Does The Church Have A Voice?

"It is high time we broke with our theologically based restraint toward the government's actions - which after all is only fear. 'Speak out for those who cannot speak' - who in the church today realizes that this is the very least that the Bible requires of us?"

Who spoke these words? A right wing crazy? A Pro-life zealot?

Obviously, it was someone who took God's Word seriously. Isaiah 1:17b reads - Defend the cause of the fatherless, plead the case of the widow.

We are commanded to do this because it is part of God's very nature. We are called to imitate our Father. Deuteronomy 10:17-18a reads - For the Lord  your God is God of gods and Lord of lords, the great God, mighty and awesome, who shows no partiality and accepts no bribes. He defends the cause of the fatherless and the widow . . .

For the last 40 years the church has been leading the way in speaking out for those who cannot speak - the unborn. In spite of this, over 52 million babies have been aborted legally in the United States since the Roe v. Wade decision in 1973.

Soon there will be a new class to speak out for.

Dr. Donald Berwick was recently appointed the head of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS). He is also a strong advocate for transforming our healthcare system into one that imitates NHS in Great Britain. A quick glance at the NHS website reveals a chilling reality - the government there uses a formula to assign values to human lives.

A portion of the official website reads: The enormous costs involved mean that choices have to be made . . . To ensure our judgments are fair, we use a standard and internationally recognized method . . . the quality-adjusted life years measurement (the ‘QALY’).

The QALY is determined by multiplying your life expectancy by a number that corresponds to your "quality of life". Your quality of life is determined by an agent of the government. Then, using the QALY, they calculate how much your life is worth. If you are young or have a higher quality of life, then you have great worth. If you are aged or have a lower quality of life, then you are worth less.

How can we reconcile this concept with the fact that our Savior gave His life for ours? Are some lives worth more than others? Are other lives worth-less? There have been times in world history where large groups of people believed this lie, and the consequences were unspeakable.

In those dark times in history, few spoke up for the worth-less. Why should they speak out? After all they were proud, patriotic citizens and these decisions were being made for the good of the country.

Scripture clearly teaches that all life is precious; there are no worth-less lives. Scripture clearly commands us to speak out for those who cannot speak; there are no worth-less lives.

The church has a decision to make. Will we speak out? If this national effort to calculate the value of a human life cannot be prevented, the church will have additional decisions to make. Will we care for those whose lives have been determined to be worth-less? Will we agree by our silence that some lives are worth more than others? Will we allow this cancer to grow unchecked in our culture?

The choice is ours. The worth-less are depending on the church to find and use its voice.

By the way, the words that began this article were penned on September 11^th . . . 1934. They were written by a German pastor named Dietrich Bonhoeffer. Eleven years and more than 6 million "worth-less" Jewish lives later, the world was concluding the Second World War; a war that claimed an additional 60 million lives during the conflict. Were all of those lives worth-less? Were ANY of those lives worth-less? How would history have changed if the church had found its voice?

Questions or comments? Write curt@smdcog.org

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There Is No Such Thing As a Free Dog

There is no such thing as a free dog. Our family discovered that three years ago. We received a curly-haired, black bundle of joy called Teddy as a Christmas gift - absolutely free . . . or so we thought. Three years later, he has become the beloved beta-male of the Ferrell pack, but he has come with a price.

We feed him and take him to the vet. We purchase flea, tick, and heartworm medicine monthly. We purchased a cage for use while he was house trained and a series of ceramic bowls for him to sleep in. I don't know why he liked sleeping in ceramic bowls, but every few weeks he grew out of the old bowl and needed a larger one.

Eventually he grew out of his small cage and we purchased a bigger one. Now he sleeps on top of it and dreams of being Snoopy chasing down the Red Barron! Add up all of the toys, snacks, food, medicine, collars and leashes, and we could put a good down payment on my daughters' college education. There is no such thing as a free dog.

In addition, we have lost some of our freedom as a family. When the 'pack' travels and stops at the Speedway or Wal-Mart, we can't all go inside; someone says behind with Teddy. When we travel without Teddy, we find someone to take care of him while we are gone. We cannot go too far away or for too long, because Teddy must be cared for. We can no longer play card games on the living room floor because Teddy lays down on the discard pile. He just wants to be the center of attention.

While I dearly love our little fuzz ball, if we had known the expense and the loss of certain freedoms we may have thought longer before accepting the 'free Christmas gift.' We may have recalled the words of Christ, "Suppose one of you wants to build a tower. Will he not first sit down and estimate the cost to see if he has enough money to complete it?"

Unfortunately, our nation seems to have made the same mistake 'the Ferrell pack' did, only on a grander scale. The idea of universal health care is wonderfully exciting! No more pain, no more sickness, no doctors performing unnecessary tonsillectomies in order to buy a new yacht; or so the rumor goes in Washington. But have we counted the cost? Do we have the money to pay for this 'free gift?' Have we listened to sound advice from scripture?

Scripture teaches that a blessed nation "lends to many nations but will borrow from none." How does that square with our position as a nation? Scripture says, "It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery." Yet we have clearly given up our freedom of choice in exchange for the illusion of security. We are advised to "defend the cause of the weak and fatherless," yet we have affirmed legislation that will provide funding for abortions, unaffected by any Executive Order.

Over just a handful of decades the church has accepted the idea, an idea that was foreign to the founders of this great nation, that faith has no place in the public square. And Christians, in particular, cannot and should not try to influence political thought. God save us from our own ignorance! There is no such thing as a free dog, and there is no such thing as free health care. Freedom itself isn't free; it was given to us by our Creator and defended with the blood of hundreds of thousands of men and women who laid down their lives so that we could experience freedom.

If the events of the past few weeks stand unchallenged, we may come to love and appreciate our new-found security. But at what price? We have exchanged the gift from our Creator for the gift from our government. We have exchanged our freedom for security. But at what cost?

There is no such thing as a free dog.

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It's Time To Think . . .

Courier-Times Article for June 6th, 2009

It's time to think . . .

Earlier this year, a prominent U.S. politician said , "Our moral authority is derived from the fact that generations of our citizens have fought and bled to uphold these values, [life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness], in our nations and others. And that's why we can never sacrifice them for expedience's sake."

The statement sounds thoughtful and profound, but is it? It sounds like a truth that spans generations, but is it?

As Americans, we've gotten lazy. We don't like to think much. Just go with the flow; live and let live; my truth may not be your truth. Unfortunately, in many cases, the church has stopped thinking as well.

We used to be called people of the WORD, but now we spend much of our time debating whether that word is TRUE. Should churches ordain homosexuals or bless homosexual unions? After all, THOSE parts of the bible might not be true. Should we be more concerned about babies who were aborted or those chained by poverty? Let's pick one and ignore the other . . . That's the content of many of our discussions.

The Word of God is the Law that governed the Israelites, and the foundation that birthed the church. At some point, many in the church have become untethered from the Word of God and have now turned around and questioned its veracity. This behavior would have utterly confounded the Christ-followers in Berea.

Dr. Luke records that the believers in Berea, after listening to the preaching of Paul, examined the Scriptures every day to determine that what Paul said was true. To the Breans, scripture was the source of truth, the measuring stick to determine whether the greatest preacher of their time was speaking truth. Moral authority was found in holy scripture, not in the sacrifice of fellow citizens.

The Bible speaks very clearly about the sanctity of life; about our responsibility to the poor, the orphaned and the widow; about God's view of homosexual behavior. The church needs to rediscover the authority found in the Word of God and stand on it. However, that kind of stance could become something more than politically incorrect, it could become illegal.

The U.S. Senate is considering a Hate Crimes Bill (S.909) which could be used to prosecute ministers for declaring God's truth on homosexuality. Will the church "search the scriptures" to find the truth, or will we poll the people to find out what is acceptable?

If we fail to think through all of these issues, and instead follow "thoughtful and profound words" blindly, we will end up in places we never thought we would be. After all, if our moral authority lies in the sacrifices made by our fellow citizens, then both the Palestinians and the Israelis have moral authority. The Nazis and the Japanese had moral authority during World War II, just like the Allied Forces. If shedding blood is the only prerequisite for establishing moral authority then gangs like the Bloods, the Crips, the Mafioso, the MS-13, and the Yakuza each have the same moral authority as the fighting men and women of the U.S. military.

Moral authority can only be found in the author of morality. It's time to learn from the Christ-followers in Berea. It's time to search the Word of God for timeless and time tested truth. It's time to think. Don't ya' think?


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Freedom of Choice?

Courier-Times Article for November 15, 2008

In the halls of our nation’s capital, legislators are considering HR1964 and S1173. These are the United States House and Senate bills titled “The Freedom of Choice Act”. The bills are nearly identical, only about 2 pages long each, and you can read them at your leisure on the internet. Unfortunately, as Christians, we do not have the luxury of being leisurely in our response to this “act” of Congress.

If these bills are passed and signed into law by the President it would impact Indiana communities in the following ways.

Abortions after the first 12 weeks would become legal. (Abortions in the first 12 weeks are already legal.)

A requirement would be removed that women considering abortions be given information regarding: the nature of the proposed procedure; the risks of and alternatives to the procedure; the probable gestational age of the fetus, including an offer to provide a picture or drawing of a fetus, the dimensions of a fetus, and relevant information on the potential survival of a fetus at that stage of development; the risks associated with carrying the pregnancy to term; the name of the physician who will perform the abortion; and the availability of ultrasounds and fetal heart tone services. These women would not receive this additional information: that medical assistance benefits may be available for prenatal care, childbirth, and neonatal care; that the "father" is liable for child support; and that adoption alternatives are available and that the adoptive parents may legally pay the costs of prenatal care, childbirth, and neonatal care. In addition they could proceed to an abortive procedure with no waiting period to consider all of the ramifications of their decision. (Currently they must wait 18 hours to consider all of their options.)

Physicians, hospitals, and hospital staff members would no longer have the protection of Indiana laws to refuse to provide abortions based on moral or ethical beliefs.

Minors would no longer need parental consent to have an abortion, and parents would not even need to be notified that such a procedure occurred.

Abortions could be preformed by people other than Indiana licensed physicians and in places other than licensed hospitals or surgical centers.

Babies who had grown to the point where they could survive outside the womb would no longer have protection under Indiana law, making second and third trimester abortions and partial-birth abortions legal.

These facts are not from pro-life sources. All of this information comes from The National Abortion and Reproductive Rights Action League (NARAL) website.

From a biblical perspective, scripture is clear – God asks us to choose life.

Deuteronomy 30:19 reads: This day I call heaven and earth as witnesses against you that I have set before you life and death, blessings and curses. Now choose life, so that you and your children may live . . . (NIV)

Scripture says that life begins in the womb.

Read Psalm 139:13-16: For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother's womb. I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well. My frame was not hidden from you when I was made in the secret place. When I was woven together in the depths of the earth, your eyes saw my unformed body. All the days ordained for me were written in your book before one of them came to be. (NIV)

Even if scripture were not clear, the “Freedom of Choice Act” actually removes freedoms and safeguards that most Hoosiers hold dear.

Women who were considering abortions would not have the freedom to make an informed choice.

Physicians, hospitals, and hospital staff would no longer have the freedom to follow their own convictions of ethical and moral behavior. Rather, they would be faced with a choice of their own: stop preacticing medicine altogether, or move to a nation that believes in freedom of choice for medical professionals.

Parents would no longer have the freedom of being with their minor daughters during a major medical procedure, nor would they have the freedom of giving their minor daughters guidance and counsel. Children would, in effect, become wards of the state once they are born.

Communities would no longer have the freedom of deciding who can perform abortions and where they can be performed. Nothing would prevent unqualified persons from performing abortions in neighborhoods, schools, or hotel rooms.

Finally, infants would no longer have the freedom to fight for life. Regardless of their “viability” outside the womb, infants who were not “completely” born could have their lives snuffed out with the blessing of the federal government.

That’s where we come in. This is still a nation “of the people, by the people, and for the people” and you and I still have a voice.

So, if you value freedom then speak up! Write, call, and e-mail your national leaders, your Senators and Congresmen and women. Let President Bush and President-elect Obama know that you do not want them to sign that bill if it passes congress.

If you believe in the authority of the Word of God then your responsibility is greater. Not only do you need to use your voice to protect freedom and the lives of the unborn, you have the obligation to pray for your leaders that they will make wise and God-honoring choices. Pray for women who find themselves in the midst of an unwanted pregnancy. Give to ministries like the Henry County Pregancy Care Center and CRADLES that care for women who choose to keep their children. Consider adopting infants born to women who cannot keep their children, or supporting an adoptive family financially.

If we refuse to act, if our busy lives “prevent” us from excersicing our constitutional freedom of speech or our constitutional responsibility of self government, if we remain silent out of fear or apathy, we will lose many of our freedoms to a law called the Freedom of Choice Act. The choice is yours.


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There's a Higher Moral Law

I am writing in response to the Cokie and Steven V. Roberts, Newspaper Enterprise Assn., article “The ‘agents of intolerance’ return” published in The Courier-Times on Wednesday, October 17, 2008.
What role should faith play in American politics? How compatible is orthodox religion with the practical functioning of democracy?
That was a great way to start an article. Unfortunately, what followed is proof that the Roberts’ totally misunderstand people with a conservative Christian world view.
Texas preacher Rick Scarborough had it exactly right; it’s not about winning elections. For the conservative Christian it is exclusively about honoring Christ and the authority of God’s word.
Politics is about compromise and there are many areas where we can reason together and reach compromises. Should we pave or gravel-top this road? Should we spend 5 million or 10 million on cancer research? Should we mandate full-day Kindergarten and allow school vouchers for private schools? In all of these areas compromises can be reached that benefit the community while not violating a moral law. However, following the Judeo-Christian God with integrity has nothing to do with compromise when it comes to moral law, or what conservative Christians would call “clear biblical truth.”
Ask Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego from the Hebrew Scriptures who said, “We will not bow!” Translation: we will not compromise about this. Daniel even accommodated the king who kidnapped him along with other promising young leaders like Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego by serving as a royal advisor, and eventually as the king’s most loved and trusted advisor. But when it came to things as simple as his personal prayer life or diet, Daniel drew a line in the Babylonian sand and said, “I will not disobey God. There are some things that I just will not do.”
In the New Testament the Apostle Paul wrote in his second letter to the Corinthian church, “What do righteousness and wickedness have in common? Or what fellowship can light have with darkness?” And the Apostle John wrote that “God is light; in him there is no darkness at all. If we claim to have fellowship with him yet walk in the darkness, we lie and do not live by the truth.
Following God is about purity in thought and deed. In our own power, we cannot attain absolute purity, but that doesn’t mean we shouldn’t strive for it. Just because compromise is easy and/or acceptable in the political realm doesn’t mean we should lay aside strongly held beliefs simply to gain a political victory. Even our own poets like Frost say we will be rewarded if we “take the road less traveled.”
Sean Hannity is right when he says that if conservative Christians abstain from the political process, “the result will be far worse for the cause that I know [James Dobson] passionately and deeply” believes in, and the nation will live with the consequences. But God forbid if we sell our souls for a short lived, hollow, political victory.
Religion as the dominant credo or a blueprint for public policy may or may not be a source of discord. But religion as the blueprint for a well lived life is essential. Voting for someone who doesn’t value life enough to protect it, is a violation of a biblically informed personal blueprint, and red flag indicating a life that is being lived without moral integrity. In 2007, no one in their right mind would vote for someone advocating slavery. But that was not the case 140 years ago.
In the pre- and post-Civil War years, politicians were having a very similar discussion as the one we find ourselves in today. But they were not discussing the right-to-life or the sanctity of marriage, they were discussing the right to buy, own, and sell other people. Slavery isn’t wrong because we all decided it was wrong. And slavery wouldn’t have been right if the Confederate States had won the war. Slavery is wrong because a higher moral law says it is wrong. Killing pre-born babies, and destroying the definition and structure of marriage, is wrong because that same moral law declares it is wrong.
The congressional votes cited by Senator John Danforth (R-MO) regarding stem-cell research and Terri Schiavo can be seen clearly in the light of this higher moral law. Polls, political practice, Senators, and opinion writers cannot change that law.
Many times we enter the voting booth, hold our noses, and pick the candidate we can tolerate the best, not the one we like the most. However, there may come a time when people of faith cannot, in good conscience, vote for any of the candidates presented by the political machine. Abstaining at the ballot box is not the equivalent of political ignorance or of moral intolerance. Sometimes choosing not to vote is the only choice you can make and still sleep well at night. Conservative Christians who refuse to make “compromises” on moral issues may or may not understand the American system. But a nation that refuses to acknowledge a higher moral law, as well as the Giver of that moral law, does so at its own peril, and a Christian who does so will certainly have a higher authority to answer to.

It’s Time to Pray – Two Years Later

Christian Perspectives Article – Courier-Times – September 22, 2007

It’s time to pray. It’s always been time to pray. This time it’s the youth’s turn.

That’s how I started my article two years ago. Not much has changed.

On Wednesday, September 26, 2007 students all across the country will gather again outside their school around the flagpole to pray for their school, their teachers, their principals, their fellow students, as well as the nation.

At first glance, our nation appears to be experiencing an extended period of peace. It’s been six years since terrorists have launched an attack on this land. It’s been eight and one-half years since the Columbine shootings. And the war in Iraq has not directly impacted most of the country. We don’t feel like we’re at war.

But a closer look still reveals several raging battles with new battle lines being formed every day.

The drug abuse problem in Henry County is still destroying families, causing financial heartache, and robbing the future of too many of our young people. Alcohol abuse on our high school and college campuses is so pervasive that many college freshmen think that “keggers” are one of the most significant parts of college life.

Modern media outlets, including movies, television, and popular music still promote a sexually experimental lifestyle that threatens our students with Sexually Transmitted Diseases (STDs) and emotional abandonment. Entertainers are now open hostile toward Christ and the church and receive praise for their verbal attacks.

Just this week a State Senator in Nebraska filed a lawsuit against God for terroristic threats and untold damages from natural disasters. And because our courts have lost their way with regard to abortion, there are over forty-eight-million fewer citizens of the United States who are thirty years and under. In this war, we have had enough infant casualties to fill more than forty-eight cities the size of Indianapolis.

Two years of “recovery” from the damage caused by Katrina still reveals racial and class divisions that are deep and growing deeper. A friend of mine from Louisiana believes that racial hatred is strong in New Castle. Is he right?

Our political system has been reduced to deceptive power plays and character assassination. We no longer look for the best candidate or nominee, but the person what will do our biding. There are few statesmen, and precious little leaders with personal or professional integrity. Gone are the days where we can have honest debates over the facts and refrain from personal attacks. Negative attack ads and “October political surprises” are the norm.

Even the church is showing signs of moral failure and battle fatigue. National religious leaders continue to be caught in scandals, whole denominations are rejecting the authority of the Word of God, and faith statements are now being used as political tools. Have we forgotten that St. Anne’s Catholic Church was burned on the morning before Easter Sunday? Are you aware of the spiritual crisis that many churches in Henry County are experiencing?

I want to believe that our youth know what is required in times like these, but the unity we experienced two years ago is waning. Many of them led the way that summer with Project 4.12 when they spent one week working to make our community a better place to live. They invested hundreds of work-hours cleaning, painting, raking, and ministering. They set an example that few adults have followed; and now I fear the youth themselves have become jaded.

This Wednesday morning they will again have the opportunity to lead the way by gathering across denominational boundaries and praying for our community. Many will sing songs of praise with fellow students who worship weekly in different buildings with distinct liturgies. Some will shed tears for friends and teachers as they intercede for them before a Holy God. School administrators will be lifted up in prayer, as well as city, state, and national governmental leaders.

If you know of a student in the school system, encourage him or her to discover more information about See You at the Pole and how it will be observed at their school. If no student in your school has begun planning for this year, it’s not too late. Go to www.syatp.com to find out how your student can organize a morning prayer time around the flag pole.

Is there any reason to petition God to intervene on behalf of this nation? Do we need to pray for this community? Are we too busy to talk to God about our youth?

It’s time to pray. It’s always been time to pray. The See You at the Pole event starts at 7:00 am at your local school flagpole. Parents and other interested individuals are encouraged to gather off school property and participate in their own prayer time.

When Tolerance Masquerades As Grace

Courier-Times Article for Saturday, May 26, 2007

John, a disciple of Jesus, said, “The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the One and Only, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth . . . From the fullness of his grace we have all received one blessing after another. For the law was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ. No one has ever seen God, but God the One and Only, who is at the Father's side, has made him known.”

Is Grace available from Christ and from the church? Yes, but Grace does not come alone, she always comes with Truth. They are two sides of the same coin.

Grace without Truth is simply Tolerance, and Tolerance doesn’t care about the truth. In fact, the kind of Tolerance we see in today’s society denies the very existence of truth. The one-word, hallmark response of Tolerance is, “Whatever.”

Hank Aaron’s homerun record is about to be eclipsed by a man who has probably used steroids to achieve that feat. Whatever.

Another drunk-driver kills an innocent traveler. Whatever.

Drug abuse is ravaging our neighborhoods, destroying families, and fueling violent crime. Whatever.

Since 1973, defenseless infants have been killed in the womb 48.5 million times in the United States alone. Whatever.

A convicted sex-offender, a repeat offender while out on bail for three new counts of child sexual molestation, is arrested for raping and killing a 16-year-old girl in Cambridge City. Whatever.

Tolerance doesn’t care about the truth. Tolerance is killing our society.

Tolerance says, “Don’t worry about it. Let’s just act like it didn’t happen.” Grace and Truth say, “What happened was wrong. It will not be tolerated, but confession, repentance, and redemption are possible.”

Tolerance says, “Judge not, lest you be judged.” Grace and Truth say, “Today I set before you life and death. Choose life!”

Grace is not cheap, and it is not painless but it is the only way to fight and overcome evil in our world. Tolerance seems free, but in the end the price we all pay is greater pain, destruction, and death. Tolerance extends and enables evil, and when we promote Tolerance without Truth, you and I are the ones responsible for all the evil that follows.

Many good words in the English language have been hijacked, and had their meanings changed. Tolerance is one of those words.

In the real world, Tolerance is a measurement with specific boundaries. If a car part is manufactured with a tolerance of plus or minus 3/16ths of an inch, all parts made outside that tolerance are judged flawed and unusable.

If a drug is manufactured with a Tolerance of 0.2% contaminants, any batch measuring 99.7% pure is rejected and unfit for human consumption.

Tolerance, when used accurately, is when we recognize a true standard, and then judge the results by that standard. And thank God for specific boundaries on tolerance. Otherwise replacement parts for cars wouldn’t fit, and prescription drugs would be killing people instead of healing them.

The word, Whatever, should only be used on holiday weekends when deciding between a hamburger or a hotdog. It should never be used when talking about steroid use in sports, drunk-driving, drug abuse, abortion on demand, or sex-offenders. These things are wrong! We need to say it, and mean it, and do something to ruthlessly eliminate them from our society.

But Christ and the church also say to the individuals who have been caught up in these intolerable actions, “There is One who purchased a way out. You are not hopeless, choose life. You must live with the earthly consequences of your actions because your behavior cannot be tolerated. You can, however, choose a new road, a new direction, and a new destination.” Grace and Truth.

Is Grace available? Only when accompanied by Truth. When Grace comes alone, it’s only Tolerance in disguise. We cannot tolerate anything less than Grace and Truth together.

A Week Of Questions About Life And Death

Courier-Times Article for Saturday, April 21, 2007

Monday, April 16th, 2007 is a day that many will not soon forget. It was a day of unimagined tragedy on a university campus in Virginia. It was a day of several heroes and at least one coward who took the lives of 32 other people rather than deal honestly with the pain in his own life. It was a day of death and dying.

It was also a day of life and living. On Monday, I became an uncle again. My brother and his wife brought an 8-pound, 20-1/2 inch bundle of joy into the world; her name is Jessica. In a hospital in Michigan it was a day of unimaginable possibilities. It was a day of hope and excitement.

The questions that are being asked today in Virginia are the same we ones being asked after 9-11 and Columbine. They are the same questions that were being asked on Sunday morning, December 7, 1941 in Pearl Harbor and in the concentration camps in Germany. They are the same questions that were asked after the Galveston Hurricane of 1900 where at least 8000 people lost their lives. Why did it happen? Could it have been prevented? If God is a loving God why did He let this happen?

These are valid questions. And it is important to wrestle with these questions. In the days following these tragedies many got tired of answering these questions and turned to entertainment. We needed a distraction because we didn’t want to deal with the questions. But we must wrestle with these questions until we understand who God is and who we are.

There is a character in the bible named Jacob who wrestled with God. It was only recently that I’ve come to see what that wrestling match was all about. When I was younger, it just seemed like a weird story about God wrestling with Jacob, Jacob not letting go of God until God blessed him, and Jacob being injured in the wrestling match resulting in a life-long limp. The key to this story is God’s question to Jacob, “What is your name?”

When God asks a question, it’s not because He doesn’t know the answer. God knew who Jacob was; He wanted to know if Jacob would be honest about who he was.

The last time Jacob was asked that question was also the last time Jacob was seeking a blessing from his father Isaac. When Isaac asked Jacob who he was, Jacob lied and said he was Esau, Jacob’s older brother. Jacob was seeking a blessing that wasn’t rightfully his; it belonged to his brother Esau. Jacob’s deception with Isaac resulted in a time of wandering, loneliness, and wrestling.

When we wrestle with God about issues, the only way to be blessed is to deal honestly with who we are and who God is. It might be painful, but it is the only way to be released from the time of wrestling.

If we are honest we will see that God is good, all the time; He is good in Virginia Tech and He is good in a hospital in Michigan. If we are candid we will also understand that we are imperfect; Cho Seung-Hui was imperfect and baby Jessica is imperfect. Also, if we are transparent with God, we will realize that we will all die just as we were all given life on the day of our birth. We may never know all of the reasons behind the tragedies in Virginia Tech, Columbine, Pearl Harbor, Dachau, or any of a thousand other heartrending locations. The question today is, will we discover the reasons for God giving us life?

The question about why God gave us birth is even greater than the questions about why God allowed “unexpected” deaths. As we wrestle with the life and death events of this past week, including the United States Supreme Court decision to uphold a ban on partial-birth abortions, remember the example of Jacob and how his honesty with God resulted in the birth of a nation. That nation bears Jacob’s new name even today, the name that God gave him after their wrestling match – Israel.

Why did God give you life? For what reason did God bring you into this world? You’ll only find out if you deal honestly with God even in the dark days. My prayer is that my new niece will discover the “whys” behind her birth and will choose to fulfill God’s plan for her life.