It Wasn't Better Back In The Day

It’s time for a pop quiz. There is only one question, and it is multiple choice. You at least have a chance at getting it right.

Q: Fill in the blank: Near the end of the president’s term, editors of a major newspaper in the nation’s capitol wrote, “If ever a nation has suffered from the improper influence of a man, the American nation has suffered from the influence of _____________.”

A: Bill Clinton
B: Andrew Jackson
C: Donald Trump
D: George Washington

The column appeared in the Philadelphia Aurora in 1796 in the waning days of George Washington’s presidency. The celebrated Father of Our Country, the singular force behind the victory over King George and the greatest fighting force in the world, and the man whom many wanted as king more than president was assaulted in the press on administration policies and to his horror, personal character.

No president escapes media gaze, and every president and his followers complain about the coverage he receives. Solomon accurately concludes, “There is nothing new under the sun” (Ecclesiastes 1:9).

Every generation concludes there has never been a time like this. The world has never been this messed up. The government has never been this corrupt. The morals have never been this loose. Children have never been this rebellious. It’s like we’ve forgotten about the flood, the rules of Ahab and Herod, the filth in Corinth, and the defiance of Absalom. Maybe the good ‘ol days were not that good after all.

One consequence of thinking the present time is unlike any other is the mistake the Bible is a relic with no value in a modern world. The writings of Moses and Paul along with the teachings of Jesus cannot have the nuance to navigate the sophistication of the modern mind. The Bible was good for nomads and sheepherders but not for the educated and enlightened.

Ancient vulgarity has nothing on modern arrogance.

We are Christians trying to navigate our world as faithful followers of our Lord. Like all before us, we live this life in a broken world populated by fallen people. The failures of our leaders, the agenda of the powerful, the gullibility of the masses, the lies promoted and believed, and the faithlessness of the church prompt in us a longing for something different, something better. The different and better is in the presence of Jesus. The present morass of deceit and disease can prime us for the future harmony of beauty and blessing.

They were longing for a better country—a heavenly one. Therefore God is not ashamed to be called their God, for he has prepared a city for them (Hebrews 11:16).

With every new news cycle and observation of cultural decline, we have the opportunity to set aside the appeal of the now and develop our appetite for what awaits us with Christ in heaven. When we are frustrated by loss of freedom, we wonder at the freedom we’ve yet to experience that awaits us when we are with the Lord.

Live faithful, Christian, and keep your eyes on heaven.

As always, I welcome your feedback and any suggestions you might have for an upcoming Lunchtime Musing.

To read past Lunchtime Musings, follow me at medium.com/@mikeverway

Mike VerWay
Pastor for Preaching & Vision

Everything and Everyone Is Against Me, Even God

I remember my girls singing,

Nobody likes me, everybody hates me
I think I'll go eat worms!
Big fat juicy ones, Eensie weensy squeensy ones,
See how they wiggle and squirm!

If the ditty is stuck in your head the rest of the day, my sincere apologies.

Some Christians think God doesn’t like them. These, saved by the indescribable gift of God’s son, look at their difficult and wrenching life circumstances and conclude, “God doesn’t like me. God doesn’t care about me. Maybe, God hates me.”

For the child of God, few texts surpass the greatness of Romans 8. From its opening line that affirms God’s approval of the justified to its climax of God’s love in Christ for his own, Romans 8 has ministered to countless of the faithful over the centuries.

Most of us are familiar with 8:28, “And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose.” Sadly, the text has been both misused and neglected.

Misused by those who offer the text to the hurting as an explanation for why bad things are happening to them. 8:28 is not first an explanation of why bad things happen to us but a reason to endure hardship that is the reality of living under the curse as we await the completion of our redemption (8:18-25).

Neglected by those who see the text as little more than a crutch to the hurting, offering no substantive aid to the downcast. “Remember, Romans 8:28!” seems like a cavalier way to comfort the wounded and broken, forgetting this quoted line is God’s message to the shattered spirit intended to bring comfort and aid.

Soon after 8:28 is another solace for the Christian. Paul writes, “Since God is for us, who can be against us?” He affirms a fact: God is for his own. God was for Paul, and God was for the Christians at Rome, and God is for us; God is for you!

To be sure God is not for everyone. He is aggressively opposed to the wicked (Psalm 34:16) and reveals his wrath against the godless (Romans 1:18). But that’s not you! You have “received the Spirit of adoption” and you cry out, “Abba, Father.” Your Heavenly Father is not against you. Your Heavenly Father has not forgotten you and does not hate you. God is for you! He offers to you evidence that he is for you, “He who did not spare His own Son, but delivered Him up for us all, how shall He not with Him also freely give us all things?” (8:32).

• God is for the childless couple. You want to have a family and for whatever reasons it isn’t happening. It’s hard knowing your friend is pregnant and seeing their joy holding a baby. In your emptiness, God is for you.

• God is for the grieving spouse. About half of us will bury a spouse. Once two become one, death rips apart the union. What’s left is a gaping wound. In your pain, God is for you.

• God is for the dejected parent. Rebellious children break parents’ hearts. You’ve tried everything, and nothing changes for the better. In reality the relationships are deteriorating daily. You are ashamed to say it, but you’re looking forward to the day he heads off to college or the navy. In your continual frustration, God is for you.

• God is for the mistreated child. You can’t do anything right. Your dad is always angry. Your mom criticizes and nags. Neither of them listen to you when you try to explain. They just yell, ridicule, or punish. You’d rather be at grandma’s house or a friend’s than be at home. In your confusion about what family life should be, God is for you.

• God is for the recently furloughed. A stimulus check, ha! What’s that going to do for you. What you need is a job that pays well, has good insurance, and comes with some security that you won’t be let go if the economy turns bad. In your anxiety, God is for you.

• God is for the injured and diseased. Thumbing the pages of the photo album, you hardly recognize the face you see. The stroke or cancer or fall or heart attack or the cumulative years have left you a shell of your former self. It hurts to move. It hurts not to move. “What’s the point of living like this?” you wonder. In your weakened state, God is for you.

• God is for the weary and burdened. Sleep is a gift, but not one that lasts long. There’s not enough of you to go around. Everyone needs you…now! There’s nowhere to hide and no relief in sight. In your fatigue, God is for you.

• God is for the discouraged pastor. You prepare sermons to feed the flock. They don’t seem interested in eating. You love only to be betrayed. You know you make mistakes but why can’t they be gracious when you do? Nobody calls you when you’re in need, but if you don’t call when they are in need, look out. In your dismay, brother-Pastor, God is for you.

• God is for the single parent. This isn’t what you thought life would be, but here you are. It doesn’t matter how you got here. This is life now. You and the kid. It’s hard not having someone to lean on as a parent, someone who gets up in the night so you can get some sleep, someone to discipline so you aren’t the meanie every single day. In your not ideal situation, God is for you.

• God is for the perpetual bridesmaid. “Sure, I’d love to be in your wedding.” You are genuinely happy for her. He’s a good guy, and she’s the latest of your squad walking the aisle. You’ve shared in the day with five friends in the last two years, but that’s not looking like a possibility for you. In your loneliness, God is for you.

• God is for the dreamer with dashed dreams. It seemed like a great idea on paper. You carefully considered the pros and cons. You made the plans, asked for advice, took the risk, and worked hard to see it come true. But it didn’t, not even close. You flopped, miserably. The years and effort seem wasted. It’s really hard to dream again about what could be. In your failure, God is for you.

Here's a better tune and text for Christians to sing.

O God, our help in ages past, Our hope for years to come, Our shelter from the stormy blast, And our eternal home.

Under the shadow of Thy throne Thy saints have dwelt secure; Sufficient is Thine arm alone, And our defense is sure.

Before the hills in order stood, Or earth received her frame, From everlasting Thou art God, To endless years the same.

Thy Word commands our flesh to dust, “Return, ye sons of men”: All nations rose from earth at first, And turn to earth again.

A thousand ages in Thy sight Are like an evening gone; Short as the watch that ends the night Before the rising sun.

The busy tribes of flesh and blood, With all their lives and cares, Are carried downwards by the flood, And lost in foll’wing years.

Time, like an ever-rolling stream, Bears all its sons away; They fly, forgotten, as a dream Dies at the op’ning day.

Like flow’ry fields the nations stand Pleased with the morning light; The flow’rs beneath the mower’s hand Lie with’ring ere ’tis night.

O God, our help in ages past, Our hope for years to come, Be Thou our guard while troubles last, And our eternal home.

Isaac Watts, 1719

As always, I welcome your feedback and any suggestions you might have for an upcoming Lunchtime Musing.

To read past Lunchtime Musings, follow me at medium.com/@mikeverway

Mike VerWay
Pastor for Preaching & Vision

Years of Grace Since the Loss

Five years ago this week we buried my mom. What follows below are my thoughts in anticipation of that day. In the years between, I’ve learned much about grieving, loss, and absence. I’ve experienced our Lord’s sweet companionship and calming peace. I think much more about heaven and about how few my days on earth might be. The number keeps getting smaller as I compare my current age to my mom’s age at death or the ages of others dying around me.

In time we all will bury those whom we love. Most of us will bury parents, about half of us will bury a spouse, and a brokenhearted few will bury a child or children. When the events come, our Lord will minister to us. He will not abandon us. He will not forget us or forget our loss. He will work all things together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose (Romans 8:28).

In the circumstances of 2020 and now into 2021, I’ve thought repeatedly, “I’m glad my mom and dad aren’t around to experience this craziness.” While I say that, I do wish my mom and dad “were around.” I just miss them. Still, my experience is far from unique. Brenda’s mom has been with the Lord for 25 years, and you too have your story of loss.

If you are hurting or grieving, if loss and absence nag at you, I hope you find something helpful in my thoughts from five years ago which remain true today. Thank you for loving me in my sorrow.

Originally published February 2, 2016

Tomorrow I will bury my mom. Those are painful, somewhat surreal words to write.

For most of the last decade, I’ve known this day would come. When my dad died nearly nine months ago, I was not surprised. At 74, his life was longer than virtually everyone else in his family. His health during the last 10 years of his life was, at best, poor. Surgery for prostate cancer exposed him to the killer bacteria MRSA. The infection weakened his body making otherwise minor issues major problems.

As I watched him decline, I prepared myself for his eventual death. Each time I said goodbye to him, I did so knowing this might be my last time with him. He was ready to meet the Lord, and to the extent possible, I was ready for him to be with the Lord. Still, I miss him every day.

My mom was never old to me. As a teenage mother, she raised my sister and me with the vibrancy of a kid. Though small of frame, her energy level was that of a thoroughbred. Little kept her down and few stopped her. When she set her mind to do something, chances were she’d get it done. Whether earning a bachelor’s degree by attending school in the evening or continuing to teach after two LVAD surgeries, she resolved to continue to do what she determined was the right and best thing to do. Her aggressive nature and my dad’s mellow disposition were a beautiful match.

My mom developed congestive heart failure more than ten-years ago following a minor heart attack triggered by a virus. She suffered the heart attack the first week of July, and, as expected, was back in the classroom in late August. I asked her to retire, but that was a futile suggestion. The leopard can’t change its spots.

Despite her heart problems, I was not ready for her death. At 69 she lived twenty years less than her mother and much less than all the other women in her family tree. My always young mom was not old enough to die. During the last weeks and days of her life, she remained quick-minded, articulate and witty, like you might expect from her in the classroom or in conversations with her grandchildren.

Her heart diagnosis and her various open-heart surgeries should have prompted me to adopt a similar approach to her that I did with my dad. Her lifestyle, however, wouldn’t let me. Over the last 18 months, she put more than 47,000 miles on her car. Though retired from teaching, she wasn’t retired from life. In two years she built a small but profitable business that supplemented her meager income. In her home church she ministered to disadvantaged women, played her clarinet in the orchestra, sang in the choir, and attempted whatever ministries were suggested or apparent to her. In the northern Wisconsin church where she gathered for worship, she met a young family with a son diagnosed with childhood leukemia. She loved the young mother and father, cared for their other child during chemo treatments, provided meals to the family, and opened her heart and home to them. All this after having met them when she was a newbie to the church family.

My timeline for life did not include my mom’s death in January of 2016. When Paul wrote, “For to me, to live is Christ, and to die is gain. But if I live on in the flesh, this will mean fruit from my labor; yet what I shall choose I cannot tell. For I am hard-pressed between the two, having a desire to depart and be with Christ, which is far better. Nevertheless to remain in the flesh is more needful for you (Philippians 1:21-24),” I want to apply this to my mom. From my low-level perch, my mom’s remaining with us is more needful than her going to be with Christ at this point in time. Like Paul, I am hard-pressed, albeit for myself.

Where to go from here? This is the question. I miss my mom beyond my capacity to express. I contemplate the future without her, and I become sad. I’ve picked up my phone to call her, and then suddenly remembered. I should just remove her name from my phone, but I don’t want to remove her name from my phone.

Still, my life is not over. Like me, my mother buried her father first and then her mother. She felt many of the emotions I feel, and she fought on. She continued to serve the Lord. She continued to love people. She continued to give her best. She fought a good fight. She finished her course. She kept the faith. The best way for me to honor my mom is to do the same.

By God’s grace.

As always, I welcome your feedback and any suggestions you might have for an upcoming Lunchtime Musing.

To read past Lunchtime Musings, follow me at medium.com/@mikeverway

Mike VerWay
Pastor for Preaching & Vision

Value the Valuable, Dismiss the Cheap

Paul writes simply and directly, Set your mind on things above, not on things on the earth (Colossians 3:2).

His words do not seem too complex. The things of earth are in opposition to things above, and there will only be disappointment if affections are for things on earth. Frankly, things on earth cannot deliver what we hope they can. We cannot regard things above and things on earth as the same or that there is a time and place to set our affections on earthly things and not consider things above. Matthew Henry wisely notes, “The prevalence of our affection to one will proportionably weaken and abate our affection to the other.”

Here are 8 applications from Paul’s instruction. What would you add?

1. Set your mind on things above, not on the prospects of a political party.
   

2. Set your mind on things above, not on the life you will live once retirement comes.
   

3. Set your mind on things above, not on the affirmation you crave from likes, retweets, or heart emojis.
   

4. Set your mind on things above, not on the next experience that will give you a temporary high.
   

5. Set your mind on things above, not on the companionship that pulls you away from Christ.
   

6. Set your mind on things above, not on the make believe helps for your deepest hurts.
   

7. Set your mind on things above, not on winning the argument with your adversary.
   

8. Set your mind on things above, not on manipulating the system or the relationship to get what you want.

As always, I welcome your feedback and any suggestions you might have for an upcoming Lunchtime Musing.

To read past Lunchtime Musings, follow me at medium.com/@mikeverway

Mike VerWay
Pastor for Preaching & Vision

Is There Hope for the United States?

I love my country. For those in the back, I LOVE MY COUNTRY!

Until the Lord returns, I want the United States of America always to be the land of the free and the home of the brave, and one nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.

Because I am a Christian with a worldview formed by the inspired and infallible Word of God, my heart aches at the coming administration of Joseph Robinette Biden Jr. On Wednesday, January 20, 2021, Mr. Biden will become the 46th president of these United States, a date, I fear, which will live in infamy.

Mr. Biden, who braggartly declared, “I am the Democrat Party,” possesses the authority to enact the most leftist, Marxist, sexually abhorrent, anti-God ideology our country has ever known. The political party he leads confirmed without shame or subtlety its intent to move forward a godless and sin-promoting agenda. Have you read the party’s platform? Have you listened to the rhetoric of those who soon will be in power?

About people like me who have an opposing view to intersectionality, identity politics, critical race theory, LGBTQ+ dogma, and white privilege, the soon to be in charge write, “Their hate overrides their common sense. It will take reprogramming of their brains to reverse the effects of their cult.” There remains no political check to counter the system barreling at us. By us, I mean any like me who have a worldview formed by the inspired and infallible Word of God.

Christians find themselves in constant tension with the culture because this is not where we identify, and frankly, this is where we are not wanted. Shining light into darkness and exposing wickedness and lies by the declaration of the Word of God is unwelcome. Living and speaking as preserving salt to a decaying infrastructure has no value to the culture. As we continue to preach the exclusivity of Jesus Christ and as we identify humanity’s open rebellion against God, we will be marked for “reprogramming” which is to say, elimination.

Your human resources department is not clamoring for more Christians. Our local public schools are not wishing that more Christians would become classroom teachers, school administrators, or high school basketball coaches. Our state and national governments are not seeking the input of Christians to set public policy. Christians need not apply. But that is not the worst of it. The worst of it is what is coming, the persecution of the church of our Lord Jesus Christ by those who hate Jesus.

Persecution is coming; it’s only a matter of when and to what extent.

I am a Christian pastor who leads a small group of Christians, 50-60 families in total. I preach weekly what Jesus said, “no one comes to the Father except through me.” I preach without apology Genesis 1-3 beginning with God’s creation of all that is and his authority over his creation including his expression of two and only two genders and the roles assigned by him to each. And I preach man’s rebellion against God recorded in chapter 3, a rebellion that remains as pervasive today among all human beings as it was in the beginning. I am leading all under my care to believe the same, to teach this to their children, and to run to the grace of God for aid.

How will we live in the coming days? We are not the first to experience such hostilities. From Daniel and his friends in Babylon or the apostles in the Roman Empire, we learn how believers live in a culture opposed to their allegiance to heaven.

Daniel 3:18 “Let it be known to you, O king, that we do not serve your gods.”

Acts 5:29 But Peter and the other apostles answered and said: “We ought to obey God rather than men.”

I am committed to live in strict adherence to the instructions and commands of our Lord and His apostles despite any opposition that might occur. Without the protection of the first amendment, the apostles’ position toward the ruling powers was faithfulness to Christ without regard to personal loss or shame. This must be ours too. I am no prophet, but I suspect the members of our church and all faithful Christians in America will face increasing opposition in their workplaces, their children’s schools, from the government, and in their families for faithfulness to Jesus.

But remember the words of our Lord as the time draws near, “I am with you always, even to the end of the age.”

As the opposition to our Lord and his followers increases, we will need our Bibles and the community of believers that is the local church. We cannot anticipate every event of every day, so we study Job, Esther, Daniel, the gospels, Philippians, 1 Peter and the rest of the apostles’ letters. Only the Scriptures can prepare us for the lives we will live as exiles.

Peter warned his readers about those who will mock and abuse the faithful Christians who will not join the culture in the flood of wicked living. To deflect their attacks, he advises the Christians to find help from each other (4:8-10). If I am to make a prediction about the future, it is the necessity of the local church to Christians. Small, uninfluential, and faithful congregations will be the means God uses to care for his own. Therefore, our lives must be connected tightly to the church and why we must revolve our families around the community that is the local church.

Peter concludes this way, “Therefore let those who suffer according to the will of God commit their souls to Him in doing good, as to a faithful Creator” (4:19). By God’s grace, this I will do, and this is how I will lead the church I serve, so help me God.

But maybe God will intervene in these United States of America. Maybe God will extend his omnipotent hand and restrain the evil that appears on the horizon as he did in the days of Esther and Mordecai.

Because I love my country, I pray…

O Lord,

Our once honorable nation faces an uncertain and frightening future. We have sown to the wind and deserve to reap the whirlwind. But we ask for mercy remembering that you love mercy. For the glory of your name, would you spare our nation from its ruin? Would you heal our self-inflicted injuries? Would you extend your grace to an undeserving nation? Would you grant for your faithful people to live in peace?

Whatever is your will for our land, we know what your will is for us. Should we suffer because we identify with Christ, we will, by your grace, commit ourselves to do good as you have created us to do. We will not bow to their gods, and we will not abandon our loyalty to your son, our savior, Jesus. We affirm again to live is Christ, and to die is gain.

As always, I welcome your feedback and any suggestions you might have for an upcoming Lunchtime Musing.

To read past Lunchtime Musings, follow me at medium.com/@mikeverway

Mike VerWay
Pastor for Preaching & Vision