So how do we recover from the heart wounds of our lives?

Last week I mentioned that the place to begin is a place of honesty before the Lord. For example, if I think that the actions or words of another person have harmed me – perhaps even striking at the core of my sense of self-worth – then the place to start is by telling the Lord what’s on my mind and heart. Words are incredibly powerful. Just as words can inflict pain and breed hatred, words of truthfulness can establish trust and confidence. So we start by simply telling our Savior the truth. Remember: we’re not giving Him new information, but we’re choosing to walk with Him along the road of life. Our God delights in our choosing to draw near to Him.

What do we ask of the Lord?

For starters, we can ask Him to begin to convince us of the truth. Heart wounds, you see, deceive us. Lying is their native language, and their pain sometimes feels inescapable. So you and I need Christ to renew our minds, and to show us what is really true about who we are in Him. If we don’t seek Christ’s power for that kind of personal transformation, we may live the rest of our lives blaming ourselves for the wrongs which others have inflicted on us – or ensnared by bitterness and shame.

Let me offer a few truths for you to ponder until my next installment in this series (after my mission to France) …

1. My heart wounds do not define me. It may feel at times like they do, but that is not true.
2. I am made in the image of Almighty God. If you were here Sunday morning, we tried to make much of that glorious reality (Genesis 1:27). What better place would there be to start renewing my sense of identity and value?
3. I belong permanently to Christ, who is redeeming and restoring me (Galatians 4:4-5).
4. I am a co-heir with Christ of every spiritual blessing, even in and through my suffering (Romans 8:17).
5. I am dearly and deeply loved, in spite of all my sin (Romans 5:8).
6. IN CHRIST, I am forgiven for every sin: past, present, and future.
7. What may have marked me – at least in my own heart – as a “total disaster,” the Lord intends to turn into a token of grace.

Sometimes it feels like we’ve boarded “the hot mess express.” Maybe so. But, when you and I begin to recognize the excellencies of our Captain, we can smile at every twist and turn.

Pastor Charles

Last week I mentioned the inevitability of sadness in each of our lives. Even sad seasons which can tend to linger.

Sometimes life includes for us specific experiences which impact us profoundly, and which remain with us. Often these experiences stay with us because they have deeply imprinted important messages upon our hearts and minds. Some of these experiences are positive and wonderful, like the birth of a child. Who can forget the utter joy of that indescribable moment? Some of these experiences are nothing short of traumatic. Consider my earlier example … except this time the newborn baby dies. Profound sadness striking at the very core of Mom and Dad.

God has wired the human soul in such a way that we have a need to talk about the feelings which are “left over” from such life-altering events. But sometimes – especially when it comes to unresolved grief – we get shut down by others when we try to express what’s going on inside us. Normally the other person means no harm, but our pain is simply more than he or she can handle … and the resulting response toward us is something like: “You shouldn’t feel that way.” Have you ever been told that when you were trying to express yourself?

As Christ followers, we are called to care about the feelings of others. The Bible instructs us plainly (Romans 12:15): “Rejoice with those who rejoice, and weep with those who weep.” Many of the people whom we’re called to love are carrying around tremendous wounds of the heart. A heart wound is a like a physical wound in many ways. It is just as real. It may be invisible, but it shows up quite clearly in a person’s behavior – sooner or later. A heart wound is painful, and it must be treated with care or – like a physical wound – it will get worse. You’ve probably experienced a skin wound. You had to clean away any foreign objects or dirt so that the wound could start to heal. With a heart wound, the same principle applies. Maybe my own sin has contributed to my wound. If so, I will want to confess my sin to God so that real healing can begin.

Just like a physical wound often requires help from another person, so a wound of the heart – more often than not – requires that we let other people help us. James 5:16 connects our willingness to confess our sins to others with our experience of genuine healing in regard to those sins. That’s where James promises that the prayer of a righteous person has great power!

How might a heart wound manifest itself? Here are some possibilities I’ve observed over years of pastoral ministry …

• persistent anger or rage
• sadness that won’t go away
• lack of enjoyment of life
• persistent tension and no ability to relax, or insomnia
• unexplained stomach issues
• unexplained rapid heartbeat, trouble breathing, dizziness, or mental “fogginess”

Some people with wounded hearts don’t want to be around anything or anyone who reminds them of their trauma. Fear is often a big part of the “fallout” left over from a wounded heart. It’s often a fear that I’ll have to experience that same trauma again. Some people develop a difficulty remembering things – either the specific events of their traumatic experience, or in general. Some people obsess about their traumatic event, and find themselves plagued by the same nightmare over and over again. Sleep gets harder and concentration is dulled. Some people are simply exhausted. Some cry a lot … some never cry. Some turn to drugs or alcohol. If the trauma is particularly intimate – like rape or incest, or some injury that is inflicted over a long period of time, or something that results in severe devastation, or some intentional injury – the wound of the heart can be especially deep. Sometimes a person’s temperament makes a wound deeper – like in the case of a person who is simply sensitive by nature.

Our Lord Jesus experienced profound sadness in every way that you and I can imagine feeling abandoned or threatened, and Christ knows our struggles intimately. Here’s one Scripture I’d like you to take a look at if you’re struggling with sadness: Matthew 26:36-46. We see in this passage that Jesus called on His disciples to stand with Him in prayer, which they obviously failed to do. Christ experienced heart wounds, and He uniquely understands the brokenness of our souls! God wants us to be honest with Him about the wounds of our hearts. If you’re not quite sure about how to begin, please stay tuned. I’ll pick up right there next week.

Pastor Charles

As June bled into July, the latest chapter in an ongoing tragedy became more vivid. Dozens of people had risked everything in hopes of a better life, but ended up clinging to a capsized rubber boat. At least three babies, and over a hundred others, perished off the coast of Libya in one of the latest waves of the migrant crisis. Hundreds before them lost their lives as well, just this year alone. The crossing of the Mediterranean is perilous under such conditions.

When we read the New Testament (Luke 13:1-5, for example), we discover that when Jesus walked the earth – as at most every other time in human history – the reasoning of many was to draw a precise line between tragedy (of whatever stripe) and the specific sin of a specific person (or group of people): to declare a direct cause-effect relationship between the two. “You sinned this way, and so this calamity has befallen you.” Sometimes the Bible does record concrete examples of the direct consequences of sin, but you and I must be humble in our assessments where the Scriptures do not speak so clearly.

You may also remember the account of the man who had been born blind, recorded in John 9. The question was: “Who sinned, this man or his parents?” Jesus’ answer was, “Neither!” And our Lord went on to explain that this particular affliction was designed for the glory of God. Of course both the man and his parents were sinners, but his blindness was the result of a much larger problem of sin: universal sin. Romans 5:12 describes this.

Sometimes, when tragedy strikes, we try to hide the truth about God’s sovereignty in a misguided attempt to comfort the afflicted by so doing. But to hide God’s truth is to provide no real comfort at all. (And sometimes God’s truth is given to afflict the comfortable!) We hide the truth about God and His sovereign power because we mistakenly conclude that the best way to minister to the hurting person is to tell him that God has nothing to do with his pain. But that’s not true at all. God is sovereign over the world that He has made. He is sovereign over the events of that same world. He is Lord of all. He is Lord of heaven and earth.

How great is this God whom we serve! I love the way Moses expresses it in Genesis 1:16 – “He made the stars also.” When I read that, I’m quite sure that there should be three exclamation points at least: “HE MADE THE STARS ALSO !!!” Isaiah rightly asks (40:12): “Who has … marked off the heavens?” We know the answer to that question: God!

We can’t even calculate the distance across this universe filled with stars. We do know that the nearest stat – other than the sun – is about 4.5 light years away. Since light travels at the speed of 186,000 miles per second, the nearest star is over 26 trillion miles away. And that’s just the nearest star! “HE MADE THE STARS ALSO !!!” The universe in which we live is so large that we can’t begin to fathom its grandeur. And yet, God has numbered every star and holds each one in its orbit.

There isn’t a random molecule in this universe that the Lord has made. Now we have the technology to look deep inside the human cell, and we discover there that the ingenious design and function within that tiny space screams the glory of God just as loudly as the enormous celestial bodies! This is the God of the Bible. He crafts every snowflake individually. He is the God of the whirlwind, the earthquake, and the storm. He sends every raindrop to water the parched earth. He parts the mighty sea so that His people can cross safely on dry land. And … only when the time is right … He calms the raging waters with the mere sound of His voice.

Our Sovereign is to be adored, and He is to be feared.

And, yet, this Sovereign God weeps. John 11:35. The shortest verse in the Bible, but don’t miss it. Christ is so moved by the reality of human sadness that He cries with His friends. Sometimes you and I should weep over the tragedy, heartache, and sadness we observe on Planet Earth. It can be overwhelming at times. But we don’t weep because we’ve forgotten who’s in charge.

We know. And so does He. Not one sparrow falls without His knowing, whether the sparrow is in North Africa or Western Kentucky.

Be still, my heart. Only perfect love can quiet this troubled soul. Only Jesus. The Triune God is enormous in His perfections and power, and in His grace, even when I can’t understand at all.

Pastor Charles

As our choir ties up loose ends so that they can take a much-deserved summer break from weekly rehearsals, I want to thank all of you who make our worship arts ministries such a vital part of the life and witness of First Baptist Paducah. THANK YOU. THANK YOU. THANK YOU. In recent weeks, all of you have worked overtime to make sure that Paducah has experienced the love of Christ through our ministries.

The evening with Sandi Patty was, well – to steal from one of her older titles – glorious! I can’t tell you how many people stopped me to tell me: “We’ve never heard anything like this!” Sometimes we’re tempted to take our choir for granted because we get to enjoy their talents nearly every week, but it takes a regional event to remind us just how blessed we really are. Sandi commented that she had never worked with a better team of musicians, and she was deeply moved by a couple of our choir’s own selections – especially when our vocalists knocked it out of the park (as always). If you were here, you saw Sandi’s warm embrace of Kendra, and her tears.

Then you went out to The Lakes of Paducah and shared your gifts with the residents of an assisted living community. You stood in the hot sun, with barely a breeze, and – again – lifted high the name of our Lord Jesus Christ. You loved on friends and strangers alike, and lifted their spirits. The owners, staff, and attendees thanked me profusely. But you deserve the thanks.

Is it O.K. for the senior pastor to be proud? If it is, count me in. I am so proud of you. Every instrumentalist. Every member of the tech and T.V. crew. Everyone behind the scenes making it happen. Those of you who decorate for these special events, and who use the visual arts to connect people to the gospel of Christ, are among my heroes.

I’m always intrigued by the fact that the first ministers filled with the Holy Spirit – in the record of Scripture – were artists (Exodus 31:1-11). Surely the Lord would have us – stationed in a community of artists – display for the world a vision of “arts for the glory of God!” May Christ grant us the creativity, passion, and joy that we need to shake up our city with His praise! As a congregation, you are gifted of God. May each and every ministry gift poured out by the Spirit on First Baptist Paducah point with vivid clarity to the King of kings and Lord of lords!

You are gifted to serve. In just the last few days, you have demonstrated with hands, feet, and voices. I am humbled just to get to be a part of it all. Thank you.

Pastor Charles

The Red Hen is supposed to be a quaint little farm-to-table spot nearly 200 miles from D.C., but now it’s the center of controversy. Friday evening at about 8:00, White House Press Secretary Sarah Sanders was asked to leave this Lexington, Virginia, restaurant because of President Trump’s policies. She offered to pay for her appetizers, and complied. She then tweeted about the experience.

Stephanie Wilkinson, who co-owns the restaurant, told The Washington Post that several gay employees at the Red Hen were bothered by Trump’s intentions to ban transgender people from military service. Apparently the employees asked Wilkinson to ask Sanders to leave.

In my opinion, we – as an American civilization – are entering into murky waters. We may have been lulled into thinking that this type of political climate is our new normal, but I contend that it is dangerous. Dangerous indeed.

Equality. Equal protection in the eyes of the law. American value and virtue.

Tolerance. Respect for differing opinions. American value and virtue.

Civility. Basic politeness when it comes to public behavior and speech. American value and virtue.

Check. Check. Check.

But personal destruction, trial by social media, and one-upsmanship until my political “enemy” is dehumanized.

Danger. Danger. Danger.

Let me be clear about something. I don’t like dehumanization on either side of the aisle. I don’t like Hollywood tweets suggesting that Barron Trump ought to be ripped away from his mother, and I don’t like far-right Twitter trolls suggesting that Mexican immigrants are thugs. Enough already. Grow up. Get a real job.

We’ve got to dial back some of this stuff, folks. To disagree with someone does not make the one who disagrees evil. Proverbs 18:17, for goodness’ sake.

The American ideal was never meant to be built on bullying. Martin Luther King, Jr. said it well: “Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that.”

Do we really want to live in a nation where we have to think about where we eat dinner when we visit our nation’s capital? Hasn’t Virginia, in particular, seen enough of that over the years?

In order to test Him, a lawyer asked Jesus a question (Matthew 22:35-40): “Teacher, which is the great commandment in the Law?” And he said to him, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the great and first commandment. And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. On these two commandments depend all the Law and the Prophets.”

When you and I talk about the law of God (or the laws of our land, which we believe are ultimately rooted in the law of God) without demonstrating the love of God, we’re more like the people who killed Jesus than the people who follow Him. We who have received grace ought to show grace. It’s that simple. That’s the lesson for the “conservatives” among us.

Now here’s a lesson for the “liberals” among us: Please be liberal. Favor liberty over coercion. This is the Biblical and American vision: Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom (Second Corinthians 3:17).

And the lesson for all of us is this: BE KIND. That’s it! Be kind. “Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.”

Perhaps the last eleven words of one of our childhood tales were packed with a double entendre: “And the little red hen ate the bread all by herself.”

Pastor Charles

I don’t recall a time when more people were suspicious of government. For that matter, I don’t remember a time when people were more suspicious in general. As you know from your newsfeed, many Americans now question the integrity of the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the U.S. Department of Justice. The current climate of distrust is concerning, to say the least. Whether or not the distrust is based upon legitimate reasoning, the fact that we’ve landed here is unsettling for all of us.

It should come as no surprise to us that the truthfulness of time-honored government institutions rests on an increasingly shaky foundation the more that we, as a civilization, buy into the lie of moral relativism. We can’t have it both ways: “Truth can’t really be known. Oh, by the way, please tell the truth.”

This moral abyss around us sets up a personal struggle within us. Who can I trust? Does anyone really pursue justice? Is there no place where ethics and honesty are values for real? Can I take anyone at his or her word?

The Lord brings the counsel of the nations to nothing; he frustrates the plans of the people (Psalm 33:10). That sure seems to be playing out right now. But, I’m happy to report, that’s not the end of the story! The very next verse is pivotal: The counsel of the Lord stands forever, the plans of his heart to all generations.

There it is. We have hope! God’s plans and purposes count forever. In the end, chaos will not win. “History” is “His story,” you see. William Ernest Henley did not get it right: “I am the master of my fate; I am the captain of my soul.” The Lord replies: “Don’t kid yourself.”

New York Times best-selling author Raymond Arroyo just released his findings that “people tend to project their image and beliefs onto their image of God.” In other words, we imagine God to be like us – or we imagine God as we would prefer Him to be. The technical word for that is idolatry. It isn’t new, but it is sin.

Thankfully, no matter how hard we try to bring God down to our level, it just won’t happen. He is high and exalted (Psalm 97:9). He will not share His glory with another (Isaiah 42:8). He is all Truth (John 14:6). As such, God’s character can’t be manipulated. He can’t ever do anything other than that which is absolutely best, including that which is absolutely best for us.

A newly-elected politician had just arrived in Washington, D.C., and was learning the ropes from a ranking Senator. As the two stood looking out over the Potomac River, an old log floated by. The older gentleman remarked, “This city is like that log.” “How’s that?” asked the younger colleague. His new friend’s explanation was this: “There are lots of bugs on that old log, and every one of them thinks he’s steering it.”

Remember that next time you’re tempted to despair just perusing the headlines. Truth may be hard to discern these days, but the Lord will have His way. We may or may not see peace on the Korean Peninsula – or sanity on Capitol Hill. But our God can be trusted entirely.

R.C. Sproul expressed it well: “I’m delighted that my future is not in the hands of the stars or the soothsayers … my confidence in the future rests in my confidence in the God who controls history.”

We are Christ followers. We choose to love. We choose to trust. We do not trust in vain.

Pastor Charles

As I mentioned last time we were together, this Sunday (June 10) I am planning on sharing with you what is most commonly known as “The Parable of the Prodigal Son” from Luke 15:11-32. I’m excited about it! I have titled my sermon “Reckless Love,” and I borrowed that title from a song by Cory Asbury which is incredibly popular these days on Christian radio.

You may be wondering about the term “reckless” when it comes to a description of the love of Christ. After all, we tend to use that word when referring to someone who is careless or imprudent. Certainly not God! But there is a deep sense in which the love of God is reckless indeed.

God’s love is daring. Turning over the tables of the moneychangers. Jesus Christ going out of His way to pursue the woman at the well. A Samaritan, mind you. Scandalous. Unheard of. Unsettling. Calling us to hope when everything around us is crashing in.

God’s love is desperate. Taking on human flesh and blood, so that He could be known by the likes of you and me. Sending the spotless Son of the living God to a rugged and cruel cross for our sin. Inviting little children to come to the Savior of the world.

God’s love is breakneck. It overcomes a person as mysteriously and ferociously as a strong wind. It revolutionizes the human heart in the blink of an eye! We are transferred from the kingdom of darkness to the kingdom of light in a millisecond. That’s what it means to be born again.

God’s love is audacious. This is what got Jesus into so much trouble with the spiritual elites. Christ was always pursuing the undesirables. Lifting up the dregs of society. Touching abandoned lepers with His bare hands. Opening the door of God’s kingdom to every nation. Pushing the religious boundaries so that all could be welcomed at the table of salvation. Inviting little children to come.

I couldn’t earn it, and I don’t deserve it, still, You give Yourself away
Oh, the overwhelming, never-ending, reckless love of God!

If you’re interested in hearing a little bit more about the theological nuances of “reckless,” I’ll refer you to this audio clip from Pastor John Piper. You’ll find it interesting and thought-provoking in regard to how we ought to go about determining what is appropriate (or not) for worship singing. After all, our goal is to exalt Christ as wonderfully and as truthfully as we can!

What I appreciate about this particular segment is that Piper doesn’t answer all our questions, but he makes us think. Maybe, like I, you’re concerned that thinking and reason have fallen on hard times.

Lastly, if you’re still unfamiliar with the song, I encourage you to listen to it at least once before Sunday. Here’s the official link.

It’s my profound joy, honor, and privilege to be able to worship our gracious Lord with you every Sunday. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you.

And you thought summer was a time for sleeping in. Silly you.

Pastor Charles

I’m no scientist, but I love astronomy. I can get lost in a technical conversation on the subject, but never before being humbled again by the enormity and grandeur of Creation.

Our Milky Way home, alone, contains some 200 billion stars. 200 billion. Just think about that.

Now experts are telling us that it’s even bigger than we’ve ever imagined. The latest estimates are that the distance across the Milky Way galaxy is at least 170,000 light-years. Some put it as high as 200,000 light-years. Now, that might be a number so large that it means nothing to you, but try this on for size: start driving at 60 miles per hour, and it will take you two trillion years to make that journey. 2,000,000,000,000! Not including fuel stops, of course.

A friend recently gave me The Science of God by Gerald L. Schroeder. Dr. Schroeder is an Orthodox Jew, and an acclaimed professor of astrophysics. Educated at MIT, Schroeder currently teaches at the Aish HaTorah College of Jewish Studies in Jerusalem. I’ll share just one quote for now: “While a creation to the universe does not prove that God created the universe, it opens the door quite widely for that possibility. NASA, on the other hand, which has calculated an age to the universe, that is, it accepts the fact of the creation, posits that the creation was the result of a quantum fluctuation. NASA has assumed in this that the laws of nature (not nature but the laws of nature) are eternal. Within the laws of nature is the possibility that an aspect of those laws, a quantum fluctuation, could in theory have produced the universe from absolute nothing. All we need is eternal laws of nature. This almost sounds like God!”

This almost sounds like God.

Our galaxy is shaped like a disk with a bulge in the middle. Scientist friends, please forgive my naïve description. Earth is in the disc, but we’re closer to the edge than to the center. The disk has spiral arms, but we can’t really see those – because we’re in those. So our view is more of a faint cloud band stretching across our summer sky (for those of us in the northern hemisphere). Thus, “Milky Way” is a very good name.

The observable universe contains some 300 sextillion stars. (I won’t even include the digits for that one.) And we humans, though unique reflectors of our Creator’s divine glory, occupy the tiniest fraction of real estate. Even our entire planet is a drop in the ocean of space. Remember that next time you’re tempted to get too worked up about the midterm elections.

And this is that glorious time of year: summer is knocking on our door. Get out. Turn off your cell phone. Breathe. Be still. Look up. Enjoy. Worship!

… He also made the stars (Genesis 1:16).

Pastor Charles

Dr. Paige Patterson has been fired from his post at Southwestern Seminary, but his detractors are still angry. They say he got too many perks on the other side of the deal. Patterson made remarks about women and girls which should not have been made, and he gave flawed advice to female victims of assault, but the question in my mind and heart today is this: what critical life lessons are being served up for you and me?

Patterson’s situation is just one of several which have rocked our evangelical bubble in recent weeks. #MeToo has reached the church, and what appears to be a holy reckoning is underway. In anger over Patterson’s firing, another prominent Baptist pastor posted something on Facebook for 90 seconds – meaning he quickly took it down – but that was long enough for a kill shot. People had already copied the text and the photo, and it went viral. In my opinion, this man’s public ministry is over.

I’ve been thinking a lot about the politics of our denomination over the last few weeks. Two candidates for President represent two very different visions for the future of the Southern Baptist Convention. Dr. Steve Gaines, the current President, has appointed me to serve as a Teller at the SBC annual meeting in June. Quite honestly, I will land in Dallas with a bit of apprehension. What is ahead, organizationally, for the people called Southern Baptists? How contentious will the proceedings be when it’s all said and done? As has been threatened, will people walk out when the annual convention sermon is preached, outraged because Patterson is in the pulpit? We should be much in prayer, as the unbelieving world will be watching in real time as all of this unfolds.

I need to be a shepherd and a teacher for a moment, so please bear with me. These concerns are like fire in my bones, and I must get them out.

Sexual violence is a huge problem in American life. The Centers for Disease Control reports that one out of every five American women has been raped. 23 million women. The CDC also reports that 44% of American women have experienced some other form of sexual violence. That means that 53 million American women have been subjected to sexual harassment, sexual assault, or some other gender-based violence excluding rape. That is a national crisis. So the #MeToo hashtag birthed last year by actress Alyssa Milano was just the tip of the iceberg. For the church to ignore this cultural and moral catastrophe would be tantamount to spiritual malpractice. How we handle this, and how we minister to victims, will speak volumes. Christ calls us to nothing less than swift and gracious action!

Throughout His earthly ministry, our Lord Jesus elevated women. The Romans devalued women to the point of a husband’s life-or-death power over his wife. The Greeks forbade women to speak in public. The Jews silenced and segregated women too. But Jesus, to the dismay of His friends and His enemies, was radical in His respect for women! He started a conversation with a Samaritan woman in public, and He offered her living water for her thirsty soul. And that was only the beginning. Instead of capitalizing on vulnerability, Christ modeled protection and empowerment.

We must do the same. No bawdy Stormy Daniels jokes, please, or anything else which belittles any person created in the image of God. People are watching and listening, and we want them to see and hear Jesus. If any woman is being abused, we are to call the authorities at once, and to do everything in our power to intervene, rescue, and redeem. No handling of criminal activity “in house,” which only furthers the suspicions of many women that they are unsafe, even at church. There shall be no conspiracy of silence on our watch!

With all of that being well established, I need to offer just a little more in the way of (hopefully) wisdom for such a time as this. We need to be wary of extremes. On the one hand, there is the denier. This is the person who claims: “We have no problem. Harvey Weinstein may have stepped out of bounds, but women who feel abused or threatened by men are overreacting. There is no crisis in the culture, and there is no threat to the integrity and witness of the church. This is all just a choreographed smokescreen for political gain.” The denier is wrong, and any church adopting this posture will do so to its own internal demise.

On the other hand, the opposite extreme is equally perilous, and equally wicked. This is the person who longs secretly for men to be destroyed. “Let’s bring down the patriarchy, with no presumption of innocence, and without basic human decency. If a few guys fall victim to the overreach of our movement, so be it. The injustice we’re up against is so vile that the ends justify the means.” Surely, like the impending disaster posed by the denier, this would never be the way of Christ.

Friends, social media only fuel both fires. Be very, very careful. We belong to Another. Never forget that.

These are tense and tough times. We have to deal with hard subjects. We have to talk about things in church which would have made our grandparents blush. Because, if we fail to deal with life as we find it, we will leave our children and grandchildren unprepared and ill-equipped to navigate the coming twists and turns in the road. The theologians known as Rascal Flatts said it well: “God blessed the broken road.” It’s the road we’re on, by faith.

Wherever you are, and whatever you’ve experienced, never lose sight of the power of forgiveness. We are the forgivers – it’s simply who we are (Matthew 6:12). As the dark evils of our nation stream more and more into the light of day, a spirit of vengeance and hatred mounts. But that’s not who we are, in Christ.

Just one more thing, please. Our world is broken, but we are not without hope. In Dallas and to the ends of the earth, Oh Jesus, please bless our broken road!

Pastor Charles

Not.

This whole thing has gone way too fast for my liking. My boy is all grown up, but still my boy. He graduates tonight. Among the seniors at his school, Joshua won the science award at the honors ceremony Wednesday. Eileen and I are very proud of him.

But I’ve been choking back the tears for a month.

There is much to celebrate, and much to look forward to about tomorrow. At the same time, I know that 50% of kids Joshua’s age disengage from their faith during their college years. Quite honestly, that statistic terrifies me. The environment is rough. A recent Harvard/George Mason study revealed that at least 25% of college professors self-identify as agnostic or atheist. In case you’re wondering, the general population scores at 5-7%. Contemporary academia seems to breed unbelief. God, please save our kids.

So, friends, this is a huge trust-the-Lord season for me. (I know every season is, but this one actually feels like it.)

Just a few years ago, Josh wrapped his little toes around my fingers. We played in the snow. We fake-wrestled. We read “Imogene’s Antlers” and C.S. Lewis. We watched The Sandlot. We camped out on the beach.

Then I did something stupid. I blinked.

Some parts of being a dad I’ve done O.K. at. Other tests of fatherhood and parenting I’ve failed miserably. Josh has taught us patience. But, truth is, we have taught him the same. I guess we’re all works in progress.

I must tell you that the parts of Joshua’s childhood I’ll miss the most are not the expensive “special” vacations or the notable milestone moments. What I will miss the most is the ordinary. I wake up. Josh is there. I come home. Josh is there. I settle in for the night. Josh is there.

But, today, there’s a cap and gown hanging in Joshua’s room. I can barely look at it. Lord, I need grace to trust You with this. I feel so small, and I feel like I’m releasing my boy into an awfully big world. In August, we will drive a man to the University of North Georgia. (Or he will drive us.)

I already miss Imogene.

“For this child I prayed, and the Lord has granted me my petition that I made to him” (First Samuel 1:27). Thank You, Most Gracious God.

Josh, if you read this, I love you with all my heart.

Pastor Charles