Prayer Opportunities with Chaplain Troy Ray

• Mondays  10:00 AM  Corporate Prayer
• Tuesdays  7:00 "A Bamboo Nation" Student Prayer Gathering
• Thursdays  10:00 AM   Healing Prayers  -- If you have a healing need, please email Chaplain Ray at tray@salisburychristian.org

Heart To Heart March 2010

Torn by Offense

“Those who believe they believe in God….without anguish of mind, without uncertainty,
without doubt, and even at times without despair, believe only in the idea of God, and not God himself.”      Madeline L’Engle

“Then one day, I went into your sanctuary…..”
Psalm 73:17

If we are honest, there are moments when Christianity is offensive for both non-believer and believer. There are a few Old Testament accounts that trouble the intellect and disturb our sense of moral balance. For example, in Judges 11, we read of a man named Jephthah who was engaged in battle with the people Ammon. He asked God for victory and promised to offer up as a sacrifice the first thing that came out to greet him after the battle, should God grant him his request. Jephthah was given victory and the first thing to greet him was his daughter. True to his word, he reluctantly offered his daughter as a human sacrifice. What! Are you kidding me? This story always disturbed me. Why didn’t God stop him? An angel stopped Abraham; why not Jephthah? I’ve read commentators on this account discuss the significance of God’s holiness and the importance of not making rash promises. Yet, imagine what our lives would look like if we had to answer for every rash vow we made before God. How many of us would still be standing? What’s my point? If we are honest, faith is hard and sometimes troubling. I have to believe that God is good even after reading a story like this one.

There are some stories that simply cause ones head to spin. Many would rather not wrestle with questionable plot lines in the Bible or with what appears to be contradictions. It seems that it is best to not ask questions. Yet, I believe that to not wrestle with the complexities of the story, produces a tasteless, lifeless faith and dishonest religion. Asking questions puts us in good company.

Psalm 73 provides us the liberty to question God. Here we find the words of a man named Asaph – a professional worshipper- who struggled with the ways of God. His issue isn’t so much about stories of burning bushes and storms that destroy innocent children. His issue is with the seemingly absence of justice and the dubious benefits of living righteously. His words are refreshing, yet shockingly honest. His was torn by offense. His heart was at war with his God.

Consider his words of dismay:

1-5 No doubt about it! God is good— good to good people, good to the good-hearted. But I nearly missed it, missed seeing his goodness. I was looking the other way, looking up to the people at the top, envying the wicked who have it made,
Who have nothing to worry about, not a care in the whole wide world.

6-10 Pretentious with arrogance, they wear the latest fashions in violence, Pampered and overfed, decked out in silk bows of silliness. They jeer, using words to kill; they bully their way with words. They're full of hot air, loudmouths disturbing the peace. People actually listen to them—can you believe it? Like thirsty puppies, they lap up their words.

11-14 What's going on here? Is God out to lunch? Nobody's tending the store. The wicked get by with everything; they have it made, piling up riches. I've been stupid to play by the rules; what has it gotten me?

The psalmist looks at the people around him who live in disobedience and begins to wonder if this “God-stuff” is worth it. I can imagine him reading the latest copy of People magazine and saying to himself, “Is God really in control of this madness! Look at all those sinners glorying in their arrogance and enjoying themselves to the full. Sin pays well. Look at all of those pretty bodies and pretty faces living pretty lives. Where’s the reward of honest living? I must be kidding myself. Sin is so much more fun. I quit!....Think I’ll listen to some Lady Gaga!”

I don’t know who this brief word may be benefiting but if you are struggling the ways of God, you are not alone. It is alright to be honest. I have discovered that it is difficult to be honest in religious communities. Somehow getting weary is seen as a weakness of faith. I believe that the fact that we stay in the ring is faith worthy. For months, I have personally been in a wrestling match with God over many issues. Some questions I have placed before God would probably offend or trouble those dear to me. Many would question my love for God or even my salvation, but I believe God honors the process of wrestling.
As I look around, I am seeing others wrestle with their faith and unfortunately give in to the pressures of doubt and frustration. I wonder if there were places to be really honest, if many could have their faith restored as well as preserved. Let’s be honest, the God story is difficult.

Personally, I believe in the ancient text we call the Bible. I take it all literally. I don’t understand it all and sometimes I don’t like it. But I have come to the conclusion that when I am torn by offense, God doesn’t reject me. Later, in the Psalm the author finds his solace in the presence of God. The Lord shows him the end of the story. He reminds Asaph that there is a sweet reward for those who endure to the end and that there are dire consequences for those who embrace folly in this life. There are many realities that I cannot explain and I have many questions still unanswered. I trust that every time I choose the Lord over my own desire to walk away, God will deliver me from error. For those who are wrestling, don’t give up. We are too close to the end. God’s kingdom will soon crash through and darkness will one day disappear.

In his All-Consuming Grace,
Pastor Troy Ray, Chaplain