"I have decided to stick with love..." ~Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

The CHARACTER of a person matters!

Speaking The Truth of God Can Be Unpopular

Throughout history many of the people who have spoken the truth of God forcefully, faithfully and accurately have been very unpopular, for example, Isaiah, John the Baptist and, of course, even Jesus, Himself. All three were executed. That’s what happens when you get REALLY unpopular. There have been many others, of course, these are just a few.

Even in more modern times there have been people who have spoken for God and found it was an unpopular thing to do. The Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr., comes to mind.

The truth of God is often unpopular because it reminds people there is such a thing as “right” and “wrong” and the realization that we are doing something wrong is uncomfortable. Some people are unwilling to confront the fact they are doing something wrong so they become angry with the truth-teller as a way of denying the truth and coping with their discomfort.

In fact, the realization that we are doing something wrong can even make people feel threatened and fearful. When people feel threatened and fearful they can become quite dangerous to the truth-teller.

Because it can be very unpopular to speak the truth of God those of us who walk with God and take Him seriously will typically be tempted—somewhere along the way—not to speak the truth of God. I know this has been true for me on more than a few occasions.

I am writing this post to remind myself and challenge myself. Perhaps it will be a helpful and necessary reminder and challenge for you, too.

It is always best to be faithful to God. It is always right to be faithful to God. Even when it’s unpopular it is my desire—with His help—to faithfully speak the truth of God.

Committed To God's Will

“Like anybody, I would like to live a long life. Longevity has its place. But I'm not concerned about that now. I just want to do God's will.”  Martin Luther King, Jr. in a speech given the day before he was assassinated.

Pure Joy...A Day Off From School

Rachel came into the room where I was simultaneously reading and creating an online playlist of “Dan’s favorite” music.  (Yep, I REALLY know how to live it up, don’t I?  Later on, I’m planning to really kick up the level of excitement by laying face down on the floor and breathing.)

She asked, “Is tomorrow Martin Luther King day?”

I said, “Yes it is.”

Rachel looked at me with the most incredible expression of pure delight.  She had a huge smile lighting up her entire face.  I haven’t seen a look of such intense joy since the time I announced that I would be cutting my sermons down to 10 minutes.

Just to see what kind of reaction I would get—with great earnestness—I said, “So, you’ll have to be up bright and early for the school bus.  Martin Luther King day is a time of study and reflection on some of the important civil rights issues that impact our lives.  It will be a busy day at school tomorrow.” 

I watched expectantly for the response.

Nope.  That didn’t shake her.  Uh uh, the smile didn’t diminish even a little bit.  She raised a fist in the air and with great enthusiasm, she said, “No school!!!”

Even after all these years as a dad, it’s still interesting and amusing for me to see the unadulterated spectacle of joy that a day off from school brings.