Author: Pastor Bryan Lowe

A repentant rascal with definite issues, but who is seeking to be authentic in his faith to Jesus Christ. An avid reader and a hopeful writer. Husband and father. A pastor and Bible teacher. A brain tumor survivor. Diagnosed with clinical depression, and now disabled. Enjoys life, such as it is, in Alask.a (Actually I have it pretty good.)

When You Lose [Faith]

…”calling two of his disciples to him, sent them to the Lord, saying, “Are you the one who is to come, or shall we look for another?” Luke 7:19

 

Here we have John the Baptist locked away in Herod’s prison.  We read of his wavering, but that shouldn’t alarm us.  There has always been difficulties for those who follow without diluting their love for Jesus.  It’s very likely that John had preconceptions about Jesus’ ministry.  But that certainly doesn’t mean he was apostate or backslidden.  He still believed, as he looked out through the bars.

We walk in a greater light and have surer promises that John did.  And in that light we still have our difficult moments.  We can falter and shake and doubt.  And John only had a 100th of understanding that we have.  Often we are amazed by another’s confusion and struggles, it is so clear to us that they are falling short.  It is frustrating.  Moses once went ballistic, beat his rod on a rock and had some choice words.  His anger spilled all over him and made a mess.  We read of his provocation, and miss our own faults, sins and weaknesses. 

We need to understand the depth of our own depravity.  There are those who have proceeded us, who have had their moments of despondency and doubt.  We see them, as it were, from a distance and criticize and challenge what we see.  Noah’s drunkenness and Lot’s vacillation.  The flakiness of Samson, Peter’s denial and Mark’s timidity, and much more.

Today, let us resolve to be gentle with each other. “For we all stumble in many ways”, James 3:2.

A Serious Case of JDD

I have a syndrome called JDD.  It afflicts me in several different ways.  My psychiatrist can give me no meds that would help me.  It weakens me and makes me vulnerable to a host of enemies.  I have Jesus Deficit Disorder.

I wonder about this thing called “Christianity”.  After over 2000 years, have we veered off course?  Is the Church of Jesus founded even resemble the one we have in the US? As I ponder about these questions, I honestly am not sure anymore.

Being a Christian without the presence of Jesus is a frightening possibility.  We don’t realize that we have shifted to another track, things seem so ordinary and smooth.  It is spiritually disturbing that we are diverted so easily.  We end up with the Christian religion, but without Christ.  How did this happen?

When you have Jesus Deficit Disorder (JDD) you end up with a Christianity without Christ; a form of religion, but without its inherent power.  It all appears legit and acceptable, but it is a sham.  It is not what Jesus intended for us.  The intimacy has lifted. We speak about Him, but not to Him. 

There is a deficiency in a heart that does not claim Him as an intimate friend.  It frightens us so that we avoid the presence of the Lord.  The children of Israel had absolutely no desire to meet with God face-to-face.  They insisted that Moses should go on without them.  What prompted this?

We have an untamed God.  On any given Sunday, out ushers seating us should be handing out life vests, and issuing flares and whistles.  We would be tied to our chairs.  For we are in the presence of a God who is awesomely loving, and faithfully unpredictable.  He is a Lion, wild and untamed, and hanging out with Him also turns us into a wild disciple, who is a bit edgy and untamed.

Having JDD will revert us to a soft domestic soul, disengaged from a spiritual authenticity.  Oh, we travel to what we believe the general direction of good religion.  We are missing the attitude of “more Jesus”.  It’s old hat stuff, but I must say it anyway– more Jesus–less religion.  

The Imponderables: Sunday Funnies

  1. Do the different “M&M’s”® colors taste different?
  2. Why does caregiver and caretaker mean the same thing?
  3. Who was the first person to look at a cow and say, “I think I’ll squeeze these dangly things here, and drink what ever comes out”?
  4. If you dig a tunnel straight through the earth, will you come out with your feet first?
  5. Why are pennies bigger than dimes?
  6. Why do most cars have speedometers that go up to at least 130 when you legally can’t go that fast on any road?
  7. Why do banks leave the door wide open but the pens chained to the counter?
  8. What would happen if an Irresistible Force met an Immovable Object?
  9. If a Man is talking in the forest and there is no woman there to hear him, is he still wrong?
  10. Why is it that when a person tells you there’s over a million stars in the universe you believe them, but if someone tells you there’s wet paint somewhere, you have to touch it to make sure?
  11. If Barbie is so popular, then why do you have to buy her friends?
  12. How come you press harder on a remote control when you know the battery is dead?
  13. How do they get a deer to cross at that yellow road sign?
  14. How do you know when yogurt goes bad?
  15. If a cat always lands on its feet, and buttered bread always lands butter side down, what would happen if you tied buttered bread on top of a cat?
  16. If a chronic liar tells you he is a chronic liar do you believe him?
  17. If you were traveling at the speed of sound and you turned on your radio would you be able to hear it?
  18. If all those psychics know the winning lottery numbers, why are they all still working?
  19. Is it progress if a cannibal learns to eat with a fork?
  20. Do the air bubbles that are created when you fart in water, smell when they pop?
  21. Do stuttering people stutter when they’re thinking to themselves?

Photo: Night Sky

The heavens tell us about the Glory that God has.  We look up and see a universe that was created, and is now on display.  I remember on an isolated beach in Mexico.  One night, the entire Milky Way was revealed.  I laid on the sand transfixed by it all.  Suddenly, I got afraid and had the sensation of being very, very small.  That awareness has never left me.