If Butler Watches This, They'll Win Tonight

As the crazy Madness of March comes to a close tonight with the NCAA Men's Championship game, I thought that I'd re-post Justin Taylor's prognostication:

The only question is, which player will start the "slow clap":

Quite possibly the best basketball movie of all time, with a good chance at being one of the top 3 sports movies of all time!

In the interest of full disclosure...

This...

is why I should not be blogging right now.

Just keepin' it real.

New Look!

I'm still teaching myself CSS and Html code, so I'm tinkering a bit with the layout.

That said, though, what do you think?

** I must add that I did not create the graphics or layout, but that I DID do some major tweaking last night to get everything to work right. **

Are you reading?

I must confess I'm a few days behind on my readings for my Through-the-Bible reading plan. I think it'll be easy to catch back up, though. I love that the plan I use also offers the chance to receive the day's reading via email. It serves as a good reminder, and since I sometimes check email on the go with my cell phone, I can read my passage even if I don't have my Bible with me.

How are you doing? Don't let yourself feel guilty if you haven't started at all or if you have fallen behind! Just commit to read it through from now to a year from now!

2 Timothy 3:16-17 tells us that

"All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be competent, equipped for every good work."

I'm confident that whether you read the Bible through daily in 2010 or into 2011, God will bless your commitment! What a great opportunity to see how God has woven His plan for redemption throughout His Word!

Let's get busy reading!

To Do List, aka True Confessions

In some order, I hope to:

• Catch up on the McDonaldSpot
• Finish some embroidery items for sale
• Organize my craft room/Abby's room
• Put away kids' outgrown clothes
• Find clean my bedroom
• Catch up on Abby's baby book
• Make her footprints before her feet have grown another inch
• Put the Christmas tree and numerous Nativity sets away
• Snap my fingers to make the dirty laundry clean
• Organize my closet
• Help the kiddos to pare down their toys and give some away
• Trim the backyard tree and honeysuckle
  
• Begin quasi-homeschool with Anna
• Find my garage Get ready to have a garage sale
• Breathe? :)

Maybe it'll all be done some time in 2010. How about you?

What does He uphold by the word of his power?

Hebrews 1:3
He [Jesus] is the radiance of the glory of God and the exact imprint of his nature, and he upholds the universe by the word of his power. After making purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high...



HT: Z via JT

Abby-less Abby Update

It's T-minus-a-day-and-a-little-more until the official induction time for baby Abby. Yesterday's doctor appointment showed she was healthy, I'm measuring more than 42 weeks along -- even though I'm just 39 weeks, and for those of you who are pregnancy familiar, we're at 2.5 cm.

The only negative was my doctor having to issue a strong caveat that I'm jeopardizing my own health if I don't confine myself to the couch or bed at this point. Ah, good ol' Pregnancy Induced Hypertension. I thought I'd left you behind after the last two pregnancies. Decided to make a last ditch effort to appear this time around, did you? So, while I'm not in severe danger due to high blood pressure, I very well could reach that point if I don't submit to the order of bed rest.

Now to avoid cabin fever and stir-craziness while awaiting the arrival of our sweet girl! I've already cleared out my massive Unread Items list on my Google Reader, made a couple of blog posts, and played numerous games of electronic Sudoku. Perhaps I'll drive my Facebook friends crazy with notifications from all the random quizzes I can take... just kidding.

Or not.

Tea Party

Boston style, not Princess style...

Many of you know that I keep a close eye on politics, that I care a great deal about our country, and that I have strong conservative sentiments about what makes government effective: small size, limited controls, fiscal responsibility, championing morality and the value of human life, encouraging individuals to excel as opposed to feeding a sense of entitlement and complacency.

When tax day rolled around and we as a nation were already looking at an irresponsible spending plan that promised to bring debt to generations to come and higher taxes (even hidden ones) as a result, I took note of the fact that there was a Tea Party planned in our general vicinity to peacefully show frustration with the direction of our government's leadership and also support of responsible fiscal policy and the values that make our nation distinct.

I consider myself informed, but not an activist; I had not intended to participate, but to monitor whatever information came out after the fact. We happened to be out and about that day, so before things got going with the event, we visited the site. It was a pretty day.


I ended up staying for the first 20 min. to see what would happen. Mimi kept the kids in the car watching a video. I was impressed with the diversity of the crowd and the balance of strong patriotic feelings and respectful discontent held by the participants. The event was scheduled to last 3 or 4 hours, and even as early as 20 min. following the beginning of the event, there were at least 500 there. Here are some pictures!

Families representing many cultures and economic backgrounds...
Many people carrying copies of the Constitution, homemade signs, flags, and teabags.

One girl's sign read "6 years old and already in debt".

This soldier was wearing his Camo hat and Squadron T-shirt from his service during the war in Iraq.

A speaker who facilitated discussion, celebration of the founding values of the country, and introduced other notable local speakers. Local news reported a ceremony at the end where the symbolic bags of "tea" were tossed into the Bay (and reeled back in to support stewardship of the environment, of course).
Let me encourage you out there to pay better attention to what is going on in our nation! It only takes a moment or two to call your Representative or Senator's office to register your opinion on upcoming legislation. They respond better to phone calls than emails or web-generated form submissions. Call even if you support your Congressman's proclaimed stance... they need encouragement as well as dissent!

Future generations will thank us for being involved and not just watching as things happen! Our liberties (read: religious expression, etc.) and our finances (read: not just income, but ability to give to ministry, missions, and charity) will be most certainly be affected --either preserved or damaged-- by decisions made by those who have been elected to represent us.

Hiatus? Sabbatical? Naw, it's just end of May/beginning of June.

I can't believe it's been a month since I've posted. Then again, maybe I can. :) There are lots of things that have taken place in the past month. I hope to post on them soon: end of a school year, birthdays, funny stories, a trip, and an anniversary!

Please bear with me! I hope to get all of these done quickly and still keep my house clean, finish the crocheted blanket I'm making for Abby, clear out her "room", keep daily things structured for C & A, and a whole host of other things!

Another reason why I'm Pro-Life...

For the non-ultrasound-aware, view the pic above with this in mind: imagine the baby lying on its back with the head on your right and feet on your left, looking up and to your left. The feet are not really visible in this shot, but the large semi-white oval at mid-left is the belly. The bright white portions of the face are (l-r) the facial bones of the jaw area, the nose, and the forehead.

We are blessed to announce (to the blogosphere, at least, since many of you already know) that God has given us an addition to our family! I am 14 weeks pregnant and am already planning ways to beat the heat of summer here as we eagerly await our end of August due date!

As early as 3 weeks after I officially found out we were expecting, our first ultrasound showed a tiny little heart beating. Many moms-to-be don't even realize they are pregnant at this point, and already the heart is pumping blood throughout the developing baby! At the time of the above ultrasound, our baby was 11 weeks old and already at least 1.5 inches from top of the head to rump, and baby's little fingers and toes were already fully formed. We actually caught BabyMac sucking on a thumb or finger.

We hope, if BabyMac isn't too modest, to find out what we're having in just a few weeks! Yippee!
I plan to add a cute ticker soon to the blog and will keep you informed as we have more info!

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**Note, my laptop has met an untimely end! Thanks to our dear (and recently married) friend, Barron, I look forward to recuperating my files from it, but I've been away for too long. I'm commandeering Scott's work laptop for now, but I plan on catching up soon! Look forward to more pics, biopics, McDonaldSpot acoustics, perhaps some aesthetics, and only a little politics soon!

Life is Precious

This week is the Sanctity of Human Life week.

I find it convenient timing, as one of the first promises our new president made prior to his inauguration was to sign the Freedom of Choice Act, which would:

eradicate state and federal laws that the majority of Americans support, such as:

• Bans on Partial Birth Abortion
• Requirements that women be given information about the risks of getting an abortion
• Only licensed physicians can perform abortions
• Parents must be informed and give consent to their minor daughter's abortion

FOCA would erase these laws and prevent states from enacting similar protective measures in the future.

----------------------------------------

Watch this spot that's being aired on Black Entertainment Television:


No matter how inconvenient, every baby in the womb has value.

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Here are some really good related links. Chew on these for a while:

The case for life, around the web by Justin Taylor

Why are we striving to make abortion unthinkable? John Ensor, guest post on Challies.com

Who is Jane Roe from the Roe v. Wade case? "Roe no more" by Justin Taylor

Being Pro-life Christians under a Pro-choice President by John Piper

Number of Abortions since 1973 by Justin Taylor

Here are two reasons I'm prolife:

Parenting is never easy, but I'd never trade the joy and blessings these two have brought me!

HT: JT, DG, TC

Still here, but exhausted!

Our church has moved out of its old building and into a new one across town. To accomplish this, the staff families and several volunteers worked many hours over the course of 6 days to take everything essential from the old, and get it and new items set up in the new by this past Sunday. That meant workdays from 9am to often 10pm for many of us. On top of that, I have misplaced my camera! :( very sad

I'll get back to updating asap.

What color is dirt to you?

Silly question? I think not. When I think of dirt, a definite color (and even texture) comes to mind. Yes, I know that may be because as a farmer's daughter I am well acquainted with it. But I want to pose the question to you. It's not a philosophical or psychological one, but geographical.

When we lived in central-ish Texas for college, the dirt was definitely bright rust-ish colored. In Missouri, it was darker and a little more brown, but still rusty. I got to reacquaint myself with my home dirt this summer during harvest:

Funny how the little things can invoke special memories.

The BigMacs and small fries and a dollar deal

Mid July brought a visit from Nanny, Dandy, Drew, Debbie, Ashley, and Mandy! We had so much fun with them! We traveled to the beach, ate some Snoopy's, and had an all-around good time.


I also found a live sand dollar! That's right, a live one. I had never seen anything but portions of a sand dollar on the beach before. They're bleached white, and they're difficult to find whole. But as I was standing in the waves, I felt something in the sand under my feet. I trapped it and dug it up. Here's what I found:


Notice the dark green color and the hairy fringe (phalanges?) around the edge.

The underside was purple, and covered all over with waving phalanges! They tickled! (Was it trying to eat my hand???) Unfortunately, it didn't live long out of the salty water. Travis informed me that I could soak it in bleach and it would become white like the parts we so often find scattered along the beach. Cool, huh?

Early July Homecoming, or Veggies in Iraq

A couple of years ago, a guy walked into the church here for the first time. My mom just happened to be the one to greet him, and the next week she and Dad invited him to lunch after church. We just happened to be visiting from Springfield at the time, so we got to meet him, snazzy pinstriped slacks and all. :)

Fastforward to this past February. Lots of dinners at Mom and Dad's, game nights, a new-found friendship with my out-of-town sister, dating my sister, proposing to said sister, and lots and lots of flirting from Anna all comprise events that have happened over that time period. Then, Travis, being a civilian engineer for the Army, deployed voluntarily for the second time to Iraq. We knew that the months would be long for him and my sister until he returned in July. Then July came. We were so glad to see T back in the states!

Cheesy pose to show we were waiting anxiously, which was true, but the reality was that we spent a lot of time walking the kids around...

Licia wouldn't let us join her upstairs to meet him (why? Hmmmm... :) ), so we caught him as they came downstairs.

Caleb showed off his sign. Anna had been saying she was going to give T a "beeeeg hug." But she clammed up. I guess she had gone way too long without flirting with Travis.

But he hadn't gone alone! He had two stow-aways, mainly for Caleb and Anna's benefit. We were so excited that Travis took the time to bring a little piece of Iraq back for them. Check these Veggietales out. So brave...

Preparing for the long flight that would eventually end up in the Fertile Crescent, aka area of Ur, aka Babylon.

Hard at work and ready for anything...

Local wildlife.

Heavy Duty set of wheels...

Stylish transport, for sure.

Thanks, "Trav", for taking the time to do something special for our kiddos.

Also, it's T minus 7 days until you officially become Uncle Travis! We can't wait! :)

Ike's following us?

^^Update 3^^ We tried to make it as far as we could, and stopped at 2 am in Georgetown (N of Austin) for a four hour "nap" at a hotel and a continental breakfast. We hit the road again at 8 am. Currently, I'm "tethering" (see update 2) and we're about 15 minutes outside of our evac destination. Yea! The kids are doing great, and we just found out that our city back home just issued a mandatory evac order, even though we're not in the bulls-eye anymore. Just goes to show how wide the storm's effects will be... I may post again soon. Low battery.


<*UPDATE 2*> We packed up and left our home at 6:30 pm. Before we got on the highway, we checked in with my cousin who lives in town. They were finished boarding up but hadn't left yet. We decided to stay in town longer and help them get out of town sooner. Here's why: He and his wife have five kids. They're all under the age of 4. They have a newly-turned 4 yr old girl, a 2 yr old boy, and 2 month old TRIPLETS! They hadn't eaten supper yet, and neither had we, so we rustled up some Chick fil A and moseyed on over to help out. I can't imagine how long it would have taken for them to ready the house, pack, feed the older kids and themselves, feed the babies, and load the car without help!!! We got everything loaded and done by 9:30 and after dropping their other vehicle off elsewhere, we were on the road by 10. Yippee!! Looks like we'll be stopping somewhere overnight instead of powering through to North TX overnight. Thanks to a cool thing called "tethering" (connecting to the internet using your bluetooth phone as a modem), I'm updating from the road. We're 57 mi. south of San Antonio. Pray we don't get too sleepy. Traffic's light. Kids are sleeping. TTFN.






**UPDATE** I'll post updates by editing this single post: It's Wed. afternoon, and local schools have closed for the next two days at least. We've secured the church building as best as we could. Our home is boarded up thanks to the caravan of staff guys who've made the rounds. Now, I'm double-checking important paperwork that'll travel with us, and we're collecting several days' worth of clothing. We're off to Nanny and Dandy's tonight: seven hours plus depending on how packed the roads are (and we've heard they already are). Please pray for safe travels and for minimal property damage for all those involved!

The good news for our area is that the storm seems to be trending a little north of us. Nobody wants to be on the northeast side of the hurricane. However, it could always come straight over us or even south of us... no forecast is certain. The bad news is that they're thinking it'll be a cat 4 when it hits! That could mean around a 16ft. initial storm surge, winds between 131 and 155 mph and potentially a foot of rain in 4 hours!!! See the updated graphic below:






(previous update)
I still have more posting to do to catch you all up on what's going on at the McDonaldspot, but that'll have to wait for now. It's Ike's fault. He's got his eye on us, as we do on him, so we're doing laundry, collecting important paperwork and pictures, and preparing in case he comes for our area. I'll keep you posted here and on Facebook as to whether we actually have to evacuate on Wed. night or Thurs. morning, but for now, we appreciate your prayers! :)

'Tis that time again...

Are you enjoying the Olympics like we are this year? I can't remember a year that I've enjoyed it more! I do think that the opening ceremonies were spectacular despite the faked fireworks and the fake singer. (I'll save my thoughts on the reason for the fake singer for another time.)

I loved watching the men's 4x100 swimming relay the other night... such persistence and what a way to finish strong!

I also look forward to one particular commercial, which I think rivals many Super Bowl creations. Enjoy!




Oh, and I think it's hilarious that in this "one-up" competition between basketball stars LeBron James and Yao Ming, that a marching band, Santa Claus, and an old-school Caddy with a cattle horn hood ornament end up on the American side. (The buffaloes--bulls?-- and pandas are funny too!)

Oh yes he did! *snap snap*

Evidently there was a multitude of comments on the original location from my last post about what to do about sharing a bad report about someone with others. One of the authors posted this response:

I'm struck that many commenters focus on identifying the exceptions, rather than camping out on the major emphasis of our short article—everything that comes from our mouths (and computers) should be truly constructive to any who hear or read. We should actively intend good, seeking to “give grace to those who hear.” That takes thought about one's motives, tone, framing, balance of emphases.

There are times to name what's wrong and to name names. Both Tim and I do that in our writing and teaching, and the article mentions in passing the call to such candor. I appreciate efforts of commenters to identify exceptions and nuances, when and how to make someone else’s apparent wrongs more widely known. Thoughtful work on that topic will break new ground, applying the call to “speak truth in love” into an instant-information context where all errors, blunders, sins, failings, and mere clumsiness are potentially available for public scorn. What does it mean to forebear each other in such a world? What does it mean to cover sins in mercy (not cover-up, but true covering in mercy), to allow others to find care and restoration in their own interpersonal context, rather than attempting to humiliate them before the whole world? What does it mean to express the sort of communal tenderness that Dietrich Bonhoeffer captures so well in Life Together—a communal life that includes reproof as a form of love?

But the leading edge of our argument is to place checks on the tendency we all have to snide, sneering, self-righteous, gossipy, malicious words. Any growth we can make in the direction of Ephesians 4:29 will make life much more joyous for all, and bring much glory to our God. And even criticisms I make become more hearable when I the critic am not posturing, but actually care about others. When I don’t care, my bad attitude and superiority becomes my actual message. Love is patient, love is kind . . . and then love is candid. I hope readers might even go back and give our article a second reading.

Blessings,

David Powlison

Oh no he didn't! *snap*

Exactly a week ago, I came across (through a string of random links) a blog argument. It was between 4 Christian gentlemen (pastors/professors) who would likely be well known in Christian circles here in the U.S. The argument began over a planned friendly debate concerning two viewpoints on an area of belief about God. The discussion disintegrated into hurtful and harsh comments on personal email that made its way to public blogs. I won't link to the blog that I read, so as not to pass it on, but I will tell you I was greatly dismayed and ashamed as I witnessed believers attacking other believers. I recognize that any sinner has the propensity to act this way, but it was a horrible witness on both sides. Resolution of the issue in a Godly way was nowhere to be seen, and hasty judgments were everywhere. The real reason for disagreement had become lost. I didn't know the people involved personally, but my heart was heavy; I found myself crying out, "There's got to be a Biblical way to resolve such a disagreement without harming the entire Body of Christ (the Church--as a whole) in the process!"

I was reminded of many times in the past that I've experienced wrong-doing, with a former teaching situation, with friends, with ministry, to people I didn't know very well, and toward ones I've loved. Then today, in God's providence, I came across an article that addresses the problem (and may have been aimed specifically at the situation above). It was a "yeah, that's the right way"/"ouch" discovery on my part. I found it particularly helpful and challenging. May I share it with you?

(be patient... the article may look long, but it's a quick read)

I challenge you to read it from 3 perspectives: As one who sees a problem with someone that you feel you need to address, as one who has been confronted, and as an observer whose friend has confronted another/been the confrontee.

Should You Pass on Bad Reports?
by Tim Keller & David Powlison


One obvious genius of the internet is that it’s “viral.” Information explodes to the whole world. The old neighborhood grapevine and the postal service seem like ox-carts in a speed-of-light universe. (Do twenty-somethings even know what those antiquities once were? In the old days, people had to talk to each other or stick a stamp on an envelope.) Instantaneous transmission produces some wonderfully good things. Truth, like joy, is infectious. A great idea feeds into a million inboxes. But it also produces some disastrous evils. Lies, rumors, and disinformation travel just as far and just as fast.

So what should you do when you hear “bad reports” about a person or church or ministry? We want to offer a few thoughts on how to remain constructive. To paraphrase Ephesians 4:29, “Let no unwholesome words come out of your computer, but only what is constructive, in order to meet the need of the moment, that what you communicate will give grace to everyone who ever reads it.” That Greek word translated “unwholesome” is sapros. It means something that is inedible, either devoid of nutritional value or rotten and even poisonous. It applies to thorny briars or to fish or fruit that’s gone bad. At best, it’s of no benefit to anyone. At worst, it’s sickening and destructive. Consider three things in how to stay constructive.

What Does James Say about Passing Along Bad Reports?

Humble yourselves before the Lord.
Brothers, don’t slander or attack one
another.
(James 4:10-11)

The verb “slander” simply means to “speak against” (Gk. kata-lalein). It is not necessarily a false report, just an “against-report.” The intent is to belittle another. To pour out contempt. To mock. To hurt. To harm. To destroy. To rejoice in purported evil. This can’t mean simple disagreement with ideas—that would mean that we could never have a debate over a point. This isn’t respectful disagreement with ideas. James warns against attacking a person’s motives and character, so that the listeners’ respect and love for the person is undermined. “As the north wind brings rain, so slander brings angry looks” (Prov. 25:23). Everybody gets upset at somebody else: slanderer, slanderee, slander-hearer.

The link of slander to pride in James 4:10 shows that slander is not the humble evaluation of error or fault, which we must constantly be doing. Rather, in slander the speaker speaks as if he never would do the same thing himself. It acts self-righteous and superior toward one’s obviously idiotic inferiors. Non-slanderous evaluation is fair-minded, constructive, gentle, guarded, and always demonstrates that speakers sense how much they share the same frailty, humanity, and sinful nature with the one being criticized. It shows a profound awareness of your own sin. It is never “against-speaking.”

James 5:9 adds a nuance: "Don’t grumble against one another." Literally, it means don’t moan and groan and roll your eyes. This refers to a kind of against-speaking that is not as specific as a focused slander or attack. It hints at others flaws, not only with words, but by body language and tone. In print, such attitudes are communicated by innuendo, guilt by association, sneering, pejorative vocabulary. In person, it means shaking your head, rolling your eyes, and re-enforcing the erosion of love and respect for someone else. For example, “You know how they do things around here. Yadda, yadda. What do you expect?” Such a “groan” accomplishes the same thing as outright slander. It brings “angry looks” to all concerned. Passing on negative stuff always undermines love and respect. It’s never nourishing, never constructive, never timely, never grace-giving.

What Does the Book of Proverbs Say about Receiving Bad Reports?

He who covers over an offense promotes love,
but whoever repeats the matter
separates close friends.
(Proverbs 17:9)

The first thing to do when hearing or seeing something negative is to seek to “cover” the offense rather than speak about it to others. That is, rather than let a bad report “pass in” to your heart as truth, and then get “passed along” to others, you should seek to keep the matter from destroying your love and regard for a person. How?

Start by remembering your own sinfulness. "All a man’s ways seem innocent to him, but motives are weighed by the Lord" (Prov. 16:2). To know this automatically keeps you from being too sure of your position and of speaking too strongly against people that you hear about or people on the other side of a conflict. You intuitively realize that you may not be seeing things right. Your motives are never as pure as you think they are. To know this acts to keep you from being too sure of the facts, too sure of your position, and of speaking too quickly and too negatively about other people. Knowing your own sinfulness helps you not make snap judgments that take what you hear too seriously.

When you remember your sinfulness, remember God’s mercies. "Love covers all offenses" (Prov. 10:12). The God who is love has covered all your offenses. He knows everything about you (and the whole story about that other person). He has chosen to forgive you, and life-saving mercy cost Jesus his life. He could write you up with a 100% True Bad Report, but he has chosen to bury your sins in the depths of the ocean. That makes the life and death difference. If your sins are not buried in the ocean of his mercy, then you will be justly exposed and will justly perish. But when you’ve known mercy, then even when you hear report of grievous evil, an instinct toward mercy should arise within you. To savor the tasty morsels of gossip and bad reports is very different from grieving, caring, and wishing nothing less than the mercies of Christ upon all involved. And most bad reports are much more trivial. They are the stuff of busybodies and gossips going “tut-tut-tut.”

Then remember that there is always another side. "The first to present his case seems right, till another comes forward and questions him" (Prov. 18:17). You never have all the facts. And you never have all the facts you need all at once. You are never in a position to see the whole picture, and therefore when you hear the first report, you should assume you have far too little information to draw an immediate conclusion. What you’ve heard from someone else is only “hear-say” evidence. It has no standing or validity unless it is confirmed in other ways.

So when you hear a negative report about another, you must keep it from passing into your heart as though it were true. If you pass judgment based on hear-say, you are a fool. That doesn’t mean you shouldn’t check out the facts. Go to the person. Hear other witnesses. If you’re far away from the scene, wait for more of the story to come out. Suspend judgment. Don’t get panicked or stampeded by mob-psychology and rumors. Be content not to know many things. You don’t need to have an opinion about everything and everyone.

Third, what should you do if you are close enough to the situation to be involved AND you think the injustice or matter is too great or grievous for you to ignore? For starters, notice that you only really need to know something if it touches your sphere of life and relationships. In that case, you should do what will help you to express God’s call upon you to speak Ephesians 4:29 words of wise love.

In Derek Kidner’s commentary on Prov. 25:7–10, he writes that when you think someone has done wrong you should remember, “One seldom knows the full facts (v.8) and one’s motives in spreading a story are seldom as pure as one pretends (v.10). To run to the law or to the neighbors is usually to run away from the duty of personal relationship.” See Christ’s clinching comment in Matthew 18:15: "If your brother sins against you, go and tell him his fault, between you and him alone. If he listens to you, you have gained your brother." In short, if you feel the problem is too great and you can’t keep it from destroying your regard for the person, you must go personally before you go to anyone else.

When Should You Go?

Galatians 6:1 says we are to go when a person is caught in a trespass. That means there should be some kind of "pattern" or the unmistakable exposure of a wrong. Don’t go the first time you hear a bad report about someone doing wrong. As we said above, there’s another side to most stories, and our motives are never totally pure when we get indignant. Go if the person seems caught—that is, trapped or stuck in a habit pattern of wrong behavior or falsehood.

How Should You Go?

Galatians 6:1 says we are to restore gently and in humility, bearing all the fruit of the Spirit. Beware of your own tendencies to be tempted—perhaps to the same sin, perhaps to reactive sins of self-righteousness or judgmentalism, perhaps to avoidance sins of cover-up and pretending. Galatians 6:2 goes on to say that we actually fulfill the law of Christ by bearing each other’s burdens. We become nothing less than lesser redeemers in the pattern of our Great Redeemer. Jesus in Matthew 18:15ff says we should also go persistently, and not give up in the process. Patience is one fruit of the Spirit because problems don’t always clear up quickly. There is a progression in efforts to get to the bottom of a bad report, to confirm the facts, and to work at bringing restoration.

Who Should Go?

Galatians 6 says you—plural—who are spiritual should go to the straying one. That both defines how you should go and it calls for multiple people to get involved. Similarly Matthew 18:15ff says to bring in other people if matters don’t resolve one to one. The right kind of checking out a bad report is always done in person and often will be done by involving multiple wise persons.

Why Should You Go?

In both Galatians 6 and Matthew 18 the goal is to restore the person and to re-establish sin-broken relationships. You are working to restore people both to God and to others.

Conclusion

In summary, from the Old Testament to the New Testament, the principle is this. If you hear bad reports about other Christians you must either cover it with love or go to them personally before speaking of it to any others.

• The first thing to do is to simply suspend judgment. Don’t pass on bad reports.
• The second thing to do is “cover” it in love, reminding yourself that you don’t know all about the heart of the person who may have done evil—and you know your own frailty. Don’t allow bad reports to pass into your own heart.
• The final thing to do is go and speak to them personally.

What you should never do is rush to judgment, or withdraw from loving another, or pass on the negative report to others. This is challenge enough when you’re dealing with the local grapevine or slow-moving postal service. In a world of instant world-wide communication of information it’s an even bigger challenge, because you can do bigger damage more quickly.

Whether the bad report offers true information, or partial information, or disinformation, or false information—it is even more important that you exercise great discretion, and that you take pains to maximize boots-on-the-ground interpersonal relationships.

I hope this Biblical perspective is helpful to you like it was to me! I love that there is an Answer as to how to address gossip and reconcile true issues of wrong-doing (without simply ignoring the wrong-doing). It involves humility on both sides. I admit I've failed in how I've responded to multiple issues. It helps me to be reminded of what John Newton said (a former slave trader who wrote the hymn Amazing Grace after having his life changed by Christ):

“My memory is nearly gone, but I remember two things: That I am a great sinner and that Christ is a great Savior.”

—John Newton, quoted in Jonathan Aitken, John Newton: From Disgrace to Amazing Grace (Wheaton, IL: Crossway Books, 2007), 347

^(keep)

Just a quick up-keep blurb about new McDonaldSpot features:

• a new layout... what do you think?

• a third playlist on the finetune player (lower right side) -- Kid Music -- a mix of silly songs, traditional songs, and kids' worship tunes

• if you'd like to keep listening while web surfing, click Pop the Player Out on the black screen, and your music won't disappear.

• McNuggets are here! I plan to make this a weekly or semi-weekly post, depending on how many interesting links I stumble across.