Category: Feelings

Satan’s Diary- Fall Quarter 2023

Lisa M. PriceLeave a comment

In the last days scoffers will come, scoffing and following their own evil desires.They will say, “Where is this ‘coming’ he promised? Ever since our ancestors died, everything goes on as it has since the beginning of creation”- 2nd Peter 3:3-4 NIV

Dearest Diary,

As the kids like to say: “it’s been a minute” since I updated you of my progress, but to be perfectly honest, I haven’t been this busy in two millennia.

Seriously. 

Life has never been more productive for me on this silly, stupid, little planet. Most of the human race has lost their moral compass and their minds, in that order. I, for one, could not be more pleased. 

My mission is to lead people as far from God and abundant life as possible. I do this by assisting humans in creating a hell for themselves through their own stupid, sinful choices. Then I find fun and creative ways to turn them away from God so they will never be forgiven and spend eternity in actual hell.

 Business is booming! BOOMING!

Thanks to parents who refuse to correct their children or tell them “no” the whole planet is swarming with creatures’ psychologists have dubbed narcissists.  Narcissists are my kind of people. Narcissist is really just a fancy-Nancy word for a person who loves themselves with wild abandon. A narcissist will place their own ambitions and pleasures above everyone and everything. Narcissists come in all shapes and sizes but the one thing they all have in common is they worship themselves as an idol. 

It’s lovely really. 

It has become fashionable among humans to be entirely self-focused and proud of their selfishness. Psychologists are quick to assure folks that selfishness is good for one’s mental health!  One rather beautiful way this plays itself out is in an obsession with the toxicity of others. If one of those stupid little demi-gods feels someone is toxic then they are OUT. It does not matter who it is. It could be a life-long friend, a parent, an acquaintance, or even their own child. If a person is categorized as toxic, for any reason, they are gone. I have never seen anything like it. It’s beautiful. The thing I love most is “toxicity” is one-hundred-percent subjective. A person can be labeled “toxic” for literally any reason. Disagree over politics: toxic! Invite an adult child to one too many family events: toxic! Argue with me over anything, no matter how stupid or trivial: toxic! Try too hard to be helpful: toxic! Behave in a way I decide is controlling: toxic! Don’t ask my opinion about something: toxic! Tell me “no”: TOXIC! Choose a bad restaurant: toxic! Dislike my favorite stuff: toxic! Do something culturally inappropriate, even accidentally: toxic! Don’t do exactly what I tell you to do: toxic! Make a judgment about sexuality or any other moral issue: toxic! 

LOVE IT! 

This crazy emphasis on toxicity has caused people to ditch anyone who does not affirm every single choice they make or anyone who does not make them happy all the time. After all, when you are your own little idol you shouldn’t have to put up with anything or anyone you do not really love.  This obsession with cutting people out effectively prevents individuals from growing emotionally. Because they never participate in relationships that stretch them or require them to give more than they take. 

Adults remain emotional children indefinitely! 

They never have to work anything out or compromise in any way. So BEAUTIFUL! They just go “low contact” or “no contact” and that’s the end of that relationship! Even Christians do this! It’s not at all unusual for “Christians” to cut their parents or friends or pastor out of their lives simply for not doing or saying exactly what they want. It’s like these “Christians” have completely forgotten the Bible tells them to: 

Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you.

I KNOW THE BIBLE BETTER THAN THEY DO!  

SO GOOD!

Personal-autonomy run amok has led to the most senseless public policies imaginable. Governments allow very young children to undergo barbaric medical procedures that mutilate their sex organs and destroy their fertility because the little tikes believe they may be the opposite gender. Imagine that!  Kids some no older than four or five being allowed to mutilate their perfectly healthy bodies over something as fleeting as a feeling? It’s beautiful. I suspect transgenderism will be the gift that keeps on giving for me. Those kids will either grow up entirely without hope and turn to drugs or alcohol to cope or they will grow up angry at the idiots who allowed their fertility to be stolen from them. Maybe both? Who knows! 

There’s more!

Everyone is encouraged to do what feels good and judgment has become the unpardonable sin. As a result, drugs have infested the planet.  I simply adore drug use. It’s just so dang degrading. The addicts live out their lives like miserable little zombies. They spend their time getting high, until they overdose, then someone comes along and revives them with Narcan. Then the whole wretched process starts all over again. Like the movie Groundhog Day with degradation and near-death experiences!  

 So GOOD!

The worship of self is the most spiritually dangerous thing in the world and it’s the most prevalent form of religious expression today! 

LOVE.  

Christians could help by choosing to model Christ-like selflessness (insert gagging sounds here). Though, I have observed a good many of them of them are just as caught up in self-absorption as their unsaved counterparts. Adult Christians cut their parents out of their lives almost as often as unsaved adult children. Friendships end over trivial matters all the time. Thankfully, many pastors have become more like influencers than spiritual leaders or moral guides. Many go out of their way to avoid being offense. It’s beautiful! After all, the gospel is inherently offensive. The one prerequisite of salvation is sinners must admit their sin and their own inherent goodness. It’s why those losers need Jesus.  

Any-hoo I digress. 

Time is short. I must be going.  There are some humans I simply must get focused on themselves and their feelings. Little do those fools know: anytime they worship themselves they give ME glory! 

Regards,

Satan

The Gateway Sin that Ruins Even the Best People-

Lisa M. Price1 Comment

Let us behave decently, as in the daytime, not in carousing and drunkenness, not in sexual immorality and debauchery, not in dissension and jealousy- Romans 13:13 NIV 

Recently, I had coffee with a good friend. After some initial chit-chat I asked how things were going at her church. Tears immediately sprang to her eyes as she told me about a situation she’s encountered over the course of the last few months.  

Her church has a new pastor she likes very much. His sermons are excellent and all-in-all she feels he is taking the church in a solid direction. The problem is with his wife. She acts as the co-pastor of the church. My friend has zero problem with her role and initially really liked the woman, she’s bright, funny and my friend said she appears to really love Jesus. 

The problem started a couple of months back. My friend, who has been involved in a leadership capacity at the church for years was suddenly removed from groups and boards she had previously led. This was done without so much as a word to her or an explanation as to why. Furthermore, the pastor’s wife had made some public comments that were subtly demeaning and even blatantly rude to and about my friend. My friend has refused to discuss the issue with anyone at her church but she said that people were starting to ask what was going on.   

Sigh.  

My friend is content with taking a lesser role at her church. She understands sometimes new leaders take ministries in a different direction. However, she didn’t expect to be completely dismissed in such a hurtful manner. As her story unfolded it became clear, my friend is likely the victim of a behavior as old as humanity that has become all-too common in church, especially in church leadership: jealousy.   

It has not escaped my observation that most Christians tend to see certain sins as more ethically acceptable than others. Such is the case with jealousy.  Christians see jealousy as a problem, but not in the same way homicide or slander or lying are a problem. Christians typically place jealousy in the same category as telling someone their hair looks nice when it doesn’t. It’s seen as more of a personal shortcoming than a sin.  

The New Testament does not treat jealousy as a personal fault or a spiritual misdemeanor. The apostle Paul saw fit to place jealousy in the same class as witchcraft, hatred, selfish ambition, sexual immorality and debauchery (Romans 13:12-13, Galatians 5:19-21).  At best, the New Testament presents jealousy as an obvious indication of worldliness and spiritual immaturity (1st Corinthians 13:3, James 4:1-3). At worst it’s presented as a fast track to spiritual ruin. 

 Yikes.  

Jealousy is a gateway sin. It naturally opens the door to feeling more comfortable with other, much bigger, much more serious sins. If jealousy is allowed to run wild it can (and usually does) lead to even worse sins like slander, lying and even homicide (Genesis 4:1-7, Genesis 37:1-36, 1st Kings 21:1-14, 1st Samuel 18:1-16, Acts 5:12-18, Acts 17:4-6).

 Jealousy manifests itself in two ways. Sometimes jealousy is the result of wanting something a person feels they lack (a talent, characteristic, possession, opportunity, platform or relationship). Other times it’s the result of desiring to be the only really important person in a friend group, organization or church. At the root of jealousy there is always a spirit of self-promotion, craving for more of something (greed) and covetousness. The writer of Proverbs tells us that anger and rage are intimidating but jealousy is the real destroyer of people and relationships (Proverbs 24:7).  

In an age of social media, self-promotion, celebrity Christians and “Christian influencers” believers, especially believers in leadership positions (paid or volunteer) must be on guard against jealousy. Even good, godly people can become inflamed with jealousy. It is not unusual for jealousy to make its way into the church through a spirit of competition that disguises itself as a desire to reach the lost, mentor people or disciple others.  Jealousy is the ugly offspring of pride. It often begins with the belief that “I’m irreplaceable” or “no one can do X as well as me”. It ultimately manifests itself in a poverty mindset that leads to territorial thinking about things Christians should never be territorial about like ministry opportunities, leadership roles and mentoring opportunities. At the root of jealousy is the sin of unbelief. Jealous people do not believe there is ever enough of anything to go around.

 Spiritually speaking, we live in the grimmest of times (2nd Timothy 3:1-5, Matthew 24). People are deconstructing their faith in droves, violence is the new normal and out-and-out evil is thought to be virtuous in our culture.  

There is no room for jealousy among Christians in such times. 

 It is up to us to deal with jealousy aggressively. Jealousy never goes away on its own. We strangle feelings of jealousy with gratitude and thankfulness (Colossians 3:15, Colossians 4:2, Ephesians 5:3-5, Hebrews 12:28). The more intentional we are about being grateful for what we have the less likely we are to become envious of what other people have or are doing. Community kills jealousy.  It is much harder to be jealous when you know someone’s story and are in community with them. Praying regularly for people we feel jealous of is another way to chase away feelings of jealously or greed.   

And finally.  

There are some who have defended jealousy because God describes Himself as a jealous God (Exodus 20:5, Deuteronomy 4:24, Nahum 1:2). The difference between human jealousy and God’s jealousy is that God’ jealousy is never selfishly motivated. It’s never about Him. He is jealous out of concern for our well-being. Whereas human jealously wants what it wants only for its own glorification.  

My heart still breaks for my sweet friend. Seeing the hurt and pain caused by a jealous spirit is painful. However, the person I worry about most is the one who’s doing the hurting.          

How to Stop Bitterness Before it Ruins Your Life-

Lisa M. PriceLeave a comment

Relieve the troubles of my heart and free me from my anguish- Psalm 25:17 NIV 

Bitterness. 

It’s a big problem (Hebrews 12:15, Ephesians 4:31, Acts 8:23). It’s an even bigger temptation.  

Life in a chaotic, sin-sick world just kind of invites the sin of bitterness.

Anyone who lives long enough we will be treated badly by someone for absolutely no reason at all. At some point, the people we thought were trustworthy will turn out to be anything but. Bad things happen to people who least deserve it and most of us will lose someone we love long before we feel its time for them to go. If we experience enough loss, hurt, pain and/or betrayal, before long, bitterness becomes rooted in our hearts and our souls begin to suffer. 

Sigh.  

The book of Hebrews warns against bitter roots because bitterness distorts God’s image within us. The Bible teaches the defiling that comes as a result of bitterness goes on to cause harm to those in our sphere of influence (Hebrews 12:15). The writer of Hebrews gives the WHY of avoiding bitterness but says nothing about the HOW of staying free of bitterness.  

David shows us the how.  

If there is anyone in all of the Bible who had a whole horde of one-hundred-percent legit reasons to become super bitter and didn’t, it was David. David was marginalized by his Father (1st Samuel 16:1-11) and despised by his brothers (1st Samuel 17:28-29).  His first wife turned out to be horrible (1st Chronicles 29).  Saul hunted him down like an animal and attempted to murder him out of simple jealousy (1st Samuel 17-31). On top of all that it took a good, solid fifteen years for God to fulfill the promise He made that David would be king (1st Samuel 16:1-13). Rather than allowing the disappointment, confusion and betrayal he experienced to turn him into a bitter person, David instead, chose to become a better version of himself at every turn. 

The life of David teaches us five things about avoiding bitter roots: 

Always tell God how you feel-  

Even a cursory reading of David’s psalms reveals an outrageous level of honesty on his part. David told God in no uncertain terms how much he loathed his enemies (Psalm 140:1-5). He frequently asked God to avenge the injustices done to him (Psalm 35:11-17, Psalm 109:6-15). He reminded God all the time that it was His job is to judge the wicked and he wasn’t above telling God He needed to get on it (Psalm 5:3-6). He also openly accused God of deliberately hiding from him (Psalm 10:1, Psalm 13:1).  In all this David models a healthy way for Christians to handle potentially destructive feelings. He didn’t attempt to crush his feelings or attempt to hide them. He didn’t pretend like he was somehow above having a bad day or going dark.  Instead He worked through every negative, ugly feeling he had with God until he got to the point he could genuinely praise God for His goodness (Psalm 10, Psalm 35, Psalm 59, Psalm 140, Psalm 109). When we take our fears, frustrations and disappointments to God He does not turn away from us, nor does He judge us for having feelings, even really, really negative feelings. Instead He comforts us and empowers us to process through our feelings in a way that prevents bitter roots.  

 It’s okay to feel but feelings should never run the show- 

It could be argued that David was very vocal about his most negative feelings. However, he never let those feelings drive the bus. David chose to what was right and pleasing to God even when he had been legitimately wronged and had good reason to seek revenge (1st Samuel 18:9-11, 1st Samuel 19:1-9, 1st Samuel 24, 1st Samuel 26). David understood that revenge does not bring us relief from our pain. It only compounds it (Leviticus 19:18, Romans 12:19).

 Listen to those who have your best interests at heart- 

In 1st Samuel twenty-five David was insulted in a big way by a horrible man named Nabal (1st Samuel 25:1-11). David spent some time reflecting on the situation and before long became angry and bitter towards Nabal (1stSamuel 25:12-13). He headed back to Nabal’s house to exact revenge. On his way there, David met Nabal’s wife Abigail and she gently but firmly reminded David he was better and God had more for Him than petty revenge (1st Samuel 25:23-31). David immediately saw the wisdom in her rebuke. He reversed course immediately and God blessed him for it (1st Samuel 25:32-35). God often brings a voice of reason into our most bitter moments. It is wisdom to heed those voices. 

 Learn to praise God in the dark- 

David understood one danger of bitterness is that it can easily turn our hearts against God. If we allow bitterness to run its course we will begin to see God as the cause of our pain rather than the source of our comfort. Making the effort to find the good and then praise God for it acts as a protective shield against bitterness (Psalm 23:4, Psalm 71:20-22, Isaiah 49:13).  

Never hold a grudge- 

No one in all the Bible (except Jesus) was more willing to forgive than David (Matthew 6:15, Colossians 3:13). His willingness to let go of grudges enabled him to avoid the sin of bitterness and feel compassion and even love those who had done him wrong. David’s willingness to forgive is a key reason He was called a man after God’s own heart. 

 I have done my time in the pit of bitterness. 

 I have also (by the grace) of God escaped bitterness in situations that by all rights had every reason to make me a bitter angry jerk.  Through it all I have learned it is way easier to prevent bitterness than to pull oneself out of it.    

Just say “NO” to Woke Silliness Regarding Words-

Lisa M. PriceLeave a comment

Warn them before God against quarreling about words; it is of no value, and only ruins those who listen– 2nd Timothy 2:14b NIV 

Lately, I have not felt like myself and I am not a fan of not feeling like myself.

After one especially gloomy day it occurred to me that getting mad about something might pull me out of my funk. I don’t enjoy getting worked-up over stupid stuff for no good reason.  However, I have found that genuine moral outrage has a way of taking my mind off of my feelings and helping me get some perspective about what really matters. 

Anyway.  

Sometimes God takes His sweet time responding to my requests. Other times I get what I want when I want it.  This was one of those times. The very next day, on Facebook I came across a story about a memorial at Wheaten College.  

The memorial honors the death of Wheaton graduate Jim Elliot and four of his missionary colleagues. The men were murdered while attempting to evangelize the Huaorani people of Ecuador in 1956.   The wording on the memorial has been deemed troublesome and will be changed because it uses the word “savage” to describe the Auca tribesmen who brutally murdered Jim Elliot and his colleagues. 

So, (here comes the genuine moral outrage part)

What the heck? Seriously.

Changing the wording of the memorial feels like a brazen attempt to reframe and rewrite someone else’s story. 

 Who are we to think this is okay? 

Is it really our place to reword someone else’s experience, especially when they are no longer around to weigh in on the situation? What makes this generation of Christians righteous enough, insightful or wise enough to get to decide how past generations tell the stories of THEIR life experiences?  Are we really that arrogant and condescending? 

Furthermore. 

The wording of the plaque was written with the consent of Jim Elliot’s wife and the families of the other martyred missionaries. They had zero problem with the words chosen. It should also be noted that the tribesmen and women who later converted to Christianity after murdering the other missionaries described their own behavior as unacceptable and yes, savage. It was guilt over their sin that eventually led many in the tribe to repent and embrace Jesus as Lord. 

It’s true that this is a vastly different time than when the memorial was created. It’s also true words like savage carry a lot of baggage and can be dehumanizing when used thoughtlessly.  No one with any sensitivity would use the word savage to describe a people group in the year 2021.

However.

It’s also true many modern Christians feel the church has gotten missions work wrong for the last two thousand years. Those folks feel it is our responsibility to right the wrongs past Christians committed. Is it really though? Are we really clever enough or righteous enough to correctly judge the intentions and actions of past generations of Christians? Wouldn’t it be wiser for us to worry about ourselves for a change? Perhaps it would be spiritually safer to leave the job of judging past generations up to God and let Him decide who got it right and who got it wrong? 

 I’m just spit-balling here. 

ALL people are made in the image of God. Dehumanizing other people is ALWAYS wrong. Nonetheless, some actions are wrong, evil and yes, even savage. It’s okay to call out evil and savagery when we see it.  There is simply no room for woke idiocy in the Church when God Himself describes the human heart as “wicked” and so “corrupt” that no one but Him can even come close to understanding it. Telling the truth is not the same as dehumanizing someone. Being real about who we are and what we’ve done is the only way to bring about repentance, salvation, personal healing and restoration of relationships.  Furthermore, telling the hard truth about the past is the only way to prevent ugly events from being repeated. 

 The bigger issue at play here is where woke ideas concerning words will eventually lead us. Rewriting a memorial some might judge offensive might not feel like a big deal. However, it sets a precedence. Non-Christians have been rewriting history and censoring what they don’t like for some time now.  Christians would do well to remember that writing and art from the past chronicles history and helps us understand the feelings and experiences of those who lived before us. Literature and art also helps us to understand and even define what it means to be human. If we lose or revise those works we will remove some opportunity for offense. However, we also lose a chunk of our history and even some vital pieces of our humanity in the process.  Most concerning to me is what will happen to the Bible if Christians decide to start taking their cues on this issue from the world. It could very well be next in line for some serious “rephrasing”.  

The Bible was intended to offend (John 6:60-62, Matthew 11:6) 

The Spiritual Connection Between Being a Control Freak and Anxiety-

Lisa M. Price1 Comment

My days have passed, my plans are shattered. Yet the desires of my heart turn night into day; in the face of the darkness light is near- Job 17:9-10

I am a recovering control freak.

 Some of my issues with control are likely due to the personality I was born with. According to my Mother my first word was “no” and my first complete sentence was: “I will do it myself”. I am no expert in the field of child psychology, but I’m pretty sure my first attempts to verbally communicate with the world indicateI was born with a strong desire to be in complete control of just about everything from day one (Psalm 51:5).

Sigh.

 Age and experience eventually made me philosophical when it comes to the issue of control. In my thirties (I’m a slow learner) I realized control is an illusion.  One can have all the resources in the world, make the very best choices in every area of life and get all their ducks in a nice neat little row. Then a single storm can come along, wipe away all the good choices and demolish all the poor little ducks in the course of a single hour (Job 1:1-22).

However.

 This past week was such a dumpster-fire that I wanted to throw all the spiritual and philosophical lessons I have learned about life, control and trusting God out the window. I was seriously tempted to cross out the recovering in the first sentence of this blog and boldly own my desire to control the whole stupid world.

 Just a few things outside my power to control that I would dearly love to control include politics,  economics and the downward spiral of our society. Those “global” issues aside I am also wrestling with some serious family problems that will probably never be completely resolved in this life.

 Sigh.   

 Just as I was preparing to jump into control-freak mode the Holy Spirit gently reminded me there are wiser and more productive ways to deal with life. Wisdom concerning this issue begins with recognizing and owning the following four truths:

 There are things in life that cannot be fixed or even managed-

 Because life is better and easier now than at any other time in human history, many people believe there should be a solution to every problem, or an easy button that will magically empower us to manage all of life’s problems without any stress or struggle. There’s not.  Unfortunately, Christians and non-Christians alike encounter all sorts of things in life that cannot be managed or fixed, like stupidity and evil. When we encounter those things, we must walk by faith and trust God to use stupid and evil things for His purposes and our growth (Hebrews 11:1-2, Romans 8:28)

 Just because we can control something doesn’t mean we should-

 Anytime I have attempted to control another human being or the outcome of a situation without clear direction from God I have made a flaming-hot mess out of that situation. Seriously. Every. Single. Time.  It’s important to remember that when we attempt to control things we have no business controlling we are essentially declaring with our actions that we do not really believe God is good or that He should be sovereign over people or the outcome of situations. I am not advocating  Christians take on a “what will be will be” attitude towards life. I do believe there plenty of situations in life where we should proactively deal with issues but never without some serious prayer and God’s clear direction (Psalm 27:14, Acts 1).  

 The only person you can really control is yourself-

 Okay, so this is fairly basic but it’s worth repeating: there is very little in life we can control. That said, everyone can control themselves, no matter what else is going on. Having self-control when everything and everyone around us is out of control is the key to learning, growing and being a light for Jesus in out of control situations  (Proverbs 16:32, Galatians 5:22-24, Titus 1:7-9, Titus 2:11-12). 

Control breeds anxiety-

 Admittedly, this point is full of paradoxes but it’s true. Taking control of situations that feel out of control ought to give us peace and squash any anxiety we have. However, control freaks, especially Christian control freaks are ALWAYS, without fail, the most angsty, nervous, unhappy people on the planet.  This is because Jesus followers are commanded to trust God (Psalm 37:4-6, Psalm 32:10, Psalm 139:23-24, Proverbs 3:5-6) and taking control of people and situations is the antithesis of trust.  God is a respecter of our free will. When we choose to take control of anything other than ourselves God takes His hand off the wheel (metaphorically speaking) and lets us have our way. The anxiety we feel when we are the one “in complete control” is a direct result of spiritual disobedience and our foolhardy attempts to do something we are literally incapable of doing. Letting go of the illusion we have control and really and truly trusting in God’s wisdom and sovereignty is the key to getting and staying free from anxiety.

 Prayer is the answer to the conundrum of control. It just is. 

Every single time we pray about an issue we do two things. First, we loudly declare that we NEED wisdom (James 1:5).  Prayer is admitting to ourselves and God that we don’t know everything there is to know and that we cannot make life work with our own idiotic efforts to control events and people. Secondly, we go directly to the source of wisdom, knowledge and power to get the help we need to manage life (Proverbs 1:7, Proverbs 2:6, Proverbs 3:19).

 This makes way more sense than the other alternatives.

The Idol of Nice-

Lisa M. Price1 Comment

Dear children, keep yourselves from idols~ 1stJohn 5:21 NIV

“Being nice” is an idol our culture worships with wild abandon. 

Before you tag out to write me a long comment detailing the countless ways people have become rude, vulgar and belligerent, please read on. 

I am not crazy.  

It is true that there are many people in our culture who become aggressively rude, foulmouthed and abusive at the tiniest provocation. However, if you look carefully at the target of their aggression you will see their hostility is nearly always directed at people who they categorize as hateful, rude or disrespectful: anyone deemed “not nice”.

It is never acceptable to be “not nice” to anyone anymore. Unless, of course the person in question has been determined to be “not nice”. Once the judgment of “not nice” has been established, literally anything goes. It is then acceptable to unleash untold hell on anyone judged by anyone to be “not nice”.  

Many Christian leaders blame conservative Christian’s lack of niceness rather than the churches lack of holiness or the average Christian’s reluctance to share the gospel for the decline of Christianity in America.  It does not matter whether or not what a conservative is saying is demonstrably true. If it’s not “nice” it’s not okay to say.

Sigh. 

  Despite laws safeguarding free speech there is an influential and powerful movement determined to shut down any and all speech thought to be “not nice”.  Racist, sexist and homophobic speech has been deemed the least “nice” speech because that sort of speech is categorically awful.  Clever individuals have recognized that the most efficient way to silence speech they don’t like and to be given the go ahead to be “not nice” to the person speaking is to call out their speech as something racist, sexist and/or homophobic (whether it is or not). Universities routinely suppress the speech of students who hold views considered “not nice”. These same schools regularly disinvite speakers students feel are “not nice”. Professors have actually been fired from jobs for openly sharing views decreed “not nice”.

There’s more:

Many cities, especially those on the coasts have prohibited the use of gender specific pronouns in their city codes because it is “not nice” to call someone a pronoun they don’t “identify” with. The powers that be have determined it is categorically “not nice” to offend a trans person or a woman or anyone who might possibly be offended so now a manhole cover will be called a “maintenance hole” and manpower will be termed “human effort” and brothers and sisters will now be called “siblings”. 

Sigh. 

The entire west coast is being overrun over by homeless people. Sections of once beautiful cities are no longer fit to live in. Nothing is being done to correct this problem or help the homeless because it has been determined by leadership in those cities that it is “not nice” to make judgments about the lifestyle choices of others. Medical professionals will admit in their more vulnerable moments they are reluctant to tell patients they are overweight or that their lifestyle choices are going to kill them because they do not want to be perceived as “not nice” or “judgmental”. 

The idol of nice has slipped into the church as well and it’s hurting the whole culture.  For years now, churches, even evangelical churches have systematically softened language around sin. Many churches have stopped addressing topics—no matter how biblical those topics might be— because someone— somewhere might possibly feel those topics are “not nice”. The teachings of Calvinism have made serious inroads in recent years, even in denominations that are not traditionally Calvinistic. I suspect one of the reasons Calvinism has become popular is because Calvinism teaches Christians they never have evangelize unbelievers. Calvinists believe it is the sole responsibility of the Holy Spirit to reach unbelievers and He does not want or need our help. If these strategies were effective I would support them, but they are not. Church attendance has plummeted and authentic conversions have become quite rare. The vast majority of church growth in recent decades has been what experts call “transfer growth” or Christians simply transferring from one church or denomination to another church or denomination. We are seeing these developments partly because the church has chosen to worship at the altar of the idol of “nice”.

Sigh.

Idols must be dealt with decisively and this one is no different (1st John 5:21). it is imperative Christians lead the way and tell people the truth about life, death and eternity. Christians should never be mean, no one has ever been won to team Jesus through cruelty or aggression (Ephesians 4:32) That said, we must balance “niceness” with truthfulness in a culture that is literally dying before our very eyes (Ephesians 4:15, Ephesians 4:25). It is the ultimate in fiddling while Rome burns to worry more about being labeled “not nice” than to worry about the souls of people or the future of our civilization.  

I Cast One Vote for A Little Less Civilization-

Lisa M. Price1 Comment

Stop fooling yourselves. If you count yourself above average in intelligence, as judged by this world’s standards, you had better put this all aside and be a fool rather than let it hold you back from the true wisdom from above- 1stCorinthians 3:18 TLB 

I am an unapologetic fan of the refinements a civilized society provides. 

The refinements of civilization include (but are not limited to) gems such as indoor plumbing, civil rights, ready-to-wear clothing, paved roads, and an objective system of justice. Nor, should we forget about electricity, education for all people even poor people, toilet paper, human rights and around the clock delivery services.  

Synonyms for the word civilized include: educated, sophisticated, polite, enlightened and improved. No normal person would argue against education, politeness, enlightenment, improvement and toilet paper.

Seriously.  

This week my views were challenged. The challenge ensued as I was listening to a podcast about biological boys who identify as girls competing in girls’ sports. The host (Eric Metaxes) said in passing that he was afraid we have become so civilized as a society concerning this issue that we have essentially lost our good sense and ability to distinguish fantasy from reality.

As a lover of civilization I found his choice of words offensive. It felt absurd to intimate that a society could become too advanced, too enlightened, too polite and too sophisticated. But then I found some definitions for the word civilization. One caught my attention:   

The act or process of civilizing, as by bringing out of a savage, uneducated, or unrefined state. 

Okay, so, it occurred to me that one trait of savage, uneducated and unrefined people is that they do not fear rejecting ideas that appear idiotic and inane. Because they are unsophisticated and savage they laugh, mock and scoff at ideas that make no sense. Savages have not been trained to look deeper than the obvious so they make their judgments based on the obvious and are unafraid to state the obvious. 

 Conversely, educated, enlightened and polite people have been taught to believe that open-mindedness is the highest value humans can attain to. Therefore, the obvious answer is rarely the correct answer, it just appears to be correct to unsophisticated savages who do not know any better. Educators reinforce this mindset by reminding students frequently that people once believed that the earth was flat because it appears to flat and that for centuries no one believed disease was spread by germs because no one could see germs. 

Differences over what exactly makes an individual a male or a female is one of the clearest illustrations of this phenomenon. To an “uncivilized” person, it is evident that a man who SAYS he is a woman is not actually a woman.  The man in question might wish he was a woman or enjoy pretending he is a woman. It’s even possible he might think he has female feelings.  An “uncivilized” person would say that feelings cannot alter reality. A person is what their DNA and private parts say they are. Period. An “uncivilized” person would also say that allowing a man who says he is woman to play sports against actual women or offering reproductive healthcare to people who were not born with actual uterus’s is just a whole lot of crazy talk.

That’s not all. 

There are members of an “anti-fascist” organization committing real acts of physical violence against people who SAY things the “anti-fascists” find aggressive. The “anti-fascists” feel very strongly that hurtful words and hostile speech are actually forms of violence, every bit as painful as being kicked in the crotch. Therefore, the “anti-fascists” feel it is perfectly rational to kick people in the crotch, punch people in the face and throw objects at anyone who they feel is verbally aggressive. A sophisticated person would say that if the “anti-fascists” FEEL words are every bit as violent as actions, who are we to argue with them? Perhaps for those soft-hearted, little cupcakes getting called a mean name or having their worldview questioned is just as hurtful as say, being punched repeatedly in the face. 

There’s more.

 A baby is only a baby if the woman pregnant with the baby wants it to be a baby. If a woman does not want the baby to be a baby, it magically transforms into a soulless blob of tissue. The courts have decided it is not acceptable to ask a perfectly acceptable question on the census form because some feel the MOTIVES for asking the question might be dubious. If one person feels another person said something racist then the person is a racist. If one pampered football player feels a symbol means something sinister then the symbol is suddenly sinister.  

Sigh.

Somewhere, somehow the “civilized” among us decided that feelings are more important than science, truth, or the actual experiences of millions of people. When feelings are king even the most “civilized” among us will nod their heads at pure madness simply because it is uncivilized and impolite to do anything else.

Maybe it’s time to be a little less “civilized” and lot more sensible.  

Six Things-

Lisa M. Price5 Comments

For the ear tests words, as the palate tastes food. Let us choose justice for ourselves;
let us know among ourselves what is good- Job 34:2-3 NKJV

I had an unusual problem this week. I found myself totally at a loss for a decent blog topic. 

Typically, blog topics just kind of come to me. But, for some reason it just didn’t happen this week.  Typically, by Tuesday afternoon I have an idea locked down and ready to go but for some reason I literally had nothing this week. 

Zero. Zilch. Nada.

 So, I did this thing I do on the rare occasions I find myself utterly desperate for thought-provoking writing material. I spent a couple of hours one-night binge-watching some of the popular cable news channels (FOX, CNN, MSNBC). I have found in the past that there is almost always enough crazy stuff being reported on the news to generate at least a blog post or two. 

It worked. 

I learned a lot that night, most of it was more than a bit maddening. I also ended-up with a serious glut of excess material. It turns out there is quite a lot of super outrageous stuff going on in the world.  I do not believe Christians should run or hide from the ugliness and sin in our world. Christians are called to fight darkness rather than flee from it. Because I believe that I decided to share (most) of what I learned. My hope is that you will spend some time in prayer over these issues and looking for ways to engage with our sin-sick world.

The sex industry is being normalized for teens by adults who are smart enough to know better- 

A popular periodical marketed to girls between the ages of 12 and 17 published an article about the importance of destigmatizing and normalizing “sex work” (AKA prostitution). The article was entitled “Sex Work is Real Work”. For the record, no one has to convince me that sex workis real work. Sex work is without a doubt the most grueling, dreadful, dehumanizing, horrific work there is. What I don’t understand is why a magizine that presents itself as pro-girl and pro-woman would write an article that glamourizes the job and might possibly inspire young women to consider a vocation that degrades, marginalizes and damages women solely for the sexual gratification of men. Wasn’t that the sort of thing feminism was supposed to end? 

Drug use is trendy once again-

Recreational drug use became popular in the 1960’s and use rose steadily throughout the 1980’s and 1990’s. Then drug use plummeted in the early years of the 21stcentury.  For the first time since the 1980’s drug use is rising among 8th, 10thand 12thgraders. When questioned about drug use teens admit that this is due almost entirely to decriminalization and legalization efforts on the state level. Legalization and decriminalization have removed fears of addiction and being saddled with a criminal record. As a result, for the first time in decades teens view drug use as a potential positive rather than an overwhelmingly negative experience. This means that millions more teenagers are voluntarily damaging their brains before they really even get an opportunity to use them.  

City and State leaders are refusing to be honest about homelessness- 

Homelessness is booming (especially in the West). Leaders in cities where homelessness has become an issue refuse to blame the thing those who work with the homeless say is the number one cause of homelessness: drug use. Perhaps it’s because those states are beginning to view taxing drug use as a potential money maker and they don’t want to admit that there is a cost to legalizing drugs and encouraging drug use. 

 HBO has a new program for teens- 

In its first season Euphoriahas showcased hardcore drug use, full frontal nudity, masturbation, endless expressions of nihilism and transgender teenagers having sex with adults. Whoo-hoo. Thanks HBO, we didn’t have nearly enough filth on T.V. 

A small minority of parents are cashing in on their children’s gender confusion-

Apparently, there are parents who dress their kids up as the opposite gender and parading them around for money. I literally have no words and I always have words. Words are my thing. We obviously need revival if these parents aren’t in jail for this.

Powerful words are being abused- 

This is nothing new.  Hardly a week goes by when a lawmaker or newscaster doesn’t call someone a NAZI or refer to the holocaust in an inappropriate manner. But this week Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez took it to a new level when she claimed that immigrants who voluntarily turned themselves in at the border hoping to become citizens are being forced to live in “concentration camps”. Sigh.   

A tiny minority is redefining morality-

A particular senator who is hoping to become the President stated emphatically this past week that taking a pro-life position is so outside the mainstream that pro-life people shouldn’t be judges. What? Who gave this woman the “right” to redefine what the mainstream is or isn’t?  

Okay, so, now you have a prayer list for the week. Let’s get to it. 

Five Things every Christian Ought to Think About Everyday-

Lisa M. Price1 Comment

Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable—if anything is excellent or praiseworthy—think about such things~ Philippians 4:8 NIV

 I have been “cursed” with a temperament that tends to overthink just about everything. I also veer towards thinking a lot about a lot of different issues. There is literally no end to the number of random thoughts and ideas that flit through my head in a given day. Regrettably, I do not have a mind like a steel trap. As a result, most of those thoughts and ideas depart as quickly as they appear.

All that being said, occasionally someone will say something that will cause a random thought to take root and I will spend an inordinate amount of time thinking about a subject and that subject makes its way into a blog post. 

Such was the case this past week. 

 We have teenager in our home who states at least six times a day that she “just didn’t think” about something. The things the girl does not think about are things most people think about all the time without even realizing they are thinking about them. Her curiously vexing acknowledgement has gotten me thinking a great deal about the subject of thinking. More specifically, I have been thinking about how what we think about (or don’t think about) shapes who we become and what we do. In the NASB version of the Bible Proverbs 23:7 says that what a man thinks about he eventually becomes and Jesus further expresses the same idea in Mark 7:21 when He states that evil thoughts always precede evil behavior. 

 Very few (if any) Christians are inclined toward the kind of thinking that leads to openly evil behavior. Rather, most Christians tend towards the kind of wrong thinking that leads to misguided or incorrect behavior. The problem with misguided or incorrect behavior committed by Christians is that it almost always leads to a kind of passive evil that hurts people on an eternal level because it is done in the name of religion. The bottom line on this issue is that what Christians choose to think about matters. I came up with five random things I believe we should all think about on a regular basis because if we don’t we suffer and so does everyone else.  

Beginning with:   

People really can change-

The gospel (good news) of Jesus Christ is about far more than simply sidestepping an eternity spent in hell (although that message is definitely in there). The really good news of the gospel is that sinful, dirty, mucked-up human beings can be entirely transformed into new people with new desires and new attitudes when they put their faith and trust in Jesus Christ (Romans 12:2, 2ndCorinthians 3:18, 2ndCorinthians 5:17). When we forget this categorically startling truth it diminishes the churches power to transform the culture because we tend to sideline those Christians we deem less desirable due to their lack of education, past mistakes or upbringing. It also keeps individuals from personally seeking the radical transformation necessary for every Christian to reach their full potential in Jesus. 

God loves people we don’t love just as much as He loves us-

God loves all of us in spite of our idiocy, faults, weaknesses and inability to pull it together and get the job done. That means that God wants the ridiculous, bothersome, entirely not self-aware people in our lives to learn from their mistakes, grow in their relationships and become better people. He might even be using us to orchestrate those things in their lives. Keep this truth at the forefront of your mind next time another Christian starts to bug you.  

 Feelings are mostly wrong-

Recently, a real live human (a Christian) told me with a straight face that if they “felt that something was true their feelings made it true”. I will not lie, it took me a minute to recover my bearings. I am categorically unaccustomed to hearing that kind of bold-faced insanity being spoken aloud. Once I recovered, I quickly pointed out that two people can have opposing feelings about the exact same issue or situation.  When that kind of conflict develops it has to be an agreed upon set of facts that becomes the deciding factor in what is true. If any other standard becomes the norm we will devolve into moral and intellectual chaos.

Politics and religion are not equal-

I have some strong political views, most of them are solidly conservative. I try to base my views on biblical truth rather than my feelings or what our Western culture believes about a particular issue. However, even with those qualifiers my political views are not on the same level as my religious beliefs. We should be very careful about writing off other people based entirely on their political opinions. Rather, we should attempt to persuade those who think differently than we do with reason, grace and biblical truth. 

 And finally, mercy is way better than judgment, I am a truth person. This reality is demonstrated in the fact that every spiritual gifts’ test I have ever taken I consistently scored lowest on mercy. Every. Single. Time. Even the times I tried to cheat and game the test I still scored dead last on mercy.  I am not proud of this fact but it is a fact. I fought against this fact for years and tried desperately to be softer and squishier than the way God made me. It took me a while to realize that people like me add something necessary to the body of Christ. We keep the feelers from getting excessively feely and the mercy folks from handing out cheap grace like it was fun-size candy on Halloween. That being said, with God mercy always wins out over judgment (James 2:13) and if I want to be like Jesus I have to embrace the grace and mercy He came to give. 

Is the Bible Mean?

Lisa M. Price1 Comment

The Word (Jesus) became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth~ John 1:14 NKJV

 It’s been a long, miserable week in the the Pacific Northwest. Most of our region is literally on fire right now and the city I live in is so smoky and gross the whole house smells like we’ve been barbecuing in the basement. The local health department has officially classified the air quality as “hazardous”.

 The heat, smoke and air quality left me feeling more than a little unmotivated. As a result I found myself struggling to come up with a topic for this weeks blog-post. Inspiration came early Tuesday morning when I opened Facebook and ran across what I felt at the time was a rather innocuous quote from Bible teacher, Beth Moore…    

 You will watch a generation of Christians—OF CHRISTIANS—set the Bible aside in an attempt to be more like Jesus. And stunningly it will sound completely plausible. This will be, perhaps, the cleverest of all the devil’s schemes in your generation. Sacrifice truth for love’s sake, you will rise or fall whether you will sacrifice one for the other.

  Beth Moore literally could not to be any more on point with her observations. The spiritual tension that exists between biblical truth and the culture’s definition of love is the greatest theological conundrum of our generation. I have believed for a long time that if the church doesn’t get its proverbial act together and figure out a way to communicate the truth concerning this critical issue, biblical Christianity will dwindle down to a tiny remnant within a generation.

Here’s the thing:

If we “go there”, the entire world will enter a spiritual and moral dark ages, the likes of which the world has not seen since the dawn of the Christian age.

 It was not Beth Moore’s words that got me spoiling for a smackdown. It was the absurd responses to her quote I found frustrating.  To my astonishment, most of those who commented disagreed with Beth Moore. Some vehemently. All the dissenters called her unloving and accused her of lacking compassion. A few even criticized her for making an idol out of the Bible.

 Seriously? Is that even a thing?

 Sadly, too many Christians have twisted love into something not found anywhere in Scripture.

 There are two truths we need to acknowledge concerning Jesus, love, and the Bible. First, we simply cannot separate the words of Jesus from the rest of the Bible. In the book of John, Jesus is referred to as The Word. By using that particular designation to describe Jesus, John is making a powerful statement about who Jesus is and how He fits into Scripture.

In John 1:1 the Apostle declares that Jesus is the personification and expression of all of the words of God. Jesus is the substance and incarnation of all that had been written in the Old Testament law and all that was to be written in the New Testament letters.

In a very real sense: Jesus is the Bible. 

 This means that the statements Jesus made in the gospels (the red letters that contemporary Christians get all wound-up about) are no more or less significant than the Old Testament Law and the New Testament letters. Jesus is the perfecter of our faith and the author of ALL of Scripture. Not just the Scripture we feel comfortable with or those that reflect our current cultural values and sensibilities (Hebrews 12:2, 2nd Timothy 3:16, Luke 24:27).

 Jesus fulfilled the ceremonial requirements of the law and we no longer live in a theocracy, so as 21st century Christians we no longer sacrifice animals to have our sins forgiven (Jesus took care of that for us) or follow the civil laws that were given specifically to the nation of Israel. However, that doesn’t mean that the entire Old Testament should be tossed out because much of the Old Testament FEELS unloving to contemporary readers and modern readers like to lean on their own understanding of reality rather than revealed truth (Proverbs 3:5-6)

 The second truth we need to understand is that the good news of the gospel is wrapped up in a lot of really bad news. The good news is that God loves people so much that He sacrificed His only son so that we could be forgiven and spend eternity with God (John 3:16).

 The bad news for us is that God is a holy and perfect and He really hates sin. God decided before the foundation of the earth was laid what actions are and are not sinful. He has not modified or relaxed His standards on those issues. The penalty for for sin is awful: eternity in hell forever separated from God and all that is comforting and good. All people are sinners who cannot under any circumstances get right with God and be forgiven unless they are willing to leave their life of sin and follow Jesus wherever he leads (John 8:11, Mark 8:34).

 Those are two truths we must be honest about as we share the love of God with people. When we don’t tell the whole truth about life and sin and eternity we are really telling a lie that will eventually lead to the spiritual death of those we claim to love.

 There’s nothing loving about that.