Pastor Ralph's Weekly Blog
Frankly My Dear....
August 21, 2011
Years ago my ninth grade class (1969) went to the Royal Theatre to watch a special presentation of Gone With The Wind for cultural education. My mother was unhappy,and warned me, that we would hear a curse word. You remember, as Rhett walks out on Scarlett, she says, where will I go, what will I do? He looks at her and replies, Frankly my dear, I don’t give a ______. We all gasped at the verbal expression of profanity. Imagine that. Now we ignore much worse.
People say this world is immoral. Criminals steal copper from air conditioners, steal manhole covers, and even steal entire a/c units from orphanages. The television is filled with violence, greed, anger, lust, and hate. Last week they found a body south of town with a gunshot to the head. In Mexico they regularly find beheaded bodies.
I get emails or face book notes telling how bad the world is, and how horrible some government program is. The world is immoral, they say.
I say the world is not immoral, but it is amoral. The world has no sense of right and wrong at all.
We have become accustomed to the amoral world. I remember leaving the theatre that afternoon, and how bright the sunlight was. I had to squint to adjust to the bright sun. Inside, the screen seemed brilliantly bright, but outside, it paled when compared to the sun.
The only way to avoid the trap of following the amoral world is to focus on the Son. The world will change its definitions of right and wrong. The world will get worse and worse. Only when we decide to follow a higher standard will our standards remain on moral grounds.
I’m not suggesting we walk out on the world, but that we make sure the world stays out of us. Avoid people and places that will make you want to walk out on God.
The world is condemned because of its sin. We can’t change it, but we can allow God to change us and those around us for the better.
Focus on the Son.
Pastor Ralph
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Close the Door!
August 14, 2011
Friday evening as I drove out of the garage, I thought the door was open. I must have hit the garage door switch, and as the door came down I hit it with the bed of the truck.
I just bumped it, so I thought I could get out, push it back into place, and be on my way.
The garage door was jammed against the house. I pushed it to where it belonged, but noticed it was a foot higher on one side than the other. So I did the only thing that made sense: I called Billy Brooks. Even at 9 pm on Friday evening, Billy still came over to help me.
Together we got it up and in place, but when we tried to close the door, it fell crooked again. So we got it up and left it that way.
Billy told me about Patrick Allen Doors, and I called them Saturday morning. They came over around noon and fixed and serviced the door in about twenty minutes. A cable had slipped off the pulley when I hit it.
Christy and I were both a bit nervous about sleeping with the garage door open, even though every door and window has security bars. To think that someone could walk right up to the kitchen window and look in to see our kitchen, dining area, and living room at any time, day or night, bothered me. It made me feel, well, exposed to the outside world.
We both feel better since it has been fixed, even though we were secure with the door up.
Don’t leave any area of your life open to the enemy. He will sneak in through any little opening you give him. Even if you are secure, don’t let him look right into your living room. He will get in and mess things up.
Stay secure. Stay close to Jesus, and far from the enemy. Shut the door on him and keep him out.
Pastor Ralph
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What's Your Point?
July 18, 2011
Making a Point? Is that important to you? If you exist to make points in the world, then you are most unhappy. Making points is what parents do when the kids misbehave, or what teachers do when they want to make a point.
We all have the teacher mindset at times. Times when we just have to let someone know what is right and what is wrong. If we can just tell them the truth, then they will understand, and will straighten up.
If only those politicians in Washington would listen, I could make the point and they would run the country the right way.
If only by lost son would listen to the point I’m making about God. That would tell them.
Making a point doesn’t make a difference. No one cares if you make the right point. No one ever changed sides because you made a great point.
Instead of making a point, try making a difference. Show love and kindness to your son. Show grace to the politicians. Show your children you love them.
Anyone can make a point. It takes a real Christian to make a difference in someone’s life.
Teachers are their best when they are making a difference in kids’ lives. When they teach. When they care. When they listen.
Make a difference. Care, listen, and love. Do something for someone else. Then you will make a big difference, which is the biggest point you can ever make.
Pastor Ralph
