Satan Gotcha Good, Church, Real Good

My ebook, The Poverty of Patriarchy, takes a look at the poverty (and resulting chaos) created by patriarchy. Despite what you've been taught in your church, patriarchy is not a Biblically condoned system of operation. When Jesus came, He blew patriarchy out of the water, yet the vast majority of evangelical churches retain it as though it's some badge of godliness that we should never abandon. And, those same evangelicals, instead of listening to someone with an opposing view, condemn us, call us liberals and limit their contact with us. They show no compassion or willingness to listen to something different than what they have been brought up to believe.

Of all things I've observed through encounters with these evangelical leaders, their lack of compassion speaks the loudest to me. They are immediately defensive and seem to be desperate to share their view at the expense of silencing mine. This experience has taught me that a lack of compassion is a first indicator of a lack of fellowship with Christ. These evangelicals are not all they are cracked up to be if they display a lack of compassion. They need to re-examine their relationship with Jesus and that requires getting down off their high horse.

This was especially evident to me when I revealed how an upsetting encounter with a janitor in the ladies room at First Baptist Church, Laurel, MD happened. You can read what happened here. I was met with anger, denial, threats, all kinds of name calling and many other ungodly responses from so-called Christians. But, there was one exception....one young man, when he heard about it from one of my sons, immediately said, "Is your mom ok?" He was the sole person, outside my family and true friends, who showed compassion. Even church leadership said, "That doesn't sound like Fitz." (The current pastor of that church did apologize, but as soon as the apology came out of his mouth, his wife negated it, saying I was "hurting the church." Um, no, Fitz is hurting the church and you all are by allowing him to continue to burst into the ladies room unannounced.)

That being said, it occurred to me this weekend that my book already needs a revision and update because I saw another missing avenue caused by patriarchy and I need to add this to the book. Billy Graham's funeral was broadcast over Facebook Live (and I'm sure other venues), so I was able to watch a portion of it. I heard all his kids give their testimonies of their father and one of his daughters said her resolve to preach the gospel wherever she went was strengthened due to her father's death.

As soon as I heard her say that, I realized that no evangelical church would dare let her go in their midst and preach the gospel. This was a stunning thought. Here is someone obviously moved and changed by the power of Jesus Christ, yet she would be prevented from sharing that gospel for one reason and one reason only: she's a woman.

Has the evangelical church as a whole limited the spread of the gospel by silencing their women and only allowing them to serve in a secondary role? I would not want to be guilty of this when I meet my Maker. Oh, my, I shudder to think of it.

For this reason alone, evangelical churches might want to revisit the Scriptures and discover for themselves that patriarchy is not God's intended way. Most churches depend more on tradition than Scriptural teaching when it comes to this issue. But, I repeat, Jesus blew patriarchy out of the water and we'd be wise to do the same.

Is patriarchy hindering the spread of the gospel? I believe it is. To allow half the followers of Christ to remain silenced is to hinder the spread of the gospel and that is not something I'm willing to be guilty of.

Satan gotcha good on this one, church, real good.

~Tricia

While You Were.......

A few weeks ago, I wrote this poem and put it up on my Facebook wall. Today, I thought it was a good idea to share it here, on my blog. With all the tragedy our nation is facing and all the uncertainty we face as a nation, perhaps this will help us focus on what's really important.

While You Were.....

While you were fighting for your rights,

Your neighbor up and died.

He did not hear you tell him,

Of your Jesus crucified.

Instead he heard your latest call

For things you would not buy.

He didn't really have a clue

What price he'd pay for that lie.

The lie is very clear now,

As plain as it can be.

The lie is known to all who dwell

Without Christ for eternity.

The lie is simple to believe

And sounds so true and right.

The lie so sorely tempts us

To fight for a human plight.

But, alas, the lie is just that

A lie, no more, no less

The lie distracts us all

From His righteousness.

For what difference will it make

In your neighbor's eternity

If he enters it while living right,

While Hell remains his destiny?

He can wear a tie

And be straight as he can be

And still face the plight

Of a Christ-less eternity.

We're better off to fight

for the Gospel every day,

A fight that we are sure to win

For the price that Jesus paid

All man's pride, gay or straight

Will be brought down one day

By the One Who conquered sin

By the One Who lights the way.

So,  tell those neighbors yet today

The joy that waits for them,

When they put their faith in the Savior

Who can save them from their sin.

This Savior will save them

As only He can,

And create in them

A completely new man!

A man who does no longer need

To lean upon his sin:

A man who surely will not stay,

In the path of his own whim.

A changed man your neighbor can be

If he will trust Christ for his eternity.

The Gospel makes the difference

In the lives of all people today,

Not a boycott or a protest;

Not a petition about being gay.

The Gospel takes a man

And makes him new inside;

So his sin no longer rules his life

And he looks to the Crucified.

Even you, all taut with pride

Can find eternal rest with the crucified,

So, please do tell me,

Why do you protest?

He died for you, too

To light and show the way,

To His eternal peace and rest,

You can know Him today.

~Tricia

Mentioning Jesus/Giving the Gospel

Mentioning Jesus at the end of a funeral message is not the same as giving the Gospel at a funeral.  Just so you know.

My husband attended the funeral of one of our members this week.  Even though the person was a member of our church, my husband did not preach the funeral.  We have no idea why he wasn't invited to do just that; it's normally a given with a sitting pastor.  But, another man preached the funeral and my husband attended.  And this other preacher did not give the Gospel message - not even once - during his message.  He mentioned Jesus at the end of his message, but that is not the same as giving the Gospel message.

My husband is troubled.  His burden - as ANY pastor's burden - is to lead his flock in light of the Gospel at all times.  A funeral is always attended by those who do not know the Savior and they need the Gospel. Not only so they can know Him, but the Gospel eases the pain of their hearts at a time of utter human sorrow.  My husband always preaches the Gospel at every funeral, without fail.  He has preached literally to thousands through funerals over his 29 years in the ministry and he has given the Gospel at every single one of the funerals he's preached.

So, the saddest part of the day is not the fact that this family laid their loved one to eternal rest. She's in Glory with her Savior.  The saddest part of the day is that NOT ONE person heard the Good News of the Gospel of Jesus Christ at her funeral.  So, so very, very sad.

Where does my theology come into this?  A deeper resolve to do the right thing no matter what.  A deeper respect for my husband for going to show respect for that member, even though it was humiliating to be ignored.  A firmer decision to live out the Gospel even in light of those who ignore it.

~Tricia

Bold Faith

I've been thinking about the bold faith of a friend of mine recently and every single time I think about it, I'm even more amazed.  This friend of mine purposely provokes people to think about Jesus Christ.  He's relentless; he provokes people ON PURPOSE!  He said to me once, "Oh, I've been provoking my brother-in-law with the Gospel and I will keep on provoking him."  Can you imagine?  He's not from the US, so  I have to wonder if that's why he's so bold.  In his country, is boldness more required? Or is it a case of reception, i.e. how he's received?  Do people condemn him, start rumors about him, shun him, or lie about him because of his boldness?  In the US, that's what often happens when we speak boldly about the Gospel and provoke anyone.  It has happened to me and I wasn't even purposely provoking anyone!

Here in the US, we don't provoke people.  Oh, a preacher might - from his pulpit.  My husband has had people walk out on his preaching more than once because of his bold, direct message.  Yet, he continues to preach the whole council of God, with or without the hearers' approval.  But, as a general rule, the vast majority of the Christians I know don't purposely provoke people.  When people don't receive our message, we tend to tone it down to make it more palatable.

The main reason we don't provoke people seems to be fear.  We fear rejection. We fear being labeled. We fear losing a relationship.  We fear.  Ok, I get fear.  Fear runs rampant.  We tolerate even heresy within the church because of fear.  Is our fear bigger than our burden?  Oh, I hope not!

Most people don't think there's heresy within the church.  I see it all the time, however.  I see it when a preacher promotes a political agenda rather than a Gospel agenda.  I see it when major doctrinal heresy is tolerated in the church in the name of "Christian" love. If we first love Christ, we will not tolerate or allow false doctrine within the church.  We will stand against it, not openly tolerate it.  Is it hard to speak out?  As my fellow Minnesotans would say, "You betcha!"  But, as hard as it is, it's necessary for the Gospel message to get out and remain pure.

I recall once when a lady in a Sunday School class stated, as part of a discussion, "Well, it doesn't have to be all about Jesus all the time!"  I was shocked at a statement like that, but didn't say anything.....(fear).  A couple of weeks later, she repeated the same thing and that time, I did not stay quiet.

I said, "Yes, it is all about Jesus, all the time. If it isn't, we can all just go home now."  The lady who spoke out was not happy with me.  My boldness for pure doctrine cost me that relationship; she walked away.  So be it.   Another time, a lady stood up and said, "We need to set aside the Word of God and love one another." At the time, I said nothing, but the next morning, I called her on the phone to clarify what she said. I thought certainly she didn't realize what she had just said, or that I had surely heard wrong.  Well, not only did she reiterate what she said the night before, she got even bolder about it!  So, I knew where she stood.......she set aside God's Word.  Was I bold for calling her on it?  You betcha!  Did I have a choice?  I don't think so. Does someone who truly knows Jesus Christ openly and intentionally set aside His Word?  Oh, my.  She desperately needs the Gospel.

So, that is why I will continue to be bold.  Plus, on the day when I meet Him face to face, I won't be ashamed - at least of that.  I truly admire my bold friend and hope that I can follow his example and step it up.

~Tricia

Why I'm Against Prayer in Public School

Whoa!  What a title!  Someone could read just the title of this blog and label me as a liberal who should not dare call herself a Christian.  However, if anyone takes the time to read this entire blog post, they will realize a more honest assessment.  Let me explain.

Don't get me wrong, I am all for prayer.  I just don't agree with prayer being pushed in the schools.  In a nutshell, here are my reasons for not supporting prayer in schools:

1. Christians don't need the world's permission to pray.  If a Christian student wants to pray, he or she can simply pray.  When prayer was banned for Daniel in chapter 6 of his book, he didn't seek permission to pray, he simply prayed as he had been praying.  Without fanfare. Without announcement.  Without permission.  Yes, it still caused him some trouble, but he did  it anyway.  He did not fight against that trouble, but simply trusted God to deliver him out of that trouble - and He surely did.

2. Our goal as Christians is not to fight for our "rights."  We have no rights.  Any benefits given to us are blessings from God, even if they are packaged in the world's wrapping paper.  Our goal is specifically given in Mark 16:15 - "Go ye into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature."  If we are busy fighting for our rights, it's highly unlikely we'll be preaching the gospel at the same time.  We come to the world with a message that saves and this should be our focus.  Demanding prayer in school saves no one.

3. Who's to say what type of prayer is to be prayed in the schools?  If we require prayer in school, your child may well be led in prayer by a member of a false religion praying to a pagan god.  There is no guarantee.  This would be their opportunity to spread their doctrines, no matter how far removed they are from yours.

Keep praying at home, in secret, in your closet, behind closed doors, as we are admonished to do in Matthew 6:6.  Keep praying at school, on your way from one class to another, on your lunch break, for your fellow students and opportunities to share the good news of the gospel with them.  Keep praying at work, on your coffee break, on your lunch break, on your way to and from work.  In secret.  Keep praying, but don't require the world to pray.

If we reach the world with the gospel, they will pray and no one will have to tell them to.
This is a very condensed version of my thoughts on this subject.

~Tricia