Be prepared.

Tropical Storm Fay has reminded us that living in the Southeast may be paradise, but sometimes paradise can be interrupted by annoying occurrences such as tropical storms and hurricanes.

Just as weather storms are sure to come, storms of life are sure to come. This is nothing new. Our enemy continues to roam the earth seeking someone to devour. Satan has devious plans to destroy Christians who are most threatening to his work. Not every Christian suffers at the hand of Satan or his demons. 2 Timothy 3:12 says, "Indeed, all who desire to live godly in Christ Jesus will be persecuted." As a Christ follower, if you want to live in the world and be part of the world (sounds like an oxymoron, doesn't it?), then chances are, nobody's going to bother you . . . unless you count out the Holy Spirit.

Just like an approaching hurricane, you have time to get prepared. The time to ready for the storm is not when the wind starts blowing, and the time to get ready for the storms of life are not when they arrive. We need to prepare for the storms of life now. We need to stand firm against the attacks of the enemy. We need to get into the Word of God, learn and its powerful truths. We need to put on the full armor of God and stand prepared for battle. Our soldiers in Iraq and Afghanistan defending freedom would never think of going into battle without their battle gear and we should be no different.

I believe the problem stems from who we think Satan is. A 2007 Barna poll found that 46% of born-again Christians deny the existence of Satan; he is only a symbol of evil. Did I miss something? Are they reading from the same book I am? No wonder we're in such a sorry state in the church. We're wrestling against our brothers and sisters in Christ and ignoring our arch enemy and the arch enemy of God. It's time to rethink our spiritual battle plan. Satan is real and he wants to destroy us. Be ready, dust off the armor that God has issued to you, and stand firm. It's what is needful and it's what God expects of us.

Are you ready?

Did I hear this right?

Perhaps some of you have heard of the story of the Florida man that won the lottery. It seems that Robert Powell won 6 million in the Florida lottery and wanted to contribute some cash to his church. I'm not sure how the church found out about Mr. Powell's intentions, but when the pastor did, the church refused to accept the $600,000 donation. The pastor offered no explanation as to why the church would not receive Mr. Powell's donation citing the confidentiality of member giving. Wow.

I want to be very clear on this. I am against playing the lottery. Although you won't find any verses in the Bible that say, "Don't play the lottery," the Bible teaches that Christians are to have a strong work ethic and should avoid get rich quick type schemes. We know the verses and even like to quote them using our spiritual voices; Matthew 6:21: "For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also." And of course the ever popular 1 Timothy 6:10: "For the love of money is a root of all sorts of evil." There are many others, but the kicker is found in the second part of 1 Timothy 6:10: "and some by longing for it [money] have wandered away from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs." Paul provides biblical guidance why we shouldn't long for money. He knows the dangers. That's the fallacy of the lottery that lottery officials don't want you to know. When you yearn or long for riches, you'll end of finding yourself with grief instead. The answer is not more money.

You don't have to believe me, you can do your own research. Many lottery winners are worse off than they were before they won the lottery. How can that be you might ask? Why do poor people stay poor while the rich keep getting richer? The following statement may sound harsh, but it is true. Poor people continue to do what they did to get poor and rich people continue to do what made them rich. You don't see many rich people playing the lottery. There's a reason for that.

All that being said, what would I do if someone came and wanted to offer a donation that resulted from something questionable? First, I don't interview people and ask them how they made their money. Second, you have to realize that money is amoral. It is not good or evil. Are we supposed to evaluate how every dollar that is given to the church was earned? Are we supposed to refuse the dollars that are earned if the giver works at a brewery? Or a distillery? Or a tobacco farm? Or what about the Christian that works as a server in a restaurant and is required to serve alcohol? It's an awful slippery slope to climb when you look at it like that. Of course there are professions I'm sure the Lord would just as soon see eliminated from the world, but let's face it, we still live in a world where sin reigns and as long as we're here, we're at war with an enemy that does not rest.

Would I, as a pastor, accept a donation from someone who won the lottery? Well yes I would. I heard someone once say something like, "The devil's used that money long enough, it's time for the Lord to use it."

You want our address?

Just Look Around You

Last week I had an opportunity to spend some time at my in-law's house in Maggie Valley, NC. I really needed to get away . . . a change of scenery.

Seth and I loaded our motorcycles on Monday morning and headed out. Kari and Amelia came the following day. The weather was absolutely perfect. Warm days and cool nights. Seth and I rode the Blue Ridge Parkway, from the Smokey Mountain National Park to Asheville, NC. This is some of the most glorious riding there is. Sweeping turns, magnificent views, wonderful mountain air, and a mix of the aromas of mountain flowers and freshly cut grass. I rode over to Deal's Gap on the border of North Carolina and Tennessee to ride on U.S. 129 known as the "Tail of the Dragon." It is a motorcycle rider's dream. It is an 11 mile stretch of road that has 318 turns.

Some of my best prayer time has been on my motorcycle, especially on the Parkway. The beautiful scenery certainly declares the handiwork of God's hand. I often wonder how anyone can look at the beauty of nature and not know that there is a Creator that carefully handcrafted every mountain, every rock formation, every tree, every flower, and every blade of grass. The physical beauty of the world as we see it could not have happened by chance. In Paul's fantastic treatise of our faith, he says that God wrote the truth on each of our hearts so that we'll know there is a Creator. (Romans 1:19-21) As authentic Christians, we need to stand against the deception of Satan. There is a God and we must acknowledge His greatness.

I agree with David, "The heavens are telling of the glory of God; And their expanse is declaring the work of His hands." (Psalm 19:1)