In C.S. Lewis’s Screwtape Letters, the older devil Screwtape advises his nephew Wormword about developing worldliness in humans as a work of time.  In the first section of the letter, he chides Wormwood for his failure to ensnare his “patient” (human victim) with the kind of worldly sins that probably flash into most Christian’s minds at the mention of the word “worldly.”

He has escaped the worldly friends with whom you tried to entangle him; he has “fallen in love” with a very Christian woman and is temporarily immune from your attacks on his chastity; and the various methods of corrupting his spiritual life which we have been trying are so far unsuccessful.

Wormwood’s patient lives in London during the German bombing blitz of WWII.  Since he has volunteered as an air raid warden, his safety is increasingly at risk while he is “forced to attend to his neighbours” and is “taken out of himself” by his volunteer work in the war effort. Apparently the young devil Wormwood has taken undue delight in the human suffering caused by the nightly bombings, forgetting that the ultimate devilish goal is to ensure that humans end up in the “kingdom of our Father” (hell) and not in the Enemy’s eternal world (heaven).  Screwtape urges his nephew that the death of his patient at this time – while “his worldly hopes take a proportionately lower place in his mind, . . .and [he is] daily increasing in conscious dependence on the Enemy” – will most certainly mean that Wormwood loses him forever.

If, however, the patient survives the war, Screwtape has another tactic in mind. He advises:

 . . .you have time itself for your ally. The long, dull monotonous years of middle-aged prosperity or middle-aged adversity are excellent campaigning weather [for devils trying to tempt humans]. You see, it is so hard for these creatures to persevere. The routine of adversity, the gradual decay of youthful loves and youthful hopes, the quiet despair (hardly felt as pain) of ever overcoming the chronic temptations with which we have again and again defeated them, the drabness which we create in their lives and the inarticulate resentment with which we teach them to respond to it – all this provides admirable opportunities of wearing out a soul by attrition. If, on the other hand, the middle years prove prosperous, our position is even stronger. Prosperity knits a man to the World. He feels that he is “finding his place in it”, while really it is finding its place in him. His increasing reputation, his widening circle of acquaintances, his sense of importance, the growing pressure of absorbing and agreeable work, build up in him a sense of being really at home in earth which is just what we want. . . .

 This is worldliness of a different sort.  More insidious than the glare of a more visible worldliness, it seeps into our souls as we grow tired of waiting for the promised heavenly reality of God’s unveiled glory and eternal satisfaction in Christ.  Screwtape advises that the “difficult task of unraveling [human] souls from Heaven and building up a firm attachment to the earth” is aided by time – and lots of it.  He states, “Real worldliness is a work of time – assisted, of course, by pride, for we teach them to describe the creeping death [being at home in the world] as good sense or Maturity or Experience.”

It is this brand of worldliness that goes unnoticed in many Christian circles.  While we rant about worldly dress, worldly music, worldly friends and worldly movies, we forget that worldliness is also a comfortable state of mind that has lulled us into living as though this life is all there is.  This is true even where our comforts are “spiritual” activities as long as these activities are replacing real hunger for our ultimate union with Christ.  We can become comfortable in our safety zones “away from the world” while the world has found a comfy resting place in our very souls through complacency and self-satisfaction.

That “friendship with the world” is something for a Christian to avoid is undeniable (James 4:4).  The question is, “What do worldly lusts (Titus 2:12) look like?”  Lewis describes it as the “creeping death” and “a sense of being really at home in earth.”  How do you define worldliness?

God has never been silent on sex, so why have we?  Maybe it is because we hate that our old nature still desires sexual perversion.   Maybe it is because fundamentalism is wrongly proud in its outward standards.   It is time we lifted the veil of embarrassment and false morality, and started to speak openly and truthfully.   The following 10 point approach is a suggested framework for considering how to start this change.

1.  Genesis needs more emphasis.   We are God’s creation – male and female – with a body and a spirit.  The gender roles and our physical and emotional desires were all formed by God before the fall.  We need to lay the correct foundation before we can build using other precepts.

2.  Sexual topics must be preached from the front regularly (but after the kids go out).   Each of us face sexual temptation daily, so lets make our preaching application driven towards our issues.  When was the last time we preached through Song of Songs expositionally?

3.  Technology has put sex on steroids.   Every Christian should use internet and mobile devices filters, foxtel and iTunes restrictions, etc.   This has helped me as I battle my old nature.  It is not fool proof, but it does reduce the amount of instant temptation.  And porn is not just a guy issue.

4. Let’s be honest about our temptations and weaknesses.  We respect leaders who are open and honest about their struggles.   Too many church leaders have pretended they are not tempted only to suddenly leave their wife for a mistress.

5.  We should be more explicit in appropriate contexts.   Topics such as masturbation, oral sex, iPhone porn, vibrators, birth control, hormones, secrets etc should be discussed openly, but face to face, in gender specific groups.  We all read www.news.com.au or similar, so lets bring God’s thinking on these topics to the fore.

6. Homosexuality, gay marriage and orgies are the issues of the day.   Let’s boldly and humbly promote God’s view.  Our opinion is no more valid than the world’s opinion.  It is not us against them, but it is recognising that all sex outside male/female marriage is not authorised by God.

7. Self-control.  We must talk about techniques for battling temptation.  From Scripture memory, to Christian music, to prayer, to choosing relationships wisely, to a cold shower, to fleeing lust, to accountability and recovery.  We must arm ourselves with tools to prevent and repair.

8.  If we, or our children, do not have the gift of singleness, we should promote opportunities towards godly marriage early in life.   Delayed adulthood and delayed marriage has promoted promiscuity and devalued commitment.

9. We must promote sex as a good thing.   As it has been said, ’the best way to counter something that should not be done, it to explain how it should be done’.  Amorous sex in marriage should be encouraged.

10.  Sex can be used as a segue to the gospel.   God created the marriage union as a picture of redeeming his bride.  Once we accept that sex does not provide eternal satisfaction, then we will be open for embracing God’s everlasting saving grace.

In all of this, grace, humility and purity need to be maintained.   You may or may not agree with all these ideas, but I welcome your feedback on how we can tackle this elephant more effectively.

Blessings

I think it’s unwillingness to change.

From my perch at the beginning of the 21^st century, it seems obvious to say that the last 100 years have brought more change to the world that any previous century in time.  Speed and frequency of communication transmit ideas and trends lightning fast and then discard many of them just as rapidly.  Our culture is constantly morphing to adjust to new information, new public personalities, new interest groups.

Many churches, however, remain untouched by changes in the world around them.  Although a church’s position on various issues may have been relevant when it began fifty years ago, that position now looks like a museum relic in the culture of today.  Few outside of the “faithful remnant” can connect with this church’s emphasis on issues of a bygone era.  It has lost its relevance and therefore its true mission.  Proudly people sing of the “Ol’ Time Religion” and think it equals suits, slow hymns and seventeeth century English.

Let’s take time for a reality check.  The timeless truths of historic Christianity have nothing to do with what we wear, what style of music we prefer, or the archaic suffixes we add to our verbs.  Biblical doctrine is far more robust than many give it credit for.  Substitutionary atonement and the sovereignty of God apply equally to Wall Street, to outback Australia, and to urban squalor in south-east Asia.  The transforming power of the Bible and the Holy Spirit is not tethered to anyone’s culture.  Truth is for all people.

So what does this have to do with church stagnation?  My observation is that leaders in many of the tired churches I have visited are unwilling to listen to others.  They made their stand decades ago and consider change to be sinful compromise.  They don’t realise that being teachable connects intrinsically with growth.

How can we cultivate a culture of growth in the church?  The foremost requirement is a spirit of humility and inquiry that says, “I’m willing to change for the sake of the gospel in my community.” Paul explained this thinking in 1 Corinthians 9:18-23: “I have become all things to all people that by all means I might save some.”

Given that foundational attitude of meekness and flexibility, here are a few questions to help us evaluate how well we are encouraging a teachable spirit within the church.

1.  Are we encouraging each other to read widely and to discuss what we read?

2.  Are church leaders seeking input from the congregation about what the church needs?  Not just an obligatory vote in a business meeting of the congregation—we need to have real and prayerful discussions about genuine needs.  Do church leaders feel threatened when approached by a church member about a need in the church?  Do church members feel that their suggestions are being prayerfully considered?

3.  Are we praying openly and regularly for God to lead the church in the direction that He is working?  Is it possible that some churches are so tenacious about their “stand” on culture issues that God has moved on and they don’t even know it?  May it never be said of us that “ICHABOD” is written over our church door!

4.  Do we get involved in inter-church fellowships?  Do such fellowship meetings involve sharing of ideas and testimonies of how God is working?

5.  Do we fellowship outside of our “safe” circle.  Do we really think God is only working in churches that are just like ours?  What would happen if we encouraged attendance at conferences outside our circle?

Join the discussion and add your ideas about how we can foster a teachable spirit in our churches.

What is style?  Style (from “stylus” or pen) indicates a manner of expression — the manner through which someone or something is presented and perceived.  So you may have a particular writing style or a decor style or clothing style, and all of these are ways of expressing your ideas or your home or yourself.

We like it when people compliment our style, because they are complimenting us.  Your image — the way people perceive you — is therefore very important in the modern world, where advertising, fashion, and digital images constantly present the ideal “you.”

Style is also celebrated as an end in itself, where the substance is not what’s important, it’s how you present it.  Christian writer Os Guiness has commented,

“Who we are takes second place to who we can become and who we appear to be.  We may not be comfortable in our own skins, but style is the umbilical cord between sales and the self we would like to become.” *

The priority of style is all around us.  The fashion industry promotes image above all else, offering you a constantly changing, personal utopia where others will perceive you the way you wish and where all your needs are met.  Recently I’ve noticed the ABC’s popular TV show “The Gruen Transfer,” which is basically a show dedicated to advertising and how it works.

I think the dominant style website today is Facebook.  Facebook is a great way to connect with others and share your life, but it also can be a catalogue of subtle self-advertising. This photo is who I appear to be, not who I am.

When you idolize your image or crave compliments, the end result will be a personal sense of hollowness.  As Guiness describes:

“…preoccupation with style is a major ingredient of the emptiness in modern culture.  Thus it affects the drive to sex and violence, which is the prime compensation for emptiness in a culture that has only one sin left — boredom.  The modern world that is crammed with images and frantic with changing styles is a hollow world, but is too dazzled to see it.”

* Fit Bodies, Fat Minds

Ben Kwok

Unless you can unlock this mystery, long term change will always be harder.

This question has stayed with me for many months now as I have read widely and racked my brain about topics such as overeating, weight loss, exercise, etc.

There has been some recent published works on the effects of sugar on our eating habits, metabolism and general weight gain across western populations. There is likely a clear link between the rise in carbonated drinks, chocolates, sweet cereals over the last couple of generations and obesity.

One Australian lawyer, David Gillespie, lost 40kgs simply by eliminating sugar from his diet and wrote a couple of books in the process, the first one he called Sweet Poison. Gillespie has some thought provoking insights and has really done his homework.

I don’t advocate the elimination of sugar from the diet as I don’t think I can stick to it, nor expect others to limit their cooking choices around such restrictions. You do however need to decrease sugar from your diet if you want to slim down (in combination with other measures). That much is obvious.

But we get back to the central problem.

Why is it that some struggle with overeating (and what usually follows, obesity)?

Why were there times when I did my level best to eat so much that I couldn’t fit another mouthful in?

Is it simply about someone giving in to carnal lusts? Is it the idolatry of food rather than a God-directed devotion? These can be factors at times, but I don’t think they completely give us the answer.

We tend to use food not simply as fuel, but as means of celebration and indeed commiseration.

In the Old Testament God’s people were commanded to ‘feast’ (as well as sacrifice) for religious purposes.

In the New Testament, one way the father of the prodigal celebrated his son’s return was by putting on a huge meal!

Food, even glorious food, is one of God’s gifts for his children to celebrate His gracious dealings with us.

Now that doesn’t mean that we have a divine sanction to eat everything that is not bolted to the floor, but the point I make is that food was meant to be enjoyed!

We tend to blend special occasions, birthdays, church anniversaries, etc, around, you guessed it……food.

Well I better try and answer the question I have raised. At the end of the day, I believe these are some of the reasons for overeating:-

1. Habit. Perhaps we mirror our parents or those around us. If you don’t think habits are hard to break then just try writing with your other hand.

2. Desire. Delicious food is almost overpowering at times and guess what, there is nothing much better than chowing down with great food.

3. Discretionary eating. Have you ever thought about when you eat dessert? Usually when you are already full after a nice meal. The hundreds of calories you just stacked on (unnecessarily) are going to sit on you all night. Try to limit such occasions or go for a healthier alternative (fresh fruit, etc). Better still, leave some room for desert in the first place. No, there is no separate ‘compartment’ in the stomach reserved for desert.

4. Poor planning. If there are no plans in place, you tend to go for the cheapest and nastiest foods you can find. Take-aways, raiding the ice-cream tub, bikkie jar, etc.

5. Ignorance about the quality of foods. At least have a vague idea about what goes inside you. I know it is not what goes inside you that ‘defiles’ you as Christ said, but it sure affects your waist line and ability to be active! So buy a calorie book at Big W, watch what you eat, exercise and you may well add 10 years to your life.

6. Incorrect handling of conflict. We do eat for comfort. After all it brings immediate relief even if we are not hungry in the first place. Try prayer and/or read a Psalm instead.

7. Pleasing people. Some of us might upset others including our mothers if we stopped taking our second helpings. Explain kindly and graciously that you are trying to eat right and most will understand.

Anyway, this is not an exhaustive list. Please post some others if any come to mind. Any such posts will not be construed as admissions of guilt:)

Grace to you all this week!

By Robert Apps

While I was counting on the major parties tearing each other apart during the election, hardly anyone saw the Rudd camp throwing missiles into the ALP tent with damaging leaks against Gillard half way through the campaign.

So Tony Abbott, on present numbers, seems likelier than Gillard to form a new government with a handful of independents. Given my previous predictions however, I am very reluctant to say much more on what will happen in these coming days.

Labor however took one big boot this election. They lost the popular vote and their majority in the House of Reps was shattered.

What are some lessons that we can take from the campaign and result?

1. Even in the world, the foolish things sometimes confound the mighty.

Do you remember not so long ago the ALP doing high fives after they heard Tony Abbott (aka the Mad Monk) was the third opposition leader for the Liberals? Abbott was ‘unelectable’ given his views on abortion, his previous commitment to WorkChoices, devotion to John Howard, etc.

The media must have licked their lips wondering how long it would be before Abbott not only shot himself in the foot, but also put one through his neck?

Well Abbott did have his bad days but the man stayed on his feet! He ran an ultra marathon in Port Macquarie earlier this year then spent the last 36 hours of the campaign meeting every voter he could find.

Seeing someone exceed other people’s expectations (and perhaps even their own) does my soul good. I want to move forward in life and exceed my own expectations and do what God has called me to do, despite my weakness and failures.

2. Disunity is Death.

The inexcusable happened during this campaign. We know all political parties have, from time to time, ‘rats in the ranks’ but this time the rats didn’t stay inside the bins where it was good for them. Incredible havoc was wreaked on the ALP through divisive leaks. The public wondered: if the ALP can’t govern itself how can it govern us?

For believers, unity around the truth is everything. Churches need to move in one direction in faithfulness to God’s Word. Families need to stay close for the Lord’s sake and frankly, their own.

3. There is wisdom in discretion.

Abbott was often criticised for having ‘no vision for the future’, running a cynical campaign etc. But when your opponent is self destructing, why bother?

There is such a thing as discretion and keeping your cards close to your chest, when everyone expects you to reveal everything, all the time. Keeping your own counsel can be hard sometimes, but it is a valuable art to be learned and perfected.

4. The public have a warped sense of morality.

They were offended the ALP hung Kevin Rudd before they got the chance to!

The extent of this public sentiment is debatable, but I believe there were many voters disappointed they didn’t get to register their disapproval against the elected PM Rudd so they did it to the installed PM Gillard instead. Like the days of the judges, both the ALP and the public were doing ‘that which was right in their own eyes’.

5. Truth is stranger than fiction.

Bill Shorten MP was one of the reported assassins of Rudd.

Shorten’s mother-in-law is none other than Her Excellency the Governor General Quentin Bryce, so reports are that our G-G has sought legal advice about her role in any decisions she will need to make in the forming of a new government! The lawyers win again! But there is some very macabre humour in all of this. Particularly when Shorten is considered a future Labor PM in the wings.

6. Best of all God is still on the throne.

While we presently have a caretaker PM (it is an unfortunate expression in the circumstances), our hope needs to be firmly on Christ.

A change of government will not necessarily mean we will have more prosperity or less debt. Perhaps we need less prosperity and more debt for people to start looking to God rather than the government for answers to life’s troubles.

We simply don’t know what the future holds. But we do know the One who holds tomorrow in His Hand and that should be enough for us.

By Robert Apps

I didn’t expect to lose 3.5kgs so 35kgs was really in the ‘never never’ land.

As of the date of this post I am narrowing closer and closer towards the goal.

There were 2 physiological reasons to take so much weight off:-

1. That would bring me down to 80kgs which is an appropriate weight for my height and build; and
2. The mirror told me there was definitely 35kgs there to shed!

I also wanted to lose something of that magnitude to try and ‘nail the fork into the road’ so to speak. There was no interest in losing a few kilos then putting them back on a few months later.

What was needed was some radical weight loss, but with the right structures and disciplines in place to keep them off.

Besides, putting the weight back on would involve buying another wardrobe. I would rather spend it on baby clothes for our second child expected later this year.

The memory of those early days of exercise, eating less and embracing lifelong strategies is still vivid. It was exciting but also meant death to my old ways.

It was like emigrating to a distant country with a new language and strange traditions.

Could I really fit in?

Preachers often talk about ‘falling into sin’.

Well for so long I seemed to ‘fall into food’. One US politician who lost weight put it this way: ‘I am a recovering foodaholic’.

It is of course the abuse of something God given and meant to be enjoyed.

Good things can easily become idols and emotional strongholds and food must be on the top of the list, particularly in the West. We have an abundance of tasty food that we struggle to enjoy in moderation.

It has been interesting to see the response of old friends and associates. Some almost didn’t recognise me while others thought I must be gravely ill.

One lark asked my wife if she had remarried.

At the end of the day it is not about weight or shirt size but stewardship of the body.

We don’t want to follow the world’s obsession with the body but a healthy lifestyle has so many positive spin offs. Regular exercise and fitness constitutes, in so many ways, ‘redeeming the time’.

The Apostle Paul told Timothy that bodily exercise had some value. Not as much as godliness, but some value nonetheless.

It is remarkable that our major contributor to the New Testament, on writing a pastoral epistle, would make that observation.

So there is value in every believer putting some premium on looking after their bodies. After all it is the only body God has given us to serve Him in. I can’t use yours and you would not want to borrow mine:)

While we may by default aimlessly surf the net for a hours at a time, why not spend 30 minutes a day going for a brisk walk or doing some sport?

The benefits will follow you the rest of the day.

For bodily exercise profits a little, but godliness is profitable for all things, having promise of the life that now is and of that which is to come. 1 Timothy 4:8

By Robert Apps

Messi is considered the natural successor to Diego Maradona, and if you have ever seen him play, you will know why.

Take a look at this YouTube comparison of both Maradona and Messi to show why he is so highly regarded (if you like soccer of course).

Messi wears the coveted Number 10 in Argentina’s World Cup team currently competing in South Africa.

I caught about 20 minutes of Argentina’s game against Korea on Thursday night.

In that short time I was captivated by the creativity, deft touch, and at times, the sheer audacity of Messi as he teased his opponents with his free flowing skills.

The soccer field is Messi’s natural habitat.

He is utterly at ease executing one piece of inspiring play after another.

Maradona is now national coach of Argentina. While this guy  has had as many scandals as Michael Jackson no one can doubt his God-given skills on the soccer field.

It is interesting that Maradona has given Messi almost free reign on the soccer field this World Cup. Messi has been freed from playing the conventional positions and is thus has the liberty to create opportunities for his team to score.

Of course you have to be a Messi to enjoy that kind of liberty. Only a handful of players have that kind of freedom. Their brilliance demands some extra space to express itself.

I was also impressed that Messi, despite his brilliance, was a team player.

Messi used his unusual abilities to further his team’s interests rather than simply trying to go for goal himself every time.

Let me glean a few good lessons from the mesmerising Messi:-

1. Exceptional individuals (whether in society or in the church) need to be allowed to thrive rather than constantly trying to be equalised with everyone else;
2. The body of Christ is made up of exceptional members (how could they not be since they are gifted by the Holy Spirit?) and each should be able to thrive doing what they do best for the benefit of the whole body;
3. The importance of the ‘team’. No matter how good the Messi’s and Maradona’s of this world are, they still need 10 other players on the field otherwise they have no hope of winning. Behind every Spurgeon, Wesley or Whitfield is a thousand unknown faithful believers serving behind the scenes. God uses and has a place for all of us.
4. Innovation (and dare I say change) always involves some risk. It is unavoidable so make sure you are really want to innovate or change before taking the plunge.

The iPad makes your research tools more accessible. Logos has a version for the iPad which gives you access to your books in the iPad form factor.  This is one step closer to the resolution of the debate between paper vs. digital commentaries.  PDF documents are common in pastoral libraries.  Many of the original sources have been converted to PDF thanks the ceaseless work of the people at Ages Digital Library and other groups such as CCEL.  I like to print out my PDFs and mark them up with a yellow highlighter and red pen.  iAnnotate for the iPad gives you the same functionality with the ability to correlate your annotations for easy reference when you’re trying to remember where you got that incredible quote or illustration from.   Another neat feature in iAnnotate is the ability to open multiple PDFs in a tabbed interface allowing for cross referencing.  The convergence of Apple iBooks, Amazon Kindle, B&N eReader, and free programs like Stanza onto one device is a great benefit for book lovers.  I’m reading Os Guiness’ The Call through Kindle and a book on the history of China through B&N.

The iPad can change the context of your working environment.  The evangelists of the Great Awakening used to study and pray on horseback.  Ministers now have the opportunity with a form factor that fits somewhere between a traditional notepad and a smart phone.  I see a lot of benefit in the prepaid 3G plans for Australian readers.  It allows you to use the Internet and email in the native form factor when you are out of the office.

Taking notes on the iPad produces mixed results. As a touch typist, I find that if I trust the flat interface it produces excellent results.  At this point I am still double guessing myself as my hammer-fingers look for some form of tacticity on the glass screen.  I might get used to it – but the Bluetooth keyboard is a great addition.

Most of the ministers that I know adopted some form of PDA (palm, pocket pc, etc) prior to the adoption of smartphones.  I don’t think that you can classify the iPad in the same category.  Give it a try and let’s get some more ministry-related feedback on its potential.  I’ll be happy to answer your specific questions as well.  By the way – don’t think that the iPad will magically cure daydreaming, tiredness or difficult textual problems.  It’s only a tool.

Jessica’s ambition and abilities are unusual, compared to most teens.  Still, her achievement has reminded the world that teens can do hard things.

This is refreshing, because our society seems to lower the bar of expectations for young people.

Consider the average marrying age for Australians.  The average woman marries at age 29.  The average Aussie male marries at around age 30.  The  marrying age has continually increased since the seventies.  Demographer Bernard Salt describes the difference:

“The perception of what is acceptable has changed completely.  In 1971 it was marriage at 21, kids at 23, a three-bedroom brick veneer out in the ‘burbs and a husband who works. That was utopia and it was important in those days to get the sequences right,” he suggests.

“These days the sequence doesn’t really matter. Then, if you were 25 and a woman and not married you were on the shelf. Now, if you get married at 21 you’re a loser.”

Look at the normal process for obtaining a driver’s license.  Teenage drivers in NSW must use a restricted license for at least four years, progressing through L-plates, then red P’s, then green P’s.  Only then are they eligible for a full license.  Why is this process so extensive?  One reason is the recklessness of some young drivers.

Driving responsibly is hard (apparently!).  Financially supporting yourself is hard.  Marriage is hard.  Being a mature follower of Jesus is hard.

None of these should be faced casually.

But we do not grow up by deferring these goals indefinitely.

Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds, for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness. And let steadfastness have its full effect, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing. James chapter 1, verses 2-4

Ben Kwok