Above the Sun: Faulty assumptions make for faulty outcomes

by Barrett Vanlandingham

October 6, 2019

            One of the worst things we can do when it comes to finding out the will of God is to take things out of context during Bible study. Through the Bible, God has communicated to us everything we need to know in order to please Him (2 Timothy 3:16-17).

            The problem is that sometimes we look at just the words we need in order to prove our point, and ignore the overall context. This is dangerous because just reading one verse instead of the whole chapter (or more) may take us in a completely different direction than what God intended.

            A few days ago, our preacher and missions deacon left for Colombia in South America to meet up with our missionaries there. Around noon, our missions deacon texted me saying, “The Houston airport is shut down because of bad weather. We need someone to come bring us back to Fort Gibson.”  I thought to myself, “O no, that’s at least an eight-hour trip one way with no stops.” I proceeded to put out a request to our church family through social media to see if anyone could break loose and drive to Houston.

            A few minutes later, the deacon called and asked me if anyone had volunteered to come and get him and our preacher. I told him I hadn’t yet, but for $247 per person, he and the preacher could call an Uber to get them to the Dallas airport, and then fly on in from there.  He said that would not work, again, because the airport was shut down. I was very confused why that would matter. Then, he mentioned that another preacher from a nearby town who was also traveling with them had called his wife to come get him, and she had already arrived. I was thinking, “How in the world is this even possible, and why don’t they all just ride back together?”

            Finally, I asked in frustration, “Where are you?”  He said, “The Tulsa airport!”  You can only imagine the relief on both ends of the phone after that little piece of information was shared. At that point, the job of finding them a ride back to Fort Gibson was much easier since someone would only have to drive an hour and a half round trip instead of 16-18 hours!  We laughed about it. After all, how could two very experienced communicators make such an elementary mistake? It happens. We were both sincere. But we were both unknowingly approaching a problem from opposite ends which made a solution impossible until we had the necessary facts.

            This fail in communication and context was a great reminder to me that if it can happen in that kind of instance, it can also happen in other ways, such as with our Bible study.  We must ask ourselves why we believe what we believe about God’s will for our spiritual journey. Do we just take someone else’s word for it, or do we study for ourselves? If we do study for ourselves, do we have an open mind as to what God is telling us? Do we look at the overall context and message of what God is conveying, or do we simply cherry pick Bible verses to validate our traditions and prove opinions we already have?

            May God bless us all with the desire to dig into God’s word and ask basic questions about context, purpose, audience, time-frame, location, and culture. The answers found in God’s word will always prove as relevant today as when the Bible was written.  Have a great week!

Above the Sun: You can make an eternal difference on the job

by Barrett Vanlandingham

September 29, 2019

            “Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for human masters, since you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward. It is the Lord you are serving” (Colossians 3:23-24).

            This is a hard pill to swallow for most people, especially those of us who have worked for a boss who less than likeable, or a teacher who just seems to enjoy making students miserable more than teaching them something. But the apostle Paul gives us plenty of reasons to change the way we feel about being employed and working in challenging situations. In fact, he says our attitude towards our job and our boss are directly tied to our respect of God, and commitment to doing God’s work.

            The old cliché’ warning about winning the battle while losing the war hits close to home in regard to this topic. Paul was not in favor of slavery, but he did teach that “masters are worthy of full respect, so that God’s name and our teaching may not be slandered” (1 Timothy 6:1).  

            This is definitely an “above the sun” principal that still applies to our work ethic today and how we speak about our bosses. There are no doubt times when a worker’s assessment of their boss as unfair, mean, no good, and ignorant may be right on target. But as Christians, Paul says we need to be careful that in the process of putting someone in their place we do not compromise our ability to win their soul or even someone else who witnesses the conflict. Having a good and constructive attitude in dealing with anyone is very important, as is timing of when we choose to have these conversations.

            Many people become even more defensive if they are publicly called out for their behavior, even if the one doing the calling out is nice about it. It’s much better to have these conversations privately when possible. If your boss really is of bad character, having a sincere talk with them can only really have one of two outcomes, either that will be the final nail in your coffin, or things might actually get better because you understand each other better. Either outcome would be a blessing. The wisest man who ever lived, Solomon, said, “A gentle answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger” (Proverbs 15:1). In the end, you will be a lot closer to winning this person over to Christ than before, and for the Christian, this is really the goal of every conversation.

            For most people, their jobs are not their hobbies. That’s why they are called jobs. So, it is impressive when an employee works at their job the way we should all be working for God. An employer or even a co-worker who witnesses this may ask or wonder why you are taking your job so seriously. This question opens the door for a conversation about doing all things to God’s glory (Colossians 3:17) and making good use of your time while someone is paying you to do a job.  Having this kind of attitude on the job promotes trust, leading to conversations that could make a difference in where someone spends eternity.

            Have a great week!

Above the Sun: Keep your spiritual direction

by Barrett Vanlandingham

September 22, 2019

            The other day I sat down at my computer to do some work and the strangest thing happened. Everytime I moved my wireless mouse to the right my cursor moved to the left, and everytime I moved my mouse to the left my curser moved to the right. Everytime I moved my mouse up my curser moved down, and vice versa. Very confusing.

            I soon figured out the problem was not with the mouse, the curser, or even the computer. It was operator error! Even though the mouse was sitting in its normal spot on my desk, it was turned in the opposite direction, and therefore, everytime I moved it one way, the curser on my screen moved opposite.

            This can also happen spiritually while we are on our faith journey. Without knowing our destination and directions how to get there, we would wander aimlessly. During a road trip, if our map or GPS is turned upside down or backwards, it would be significantly more difficult to get where we’re going. The same is true spiritually. It is important to read the Bible to know God’s will for us. That way, when someone gives us advice that conflicts with God’s direction, it doesn’t feel right, sound right, or look right.

            The writer of Hebrews lists several faith hall of famers such as Abel, Enoch, Noah, Rahab, and many others who exhibited faith in their journeys. Readers are then encouraged to heed the writer’s advice on how to successfully reach our heavenly destination.

            “Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God. Consider him who endured from sinners such hostility against himself, so that you may not grow weary or fainthearted” (Hebrews 12:1-3).

            So, the writer reminds us that runners who expect to win the prize choose the route with the fewest obstacles that could get in our way. Next, the word endurance is a good reminder to put our faith and knowledge into action daily. This helps build our spiritual muscles so that when the valleys and temptations of life come our way we will be able to keep moving forward. Next, we are reminded to look at the example of Jesus for inspiration. He went through so much. But because He knew His destination and how to get there, He stayed the course, and as long as we follow in Jesus’ footsteps we will too.  Have a great week!

Above the Sun: God is always here for us

September 15, 2019

by Barrett Vanlandingham

            If you have ever felt that God was ignoring your plea or not even hearing you in the first place, the parable of the persistent widow and the unjust judge is for you.

            In Luke 18, the writer says Jesus’ purpose in telling the parable to his disciples was to “show them that they should pray and never give up.” The story involves a widow who was not willing to take no for an answer, and an unjust judge who did not care about God or anyone else!  The widow, over and over, kept showing up asking for justice against someone who had done her wrong. The judge kept putting her off but eventually got tired of her bothering him, so he finally agreed to help her.

            “And the Lord said, ‘Listen to what the unjust judge says. And will not God bring about justice for his chosen ones, who cry out to him day and night? Will he keep putting them off” (Luke 18:6-7)?

            God has never required that His children repeat the same request over and over and over again. But this parable does remind us to not give up on God, and to remember our version of perfect timing is not the same as God’s version. Wouldn’t it be scary to think that God’s wisdom and actions somehow depend on when and what we think is the best solution?

            Peter summed it up this way: “Humble yourselves, therefore, under God’s mighty hand, that he may lift you up in due time. Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you (1 Peter 5:6-7).

        In addition, it is important for us to make sure our heart is in the right place when we present our desires and concerns.

            “When you ask, you do not receive, because you ask with wrong motives” (James 4:3). The Bible also tells us that if we are walking in step with God, prayer can achieve amazing results, though it is still in God’s time.

        “Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective” (James 5:16).

            Another point of the parable is that if a crooked judge can be influenced or even have a change of mind about helping someone, then surely a fair judge would do the same. Our Heavenly Father is the fairest of all, and Christians can be confident that He continually acts in the best interest of His chosen ones. This is not only true when we ask for things, but also when we do not even know what to ask for, or possibly didn’t even know we needed to ask. Remember the words of Paul?

            “In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us through wordless groans. And he who searches our hearts knows the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for God’s people in accordance with the will of God” (Romans 8:26-27).

            We can trust with certainty that “all things work together for good to them that love God” (Romans 8:28). Have a great week!