The Reverend
1953 – 2015
Yesterday I learned that Pastor Ray passed from this life into eternity. I served in the same community as he did for four years and interacted with him on a several occasions. I am grateful for his service to his family, the Crisp County community, and to the great family of faith at Penia Baptist Church.
Continue reading “In Memory of Pastor Ray Burnette | A Shepherd has Fallen”
Last night a terrible act of violence was committed against the pastor and members of Emanuel AME Church in Charleston, South Carolina. There are no words to describe the dastardly nature of this crime. To enter a place of worship and without any apparent provocation proceed to killing defenseless congregants points to an evil that is beyond comprehension.
What make this tragedy even more infuriating than it already is, is how quickly the conversation moves away from the victims to the “issues.” I am not saying that there are not problems that need to be addressed. What bothers me is that rarely do events like this lead to a conversation about what is really wrong with our world. We keep putting band-aids on the problem, never really stopping to think about the source of the poison that seems to be seeping into the bloodstream of our nation.
Several years ago I attended a missions conference and one of the speakers gave this analogy regarding justice ministry. He described a man standing on the bank of a river. As he stood there he heard the cries for help of another man in the river. He could not fight the current to get to the riverbank. The first man threw a rope to the man and offered him a life line to safety, which was gladly taken. A short time later, another person came floating down the river, this one in the same predicament as the first. Again the rope was offered and again another life was saved. The man stood on the river bank and helped the people as they came. After several people had been rescued in this way, the good Samaritan decided to walk up-stream to see why all these people were falling into the river.
As a Christian and pastor I feel that too many within the Church have become satisfied with lending a hand and throwing a rope to help those who are floating down the river, but we have not done a good job of finding the source of the problem. Throwing a rope to help is an act of mercy for the individual helped. But, walking upstream on the river and fixing the reason people are falling into the river is an act of justice. We have to speak to the true issue if we are going to see lasting change.
Is racism a problem? Yes. Is human trafficking and slavery a problem? Yes. Are there social issues that have to be confronted and addressed? Yes. However, these are not the primary, rudimentary issues the human soul must be rescued from. What humanity needs to be rescued from is its sinful nature. We are all sinners and because of this sin we all are at risk of falling into the river of death. Sin is not just one problem, it is a billion problems described by one simple reality. We all are incapable of avoiding the hole that sends us floating down the river.
As I have read the news reports regarding the shooting of those nine souls I felt this overwhelming sense that the darkness of sin has been deepening in our world. There seems to be no bottom to the depths of human cruelty and depravity. I am saddened by all of this. And yet, I hold onto the hope that the Light of World still shines.
Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., had it right when he said, “Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that.” [Source] What light was he talking about? What love was he pointing to? It was the light of Christ in the Gospel of the Cross. This is the only light and the only love that will dispel the darkness that threatens to envelop our heart, mind and soul.
For the church the only transformative power give to us is the Gospel of Jesus. If we turn to anything else we jeopardize any chance we have been given to see the heart soften, the soul saved, and the mind renewed. Not everyone will agree with me but, that is alright. I have live according to what I believe.
Over the last several years I have seen a change in the world and the church. No one can deny that the current state of both is nothing like it was ten years ago. It really doesn’t matter what side of the aisle you live one or what you pet social issue is, the world has changed. Some people see it “moving in the right direction” others as not. The bottom line as that line has moved.
Some of the assumptions that at one time served as the basis for our decision-making have changed. And in some cases have even been erased, never to be found again. The world has truly changed.
I talk about the change because I find myself wondering if people truly understand the consequences of their actions. Have they considered the potential unintended consequences of their actions? Or do they not care. That is not something they want to think about because it is not right in front of them. I will admit that I can take a short-sighted view as well, but that is not a sign of progress, but of immaturity.
In the end, this is what I feel. I feel that we have become a nation of children rather than mature adults. We have become petulant rather than penitent. We have become whiners rather than winsome. We have become self-centered and selfish rather than sacrificial in our living.
Over the last several weeks I have been wondering how many people who claim to be Christians will be disappointed with God when they stand in his presence? How will we feel when we find out how wrong we were about some things? Will we still want to spend the rest of eternity with a God who is so disappointing?
Do you see what has happened in our world? We have become so confused about God’s character that we have made him the scapegoat. We say to ourselves and to others, “God wouldn’t do this or that,” never really understanding that what God decides to do or not do was never really for me to know. I feel that the Church has tried too hard to speak for God rather than allowing God to speak for himself. I am glad God wrote down what he wanted us to know.
My problem is deciding whether or not I am willing to conform my life and thoughts to what he said.
I may come to the end of my days, stand before God and be disappointed. But, I pray it is not because he failed me, but because I failed to live into and up to what He desired for my life.
As I was thinkin about the importance of Memorial Day I was jarred by the entrance of the phrase “the last full measure of devotion” into my mind. I couldn’t remember where it came from. As I did a simple search on google I was taken to President Abraham Lincoln’s address after the Battle of Gettysburg. In that short speech the President spoke to the sobering reality of war and its devistating effects. What was impressed upon my mind as I read the address was not the cost of conflict. This will always be a reason for arguments against war. No, what spoke to me was the fact that President Lincoln was calling upon those who remained to consider the reason for which so many had expended their lives.
You can read the full address here:
Four score and seven years ago our fathers brought forth on this continent, a new nation, conceived in Liberty, and dedicated to the proposition that all men are created equal.
Now we are engaged in a great civil war, testing whether that nation, or any nation so conceived and so dedicated, can long endure. We are met on a great battle-field of that war. We have come to dedicate a portion of that field, as a final resting place for those who here gave their lives that that nation might live. It is altogether fitting and proper that we should do this.
But, in a larger sense, we can not dedicate — we can not consecrate — we can not hallow — this ground. The brave men, living and dead, who struggled here, have consecrated it, far above our poor power to add or detract. The world will little note, nor long remember what we say here, but it can never forget what they did here. It is for us the living, rather, to be dedicated here to the unfinished work which they who fought here have thus far so nobly advanced. It is rather for us to be here dedicated to the great task remaining before us — that from these honored dead we take increased devotion to that cause for which they gave the last full measure of devotion — that we here highly resolve that these dead shall not have died in vain — that this nation, under God, shall have a new birth of freedom — and that government of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the earth.
Abraham Lincoln
November 19, 1863 [Source: Bliss Copy]
We who live in the wake of the sacrifice of others must devote ourselves to finishing the work that was started and protected by soldiers. It has been and will always be the responsibility of the soldier to foot the bill for the protection of our society. I hope and pray we never forget to honor those who have given “the last full measure of devotion” so that we would not have to ourselves.
I have heard this song before but, this time I found myself really listening. Have you ever done that? Something just hits you differently than it had before. When this happens to me, I realize that there is truth unheard that I am now ready to receive.
It can be so easy to forget who HE is and who that, in turn, makes us. I need as many reminders of who I am as I can get.
I hope you find it as much a blessing as I did.
May the surety of you character, O God, allow me to trust you in all things.
Came across this thought about the connection between prayer and the church’s alleged desires for revival. Could it be that revival tarries because the church does not really desire what it petitions God for?
“Many a church is praying for a revival that does not really desire a revival. They think they do, for to their minds a revival means an increase of membership, an increase of income, an increase of reputation among the churches; but if they knew what a real revival meant, what a searching of hearts on the part of professed Christians would be involved, what a radical transformation of individual, domestic and social life would be brought about, and many other things that would come to pass if the Spirit of God was poured out in reality and power; if all this were known, the real cry of the church would be: “O God, keep us from having a revival.” (emphasis not in original).
R. A. Torrey, How to Pray (Chicago; New York: Fleming H. Revell company, 1900), 45–46.
I would like to hear your reaction to this notion. I look forward to your thoughts.
On January 11, 2003, I walked down the aisle and married an amazing woman. At that moment I never imagined what the next twelve years would hold. I was having a hard enough time looking beyond the day, let alone imagining what the next dozen years would have looked like. I would imagine there are many couples who have been together over a decade who have experienced this. Continue reading “My marriage is a preteen… how did that happen?”
Every year we are encouraged, and maybe even motivated, to make some changes in the new year. There is something almost mystical and the process of preparing to finish one year of our lives and begin another one. Many of us make resolutions about areas of our lives we want to improve or change. I am no different. I am just wondering if I will follow through on those things I want to see happen.
There are some things I would like to change this next year. However, I am afraid of falling into the same old traps of these kinds of resolutions. If I am being honest, I am not really all that resolute when I write these wants and desires down. I almost feel obligated to do something because that is what you are supposed to do at the start of the year. Right?
It may be the word itself, I am not sure. How many people really know what it means to resolve to do something? And even though I feel pretty sure I do, these resolutions are more reminders of what is wrong with my life and what I failed to do in the past year. I do not want to make resolutions about this year about things I half-heartedly wanted to do anyway. I guess I am just tired of doing things because I can’t think of anything else to do.
That’s why I have decided to make New Year’s commitments. I want to do somethings this year that I know I can do and I want to do. This list of commitments is rather short, mainly because I am lazy, but more importantly because it is not about trying to impress anybody. I want to commit to these things because I feel strongly about doing them.
So, what are my commitments? I want to read more, write more, play more and love more.
I want to read more. There are some books that have been gathering dust for far too long on my shelves. I love books, but I am not the best at reading the books I get. I want to change that.
I want to write more. There are a few subjects that I really enjoy thinking about and would like to put them down. I may or may not blow anybody away with what I write, but it is a discipline I want to develop.
I want to play my guitar more. I pick up the guitar seven years ago. I am okay. I can play songs and figure somethings out, but I want to become more proficient. I am not trying to be famous, I just want to be better.
I want to love more. I have a great family. A beautiful wife who loves me and puts up with my craziness. And two great girls who love me better than I deserve. I want to be more intentional about making memories with them. I will have to enlist some help with these, but that is part of the journey.
What are some of your commitments for this year?
I came across this video the other day. I’m a fan of Leona Lewis’s voice and gave it a listen. I had never heard it before, but I was surprised at it’s power and message. I hope you enjoy.
