Above and beyond the call of duty.

Merry Christmas everyone! It is truly my favorite time of the year. During this great season, I walk the razor's edge of emotions and it seems that everything touches my heart. I was doing some reading this morning and came across this great news piece about an NYPD officer who performed an incredible act of kindness. I quickly shared the article on Facebook, as I know several law enforcement officers and I knew the positive publicity would be encouraging. Unfortunately, in this day of cell phone videos and greedy lazy people looking for a way to make a name or get rich quick, the internet is full of stories about the "bad apples". One of my Facebook friends made the comment, "That is definitely an example of going above and beyond the call of duty." And I totally agree. I am so impressed by a law enforcement officer displaying such compassion for a citizen "down on his luck". I see it not as an act of professionalism, but as an act of humanity. 

Last Sunday I preached a sermon entitled, "A Heart for Humanity" and my mind is still filled with the spirit of that message. It was equally for me and my church. That being said, I could not help but be overwhelmed with this thought...That IS our call of duty. Sure, for this officer, it would definitely be an out-of-the-box approach to his job, that is, unless he has accepted Jesus Christ as his personal Savior. Frances Chan, author of Crazy Love, asks this question; "How would my life change if I actually thought of each person I came into contact with as Christ...?" He poses this question after referencing the scripture Matthew 25:45, "Inasmuch as ye did it not unto the least of these, ye did it not to me."

My call of duty as a born again believer is to give meat to the hungry, give drink to the thirsty, take in the stranger, clothe the naked, visit the sick and imprisoned, and last but not least, shoe the shoeless (my words, not scripture). My hat's off to officer Lawrence DePrimo, but for each of God's children this singular act of kindness should be an example of our lifestyle of compassion. 

The rite of passage

I have been silent for quite some time, blog-o-sphere wise. There has been so much to write about, but because it is all happening so fast, I haven't had a chance to sit down to type it out.

A month ago I embarked on one of the greatest journeys ever. I took my son away for several days on a camping trip and with a little help from Family Life Today, I walked him into the knowledge of manhood. My wife had taken the same journey with our two daughters, respectively, of course. My wife and I chose the age of eleven years old hoping to catch them before they had been exposed to a tainted message of maturity, but old enough for it all to be relevant.

Ricky crossing from tree to tree.

With our cabin booked at the KOA in Hagerstown, MD, we took off for three days and two nights of masculinity at its finest; fishing, cooking and eating a whole lot of meat, fire, and outdoor activity. Oh yeah, there was a pretty good bit of World Series baseball too. We didn't rough it too much. As I said, Family Life helped out greatly. All three of our children received "the talk" from Dennis and Barbara Rainey, and let me tell you, as uncomfortable as the whole situation can be, they made it significantly simpler. With their help, I was able to equip my son to navigate life's most difficult obstacles, even harder than this one at River Rider's aerial adventure park.

A couple things here. First of all, parents, you gotta do this. No matter how you found these things out, the best way for your young person to get this kind of information is straight from mom and/or dad. It IS awkward. It has the potential to be embarrassing. It is so much easier for them to just pick it up somewhere from a friend, or something. You gotta do this.  You've heard the adage, "If you want something done right, do it yourself." Trust me. You want this done right. This is responsibility at its highest level.

Doing some serious reading and thinking.

Also, don't feel like there is only one uncomfortable way to handle this. This time away was one of the greatest times I have ever had as a father. I heartily endorse the Passport to Purity materials. I was never sat down and given the low-down on the facts of life. I had nothing to draw from (aside from my own life now) and I am sure many, if not most, of you are in the same boat. Using this gave me the platform to communicate to my son all that was on my heart. It helped us both to open up, to be transparent and talk about some tough stuff. But now...what can't we talk about? Nothing. There is nothing off limits. We can talk about anything, especially now that we've taken on the mechanics and the biology of the birds and the bees.



 God has blessed me with tremendous family relationships. I am excited to say that the bond between my son and I has been strengthened 100-fold through the time that was intentionally given to dealing with some of life's most complicating things, manhood, purity, sexuality, and relating to the opposite sex. Don't dodge it. Take it head on. Make it something to celebrate. You'll be so glad you did.

Build a bridge and get over it.

Sorry for the sarcasm of the title. It's catching, though, isn't it?

Ephesians 5:20 Giving thanks always in all things unto God...

I have noticed an interesting contrast on Facebook this week. Nine days ago, many of my friends started expressing thankfulness for the manifold blessings in their life. It has been wonderful reading these and I appreciate the spirit of such an exercise. It is a great testimony of the grace of God at work in our life. 

At nearly the same time, a few days ago, many people, including some that are expressing thanks for some things in their life, are or have been engaged in murmuring, complaining, and even darkly prognosticating the future. This my friends is what James referred to as a fountain yielding fresh water and salt water. He goes on to say, "These things ought not so to be." 

Please consider the scriptural mandate in the life of a child of God...always in all things. 

Two things. First, if things truly do get worse, it is Bible prophecy being fulfilled and the coming of my Savior is ever nearer. The Bible is clear that everyone will turn their back on Israel. Secondly, remember Nineveh. They were bad from the king all the way down. One half hearted man of God, who finally obeyed God saw God turn that place around. What could have happened if the half hearted servant had been enthusiastically obedient? Let's find out. Let's serve God and trust God. Let's enthusiastically obey the Lord and let's just see if these have to be the last vestiges of freedom as we have known it. My freedom comes from the Son so I am free indeed.

And then I want to say to men of God who may be reading this, ministers, preachers, missionaries, and others in authority as you handle the word of God. I believe God's men ought to set the example. Paul gladly took that challenge upon himself with the Lord Jesus Christ as his pattern. Listen, the election is over. Romans 13:1 tells us that the powers that be are ordained of God. God's will was accomplished. Stop defending Him like He is a poor bullied student on a playground. Lead, exemplify, pray, and lead a peaceable life.

An Appropriate Response

Okay, I have probably spent too much time reading the post-election comments. I have even formulated and deleted some of my own. We are certainly free to our opinions and even the expression of them. (Not sure for how long.) Sadly, the caustic banter that was engaged in before the election seems to have deepened. I have dozens of thoughts that I would want to share, starting at the most elementary; Don't be a sore loser. (BTW, I lost too.) Instead, I want to share the most non-partisan, unbiased perspective of all, the Bible. The worst part about that is that, well, it comes down hardest on those that say they believe the Bible.

• Don't complain...Philippians 2:14, 15  Do all things without murmurings and disputings: That ye may be blameless and harmless, the sons of God, without rebuke, in the midst of a crooked and perverse nation, among whom ye shine as lights in the world; 
• Don't engage in "mud-slinging"...Romans 12:17  Recompense to no man evil for evil. Provide things honest in the sight of all men. 
• Pray for the leadership of America...I Timothy 2:1, 2  I exhort therefore, that, first of all, supplications, prayers, intercessions, and giving of thanks, be made for all men; For kings, and for all that are in authority; that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and honesty.
• Trust God...Psalm 25:2  O my God, I trust in thee: let me not be ashamed, let not mine enemies triumph over me. I have to comment here because all to many times we are quick to trust Him when it seems to be easy. That's really not trust. That is taking for granted. 

Notice how in each of the passages, our response directly affects the people around us because of the testimony of our living. We are forgetting a great truth. We ought to be letting our light shine so that others will see the difference in us and thereby see and glorify God. As is usually the case, we are fretting over things we cannot change. God never changes. Trust Him. Trust Him for today. Trust Him for the next four years. Trust Him for eternity. I have much to work on with this one, but it is the appropriate Perspective. 

I wish to leave you today with a prayer that has circulated on my Facebook page:

Lord, please be with our President. Give him guidance, wisdom, & direction as he leads our nation for the next four years. May he turn his heart to you. 

Nothing is too hard for You, as You have proven over and over throughout history. Bring revival to our country. Stir up our churches.

Jesus, before I try wishing for Mr. Obama to be what I want him to be, please start with me, and make me who I ought to be and the man, American, & most importantly, the Christian You want me to be. Amen. ~Mike Thompson~

A call to clergy...and everybody else

I would like to take a moment to appeal to every Pastor, Preacher, Evangelist, and Missionary. If you are standing in a pulpit anywhere this coming Lord's day, please urge God's people to vote, and vote with a Biblical worldview and then stand strong upon the word of God and preach that same Biblical worldview. We have a platform, a platform of truth. I do realize that we can't legislate morality 

in a free country such as ours, but I also realize the scriptural and spiritual responsibility of God's people. You cannot in good conscience vote in favor of or vote to promote wicked and anti-biblical behavior such as abortion, homosexuality (including same-sex unions, there is no such thing as same-sex marriage), increased gambling in your state, or anything/anybody that would increase the debt of this nation or state. Proverbs 11:14 says, "He that is surety for a stranger shall smart for it." Friends, you are surety for this national debt. The responsible party has defaulted and it rests on our shoulders and the shoulders of generations to come...and it smarts, meaning it hurts, and it hurts deeply.

Everybody, please vote. Don't let the polls or the media sway you from your freedom, right, and obligation to cast your ballot on or before Tuesday, November 6, 2012.