Dear Valentine, Divorce Me

Neal Pollard

Anugrah Kumar, a Christian Post contributor, shares a strange offer from a Southfield, Michigan, attorney. Perhaps Walter Bentley is seeking publicity, but the law professor and Detroit-area lawyer is offering his services for free to the “lucky” couple with the best break up story.  He adds his twist of irony by providing this “gift” on Valentine’s Day, a day so many in our nation use to demonstrate their love for their mate in a special way.  Bentley claims to have had dozens of takers for his offer, and he believes he is providing a big help to some couple.  According to the article, a divorce costs $3,000.  The article ends with this shameful quote from Bentley, who says, “We’re really looking for the most heartwarming, that person who truly deserves it” (http://www.christianpost.com/news/mich-attorney-offers-free-divorce-on-valentines-day-89821/).

How much do you value your marriage and the relationship you have with your spouse?  What are you doing to invest in it and make it better?  Certainly, a nation saturated with sin cannot help but dishonor divine institutions like marriage.  Marriage, God’s way, is about faithfulness, commitment, unselfishness, sacrificial giving, and an active desire to serve and please the other person. Pleasure and satisfaction are produced in the wake of such an approach.  Marriage, man’s way, is disposable and disdained, discardable and destitute of the happiness that only comes in living for Christ and others above self.   Despite a desperate pursuit for fulfillment while remaining self-centered and self-sighted, the one so jealously guarding self’s wants, wishes, and feelings is doomed to misery and unhappiness.

Bible books like Song of Solomon proclaim the utter bliss of marital love.  You will find it lauded in the Proverbs, too.  New Testament passages lift high this heavenly institution (Eph. 5:23; Ti. 2:4-5; Heb. 13:4).  God knows what makes us tick, and so He has provided the means to our happiness. This includes our basic needs of companionship, affection, and intimacy.  How much better off might we be filled with fewer people looking for free divorce and more people willing to invest the time, effort, energy, and money is building a better marriage?

The Battle

In this life many battles have been fought,

Some of which were all for naught.

Lives have been lost and blood has been shed.

Many young men’s feet were doomed to never again tread.

But of all the battles that have taken place on this earth,

One is now happening that surpasses them all in worth.

This is the battle for the eternal soul,

And the reward at stake is the heavenly goal.

This battle takes place in our hearts in minds,

And our enemy uses nasty tactics of all kinds.

In this war many will stumble, struggle, and fall,

Even though safety and protection was available to all.

Some will arrogantly walk away from the safety of God’s grace,

Thinking they can seek shelter at another time and place.

Scripture tells us that we are not guaranteed tomorrow (James 4:13-14).

A life ended outside of Christ always brings terrible sorrow.

Therefore, let’s equip ourselves with the full armor of God (Ephesians 6:10-17),

Repairing any part of our lives that might be flawed.

Let’s “be strong in the Lord and in the strength of His might” (Ephesians 6:10),

So we can one day say the words of victory, “I fought the good fight” (2 Timothy 4:7).

A Plea To Those Who Lead Worship

I'm standing with Bill Burton, an elder under whom I served in Virginia, the most enthusiastic song leader I have ever known.Neal Pollard

From the man who gives the announcements before worship to the man who closes the worship in prayer or song, each has a serious responsibility and a stewardship entrusted to him.  The worshippers each have a personal accountability for worshipping in spirit and truth, but by the very nature and definition of leadership those who lead have even greater accountability.  We expect the preacher to have prepared his sermon in worship.  Should we expect less from the others who lead in that period of worship?  To those who lead us, please pray, put forethought and planning, and maintain an appropriate level of zeal and reverence in carrying us through the various acts of worship.  Please consider the following suggestions, humbly submitted to those men who lead us in worship.

• Be equipped–prepared and ready to lead whatever part of the worship is your task.
• Be enthusiastic, and hopefully your “face will really show it” (Ps. 122:1).
• Be encouraging, remembering to focus on those who are there and not those who are not (Heb. 10:24).
• Be energetic, not frivolous or “over the top,” but alive with passion for praising God (Phil. 3:3).
• Be engaged, knowing not only what you are doing but what you are doing next (1 Cor. 14:15).
• Be earnest, a sincere, heartfelt worship leader whose main objective is to worship God himself (Jn. 4:24).
• Be empathetic, having a fellow-feeling with your fellow-worshippers that causes you to be attuned to them as well as attuned to the joy of worshipping God (Heb. 10:24-25).
• Be edifying in your words, your tone, and your every effort in leading (cf. 1 Cor. 14:15).
• Be educational, knowing that you teach and admonish, too (Col. 3:16).
• Be emotional, not sappy or pseudo-pious, but one whose heart is clearly into leading us in worship (cf. Ps. 42:4).

Each opportunity is precious and God-given.  Each time is an appearance in the very throne room of heaven.  Each moment is directed to the Divine.  Let us lead reflecting that we understand that!

Stingy Penny Pinchers

There are some people in this world who are unbelievably stingy with their money.  They are ungenerous penny pinchers who hoard their money.  One such person was Hetty Green.  She was 30 years old when her father died in 1864 and left her a staggering $7.5 million in assets.  Later her aunt passed away and left $2 million to charity.  When Hetty learned this, she challenged her aunt’s written will and went to court with documents claiming the money should go to her.  The documents turned out to be forgeries.  When Hetty was engaged to be married she made her fiancé give up all rights to her money before she would say, “I do.”

Hetty Green soon became notorious for her stinginess and was even given the nickname, “The Witch of Wall Street.”  Many tales and rumors began surfacing about her greedy ways.  Some of these rumors include never turning on the heat, never using hot water, eating cold oatmeal because she wouldn’t spend the money to warm it, and wearing one dress until it was completely worn out.  There are accounts of Hetty traveling by herself for thousands of miles to collect a debt of a few hundred dollars.  Worst of all, there is a documented case about her son when he broke his leg.  In order to save money, Hetty tried to have him admitted to a free clinic for the poor.  The clinic turned them away when they found out about Hetty and her riches.  Her son’s leg eventually had to be amputated.  For many years the Guinness Book of World Records even gave her the title, “World’s Greatest Miser” (Miser = “Wealth hoarder”).

Hetty had increased, hoarded, and pinched so many pennies in her life that when she died her estate was worth an estimated $200 million.  This is equivalent to about $3.8 billion by today’s standards.  This made her arguably the richest woman in the world at the time.

Many today are stingy with their money, including Christians and even congregations.  They have saved up millions but simply will not put it into action.  The money just sits in a bank account.  Even though God calls us to be good stewards of our money, He also calls on us to be generous and giving (1 Timothy 6:17-19; 2 Corinthians 9:7).  Certainly the Lord would rather see full pews, helpful congregations, and generous Christians over full bank accounts.

Here is what Jesus said on this topic, “Beware, and be on your guard against every form of greed; for not even when one has an abundance does his life consist of his possessions” (Luke 12:15).  After telling a parable about the futility of a man who stored up a huge amount of possessions but was about to die (Luke 12:16-20), Christ said, “So is the man who stores up treasure for himself, and is not rich toward God” (Luke 12:21).

Let’s strive to be to be generous and giving with our money and not stingy penny pinchers.  When the Lord comes again or requires our life, will He find our money rotting in a bank account?  Hopefully He will see that we used our money to help others, thus storing our treasures up in heaven (Matthew 6:19-20).

Katherine Webb's Rise To Fame

Neal Pollard

Alabama was handling Notre Dame handily.  There was not much to notice on the field, so Brent Musburger observed the Tide signal-caller's girlfriend in the stands, saying, "You quarterbacks, you get all the good-looking women.  What a beautiful woman."  Kirk Herbstreit agreed, and the cameramen could not show her enough.  By now, many have heard that her Twitter followers jumped from 2,300 that morning to 96,000 by night's end.  She's a celebrity favorite, and she will appear in a reality show, perhaps on "Dancing With The Stars," and the ever-lascivious Sports Illustrated Swimsuit edition this year (via http://www.ibtimes.com).  I mention this certainly not to endorse a woman whose prior greatest claim to fame, besides her attachment to A.J. McCarron, being finishing sixth in the Miss Alabama contest.  She epitomizes our culture's obsession with sexuality and the body (Paul urges the godly woman to accentuate the inward, spiritual self in 1 Timothy 2:9-10).

My point in bringing her up is to show the power of the "right" word spoken at the "right" time.  Musburger had a national audience and he had something to talk about that was of interest to many of those listeners.  Certainly, Ms. Webb, as she assesses from a carnal standpoint, would consider herself a winner.

You and I have the most vital message the world could ever hear, the heart of which is the eternal salvation of the soul.  We may never have a forum like Mr. Musburger did on the night of the BCS National Championship, but we have daily opportunities to share this good news.  The Bible says, "Like apples of gold in settings of silver is a word spoken in right circumstances" (Prov. 25:11). A timely word is "delightful" (Prov. 15:23).  In the context of evangelism, Paul says, "Let your speech always be with grace, as though seasoned with salt, so that you will know how you should respond to each person" (Col. 4:6). Repeatedly, God conveys the power of the "right" word being spoken at the "right" time.

How can we do this?  Pray. Be discerning.  Open your eyes.  Have courage. Genuinely care about souls.  Keep Ephesians 4:15 dear.  

Consider that what you are after is infinitely more noble than any earthly ambition.  Do well in this and heaven's population will grow.  What is more, you add fruit to your own account and are in position to have the acclaim of heaven on the greatest day of notoriety and infamy that will ever be (Prov. 11:30; 1 Cor. 3:11ff).