During the summer, I spend time planning for the fall.  According to the Office of US Personnel Management, "Planning" means setting performance expectations and goals for groups and individuals to channel their efforts toward achieving organizational objectives.  It also includes the measures that will be used to determine whether expectations and goals are being met.  That’s just a fancy way to say that during the summer I spend some intentional time preparing for the fall. 

I’d like to share with you some of what’s coming up later in the year. Beginning September 7, I will be teaching the Wednesday afternoon and evening Bible study on the Shelter of God’s Promises.   God is the only promise maker who is always a promise keeper.  For 10 weeks we will explore the scriptures uncovering what God has promised us. 

Starting Sunday, September 11, Confirmation Class will meet in the office conference room at 9:45 am.  The members of the class will be confirmed on Sunday, October 16^th during the 10:55 am Worship Service. This class is for those that are in 6th grade or higher and have never been through the class.

This fall in Soul-utions, we will be looking at the spiritual treatment plan for the chronic life.  For those of us who find ourselves in the grips of unhealthy, chronic patterns, this plan will provide us with the opportunity to begin our recovery.  

I have high expectations for a fall filled with spiritual growth and fellowship with other believers.  So what is your plan for the rest of this year????  I pray that by sharing my plans with you it may help you start planning for your fall. 

Aim HIGH!

How To Tell the Truth?

Before you tell the truth, it is often wise to consider what you hope to accomplish by doing so.

Are you trying to hurt someone or make your relationship stronger (see, should I tell)?

And it helps to keep in mind, that both telling the truth AND using deception are important in a close relationship. Whether we like to admit it or not, both are required to make a close relationship work (see, pros and cons of lying).

But, if you ultimately decide to tell the truth, what is the best way to do it?

This was the beginning of an article I found online when I googled “telling the truth.”  The source is a website called Truth About Deception: Advice about lying, infidelity, love and romance.  This really bothers me.  When the Bible states in the 9^th commandment, “Thou shall not lie,” my understanding is that lying is always wrong.   The message of scripture is that we are to tell the truth.  I find it offensive that this article believes that deception is an important aspect of a close relationship.  No wonder the divorce rate is so high and we find it hard to trust people.  I don’t need an article or anyone telling me how to tell the truth.  It should be very simple.  Every word that comes out of my mouth should be the truth!  If I say something, those around me shouldn’t have to worry about whether or not it is fact or fiction.  Every healthy relationship has a solid foundation of truth.  What about your relationships?   Are you telling the truth?  Just remember, God knows the difference!

When Rabbi Harold S. Kushner wrote the book When Bad Things Happen to Good People in 1981, I believed that he was writing to me.   You see, this book was the product of a personal tragedy in his life that made him re-examine his beliefs about God and the ways of God.   I too was living in the midst of a personal tragedy. 

My son, Mathew was born in March, 1980 with profound brain damage, cerebral palsy, and a seizure disorder.   Like the author, I too believed that I was living a more religiously committed life than many other people I knew with healthy children.   So questions started to creep up.  How could this loving God I had faith in allow this to happen?  Why should my son be subjected to physical and psychological pain everyday of his life? 

One of the ways we try to make sense of suffering is to assume that we get what we deserve, or somehow our adversities are a punishment.  Yet I came to understand through prayer, consultation, and scripture that God is a loving God and does not cause these things to happen. 

Life happens!  It has nothing to do with deserving or not deserving things, nor is it a form of punishment for things we have done.  God wants us to know that his son, Jesus, died for our sins and that when life dishes out hardships, He is there to walk with us through the valleys.  God is our comfort and strength in the midst of the pain – not the cause of it.

I pray that if you are walking through the valley, you know that God is there with you, ready and willing to help, if you just ask!  I am also here to help.

May God bless your steps through life.