuff left out. But Paul wasn’t going to mislead these young believers. He thought these brothers and sisters deserved the truth.

And, to be honest, I’m glad the pastors at the Creek aren’t afraid to tell it like it is. Because I know that’s how God wants us to hear it. God’s Word isn’t like the grocery store–take what you like and leave the rest on the shelf. In 2 Timothy 3:16, Paul says, “All Scripture is inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, {and} for training in righteousness.” And I’m absolutely certain all means all. So I guess we need to just put on our big-boy pants and take the bad with the good. After all, God loves us enough to tell us what we need to hear. We ought to love Him at least enough to listen.

Thom Fishow

May 30, 2010

Do Not Grow Weary

I remember hearing a story about a kindergarten-aged girl who asked her Sunday school teacher, “What are we here for?”

Not wanting to miss a good teaching opportunity, the Sunday school teacher gave the question some serious thought before answering. And after carefully considering the age of her audience she said, “We’re here to help other people.”

The litte girl pondered this answer for a minute with deep thought which caused her little brow to furrow. And then, as if she had stumbled on a great revelation that perhaps the teacher had overlooked, she proudly asked, “Well then, what are the other people here for?”

Now, I don’t know about you, but that’s a question I’ve asked myself from time to time. And don’t get me wrong; I have a long way to go when it comes to selflessly helping others. But that doesn’t stop me from wondering why sometimes it seems that it’s always the same group of people who are doing the helping and another group of people that are always needing help. Is that the way it’s supposed to be? Did God put some people here just to be helpers and others just to be helped?

And, then it hit me. It’s not the answer that gives me a problem; it’s the question. It’s the wrong question. You see, we don’t need the answer in order to do the work we’re called to do. The question is irrelevant. Here’s what we need to understand: It doesn’t matter what the other people are here for. Our only concern should be what Paul writes about in Ephesians 2:10 where he says, “we are God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.”

You see, when we ask the wrong question we will never be satisfied with the answer, no matter what it is. Look at it this way: When we’re looking for results from our work or questioning why we’re even doing the work rather than simply getting the joy from the work, we are missing part of the reason for doing the work in the first place. Because it doesn’t matter if it’s the same people who are always doing the helping and it doesn’t matter if another group is always needing the help. It’s not about any of that. Notice what it says in Ephesians 2:10. It says the work God has planned, has been “prepared in advance for us to do.” That means God planned the work even before the need arose. Now, I don’t claim to understand how it all works, but God does.

Listen to what Paul says in Galatians 6:9-10. “And let us not grow weary while doing good, for in due season we shall reap if we do not lose heart. Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all, especially to those who are of the household of faith.”

So, the question is not, “What are the other people here for?” The question is, “Who are the other people? And, how can we help them?” Because the work is already planned. We just have to find the place to do it.

Thom Fishow

May 23, 2010