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Well, woe is me.
Or maybe not.
Apparently, I don’t belong within any traditional church denominational-organizational-thing anymore. What’s a bit weird is that, looking back, I never did.
I just didn’t know it.
After all these years, I may have finally discovered some of what was going on in Pilate’s heart and head when he asked Jesus, “What is truth?” Not that that was ever some kind of goal for me. Not at all. After all, Pilate gave the final charge to crucify Jesus. Who cares what he was thinking? But part of the understanding of Pilate’s question is that he was waist-deep in the politics of his day. And I can’t help but wonder if his response to Jesus’ statement about truth was in some way related to the political maelstrom that was always present in the Roman governmental hierarchy.
For a very long time, the United States was a culturally Christian country.
Kinda.
Yes, there was a dividing line between good and evil—except when there wasn’t.
Yesterday, after church at Marco’s, we decided we would go pray for a street beggar. We’d been talking about it for several days, but things kept coming up that prevented us. This beggar is a fixture in town. He sits, day after day, in the same spot on the sidewalk of one of the main streets. Laurie and I have given him food from time to time. He’s missing half of his right leg, and the ankle of his left foot is messed up. I’ve noticed that recently, a half-moon blood-blister-looking boil has developed under his right eye.
I don’t usually mourn the deaths of popular culture stars. I just simply have no connection with them. However, Whitney Houston’s death was different. I’m certain it’s because she was a Christian. One of my all-time favorite Christian songs is her rendition of “I Love the Lord.” She had a spectacular, beautiful voice. That voice was a gift from God. And it’s that topic—giftedness—that I would like to address. There are natural gifts, and there are spiritual gifts. This brief article will deal only with natural gifts.
