I wanted to take a great point I was reading about on another blog and share it with you here in my own words.  There has been an endless amount of coverage on the recent Tiger Woods tragedy or scandal or what have you.  News channels have brought in a wide range of ‘experts’ to analize why and how Tiger could have done such a thing.
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The “expert opinion” given by most of these people has been all over the board, but, notice carefully which type of ‘expert’ you never see giving their analysis… We have the publicist, psychologists, lawyers; We have friends of Tiger, and friends of his mistresses and the ladies themselves; We don’t have any ‘experts’ giving a spiritual analysis.  Why is it that a pastor or other Christian leader (or, to be fair, other religious leaders) are not considered part of the panel that discusses the analysis of what the problem is?
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Why could this be?
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One person in the media, Brit Hume, recently “appealed to Tiger Woods to find redemption and forgiveness in Christianity… and presents the issue as one of objective truth …and gets right to the heart of the matter of alienation with others and God and our need for forgiveness and reconciliation. He doesn’t present Christianity as a placebo, faith makes us feel better. He offers what Woods needs, what we all need: redemption.”⁽¹⁾  He was soon thereafter ransacked with attacks from other media outlets and even comedian Jon Stewart, who openly and blatantly mocked the Christian faith, using Hume as his primary target⁽²⁾.
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I propose that the Christian worldview… the Christian message that we call the Gospel… the Good News, is a threat to todays western culture.
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The Trials [part 3]

Part 1, Part 2, Part 3

In this third and final part, I want to just wrap up…

In the book of Matthew it says, “Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness, because the kingdom of heaven is theirs.  (11)  “Blessed are you when they insult you and persecute you and falsely say every kind of evil against you because of Me.  (12)  Be glad and rejoice, because your reward is great in heaven. For that is how they persecuted the prophets who were before you.” (Matthew 5:10-12 HCSB)

As Christians, sometimes we expect things to get easier for us, since we are on God’s side…  We face Trials…  Besides persecution, I’m sure you can think of 100 other examples of types of trials we might face in life…  Why do we have to go through them in the first place?!

I dealt with that question a little bit previously in a post called The Suffering, but perhaps that is a question left to God.  Perhaps each time, there is a different reason with each person.  Perhaps there is only one reason.  I do not know exactly.  But what I do know is that there is a reason.  There is a hope at the end of all the trials, the suffering and the pain.  A true hope.  One that will not fail us.  One who knows and has felt all that we have been through…

At the end of time, billions of people were scattered on the vast plain before God’s Throne. Some shrank back from the brilliant light before them. But many other groups talked heatedly, not cringing with shame, but with belligerence.

“Can God judge us? How can He know about suffering?”, snapped a pert brunette. She ripped open a sleeve to reveal a tattooed number from a Nazi concentration camp. “We endured terror … beating … torture … death!”

 
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What’s the point?
What is the meaning, the purpose, the point in this crazy, crazy world of ours? 

Ah, such a big question. 

Before we get there, let’s not get ahead of ourselves.  Let’s back up for a moment…

What’s wrong with this world… this crazy, crazy, messed up world? 
Tell me… What would make this world a better place?  What would make our lives better? 
Would this world be a better place if we had more control over things?  Less control?  I don’t mean a domineering control such as the likes of Hitler, Stalin, and so on…  I mean control over our daily life… control over what happens to us.
Would this world be a better place if we had more freedom in life?  Less freedom?  I’m not talking about anarchy, or totalitarianism.  I’m talking about freedom in our choices, our life, our morals, and so on.
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~maximize screen for best viewing~  Posts will be continually be updated over the next few weeks as the news continues, so keep checking back.

 CLICK HERE if you wish to contribute financially to help these persecuted/displaced people of Orissa.  Be sure to contribute to the “Asia Disaster Relief Fund” 

Updated 10-04-08: PowerPoint
Someone has put together a PowerPoint Slideshow with text and images about the violence in Orissa.  It is informative and worth watching… Download here. 

Updated 9-28-08: Current Known Statistics & Affected areas
24 August to 29 September, 2008

States listed in alphabetical order

1. BIHAR

1 Church damaged: http://indianchristians.in/news/content/view/2417/45/

2. CHHATTISGARH

4 Nuns assaulted: http://indianchristians.in/news/content/view/2432/45/

3. JHARKHAND

1 Church attacked and attempted ‘reconversion’ of Christians: http://indianchristians.in/news/content/view/2435/45/

4. KARNATAKA (several stories at http://indianchristians.in/news/content/category/7/21/45/)

4 (of 29) Districts affected

19 Churches damaged or destroyed, but attacks continuing

20 Nuns, women injured by police

5. KERALA
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The conversation following the article below is one that I had with a few friends, and I thought I’d share, as well as say for you to chime with your thoughts/opinions either way.  Would love to hear from the readers.

Is This Our Future?
Michael Reagan
Wednesday, June 04, 2008

Two Christian preachers were stopped from handing out Bible tracts by police officers because they were in a Muslim neighborhood in England.
According to British news reports, the preachers were told by a Muslim community support police officer in Birmingham that attempting to convert Muslims to Christianity is a hate crime.
They were warned that if they came back and were beaten up, it would be their fault, not that of the thugs who beat them.
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I’ve seen this topic creep up more and more over the past couple of year.  The Prosperity Gospel. I’ve heard it preached here and there, I’ve seen big debates over it between people, I’ve seen it mislead some Christians, and I’ve seen major stumbling blocks arise for the non-Christian who see’s this happening.

Prosperity Gospel… also known as Prosperity Theology, Prosperity Doctrine, and even the Word of Faith movement.  Other common terms for this are: Health and Wealth, Dialing for Dollars, and so on.
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