Kopp Disclosure
(John 3:19-21)
@#$%
@#$%
I've had to call
on my favorite 1%ers to protect me.
I'm buying mass
candles.
I'm 72 hours into
an absolute fast.
A call has been
placed to my insurance man to increase coverage now that death threats are
imminent.
I've applied for
a permit to carry.
Power of attorney
has been granted to...
I feel like a
scrawny shepherd boy being chased in the desert by a brutish king.
Forget being
disremembered for my 60th and 35th if
you know what I mean.
I'll never be
able to upgrade my pony.
Yeah, it will be
a bestseller; but I'll be long gone before...
Help me, Jesus!
They want those
precious...keys!
@#$%
Uh, now would be
a good time to look to the right and click on "Controversy Comes to
Belvidere Church" to review why I'm in such a desperate state
before riding against the wind avec moi.
@#$%
@#$%
Of course, I'm
just having a little fun and
exercising a little preventive medicine just in case...
It has been interesting
in a penitentially reflective kinda way.
Did you see all
of those comments at the bottom of the last edition?
Whoa.
Not since my
favorite local street preacher told me when the world was gonna end and I
shared it with...
Funky.
Amazing with all
that's goin' on out there that who gets keys to the church should cause such...
@#$%
I knew I
could/may get into lots of trouble over who gets keys when someone really close
to me asked in a rather condescending way if I really think every member of the
family should have a key to "open" areas while exercising some common
sense about other "limited access" (aka offices/studies) lock-downs.
Response:
"Well, uh, I dunno for sure; but I'm just trying to follow Jesus; and I
can't imagine or even re-imagine Jesus keeping keys from family members or
even...If someone can give me a good reason other than stuff like control,
prestige, power, and..."
The conversation
ended.
But it reminded
me of another conversation with Tony about 25 years ago in Kansas City.
Actually, it was
when I was a really young and famous pulpiteer making enough $ to upgrade my
own mule - Psst! There
were folks who would have helped me back then even without me asking and now I
can't figure out why they haven't helped celebrate that 60th and 35th and... - and
I invited Tony and Phil to speak and sing to our officers and church.
I'll never forget
Tony telling us what his son Bart said as a young boy while they were together
in Haiti.
Tony had
counseled Bart, "Now if anybody asks you for money, don't give anything to
them or they'll just keep asking for more."
Bart:
"So?"
Tony said he
never had a good answer for Bart on that one.
Then Tony talked
to us about Matthew 25:31-46.
I kinda feel it's
related to our thing about, uh, keys and, uh, other, uh, stuff.
@#$%
@#$%
Snyder on Tozer:
"He measured everything in the Church by this one criterion: Does it exalt
Jesus Christ?...To Tozer, it seemed that Christianity was in the hands of those
who wanted to be more like the world than like Christ...big business...show
business...Madison Avenue advertising..."
Tozer on
authentic faith: "I do not care what Plato said...Let Plato kneel before
the authoritative Word of God...[The Word of God]...is not the result of a
group of religious people meeting together, having a board meeting and
deciding...I do not go to priests, pastors, bishops, or doctors. I go to
God and His Son, Jesus Christ...We have bushels of religious gatherings but
only once in a great while is God in the midst...[The true Church]...is a
living organism born of the Spirit, washed in the blood of Christ and joined to
the Body of Christ by a mysterious operation of the Holy Ghost called
regeneration...Could it be that the conflict is not with a harlot, a gambler
and the worldly businessman, but with the religionists?...Shall it be a
religion or shall it be Christ? Shall it be churchianity or shall it be
Jesus Christ? Shall it be pride or shall it be humility in Jesus
Christ?...Jesus will not walk with the proud and scornful."
Speaking of keys,
read Matthew 16:19.
I don't pretend
to know all of what He meant there; but it seems to me that the really
important keys are His...and He doesn't keep 'em from anyone in the family.
Go back to Bart.
Go back to Jesus.
Who gets keys?
A little common
sense...and Christianity will...
@#$%
Blessings and Love!
9 comments:
We didn't change the locks, we added a security system. Announcement: If you currently have a key to the church, please come to the office to get a security code so you can enter without tripping the alarm." Three people threatened to leave the church because we "didn't trust them anymore." My answer was, "this is not about trust or a lack of it; this is about being good stewards of the facilities the Lord has given us." After 3 or 4 weeks the grumbling went away. (Of course having someone break into a church just a few blocks away didn't hurt our cause either.)
We didn't change the locks, we added a security system. Announcement: If you currently have a key to the church, please come to the office to get a security code so you can enter without tripping the alarm." Three people threatened to leave the church because we "didn't trust them anymore." My answer was, "this is not about trust or a lack of it; this is about being good stewards of the facilities the Lord has given us." After 3 or 4 weeks the grumbling went away. (Of course having someone break into a church just a few blocks away didn't hurt our cause either.)
This makes too much sense for most churches.
It’s funny that people want the keys to the church. I cant tell you when was the last time I used the key to my own house!
Bob...
Love this...Does it exalt Jesus?!
Bob,
Give everyone who wants one a key, because they will get one sooner or later!!!
We have the same problem (what else is new) but our church was broken into 3 times in the last 5 years.
I wished they used a key, less damage. The latest they stole the outside air system for the copper. To bad we didn’t lock that up!
Life goes on and some things NEVER change!
Watch your back,
Yep.
Dear Bob
Jesus would give them all keys, as you said!!
But who pays attention to Jesus?
Post a Comment